nrjriE^ 
 
 Biographical Record 
 
 Livingston and Woodford Counties, 
 
 LLINOIS. 
 
 A people thai take no pride in the noble achievements of remote ancestors ii'ill never achieve 
 anything ■n.'orthy to be remembered with pride by remote generations.'^ — Macauley. 
 
 CHICAGO; 
 
 The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 
 
 1900.
 
 B57I 
 
 PREFACK. 
 
 ^ZyilriL^ greaiest oi rviigiisn nistonans, imacaulay, ana one ot me moi 
 
 >vi brilliant writers of the present century, has said : "The history of 
 
 ' country is best told in a record of the lives of its people." In cor 
 
 -V^^ 
 
 
 5;^^^^HE greatest of English historians, Macaulay, and one of the most 
 ^' 'The 
 
 people. " In con- 
 / tormity with this idea, the Biographical Record has been prepared. 
 (J Instead of going to musty records, and taking therefrom dry statistical 
 matter that can be appreciated by but few, our corps of writers have 
 gone to the people, the men and women who have, by their enterprise 
 and industry, brought this county to a rank second to none among 
 those comprising this great and noble State, and from their lips have the story of their life 
 struggles. No more interesting or instructive matter could be presented to an intelligent 
 public. In this volume will be found a record of many whose lives are worthy the imitation 
 of coming generations. It tells how some, commencing life in poverty, by industrj- and 
 economy have accumulated wealth. It tells how others, with limited advantages for securing 
 an education, have become learned men and women, with an influence extending throughout 
 the lengtli and breadth of the land. It tells of men who have risen from the lower walks of 
 life to eminence as statesmen, and whose names have become famous. It tells of those in 
 every walk in life who have striven to succeed, and records how that success has usuallv 
 crowned their efforts. It tells also of many, very many, who, not seeking the applause of the 
 world, have pursued the " even tenor of their way," content to have it said of them, as Christ 
 said of the woman performing a deed of mercy — " They nave done what they could." It 
 tells how many, in the pride and strength of young manhood, left the plow and the anvil, the 
 lawyer's office and the counting-room, left every trade and protession, and at their country's 
 call went forth valiantly " to do or die," and how through their efforts the Union was 
 restored and peace once more reigned in the land. In the life of every man and of every 
 woman is a lesson that should not be lost upon those who follow after'. 
 
 Coming generations will appreciate this volume and preserve it as a sucred treasure, from 
 the fact that it contains so much that would never find its way into public records, and which 
 would otherwise be inaccessible. Great care has been taken in the compilation of the work, 
 and every opportunity possible given to those represented to insure correctness in what has 
 been written ; and the publishers flatter themselves that they give to their readers a work with 
 few errors of consequence. In addition to biographical sketches, portraits of a number of 
 representative citizens are given. 
 
 The faces of some, and biographical sketches of many, will be missed in this volume. 
 For this the publishers are not to blame. Not having a proper conception of the work, some 
 relused to give the information necessary to compile a sketch, while others were indifferent. 
 Occasionally some member of the family would oppose the enterprise, and on account of such 
 opposition the support of the interested one would be withheld. In a few instances men 
 never could be found, though repeated calls were made at their residence or place of business. 
 
 October, 1900. 
 
 The S. J. Clarke Publishing Co,
 
 " Biograpriij is the onlij true histonj."— Emerson.
 
 GEORGE W. PATTON.
 
 BIOGRAPHICAL. 
 
 ox. GEORC.E W. 
 PATTOX. At the 
 present time it is sel- 
 dom that one wins 
 prominence in .se\- 
 eral lines. It is the 
 tendency of the age 
 to devote one's en- 
 tire energies to a special line, continually 
 working upward and concentrating his efforts 
 toward accomplishing a desired end ; yet in 
 the case of Judge Patton it is demonstrated 
 that an exalted position may be reached in 
 more than one line of action. He is an emi- 
 nent jurist, an able judge and a leader in 
 political circles. For several years he was 
 successfully engaged in the practice of law in 
 Pontiac, and is now serving as judge of tlie 
 eleventh judicial circuit. 
 
 The Judge is a native of Pennsylvania, 
 and during his infancy was brought to 
 Woodford county, Illinois, in 1851, by his 
 parents, Samuel R. and Jane (Haines) Pat- 
 ton, who were also natives of the Keystone 
 state. His paternal grandfather was Rev. 
 James Patton. and his great-grandfather. 
 Rev. John Patton, both of whom achieved 
 some local celebrity as Baptist ministers in 
 western Pennsvlvania.the latter having been 
 
 pastor of the church at Smithheld, Fay- 
 ette county, for thirty consecutive years, as 
 the inscription on his monument, erected by 
 his church, still attests. Judge Patton's ma- 
 ternal grandparents were John and Marga- 
 ret (Anderson) Haines, farming people of 
 western Pennsylvania. The latter was a 
 tlaughter of James Anderson, a native of 
 Ireland, who carried a musket for six years 
 in General Washington's arm)' during the 
 Revolutionary war. During their entire 
 residence in this state the parents of Judge 
 Patton made their home in Woodford coun- 
 ty, where the mother died in 1873, the father 
 in 1886. He was a Diemocrat in politics, a 
 successful farmer, a man of great industry, 
 indomitable will and strong common sense, 
 while the mother was a woman of keen wit,, 
 remarkable memory and forceful intellect. 
 
 Reared un the home farm in Woodfordl 
 county, Judge Patton attended the common 
 schaols of the neighborhood until twenty 
 years of age, and then took a three years' 
 course at Xormal, Illinois, completing the 
 same in 1871. During the following two 
 years he taught school in Secor and El Paso, 
 Woodford county, and with the money thus, 
 earned he commenced the study of law with 
 Hav, Green & Littler at Springfield, Illinois^
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and was admitted to the bar in 1875, being 
 a member of the same class as W. J. Cal- 
 houn, ex-Senator T. C. Kerrick and George 
 Torrance. Subsequently he again taught 
 school and engaged in other pursuits until 
 1 88 1, following farming for three years 
 to regain his health. In 1881 he com- 
 menced the practice of law at Fairbury. this 
 county, and two years later located in Pon- 
 tiac, where he formed a partnership with C. 
 C. Strawn, which was dissolved in 1888. Af- 
 ter that time he was alone and succeeded in 
 building up a large and lucrative practice. 
 On the 7th of June, 1897, he was elected one 
 of the judges of the eleventh judicial circuit, 
 composed of Livingston, Woodford, Ford, 
 McLean and Logan counties, and is now 
 most creditably tilling that office. His mind 
 is analytical, logical and inductive. With 
 a thorough and comprehensive knowledge of 
 the fundamental principles of law, he com- 
 bines a familiarity with statutory law and a 
 sober, clear judgment, which makes him 
 not only a formidable adversary in legal 
 combat, but has given him the distinction 
 of being one of the ablest jurists in this sec- 
 tion of the state. 
 
 Although reared in a Democratic at- 
 mosphere. Judge Patton has never voted 
 that ticket, but is a stanch Republican. He 
 was a member of the state central commit- 
 tee of his party from 1894 to 1896. He was 
 made a Mason at Fairbury, and is now a 
 member of Pontiac lodge, Xo. 294. F. & 
 A.M. ; Fairbury chapter, R. A. M. ; Chenoa 
 council, R. & S. M. ; and St. Paul com- 
 mandery, K. T., of Fairbury. He also be- 
 longs to the Odd Fellows lodge and en- 
 campment, and both he and his wife are 
 members of the Pontiac Methodist Episco- 
 pal church, in which he is serving as an offi- 
 cer. The Judge was married, September 
 
 20, 1877, to Miss Flo Cook, daughter of 
 James and Lucinda Cook, of Fairbury, and 
 they now have two children, Marie and 
 Proctor. 
 
 HAMILTON R. STEWART. 
 
 Hamilton R. Stewart, who for the last 
 fifteen years has successfully operated the 
 farm of B. M. Stoddard on section 8, Avoca 
 township, Livingston county, was born in 
 county Derry, Ireland, June 4, 1854, and is 
 the oldest cliild of W^illiam and Mary A. 
 (McLaughlin) Stewart, also natives of 
 county Derry, where the father successfully 
 engaged in farming from early manhooil un- 
 til his death in 1868. Subsequently his 
 widow came to America with her family of 
 five sons and one daughter, namely ; Ham- 
 ilton R., the subject of this sketch ; Joseph, 
 a farmer, who died in Iowa ; Samuel, a resi- 
 dent of Avoca township; William, a laborer 
 of Ogden, Iowa ; John, deceased ; and Han- 
 nah, wife of William Scott, who Ii\'es near 
 Rochelle, Ogle county, Illinois. On their 
 emigration to America the family located in 
 Lexington, Illinois, where they made their 
 liome for four years, and in 1872 moved to 
 La Salle county, where the following two 
 years were passed, coming to Livingston 
 county at the end of that time. While in 
 Lexington the mother married Thomas 
 Clinton, by whom she had one son, Thomas 
 F., now a school teacher in Swygart, Illinois. 
 Her second husband died in Livingston 
 county and she is now living with our sub- 
 ject at the age of sixty-seven years. 
 
 Hamilton R. Stewart commenced l^iis 
 education in the common schools of his na- 
 tive land, and after coming to America, at 
 the age of fourteen vears, attended school in
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Lexington, Illinois, for a short time. Be- 
 ii g the oldest of the family he had to go to 
 work on a farm that he might aid in their 
 support, and livetl at home until twenty - 
 two. While in La Salle county he worked 
 in a coal mine in Streator for two years. In 
 1876 he left home and was employed as a 
 farm hand about five years, at tlie end of 
 which time he rented land and embarketl in 
 farming on his own account. 
 
 In 1883 Mr. Stewart married Miss Jane 
 Blair, who was born in Tazewell county, 
 this state, in 1862. Her parents, William 
 and Mary (Gillian) Blair, both natives of 
 Ireland, located in Tazewell county on their 
 emigration to the L'nited States, and after 
 residing there for a few years moved to Mc- 
 Lean county, where they now make their 
 home. The father is a successful farmer. 
 In the fariiily were seven children, namely : 
 Thomas, a farmer of McLean county ; Jane. 
 wife of our subject : David, a prosperous 
 farmer of McLean county : Annie, wife of 
 11. Gillian, of the same comity: \\'iliiam. 
 also a resident of McLean county : and Lydia 
 and Addie. both at home. Of the nine chil- 
 dren born to Mr. and Mrs. Stewart, one died 
 if infancy. The others are as follows: 
 William J. and Mabel M.. who passed tlie 
 central schcwM examinations at the ages of 
 fifteen and thirteen years respectively, be- 
 ing the youngest who ever passed from their 
 school, and standing high in rank in a class of 
 forty: Minnie P.. Litta G.. Ira J.. Hamil- 
 ton G.. Geneveive and Morris M. The par- 
 ents are giving their cliildren the best ptjssi- 
 ble educational advantages. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Stewart located 
 en a farm in McLean county, where he suc- 
 cessfully engaged in general farming for two 
 years, and in 1885 mo^ed to the farm of two 
 hundred acres in Avoca township. Livings- 
 
 ton county, where he now resides. He is 
 a conscientious man, upright and honorable 
 in all his dealings, as is shown by his re- 
 maining on one farm so long. During his 
 residence here he lias been prc:)minently iden- 
 tified with local politics. He was justice of 
 the peace five years, school trustee si.x years 
 and asses.sor two years, being re-elected' for 
 a third term, and serving in each office to 
 the best of his ability and for the interests 
 of the people he represents. He is a man 
 who does not draw party lines in local af- 
 fairs, but supports those whom he believes 
 best qualified to fill the positions, regardless 
 of party affiliations. For. the past twelve 
 years in national elections he has sup])orted 
 the nominees of the Prohibition party and at 
 present is township committeeman of that 
 party. Socially he is a member of Fairbury 
 Cam|). Xo. 6. M. W. A., and religiously is 
 a member and active worker in the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal church and Sunday school, 
 serving as a member of the board of trustees 
 for the past fourteen years. He is a genial 
 gentleman, who is well liked by a large circle 
 of friends and acquaintances. 
 
 FREDERICK DUCKETT. 
 
 Success is determined by one's ability to 
 recognize opportunity, and to pursue this 
 with a resolute and unflagging energy. It 
 results from continued labor and the man 
 who thus accomplishes his purpose usually 
 becomes an important factor in the business 
 circles of the community with which he is 
 connected and also prominent in pulilic life. 
 Through such means Mr. Duckett has at- 
 tained a leading place among the representa- 
 tive men of Livingston county, which he is 
 now serving as county clerk.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 A son of Benjamin and Jane (Redmond) 
 Duckett, he was born November lo, 1840, 
 in W'edmore, Somersetshire, England, which 
 place has been the ancestral home of the 
 family for many generations. There the fa- 
 ther engaged in farming until his death, 
 which occurred when our subject was a boy 
 of five or six years. The mother was left 
 with six children, five sons and one daugh- 
 ter. She spent her entire life in her native 
 land and died in the faith of the Episcopal 
 church. Those of the family who came to 
 America were Francis, now a resident of Des 
 Moines, Iowa; Daniel, a physician, who died 
 ill Forrest, this county, in 1890; Sarah, wife 
 of Jesse Arney. of Kent, \\'^asliington ; and- 
 Frederick, our subject. The youngest son, 
 Gabriel, is a resident of Australia. 
 
 Frederick Duckett received a good prac- 
 tical education in the schools of his native 
 Isnd. In 1854, at the age of thirteen years, 
 he came alone to the United States and spent 
 two years in New York state, where he found 
 employment. In 1856 he came to Illinois 
 and first located in Henry. Marshall county, 
 working on a farm near thereuntil fall, when 
 he went to Peoria county and obtained a 
 position, where he worked for his board with 
 the privilege of attending school. He re- 
 mained in that county until the Civil war 
 broke out and in the spring of 1862 enlisted 
 in Company K. Eleventh Illinois Cavalry. 
 Going immediately to the front, he joined 
 his regiment at Memphis, Telinessee,-''and 
 was first under fire at Lexington, that' state. 
 He took part in the second battle of Corinth 
 and the siege of \'icksburg, and remained 
 ir. active service until mustered out Septem- 
 ber 30, 1865, being never off duty a single 
 day. He was serving as second lieutenant 
 at the time of his discharge. Returning to 
 I'eoria county he remained there until 1867, 
 
 when he removed to Forrest, Livingston 
 county, and entered in the drug business with 
 his brother. Later he became sole proprietor 
 of the store, and though he began in a small 
 way he carried a large and well-selected 
 Slock and had built up an excellent trade at 
 the time of disposing of his business. 
 
 On the 19th of February, 1866, Mr. 
 Duckett married Miss Mary E. Munhall. 
 of Peoria county, a daughter of Samuel 
 ^lunhall, and to them have been born six 
 children : Jeanette, now the wife of H. C. 
 Amsbury, of Wellsville New York; Arthur 
 F., who married Grace Still well and resides 
 ir- Forrest ; Jesse, now ser\-ing as deputv 
 county clerk under his father; Nellie M. ; 
 Mabel M., wife of Everett Tate, of Pontiac; 
 and Aldine, at home.. 
 
 Mr. Duckett attends and supports th.e 
 Methodist Episcopal church, of which his 
 wife is a member. He is a very active and 
 prominent member of several civic societies, 
 Vvas one of the organizers of Forrest Post, 
 G. A. R., and served as its first commander. 
 He has represented it in the state encamp- 
 ment several times and was a memljcr of the 
 commander's staff one year. He was a 
 charter member of Forrest lodge. No. 614, 
 F. & A. M., of which he was master about 
 ten years, and is now a member of Pontiac 
 lodge. No. 294, F. & A. M., of which he has 
 been secretary, while at present he is high 
 priest of Pontiac chapter, R. A. !M.. and 
 past commander of St. Paul Commandery, 
 K. T., of Fairbury. He also belongs to 
 Chenoa Council. R. & S. M., of Forrest 
 lodge, K. P., of which he is past chancellor, 
 and the Modern Woodmen of America, of 
 which he is past venerable consul. 
 
 Since attaining his majority Mr. Duckett 
 has been an active Republican. He served 
 as collector of his township several terms
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 13 
 
 and was a member of the township board at 
 different times. In 1894 he was elected 
 county clerk by a gf6od majority and after 
 filling that office for four years was renom- 
 mated by acclamation in 1898 and elected 
 b}- an increasing majority, which sjieaks \^■ell 
 for the estimation in which he is held by the 
 people of the county, who recognize his abil- 
 ity and iitncss for the office. His present 
 term will not expire until December, 1902. 
 As a citizen he has always been found true 
 to every trust rei)osed in him. so that his 
 loyalty is above question, being manifest in 
 days of ])eace as well as when he folUnved 
 the old flag to victory on southern battle 
 fields. Since he entered upon the duties of 
 liis present office he has made his home in 
 Pontiac. 
 
 JAMES P. DAHL. 
 
 James P. Dahl, who is successfully en- 
 g-aged in farming on section 3.Eppards Point 
 township. Livingston county. Illinois, two 
 miles from Pontiac. is a native of Denmark, 
 born on the P.altic Sea March 24. 1839. and 
 i.- a son of Lars P. and Christina ( Peter- 
 son) Dahl, who s]ient their entire li\cs as 
 farming jjcople in that country. 
 
 Our subject was reared on a fruin and 
 educated in the common schools of his na- 
 tive land. His knowledge of the English, 
 language has been acquired through his own 
 imaided efforts. It was in i860 that he 
 crossed the broad .\tlantic. sailing from 
 Liver])ofil, England, tt) \ew York, and land- 
 ing in the latter city on the 25th of May, 
 that year. He came direct to La Salle coun- 
 .t)', Illinois, where he had friends living. 
 and where he worked on a farm by the 
 month for some time. Later he was similarlv 
 
 employed in Putnam county for five vears, 
 and from there went to Peru. Illinois, where 
 he formed a partnership with his brother-in- 
 law, John Dixon, and engaged in fruit grow- 
 ing and the milk and dairy business for nine 
 }ears, selling out on coming to this countv. 
 
 On the 10th of A])ril. 1877. in Peru. Mr. 
 Dahl married Miss Lydia Jensen, a native 
 of Copenhagen, Deimiark, and a daughter 
 of Paul and Louisa (Otto) Jensen, who were 
 also born in that country. The father was 
 a business man of Co])enhagen. ]\Irs. Dahl 
 was well educated in the schools oi that city 
 and came to the new world in 1875. To our 
 subject and his wife have been born six chil- 
 dren, of whom four are living, namelv : 
 .\nna is a well educated young lady, who is 
 now successfully engaged in teaching music 
 and also serves as organist of the McDowell 
 Methodist Episcopal church: William assists 
 liis father in the operation of the farm ; and 
 Joseph and Clinton are also at home. Carrie 
 died at the age of ten years: ]\lary. at the 
 age of six months. 
 
 The day after their marriage Mr. and 
 Mrs. Dahl came to Livingston county and he 
 ]iurchased eightv-four acres of land on sec- 
 l.on 3. Eppards Point township, where he 
 now resides, anfl has since bonglil forty 
 acres m'ore, making a fine farm of one hun- 
 dred and twentv-four acres, which he has 
 tiled and jjlaced under a high state of cul- 
 ti\-ation. He has remodeled the house, 
 planted an orchard, erected outbuildings and 
 made many other useful and valuable im- 
 pro\ements on the place which add greatly 
 t(, its attractive appearance. He is quite suc- 
 cessfully engaged in general farming and 
 slock raising. Originally he was a Repub- 
 licrm in politics, but is now a Prohibitionist, 
 and at l(ical elections votes for the men whom 
 he believes best qualified to fill the offices,
 
 14 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 regardless of party affiliations. He is now 
 an efficient member of the school board and 
 president of his district. Religiously -Mr. 
 Dahl and his family are members of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church of McDowell 
 and are highly respected and esteemed by 
 ai; who know them. 
 
 JAMES H. GAFF. 
 
 James H. Gaff, a prominent old resident 
 of Pontiac, Illinois, who is now serving as 
 justice of the peace and deputy sheriff of 
 Livingston county, was born in Xenia, 
 Greene county, Ohio, March 23, 1827, a son 
 of David M. and Hannah (Mock) Gaff. 
 His paternal grandparents were John and 
 Martha ( Scott ) Gaff, natives of Pennsyl- 
 vania and Maryland respectively, the birth 
 place of the former being not far from Get- 
 tysburg and Hagerstown.. They were of 
 Scotch-Irish descent and members of the old 
 Covenanter church. The maternal grand- 
 parents were John and Mary (Homey), 
 natives of Xorth Carolina.' In 1801 they 
 remo\-ed from that state to Xenia, Ohio, in 
 a one-horse wagon, resting always on the 
 Sabbath day during the journey. Mr. Alock 
 helped build the first house ever erected in 
 Xenia and owned one hvmdred acres of heav- 
 ily timbered land about five miles south of 
 where that city now stands. This he cleared 
 and transformed into a good farm. Lea\'- 
 ing his family and several children at home, 
 he enlisted in the war of 18 12, and was sta- 
 tioned at McPherson's block house on the 
 line between Indiana and Ohio. He and 
 his wife spent their last days upon a farm 
 Avhich he improved in Fayette county, Ohio. 
 She was of Ouaker descent and was a dausfh- 
 
 ter of James Horney, who had charge of the 
 train of seventeen wagons in which the Mock 
 family moved to Ohio from Xorth Carolina. 
 They became members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church and old Peter Cartwright 
 preached in their house. 
 
 David M. Gaff, the father of our subject, 
 was born in Maryland near the Pennsylvania 
 hue. and was a young man when the family 
 moved to Xenia, Ohio, where he married 
 Hannah Mock, a native of Ohio. He fol- 
 lowed farming, but died at the early age of 
 twenty-seven years, being accidentally killed 
 Ixlarch 2~, 183 1. when our subject was only 
 four years old, leaving his widow with three 
 small children to support. This she did bv 
 engaging in weaving. Later she married 
 John Calhoun and mo\'ed to Montgomery 
 county, Ohio, locating six miles south of 
 Dayton, where the family lived until about 
 1857, when they came to Illinois and settled, 
 near Decatur, Macon county. Mr. Calhoun 
 died in Decatur in 1866 and his wife died 
 near Bloomington, this state, in 1892, at the 
 age of eighty-five years. At an early day John 
 Gaff, our suliject's paternal grandfather, who 
 was also a soldier of the war of 18 12, floated 
 down the Ohio river on a flat boat to Cin- 
 cinnati, and from there drove across the 
 country to Xenia, where in the midst of the 
 forest he commenced to develop a farm, 
 which was to have been inherited by our 
 subject's father had he not been killed so 
 early in life. 
 
 Just before he attained his eighth year 
 James H. Gaft'. our subject, went to live with 
 an uncle, with whom he remained for four 
 3"ears. and then made his home with his 
 grandfather j\Iock. Lentil eighteen years old 
 ht attended school not to exceed thirty days 
 a year, his first books being an elementary 
 speller and testament, which were later sup-
 
 THE BIOGRArmCAL RECORD. 
 
 15 
 
 Ijlemented by the American reader and 
 Smith's aritlimetic. The sclux)l house wiierc 
 he pursued his studies was a primitive struc- 
 ture built of logs, with puncheon floor and 
 seats and greased paper windows, and the 
 little room often had to accommodate forty 
 pu])ils. 
 
 After leaving scliool at tlie age of eiglit- 
 een years Mr. GafT learned the blacksmith's 
 trade in Teffersonville. serving a three-year-; 
 apprenticeship, and then working as a jour- 
 neyman at that place for a time. \\'hile there 
 he was married. December ^3. 1850. to Miss 
 Catherine Powell, a native of Fayette coun- 
 ty. Ohio, and a daughter of Harper Powell, 
 a farmer. They have one child, Ann E., 
 now the wife of Charles Tanquary, of Chi- 
 cago, by whom she has a daughter. Helen G. 
 
 On leaving Jefferson ville, Ohio, in tlie 
 fall of 185 1. Mr. Gaff moved to what is now 
 Cooksville. McLean county. Illinois, where 
 he hfiught eighty acres of land and com- 
 menced breaking prairie with an ox team. 
 In 18^4 he moved to Pleasant Hill and 
 opened a blacksmith shop, which he cnn- 
 ductcd for five years and then sold. Coming 
 to Pontiac he was here engaged in general 
 blacksmithing until after the Civil war 
 broke out. 
 
 In the fall of iSfij Mr. Gaff enlisted in 
 C<impany G, One Hundred and Twenty- 
 ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry and first 
 went to Louisville, Kentucky. He was at 
 the engagements at Bowling Green, Gallatin 
 and Nashville and later started on the Chat- 
 tanooga and .\tlanta campaign, his regi- 
 ment being one of the first to enter Atlanta 
 after the evacuation. They were on the left 
 wing of the army in the march to the sea 
 and up through the Carolinas to Goldsboro 
 and Raleigh. The war having ended they 
 continued their march through Richmond to 
 
 \\'ashington, D. C, where they participated 
 ill the grand review. They were mustered 
 out at Washington June 8, 1865, and dis- 
 charged at Chicago on the 21st of that 
 month. Mr. GafY had four half-brothers and 
 one step-brother in the service, not one of 
 whom was ill or wounded while in the army, 
 although their aggregate service amounted 
 to over nineteen years. 
 
 Returning to his home in Pontiac, Mr. 
 Gaff resumed blacksmithing. at which he 
 worked until the fall of 1866, when he was 
 elected sheriff of the county for a term of 
 two years, and the folUnving two years 
 served as deputy sheriff, having charge of 
 the office for his successor. After clerking 
 i:i a store for one year he again opened .t 
 Ijlacksmith shop and built up an extensive 
 l<usiness. furnishing employment to four 
 men. During President Hayes' administra- 
 f.on he was appointed postmaster, having 
 always been an active Repulilican and chair- 
 man of the central committee during the 
 Hayes campaign. He had previously filled 
 the office of assessor for a number of terms. 
 While serving as postmaster the jxjstage on 
 a letter was reduced from three to two cents, 
 which naturally affected the re\enue of the 
 ofiice. He was reappointed by President 
 Arthur and for eight years devoted his time 
 exclusively to the dutie s of his position. 
 Later he spent a year and a half in Kansas, 
 returning to Pontiac in 1890. He has served 
 as constable four years, justice of the peace 
 three years and deputy sheriff since 1891, 
 liaving charge of the circuit court. His 
 official duties have always been discharged 
 in a prompt and able miumer. wh-'ch has 
 won the commendation of all concerned. 
 
 Mr. Gaff is one of the oldest members of 
 T. Tyle Dickey Post, No. 105. G. A. R.. 
 and has servetl as its commander. He
 
 i6 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 is one of tlie oldest Masons lielonging to 
 Pontiac lodge, No. 294. F. & A. M., 
 and is a member of Fairbury Chapter, 
 R. A. ]\I. For forty years he and his 
 ^vife have held membership in the ]\Ieth- 
 odist Episcopal chnrch and dnring that 
 entire time he has served as steward or in 
 other official positions. He has also been 
 class leader for some time and takes an acti\e 
 and prominent part in church work. Dur- 
 ing the long years of his residence in Liv- 
 ingston county he has been one of its most 
 influential and popular citizens — a man hon- 
 ored and respected wherever known. 
 
 GEORGE TORRANXE. 
 
 Whatever else may be said of the legal 
 fraternity, it cannot be denied that mem- 
 bers of the bar have been more important 
 actors in public affairs than any other class 
 of the American people. This is but the 
 natural result of causes which are manifest 
 and require no explanation. The ability 
 and training which qualify one to practice 
 law also Cjualify him in many respects for 
 duties which lie outside the strict path of 
 his profession and which touch the general 
 interests of society. The subject of this 
 record is a man who has brought his keen 
 discrimination and thorough wisdom to 
 bear not alone in professional paths, but also 
 for the benefit of"-his fellow citizens and the 
 community in which he lives. He is now 
 most efficiently and satisfactorily serving as 
 superintendent of the Illinois state reform- 
 atory at Pontiac. 
 
 Mr. Torrance was born in Lancaster, 
 Ohio, May 15, 1847, a son of David and 
 Sarah (Kerns) Torrance, both natiN'es of 
 
 Penns}'lvania, and the former of Scotch- 
 Irish and the latter of German descent. The 
 parents removed from their native state to 
 Lancaster, Ohio, and in 1863 came to Illi- 
 nois, locating in Danville. Vermilion county, 
 where for some time the father engaged in 
 business as a contractor and builder, being a 
 carpenter by trade. He died in that city. 
 While a resident of Ohio he took quite an 
 interest in educational affairs, and always 
 attended and supported the Pi'esbyterian 
 church, though not a member. His wife 
 still survives him and continues to make 
 her home in Pontiac. 
 
 During his boyhood George Torrance 
 attended the common schools of his birth- 
 place. He removed with the family to Dan- 
 ville, Illinois, and there enlisted, in 1864, in 
 Company E, One Hundred and Forty-ninth 
 Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He was with 
 his command in Tennessee, Georgia and Ala- 
 bama. He remained in the service until 
 the close of the war, being mustered out at 
 Dalton, Georgia, and discharged at Camp 
 Butler, Illinois. At the age of twenty 
 }ears I\Ir. Torrance began his business ca- 
 reer as clerk in a grocery store, and was 
 later in the United States express office and 
 a clothing store of Danville. He came to 
 Chatsworth, this county, as a dry-goods 
 clerk, and held that position for some time, 
 after which he was employed as a commer- 
 cial traveler. He served as justice of the 
 peace and read law with the firm of Fosdick 
 & AVallace, the latter being now Judge Wal- 
 lace, of Pontiac. Later he studied for a 
 time with A. M. \\'yman, and was admitted 
 to practice by examination January 9, 1875. 
 He was engaged in practice at Chatsworth 
 until the spring of 1881, when he came to 
 Pontiac. Here he began practice alone, but 
 later was in partnership with R. S. Mclll-
 
 GEORGE TORRANCE.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 19 
 
 <luf. as a member of the firm of Mclllduf & 
 Torrance, and when that was dissolved he 
 • was alone for some years. Subsequently 
 he was engaged in practice with his son im- 
 der the firm name of Torrance & Torrance. 
 He would never accept criminal cases, but 
 as a civil lawyer met with most excellent 
 success in his chosen profession. 
 
 On the 9th of June, 1869, Mr. Torrance 
 was united in marriage with Miss Eliza M. 
 Fenn, of Chatsworth, a daughter of Elam P. 
 Fenn, a farmer, from Connecticut, and to 
 ihem have been born two children : Herbert 
 E., now an attorney of P'ontiac; and Grace 
 Tren. Tlie family attend the Presbyterian 
 churcli. of which Mrs. Torrance is a mem- 
 ber. 
 
 As a Republican Mr. Torrance has 
 taken an active and influential part in po- 
 litical affairs, and has been chairman of the 
 county committee. In the fall of 1880 he 
 was elected to the state senate and served 
 two terms of four years each with credit to 
 himself and to the entire satisfaction of his 
 constituents. During this time he was one 
 of the one hundred and three who helped to 
 elect General Logan to the United States 
 senate. 
 
 Mr. Torrence was appointed superin- 
 tendent of the Illinois State Reformatory, 
 March i, 1897. Realizing that if it was 
 to properly perform the work designed for 
 it many changes must be made in its build- 
 ings, schools, etc., he immediately began his 
 labors along that line. This institution, 
 with the great outlay of money necessary to 
 its building, and the wants of fifteen hun- 
 dred inmates to look after, including their 
 schooling and discipline, would be a tax 
 upon the strength of any man, but with this 
 additional work has been a heavy burden, 
 which he has borne with wonderful forti- 
 
 tutle. Though critised and condemned at 
 times, he has never faltered, but patiently 
 awaited the time which he felt sure must 
 come when his work would meet with pub- 
 lic approval. It has now arrived and the 
 discipline of the inmates, the success of its 
 trade and common school work, and the 
 beauty of the grounds are generally com- 
 mentled and the institution is recognized as 
 among the most successful of its kind in the 
 world. Mr. Torrance has been told that 
 he expected to leave the institution as a 
 monument to his work in this state, and if 
 gi\en time would place it in such a position 
 tiiat it could not be surpassed by any other 
 in the near future. That he has succeeded 
 is now conceded and his former critics are 
 loud in his praise, and the doubting yet hope- 
 ful friends jubilant over his success. 
 
 The discipline is excellent, yet without 
 apparent severity. Tiiere seems to be a hope- 
 ful, contented air permeating the whole in- 
 stitution, and he has not elsewhere and prob- 
 ably never will have better friends than can 
 be found among the boys in his custody. 
 They speak kindly of him, are very respect- 
 ful to him and obey his requests or com- 
 mands as cheerfully as if he was paying 
 them salaries. One by one the former modes 
 of punishment have been abolished until the 
 shackle, hand-cuff, ball line, solitary, etc., 
 are relegated to the things that were. Pa- 
 rade and assembly grounds have been ar- 
 ranged, fine lawns, cement walks and flower 
 l)eds constructed, until tiie mner yard is a 
 beautiful park, the admiration of all that 
 see it. Great attention has been paid by 
 him to the training of inmates in both in- 
 strumental and vocal music until the insti- 
 tution has one of the best bands in the state. 
 A military organization has lieen perfected, 
 and it is unsurpassed anywhere, outside of
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 West Point. To insiruct tlie inmates he 
 has about twenty-two common and twenty- 
 live trade schools, classes in ethics, Sunday 
 school, chapel services, lectures, concerts 
 and entertainments of various kinds. 
 
 With him the work is not performed for 
 the salary alone ; it has become a work into 
 which he throws his entire energy and 
 ability. A visit to the institution is very 
 instructive and interesting, and hundreds 
 inspect it e\'ery week, as many as fifteen hun- 
 dred being conducted through it in one 
 week last summer. In the handling of hun- 
 dreds of thousands of dollars, the making 
 and looking after many contracts with build- 
 ers, machinists and plumbers, not one word 
 of scandal has ever been heard, not a dif- 
 ference ever existed but has been adjusted 
 without discord. The same is true in re- 
 gard to his officers ; differences often exist, 
 but under his direction they are harmonized 
 t)r he takes hold with a firm hand and set- 
 tles them beyond further controversy. One 
 employe said : "T have worked at other 
 institutions and found much trouble among 
 the officers always existing. This one runs 
 without friction.'" As an organizer and di- 
 rector, he is unsurpassed. He possesses ex- 
 ecutive ability of a high order, has had great 
 experience in public matters, is an excellent 
 lawyer, an extensive reader and possesses a 
 brain that works rapidly. Probably no man 
 in the state is required to promptly pass 
 upon so many matters embracing all the 
 lines of industry and education as he is, or 
 that could do so with less deliberation. 
 
 For nearly six years Mr. Torrance has 
 been officially connected witli the high school 
 of Pontiac, and was president of the board 
 almost five years, during which time the 
 school was opened and raised to its present 
 high standing among similar institutions in 
 
 the state. Other official honors would have 
 been conferred upon him had he not de- 
 clined, refusing to allow his name to go far- 
 ther on the party ticket. Upright, reliable 
 and honorable, his strict adherence to prin- 
 ciple commands the respect of all, and as a 
 pleasant, affable gentleman he makes many 
 friends. 
 
 JOHN K. OLESON. 
 
 John K. Oleson, who resides on section 
 8, Pontiac township, is one of the success- 
 ful farmers of Livingston countv. He is 
 a native of Norway and was born June 20, 
 1 83 1, just sixty-nine years from the day the 
 notes for this sketch were taken. He grew 
 to manhood on a farm in his native country 
 and until about thirteen years old attended 
 the parochial schools. He then had to begin 
 making his own living and engaged in farm 
 labor. 
 
 The life of a poor man in Norway is 
 not one for envy, and the opportunity for 
 advancement is not such as is afforded in 
 the L'nited States. Realizing this fact, Mr. 
 Oleson determined to emigrate to this coun- 
 try, and accordingly, in 1858, he took pas- 
 sage in a sailing vessel, crossed the Atlantic, 
 and landed in Quebec. From that city he 
 came west to Chicago, and from there to 
 La Salle county. Illinois, where he com- 
 menced work on a farm by the month, and 
 continued to be thus employed for several 
 years, saving as much of his wages as possi- 
 ble. 
 
 \Miile yet living in La Salle county, Mr. 
 Oleson was united in marriage with Miss 
 Elsie Olson, by which union two children 
 were born. Ole R., the eldest is now mar- 
 ried and has one son. He is enaged in farm-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ing in Livingston county. Emma is the wife 
 of Ole Knudson and they have four sons. 
 
 In 1870 Mr. Oleson came to Livingston 
 county and purchased a farm of eighty acres 
 and also rented a place on which was an old 
 log house. The place had formerly heen 
 worked, but when he obtained possession it 
 had mostly grown up to grass and weeds 
 and only about fifteen acres was fenced. 
 Life in Livingston county was commenced 
 under very discouraging circumstances, but 
 he had grit and determination, and the un- 
 sightly weeds soon disappeared and the land 
 was placed under cultivation. A small house 
 was first erected, which in due time, gave 
 place to a larger and better one, and the 
 area of the farm was increased until the 
 farm now comprises two hundred and twenty 
 acres, all of which is under cultivation and 
 the land tilled and well drained throughout. 
 
 Politically Mr. Oleson is a Republican, 
 with which party he has been identified since 
 coming to this country. On his arrival the 
 slavery question was being agitated and the 
 country was almost in the midst of the throes 
 of a revolution. Lincoln and Douglas were 
 holding their great debate, and the young 
 Norwegian naturally took his place on the 
 side of those who were fighting for freedom. 
 His first presidential vote was cast in 1864 
 for Abraham Lincoln, while his last was 
 cast for William McKinley. He was reared 
 in the Lutheran faith and is yet a member of 
 that church. His wife is also a member of 
 the same church. 
 
 Mr. Oleson was a poor man when he 
 came to the United States, and for several 
 years he had a hard struggle to obtain a 
 foothold, but he persevered, with the result 
 that he now has one of the best improved 
 farms in Pontiac township, within three 
 miles of the countv seat, and he can calmlv 
 
 look the future in the face, knowing that he 
 has sufficient to carry him through old age 
 in comfort, if not in luxury. His forty-two 
 years in this country have served to broaden 
 his views and to make him progressive and 
 thoroughlv American in all things. All who 
 know him have for him the utmost respect.- 
 
 JOEL ALLEX. M. D. 
 
 Joel Allen. M. D.. a prominent and suc- 
 cessful physician of Pontiac, Illinois, is a 
 native of this state, born on his father's farm 
 in Jefiferson county. Xovember 13, 1827. and 
 is a son of Abel and Prudence ( Wilkey) 
 Allen, naties of Kentucky and Georgia, re- 
 spectively. His paternal grandfather, James 
 Allen was born in Virginia, and wiien quite 
 young moved to Kentucky, where he en- 
 gaged in farming for some years, coming 
 to Illinois about 1819. locating in Jefiferson 
 county, where he spent the remainder of his 
 life, dying about 1830. The Doctor's father, 
 who was a prosperous farmer, lived in his 
 native state until about thirty-five years of 
 age, when he came to Illinois and settled in 
 Jefferson county, where he continued to fol- 
 low his chosen occu])ation until his death, 
 which occurred at his home March 29, 1869, 
 at the aee of seventy- four years. His wife 
 survived him about six years and died on 
 the old homestead in Jefferson county, June 
 3, 1875. For a quarter of a century she 
 was a great invalid and for the last ten years 
 of her life was also entirely helpless, requir- 
 ing much care and attention. The Doctor 
 has one brother in this county. Christopher 
 Columbus Allen, a farmer of Pontiac town- 
 ship. 
 
 Dr. .Mien obtained h's early education 
 in the district schools of Jefferson county.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and assisted his father with tlie farm wiirk 
 until twenty-two years of age. He had a 
 great fondness for tlie study of medicine 
 and for some time read witli his uncle, Dr. 
 Carter Wilkey. with a view of fitting himself 
 for the medical profession. 
 
 On the 14th of Novemher, 1849, Dr. 
 Allen was united in marriage with Aliss 
 Martha Trowhridge. a daughter of Philo 
 and Martha Trowbridge of Jefferson county, 
 AA'here her father was successfully engaged 
 in farming until his deatli, about 1855. By 
 this union were four children, all of whom 
 are li\ing. namely: Hardin A., liorn in Jef- 
 ferson county, wedded Mary Kinnehan, of 
 Livingston county, and is now a pa\-ement 
 and concrete walk contractor of Streator, 
 Illinois ; Lydia A. is the wife of A. C. Scott, 
 <i prominent farmer of Eppard's Point town- 
 ship, Livingston county ; Laura is the wife of 
 T. C. Taylor, a dealer in hardware and ag- 
 ricultural implements of Pendleton Oregon ; 
 and J. Brown married Lizzie Labourn and 
 is a street car conductor of Den\er, Colo- 
 rado. 
 
 After his marriage Dr. Allen continued 
 farming for some years in Jefferson county 
 and then went to Lincoln, Logan county, 
 where he was engaged in the manufacture 
 of brick until the death of his wife, which 
 occurred January 15, 1858. He then came 
 to Livingston county and again took up 
 farming, at the same time continuing his 
 medical studies, being thus employed until 
 the outbreak of the Civil war. He was again 
 luarried, December 6, i860, his second union 
 being with Emily Tromh', by whom he had 
 two children : Gertrude, born in La Salle 
 county, August 2^. 1861. resides at home, 
 and Jessie P., born in this county, July 17, 
 1866, is the wife of Robert Harms, a farmer 
 of Rock Island, Illinois. 
 
 In August, 1862, Dr. Allen enlisted at 
 ]\linonk, Woodford county, in Company H, 
 Seventy-seventh Illinois Volunteer Infantry, 
 as hospital steward and remained in the serv- 
 ice three years, having charge of his regi- 
 ment as physician and surgeon the last two 
 years. He was serving as second assistant 
 surgeon at the time he was mustered out 
 with his regiment at Mobile, July 25, 1865. 
 They participated in sixteen battles, the first 
 being at Chickasaw Bluft', in the rear of 
 Yicksburg, and for forty days was m the 
 siege of Vicksburg. The following winter 
 was passed in New Orleans and in the spring 
 the command took Fort Gaines on Mobile 
 Bay, also Spanish Fort and Fort Blakeley. 
 
 After the close of the war Dr. Allen re- 
 turned to Livingston county. While in New 
 Orleans he took a course of medical lectures 
 and on his return, as a representative of the 
 Pxlectic School of Medicine, he commenced 
 practice in this county, and was not long 
 ni securing a liberal patronage. In the fall of 
 1882 he moved to Graymont, where he en- 
 gaged in practice and also conducted a drug 
 store until coming to Pontiac, in October, 
 1888. He has his office at his handsome 
 residence. No. 307 East North street, and 
 although well advanced in years continues 
 to engage hx active practice. 
 
 For his third wife Dr. Allen married 
 Mrs. Mary Hallam, of Livingston county, 
 a daughter of James Carson, a farmer of this 
 county, now deceased. She died in Pontiac, 
 December 5, 1888, leaving no children. On 
 the 1 2th of November, 1889, in Pontiac, 
 the Doctor married ]\Irs. Addie E. Pound, 
 oldest daughter of John S. and Eunice 
 (Packer) Lee. The father, a native of 
 Connecticut, and a blacksmith by trade, 
 came to Illinois in 1857 and settled at Pleas- 
 ant Ridge, near Lexington, where he fol-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 23 
 
 lowed his trade for two years, and tlien 
 came to Pontiac. He now makes his home 
 with the Doctor and his wife, Mrs. Lee 
 having died at her home in Pontiac in 1896. 
 They had tliree cliildren besides Mrs. Allen, 
 namely: Hattie, wife of Josepli Roggy, a 
 farmer of Nebraska ; Frank P., who is em- 
 ployed in a pork packing establishment in 
 Chicago, and Charles, agent on the Ilinois 
 Central Railroad at Riverdale, Illinois. 
 
 Mrs. Allen was born in Connecticut. De- 
 cember 24, 1850, and was seven years of age 
 when she came to this state with her par- 
 ents. She is a lady of refinement, iiighly 
 educated, and after the death of her first 
 husband she was, for a number of years, 
 successfully engaged in teaching in the dis- 
 trict schools of this county, and for a period 
 pf eight years in the public schools of Pon- 
 tiac. Her first husband was Joseph Pound, 
 a farmer living near McDowell, Livingston 
 county, by whom she had two children, Mary 
 and Alfred, both now deceased. The Doc- 
 tor and Mrs. Allen have one child. Wayne 
 Lee, who was born in Pontiac, May 10, 1892. 
 Li his political views Dr. Allen is a Republi- 
 can, but has never sought or desired public 
 office, preferring to devote his entire time and 
 attention to his professional duties. He is 
 a member of the Methodist church of Pon- 
 tiac, and is honored and respected l)y all 
 who know him. Mrs. Allen is also a mem- 
 ber of the Metliodist Episopal church. 
 
 REV. E. F. WRIGHT. 
 
 Rev. E. F. Wright, who for six years 
 has been the beloved pastor of the Congre- 
 gational church at Dwight. Illinois, was 
 born July 21, 1842, in Shoreham, \'ermont, 
 
 adjoining Whiting, where Senator Sawyer 
 was born. His paternal grandfather was 
 Andrew Wright, a native of Connecticut, 
 and a soldier of the Revolutionary war, who 
 after that struggle migrated to Shoreham, 
 \ ermont. and took up a large tract of land. 
 He was married twice and reared a large 
 tamily. The youngest of his children by the 
 second marriage was Samuel Wright, our 
 subject's father, who in early life followed 
 the sea, sailing first on a whaling vessel and 
 later on a merchantman. After giving up 
 the sea he made his home in \'ermont for 
 some time, but spent the last three years of 
 his life in Jackson county, Michigan, where 
 he died when our subject was only four 
 }ears old. He was twice married, but his 
 first wife died young, leaving no children. 
 His second wife was Minerva Knowlton, a 
 native of New York state, by whom he had 
 three children, namely: E. F., our subject; 
 Florence, wife of C. W. Piatt, of North 
 Adams, Massachusetts; and Charles T., a 
 resident of Crow Point, New York. The 
 motlier survived her husband many years, 
 dying in Rutland, \'ermont. 
 
 Our subject was reared by his father's 
 sister and her husband, Mr. and Mrs. Lu- 
 cius Robison, and his early education was 
 acquired in the district schools of Vermont, 
 which he attended during the winter months. 
 He was eighteen years of age when tiie civil 
 war broke out and was one of the first from 
 his state to enlist, joining Company K, Sec- 
 ond Vermont Volunteer Infantry, May 17, 
 1861. He was mustered into the United 
 States service at Burlington, and in June 
 went to the front, participating in his first 
 battle — that of Bull Run — on the nineteenth 
 anniversary of his birth, July 21, 1861. His 
 regiment was in the Peninsular campaign, 
 the siege of Yorktown, the battles of Lee's
 
 24 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mills and Williamstown, and the seven days' 
 battle in front of Richmond. He was ill 
 and off duty from August, 1862, until Jan- 
 uary, 1863, and after rejoining his command 
 took part in the battle of Chancellorsville. 
 The regiment gained distinction the follow- 
 ing day by making a famous charge on St. 
 Mary's Height, and later participated in the 
 battle of the Wilderness, where they lost 
 three hundred and thirty-six men. The 
 brigade of which Mr. Wright was a mem- 
 ber probably lost more than any other in 
 the service. He was mustered out June 
 29, 1864, and returned home. 
 
 Previous to leaving the army Mr. Wright 
 was converted, and soon after his return 
 home entered the academy at Barry, Ver- 
 mont, where he spent two years. The fol- 
 lowing year he was a student at Newbury, 
 Vermont, and in the summer of 1866 en- 
 tered Middlebury College, from which he 
 was graduated in 1870, with the degree of 
 A. B., receiving the degree of A. M. three 
 years later. In the autumn of 1870 he com- 
 menced teaching in the academy, where he 
 remained two years, and in 1872 was called 
 to the pastorate of the Congregational 
 church at Danby, Vermont, where he was 
 ordained and installed in 1873. 
 
 On the nth of November, 1871, Mr.. 
 Wright married Mrs. 'Ellen M. Marsh, of 
 Norwich, Vermont, who died July 4, 1874, 
 leaving one son, Robert Hopkins, who is 
 now married and in the employ of the Illi- 
 nois Central Railroad at Dubuque, Iowa. 
 After the death of his wife, Mr. Wright en- 
 tered the Chicago Theological Seminary, 
 from which he was graduated in 1876. While 
 attending that institution he had served as 
 pastor of the Congregational church at Des 
 Plaines, Illinois, and later was in charge of 
 the church at Seward, Winnebago county, 
 
 eight years ; .Rockton three years, and Crys- 
 tal Lake, Illinois, for a time. From the last 
 named place he came to Dwight, where he 
 has now been for the past six years, during 
 which time he has built up the church and 
 has ministered faithfully to the spiritual 
 needs of his people. He is not only well 
 liked by his own congregation, but is hon- 
 ored and esteemed by all who have wit- 
 nessed his devotion to his noble calling. 
 
 Mr. Wright was again married, Septem- 
 ber 7, 1876, his second union being with 
 Miss M. S. Stone, of Pecatonica, Winne- 
 bago county, Illinois, by whom he has two 
 children, namely : Florence, who is now 
 bookkeeper and stenographer for the Dwight 
 Star and Herald ; and Clarence. Both re- 
 side at home. 
 
 ARCHIE CRABB. 
 
 The early home of this well-known and 
 honored citizen of Pike township was on 
 the other side of the Atlantic, and on com- 
 ing to the new \\'orld he was in limited cir- 
 cumstances, but so successful has he been 
 in his business undertakings that he is now 
 able to lay aside all labor and live a retired 
 life upon his farm on section 4, Pike town- 
 ship, Livingston county, about eight miles 
 from Chenoa. 
 
 Mr. Crabb was born in Arbroath, For- 
 farshire. Scotland, June 18, 1833, a son of 
 James and Cecelia (Monroe) Crabb, also 
 natives of that county, \\here the mother 
 died. The father, who followed the sea in 
 early life, came to the United States after 
 the death of his wife and spent his last years 
 with a daughter in Illinois. During his 
 boyhood and youth our subject had limited
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 25 
 
 school advantages, and is mostly self-edu- 
 cated. In 1854 he took passage on a sail 
 vessel bound for Montreal, Canada, and was 
 seven weeks in crossing the Atlantic, dur- 
 ing which time the ship encountered some 
 severe storms. On their arrivfal in Quebec 
 they were quarantined for two weeks, there 
 being some twenty cases of smallpox on 
 board. Mr. Crabb spent about six months 
 in the city of Montreal, where he worked at 
 his trade, that of a blacksmith. 
 
 In 1854 he came to Illinois, and first lo- 
 cated in Tazewell county, where he worked 
 for his uncle, William Monroe, as a farm 
 hand, for about two years and a half, at 
 ten dollars per month. He next engaged 
 in farming for himself upon rented land in 
 the same county, where he continued to 
 make his home until 1866, and in the mean- 
 time purchased eighty acres of land in Pike 
 township, Livingston county, where he now 
 resides. He located here in 1866, and com- 
 menced immediately to break the virgin soil, 
 upon which he built a small house. Later 
 he purchased an adjoining eighty-acre tract, 
 and still later another eighty-acre tract, and 
 today has a fine farm of two hundred and 
 forty acres, which he has placed under a 
 high state of cultivation and improved with 
 good and substantial buildings, which stand 
 as monuments to his thrift and enterprise. 
 After years of faithful toil he can now well 
 afford to lay aside all business cares and en- 
 joy a well earned rest. 
 
 In Tazewell county. December 25, 1861, 
 Mr. Crabb married Miss Mary Ann Dor- 
 ward, who was born and reared in the same 
 neighborhood in Scotland as her husband 
 and came to the new world in 1853, locat- 
 ing in Illinois. To them have been born 
 six children, namely: Florence, now the 
 wife of William Snethen, of Pike township; 
 
 John Henry, who is married and engaged in 
 farming in the same township; Robert, also 
 an agriculturist of Pike township; Marga- 
 ret, wife of Lewis Brinkman, of Rooks 
 Creek township; Cecelia, wife of Louis Salz- 
 man. of the same township; and Agnes, wife 
 of C. B. Rollins, who operates the Crabb 
 farm. 
 
 Mr. Crabb voted for Abraham Lincoln 
 in i860, but since 1868 has been independent 
 in politics, giving his suport to the men and 
 measures that he believes will best advance 
 the interests of the public regardless of party 
 lines. He has taken <iuite an active part 
 in local politics, and is now serving his sixth 
 term as supervisor, and is now a member of 
 the committees on public buildings, county 
 house and farm, fee;^ and salaries. He has 
 also served as township clerk, assessor and 
 treasurer, which office of treasurer he now 
 holds, and as township trustee eighteen 
 years. He and his wife are active members 
 of the Presbyterian church, and his public 
 and private life are alike above reproach, for 
 his career has ever been one characterized 
 by the utmost fidelity to duty. He and his 
 family receive and merit the high regard of 
 the entire communitv. 
 
 THE LESLIE E. KEELEV CO. 
 
 Time tests the merit of all things, and 
 the years with unerring accuracy set their 
 stamp of approval upon all that comes be- 
 fore the public notice, or cause to sink into 
 oblivion that which is not worthy of atten- 
 tion. Only truth is eternal, while "error 
 wounded, writhes in pain and dies among 
 her worshippers." There is no escape from 
 such results; the ages have proven this, and 
 the law will hold good throughout all time.
 
 26 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 In the face of the most bitter opposition 
 tliere was given to the world a wonderful 
 discovery by Dr. Leslie E. Keeley, of 
 Dwight, Illinois. He early met the ridicule 
 and persecution of the medical fraternity, of 
 which he was a member, and the amused and 
 oftentimes abusive disbelief of the world, but 
 time proved the efficacy and vaUie of his 
 discovery, and today he is known as one 
 of the greatest benefactors that America 
 produced in the nineteenth century. 
 
 Although the founder has passed away 
 his living record forms an epitaph time will 
 never efface, and the work he created is con- 
 tinued under the corporate name of The 
 Leslie E. Keeley Company, the leading mem- 
 bers being Major Curtis J. Judd and John R. 
 Oughton, the latter the present mayor of 
 Dwight, while the former for several years 
 was a successful merchant and filled posi- 
 tions in the e.xecutix'e departments of the 
 village. The history of the Keeley Insti- 
 tute forms the most important chapter in 
 the history of Dwight, for prior to its es- 
 tablishment the little' village was scarcely 
 h^ard of outside of a radius of a few miles, 
 and seemed to have little business or com- 
 mercial prosperity outside of the farming 
 industry before it. Today no city of equal 
 size in the Union is as widely known. 
 
 In 1866 Dr. Leslie E. Keeley was grad- 
 uated from Rush Medical College, of Chi- 
 cago, and in seeking a location, determined 
 upon this little village in Livingston county, 
 Illinois. He soon won an enviable repu- 
 tation, and enjoyed a large practice which 
 came to him from miles around ; but while 
 he successfully performed his daily duties 
 as a general practitioner, he became inter- 
 ested in the cjuestion of a possible cure for 
 inebriety. He ga\-e careful thought, study 
 and investigation to the matter, prompted by 
 
 a love of scientific research, but more than 
 all by the great humanitarian principles 
 which ever formed a basic element in the 
 character of Dr. Keeley. At length he be- 
 came convinced that drunkenness was a dis- 
 ease just as surely as a fever or any other 
 disease which comes under the care of the 
 physician. He became convinced that there 
 was nothing in the claim that heredity had 
 anything tu do with either. He believed 
 that while a neurosis might be entailed upon 
 descendants, they were not from necessity 
 liquor or drug users. He defined drunken- 
 ness as "a conditon wherein the nerve cells 
 have become so accustomed to performing 
 their duties and functions under the in- 
 fluence of alcohol that they are dependent on 
 it and will no longer perform those duties 
 and functions jjroperly and painlessly e.x- 
 cept when under its influence." This 
 theory has long been accepted by physicians 
 throughout the country, and is taught in the 
 leading text-books on physiology and hy- 
 giene in our public schools, but at the time 
 Dr. Keeley advanced it he met with the 
 greatest opposition from the medical frater- 
 nity. Hoping to perfect a cure for this con- 
 dition of the nerve cells, he wrote to several 
 well-known physicians to ascertain what 
 they knew about the effects of salts of gold. 
 A few responded and their information was 
 meager, but Dr. Keeley continued to investi- 
 gate and experiment, and as a result, per- 
 fected not only the cure but the system of 
 treatment. 1 he storm of abuse and oppo- 
 sition which he brought down upon him- 
 self can hardly be imagined. The president 
 of a prominent medical college, with whom 
 he took counsel, advised him thus : "Main- 
 tain the secret of your discovery if you 
 think it of use to humanity, but the pro- 
 fession will not leave a shred of your medical
 
 Till-: iUOCRArillCAL RECORD. 
 
 27 
 
 reputation." Tliis was painfully true, hut 
 he fought his and humanity's hattle nohiy, 
 imtil now tliousands have hecn henctited l)y 
 Iiis treatment, the number reachini;- nmre 
 than three hundred thousand. 
 
 It was in 1880 that Dr. Keeley ahamloned 
 general i)ractice and began gi\ing his en- 
 tire attention to the cure of those wlio had 
 become slaves to alcohol,' opium and other 
 very injurious drugs. He early associated 
 with him Major Judtl and Mr. Oughlon. iuu\ 
 the connection was maintained until the 
 Doctor's death. These gentleman were 
 prominent, popular and reliable business 
 men of Dwight, and their faith in Dr. Kee- 
 ley and his discoveries did much to gain for 
 him the confidence of his home comnnmit\'. 
 Major Judd is now the secretary and treas- 
 urer of the company, and Mr. Oughton is 
 president and chemist. Soon after the part- 
 nershi]) was formed Mr. Oughlon was given 
 the f(jrmulae and being an e.xpert chemist 
 has comi)ounded the Keeley remedies to the 
 l)resent time. 
 
 With three such men as Dr. Keeley. Ma- 
 jor Judd and Mr. Oughton at the head of 
 the Institute its success was assured, al- 
 though it was almost a decade before it 
 gained the recognition and assistance of the 
 press. (Gradually pulilic opijosition was 
 lessened, as those who came to the Institute 
 under the curse of inebriety went away sober, 
 intelligent citizens, ready to lake their places 
 again in the work of the world. Their tes- 
 timony and influence lead to the u;rowth of 
 the work, the luunber of patients gradually 
 yet constantly increased, and it is estimated 
 that twenty-five thou.sand t(jok the treatment 
 ])rior to 1891, when J(jseph Meilill became 
 its champion and advocated tiie cause 
 through the colmnns of the Chicago Tribune. 
 Before .so doing, however, he thoroughlv in- 
 
 vestigated the cure. In an editorial in the 
 Chicago Tribune he said: "1 tested this 
 cure: 1 selected a half-dozen of the toughest 
 ])roducts of alcoholi.sm that the Chicago sa- 
 loons had been able to turn out, and the 
 drunkard-making shops in no other-city can 
 beat them in their line of workmanship. The 
 experimental cases were .sent down to 
 Dwight. one at a lime, extending over a 
 period of several weeks, and in due time 
 they were all returned to me, looking as if 
 a veritable miracle had Ijeen wrought upon 
 them. The change for the better was so 
 great thai I scarcely recognized them. They' 
 went away .sots and returned gentlemen. It 
 was amazin.g, and coinerted me to a belief 
 in the cfticacx of the "(jold Cure' for alco- 
 holism and opium. Well, I did not stop 
 with the half-dozen specially selected cases, 
 but sent down to Dwight a number of ine- 
 briate ac(iuainlauces to take the treatment, 
 as I was anxious to reclaim those old friends 
 who had been res])ected and useful citizens 
 before the 'drink liabii' had ruined their 
 li\es. When 1 had thus become fully con- 
 vinced that drunkenness was a disease, the 
 result of imbibing poison, and that a mcfli- 
 cine had been discov'ered which releasetl the 
 \ ictim from the irrepressible thirst for alco- 
 hol, and that it rest()red the man to normal 
 health of bodv and mind, I felt it to be a 
 duty which I owed to humanilv to make 
 known the virtue of the Keeley Cure as fast 
 antl as far as in mv power, and I rejoice that 
 the control of a widely-read journal enabled 
 me to reach the minds of a multitude of in- 
 telligent people. I opened the columns of 
 my i)aper freely to the rescued victims (jf al- 
 cohol, who related their experience and tes- 
 tified to what the Keeley Cure hafl done for 
 them." The Tribune's exam])Ie was imme- 
 diately followed by that of other leading
 
 28 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 journals in Chicago, and then throughout 
 the country, until the Keeley Institute of 
 Dwiglit became largely known throughout 
 the length and breadth of the lau 
 
 Jt was soon found that the accommoda- 
 tions at Dwight were totally inadequate, so 
 greatly did the number of patients increase. 
 Dr. Keeley, Major Judd and Mr. Oughton 
 lield consultation and it was determined that 
 the congestion at Dwight should be relieved 
 at once by the openiing of branch institutes. 
 The first one was established at Des ^Moines, 
 Iowa, soon others were started in New \ ork 
 and Pennsylvania, and after this branches 
 sprang up in various places until at the pres- 
 ent time there are one or more in nearly eve-\- 
 state and territory. The most notable work 
 perliaps was accomplished at the Lea\-er.- 
 worth branch of the National Soldiers" 
 Home, where nearly fifteen hundred \eter- 
 ans of the war of the Rebellion were treated 
 with the most gratifying results, and the re- 
 port of the board of managers to congress 
 and the secretary of war spoke of the great 
 good accomplished. The treatment was 
 also administered in the Soldiers" Home at 
 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Hampton, Virginia, 
 Los Angeles, California, and others, Avith 
 excellent results. ]Many men and officers 
 of the regular army have also taken the 
 treatment, sixty Indians from the Cherokee 
 and Osage reservations were sent to the 
 branch in Kansas Citv, and the results were 
 so favorable to the cure as to prompt the 
 writing of a letter by Chief Justice Connor, 
 of the Indian Territory, to Dr. Keeley, prais- 
 ing the treatment in the highest terms. Sixty- 
 ii\e men in tlie work-house of Minneapi.ilis 
 were sent by the mayor of that cit\' to the 
 branch institute there, and a large majority 
 of them, although they had been \'ictims of 
 inebriety, convicted from two to twenty- 
 
 nine times, were enabled to leave the work- 
 house, and were changed from wards of the 
 state to self-supporting, self-respecting citi- 
 zens. To cite, either collectxely or indi- 
 xidually, the wonderful ciu'es effected by 
 the SN'stem inaugurated by Dr. Keeley would 
 fill a large \-olume ; suffice it to say that 
 more than three hundred thousand have 
 taken the cure, and the greater number have 
 remained sober, useful citizens. 
 
 The cure for drunkenness is usually ef- 
 fected in four weeks. 1 here is no sickness 
 attendant upon the treatment, and 'the phys- 
 ical condition impro\es from the start. Men 
 are also freed from the opium, morphine, 
 laudanum, cocaine and chli>ral habits. The 
 patients are left absolutely free, there being 
 ri(j restraining influences other than those 
 of law-abiding citizenship. All patients 
 are treated alike and stand on the same 
 footing. It is interesting to note the many 
 exhibitions of kindness and good will of 
 the patients towards each other. A useful 
 lesson is ta:ught by this democracy of the 
 Keeley Institute — a man of humble station 
 is lifted up and given a new trend, whereas 
 a man of high position is convinced more 
 than ever of the leveling qualities of drink 
 toward the lowest strata of society. 
 
 The Livingston Hotel of Dwight is 
 owned and conducted by the Leslie E. Kee- 
 ley Company, and is an excellently conducted 
 hostelry, with pleasantly arranged rooms, 
 well lighted and ventilated, and tastefully 
 furnished. The laboratory is one of the 
 finest and best equipped in the country, and 
 the offices are models of convenience. 
 
 Dwight certainly owes her prosperity 
 in \-erv large measure to the Leslie E. Kee- 
 ley Company. Prior to the establishment 
 of the institute it was an ordinary country 
 town, without electric lights, without water-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 29 
 
 works and without drainage. Today it has 
 all the accommodations and improvements 
 of cities many times its size, this result being 
 largely obtained through the efforts of the 
 members of the Keeley Company. Jt is 
 safe to say that no private institution in the 
 entire country is so well known as the insti- 
 tute at Dwight, nor is there one whose in- 
 fluence and efforts ha\e been so beneficial 
 and far reaching. 
 
 The business of the Leslie E. Keeley 
 Cnmpan\- is conducted upon a liberal prin- 
 ciple and most approved business methods. 
 '] he sNstem is the result of years of expe- 
 rience and intelligent work, and cannot be 
 improved upon. Visitors to Dwight inva- 
 riably inspect the general ofifices as one of 
 the sights of the village. While it has been 
 a paying investment to its owners, it cer- 
 tainly deserves to be ranked among the 
 greatest institutions for good that the nine- 
 teenth centurv has known. 
 
 .MATTHIAS TO.MBAL'GH. 
 
 Matthias Tumbaugh, deceased, was one 
 of the most prominent of the early educators 
 of this county, and served as county super- 
 intendent of schools for several years, dur- 
 ing which time there was a marked im- 
 l)rovement made in the educational sys- 
 tem then in vogue here. He was born near 
 Washington, Washington county, Pennsyl- 
 vania, June II, 1835, and there grew to 
 manhood. His parents were Mathias aiul 
 Rachel (Spohn) Tombaugh, life-long resi- 
 dents of that county and of German descent. 
 The mother survived her husband several 
 years, dying about 1890. 
 
 Our subject completed his literary edu- 
 
 cation at Mt. Union College, and then com- 
 menced teaching school in his native county, 
 serving as superintendent of schools at 
 Monongahela City for a time. While there 
 he married Miss Elivira J. Lethern'ian. who 
 was born lune 1 1, 1838, a daughter of John 
 ami Christina Lethermaii. of Washington 
 county, Pennsylvania, ami nf German de- 
 scent. Her father was a soldier of the war 
 of 181J, and a fanner by occupation. To 
 Mr. and Mrs. TomlKuigh were born seven 
 children, ti\e of whom are still living, name- 
 ly: Charles K., who is represented on an- 
 other page of this volume; Alice I., wife of 
 E. F. Pound, of Glen Elder, Kansas ; Dr. 
 Frank M., medical examiner for the Chi- 
 cago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad at 
 Burlington, Iowa; Nettie Z., wife of W. V. 
 Worthley, of Odell, Illinois"; and John L., 
 a student in the Chicago Medical College. 
 Raymond R., the third in order of birth, 
 died June 25, 1886, at the age of nineteen 
 years. Horace Rcicl, the tifih child died 
 in infancy. 
 
 In 1865 Mr. Tombaugh came to Living- 
 ston county, Illinois, and purchased land in 
 Reading t(jwnship, when this country was 
 (|uite new and but slightly improved. Af- 
 ter making his home there for three years 
 he moved to Sunbury township and bought 
 another farm. While living there he served 
 as principal of the schools of Odell for one 
 year, and in 18873 ^^'^^ elected county su- 
 ])erintendent of scht/ols, which important 
 ])osition he held until i88j, the term at that 
 time being four years. While in office a 
 change was made in the election laws and 
 he was elected by the board of supervisors 
 for one year. During his incumbency he 
 made many important changes in the schools 
 which have been of permanent \alue. and it 
 is conceded that he was a verv effective
 
 3° 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 scliool officer. Selling his farm in Sun- 
 bury township, in 1876, he bought property 
 in Odell township, and successfully en- 
 gaged in farming there u]) to the time of 
 his death. 
 
 After 1882 Mr. Tombaugh served as su- 
 pervisor of his township and was also a 
 member of the Odell school board. He 
 was a Republican in politics and a member 
 of the Masonic fraternity. Both he and 
 his wife held membership in the Methodist 
 Episcopal church, and took an active part 
 in its work. He served as superintendent of 
 the Sunday schools twelve years ; was presi- 
 dent of the County Sunday School Associa- 
 tion ; and was also steward, trustee and 
 church secretary, in fact was one of the pil- 
 lars of his church. While one of a fishing 
 party at ]\Iarseilles. Illinois, May 13, 1887, 
 he was drowned while attempting to rescue 
 another member of the party who had fallen 
 in the ri\-er. He was highly respected and 
 esteemed by all who knew him on accoimt 
 of his sterling worth antl true nobility of 
 character, and his death was widely and 
 deeply mourned. His estimable wife still 
 survives him and makes her home in Odell. 
 
 CHARLES R. TOMBAUGH. 
 
 Charles R. Tombaugh, the present counts- 
 superintendent of schools, was born near 
 AVashington, Washington county, Pennsyl- 
 vania, October i, 1862, and is a son of Mat- 
 tliias and Elvira J. (Letherman) Tom- 
 liaugh, a sketch of whom appears on another 
 page of this work. He was about three 
 vears old when brought by his parents to 
 Livingston comity, Illinois. He began his 
 education in the schools of Sunburv town- 
 
 ship, later attended the common cIuk.iIs of 
 Odell and then taught school for fi\e win- 
 ters in this comity, at the end of which time 
 he entered the Northwestern Unixersity at 
 Evanston, Illinois. After his return "home 
 he resumed teaching and taught for six 
 years, during which time -he was principal 
 of the East Side School at Dwight, and also 
 ])rincipal of the schools at Chebanse and 
 Odell. While at Odell he was president of 
 the Li\'ingston County Teachers' Associa- 
 ti<.)n for two years, and also an instructor 
 in the County Teachers' Institute. After 
 the death of his father, in 1S87, he took 
 charge of the home farm and carried it on 
 until he assumed the duties of his present 
 position as county superintendent of schools. 
 He was elected on the Republican ticket, 
 and in 1898 was renominated by acclama- 
 tion and again elected to that office. The 
 educational meetings held during his term 
 have been most successful, and he has the 
 entire confidence and respect of the people. 
 
 On his election to his present office Pro- 
 fessor Tombaugh moved to Ponliac, and 
 now has a pleasant home at No. 311 South 
 Vermilion street. On the 20th of January, 
 1892, he married Mrs. Anna L. Bradrick, 
 a daughter of Rev. Samuel Deach, of the 
 Central Illinois Methodist Episcopal con- 
 ference. Re\-. and Mrs. Deach were in 
 Kansas for a time on account of his health, 
 and Mrs. Tombaugh was educated in Sa- 
 lina, that state. By a former marriage she 
 has one child, Margaret L. Bradrick, and 
 she has borne our subject three children: 
 Alice v., Glen D. and Stella M. 
 
 Professor Tombaugh was ma<le a Ma- 
 son in Odell Lodge, No. 401, F. & A. M.. 
 in which he served as warden, but has since 
 (lemitted to Pontiac lodge. No. 2c)4, where 
 he is now sering his fourth year as mas-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 31 
 
 ter. Bcitli he an<l liis wife are acti\e nieiii- 
 liers of the Methodist Episcopal cluirdi. and 
 lie is now a member of the offical hoard of 
 the churcii and president of the Livingston 
 County Sunday School Association. While 
 a resident uf Dwight. Chehanse and Oilell. 
 he was su]ierintendent of the Sunda\- schimls 
 there, having like his father devoted much 
 time to Sunday school work. He has fol- 
 lowed clnsely in the footsteps of his father, 
 having held practically all of the local, 
 county and cluuxh offices held l>y the latter. 
 As a citizen he ever stands ready to dis- 
 charge any duty devolving upon him. and 
 as an educator he stands dcservcdK- hii;h. 
 
 EMILK A. SIM.MOXS. 
 
 1 he man who achieves success in the le 
 gal profession is even more strictly the "ar- 
 chitect of his own fortunes" than is the 
 average self-made man. there being in the 
 keen competition of the lawyer's life, with 
 its constantly recurring mental duel be- 
 tween eager and determined antagonists, no 
 chance fur the operatinn df influences which 
 may be called to the aid uf the merchant, the 
 manufacturer or the financier, .\mong the 
 men of Livingston count\' who ha\e demon- 
 strated their abilites in this difficult field 
 Emile A. Simmons holds a leading place, 
 being one of the jjroiuinent attorneys of 
 Pontiac. 
 
 A native of Illinois. Mr. Simmons was 
 born in Avon, October 19, 1865, and is a 
 son of (ieorge and Charlotte L. J. ( Mail- 
 liard ) Simmons. The father was born, 
 reared and educated in Hamilton. Madison 
 county. Xew York, and as a young man 
 removed to .Avon. Illinois, about iS^o. where 
 
 he followed the carpenter's trade, and also 
 engaged in farming, making his home there 
 until his death. He held different local 
 offices, includmg those of justice of the 
 ])eace, assessor and collector, and was a Re- 
 ])ublican in jjolitics. having been an aboli- 
 tionist in .\'ew N'ork. His father was a 
 soldier of the war of iSij. and a life-long 
 resident of Hamilton. Xew ^'ork. where he 
 followed the occujiation of fariuing. The 
 lUiHher of our subject was born in Elor- 
 ence, Italv. of French parentage, and was 
 reared in I'rance until twelve years of age, 
 when she came to America with her family 
 and settled in .\vou. Illinois. Her father 
 was Ely Mailliard. She is still living, but 
 the father of our suliject died in ]Hi)j. 
 
 During his boyhood and youth I'^mile .\. 
 Simmons attended the ])ublic schools of 
 .\von. and at the age of sixteen commenced 
 teaching, .\fter following that profession 
 for six years, he became a student at the 
 Xormal School in X'ormal, Illinois, and af- 
 ter leaving that institution again taught 
 school for two years, being princi])al of the 
 school at Vermont, Illinois. In December, 
 i88q, he came to Pontiac and entered the 
 office of A. C. r.all. studying law with him 
 two years, and also teaching the latter year. 
 The following year he was in the office of 
 Mcllduff & Torrance, and in May. 1892, 
 was appointed deput\- circuit clerk. While 
 in that position seeing the practice of lead- 
 ing lawyers was of great benefit to him. In 
 August. 1892, he was examined at Mt. \'er- 
 non by the judges of tlie appellate court, 
 and a certificate issued at the next session of 
 the supreme court at that place the follow- 
 ing Xovember. In December he left the 
 clerk's office and entered the oftice of Mr. 
 Mcllduff. remaining with him until .Vugust, 
 18(^4. when he o])ened an otiice of his own.
 
 32 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 He is now successfully engaged in practice 
 before all the courts of the state. 
 
 On the 31st of December, 1894, Mr. 
 Simmons was united in marriage with Miss 
 Katherine M. Smith, of Avon, a daughter 
 of P. H. Smith, and to them has been born 
 one child, Louise A. They hold member- 
 ship in St. Hilary's Catholic church, of Pon- 
 tiac, and fraternally Mr. Simmons is a 
 member of Crescent Lodge, K. P., is clerk 
 of the Camp, I\I. ^\'. A., of Pontiac, and is 
 president of the Pontiac Colony Pioneer Re- 
 serve Association. He is also director and 
 treasurer of associated charities of Pontiac. 
 tor some time he has been secretary of the 
 Pontiac Loan & Building Association — a 
 home loan building concern, whose assets 
 amount to one hundred and twelve thou- 
 sand dollars. He is also a luember of the 
 company. By his ballot he supports the men 
 and measures of the Republican part}', and 
 takes an active and prominent pait in local 
 politics. He still retains an interest in edu- 
 cational aitairs, and in April, 1900, was 
 elected to the Pontiac township high school 
 board. He is also serving his second term 
 as a member of the board of directors of the 
 Pontiac public library, receiving his appoint- 
 ment from the mayor, and as a progressive 
 and public-spirited citizen, he takes a deep 
 interest in every enterprise calculated to ad- 
 A-ance the UKjral, social and educational wel- 
 fare of his communitv. 
 
 COLONEL FRAXK L. SMITH. 
 
 Colonel Frank L. Smith, of Governor 
 Tanner's staff, is one of the leaders of the 
 Republican party in Livingston cnuntv, his 
 large acquaintance and unbounded popu- 
 
 larity giving him an influential following, 
 while his shrewd judgment of men and af- 
 fairs make his counsel of value in all im- 
 portant movements. In business circles he 
 also takes a foremost rank, his success as a 
 real estate dealer being all the more notable 
 from the fact that it has been secured by his 
 own judicious management. 
 
 This prominent citizen of Dwight, a 
 member of the well-known firm of Romber- 
 ger & Smith, was born in that citv Xovem- 
 ber 24, 1867, and is a son of Jacob J. and 
 Jane E. (Ketcham) Smith, natives of Ger- 
 many and New York, respectively. The 
 father was only four years old when brought 
 to America by his parents, who located in 
 Pennsylvania, but at the age of fifteen he 
 came to Dwight, Illinois, which continued 
 to be his home until 1891, when he removed 
 to Chicago, where he died in 1894. His 
 Avife (lied nine years previous. In their 
 family were three children. 
 
 Colonel Smith received his early educa- 
 tion in the public schools of Dwight, and 
 at the age of seventeen taught school in 
 Round Grove township for about one year, 
 after which he accepted a position in the 
 freight department of the Chicago & Alton 
 Railroad at Dwight, remaining with them ii; 
 a clerical capacity about four vears. In 
 1887 he went to Chicago and acceiited n 
 similar position with the Rock Island Rail- 
 road, being located at the Englewood sta- 
 tion two years. Subsequently he ser\-ed as 
 cashier with P. H. Bolton & Company, c^im- 
 mission merchants on South ^^'ater street, 
 Chicago, until 1890, when he returned to 
 Dwight and entered into partnership with 
 W. H. Ketcham in the real estate and loan 
 business. W'hen that firm was dissolved 
 April I, 1895, Colonel Smith became con- 
 nectetl in business with C. L. Roniberoer un-
 
 THIC BlOGKAPlllCAL KKCURIX 
 
 33 
 
 der the name of Romberger & Sinitli. their 
 specialty being real estate and real estate 
 work, although they do a private banking 
 business for the accommodation of friends 
 and acquaintances. Without question the 
 firm does one of the largest loan and real es- 
 tate businesses in central Illinois, this fact 
 being conceded by all other firms in their 
 line. At present they are extensively inter- 
 ested in Mississippi and Louisiana lands. 
 Their holdings in the latter state are tim- 
 ber lands, which the firm purchased with the 
 view of enhancing their \alue, and in Jan- 
 uary, 1900, they sold one tract of twelve 
 thousand acres in Madison pari.sh. This is 
 desiralile property, being accessible to steam- 
 boats and the \'icksburg, Shreveport & Pa- 
 cific Railroad. The Mississippi land is in 
 the Delta country, and is also covered witii 
 hard wood timber, principally oak, pecan and 
 gum. When cleared this will become ex- 
 cellent cotton land. Besides this property, 
 the firm has about fifteen hundred acres of 
 fine farming land in Lee county, Illinois, 
 which is well improved and under a high 
 state of cultivation, and also operate largely 
 in Iowa and Indiana lands. 
 
 On the 8th of February. 1893. ^I"". 
 Smith was united in marriage with iMiss 
 Erminie Ahern, of Dwight, a daughter of 
 John and Margaret Ahern. who are at pres- 
 ent living in Ogden, L'tah. Mrs. Sniitii is 
 a member of St. Patrick's Catholic church, 
 of Dwight, and the Colonel belongs to He- 
 bron lodge, Xo. j^. K. P., and Dwight 
 Camp, iM. W. A. Since attaining his ma- 
 jority he has affiliated with the Republican 
 party, and has taken a very active and promi- 
 nent part in political affairs, always attend- 
 ing the county conventions and serving as 
 a delegate to the state conventions tiiree 
 times. In the spring of 1900 he was offered 
 
 the nomination for state senator on his party 
 ticket, but would not accept on account of 
 his business interests, though the nonfina- 
 tion was equivalent to an election in his dis- 
 trict, which is strongly Republican. Early 
 in his career he served as city clerk in 
 Dwight. but since then he has never been 
 prevailed upon to accejH office. In January, 
 1897. he was appointed coLmel on Governor 
 Tanner's staff, and in that capacity has par- 
 ticipated in many important functions, being 
 present at the inauguration of President Mc- 
 Kinley at Washington. D. C. in March, 
 1897: the unveiling of the Grant monument 
 at Xew York; the unveiling of Logan's 
 monument at Chicago ; the christening of the 
 battleship Illinois at Newport Xews, Vir- 
 ginia; and the dedication of the Illinois 
 iiiniiument at Chattanooga, Tennessee. 
 
 HOX. XELSOX J. MVER. 
 
 There are in every community men 
 of great force of character and exceptional 
 ability, who by reason of their capacity for 
 leadership become recognized as foremost 
 citizens, and take a very important i)art in 
 public affairs. Such a man is Mr. Myer, 
 who is now so efficiently surving as superin- 
 tendent of the Livingston county farm in 
 Eppards Point township. 
 
 He was born in that townshi[). July 30, 
 185 1, and is a son of Judge Eli Myer, who 
 was born ami reared in Marvland. and at 
 the age of eighteen years moved to Licking 
 county, Ohio, locating near Xewark. There 
 he married, and continued to make it his 
 home until after the birth i^f several of his 
 children. In 1850 he came to Livingston 
 county, Illinois, and purchased a tract of 
 raw laml in Eppards Point township, to
 
 34 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the cultivatiim and iniprdNement o\ whicli 
 he at once turned liis attention. Later he 
 bought more land and at <Hie time ownetl 
 five hundred and sixty acres, which he 
 l^laced under a high state of cultixation and 
 improved witii a good set of farm l)uilchngs. 
 He was a man of good business ab!Hty. and 
 was one of tlie most prominent and intluen- 
 tial citizens of his community, being called 
 upon t(i serve as associate judge, and town- 
 ship treasurer and clerk for some years each. 
 He died upon the old home place December 
 28, 1868. and his wife passed awav June t. 
 
 1875- 
 
 Xelson J. Alyer grew to manhood upon 
 the farm and attended the local schols, but 
 the knowledge there acquired has been 
 greatly supplemented by reading and study 
 in later years. Eor some time he and his 
 brother operated the old homestead together, 
 and in 1875 Air. Aloyer purchased eighty 
 acres in sections 21 and 16, on which he 
 lived and there made his home until 1895, 
 when he took charge of the Li\ingston 
 count}- farm. He has been \ery successful 
 in the management of this place, and has 
 gained an enxiable reputation as one of its 
 most efficient superintendents. When he 
 took charge of the farm it had fifty-one in- 
 mates, but the numlier has since been in- 
 creased to eighty-four, which includes a 
 number of insane, old and decrepit persons. 
 In the management of the place and the 
 care of the inmates, he has been greatly as- 
 sisted by his estimable wife. 
 
 In this county, December 17, 1S71, Mr. 
 Myer married Miss Helen E. McElhiney. 
 who was born in Green county. Wisconsin, 
 but was reared and educated in Stephenson 
 county. Illinois. Her father was James 
 McElhiney. To our subject and his wife 
 liave been l)orn two children: Xelson D.. 
 
 who is attending the Pontiac High School, 
 and James O.. a student in the home school. 
 In his political affiliations Mr. Myer is a 
 pronounced Republican, and cast his first 
 presidential vote for General L'. S. Grant 
 in 1872. He has taken a very active and 
 prominent part in political affairs, and has 
 been electeil to several offices, serving as 
 township ct)llector several vears, and was 
 justice of the peace f(jr eight \ears from 
 1876. In 1 881 he was elected supervisor, 
 and filled that office continuously f(.ir ten 
 years, during which time he was chairman 
 of a numl)er of important committees. He 
 was elected to the state legislature in 1888, 
 and so acceptably did he fill that office that 
 he was re elected for another term, and 
 was a member of the committees on state 
 instituti(_nis. re\enue and others. In 1893 
 he was again elected supervisor, was re- 
 elected two years later and made chairman 
 of the county board. He resigned that 
 office to accejit his present position as su- 
 l)erintendent of the county farm. His ofti- 
 cial duties have always been discharged with 
 a fidelity and promptness worthy of the 
 highest commendation, and he is today one 
 of the best-known and most popular citizens 
 of the county. Religiously both he and his 
 wife are members of the Center Methodist 
 Episco^jal church. 
 
 CHRISTOPHER W. STERRV. 
 
 Christopher W. Sterry, of Pontiac, was 
 l)orn in Somerset county, Maine. August 12, 
 iS2b. His father, Samuel Sterry. also a 
 nati\e of Maine, was born in 1782, married 
 Hannah Harding, in 1807. and served 
 through the war of 1812. dying at his home 
 in Somerset county in 1827. when Christo-
 
 C. W. STERRY.
 
 THE LULK.kAl'HlCAl, KECORI). 
 
 37 
 
 plier was less than one year nld. The pater- 
 nal grandfather, David Sterry. was one of 
 the heroes of the Revolutionary war, and 
 dieil at his iionie in Maine at the advanced 
 age of eighty-eight years and eight months. 
 The mother, Hannah Harding Sterry, 
 \vas a devoted Christian woman. She was 
 born in 1788, and died in Maine in 1871, 
 when eightv-two years old. At the death 
 of her husband she was left with five sons, 
 the eiilest less than eighteen years old and 
 tlic youngest, Christopiier, not a year old. 
 to face the stern realities of life with but 
 scant means of supix)rt. The devoted 
 mother, after a heroic struggle for several 
 years In keep her family of boys together, 
 found it necessary to find homes for them. 
 1 bus the subject of this sketch, when but 
 eight years of age, was placed among 
 strangers, where he remained under harsh 
 treatment and bard work, and but few op- 
 portunities for sciiool privileges for four 
 years, when lie could endure it no longer, 
 and ran away. When fifteen be worked 
 si.x months for twenty-fi\e dollars, and at 
 eighteen he went intu Massachusetts and 
 commenced wurk at twelve dollars and a 
 half per montii on a farm. Then he be- 
 came engaged in manufacturing business, 
 in which he continued until he came to Illi- 
 nois in 1852, and located in Chicago, where 
 be remained four years, having charge of the 
 stone sawing works of A. S. Sherman & 
 Company. In 1856 be was engaged as 
 bookkeeper of the Sheffield Mining & Trans- 
 portation Company, of Sheffield, Bureau 
 county. It was in this year. 1856, that Mr. 
 Sterry came into Livingston county and 
 settled in Ksmen township, where he bought 
 a farm of one lumdred and si.xty acres of 
 raw i)rairie land, seven miles north of Pon- 
 tiac. This be improved, erecting buildings 
 
 and making of it a jileasant home, on which 
 be lived for many years, engaged in farm- 
 ing and stock-raising. During this time be 
 added one hundred and seventy acres to 
 the homestead, which he still retains in the 
 highest degree of cultivation, and became 
 jjossessed of large business interests and 
 prftperty holdings in Xew Orleans, Louis- 
 iana. The latter re(iuired so much atten- 
 tion that he left bis farm in 1884 and moved 
 into Pontiac. Securing one of the finest lo- 
 cations in the city on tlie north bank of pic- 
 tures(|ue \'ermillion. Mr. Sterry erected on 
 it one of the most elegant modern residences 
 in Pontiac. It is located on East Water 
 street, in the midst of spacious grounds ex- 
 tending back to the river, and is shaded by 
 grand old oaks and native forest trees. Here 
 be makes his home, though bu.siness as well 
 as comfort calls him south during the win- 
 ter months. 
 
 Soon after becoming a citizen of Pon- 
 tiac, Mr. Sterry became identified with the 
 business interests of the city, first by es- 
 tablishing the jewelry, drug, book and wall 
 paper firm of John S. Murphy & Company. 
 .\ little later be was one of the principal or- ' 
 ganizers of the Pontiac Slioe Manufactur- 
 ing Company, which was incorporated in 
 1889, taking one-third of the stock and fur- 
 nishing financial backing to a much greater 
 extent. He has been a director and presi- 
 dent of the company from its organization. 
 It is the chief industry of Pontiac, and is 
 consi<lered a prime factor in itsprosperityand 
 growth. Starting up in October, 1889, it 
 has grown to a capacity of two thousand 
 pairs of shoes per day, and furnishes em- 
 jiloyment to three hundred men and women, 
 the majority of whom are skilleil workmen. 
 The product of the factory is disposed of 
 throughout the territory from Ohio to the
 
 38 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Pacific coast on tlie west and the Gulf of 
 Mexico on the south. 
 
 In 1897 Mr. Sterry purchased Ri\-erside 
 Park, adjoining the city on the east, and 
 almost encircled by the \'erniilliim river. 
 shaded by stately native forest trees, thus 
 securing- its use for the Pontiac Chautauqua 
 Association, which he assisted in organizing, 
 and in which he was the largest stockholder. 
 He is also largely interested in the Pontiac 
 State Bank, of which he has been director 
 and \ice-president since its organization. 
 \Miile he does not give special attention to 
 the details of this business, yet the mere 
 fact of his connection with its has served 
 to increase the confidence of the business 
 community in its conservative management. 
 He is also president and largest stockholder 
 of the Riverside Irrigation Company, of 
 Idaho, which controls some fifteen thousand 
 acres of arable land in that state. About 
 thirtv miles of canal have been constructed 
 and is in operation for irrigation purposes. 
 In 1899 he erected the four-story office 
 building on the southwest corner of Court 
 House square. It is known as the Sterry 
 block, and will tloubtless be a landmark for 
 years to come as its equal has not appeared 
 in any city the size of Pontiac. It fronts 
 eiglity feet on Washington street and one 
 hundred feet on South Mill street, and is 
 four stories above the basement. It con- 
 sists of two stores and the Pontiac Stale 
 Bank lielnw. and of sixty suites of offices 
 a!)o\e, which are made accessible by an elec- 
 tric-power passenger elevator, heated In- 
 steam and supplied with city water and with 
 electric lighting. 
 
 As a citizen Mr. Sterry has ever been 
 ready to accept the responsibilities and per- 
 form his duty in the most conscientious way. 
 \\'hile as a matter of choice he would ha\-e 
 
 avoided the cares of public office, yet he has 
 served many years in various official posi- 
 tions. In Esmen township he served as 
 school director, trustee, school treasurer, 
 justice of the peace and supervisor. He was 
 a member of the board of supervisors of 
 Livingston county for several terms, and 
 as such, aided in securing the location of 
 the State Reform School at Pontiac. 
 
 Having been a strong advocate of anti- 
 slavery principles even as an abolitionist, on 
 the organization of the new part}-, he be- 
 came a stanch Republican, and during the 
 war of the Rebellon was an active member 
 of the Union League. He continued to 
 act with the jiartx- until the old issues were 
 settled, and he became convinced that the 
 new and greater issue of temperance could 
 expect no real support from the old party. 
 He then gave the Prohibition party his lib- 
 eral support and became an ardent supporter 
 of that party. 
 
 Realizing in his own life \\-hat he missed 
 through want of school privileges, he has 
 been an ardent supporter of the public school 
 system and also of higher education. He 
 has been a supporter especiallv of Xew Or- 
 leans L'niversity, of which he is a trustee, of 
 ^\'heaton College, and of Illinois \\'esleyan 
 L'niversity. 
 
 In 1847 -^^1'- Sterry was married to Miss 
 Elizabeth Day, who lived with him seven 
 years, bearing to him three children, all of 
 whom died in infancy, while her death oc- 
 curred March 25, 1855. 
 
 In 1858 he married iVIiss Amanda Had- 
 lev. daughter of the late James P. Hadley, a 
 prominent farmer of Sunbury township, 
 this county. One child was born, and lived 
 but a short time, and the wife also was taken 
 awav after a union of a little more than one 
 vear. In 1861 he was united in marriage
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 39 
 
 with Mrs. Mary C. Beeler.a (laughter of Jolin 
 Ross, of Sangamon county, and she has 
 been spared to hve with him until tlie pres- 
 ent time. To them have been born six 
 children : Lida, wife of Dr. C. H. Long, of 
 Pontiac, whose sketch appears elsewhere in 
 this volume; John L., the only son, a young 
 man of great promise who died at the ai^o of 
 twenty years, in 1884, while attending the 
 Illinois W'esleyan University at Blooming- 
 ton, where he was preparing himself for the 
 ministry ; Hattie and Josephine, who both 
 died in infancy; Mary E., wife of E. M. 
 Kirkpatrick, a prominent grain merchant of 
 Chenoa, Illinois; and Jessie, wife of Clar- 
 ence B. Hurtt, now a resident of Roswell, 
 Idaho, where he is serving as secretary of 
 the Riverside Irrigation Company. They 
 have also four grandchildren, Christopher 
 Sterry Long, Mary Catherine Long. John 
 Nelson Hurtt and Baby Hurtt. 
 
 Mr. Sterry early identified himself witii 
 the Methodist Episcopal church, and for 
 many years has served in official capacity as 
 steward, trustee and Sunday school super- 
 intendent. \\'hile in Esmen he was instru- 
 mental in securing the erection of the Es- 
 men Center church. On moving to Pon- 
 tiac he was immediately chosen as a trustee 
 of the First Methodist Episcopal church, 
 and on the destruction of the old church by 
 fire in 1885. he aided in the building of the 
 present church edifice. He is president of 
 the board of trustees, having held that office 
 for a number of years. 
 
 For almost half a century Mr. Sterry 
 has been a resident of Livingston county. 
 On his arrival here the greater part of its 
 rich land was yet unbroken, its inhabitants 
 were few in number, widely scattered and 
 the improvements were not of the best. He 
 lias certainly done well his part. Thor- 
 
 oughly honest and conscientious in all he 
 does, he has won the respect and confidence 
 of all with whom he has been brought in 
 contact, and his lifework is worthy of emu- 
 lation bv the generations to follow. 
 
 CAPT.MX S1L.\S MILTOX WITT. 
 
 Captain Silas Milton Witt, an honored 
 veteran of the civil war and a prominent 
 resident of Pontiac, Illinois, who is now liv- 
 ing a retired life, was born in Lebanon, 
 Boone county, Indiana, February 1, 1842, 
 and is a son of Michael and Lohama (Wall) 
 Witt, the former a native of Guilford coun- 
 ty. North Carolina, of which state his fa- 
 ther, a soldier of the Revolutionary war, 
 was an early settler. The maternal grand- 
 father,. Elisha Wall, also fought for the in- 
 dependence of the colonies. He was a 
 relative of Daniel Boone, who was a fre- 
 (luent visitor at his home, and they often 
 hunted and trapped together. Later Mr. 
 Wall went with Boone and a number of 
 others to Kentucky, becoming pioneers of 
 that state. 
 
 Michael Witt, our subject's father, grew 
 to manhood on the home farm in his native 
 state, and from there entered the service of 
 his country during the war of 1812, serv- 
 ing as captain of a company. Later he 
 was commissioned colonel in the North 
 Carolina militia, and after his removal to 
 Indiana was an officer in the state militia 
 there. Our subject well remembers seeing 
 him on horseback on general training days, 
 which at that time were the important days 
 Lif the year. Soon after his marriage Mi- 
 chael Witt and his wife removed to the ter- 
 ritory of Indiana, and she was the first white 
 woman to locate in Leljanon, the countv
 
 40 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 seat of Bi)one county. Tliere lie engaged in 
 farming for a time, and after the town was 
 started opened out an old fashioned general 
 store, liaiding his goods first from Cincinnati 
 and later from IndianapoHs and Lafayette. 
 He became one of the successful men of 
 that locality, owning large tracts of land, 
 and part of the town of Lebanon was built 
 on the first three hundred and twenty acres 
 Avhich he purcha.'^ed. He held much of this 
 property until his death, the land later be- 
 coming \-ery \-aluable. As a ^^'hig he took 
 quite an active and prominent part in local 
 politics, and held a number of offices, in- 
 cluding those of county judge and coroner. 
 He left the south on account of slavery, 
 and also because he believed that men of 
 moderate means could do better in the north. 
 Both he and his wife are devout members 
 of the Methodist Episcopal church, and his 
 home was always the stopping place for the 
 ministers. His first house in Lebanon was a 
 sort of hotel for traxelers journeying be- 
 tween Lafayette and Cincinnati, and in those 
 days he was tlic man of the town. He died 
 ' there March 2, 1861, and was buried the 
 day President Lincoln was first inaugurated. 
 Our subject's mother died in Dwight, this 
 county, in 1874. They left a family of six- 
 teen children, of whom our subject is the 
 youngest. Both had been marriett before, 
 the mother's first husband lieing a Mr. 
 Blair, of Kentuck}-. 
 
 Captain Witt recei\ed a good practical 
 education in the schools of Lebanon, and 
 aided his father in the work of the farm 
 and store until the civil war broke out. On 
 the night of the surrender of Fort Sumter, 
 April 13. 1861, he enlisted f(ir three months 
 as a private in Company 1, Tenth Indiana 
 \ olunteer Infantry, at the president's first 
 call for se\entv-fi\'e thousand men. Thev 
 
 joined (ieneral McClelland in West \'ir- 
 ginia, and with him participated in the bat- 
 tle of Rich Mountain, July 11, which was 
 followed by the engagement at Phillippi 
 Tunnel Hill. When his term of enlistment 
 expired, Captain Witt returned home and 
 was made recruiting officer at Lebanon, 
 where he helpeil recruit the Tenth, Fortieth, 
 Eighty-sixth and One Hundred and Six- 
 teenth Indiana Regiments, raising two ct)m- 
 panies for the Eighty-sixth. In the spring 
 of 1863 he enlisted as orderly sergeant in 
 Company G, One Hundred and Sixteenth 
 Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and was first 
 ordered to Dearborn, Michigan, to guard the 
 arsenal there during the time of the Vallan- 
 dingham trouble. Crossing the lake to 
 Clexeland. he proceeded to Camp Nelson. 
 Kentucky, where he joined his brigade, and 
 later was through the east Tennessee and 
 Knoxville campaign, capturing Cumberland 
 Cap the last time. This was followed by the 
 siege of Knox\ille and the engagement at 
 Walker's Ford and Tazewell, Tennessee, 
 where his regiment was on the extreme left 
 of Burnside's army. In March, 1864, he 
 was mustered out and appointed deputy 
 provost marshal with headquarters at La- 
 fayette, Indiana, where he helped the deputy 
 proxost marshal organize a regiment, then 
 went to Indianapolis, where he secured 
 arms and ammunition and started in pursuit 
 of Morgan. He spent sixty days on this 
 expedition, and assisted in capturing some 
 of Morgan's forces at Mt. Vernon. When 
 the president called for troops to push the 
 Atlanta campaign, he helped organize Com- 
 pany E, One Hundred and Thirtv-fifth In- 
 diana \^olunteer Infantry and was commis- 
 sioned second lieutenant. They were on 
 duty in Kentucky, Alabama and North Caro- 
 lina, and participated in the battle of Look-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 41 
 
 out Mountain. Captain Witt was always 
 with liis regiment with tlie exception of 
 three days when ill with fever after the hat- 
 tie of Tazewell, hut was never in the hos- 
 pital. After lieing mustered out in the fall 
 of 1864 he returned to Lehanon. Indiana. 
 
 .\t Lebanon Captain Witt was married, 
 November 10, 1864, to Miss Maria L. Lan- 
 don, a daughter of Myron and Martha 
 ( Jeffers) Landon. Her father removed 
 from Ohio to Indiana at an early day, and 
 was one of the first teachers in his locality. 
 He was a prominent Mason. He died when 
 Mrs. Witt was only a year old and her 
 mother died two years later. Their eldest 
 siin, Albert Landon, was a prominent mem- 
 ber of the Humane Society, of Chicago, and 
 was the publisher of the Humane Journal 
 until his death, a period of over thirty years. 
 Mrs. Witt spent her early life in Shelbyville, 
 Indianapolis and Lebanon, Indiana. To 
 the captain and his wife were born three 
 children, namely: Hattie A., now the wife 
 of L. S. Baldwin, of Xoblesville. Indiana; 
 Jessie M., wife of Philip Piper, a dentist of 
 Pontiac: and Albert M.. at home, who has 
 been a member of the National Guard for 
 three years, and served as corporal in Com- 
 l)any I', Third Illinois \"olunteer Infantry, 
 during the Spanish-American war. 
 
 On the 13th of November, 1864. Cap- 
 tain Witt removed to Dwight. Illinois, 
 w here he engaged in the real estate business 
 one year, dealing first in farm and later in 
 \illage property. In 1866 he was appointed 
 marshal of that town, and held the office 
 thirteen years; was also deputy sheriff ten 
 years and constable nineteen years. Fur a 
 }ear and a half he engaged in the harness 
 business, but at length was forced to give it 
 u]) as his various official duties re(|uired his 
 entire time. At the same time he als j held 
 
 other local offices, such as school director, 
 street commissioner, and was fire marshal 
 fourteen years. As a Republican he has 
 always taken an acti\e part in political af- 
 fairs. In 1866 on the first organization of 
 the (irand .\rmy Po.st at Dwight. under the 
 oUl dispensation Captain Witt became one 
 of the charter members, but the organiza- 
 tion afterward went down. Since 1880 he 
 has been a member of T. Lyle Dickey Post, 
 of Pontiac, of which he is now past com- 
 mander, and which he has represented in 
 the state encampment, and was also elected 
 U} represent his district to the national en- 
 campment at Chicago in the fall of 1900. 
 He was a member of Dwight Lodge, I. O. O. 
 !•'., antl admitted to Pontiac Lodge, No. 
 ji^j. in which he has filled all the chairs. He 
 is also a member of the encampment, anil 
 was the organizer and cai)tain of the Canton 
 for three years. lH)r many years he was 
 an active member of the Independent Order 
 of Good Templars, and was an officer in the 
 same until the lodge disbanded. 
 
 Tor ten years Captain Witt was a mem- 
 ber of the Illinois National Guard, and rose 
 from second lieutenant to captain of his 
 company, thus gaining his title. During the 
 strike of 1877 he was in active service with 
 his company for three months, being sta- 
 tioned at Braid wood. After his election 
 to the office of sheriff he had to disband the 
 company as his men refused to elect another 
 captain, so well was he loved by them, and 
 he was given permission to disband them 
 by Governor Cullom. 
 
 It was in 1882 that Captain Witt was 
 elected sheriff of Livingston county, which 
 office he filled for four years with credit to 
 him.self and satisfaction to his constituents. 
 .\t one time he had thirty-two prisouers in 
 the jail. Later he was appointed an officer
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ill the Illinois State Refurmatory under Dr. 
 Scouller, but resigned after holding the po- 
 sition for two years and four months, and 
 returned to Dwight, Avhere he was engaged 
 ill business for a year and a half. Subse- 
 quently he conducted a bakery in Pontiac, 
 but is now living retired, enjoying a well 
 earned rest. His beautiful home at No. 603 
 AVest Grove street, is pleasantly located on 
 the banks of the \'ermilion river in what is 
 now the best portion of the city, and the 
 lawn and garden surrounding it co\er one 
 acre of ground. The Captain and his wife 
 are leading members of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal church, of Pontiac, and are highly re- 
 spected and esteemed by all who know 
 them, while their circle of friends through- 
 out the countv is extensive. 
 
 \\ILLIAM KIMBER. 
 
 William Kimber, a thorough and skill- 
 ful farmer residing on section 10, Esmen 
 township, Livingston county, six m.les west 
 of Odell, was born near the city of London, 
 England, October 10, 1853, a son of Jesse 
 and Alice (Hacket) Kimber, natives of the 
 same country. In 1873 he crossed the 
 broad Atlantic with his parents, and on land- 
 ing in Xew York proceeded at once to La 
 Salle county, Illinois, where his brother 
 and sister had located four years previously. 
 There the father rented land and engaged 
 in farming for several years, but finally 
 came to Livingston county and spent his last 
 days on a farm in Esmen township with our 
 subject, dying here May 11, 1885. The 
 wife and mother departed this life October 
 19, 1883, ^"d both were laid to rest in Es- 
 men township cemetery. In their familv 
 
 were tliree children : Mar\-, wife of Samuel 
 Mills, of Grundy county ; Percival, a farmer 
 of Esmen township, Livingston county; and 
 \\'illiam. 
 
 Our sul)ject was given good educational 
 advantages in his native land. On the emi- 
 gration of the familv to America, he assisted 
 his parents and worked as a farm hand by 
 the month for six years. He was married 
 in De Kalb county. January i, 1880, to Miss 
 Caroline Rose Tomlin, a native of Adams 
 township, La Salle county. Her father, 
 James Tomlin, was born in England, and 
 came to America in 1 842 when a young man, 
 and located in Illinois. To Mr. ajid Mrs. 
 Kimlier were born seven children, namely: 
 Bertha Alay. now the wife of Henry War- 
 ner, of La Salle county ; Jesse Arthur, Ella 
 Alice, Edward James, Dora Ann, Caroline 
 Eliza and William Andrew, all at home. 
 
 For ti\e years after his marriage Mr. 
 Kimber operated a rented farm adjoining 
 liis present place, and in 1884 bought eighty 
 acres where he now resides, but did not lo- 
 cate thereon until a year later, though he 
 had engaged in its cultivation for two years. 
 To the original purchase he has since added 
 a forty-acre tract, and now has a fine farm 
 of one hundred and twenty acres which he 
 has placed under a high state of cultivation 
 and impro\ed with good and substantial 
 buildings. He is an industrious, enterpris- 
 ing and progressi^•e man, and to these char- 
 acteristics ma}^ be attributed his success, 
 for he received no outside aid. 
 
 By his ballot Mr. Kimber supports the 
 men and measures of the Prohibition party, 
 and he served one term as a member of the 
 school board, but has never cared for offi- 
 cial honors. Religiously both he and his 
 wife are earnest and faithful members of 
 the Methodist Episcopal church at Esmen
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 43 
 
 Center, of which he is a trustee. In the 
 Sunday school he lias servetl se\eral \ears 
 as superintendent. 
 
 WILLI. \.M W. W.VSSU.M. 
 
 W illiani W. W'assoni is one of Pontiac's 
 highly respected citizens, wliose useful and 
 well-spent life has not only _q;ained for him 
 the confidence of his fellow men. hut has 
 also secured for him a comfMrtahle compe- 
 tence which enahles him lo lay aside al! 
 business cares and live retired. .\ native of 
 Illinois, he was born in Spring Valley, Bu- 
 reau county, December i, 1848, ar.d is a son 
 of Jacob and Jane (Scott) Wassom. The 
 fatiier was born in Pennsylvania, but when 
 a small boy accompanied his parents on their 
 removal to lennessee, where he was reared, 
 and as a young man came to this state, lo- 
 cating in Bureau county. There he was 
 married, and subsequently removed to Bur- 
 lington, Iowa, where he purchased a farm 
 and successfuU)' engaged in general farm- 
 ing and stock-raising, where he remained 
 seven years. Then returning lo Bureau 
 county he purchased a farm on the site of 
 the present village of Spring Valley. He 
 was a prominent man in his community and 
 took an active interest in the early schools. 
 He died there August 25, 1879. The wife 
 and mother died when our subject was only 
 four years old. Both were earnest mem- 
 bers of the Metliodi.st Episcopal church. She 
 was a native of Virginia, and a daugiiter of 
 Robert Scott, of Scotch descent, who was 
 one of the earliest settlers and most pros- 
 perous farmers of P)ureau county. He 
 manufactured the Ijrick of wliich his house 
 was constructed, and that building is still 
 
 standing, lie was i)robal)ly the tirst nianu- 
 facturer of brick in that comity. 
 
 \\ ilhaiii W. Wassom was educated in the 
 schoo.s oi ilall townsmp, and remained 
 With hiS lather untd cum.ng to Luiiigston 
 county m 18O8, when he took up his resi- 
 dence ill Nevada township. \\ liile living 
 there he was marrietl, June J9, 1871, to 
 iNliss Hannah Sharp, a native of Farm 
 Ridge, Illinois, and a daughter of George 
 and Catherine (SpenceJ Sharp. Her father 
 was born m Ireland of English parentage, 
 be.ng a son ot Aohle bliarp, who never em.- 
 graied to America. George Sharp was 
 married in Ireland, and later crossed the At- 
 lantic to Toronto, Canada, whence he re- 
 moved to Farm Kidge, Illino.s. Subse- 
 quently he took up his residence in Dwight, 
 and laier upon a tarm in Nevada township, 
 this couiiiy. He was highly respected and 
 was called ujion to fill different township 
 offices. Mr. and Mrs. Wassom have a fam- 
 ily (if six children, namel\' : Jacob, a resi- 
 dent of Marengo, Iowa; Chaiies Bert, who 
 is living on the Blackstone farm, in Sun- 
 bury township; Fannie, who married Ev- 
 erett Ferguson, of Saunemin, this county, 
 and has two children, Laurine and Lela; 
 .\(la, who resides at home and is success- 
 fully engaged in teaching in the schools of 
 this county ; George, who was graduated 
 from the I'ontiac Higli School in 1900; and 
 Catherine, who is still attending the high 
 scIk.ioI. 
 
 On locating in this county, Mr. Wassom 
 found C(Jiisiderable wikl game and much of 
 the land was still in its jirimitive condition. 
 He purchased eighty acres of raw' prairie 
 in Nevada township, which he at once com- 
 menced to break, fence and improve. Pros- 
 ])ering in his new home, he purciiased more 
 land until he owneil five eighty acre tracts,
 
 44 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 which he tik'il and put in first class condi- 
 tioii, making one of tiie best improved 
 farms in the township. He also owned an- 
 other eighty-acre tract in Sunbury town- 
 ship, and in connection with the operation 
 of his land was engaged in stock raising. 
 He always kept a giiod grade and had con- 
 siderable registered stock on hand, being 
 among the first to introduce it. In 1895 he 
 moved to Pontiac and bought a pleasant 
 home at No. 608 North Mill street, where he 
 lias since lived retired. 
 
 Politically Mr. W'assom has always been 
 identified with the Republican party, but 
 has never held office, his home being in a 
 strong Democratic township where his party 
 could get nothing that the Democrats would 
 take. He \vas an efiicient member of the 
 school board for some time, and helped to 
 erect the school buildings in his township. 
 He and his wife are acti\-e members of the 
 Methodist Episcopal .church, and while liv- 
 ing in the country he served as superintend- 
 ent of the Sunday school one year and took 
 a leading part in church work, filling all of 
 the different official positions. He was a 
 member of the building committee when the 
 church was erected in Nevaila in 1873, and 
 hauled the first load of stone for. its founda- 
 tion. He is now ciinnected with the church 
 in Pontiac. \\'here\er known he is held in 
 high regard, and justly merits the confi- 
 dence and esteem of his fellow citizens. 
 
 HON. ROBERT R. WALLACE. 
 
 In the legal profession, which embraces 
 some of the finest minds in the nation, it is 
 difficult to win a name and place of promi- 
 nence. In commercial life one mav start 
 
 out on a more advanced plane than otliers; 
 he may enter into a business already estab- 
 lished and carry it further forward, but in 
 the legal profession one must commence at 
 the beginning and work his way upward by 
 ability, gaining his reputation and success by 
 merit. People do not place their legal busi- 
 ness in unskilled hands, and those who to-day 
 siand at the head of their profession, must 
 -merit their position. Among the most promi- 
 nent lawyers of Livingston county is Robert 
 R. Wallace, of Pontiac, who served as coun- 
 ty judge for the long period of twenty-one 
 years. 
 
 'i he Judge was born in Belmont county, 
 Ohio, March 13, 1835, a son of David and 
 Prances (Ross) Wallace. His paternal 
 grantl father was David \Vallace, who came 
 to this country from the north of Ireland 
 and was a strong United Presbyterian in re- 
 ligious belief. The maternal grandfather, 
 Robert Ross, was of Scotch descent, and also 
 a stanch member of the United Presbyterian 
 church. The Judge's father was born in 
 western Pennsylvania, and reared there and 
 in eastern Ohio, while the mother was born 
 near Chambersburg. in eastern Pennsylvania, 
 and when young remo\ed to the western 
 part of that state. During his active life 
 Da\id Wallace engaged in farming in Bel- 
 mont and (iuernse)- counties, Ohio, and in 
 1869 came to Illinois, locating near Biggs- 
 \ille, Henderson county, where he continued 
 to engage in agricultural pursuits until his 
 death in 1875. His wife still survives him 
 aiid is now living with a daughter in Kansas 
 at the age of ninety-one years. 
 
 During his boyhood Judge Wallace at- 
 tended the common schools of liis nati\e 
 county and completed his education at Mon- 
 mouth, Illinois, where he received the de- 
 .grees of A. E. and .\. M. and was graduated
 
 R. R. WALLACE.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 47 
 
 ^vith the class of 1861. In Deceniher oi 
 tiiat year he responded to his country's call 
 for troops, enlisting in Company K, Seventy- 
 fourth Ohio \'olunteer Infantry. He was 
 first sent to Xenia, Ohio, and from tiiere to 
 Camp Chase, Columhus, where he was en- 
 gaged in guarding prisoners for a time, and 
 later with the .\rniy of the CumberlantI he 
 participated in all the battles from Nashville 
 to Atlanta, and after the fall of the latter 
 city took part in the defense of Nashville. 
 Later he was on post duty near there and 
 ^^lemphis until the close of his term of enlist- 
 ment. He had re-enlisted in the same regi- 
 ment and was promoted to captain during 
 the summer oi 1864, remaining in the ser- 
 vice until 1866. 
 
 Judge Wallace had previously com- 
 menced the study of law, and after the war 
 continued his studies at Ottawa, Illinois, 
 being admitted to the bar in April, 18&7. 
 \n the fall of that year he located in Chats- 
 worth, Livingston county, where he was en- 
 gaged in general practice until his remoxal 
 to Pontiac in the spring of 1874, having the 
 previous fall been elected county judge on 
 what was known as the anti-monopoly ticket. 
 He took the office in December, 1873, and 
 held it live consecutive terms — a longer 
 period than other county officer has been 
 retained in one position. This fact clearly 
 indicates his efficiency, popularity and fidelity 
 to duty. During all this time he continued 
 to engage in active practice, and is to-day 
 one of the leading general practitioners of 
 the county. He is an honored member of 
 T. Lyie Dickey Post, G. A. R., and is past 
 commander of the same. 
 
 On the 3d of June, 1867, Judge Wal- 
 lace was united in marriage with Miss C. 
 Louise Strawn, a daughter of Isaiah and 
 Elizabeth (Champlain) Strawn, of Ottawa, 
 
 Illinois, and to them were born four chil- 
 dren : Ross S., now chief engineer of the 
 People's Gas & Electric Company, of Peoria ; 
 Francis; Lucile, and Grace, a teacher in the 
 schools of Joliet. The family have a pleas- 
 ant home at No. 303 East Howard street, 
 and are prominent members of the Presby- 
 terian church of Pontiac. 
 
 MILLER HOTALIXG. 
 
 Miller Hotaling, a successful farmer and 
 land owner on section 31, Avoca township, 
 and a resident of Livingston county since 
 1876, was born in Greene county, New 
 "^'ork, July 30, 1850, and is a son of Rich- 
 ard and Helen (Miller) Hcjtaling, both na- 
 tives of that state and of German descent. 
 The father died in New York in 1882, where 
 he had followed farming since early man- 
 hood. His wife survives him and lives on 
 the old Miller homestead, which was occupi- 
 ed by her father for sixty years, never pass- 
 ing out of the family. She is now seventy- 
 three years of age, and has always been act- 
 We. Our sul)ject's jiaternal grandfather 
 served as lieutenant through the war of 181 2. 
 The family were formerly Whigs, and upon 
 the formation of the Republican party joined 
 its ranks. To Richard Hotaling and wife 
 were born eight children, five of whom are 
 still living, namely: Annie, wife of John 
 Jacobs, of Hazelton, Pennsylvania; Augusta, 
 wife of Harry Herr, of Athens, New York; 
 William, who lives with his mother on the 
 old Miller homestead; Van Allen, a pros- 
 ])erous farmer and lantl owner of Livingston 
 county, Illinois; and Miller, the subject of 
 this sketch. Jacob, the oldest son, was a 
 member of the Seventh New York /Artillery
 
 48 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 (luring tlie ci\i! war, was taken prisoner and 
 sent til Andersonville. where he was incar- 
 cerated twent\'-tw() months before ex- 
 clianged. and contracted cHsease from which 
 he died in 1865, just as he was released. 
 
 Miller Hotaling received a common 
 school education in his native state ami 
 grew to manhood on his father's farm. On 
 leaving the parental roof at the age of seven- 
 teen years he came to Illinois and worked 
 as a farm hand for two years in McLean 
 countv. at the end of which time he rented 
 a farm anil carried on farming (juite suc- 
 cessfully in that way for a numlier of years. 
 In 1885 he purchased fifty acres of rich and 
 arable land on section 31, Avoca tow^nship, 
 Livingston county, and has since engaged 
 i." general farming here with marked suc- 
 cess. He has added to the original pur- 
 chase another fifty-acre tract; has matle 
 many valuable improvements on the place 
 and to-day has a most desirable farm. He 
 gives his entire time and attention to the 
 improvement and culti\ation of his land. 
 
 Li 1874 ]\Ir. Hotaling was united in 
 marriage with Miss Flora Pulsipher, a na- 
 tive of Oneida. Knox county, Illinois, and 
 to them were born four children : Lewis, 
 who graduated at Eureka College and is 
 now a Christian minister at Kentland, In- 
 diana ; P'hilip. who was graduated at the 
 same institution, and is now assisting his fa- 
 ther on the farm ; Leah and Cliloe, who 
 are both at home. The wife and mother 
 ■died at their home in Avoca township in 
 1887, and in 1890 ^Ir. Hotaling married 
 Miss Alartha Van Wormer, a nati\e of 
 Brimfield. Peoria county, by whom he has 
 three children, Edna, Millie and Leola. 2\Iis. 
 Hotaling is a daughter of \\'illiam and Mar- 
 tha (Shepherd) Van \\'ormer, her father 
 bein"- a veteran of theCi\'il war. anil w ho for 
 
 years was engaged in farming. F]oth he 
 anil his wife are yet living, and are mem- 
 bers of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
 
 As a Republican Mr. Hotaling has al- 
 ways been an active worker in the interests of 
 his party, and has held several minor offices 
 in the township, faithfully fulfilling every 
 trust reposed in him. In 1899 he was 
 electeil supervisor. He has been a school 
 dn-ector fifteen years, always taking a stand 
 for good schools and teachers. Re- 
 ligiously he is a member of the Christian 
 church, in which he is serving as elder, and 
 socially is a member of the Court of Honor 
 of Fairbury. He is a man of rather un- 
 pretentious nature, but is well liked by all 
 who know him. Mrs. Hotaling is also a 
 member of the Christian church. 
 
 HENRY C. JONES. 
 
 Henry C. Jones, a well-known citizen of 
 Pontiac. Illinois, was born in Cicero, Ham- 
 ilton county, Indiana, February 11, 1838, a 
 son of Henr}" Jones, who was born near 
 Cincinnati, Ohio, where during his youth 
 he learned the blacksmith's traile. When 
 a young man he removed to Cicero, Indiana, 
 and turned his attention to mercantile busi- 
 ness. Here he married Emily De Moss, a 
 daughter of James De Moss, a French Hu- 
 guenot and a carpenter by trade, who passed 
 his last da_\s as a farmr in Livingston 
 ciiunt}'. Illinois. The parents of our subject 
 came to this county in 1845, but after a 
 short time spent here they removed to the ter- 
 ritory of Iowa, locating at Bellevue, where 
 our subject began his education. In 1847 
 the family returned to this county, and after 
 following: farminq; for a short time the fa-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 49 
 
 ther. in 1849, went to California, where for 
 several year.s lie was engag^ed in mining and 
 mercantile pursuits. Re turning to Pontiac 
 in 1855 he again engaged in mercantile busi- 
 ness here, and was, in 1857, elected county 
 judge. In 1859. resigning his office of coun- 
 t\' judge here, he returned to the Pacific 
 slope in company with our subject and fif- 
 teen young men. He engaged in mercantile 
 business in Shasta, California, and became 
 one of the most prominent and prosperous 
 men of that place. He was elected a member 
 of the board of supervisors, and was also 
 alcalde( or mayor) of Shasta. In connec- 
 tion with his other business he was (juite 
 extensively engaged in gold mining. He 
 did much to build up the town and was rec- 
 ognized as one of its most influential and 
 prominent citizens. After the Civil war 
 he supported the Republican party and took 
 a leading part in public affairs. He died in 
 Shasta in 1893, and the mother of our sub- 
 ject died in the same place in 1868, leaving 
 ti\e chiklren. of whom Henry C. was third 
 in onler of birth. 
 
 During his boyhood our subject attended 
 the public sdiools of Pontiac, and when his 
 education was completed clerked in his fa- 
 ther's store until going to California in 1859. 
 They made the trip overland with horseless 
 vehicles (o.k teams) and were six months 
 upon the way. They passed through St. 
 Joseph, Missouri, went up the Platte when 
 the Indians in that region were quite hostile, 
 and passed through what is now Ogden, 
 Ctah, and through Nevada. Arriving at 
 Shasta. California, which was a good min- 
 ing town, father and son opened a store and 
 as merchants soon built up a good trade. 
 For some vears they were interested in 
 ])lacer and later in quartz mining. Our sub- 
 iect continued in business with his father 
 
 until i8()4. when he enlisted in the volun- 
 teer service and was elected lieutenant of his 
 company, but when they were put in bar- 
 racks and the regulars sent to the front, he 
 resigned, 'l hat he might see some active 
 service he went, X'ia Panama, to \ew York 
 with the intention of enlisting there, but 
 the war ended before he found the opi)or- 
 lunity. 
 
 Returning to Livingston county, Illinois, 
 .Mr. Jones entered the newspaper field, and 
 with Mr. Renoe established the Eree Press 
 at Pontiac. Later he bought the Sentinel, 
 the oldest newspa[)er in the county, from 
 James Stout, and. consolidating the two, 
 published a paper known as the Sentinel and 
 Press. Mr. Renoe was a Democrat, while 
 he was a Republican, but Mr. Renoe later 
 withdrew, leaving Mr. Jones as sole editor 
 and proprietor, and the paper resumed its 
 old name as Sentinel. He continued the 
 publication of the Sentinel for nine years, 
 during which time he built up a good cir- 
 culation and made it the leading Republi- 
 can j)aper in the county. Selling out in 
 1875, he went to Texas, and engaged 
 jn the au.xiliary newspaper business in Dallas, 
 getting out patent insides. In this enter- 
 prise he was remarkably successful, having 
 a list of two hundred and sixty-two local 
 ]japers to supply. He also published the 
 Planter and Farmer, and in that undertaking 
 was also successful, but on account of the 
 ill health of his wife, he disposed of his in- 
 terests in Texas and removed to Santa Cruz, 
 California, where he owns a valuable prune 
 ranch. 
 
 In 1S9J Mr. Jones returned to Pontiac 
 and acipiired a three-fifths interest in the 
 electric light plant, having helped to develop 
 the enterprise. This company was incor- 
 porated as the Pontiac Light, Heat & Power
 
 so 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Company, and has grown to large propor- 
 tions. Mr. Jones ser\-e(l as its president for 
 seven vears, though he recently sold his 
 interest in the same. He has been a tax- 
 payer in Pontiac for over thirty years and 
 is recognized as one of her most progressive 
 citizens, giving his support to those objects 
 ■which he believes will prote of public bene- 
 fit. Socially he is a member of the Pontiac 
 Lodge, Xo. 294, F. & A. j\I. 
 
 On the 25th of September, 1873, ^^i'- 
 Jones was united in marriage with Miss 
 Mary A. Bancroft, a native of New York, 
 and a daughter of Luther Bancroft, of Pon- 
 tiac. They have one daughter, Nellie A.. 
 \vh(j with her mother is a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church of Pontiac. 
 
 LUTHER C. HAYS. 
 
 Luther C. Hays, a practical and enter- 
 prising agriculturist of Eppards Point town- 
 ship, owns and operates two hundred and 
 fifty acres of land on section 2,2, constitut- 
 ing a valuable and highly improved farm, 
 pleasantly located nine miles south of Pon-. 
 tiac and three and a half miles northeast 
 of Chenoa. His possessions have been ac- 
 quired through his own efiforts, and as the 
 result of his consecutive endeavor he has 
 won a ]:Iace among the substantial citizens of 
 his community. 
 
 ]\Ir. Havs was born in Brown county, 
 Ohio. July 27, 1836, and is descended from 
 an old Connecticut family of Scotch-Irish 
 origin. His great-grandfather, Celia Hays, 
 was a native of that state and a pioneer of 
 Pennsylvania. He was a soldier of the 
 Revolutionary war. while the grandfather, 
 Warren Hays, aided in the defense of his 
 countrv during the war of 181 2. The lat- 
 
 ter was born in Pennsylvania, and married 
 a Miss Stark, a cousin of Rev. Lorenzo Dow. 
 Abiel Hays, father of our subject, was bnrn 
 in New York, in 1813, and from that state 
 remo\ed to Kentucky and later to Brown 
 county, Ohio, where in the midst of the for- 
 est he cleared and improved a farm. There 
 he wedded Mary Kennedy, a native of Vir- 
 ginia, and a daughter of James and Mar- 
 garet Kennedy. In 1855 he brought his 
 family to Illinois, driving across the coun- 
 try- with an ox team and locating first in 
 \\'oodford county, but a year later he re- . 
 moved to Chenoa township, ^iIcLean countv, 
 where he bought land and improved a farm, 
 making his home there for some years. He 
 helped organize that township, which was 
 l)reviously only a voting precinct. His last 
 days were spent upon a farm in southern 
 Illinois, where he died in 1890, at the ripe 
 old age of seventy-seven years, and his wife 
 died in 1884, at the age of sixty-nine years. 
 Our subject is the oldest of their family of. 
 seven children, two sons and fi\-e daughters, 
 all of whom reached years of maturity, the 
 others being as follows: Arminda J., de- 
 ceased wife of E. C. Hyde; Clarissa A., who 
 married John G. Dodge and died in 1898; 
 Ellen, deceased wife of Elijah Cole ; I^Iinerva 
 E., wife of A. D. Polk, of Minneapolis, I\Iin- 
 nesota; Eva, who died when a young lady, 
 and Thomas J., a resident of San Diego, 
 California. 
 
 Luther C. Hays was a young man of 
 nineteen years on the remo\'al of the family 
 t" this state, and he aided his father in open- 
 ing up and developing the farm in McLean 
 county, remaining with him until his mar- 
 riage. He was educated in common and se- 
 lect schools of his native state. \\'ith the 
 exception of the oldest, all his sisters engaged 
 in teaching school in McLean county.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 51 
 
 In CIiica,s^<i. Illinois, Septenil)er 26. i860. 
 Mr. Hays married Miss Matilda Eraser, a 
 native of Canada and a daughter of Louis 
 and Mary Eraser, who were born in that 
 country of Erench ancestry, and removed 
 to Chicago during the childhood of Mrs. 
 Hays. They began their domestic life upon 
 a farm of forty acres in McLean county, to 
 which our subject added until he had one 
 hundred and twenty acres. Jlc continued 
 to operate that farm until 1888, when he 
 l)urchased the two-hundred-and-fifty-acre 
 tract of land in Eppards Point township. 
 Livingston county, where he now resides. 
 It was known as the 'Stiuire Payne farm, 
 being entered by him in 1852. Since tak- 
 ing possession of this place, Mr. Hays has 
 remodeled the residence, built a good barn, 
 set out fruit and ornamental trees, and made 
 many other improvements which add greatly 
 to its value and attractive appearance. 
 
 Mr. Hays" first wife died in McLean 
 county, in 1872, leaving four children, 
 namely: Samuel L., who is married and en- 
 gaged in farming in Oregon; Mary Erances, 
 wife of C L. Howard, of Byron, Nebraska; 
 Jessie, wife of Andrew Vercler. of Salem, 
 Oregon, and W. C, who is married and fol- 
 lows farming in this county. Mr. Hays 
 was again married, in Li\ingston county, 
 in 1874, to Mrs. Erances A. Clark, a daugh- 
 ter of Almon Rhodes, an early settler, first 
 of La Salle county and later of Livingston 
 county. She was first married in the former 
 county to Wilson M. Clark, a veteran of the 
 Civil war, who died in 1870, leaving two 
 daughters : Alda, a teacher of Black Hawk 
 county, Iowa, and Laura B., wife of J. C. 
 Rainbow, of Pottawattamie county, Iowa. 
 By his second union our subject has six chil- 
 dren, namely: George M., who assists in the 
 operation of the home farm: Xellie. Pearl 
 
 M., Eva E.. John S. and Lottie L., all at 
 liome. 
 
 I'olitically Mr. Hays was identifieil with 
 the Republican party until 1896, when he 
 voted for W. J. Bryan and free silver. He 
 cast his first presidential ballot for Abraham 
 Lincoln in i860. He has been a delegate 
 to numerous conventions; ser\ed as com- 
 missioner of highways in McLean couiity 
 tor six years, and as a member of the school 
 board for over thirty years, ha\ing always 
 taken an active interest in educational af- 
 fairs. Mrs. Hays and her daughter are 
 members of the Baptist church and the fam- 
 il\- is one of prominence in the community 
 w here lhe\- reside. 
 
 C.VPTAIX HEXRY B. REED. 
 
 Captain Henry B. Reed, an honored cit- 
 izen of Pontiac, now living a retired life at 
 Xo. 504 South Mill street, is a veteran of 
 the Civil war and bears an honorable record 
 for brave service in the cause of freedom 
 and union, and in the paths of jjeace has won 
 an enviable reputation through the sterling 
 i|ualities which go to the making of a good 
 citizen. 
 
 The Captain was born near Pottsville, 
 Schuylkill county, Pennsylvania, January 
 29, 1833, a son of Thomas and Elizabeth 
 ( Barley) Reed. The father was also a na- 
 tive of Pennsylvania and a son of Thomas 
 Reed, who was born in the North of Ire- 
 land and came to this country six years prior 
 to the Revolutionary war, in which he took 
 ])art. He first settled near Philadelphia, and 
 throughout life followed farming, dying at 
 about the age of eighty years. (Jur sub- 
 ject's father was a life-long resident i>f Penn- 
 
 M. OF II . UB.
 
 52 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sylvania and a carpenter l)y trade. l)ut at the 
 time of liis death was following farming in 
 Schuylkill county. He died in February. 
 1833, when our subject was only three weeks 
 old. and the mother, who long survived him, 
 departed this life in 1873. They had eleven 
 children, of whom the Captain is the young- 
 est. Onlv three are now living. Elijah, 
 now seventy-six years of age, is living re- 
 tired in Schylkill Haven, Pennsylvania, 
 after having served for twenty-two years as 
 superintendent of the car shops at that place. 
 His wife died leaving five children that are 
 still living. Rebecca is the wife of Jacob 
 Zimmerman, who also worked in the car 
 shops at that place for a great many years, 
 but is now living retired at the age of sev- 
 enty-five years, while his wife is sixty-nine 
 years of age. They ha\'e a family of three 
 sons and three daughters. 
 
 Captain Reed remained with his mother 
 in his native county until nine years of age. 
 and then lived with a married brother on 
 his farm in the same county until twelve 
 years of age, when he commenced learning 
 the shoemaker's trade in Schuylkill Haven, 
 serving a three-years apprenticeship. The 
 following year he was foreman in the shoe 
 factory of Frederick Millett. at Tamaqua. 
 Pennsyh'ania. and then started in business 
 for himself at that place, remaining there 
 until 1852 and building up a large business 
 for those times. Receiving a good offer 
 from the firm of Packer & Olewine, shoe 
 manufacturers of Mauch Chunk. Pennsyl- 
 vania, he accepted the position as foreman 
 for that company, and was in tlieir employ 
 a year and a half, after which he returned 
 to Tamaqua. He was elected constable and 
 Iield that ofiice until coming to Illinois in 
 1853. He first located in Du Page c<~iunty. 
 where he worked at his trade for a time. 
 
 and later -was foreman for John Wallace, 
 at Joliet, for about a year and a half, at the 
 end of which time he removed to Blooming- 
 ton. During the Lincoln campaign of i860, 
 he was captain of the W'ide-Awakes, and 
 came to this count\- with that political or- 
 ganization. Being pleased with this locality 
 he decided to remain and was engaged in 
 the shoe business in Pontiac until the Civil 
 war broke out. 
 
 At the President's first call for troops, 
 Captain Reed responded, being the first to 
 enlist in Pontiac, and he helped organize 
 the first company from that city, which was 
 mustered in as Company D. Twentieth Illi- 
 nois Volunteer Infantry. He went to the 
 front as second sergeant, but after the battle 
 of Fort Donelson was promoted to second 
 lieutenant, his commission citing that his 
 promotion was for meritorious conduct on 
 February 14. 15 and 16, 1862, at Fort Don- 
 elson. Returning home June 30, 1862, he 
 organized a company under the large call of 
 that year, and again entered the service as 
 captain of Company G, One Hundred and 
 Twenty-ninth Volunteer Infantry, which 
 was under General Sherman's command 
 on the march to the sea, and from there 
 marched on to Washington. D. C. Our sub- 
 ject was mustered out at Chicago, in June, 
 1865. as captain. 
 
 After the war Captain Reed returned 
 to his family in Pontiac, and was here en- 
 gaged in the boot and shoe business for a 
 number of years, but finally retired on ac- 
 count of ill health. He was appointed by 
 Governor Oglesby as custodian of memorial 
 hall at Springfield, and was re-appointed by 
 Governor Fifer. Since 1894 he has led a 
 quiet, retired life at his home in Pontiac. 
 By his ballot he supports the men and meas- 
 ures of the Republican party, but has never
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 53 
 
 siiught political lioiKirs. Ueliginusly lie is a 
 member of the Methodist cluircli. and so- 
 cially belongs to Pontiac Ltxlge. Xo. 294. 
 F. & A. M.. and T. Lyle Dickey Post. Xo. 
 105. (;. A. R.. of I'ontiac, of which he is 
 l)ast commander. His loyalty as a citizen 
 and his devotion to his country's interests 
 have ever been among his marked charac- 
 teristics, and the community is fortunate 
 that numbers him among its citizens. 
 
 On the jyth of September. 1850, in 
 'J"ama(|ua. Pennsylvania. Captain Reed was 
 iniited in marriage with Miss Esther Beck, 
 a daughter of George and Mary ( Barbary ) 
 Beck. o{ Carbon county, who were farming 
 jieople and life-long residents of that state. 
 'I he father died on his farm in Carbon coun- 
 ty at the age (jf eighty-five years, his wife 
 at eighty-six. Mrs. Reed's paternal grand- 
 lather A\as a native of Germany and came to 
 this country at an early date. To the Cap- 
 tain and his wife were born nine children, 
 six of whom are now living, namely: George 
 O., born in Tamatiua. Pennsylvania, is now 
 engaged in the boot and shoe business in 
 Pontiac: Katie L., I)orn in Du Page county, 
 Illinois, is the wife of Thomas Kay. a dry- 
 goods merchant of Pontiac; Eilward O.. 
 born in Bloomington, in i860, is now serv- 
 ing as county treasurer of this county, and 
 is a prominent citizen of Pontiac; Harry B., 
 born in Pontiac, March 17, 1862. lias been 
 mail clerk on the Chicago & .Alton Railroad 
 for fourteen years, running between Chica- 
 go and St. Louis, and makes his home in his 
 birthplace; Josepii S., born in Pontiac. in 
 1864, is now a groceryman of that city and 
 lias served as alderman from tlie second 
 ward ; Cora E. is the widow of Frederick 
 O. Scrivens, late of Pontiac. and is assist- 
 ant county treasurer at the present time. 
 The other children died at an earlv asre. 
 
 FREDERICK SCI 1()1-:XBECK. 
 
 I'redcrick Schoenbcck is one of the 
 worthy citizens that Germany has furnished 
 to Livingston comity, and is today one of 
 her most prosi)erous and successful farmers. 
 He resides on section 15, Pike township, 
 where he has a line farm of one hundred 
 and sixty acres, and besides this jjroperty 
 he owns two other farms of similar size on 
 sections 10 and 20. respect i\el\'. 
 
 Mr. Schocnbeck was born in the king- 
 dom i>f Prussia, CJermany, b'ebruary 26, 
 1850, and attended the .schools of his native 
 land for eiglit years. His knowledge of 
 luiglish has mainly been acquired through 
 his own unaided efforts. In 1867, at the 
 age of se\enteen years, he crossed the ocean 
 with his mother, brother and sister and 
 joined an luicle in Peoria, where the mother 
 subsec|uently married John Rutz. who later 
 came to Livingston county and settled on a 
 farm in Pike townshij). Our subject worked 
 for an uncle in \\'oo(lford county, and then 
 spent a year in Peoria county. In 1871 he 
 came to Livingston county, and after work- 
 ing for others two years he rented a farm, 
 which he operated for the same length of 
 tine. .\t the end of that period he pur- 
 chased eighty acres in section 15, Pike town- 
 ship, where he now resides. The improve- 
 ments u])on the place at that time were of 
 a very inferior order, but he has since erected 
 a pleasant residence, good barns and out- 
 buildings, has buiU fences, planted fruiit 
 and ornamental trees and to-day has one of 
 the best imijroved farms in the township. 
 He has extended its Ixnindaries until it now 
 contains one hundred and sixty acres, and his 
 other farms are Iioth \aluable places of one 
 hundred and sixty acres each. 
 
 On the _>5th of March. 1873. Mr. Schoen-
 
 54 
 
 OGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 beck was married, in I'eoria, Illinois, to 
 Miss Frederica Wenke, a native of Olden- 
 burg, Germany, and a daughter of John F. 
 Wenke, who, on his emigration to America, 
 settled in Peoria and purchased a farm ad- 
 joining the cit}'. where he spent the re- 
 mainder of his life, dying there in 1875. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Schoenlieck ha\e four chil- 
 dren, namely: Frederick. Jr.. at home: 
 Katie, wife of Jnhn ]). Klein, a son of John 
 Klein, who is represented on another page 
 of this volume; Anna and William, both at 
 home. 
 
 Mr. Schoenheck cast his first presidential 
 ballot for Rutherford B. Hayes in 1876, and 
 has never wavered in his allegiance to the 
 Repulilican party since that time, but he has 
 never cared for political preferment. His 
 life has been one of industry and persever- 
 ance, and to these characteristics as well 
 as his good business ability may be attributed 
 his success, for he has received no outsitle 
 aid. Both he and his wife were reared in 
 the Lutheran faith and are highly respected 
 and esteemed bv all who know them. 
 
 DAVID S. :\IYERS. 
 
 David S. Myers, of Pontiac. president of 
 the Pontiac State Bank, is ranked generally 
 as one of the safest financiers and most sa- 
 gacious business men in central Illinois. If 
 success is to be measured by results he luust 
 be regarded as an eminently successful man. 
 for not only his individual affairs, but all 
 the enterprises he has organized and pro- 
 moted in Pontiac and elsewhere ba\e pros- 
 pered even beyc^nd his preilictions and the 
 expectations of those he enlisted in these 
 various undertakings. His active connec- 
 
 tion with so many ]3rojects. both of a public 
 and private nature, most of which contrib- 
 uting to the material advancement of his 
 county and city, marks Mr. Myers as one 
 of the useful and prominent citizens of Liv- 
 ingston county. 
 
 Da\id S. Myers was born Feliruary 10, 
 1858, on a farm near Russellville. Ohio,, 
 and is now, July. 1900. only in the early 
 maturity of intellectual and physical man- 
 hood. He inherited much of the vigor of 
 liis constitution and force of character from 
 liis ancestors, who were people of reputation 
 and intelligence, conspicuous in the pioneer 
 history of Ohio. He is the son of William 
 and Margaret Myers, both natives of Ohio, 
 the former being born A larch 22, 18 14. at 
 Russellville. and the latter in 1823 at George- 
 town. This lad\\ who was a woman of 
 practical merit and mental attainments, 
 was the daughter of Ebenezer Moore, a sub- 
 stantial and influential citizen of Brown 
 county, Ohio, where he resided all his life 
 as- a prosperous farmer and useful member 
 of the community. His first political affilia- 
 tions were with the Whigs, but later the 
 progressive principles of the Republican 
 party appealed to his sympathies and won 
 his ardent support. As a girl Margaret had 
 what she afterward considered the rare dis- 
 tinction of being the schoolmate and study- 
 ing the same lessons with an unpretentious 
 lad who was destined to become the most 
 famous soldier of his time. General V. S. 
 (irant. the Grant and Moore families being 
 neighbors. 
 
 Francis Myers, grandfather of D. S. 
 ]\Ivers. was among the earliest settlers of 
 southern Ohio, actively assisting in the tle- 
 \elopment of the count}', and. ti)gether with 
 his family, resolutely undergoing all the toil 
 and privations that were assumetl bv those
 
 D. S. MYERS.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 57 
 
 devoted pioneers wlm hla^^ed the wav and 
 snn)othed tlie path for tlie coniino- "enera- 
 tions. 
 
 W'ilham Myers, fatlier of D. S. Myers, 
 was in many respects a remarkable man. 
 He passed the largest portion of his life in 
 Ohio, his native state, where he achieved 
 the noteworthy record of having taught 
 school uninterruiitedly for forty years. The 
 entire course of his life was regulated and 
 directed by his lo\e of humanity, his sense of 
 justice and his sym])athy with the oppressed, 
 and he was one of those dauntless spirits, 
 who, known as Abolitionists, were the 
 vanguard of that grand movement which 
 resulted in the extinction of slavery within 
 the borders of the United States. His home 
 was one of the stations on the "Underground 
 Railway," which was the significant name 
 of a secret byway over which fugitive slaves 
 were assisted and hurried from the yoke of 
 bondage to the blessings of liberty. He was 
 suspected and his life often endangered, 
 but no intimidation could swerve him from 
 his convictions of right. William Myers 
 had been a \\ lug, but the noble mission of 
 the abolition of slavery proclaimed by the 
 Republican party iniluced him to pledge his 
 voice and vote to that organization. For 
 a time but two Rei)ublican \-otes were re- 
 corded in iii^ township, one of which was his 
 own. lie enjoyed the distinction that few 
 could claim of having cast his first presi- 
 dential vote for William Henry Harrison 
 and his last for that president's grandson, 
 Benjamin Herrison. William Myers was a 
 man of culture in book knowledge as well 
 as of practical intelligence in the affairs of 
 life, being a close observer and a clear 
 thinker, with distinct though liberal views 
 on all the political and .social problems of 
 the time. He was evervwhere honored for 
 
 his excellent ((ualities of head and heart and 
 imi\ersally respected for his unyielding 
 tidelity to principle. He resided on bis farm 
 until 1888. when his .son induced his father 
 and mother to come to Pontiac and make 
 their home with him, antl he contributed to 
 their comfort and the serenity of their de- 
 clining years until death closed their eyes 
 in eternal slumber, .\fter a life seldom 
 e(|ualled in its steadfast ])ur])ose of uplift- 
 ing his race, William .Myers died in March, 
 1896, and was followed a year later l)v his 
 worthy heli)mate, a loyal wife, devoted 
 mother and sympathetic friend. Both lived 
 as exemplary Christians, being until death 
 members of the Presbyterian church. 
 
 The boyhood and early manhood of 
 David S. Myers was passed upon his father's 
 farm, where he formed habits of industry, 
 a fi.xed ]nu-pose in life and stability of char- 
 acter, and in the district schools where he 
 acquired the elementary principles of edu- 
 cation, and under the vigilant e\-e of his fa- 
 ther, the most eft'ective training that any boy 
 could receive. To prepare himself for the 
 ])rofe,ssion of teaching he attended different 
 normal schools in southern Ohio and so im- 
 ])roved his advantages that he soon qualified 
 and was called to take charge of schools, 
 tirst in Kentucky and then in Ohio. In 1883 
 he came to Livingston county, Illinois, a 
 movement upon which all his later successes 
 aj^jjear to hinge. 1 lere he engaged in teach- 
 ing for nearly two years in Owego and 
 Saunemin townshiijs. with the most satis- 
 factor}- results. Going to Chicago he en- 
 tered a real estate office, where he diligently 
 ap])lied his time for a year, familiarizing 
 himself with the details and acquiring much 
 \aluable knowledge of real estate transactions. 
 Returning to Livingston county be, with N. 
 O. Tanquary, opened the real estate office
 
 58 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of Taiiquary & ]vlyers in Pontiac, an ar- 
 rangement wliich continued in force until 
 1889, when Mr. Tanquary's withdrawal dis- 
 solved the firm, since which time Mr. Myers 
 has conducted an extensive real estate busi- 
 ness independently, always beneficially to his 
 patrons and satisfactory to himself. During- 
 the years following 1888 several additions 
 to the city of Pontiac. owned by Mr. Myers, 
 were platted and opened to market. By 
 inviting buyers who improved the property 
 and became actual residents, he has promoted 
 the growth of the city in wealth and popu- 
 lation and thereby enhanced the value of 
 all real estate, stimulated business and in- 
 creased the general prosperity. The first 
 project of this kind in which he was inter- 
 ested, known as Camp's addition, comprised 
 sixteen acres of eligible lots and is now the 
 most desirable residence portion of the city. 
 A second addition to this tract has since been 
 opened. Myers' first, second, third, fourth 
 and fifth additions have also been platted, 
 all of which have their attractions and in all 
 of which lots are being rapidly disposed of 
 to home builders, many of whom he has 
 assisted in their improvements. At this 
 time, July, 1900, there are but two other 
 additions on the market, and in one of these, 
 the Riverside addition, near the shoe factory, 
 lie holds an interest. In 1899 Myers sold 
 thirty thousand dollars worth of \'acant lots, 
 in his various additions to Pontiac, which not 
 only attests his ability as a real estate dealer, 
 but is substantial evidence of the remark- 
 able growth and improvement of the city. 
 For the past ten years Mr. Myers has been 
 interested in drainage and reclaiming ex- 
 tensive tracts of swamp lands in Livingston, 
 Lee, Henry and Bureau counties, in Illinois, 
 and La Porte countv. Indiana, and is the 
 owner of a largfe amount of \erv \aluable 
 
 and ]iighly;_ product! \-e land in each of these 
 counties. 
 
 Mr. Myers does not lieliex-e that a city 
 can become permanently prosperous without 
 productive industries employing skilled labor. 
 Hence he has encouraged such enternrises 
 in Pontiac, and was one of the founders, as 
 well as the first stockholder, and is still a 
 director, in the Pontiac Shoe Manufacturing 
 Company, one of the most extensive and 
 prosperous plants of this kind in the United 
 States, affording employment to more than 
 three hundred persons, disbursing for its 
 pay roll more than one hundred and twenty- 
 fi\e thousand dollars annuall}' and an annual 
 product valued at nearly one million dollars. 
 In 1899 Mr. Myers became interested in the 
 Allen Candy Company, which was incor- 
 porated with a ca])ital stock of twenty-five 
 thousand dollars. He was chosen as one of 
 the directors and the company is now in suc- 
 cessful operation. Mr. Myers was the chief 
 promoter of the organization of the Pontiac 
 State Bank, which was incorporated and 
 opened for business in February, 1899. He 
 was the larest stockholder and was elected 
 president, which position he still fills ac- 
 ceptably to patrons and to the best interests 
 of the bank. Under his able management, 
 assisted by an efficient board of directors, 
 comprising some of the most capable business 
 men of Pontiac, the Pontiac State Bank was 
 a success from its inception, and is recog- 
 nized as one of the solid financial institu- 
 tions of central Illinois. The bank occupies 
 elegantly appointed rooms in the corner of 
 the new Sterry block, which were especially 
 designed for that purpose. 
 
 The Pontiac Chautauqua Association is 
 the pride and lioast of every citizen, and has 
 been popular as well as prosperous from its 
 first asseml)ly. Mr. Myers actively pro-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 59 
 
 motetl its organization and has since iieen 
 one of its directors. In 1899 its earnings 
 were fifty-five per cent, on its stock. He 
 rendereil valuable aid in founding the ]nihlic 
 library, and ])urchased. at a liberal price, land 
 donated by Mr. Babcock. besides contribut- 
 ing generously to the library fund. The 
 townshi]) high school was another object of 
 his generous public spirit, donating the 
 grounds in the center of which stantls the im- 
 posing school building. 
 
 Mr. Mvers has al\va\s been an interested 
 student of state and national affairs, and is 
 well informed on all the public questions of 
 the day. Politically, he is an a\o\ved Re- 
 publican of the most pronounced type. His 
 first presidential vote was given to General 
 Garfield in 1880. He has participated act- 
 ively in county and citv politics and rendered 
 ^•aluable assistance to his party. In 1892 
 he was selected as councilman from the first 
 ward, and while acting in that capacity ad- 
 vocated the system of sewerage and adoption 
 of water works which marked the beginning 
 of an era of city improvements. In 1897 
 he was elected mayor of the city, his ad- 
 ministration being one of the most import- 
 ant and successful in its benefits to the city 
 in the ni'.toiyof Pontiac.includingtheremoval 
 of the unsightly raised sidewalks and bring- 
 ing the streets and sidewalks to a uniform 
 grade. From June. 1898. to June. 1900. he 
 served as chairman of the Republican county 
 central committee and brought to that posi- 
 tion the same energy and sagacity that he 
 exercised so effectively in other affairs. .\s 
 a prominent and active Republican Mr. 
 Myers is well known to the leaders through- 
 out the state. 
 
 Mr. Myers is a man of keen perceptions, 
 almost unerring in his judgment of men 
 and affairs and of the verv first order of 
 
 executive ability. In his methods of 
 thought and action he is very deliber- 
 ative, weighing every word before it is ut- 
 tered and measuring everv step before it is 
 taken. He is (piiet auvl self-possessed, and 
 he turns- off transactions involving tens of 
 thousands of dollars with less palaver than 
 many men would require to consummate the 
 most trilling transaction. . The elements 
 that contribute to his unexampled successes 
 are umlouhtedly his sclf-e\'ident honesty and 
 sincerity, which in\ ite confidence, the clear 
 manner in which he presents a ])roposition, 
 his excellent judgment in making invest- 
 ments and his exceptional al)ility in organiz- 
 ing and luaturing extensive enterprises. He 
 is unselfish in his success, for every step in 
 his prosperity has been marked by some ad- 
 vantage to his city and county. .\s an ex- 
 ample of what may be accomplished by a 
 well-balanced, energetic and ambitious young 
 man, dependent absolutely upon his own ef- 
 iovts. the career of Mr. Myers is invaluable. 
 -Mthough an inten.sely busy man, and 
 while engaged in business oblivious to everv 
 distraction, Mr. Myers, recognizing all the 
 obligations of citizenship and .societv. has 
 a very agreeable social side to his nature. 
 He has a refined home, one of the most ele- 
 gant residences in Livingston county, which 
 is located on Cirove street, overlooking the 
 \'ermillion river, and has a cultured family. 
 On I'ebruary 9. 1887. David S. Myers and 
 Miss Louise Catherine Slyder w^re united 
 in marriage. Mrs. Myers is a lady of 
 acknowledged refinement, supplemented by 
 a practical, womanly disposition and a cheer- 
 ful nature. She was born in Lixingston 
 county, one of ten children, her father being 
 Simon F. Slyder. a prominent citizen of the 
 same county. Four children came to bless 
 this union, two of whom are living. Diller
 
 6o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Slyder and Anna Louise. TTie family are 
 regular attentlants of and liberal contributors 
 to the maintenance of the jMethodist Epis- 
 copal church of Pontiac. The passing years 
 have justified the wisdom of Mr. Myers in 
 the choice of a bride, for their domestic re- 
 lations are A'ery happy and their home life 
 what mav 1)e trulv termed ideal. 
 
 CHARLES L. ROMBERGER. 
 
 Prominent among the enterprising, pro- 
 gressive and successful men of Dwight is the 
 subject of this- sketch, who as a lawyer and 
 business man has been prominently identified 
 with its interests for several years. His life 
 history most happily illustrates what may be 
 attained by faithful and continued effort in 
 carrying out an honest purpose. Activity antl 
 energy hav6 been the crowning points of his 
 success, and his connection with various en- 
 terprises have been of decided advantage to 
 his community, promoting its material wel- 
 fare in no uncertain manner. 
 
 I\Ir. Romberger was born in a log cabin 
 in Wyanet, Bureau county, Illinois, June 12, 
 1862. His father, L. D. Romberger, was 
 born in Pennsylvania, April 23, 1831, of 
 German ancestry, and was left an orphan 
 \\lien only a _\'ear old. At the age of eight he 
 started out in life for himself and ser\-ed an 
 apprenticeship to the tinner's trade. He was 
 about twenty-three years of age w hen he re- 
 moved to Wyanet, Illinois, where he was 
 married, March i, i860, to Francisca L. 
 Weaver, who was also born in Pennsylvania, 
 P'ebruary 20, 1839, and had come west with 
 her parents, who were engaged in the hotel 
 liusiness. Air. Romberger was engaged in 
 merchandising in Wvanet for a few vears 
 
 and later followed farming for two years, 
 after w hich he mo\ed to Princeton, Illinois, 
 where he was engaged in the mercantile 
 business until his health failed, in 1880, 
 when he sold out and has since devoted his 
 attention to bee culture, having one of the 
 largest apiaries in the United States. He 
 has always been a stanch Republican in poli- 
 tics, but ne\er an aspirant for office, though 
 he is now serving as justice of the peace. 
 Of his three children, one died in infancy; 
 Emma L. is now the wife of Frank H. Hoff- 
 man, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and 
 Charles L. completes the familv. 
 
 The primary education of our subject 
 was obtained in the public schools of Prince- 
 ton, and he was graduated from the high 
 school of that city at the age of seventeen 
 years. He then entered the law department 
 of the L'nixersity of Michigan at Ann Arbor, 
 where he was graduated at the age of nine- 
 teen and received the degree of LL. B., 
 March 2Q, 1882. He was not permitted to 
 practice, however, until he attained his ma- 
 jority, when the state of Michigan forwarded 
 his certificate, and he was admitted to prac- 
 tice at the bar of Illinois, September 24, 
 1883. After his graduation he located at 
 Ottawa, Illinois, and entered the office of 
 Mayo & \\'idmer, prominent attorneys of 
 that place, with whom he remained for fif- 
 teen months. 
 
 In 1884. at the suggestion of Hon. W'ul- 
 ter Reeves, now member of congress from 
 this district, Mr. Romberger came to Dwight 
 and opened a law office over the People's 
 Bank, being alone in business until 1887, 
 when he formed a partnership with John 
 C. Hetzel, a real estate and insurance agent, 
 under the firm name of Hetzel & Romberger. 
 In 1 89 1 he bought out his partner and con- 
 tinued alone until Xo\ember, 1895, when he
 
 THE BIOGRATHICAL RFX'ORD. 
 
 6i 
 
 sold a lialf interest in the business to Frank 
 L. Smith, the lirni being known as Romberger 
 & Smith. Their specialty is real estate and real 
 estate work, although they do a private bank- 
 ing business for accommodation of friends 
 and acquaintances. Without question the 
 firm does one of the largest loan and real es- 
 tate businesses in central Illinois, this fact 
 being conceded by all other firms in their 
 line. At present they are extensively inter- 
 ested in Mississippi and Louisiana lands. 
 Their holdings in the latter state are timber 
 lantls, wiiich the firm purchased with tlie 
 view of enhancing their value, and in jan- 
 ary. 1900^ they sold one tract of twelve 
 thousand acres in Madison parish. 1 his is 
 desirable property, being accessible to steam- 
 boats and the \'icksburg, Shreveport & Pa- 
 cific Railroad. The Mississippi land is in 
 the Delta country and is also covered with 
 hardwood lumber, principally oak, ])ecan 
 and gum. When cleared this will be- 
 come excellent cotton land. Besides this 
 property the firm has about fifteen hundred 
 acres of fine farming land in Lee county, 
 Illinois, which is well improved and under 
 a high state of cultivation, and also oper- 
 ates largely in biwa and Lidiana lands. 
 Since coming to Dwight 'Slv. Romberger 
 has had complete charge of tiie Keeley Com- 
 pany's legal business, and is attorney for 
 the estate of Dr. Leslie E. Keeley. He is 
 also local attorney for the Chicago & Alton 
 Railroad. He does very little court work, 
 however, his entire legal business being con- 
 fined to ofiice practice. He is interested in 
 the Keeley Institute, located at Xo. J803 
 Locust street, St. Louis, Missouri, being a 
 partner of Dr. J. E. Blaine, who for eight 
 years was chief of the medical staff of the 
 Leslie E. Keeley Company of DwigfTt. 
 
 On the 7th of October, 1S84. Mr. Rom- 
 
 berger married Miss Nellie M. Ensign, a 
 native of Connecticut, and a daughter of 
 Edward H. and Martha S. Ensign. By 
 this union three children were born, the old- 
 est, a daughter, died in infancy. Louise E. 
 ilied very suddenly of tonsilitis, November 
 2, 1899, at the age of twelve vears. Emma 
 T., aged eleven years, is attending school in 
 Dwight. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Romberger are mem- 
 bers of the Congregational church, and he is 
 also a prominent member of the Masonic 
 fralcrnitv. In 1884 he was made a Master 
 Alason in Livingston Lodge, No. 371, A. 
 F. & .\. ;M., of Dwight, of which he is now 
 past master, and received the higher degrees 
 in Orient Chapter, No. 31, R. A. M., and 
 Blaney Commandery, No. 5, K. T., of Morris, 
 Illinois; Dwight Chapter, No. 166, O. E. 
 S., of which he is past worthy patron; is a 
 member of the Oriental Consistory and Me- 
 dinah Temple of the Mystic Shrine, both of 
 Chicago. He is now a member of Wil- 
 mington Chapter, No. 142, R. A. M., of 
 which he is past high priest, and Joliet Com- 
 mandery, No. 4, K. T., of which he is senior 
 warden. Since old enough to vote Mr. 
 Romberger has affiliated with the Republi- 
 can party, and in 1892 was elected president 
 of the board of trustees of the village of 
 Dwight on the ticket advocating ))ublic im- 
 provements. He has always taken the lead 
 in anything tending to advance the inter- 
 ests of his town and worked hard to get the 
 sewerage system, electric light and water 
 works adopted and cement sidewalks laid. 
 Therefore during his administration there 
 were more improvements made than at any 
 other time, and he is justly numbered among 
 Dwight's most progressive and public-spir- 
 ited citizens. He is emphatically a man of 
 enterprise, positive character, indomitable
 
 62 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 energy, strict integrity and liberal views, 
 and is thoroughly identified in feeling with 
 the growth and prosperity of his city. 
 
 NATHAN S. GRANDY. 
 
 Nathan S. Grandy, deceased, was num- 
 bered among the honored pioneers of Li\- 
 ingston county, where he located when this 
 region was wild and unimproved. In the 
 work of de\-elopment he took an actixe part 
 in the early days and aided in opening up 
 the country to civilization. As the years 
 passed his faithfully performed duties of citi- 
 zenship and his interest in the welfare and 
 progress of the communit}- never aliated. 
 Becoming widely and favorably known he 
 made many friends, and his death was a loss 
 to the entire community. 
 
 Mr. Grandy was born October 6. 1816. 
 in Phantom township. Addison county. \'er- 
 mont, where he grew to manhood, and there 
 worked at the carpenter's trade, as a manu- 
 facturer of sash, doors and blinds. He first 
 married a Miss Kent, who died in Illinois a 
 few vears after soming here. After his 
 marriage he came to Illinois, arriving in Chi- 
 cago about the ist of May, 1850, when only 
 thirtv miles of railroad extended from that 
 city toward Galena, and a few miles had been 
 built in this direction, there being not more 
 than one hundred mdes in the state. From 
 Chicago Mr. Grandy went to Alton, a part 
 of the journey being made liy way of the Illi- 
 nois river, and the whole trip occupying over 
 a week. He first located in Kane, Greene 
 county, Illinois, where he had a brother liv- 
 ing, and there he engaged in farming for a 
 time. 
 
 While a resident of Greene countv, ^Nlr. 
 
 Grandy was married, February 12, 1854, to 
 Miss Harriet E. Christy, a native of Law- 
 rence county, Illinois, and a daughter of 
 John and Elizabeth (Denni.son) Christy, pio- 
 neers of that county, where their marriage 
 was celebrated. The father, who was a na- 
 tive of Ohio and a farmer by (Occupation, re- 
 moved to Greene county soon after the Ijirth 
 of Mrs. Grandy and bought a tract of land 
 in Kane, where he spent the remainder of 
 his life. In religious belief he was a Baptist. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Grandy were born eight 
 children, namely: T. E., a real estate dealer 
 of Pontiac, married Elizabeth L. Mason; 
 Harriet A., at home with her mother; Clara 
 is the wife of .Albert G. Mason, of Pontiac, 
 and they have four children living, Ollie, 
 Leonard L., .\lice and Cress ; Charles E., 
 who li\-es on a farm three miles and a hah' 
 east of Pontiac, married Susan Foster, of 
 Owego township, and they have two chil- 
 dren, iMabel E. and Victor J.; George W., 
 a resident of St. John's, Kansas, married 
 Jennie Dudley, of Missouri, and they have 
 one child, Pearl; William A., a lumberman 
 of Mason City, Illinois, married Emma An- 
 irim, and they have one child, Margery ; 
 Henry li\es on the home farm and married 
 Miss Tillie Hill; Mary J. is the wife of W. 
 C. Young, a farmer living three miles east 
 of Pontiac, and the}- ha\-e three children, 
 Edith. Marshall and Lewis. 
 
 In 1856 Mr. and Mrs. Grandy came to 
 Livingston county and took up their resi- 
 dence in Owego township, where he pur- 
 chased a farm of eighty acres, on which 
 was standing a small caliin, 14.X18 feet, made 
 of rough slabs from the sawmill set up on 
 end and the cracks filled with clay. The 
 fioor was of ash and oak boards about ten 
 inches wide hewed down, while the roof was 
 made of real old-fashioned clapboards split
 
 THE llIOr.KAl'HICAL RFX'ORD. 
 
 63 
 
 from oak timl)er. In tliis rude dwelling the 
 family lixed for nver a \ear. With the ex- 
 ception of a few acres the farm was un- 
 broken. C)n taking up his residence here 
 Mr. Grandy at once turned his attention 
 to the improvement and cultivation of his 
 farm. The first winter he constructed a 
 stable by ])utting f<irked poles into the 
 ground, laying other jjoles across these ami 
 covering them with brush and then with hay, 
 while the sides were also banked up with 
 hay. This comfortably sheltered his stock 
 until a better barn could be built. He fenced 
 his land and placed acre after acre under the 
 plow until all was highly cultivated. In 
 1861 a more substantial and comfortaljle 
 residence was built, much of the timber being 
 taken from his own wi od Int. two miles 
 from his home. .Men were making the sills 
 for the new house when the news came of 
 the firing upon Fort Sumter. The house 
 was completed that summer and is stiill 
 standing. A large part of the finished lum- 
 ber used in its construction was bought at 
 sixty dollars ])er thousand and paid for with 
 corn at ten cents per bushel. This had to be 
 shelled, sacked and hauled to Pontiac. Mr. 
 Grandy useil a small two-hole corn sheller, 
 run by horse jjower. 
 
 When he located in this cnnnty he cnuld 
 travel in a northeaster!}- directiim fnmi his 
 honie and find nut a Imuse nor a fence until 
 within twii miles ni Kankakee, while his 
 nearest trading places were Pontiac and 
 Fairbury. Coal was almost unknown and 
 was very high when obtainable. Several 
 times during the first four years sjjent here, 
 the Grandy home came \ery nearly being 
 destroyed by the prairie fires. Mrs. Grandy 
 once saved the house with a pail of water and 
 her mop. They added to the farm by addi- 
 tional purchase as their financial res(jurces 
 
 increased, but in 1S7J sold it and bought two 
 luiiidreil and fi ur acres in Pontiac township, 
 one mile fro.m the court house, which Mrs. 
 Grandy still owns, anil on which the family 
 moved that year. Our subject made all of 
 the improvements upon the place, inchuling 
 the erection of a fine house, a good barn and 
 substantial outbuildings. He was actively 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1877, 
 when he was injured by a saw. after which 
 he ])ractica!l_\' lived retiretl until his death, 
 lieing" lilind the last two years of his life. 
 
 Mr. Grandy was a Democrat in politics 
 and took an acti\e and prominent part in the 
 public affairs of his time. While a resident 
 of Owego township he served as school treas- 
 urer, assessor and justice of the peace, and 
 was known throughout the county as S(|uire 
 Grandy. In Pontiac township he served as 
 road commissioner some years and took an 
 active part in building the bridges and im- 
 proxing the roads of his locality, assisting in 
 the construction oi the fine iron bridge three 
 miles west of Pontiac. In 1868 he was ap- 
 i;ointed county commissioner by the board 
 of supervisors to go over the county and re- 
 appraise the swamp lands, to which business 
 he devoted one whole summer, spending 
 nearly all the time driving over the county. 
 I le was one of the early members of the Bap- 
 tist church and later attended services at 
 Avoca. w here a church w as l)uilt for the use 
 <if any dencjmination, this being much nearer 
 his home. After his ren)oval to Pontiac he 
 united with the Baptist clunxii in that city. 
 He died on his farm, one mile east of Ponti- 
 ac. June 26. 1890. honored and respected 
 by all who knew him. Throughout his career 
 of continuetl and far-reaching usefulness his 
 duties were performed with the greatest care, 
 and his personal honor and integrity were 
 without blemish.
 
 64 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mrs. Grandy still survives her husband 
 and now makes her home in Pontiac, where 
 she has a lovely home at Xo. 317 East How- 
 ard street. She has only li\'ed here a year, 
 though owning the place for some time. She 
 was always a true helpmeet to lier husband, 
 aiding him in e\ery possible way, and is a 
 most estimable lady, beloved and respected by 
 all who know her on account of her sterling 
 worth and manv excellencies of character. 
 
 JOHN W. HOO\'ER. 
 
 John \\'. Hoo\er, whose home is at Xo. 
 215 East Livingston street, Pontiac, is one 
 of the most public-spirited and enterprising- 
 citizens of that place. He is a native of Illi- 
 nois, born in Putnam county, March 9, 1S40, 
 and is a son of Henry Mann and Sarah 
 (Hunt) Hoover. The father was born in 
 Pennsylvania, June 10, 1808, and in 1838 
 came to Illinois, locating in Bureau county, 
 where he engaged in farming until 1848 
 and then went to California, crossing the 
 plains with an ox team. The following four 
 )'ears were passed in prospecting and min- 
 ing, during which time he accumulated con- 
 siderable property, but when just ready to 
 return to his family in Illinois he met with 
 a violent death and his hard-earned treasure 
 was taken from him. His widow is still liv- 
 ing at the age of eighty-eight years, and 
 resides with her daughter in Minonk, Wood- 
 ford county, Illinois. Only three of her ten 
 children survi\-e. Two sons, George H. and 
 Julius G., were soldiers of the Civil war, and 
 died in Tennessee during their service. 
 
 Our suliject remained with his mother 
 on the home farm in Bureau county until 
 1857, when they removed to Livingston 
 
 county and located in X'ebraska township, 
 where he engaged in agricultural pursuits 
 until the breaking out of the Civil war, in 
 1861, when he enlisted in the Third Illinois 
 Cavalry, Company K. for three years. He 
 participated in a number of battles in ]\Iis- 
 souri and Arkansas, including the engage- 
 ment at Pea Ridge, where he was wounded. 
 He went to the gulf, was stationed at X^ew 
 Orleans for a time, and was in the sieges of 
 Port Hudson and Vicksburg. He was at 
 the latter place at the time of the first re- 
 pulse of Sherman, and remained there until 
 the surrender to Grant. He was mustered 
 out at Springfield, Illinois, as commissary 
 sergeant, having held that position two years. 
 After his discharge Air. Hoover returned 
 to Livingston county and again engaged in 
 farming in Xebraska township. Ihe sud- 
 den death of his father had left the family 
 in very straightened circumstances and 
 placed a very heavy burden on the shoulders 
 of our subject, but he early displayed that 
 determination and grit which have carried 
 him forward to a successful life. He was 
 devoted to his mother and toiled early and 
 late that she might have the comforts of life 
 that she had been accustomed to before the 
 death of her husband. He continued to en- 
 gage in farming until the fall of 1870, when 
 he was elected sheriff of Livingston county 
 on the Democratic ticket and moved to Pon- 
 tiac. He filled that office for one term with 
 ci"edit to himself and to the general satis- 
 faction of the public, and at its close em- 
 barked in general merchandising, which he 
 carried on until his store and its contents 
 were destro}-ed by fire, Jul)' 4, 1874. Al- 
 though he lost almost everything he pos- 
 sessed, he was not cast down or crushed by 
 the misfortune, but with characteristic en- 
 ergy he immediately purchased another stock
 
 J. W. HOOVER.
 
 MRS. JOHN W. HOOVER.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 69 
 
 of goods and continued business until 1897, 
 being associated witli Wilson Pittenger some 
 years, and afterward \vitli ^\'. S. Sims for 
 about five years, the firm name being Hoover 
 & Sims. 1 le w as tiicn alone in business luitil 
 selling out. in 1S97. 
 
 Mr. Hoover was married. December 31, 
 1868, to Miss Mary E. \'an Doren, of this 
 county, a daughter of Hilyard and Eliza 
 (Thompson) Van Doren. Her father was 
 born in Xew Jersey, in 1808, and was si.K 
 years old when he removed to Ohio with his 
 parents. His father, John \'an Doren, also 
 a native of Xew Jersey, conducted a hotel 
 near Clarksville, Clinton county, Ohio, for 
 many years. Throughout the greater part 
 of his life Mrs. Hoover's father followed • 
 the carpenter's trade, but after coming to 
 Livingston county, Illinois, engaged in farm- 
 ing and stock raising in Nebraska township. 
 He was school trustee for many years and 
 also filled the office of collector and super- 
 visor for some years. He helped build the 
 first school house in his township, advanc- 
 ing money for the work until the district 
 could reimburse him, and he organized the 
 first Sunday school within its borders, serv- 
 ices being held at his home until the school 
 house and church were built. In 1885 he 
 retired from active life and moved to Pon- 
 tiac, where he died September i, 1898. His 
 wife had departed this life February 14, 
 1892. Mrs. Hoover is the youngest of their 
 seven children. William T., the oldest, mar- 
 ried Julia Smith in 1855, and is a prominent 
 contractor and builder of Pontiac. Frank 
 M. and Luther were both members of Com- 
 pany A, One Hundred and Twenty-ninth 
 Illinois Volunteer Infantry, during the Civil 
 war, and the latter was drowned in the Cum- 
 berland river in Tennessee after serving one 
 vear. Frank M. married Xettie Xickerson 
 
 and resides on the old home farm in Ne- 
 braska township. Mr. and Mrs. Hoover 
 have a family of four children, namely : 
 Ella I., born in Pontiac, was married, May 
 JO, 1898, to Halbert Opperman, a grocer 
 of Pontiac; Helen P. has for the past three 
 years been head bookkeeper at the Pontiac 
 Shoe manufactury; Edna R. is at home, 
 and Maude W. is a student in the high school 
 of Pontiac. 
 
 In 1898 Mr. Hoover was elected super- 
 visor of Pontiac township, and his services 
 gave such universal satisfaction that in the 
 spring of 1900 he was re-elected, being the 
 only Democrat elected on the township ticket, 
 which speaks well for his personal popularity 
 and the confidence and trust reposed in him 
 by his fellow citizens. He has been fire 
 marshal of the city for the past twenty-five 
 years, and was a member of the department 
 for some years before. It has been his con- 
 stant study to improve the department and 
 the time he has devoted to that work has been 
 well spent, for his efforts have been crowned 
 with success. At present a new city hall and 
 engine house is being erected. Mr. Hoover 
 is an honored member of T. Lyle Dickey 
 post, G. A. R., and attends and supports 
 the Methodist Episcopal church. 
 
 GEORGE Z. FI.ACILER. 
 
 Prominent among the citizens of Dwight 
 will) have witnessed the marvelous develop- 
 ment of Livingston county in the last half- 
 century, and who have, by honest toil and in- 
 dustry, succeeded in acquiring a competence 
 and are now spending the sunset of life in 
 quiet and retirement, is the gentleman whose 
 name introduces this sketch.
 
 70 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Mr. Flagler wa.s l)i)rn in Herkimer. New 
 York, June 4, i8j8, aiul was reareil there 
 until ten vear.s of ag'e. when he renKned to 
 Ohio with his jiarents, Philip and Xancy 
 (Dyg'ert) Flagler, also natives of New York. 
 His paternal grandfather. Zachariah Flagler. 
 Avas horn in France, and on his emigration 
 to America settled in Dutchess county, Xew 
 York, where, in the midst of the wilderness, 
 he developed a farm and spent the remainder 
 of his life. He reared a family of eleven chil- 
 dren, ten sons and one daughter, of whom 
 Piiilip was fifth in order of birth. 
 
 On reaching manhood Philip Flagler re- 
 moved to Herkimer countv. New York, he- 
 coming one of its early settlers, and there he 
 married Nancy Dygert, a daughter of '\\'ill- 
 iam Dygert, who emigrated from Ciermariy 
 to the United States at an early day. After 
 his marriaee Mr. Flagler conducted a meat 
 market in Frankfort, Herkimer county, until 
 our subject was ten years of age, and then 
 moved to Middlebury, Portage county. Ohio. 
 going by way of the Erie canal to Buffalo. 
 by lake to Cleveland, by canal to Akron, 
 Ohio, and from there across the countr}- l)y 
 wagon to Middlebury, where he worked at 
 the shoemaker's trade fi\'e years. He then 
 returned to New York by the same refute, 
 this time locating in Dutchess county, where 
 he followed farming until a few years prior 
 to his death, when he sold his farm and 
 moved to Rochester, New York. There he 
 lived retired until called to his final rest, 
 at the age of seventy years. The mother 
 of our subject had died many years pre\-ious. 
 leax'ing si.x children, who reached man and 
 womanhood, namely : (ieorge Z., Catherine. 
 Walter, Albert, William and Oscar, all still 
 living with the exception of Walter. Cath- 
 erine is the wife of Philip Miller, of Dwight. 
 Illinois. For his second wife the father mar- 
 
 ried Katherine \\"rig'ht, by w lioni he had one 
 daughter, Annie. 
 
 George Z. Flagler recei\e(l his education 
 in the schools of Portage county, Ohio, and 
 Dutchess count}-. New York, and remained 
 at home with his father until after bis mar- 
 riage. On the 27tb of September, 1848, 
 when twenty-one years of age. lie married 
 Phebe Jane Clarkson, then sixteen. They 
 luet at the village school in Stormville, New 
 York, and the friendship there formed soon 
 ri])ened into a Ime that has never died out, 
 fi::r they are still lo\ers, the same as in the 
 days long gone by. Airs. Flagler was born 
 in Dutchess county, of which her parents, 
 Egbert and Maria ( facox ) Clarkson. were 
 also nati\es. while her paternal grandfather, 
 Charles Clarkson, was a native of England, 
 having emigrated to this country at an early 
 day. For many years her father followed 
 farming in Dutchess county, but in the fall 
 of 1856 he came to Livingston county. Illi- 
 nois, where he lived retiretl until bis death, 
 at the age of sixty-three years. His wife 
 died at the age of seventy-three. In their 
 family were four children. \\'illiam. Hamil- 
 ton. Phebe Jane and Mary Elizabeth,but Mrs. 
 Flagler is the only one now living. To our 
 subject and his wife were born three chil- 
 dren, namely : ( i ) Eugene, a resident of 
 Dwight. married Letty Potter, and they have 
 two children : Stella, wife of Eberett Lewis, 
 a jeweler of Dwight. by whom she has one 
 child, Harland : and Louise. (2) John \\'., 
 an in\alid residing in Dwight, married 
 Laura Lee, and they have one child, Helen. 
 ( 3 I George N.. who has succeeded his fa- 
 ther in the- lumber business, married Letty 
 Saltmarsh, and they have two children, Ed- 
 die and Mattie. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Flagler remained 
 with his father a vear, but determining to
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 71 
 
 engfage in business for himself, he rented a 
 farm of one Inmdred and se\en acres in 
 Dutchess county, .\'e\v ^'nrk, whicli he suc- 
 cessfully o])erated for three years. Selling" 
 out in the east he came to Illinois in 1855. 
 and after spending" ten days at Joliet pro- 
 ceeded to Dwight, Livingston county, where 
 he hired out to a Mr. Spencer, whose farm 
 included the present home of our subject. 
 After working" for him one year he was \a- 
 ri<iusly empkned for a time, and then turuetl 
 his attention to the carpenter's trade. One of 
 the first houses which he built is the one he 
 is now living in. it being situated on a part 
 of the old Spencer farm and is one of the 
 most beautiful places in Dwight, surrounded 
 by four acres of well-kept grounds. Here 
 Mr. Flagler located in 1899. The first house 
 that he owned in Dwight is still standing. 
 He continued to follow the carpenter's trade 
 for several years, and in 1874 became inter- 
 ested in the lumber business, which he car- 
 ried on alone fur three years, when he 
 formed a jiartnership with Thomas Sims, 
 under the name of Flagler & Sims. Three 
 years later this was dis.solved and Zed John- 
 son purchased an interest in the business, 
 which was conducted under the firm name of 
 Flagler & Johnson for three years and a 
 half. From that time on he was alone in 
 business until 1897. when he was succeeded 
 by his SDU. ( ieorge \., who still carries it on. 
 w hile our sul)ject is practically living retired, 
 tlmugh he still continues to k)ok after his 
 property interests in Dwight. which include 
 a number of houses. 
 
 Mr. Flagler'has been prominently identi- 
 fied with almost the entire growth and de- 
 \elopment of Dwight, as when he located 
 there there were only six houses in the place. 
 During the first year of his residence here 
 he and his wife, with another faniilv, oc- 
 
 cupied a little shanty, 16x24 feet. In 1856 
 he rmd William Clarkson each built a house, 
 the first that were erected that year. One 
 Sunday the two men went out alx)ut three 
 miles in the country and got some x'oung 
 basswood trees, which they l)rought ti^ town 
 on their backs and planted, these being the 
 first trees set out in Dwight, as the place at 
 that time was flat prairie land, unadorned 
 by trees or shrubs. .Mr. Flagler lieli)ed or- 
 ganize the village and has aided materially 
 in its growth and building, assisting in the 
 erection of must of the older dwellings of 
 the place. He heli)ed Iniild the Presbyterian 
 church, which was the first house of worship 
 erected in Dwight, and later, as a contractor, 
 built the Methodist Episcopal church. He 
 was line of the first trustees of the village, 
 being elected on a temperance ticket, and 
 was a member of the village board four 
 terms. i'v his ballot he has always sup- 
 jjorted the men and measures of the Dem- 
 ocratic party at national elections, but in 
 local affairs, when no issue is involved, votes 
 for the man whom he believes best ciualified 
 to fill the oiifice. Socially he is a member of 
 Living.ston lodge. No. 371, F. & A. M., and 
 Wilmington Chapter, Xo. 142, R. A. M. 
 During their long residence in Dwight Mr. 
 and Mrs. Flagler have made a host of warm 
 friends, have gained the confidence and re- 
 spect of all who know them, and as honored 
 |)ioneers and representative citizens arc cer- 
 tainly deserving of prominent mention in a 
 work of this kind. 
 
 STEPHEN' A. GOODM.VX. 
 
 Stephen A. Goodman, the efficient en- 
 gineer of the Dwight Electric Light Com- 
 ])any anrl a highly respected citizen of
 
 72 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Dwight, Illinois, was bom in Hunting-don 
 county, Pennsylvania, December 26, 1851, 
 and is a son of James J. and Catherine (Nu- 
 men ) Goodman, also natives of Pennsyl- 
 vania. By trade the father was a wagon- 
 maker and bridge carpenter, and during his 
 residence in the Keystone state followed 
 bridge building on railroads and canals. In 
 1867 he brought his family to Illinois and lo- 
 cated on a farm in Dwight township. t\\o 
 miles .southwest of the town of Dwight. mak- 
 ing his home there for two years, at the end 
 of which time he took up his residence in 
 town, where his death occurred, in 1884, and 
 where his wife is still living-. In their fam- 
 ily were ten children, namely : Anna, wife 
 of ^^'. H. \\'atson, a conductor on the Penn- 
 sylvania Railroad and a resident of Altoona, 
 Pennsylvania; IVIattie, widow of G. W. 
 Stewart and a resident of Union Furnace, 
 Pennsylvania; Stephen A., oiu^ subject; 
 Emma, wife of George Taylor, a farmer and 
 dairyman of Dwight township; Alfred, a 
 farmer of Grundy county, Illinois ; James. 
 a conductor on the Chicago & Alton Rail- 
 road ; George, who is employed in the round 
 house at Dwight ; Mary, twin of George and 
 deceased wife of John Camerorn, of Ono, 
 Willow county. Nebraska; Nora, wife of 
 Frank Phole, of Dwight ; and Bruce, an en- 
 gineer on the Chicago & Alton Railroad. 
 
 The boyhood and youth of Stephen A. 
 Goodman were mainly passed in Pennsyl- 
 vania, and at the age of fifteen he entered 
 the Mill Creek furnace shops to learn the 
 blacksmith and machinist's trades, his father 
 being then engaged in the hotel business at 
 Mill Creek. He was sixteen years of age 
 when the family came to Illinois, and for a 
 time he worked at his trade in Dwight. Sub- 
 sequently he accepted a position as engineer 
 and general assistant with the firm of Hef- 
 
 fenbaugh & Rutan, but his first permanent 
 position as engineer was in the old stone m!Il 
 of Hahn & Siegert, where he was employed 
 two years. He next entered the service of 
 the Chicago & Alton Railroad in the mund 
 house at Dwight, and later was fireman on 
 the Streator branch of that road and served 
 the company until 1893. He spent two years 
 as fireman on the Pennsylvania Railroad, 
 running between Altoona and Harrisburg, 
 Pennsylvania. In November, 1896, he ac- 
 cepted his present position with the Dwight 
 Electric Light Company, and has since filled 
 it in a most capable and satisfactory manner. 
 
 On the 22d of September. 1877. at 
 Dwight. was celebrated the marriage of Mr. 
 Goodman and Miss Belle Goodspeed, a na- 
 tive of Grundy county, Illinois, and a daugh- 
 ter of George R. and Emily ( Starkey ) 
 Goodspeed. Her father gave u]) his life for 
 ,his country as a soldier of the Civil war. 
 During the last ten years of her life Mrs. 
 Goodspeed made her home with our sub- 
 ject and there died March 31, 1897. }*Irs. 
 Goodman died January 12, 1893, and of the 
 three children born of that union, Emma 
 died at the age of four years and Hattie 
 at the age of eleven. Charles is still living 
 and is with his father. Mr. Goodman was 
 again married, in Peoria, Illinois, April 20, 
 1897, ^^'^ second union being with Miss 
 Agnes McCloskey, a native of Blair county, 
 Pennsylvania. They have a pleasant home 
 in Dwight, erected by him in 1882. 
 
 In political affairs j\Ir. Goodman sup- 
 ports the Democratic party. While a resi- 
 dent of Altoona, Pennsylvania, he joined the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and now 
 affiliates with Dwight Lodge, No. 513. of 
 which he is past noljle grand. He is also a 
 member of Pacific Encampment, No. 126, 
 and was elected and installed chief patriarch,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 73 
 
 l)Ut resignetl on account of liis night work, 
 wliicli occupies iiis time to the exclusion of 
 everything else. He is a thorough and 
 ^-killed machinist and is a highly respected 
 and honored citizen of Dwight. He was for 
 tive years a member of the Illinois state 
 guards and was honorably discharged. 
 
 X. .M. .\M) TRUMAX .M. KKLI.OCCr. 
 
 These brothers, who are numl)ered anmng 
 the re[)resentative citizens of Pontiac town- 
 .ship, Livingston county, own and operate 
 a fine farm of three liundred and twenty 
 acres on section 8. pleasantly located on 
 Wolf creek, within three miles of the 
 city of Pontiac. They are natives of 
 ( )neiila countv, Xew ^'ork. the former 
 born near L'tica June 29. 18J9. the lat- 
 ter October 7, 1835, and belong to an old 
 colonial family of English origin, w liich was 
 founded in this country by two brothers, 
 who were among the pioneers of Connecti- 
 cut. Our suljjects" paternal grandfather, 
 Truman Kellogg, was a native of that state 
 and a pioneer of Oneida county, Xew York, 
 where he located in 1790. There he cleared 
 and improved a farm in the midst of the 
 wilderness, making it his home throughout 
 the remainder of his life. The father, who 
 also bore the name of Truman, was born in 
 that county, in 1795. and on reaching man- 
 hood married ^lalinda Marsh, also a native 
 of Oneida county. He was a farmer by oc- 
 cupation and lived on the old Kellogg home- 
 stead throughout life, dying there May 17, 
 1867. He survived his wife only a few 
 weeks, as she died March 3, 1867. In their 
 family were four chiklren. two sons and two 
 daughters, but only the former are now liv- 
 ing. 
 
 In the county uf their nativity the broth- 
 ers passed their boyhood and youth, being 
 provided with good educational advantages 
 in both common and select .schools. In 1852 
 Truman M. went to Chicago, where he en- 
 tered the employ of the Illinois Central Rail- 
 road Company, in the engineer department, 
 as a rodman, and for twenty years was em- 
 ployed in the general ofifice of the civil en- 
 gineer for the Illinois Central Railroad Com- 
 pany at that cit}-, being promoted for suc- 
 cessful scr\-ice tnmi rodman ti> division en- 
 gineer, and as such he superintended the con- 
 struction of the Lake Shore harbor. X. M. 
 Kellogg remained at home with his parents 
 until their deaths, having charge of the 
 farm. In 1868 he came to Livingston coun- 
 ty. Illinois, and purchased the farm in Pon- 
 tiac township where the brothers now re- 
 side. They located thereon in 1871, and 
 have since devoted their time and energies 
 to the further improvement and cultivation 
 of the place, converting it into one of the 
 most desirable farms of its size in the coun- 
 ty. They follow general farming and have 
 engaged extensively in feeding and shipping 
 stock, fattening from six to ten car-loads of 
 cattle and hogs annually. To this branch of 
 their business they have devoted considerable 
 attention for the past fifteen years, and re- 
 cently have made a specialty of the breeding 
 and raising of good roadster horses of the 
 Hamiltonian and other standard bred stock. 
 Success has attended their well-directed ef- 
 forts and the}' are now numbered among the 
 most substantial men of the community in 
 which they live. 
 
 Politically the Kellogg brothers have 
 been life-long Democrats, and X. M. has 
 served as highway commissioner for fifteen 
 years, but neither have cared for official hon- 
 ors, preferring to give their undivi<le<l atten-
 
 74 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tion to their extensive business interests. 
 They are men of keen perception and sounil 
 judgment and their success in life is due to 
 their own well-directed efforts, so that they 
 deserve to be prominent!}- mentioned among 
 the leading and representative business men 
 of this county. Fraternally, Truman M. is 
 a member of the Masonic lodge of Pontiac, 
 ha\-ing been made a Master Mason some 
 years ago. 
 
 CHARLES H. LOXG, M. D. 
 
 The world has little use for the misan- 
 tlirope. The universal truth of brotherhood 
 is widely recognized, also that he serves God 
 best who serves his fellow men. There is no 
 profession or line of btisiness that calls for 
 greater self sacrifice or more devoted atten- 
 tion than the medical profession, and the suc- 
 cessful physician is he, who through love of 
 his fellow men gives his time and attention to 
 the relief of human suffering. Dr. Long is 
 one of the ablest representatives of this noble 
 calling successfully engaged in oractice in 
 Pontiac, Illinois. 
 
 The Doctor was born in Dimmick town- 
 ship. La Salle county, this state. May 14, 
 1850, a son of Archibald and Adeline 
 (Leigh) Long. The father was born in Gal- 
 lipolis, Gallia county, Ohio, in October, 
 1825, a son of Archibald and Catherine 
 (Keller) Long. The grandfather was born 
 near Wheeling, \\'est \'irginia, September 
 24, 1791, and was one of a large family of 
 children left orphans at an early age, and 
 who were thrown upon the world to make 
 their own way with little educational ad- 
 vantages. He managed, however, to acquire 
 much varied information, which, with untir- 
 ing energy, he ever put to use for the uplift- 
 
 ing of his fellow men. After drifting about 
 through Tennessee, Georgia and North Car- 
 olina during his boyhood he was finally mar- 
 ried, in October, 1813, and settled in (ial- 
 lipolis, Ohio, where most of his family were 
 born and where he acquired some property. 
 He also secured the maintenance of select 
 schools in the count}', and early became a 
 leader and exhorter in the Methodist Episco- 
 pal church, and afterward a licensed 
 preacher. He spent a few years in Indiana, 
 and then, in order to secure homes for his 
 children, now grown, he came to Illinois, 
 locating first in the militar}- tract, near Knox- 
 \il!e, Knox county, in 1834. He built the 
 first mill in that section and opened his house 
 for church and school purposes, there being 
 neither in his locality. He regularly filled 
 appointments to preach for miles around, 
 and our subject now has in his possession the 
 parchment certificate given by Bishop Mor- 
 ris, in 1839, at his ordination as deacon. 
 He soon secureil the building of a church 
 at Hermon, the expense of which was largly 
 borne by himself. At camp meetings and 
 revivals he was recongized as powerful in ex- 
 hiortation anil prayer. It was at a meeting 
 in his house that his son, Archibald, Jr., and 
 Rev. M. L. Haney were converted. In 1849 
 he removed to La Salle county, and early 
 the following year secured the organization 
 of a church at La Salle, there having been 
 no religious society there prior to that time. 
 He resolved to build a house of worship and 
 went about with his usual energy to accom- 
 plish this, hauling lumber, raising money and 
 working on the building. \\'hile thus en- 
 gaged he was exposed to the inclemency of 
 the weather and contracted a disease that 
 affected his lungs and eventually caused his 
 death. His home was always the stopping 
 place for all ministers, and he labored un-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 7S 
 
 tiringly for liis cluircli. He held nio?t all 
 the l(.)cal offices, inchuling those of school di- 
 recti.ir and justice of the peace, and in his 
 deatli the community realized that it had 
 lost one of its most valued anil useful citi- 
 zens. 
 
 Archihald Long. Jr., the father of our 
 subject, was reared on his father's farm near 
 Knoxville, and received a good practical ed- 
 ucation in the select school conducted in his 
 father's liome. This was largely supple- 
 mented in later years by extensive reading 
 and observation. He built the first saw- 
 mill at Knoxville and engaged in milling 
 for some time. In early days before the 
 grist-mill was built, the family hauled their 
 grain to Chicago, a distance of two hun- 
 dred miles. The early i)i( meers ground their 
 cornmeal on stones. After building the mill 
 the Long family sometimes rafted flour 
 down the Mississippi river to St. Louis. 
 In Knox county, Archibald Long, Jr., was 
 married, in 1847, to Miss Adeline Leigh, a 
 daughter of Robert Leigh, a veteran of the 
 war of 1 81 2, and an early settler of that 
 county, where he followed farming until his 
 death. Her paternal great-grandfather, 
 Leigh, was private secretary to George 
 III, of England, and for political reasons 
 lied to the United States. He was the pos- 
 sessor of a large fortune, which the family 
 never received. After his marriage, the 
 Doctor's father engaged in farming in Dim- 
 mick township. La Salle county, and was 
 one of the large land owners of his locality. 
 Although he gave strict attention to his 
 business affairs he never neglected his duties 
 to his fellow men, and took a very active 
 part in education and church work, ably 
 seconding his father in the support of the 
 feeble little church at La Salle. He was a 
 member of the official board throughout life 
 
 and after his father's death was its strong- 
 est mainstay for forty years. He was hon- 
 ored with all the township offices. He died 
 in La Salle county, December 31, 1892, and 
 the mother of our subject departed this life 
 in 1856, leaving two children, the younger 
 being Robert, now a resident of Koszta, 
 Iowa. 
 
 Dr. Long began his education in the dis- 
 trict schools near his boyhood lujme. and at 
 the age of fifteen years entered the academic 
 department of Wheaton College at W'heaton, 
 Illinois, where he was a student for two 
 years. In 1866 he entered the Illinois Wes- 
 leyan University at Bloomington, where he 
 was graduated with the degree of B. S., in 
 1873, being president of the class organi- 
 zation during his senior year. In the mean- 
 time he had engaged in teaching schools, 
 and after leaving college followed that pro- 
 fession for three years as principal at Mack- 
 inaw. Stanford and Homer, Illinois. 
 
 Having decided to make the practice of 
 medicine his life work. Dr. Long matricu- 
 lated at Hahnemann Medical College, Chi- 
 cago, in itS75. and was graduated with the 
 degree of M. J)., at the Chicago Homeo- 
 pathic Medical College in 1878. He is now 
 the leading homeopathic physician of Pon- 
 tiac, and enjoys a large general practice. 
 He served as United States pension examiner 
 under Presidents FLiyes and Arthur, doing 
 all the work in that line for the county, there 
 being no pension board at the time. In 1880 
 he was elected coroner of Livingston county 
 and served by re-election eight years, dur- 
 ing which time lie held the inquests made 
 necessary by the terrible Chatsworth wreck 
 when seventy-four Niagara excursionists 
 l<:st their lives. He is an honored member of 
 the Illinois Homeopathic Medical Associa- 
 tion, of which he was i)rovisional secretary
 
 76 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 two terms, ending in May, 1899, and is also 
 an active member of the Central Illinois 
 Homeopathic Association. He is medical 
 examiner for the Modern Woodmen of 
 America at Pontiac. 
 
 Dr. Long has been twice married, iiis 
 first wife being Miss Martha \'eimont. who 
 died ]\Iarch 20, 1884, leaving two children, 
 v.-ho are still living, namely: Eva Mary, 
 now attending the Northwestern University 
 at Evanston, Illinois, and Archibald V., at 
 home. For his second wife he married Lida 
 Sterry, daughter of C. \V. Sterry, of Pon- 
 tiac, and to them have been born two chil- 
 dren : Christopher Sterry and Katherine. 
 The family have a I)eautiful home at Xo. 
 304 East Water street, Pontiac. 
 
 From the start Dr. Long has served as 
 secretary of the Pontiac Riverview Chau- 
 tauqua Association, wliich is to-day one of 
 the most successful organizations of the kind 
 in the west, financially and otherwise, and 
 he is also a trustee of the Illinois Wesleyan 
 University at Bloomington, and also trustee 
 of the board of finance for the same institu- 
 tion. With such ancestry it is not strange 
 that the Doctor takes a very active and 
 prominent part in church work and lias al- 
 v.ays lieen willing tii contribute liis share to 
 any enterprise for the puljlic good. He is 
 one of the leading and influential members 
 of the Methodist Episcopal church of Ponti- 
 ac, and is now the oldest member of its offi- 
 cial board in point of continuous service, 
 having held some office for the past twenty- 
 two years. After serving eight years as su- 
 perintendent of the Sunday school, he re- 
 signed that position to become superintend- 
 ent of tlie primary department, which has de- 
 ^■eloped ra|)i(lly during the seven vears he 
 has been in charge, the enrollment at pres- 
 ent being two hundred and fiftv. He was 
 
 also secretary of the Livingston county 
 Sunday School Association seven years; 
 was chairman of the executive committee 
 a numlier of years : vice-president of the 
 third Illinois district, and has been chairman 
 of the finance committee a number of years. 
 At the age of thirteen he was elected sec- 
 retary of the Sunday school, which he at- 
 tended, and has since been officially con- 
 nected with Sunday school work. He was 
 a lay delegate to the general conference of 
 tlie ]\Iethodist Episcopal church, at Cleve- 
 land, in 1896, and at Chicago, in May, 1900, 
 and for four years was president of the Lay 
 Association of the central Illinois conference. 
 He is also editor of the Pontiac Methodist, 
 with which he has been connected from its 
 beginning, in 1896, As a physician he 
 ranks among the ablest, and as a citizen he 
 stands deservedly high in public esteem, be- 
 ing honored and respected liy all who know 
 him. 
 
 AUSTIN GIBBONS. 
 
 Austin Giljbiius. cif Dwight. was Ijorn in 
 ci'unt}' Mayo. Ireland. January 5, 1846, a 
 son of PhiUp and Bridget (McDonald) 
 (iilabons. also natives of that county. The 
 father was born December 10, 18 19, and 
 continued to make his liome in county Mayo 
 until his emigration to America in j\Iarch, 
 1851. For three years the family made their 
 home in New York state and in 1854 came 
 tc Illinois. locating first in Kendall county 
 and remii\-ing to Li\'ingston county in 1865. 
 Here the father purchased a half-section of 
 1,-ind in Nevada township, which he operated 
 eighteen years, and then moved to Chicago, 
 where he has since made his home. He is 
 liighly respected and esteemed and is a de-
 
 AUSTIN GIBBONS.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 79 
 
 vout member of the Cathcilic churcli. to 
 wliicli his wife also belonged. She died in 
 the fall of 1899, at the age of eighty years. 
 In their family were nine children, all of 
 whom are still living, namely : Mary, a 
 resident of Chicago; Austin, our subject; 
 Margaret, widow of Denslow Marsh and a 
 resident of Pittsburg, Kansas ; Ellen, of 
 Chicago; John, of Barton county, Missouri; 
 I'hilip. Jane. Sarah and Thomas, all of Ciii- 
 cago. 
 
 Our subject was only four years old 
 wlien brought to this country by his parents 
 and his education was begun in X'ew York 
 state, though the greater part of it was ob- 
 tained in the schools of Kendall county, Il- 
 linois. At the age of twenty-two he started 
 out in life for himself by learning the trade 
 of bridge builder and carpenter, which he 
 followed twelve years. During this time he 
 made his home in Nevada township, Liv- 
 ingston county, and on retiring from that 
 business, in 1877, he engaged in farming on 
 section 2, that township, where he purchased 
 eighty acres of land. To this he added one 
 hundred and sixty acres in 1896, making a 
 tine farm of two hundred and forty acres, 
 which he placed under a high state of cul- 
 tivation. In connection with general farm- 
 ing he always gave considerable attention to 
 stock raising, his specialty being Xorman 
 horses. 
 
 In 1897 Mr. Gibbons commenced buying 
 grain for Edmund Mezger. of Dwight. and 
 continued in his employ until that gentleman 
 failed in business in March, 1898, when he 
 entered the employ of William Pope, who 
 llien took the elevator, remaining with him 
 until the fall of 1899, when Mr. Pojje sold 
 out to Merritt Brothers, of Dwight, by whom 
 Mr. Giblwns has been retained as manager 
 of the elevator. That fall he built a pleas- 
 
 ant residence at the corner of W'aupansie 
 and Xorth Clinton streets. Dwight, and in 
 the spring of 1900 ttxik un his residence 
 there, having remained on his farm up to 
 that time. 
 
 On the 6th of January. 1878, Mr. Gib- 
 bons married Miss Margaret Kane, a native 
 of Wisconsin and a daughter of Robert and 
 Ann Kane, of that state, where her father 
 died a number of years ago. Her mother 
 met her death in the tornado at St. Paul, 
 Minnesota, in 1893. ^^""S- Gibbons was their 
 only child. Our subject and his wife have 
 a family of fi\e children : Nellie, now the 
 wife of William Neville, a farmer of Good 
 Farm township, Grundy county, Illinois, by 
 whom she has one child, Frank ; Frank, son 
 of our subject and his father's assistant in 
 the grain business in Dwight; and Annie, 
 Philip and Saraii. students in the public 
 schtwls of Dwight. 
 
 Religiously Ixnh Mr. and Mrs. Gibbons 
 are members of the Catholic church of 
 Dwight. He has always been a stanch sup- 
 porter of the men and measures of the Dem- 
 ocratic party and taken an active and promi- 
 nent part in local politics for a number of 
 years. He was assessor of Nevada town- 
 ship in 1 87 1 and 1872 and served as super- 
 vfsor of that township for more than twenty 
 vears, whicii office he filled continuously un- 
 til the spring of 1900, when, owing to his 
 removal to Dwight, the township was forced 
 to seek another rejiresentative. His long 
 retention in office plainly indicates his effi- 
 cient service and the confidence and trust 
 reix)sed in him by his fellow citizens. He 
 \\ as chairman of the board in 1897 and 1898 
 and was one of the special committee to 
 oversee the building of the county house, 
 which was built during his term at a cost 
 of seventv-five thousanil tloilars. He was
 
 8o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 chairman of tlie Imard of equalization for 
 sixteen consecutive years and served on 
 most of tlie committees, especially the more 
 important ones. He was school treasurer 
 for ten years prior to his removal to Dwight 
 and the cause of education always found. in. 
 him a faithful friend. In 1892 he was the 
 Democratic candidate from his district for 
 member of the state Ijoard (.)f equalization 
 and althoueh he failed of election he suc- 
 ceeded in reducing the usual Republican ma- 
 jority from twenty-five hundred to five hun- 
 dred, a fact which testifies strongly as to 
 his personal popularity. At present writ- 
 ing he is the nominee of his party from the 
 twentieth district as a member of the legis- 
 lature. No man in his community is mor^ 
 highly respected or esteemed, and he has 
 been called upon to settle a number of es- 
 tates in Livingston, \\'ill and Grundy coun- 
 ties., and is now in charge of three estates 
 as executor and administrator. 
 
 S. H. POTTER, D. D. S. 
 
 S. H. Potter, D. D. S., a prominent and 
 successful dentist of Dwight, Illinois, was 
 born on the 7th of July, 1874, in Sheldon, 
 Iroquois county, this state, and is a son of 
 M. G. and Mahala ((iriswold) Potter, na- 
 tives of New York state and pioneers of Iro- 
 quois county. Illinois. In early life the fa- 
 ther engaged in farming and as a progressive 
 and enterprising agriculturist he met with 
 marked success, becoming owner of some 
 fi\e hundred acres of valuable land in that 
 county. Having secured a handsome prop- 
 erty he moved to Sheldon, in 1881, and has 
 since lived a retired life, enjoying the fruits 
 of former toil. In his family were ten chil- 
 dren, nine of whom are still living. 
 
 Of this family Dr. Potter is ninth in 
 order of birth. He received his literary eil- 
 ucation in the public schools of Sheldon and 
 was graduated from the high school of that 
 ])lace. In 1893 he entered the Northwestern 
 Dental College, of Chicago, where he pur- 
 sued the regular course and was graduated 
 in April, 1896, with the degree of D. D. S. 
 That same month he came to Dwight and 
 opened an office. Although he met with 
 strong opposition from his competitors, he 
 was not discouraged, and, as his skill and 
 ability were soon widely recognized, he was 
 not long in building up the excellent practice 
 w hich he now enjoys. He is especially pro- 
 ficient in bridge and crown work and has met 
 with remarkable success. His younger 
 brother, Edgar C, was graduated at the 
 Northwestern Dental College, May i, 1900, 
 and is now engaged in practice with our sub- 
 ject, under the firm name of Potter Brothers. 
 Politically, the Doctor is identified with 
 the Republican party, and socially, affiliated 
 with Hebron Lodge, No. 176, K. P., of 
 Dwight. 
 
 JOHN O. JOHNSON. 
 
 John O. Johnson, whose home is on sec- 
 tion 29, Esmen township, has been identified 
 with the agricultural interests of Li\'ingston 
 county since July, 1857, and has borne an 
 acti\-e part in its development and progress. 
 He comes from across the sea, for he was 
 born in Norway, November i, 1835, and is 
 a son of John and Martha (Iverson) John- 
 son, who spent their entire lives as farming 
 people in that country. The father was four 
 times married, and our subject is the young- 
 est of the five children, two sons and three 
 daughters, liorn of the second union. He
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and a sister are now tlie only survivors. He 
 was reared on a farm and had fair common 
 sclmol ad\antages. His knowledge of the 
 linglish language has all been obtained 
 through his own efiforts since his emigra- 
 tion to .America. 
 
 Before leaving Norway. Mr. Johnson 
 was married, in April. 1856. to Miss Caro- 
 line Mitchell, also a native of that country, 
 and the following year they came to the new 
 world, taking passage on a sailing vessel at 
 Stovanger and reaching Quebec, Canada, 
 after a voyage of six weeks. They crossed 
 the lakes to Chicago and proceeded at once 
 to La Salle county, this state, where friends 
 from Xorwa\- had ])reviously located. Soon 
 afterward, they came to Livingston county 
 and located in the town of Auiity, where they 
 made their home while Mr. Johnson worked 
 by the day or month as a farm hand four or 
 five years. He next rented land, and in 1864 
 bought eighty acres of the farm in Esmen 
 township, where he now resides. At that 
 time it was wild prairie with no improve- 
 ments, but he built thereon a small house 
 and soon placed the land under excellent cul- 
 tivation. He has since purchased an ad- 
 joining eighty-acre tract, and the whole has 
 been converted into a well-improved farm. 
 He has tiled and fenced the land, has erected 
 a good residence and substantial outbuild- 
 ings, and has set out fruit and shade trees. 
 In 1893 he bought another place of forty 
 acres on section 29, Esmen townshij), where 
 be now lives, and he has since made many 
 imijrovements upon that farm. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Johnson ha\c been born 
 seven children, namely: Isabel and Martha, 
 twins, the former of whom died at the age 
 of seven years, the latter now the wife of 
 James Street, of Hamilton county, Iowa; 
 Mitchell, who is married and engaged in 
 
 farming in Minnesota ; John, who is married 
 and assists in the operation of his father's 
 farius; Dora, wife of Oliver Henderocker, 
 of Hamilton county, Iowa; Isabel, wife of 
 James Jacobson. a farmer of South Dakota, 
 antl Theodore, who died at the age of three 
 years. 
 
 Since casting his first ]iresidcntial vote 
 for Abraham Lincoln, in 1864, Mr. John- 
 son has been an ardent Republican in ])olitics, 
 and has given his support to every enter- 
 ])rise which be believed would prove of pub- 
 lic benefit. He served one year as road com- 
 missioner and was a member of the school 
 l)oard three years, but has never sought 
 official honors. Religiously, both he and his 
 wife are members of the Lutheran cliurch 
 and are highly respected and esteemed by 
 all who know them. 
 
 GEORC.E SKIXXER. 
 
 The deserved reward of a well-spent life 
 is an honored retirement from business in 
 which to enjoy the fruits of former tnil. 
 I'o-day, after a useful and beneficial career, 
 Mr. Skinner is cpiietly living at his beautiful 
 home in I'ontiac. surrounded b\' the comfort 
 that earnest labor has brought him. 
 
 Mr. Skinner was born in Troy. Ohio, 
 Deceml)er 5. 1822, a son of Joseph M. and 
 ]-ydia (Stillwell) Skinner. His paternal 
 grandfather was George Skinner, a Revolu- 
 tionary soldier, who was born in l'"ranklin 
 comUy. Pennsylvania, in May, 1761, and 
 there was married, Se])tember 23. 1789, to 
 Susanna l-"reeman. who was born in April, 
 1759. .\t an earlv dav they floated down 
 the Ohio river to Cincinnati, and located
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 on a farm of one hundred and sixty acres 
 near Milford, Oliio, one mile from Camp 
 Dennison, \vhich place is still in possession 
 of the family. There the grandfather died 
 in 1853. his wife in 1849. 
 
 Joseph M. Skinner, father of our sub- 
 ject, was born in Franklin county, Pennsyl- 
 vania. January 25, 1795, and accompanied 
 his parents on their removal to Ohio, where 
 he grew to manhood, remaining at home 
 until he attained his majority. On the 27th 
 of September, 1820, he married Lydia Still- 
 well, who was born in New Jersey, January 
 24. 1792. As a young man he built many 
 mills in the unbroken forests of Ohio. On 
 leax'ing the parental roof, he went to Troy, 
 that state, and entered a general mercantile 
 store, later becoming a leading merchant and 
 prominent business man of that section. He 
 engaged in pork packing through the winter 
 months and also shipped produce quite ex- 
 tensi\-ely down the Miami, Ohio and Mis- 
 sissippi rixers to New Orleans. At that 
 time it required three months to go to New 
 York, buy goods and convey them to his 
 store, as the trip had to be made with horses. 
 A'alue (if mone}' was unstalile and postage 
 on a letter amounted to twenty-five cents. 
 Mr. Skinner owned the first freight boat at 
 Troy, which proved of great benefit to the 
 township, and he was extensively engaged 
 in the freighting business for some years. 
 Later he owned and conducted a branch store 
 ■ at Covington, Ohio, and when the canal was 
 completed engaged in the commission and 
 shipping business, owning and running boats 
 on the canal, while he left his partner in 
 charge of the store at Tro}-. General Har- 
 rison was present at the opening of the canal, 
 and our subject well remembers that import- 
 ant occasion. The father had served in the 
 war of 1812 under that general, was a strong 
 
 Whig and anti-sla\ery man, but never an 
 office seeker. For many years he was an 
 elder in the Presbyterian church and also a 
 Mason, but during the Morgan trouble, he 
 was forced, bv public opinion of the church, 
 to withdraw from the order. He died Sep- 
 tember 12, 1869, and his wife passed away 
 December 19, i860. 
 
 Our subject was educated in a subscrip- 
 tion school at Troy, and during his youth 
 assisted in his father's store. Later he com- 
 menced to learn the tanner's trade at Cov- 
 ington, Ohio, where he remained one year. 
 Later, Mr. McCorkle, the leading tanner of 
 Troy, dying, he took charge of the business, 
 his father being administrator of the estate. 
 In 1 85 1 he went to Louisville, Kentucky, 
 where he was engaged in the ice business, 
 being the first man to bring northern ice into 
 that city. This he shipped down the Ohio 
 ri\er. He was living there during the great 
 American, or "Knownothing" mob, of 1856, 
 but that summer he was forced to give up his 
 business on account of failing health, and 
 came to Livingston county. Illinois. He 
 purchased two hundred and ten acres of 
 land in Odell township, near the station of 
 Cayuga, and in the spring of 1857 brought 
 his family to their new home. They often 
 tra\-eled ten or fifteen miles without seeing 
 a single habitation of any sort, and wolves 
 were still quite numerous in this region. 
 Mr. Skinner's land was still in its primitive 
 condition when he located thereon, but he 
 soon broke and tiled it, and erected good 
 and substantial buildings, making it one of 
 the most desirable farms of its size in the 
 count}-. Though he still owns the place, he 
 has made his home in Pontiac for the past 
 twelve years, and has a fine brick residence 
 here, which is supplied with many comforts 
 and luxuries. In connection with general
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 83 
 
 farming lie always engaged in stock raising, 
 and while living in the country served as 
 school director, but would never accept po- 
 litical positions. 
 
 In the fall of 1862 Mr. Skinner returned 
 to his old home in Trov, Ohio, where he re- 
 mained two years. As a young man he 
 had lieen a member of the La Fayette Blues 
 of that place, an infantry companv that 
 drilled all over the state, and in May, 1864, 
 he joined the Home Guards as a member of 
 Company K, One Hundred and Forty-sev- 
 enth Ohio Infantry. They first went to 
 Camp Dennison, Ohio, and from there to 
 Fort Alorrisy, A\'ashington, D. C, where 
 they were stationed at the attack of General 
 Ewell, the last" attempt of the rebels to cap- 
 ture the capital. Mr. Skinner remained 
 there until the close of his term of eunlist- 
 ment and was mustered out at Camp Denni- 
 son. 
 
 On the i_nh of April, 1849, ^I''- Skin- 
 ner was united in marriage with Miss Eliza- 
 eth Shafer, who was born Xovember 15, 
 1829, a daughter of Eckert and Rachel 
 (Smith) Shafer. Her father was born in 
 Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, December 
 29, 1804, a son of George and Barbara 
 Shafer, and was reared in Earl township, 
 Lancaster county, between that city and 
 Philadelphia. His father was of German 
 descent and a soldier of the Revolutionary 
 war. Mrs. Skinner's mother was born at 
 New Holland, Pennsylvania, j\Iarch 25, 
 1809, a daughter of Edward Smith. After 
 following farming in his native state for sev- 
 eral years Eckert Shafer left there in the 
 spring of 1847, accompanied by his wife 
 and six children, and moved to Troy, Ohio, 
 by way of the canal and Ohio river. He 
 bought a farm two miles from Troy, where 
 his wife died March 7, 1854. Later he came 
 
 to Livingston county, Illinois, and purchased 
 hind in Esmen township, to the improxemtn 
 and culti\ation of which he devoted his en- 
 ergies until after his children were all mar- 
 ried. He then made his home with his eld- 
 est child, Mrs. Skinner, dying there Decem- 
 ber 13, 1882. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Skinner have a family of 
 nine children, namely : Loretta, wife of John 
 J. Pfau, of Odell; Clara L., wife of Joseph 
 French, of Indiana, by whom she has one 
 daughter, Edna May; Elias Freeman, now 
 a resident of Missouri ; Rachel L., who mar- 
 ried James Jones, of Streator, Illinois, and 
 they have three chil(Jren; Martha L., who 
 married J. W. Adams, traveling passenger 
 agent for the Vanderbilt lines, and a resi- 
 dent of San Francisco, and they have four 
 children, Xona L., Nina L., George J. and 
 Harry \'.; Eckert, also a resident of Cali- 
 fornia ; Joseph Morris, who married Minnie 
 Streator, has one child, Irma, and operates 
 the home farm near Cayuga; Luella and 
 Emma L., at home. 
 
 Both our subject and his wife are active 
 members of the Presbyterian church. He 
 assisted in organizing the church at Cayuga, 
 and was one of the leading contributors to 
 the erection of the house of worship there. 
 He also served as elder of the church at 
 Louisville, Kentucky, and has filled that of- 
 fice ever since in ditiferent societies with 
 which he has been connected. He was most 
 of the time superintendent of the Sunday 
 school during his residence at Cajuga, and 
 has never missed in his attendance at Sun- 
 day school or church since coming to Pon- 
 tiac. His life has been exemplary in all re- 
 spects, and it is safe to say that no man in 
 his community is held in higher regard or is 
 more deserving the respect and esteem of his 
 fellow men than George Skinner. He has
 
 84 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 been an acti\e \v(irker for tlie Republican 
 party anil its principles, but lias never been 
 an aspirant for office. 
 
 JOHN Kl'LL. 
 
 It is astonisbing to witness tbe success 
 of men wbo bave emigrated to America 
 witbout capital and from a position of com- 
 parative oliscurity ba\e worked tbeir way up- 
 \\ard to a position of i)roniinence. Tbe read- 
 iness witb wbicb tbe}' adapt tliemselves to 
 circumstances and take advantage of op- 
 portunities offered brings to tbem success 
 and wins tbem a place among tbe leading- 
 business men of tbe community in wbicb 
 tbey reside. No better illustration of tbis 
 can be found tlian in tbe life of Jobn Kull, 
 tbe well known proprietor of tbe Pontiac 
 Steam ]\Iill and manager of a meal and feed 
 store on 'tbe Alton Railroad and Water 
 street. Pontiac, of wbicb place be bas l)een a 
 resident since October ii, 1894. 
 
 Mr. Kull was born in Niederlenz, Canton 
 Argau. nortbeastern Switzerland, October 5, 
 1834, a son of Jobn Kull, a baker by trade, 
 wbo spent bis entire life tbere. Our subject 
 attended scbool tbere. but tbe times being- 
 bard be commenced work at the early age of 
 nine years witb the hope of being of some as- 
 sistance to his parents. He entered the spin- 
 ning room of a cotton factory, where he 
 worked from six in tbe morning until nine 
 at night, witb only an. hour each day for 
 dinner, and received only the ecpiivalent to 
 one dollar per month in our money. When 
 all tired out with tbe day's work he had to 
 walk a distance of three miles to his home 
 before getting his supper. In the winter 
 he put in six hours of school work each day 
 
 during the six years spent in tbe cotton fac- 
 tory. At the end of that time be liegan serv- 
 ing a tbree-_\-ears api)renticesbip to tbe mil- 
 ler's trade with bis uncle, and while thus 
 employed recei\ed onh- his board and clothes 
 in compensation for his labor, but be thor- 
 oughly learned the business and at the age of 
 eighteen bad a good trade, having passed the 
 exan-iination and received his papers. 
 
 \\'ishing to see more of tbe country Mr. 
 Kidl traveled over Switzerland and Ger- 
 luany, working in mills in all of tbe import- 
 ant cities of those countries. He also spent 
 some time in France and learned to handle 
 and put together tbe French Ijurrs, this be- 
 ing an iniportant part ijf bis trade. By 
 working in so many different mills he gained 
 a varied knowledge of the methods in use 
 and became an expert miller. Returning to 
 Basal, Switzerland, one of the largest cities 
 of his native land, he served as head miller 
 in its largest mill for three years to the en- 
 tire satisfaction of tbe owners. 
 
 In April, 1867, Mr. Kull came to the 
 United States, landing in New York after 
 a fifteen-days yoyage in a steamer with an 
 excellent knowledge of a good trade, but 
 unable to speak a word of English. Coming 
 directly to Highland, Illinois, he served as 
 miller there for a time, and then went to 
 Pocahontas, Illinois, where he was similarly 
 employed for three years. He then removed 
 to Green\-ille, Boone county, Illinois, and 
 took charge of a mill for J. E. \\'alls, an 
 -English gentleman, wbo wanted la first- 
 class, practical miller. .\11 of tbe employees 
 of tbe mill being Americans but liimself, he 
 learned the English language more reachly 
 than had ever before been necessary, and 
 this has since been of great advantage to 
 him. From Greenville he went to Litch- 
 field, Illinois, and other places throughout
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 !5 
 
 tliis state, and also various ])laces in eastern, 
 southwestern and northwestern Missovn^i. 
 Sulise(|uently he had charge of some of tlio 
 liest mills in Kansas. On the ist of Octo- 
 lier. 1894, he came to Pontiac. Illinois, to 
 take chartfe of tlie I'ontiac Steam Mill for j'. 
 !•;. W'uerpel & Company, of St. l,nuis. and 
 in March, 1897, purchased the mill, which 
 he has since successfully conducted on his 
 own account, having huilt uj) a good busi- 
 ness. He has the leading custom trade of 
 the city, receivintr the patronage of all the 
 extensive farmers of this section of the coun- 
 ty who have grain t(j grind. He is also gen- 
 eral agent for the Jersey Lily flour, made hy 
 Jennison Mrothers & Compan}-. of Janesville, 
 .Minnesota, and has huilt up a tine whole- 
 sale and retail trade, as the Hour is of a su- 
 perior (|uality and gives excellent satisfac- 
 tion. As a wholesale dealer he sells in car- 
 load lots. In the spring of 1900 he equipped 
 his mill with electric motors and now very 
 successfully uses electricty for his motive 
 ])ower. He was the fir.st miller in this ))art of 
 the county to adopt it and this shows the 
 characteristic enterprise of the man. While 
 by nature conservati\e, he is Aet ready to 
 ado])t new ideas in his business and keep in 
 the front. 
 
 On the 1 8th of Jvme, 1867. in Pocahon- 
 tas, Illinois, Mr. Kull married Miss Karo- 
 line Bornhauser, who was born in \\ ein- 
 felden. Canton Thurgau, Switzerland, and 
 whci came to this country on the same ves- 
 sel with him, joining her father, Jacob 
 Bornhauser, a cabinetmaker by trade, who 
 crossed the Atlantic in 1866. By this union 
 has been born one daughter, Carrie. Mr. 
 Kull and his wife are both earnest members 
 lit the Presbyterian church and he is a 
 Democrat in ]K)litics. He is enterprising 
 and progressive and gives his support to any 
 
 object he believes will prove of public bene- 
 fit. He was one of the men who felt the 
 need nf a bridge at Xermillion street. He 
 got U]) the petition and secured a suhscrij)- 
 tion of nine hundred dollars from citizens 
 and also a good one fmm the Chicago & 
 .\lton Railroad (."ompany. With such a 
 hacking the council jxissed the ordinance and 
 ajipropriated twenty-five hundred dollars to 
 the enterprise, while the board of supervisors 
 ga\e one thousand dollars. So Mr. Kull 
 was realley the founder of the bridge, which 
 is a great improvement to the western part 
 of the cit}-. Its need was long felt, hut it 
 reiiuiretl an active and energetic man like 
 Mr. Kull to carry the enterprise through 
 successfullv. 
 
 WILHELM r.lSCHOFF. 
 
 Wilhelm l^)ischoft', an industrious and en- 
 ter])rising agriculturist residing on section 
 14, .\\oca townshi]). Livingston county, is a 
 native of Illinois. hi< birth liaving occurred 
 in Ttiwanda ti>wnshi]), McLean county. Feb- 
 ruary 3, iH(>j. His parents, Ludwig and 
 .Mary ( .Allendortif ) BischotY, were both na- 
 tives of Germany and caiue to America when 
 young, about 1830. Their marriage was 
 celebrated in Bloomington, Illinois, and in 
 the vicinity nf Towanda, McLean county, 
 thev began their domestic life upon a farm 
 which Mr. Bisclvifif had rented. They re- 
 mained residents of that county until coming 
 to Livingston county in 1870. when they 
 located on the farm now occupieil by our 
 subject. The father purchased the property 
 anil at once began to clear away the timber 
 and break the land, having previously erected 
 a small house suitable iov a home for the 
 family. He died in 1893. li'iving survived
 
 86 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his wife several years, her death occurring in 
 1894. Both were consistent members of 
 the Lutheran church, and he was a Repub- 
 hcan in pohtics and an ardent worker for 
 the party. In their family were five chil- 
 dren, two sons and three daughters, but two 
 died in childhood. Wilhelm, our subject, 
 is the oldest of those who reached maturity ; 
 Matilda is now the wife of Richard Mor- 
 ton, who lives south of Fairbury; and Al- 
 vena married F. Burley, of Pleasant Ridge 
 township, and died in 1889. 
 
 Wilhelm Bischoff came with the family 
 to Livingston county and upon the home 
 farm he grew to manhood, his education be- 
 ing acquired in the district schools of Avoca 
 township. He early became familiar' with 
 the duties which fall to the lot of the agri- 
 culturist and has never left the homestead, 
 but carried on farming successfully with his 
 father until the latter's death, since which 
 time he has had entire charge of the place, 
 consisting of one hundred and twenty acres 
 of good land, nearly forty of which are 
 covered with timber, while the remainder is 
 under a high state of cultivation. He has 
 added, by purchase, an eighty-acre tract, 
 giving him a farm of two hundred acres. 
 He is a thrifty and energetic farmer, and by 
 these means has made a success of his labors. 
 He raises hogs for the Chicago market and 
 in all his undertakings has steadily pros- 
 pered. 
 
 In 1890 Mr. Bischoff was united in 
 marriage with Miss Mary E. Funk, who was 
 born August 22, 1869, in Morton, Illinois, 
 and daughter of John and Christian Funk. 
 Her parents, dying when she was an infant, 
 left her in care of relati\es. with whom 
 she made her home until reaching' woman- 
 hood. She has a sister, Mrs. Christina Lu- 
 cas, who resides in Stonington, Illinois. ^Ir. 
 
 and Mrs. Bischoff have four children : Clar- 
 ence L., Ethel Alae, Lester Er and Irving F., 
 all attending the district school with ex- 
 ception of the youngest. The parents are 
 active members and liberal supporters of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church, and Mr. Bis- 
 choff is also a member of the Modern \\'ood- 
 men Camp of Fairbury and the Court of 
 Honor, in which later his wife is a member. 
 He has always been a stanch supporter of the 
 Republican party, but would never accept 
 office or hold any public position, preferring 
 that they should be given to men whom he 
 considers more worthy of them. He is, 
 however, public spirited and progressive and 
 gives his support to those measures which he 
 believes will prove of public benefit. 
 
 JA':\IES .\. CALDWELL. 
 
 Prominent among" the enterprising, ener- 
 getic and progressive business men of Ponti- 
 ac, Illinois, is the subject of this sketch, who 
 is now devoting his time and attention to 
 the real estate, insurance and abstract busi- 
 ness. He was born in Charleston, ^\'est 
 Virginia, March 22, 1831, a son of Joseph 
 and Mary Ann (Adams) Caldwell. 
 
 Joseph Caldwell, the progenitor of the 
 family in the L'nated States, emigrated 
 with his family from Derry, Ireland, m 
 1769, and settled in Sherman's \'alley. 
 Perry county, Pennsylvania. He was of 
 Scotch descent. About 1780 he moved 
 farther west, locating on Sewickley creek. 
 Pennsylvania. He had five children, of 
 whom Joseph, the eldest, was the great- 
 grandfather of our subject. The grandfa- 
 ther was James Caldwell, who was born in 
 Ireland, February 21, 1759, and was about
 
 J. A. CALDWELL.
 
 THE JUUGKAi'HlLAL RECORD. 
 
 ten years of age when lirouglit t(i America. 
 He married Sarah Byram. wlio was born 
 1 ehrn;ir\- i_^, 176,^ and was the eldest child 
 of Ell ward Byrani. At an early day her 
 father moved with his familv to the neigh- 
 borhood of Fort Pitt, now Pittsburg. Penn- 
 sylvania, and on the 7th of .\pril. 1779. dur- 
 ing the Revtjlutionary war, he and one 
 (laughter were captured by the Indians and 
 taken to Canada, where they remained in 
 ca])tivity for a year. The child was allowed 
 t'l ride with the Indians on horseback a 
 part (if the way. but Mr. Byram was com- 
 pelled to walk. In i7<So they were taken to 
 Montreal and later to Quebec, being in prison 
 a*^ lx)th places, and finally, in the spring of 
 1781. were transferred by boat with other 
 English prisoners through Eake Cham- 
 k plain and Lake (leorge, then down the Hud- 
 1 sen river and on to Morristown, Xew Jersey. 
 — their old home. 
 
 The Byram family is traced back to 
 Xicholas Byram, son of a gentleman of 
 jirominence in Kent county. England. He 
 was born in ]6[o. and as a boy was sent 
 ir. charge of an agent to a remote school, 
 but the agent t(3ok his g(jld and placed the 
 boy on l)(jard a ship to the West Indies, 
 where he was sold to pay his passage. Se- 
 creted in his clothes was some gold given 
 h.'m by his mother and with this he came 
 I 1 Massachusetts Bay in 1633 or 1634. He 
 settled in \\'eym(juth. Massachusetts. Ed- 
 ward Byram, previously mentioned, was 
 descended from John and Priscilla Alden 
 in the fifth generation. For a more extended 
 history of this family .see the book entitled 
 "Abby Byram and her Father, the Indian 
 Captives," published at Ottumwa. Iowa, in 
 i8(jS. 
 
 After his marriage James Caldwell, our 
 subject's grandfather, became a farmer of 
 
 Westmoreland county, Penn.sylvania. where 
 hfc spent his life, dying there July 1 1. 1847. 
 His wife passed away prior to 1833. He 
 was a zealous Christian, strong and positive 
 in his belief, and served as elder of the Se- 
 wickley Pre.sbyterian church for some j-ears. 
 Most of his sons adhered to that faith and 
 the father of our subject was educated for 
 the Presbyterian ministry. He was born 
 ii' Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, in 
 1786, and was a student at the college in 
 Cannonsburg. that state, — the oldest college 
 west of the mountains. In early manhood 
 Ik removed to Charleston, West \'irginia, 
 where he embarked in merchandising, and 
 became one of the most prominent and suc- 
 cessful business men of the place. He mar- 
 ried Miss Mary ^\nn Adams, who was teach- 
 ip.g schiool in Tennessee at that time. She was 
 a nati\e of Weston. Massachusetts, and a 
 granddaughter of Alpheus Bigelow, who as 
 a Revolutionary soldier jjarticipated in the 
 battle of Concord. On both sides she was 
 descended from old Xew England families. 
 She was born in j8i i and died in i<S(jo, hav- 
 ing long survived her husband, who died at 
 Charleston in 1848. Of their eight children 
 who reached years of matin'ity our subject 
 if the oldest. 
 
 James A. Caldwell was about eighteen 
 years of age at the time of his father's death ; 
 he received a good academic education in his 
 native city and began his business career as 
 clerk in a drug store at Charleston, ^^'est 
 \'irginia. where he continued to make his 
 l.ome until 1865, covering the period of the 
 Civil war. There he engaged in business for 
 Inmself for a time. He first married, in 
 i860. Miss Jennie Harxey, of Springfield, 
 Ohio, a daughter of Captain John Harvey, 
 but she died in 1873, leaviup- two children, 
 one <-if whom, Jennie, is stiU Hving.
 
 90 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 In July, 1865. Mr. Caldwell came to 
 Fontiac, Illinois, and embarked in the drug- 
 business on W^est Madison street in part- 
 nership witli John A. Fellows, under the 
 firm name of Fellows & Caldwell. They 
 continued in business tog-ether for some 
 3'ears and were finally succeeded by the firm 
 of Caldwell & McGregor, who for twenty- 
 five years carried on a most successful busi- 
 ness, theirs being by far the oldest drug- store 
 or business firm in the city. To their stock 
 of drugs and books they later added jewelry 
 and built up a good trade in that line. They 
 built the block on the northeast corner of 
 Mill and Madison streets, then the finest 
 business block in the city, and also bought 
 the opjxisite corner, and after selling the 
 front part improved the remainder of the 
 property. In 1895 the partnership was dis- 
 solved and Mr. Caldwell retired from the 
 drug trade. For about eighteen months he 
 conducted a grocery store, and since dis- 
 }X)sing of that has successfully engaged in 
 the insurance and real estate business, hand- 
 ling property for others as well as himself. 
 After the dissolution of the firm of Fellows 
 & Caldwell he bought lots 4 and 5 at the 
 corner of Madison and Plum streets, which 
 he subdivided into three business lots and 
 sold to different parties. About 1880, in 
 partnership with Mr. McGregor, he bought 
 twenty feet front on the corner where the 
 Sterry block now stands and sold it after- 
 ward to C. W. Sterry. At the time of pur- 
 chase it was covered with a two-storv busi- 
 ness house. Mr. Caldwell still owns six resi- 
 dences in the city and has » nice home at 
 the corner of Mill and Grove streets. 
 
 In September, 1874, Mv. Caldwell was 
 again married, his second union being with 
 Mrs. Lovina Hill, of Pontiac, a daughter of 
 G. E. Tibbets, who came here in 1866 from 
 
 ]\faine, which was the birthplace of Mrs. 
 Caldwell. They are active members of the 
 ]:'resb}terian church, in which our subject 
 is now serving as elder. Fie has been a 
 member of the official board many years and 
 was superintendent of the Sunday school 
 some time. He always supported the Dem- 
 ocratic party until the campaign of .1896, 
 but could not endorse the principles advo- 
 cated by the Chicago platform. He has made 
 an untarnished record and unspotted reputa- 
 tion as a liusiness man. In all ]3laces and 
 under all circumstances he is loyal to truth, 
 lionor and right, justly valuing his own 
 self-resiject as infinitely more preferable than 
 wealth, fame and position. His success has 
 been the result of honest, persistent effort 
 in the line of honorable and manly dealing. 
 
 GEORGE \\'. \\-0:\IELDORFF. 
 
 George \\'. \\"omeldorff, one of the high- 
 ly respected citizens and successful farmers 
 of Eppards Point township, residing on sec- 
 tion ^^, is a native of Illinois, born near 
 Tremont, Tazewell county, February 22, 
 1846. His father, Daniel Womeldorff, was 
 born in Gallia county, Ohio, in 1804, and 
 there married Miss Harriet X. Kerr, a na- 
 ti\-e of the same county and a daughter of 
 [Major John M. Kerr, an officer of the war 
 of 1812. After his marriage Mr. Womel- 
 dorff followed farming in Ohio until 1844, 
 when he came to Illinois and settled in Taze- 
 well county. For about four years he was 
 engaged in flat-boating down the ^Mississippi 
 to New Orleans, and then turned his atten- 
 tion to agricultural pursuits, having pur- 
 chased a claim in Tazewell county. Upon 
 that place he died in 1852. Subsequently
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 91 
 
 liis widow tiiok lier f'aniih' liack to Oliio. 
 locating in tlie old ncighl)orliood in Gallia 
 county. 
 
 There our subject grew to manhood and 
 attended the common schools. On the 25th 
 of March. 1863, at the age of seventeen 
 years, he joined the hoys in blue of the Civil 
 war. enlisting as a i)rivate in Company L, 
 Se\enth Ohio Cavalry, which was assigned 
 to the Army of the Tennessee, under com- 
 mand of General Sherman. He participated 
 in the battle of Stone River, the engage- 
 ments of the Atlanta campaign, and then 
 with his command went to the relief of Gen- 
 eral Thomas at Nashville. They were in 
 the battle of Franklin and followed Hood 
 to the Tennessee river. At (ira\ely Springs, 
 Alabama, Mr. \\'omcldiirff was severely 
 wounded, being shot in the left fore-arm and 
 left side and receiving a saber thrust in the 
 right leg and a scratch on the right shoulder. 
 He was sent to a hospital boat at Waterloo 
 on the Tennessee river, and fourteen days 
 later was taken to Jeffersonville, Indiana, 
 where he remained in the hospital until June 
 5, 1865, when honorably discharged from the 
 service, though his wounds did not heal for 
 nearly a year after his return home. 
 
 Mr. Wonieldorff then attended a select 
 school for nine months and engaged in farm- 
 ing in Ohio for a year, but in the fall of 1867 
 he returned to Tazewell count}'. Illinois, in 
 company with his mother, youngest brother 
 and sister. They drove the entire distance 
 and located in Treniont. For eighteen 
 months our subject was employed as over- 
 seer of a farm and in 1869 came to Livings- 
 ton county, operating a rented farm in Pike 
 township for three years, while his mother 
 and sister kept house for him. 
 
 In that township Mr. W'omeldorfY was 
 married, March 18. 1873, to Miss Maria C. 
 
 Beeks, a native of Pennsvhania and a daugh- 
 ter of J.imes n. r.ceks, wlio nio\ed to Mar- 
 shall county, Illinois, in 1853, and later to 
 Livingston county, but is now a resident of 
 Arkansas City, Kan.sas. Of the twelve chil- 
 dren born to Mr. and Mrs. Wonieldorff five 
 died in infancy. Those living are Eula, 
 wife of John \\". l-'arlcy, of E])])ards Point 
 township; Eugene, at home; Delia, wife of 
 x\lbert D. Hewitt, of Pontiac ; Gilbert, Min- 
 nie, Ethel and Bertel, all at home. Air. 
 Womeldorff's mother died at his home De- 
 cember j8, 1898, at the aihanced age of 
 eighty-four years. 
 
 Inir two years after his marriage our 
 suliject continued to engage in farming upon 
 rented land in Pike township, where he sub- 
 seciuently purchased a tract of eighty acres. 
 This he sold six years later and bought one 
 himdred acres in the same townshi]). u])on 
 which he also resided six years. ( )n dis- 
 posing of that property, in 1887, he Iiought 
 his present farm of two hundred acres on 
 section 33, Eppards Point township, to which 
 he has subsequently added a forty-acre tract. 
 He has made many useful and valuable im- 
 provements upon the place, and now has one 
 of the most desirable farms of its size in the 
 township. Starting out in life for himself 
 empty-handed, his career illustrates what can 
 be accomplished through industry, perse- 
 verance, good management ami a determina- 
 tion to succeed. 
 
 While with the army at Atlanta. Georgia, 
 in 1864, Mr. Wonieldorff cast his lirst pres- 
 idential vote for Lincoln and has since been 
 a stanch supporter of the Republican party. 
 He has served his fellow citizens as super- 
 visor and is now filling the office of town- 
 shi]) trustee. He has also been school di- 
 rector for thirteen years and president of his 
 district in both Pike and Eppards Point town-
 
 92 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ships. Religiously he and all his family, 
 with the exception of the youngest sun. are 
 members of the ^^lethodist Episcopal church 
 at Weston. McLean county, and take an ac- 
 tive part in church and Sunday school work. 
 He is a prominent member of the Grand 
 Army Post at Chenoa, in which he has 
 served as commander and is now vice-com- 
 mander. In times of peace as well as in war 
 he is recognized as a most patriotic and 
 useful citizen, and is held in high regard l)y 
 all with whom he comes in contact, either in 
 business or social life. 
 
 LESTER EDWIX KENT. 
 
 Lester Edwin Kent, a retired grain deal • 
 er and a prominent early settler of Pontiac, 
 was born in SuffieUl, Hartford county, Con- 
 necticut, August 1 8, 1834, a son of Edwin 
 and Huldah ( Tewett) Kent, also natives of 
 that state, his ancestors being among its 
 pioneers. The father was of English ex- 
 traction and of good Revolutionary stock. 
 He was a farmer of Suffield and a man of 
 considerable prominence in his community, 
 serving as selectman and road commissioner. 
 There both he and his wife died. She was 
 a consistent member of the Baptist church. 
 
 Our subject was educated in the common 
 schools and academy of his native town and 
 remained at home until he attained his ma- 
 jority. In 1855 he came west to Chicago, 
 Illinois, but first located in Kane county, 
 having a cousin living at Kaneville, where 
 he spent one year. In the fall of 1856 he 
 came to Pontiac and entered the employ of 
 Sidney A. Kent, a grain dealer and a very 
 prominent man, wlio recently died in Chi- 
 cago. While with him our subject became 
 
 thoroughly familiar with the grain busi- 
 ness in all its details, and in 1858 jjurchased 
 the elevator in Pontiac and embarked in the 
 business on his own account. The elevator 
 was located on the Chicago & Alton Rail- 
 road, which was then run by Governor Alat- 
 teson. 
 
 At that time grain was brought into Pon- 
 tiac from distances of twenty or twenty-five 
 miles, and as the wagons of the farmers 
 would not hold shelled corn jMr. Kent fur- 
 nished them with sacks. The elevators were 
 often more than full and sacks would be 
 piled up elsewhere like cord wood. It was 
 sometimes impossible to get box cars to ship 
 the grain and it had to be loaded on flat 
 cars. Mr. Kent soon became interested in 
 the grain business in other towns. He en- 
 larged the elevator at Fairbury, when that 
 place contained but one small house and 
 store and before the railroad was built. He 
 would drive over in the morning and back 
 again at night. He built the first elevator 
 at Odell, when it had but one store, and was 
 instrumental in building up the town, as 
 farmers bringing their grain to the elevator 
 wished to do their trading there. At Odell 
 the grain was shoveled into the cars at first. 
 Mr. Kent also built the first elevators at Cay- 
 uga and Blackstone, this county, where he 
 also engaged in the lumber business, and 
 for two vears shipped grain from Nevada, 
 but did not build there. In those days he 
 was the largest shipper on the Alton road, 
 and would load full trains at both Pontiac 
 and Blackstone : the road being short of cars 
 they would run a train in for him to load 
 immediately. He kept one man at Ocoya 
 and furnished employment to a number of 
 others most of the time. Most of his grain 
 was shipped to Chicago. For over twenty- 
 five years he continued to be at the head of
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 93 
 
 tlie grain trade in this county and gave liis 
 attention entirely to that l)usine.ss. He ad- 
 vanced nmney Hl)erally to farmers in need 
 of assistance when starting out. and was of 
 great help to I'ontiac in hringing trade here, 
 as well as to the other towns where he had 
 elevators. 
 
 Mr. Kent was also one of the original 
 stockholders of the Pontiac National Bank 
 and served as its vice-president fi^r a numher 
 of years. At one time he owned and op- 
 erated a distillery and was engaged in cat- 
 tle feeding. He went intc^ the fi^rnier husi- 
 ness to assist a man in difficult}', knowing 
 nothing of the business, and got into trouble 
 with the government, as the ta.xes were not 
 paid, but owing to his influence and it being 
 ascertained that the delinquency was prior 
 to his taking possession he was soon cleared. 
 He cld.sed the distillery, but fed cattle for 
 some years, doing a big business in that line. 
 shipping in cattle from Chicago. 
 
 Mr. Kent married Miss .Antoinette 
 Ciraves. of Joliet. and they ha\'e one daugh- 
 ter, Mary L.. wife of \ictor Pearre, of Pon- 
 tiac. by whom she has two children. William 
 I'ayson and Kent .\lden. He attends and 
 supports the Ejiiscopal church, of which his 
 family are meml)ers. .\bout 1865 he pur- 
 chased a half-block at Xo. 206 North Court, 
 opposite the park, which property he still 
 owns and occupies, it ha\ing been imjiroved 
 by him. In 1894 he retired from acti\e busi- 
 ness and is now enjoying a well earned rest. 
 
 Socially Mr. Kent is a member of Pon- 
 tiac lodge. Xo. J(j4. V. & .\. M.. and be- 
 longs to the chapter, council and St. Paul's 
 Commandery. all of Fairbury. He has al- 
 ways affiliated with the Republican party, 
 casting his first presidential vote for l-'re- 
 mont in 1856. He served as alderman from 
 the second ward for four years and was in- 
 
 strumental in getting seventy-five car-loads 
 of stone put into the street from the court 
 hou.se to the depot and also a sidewalk 
 around the court house square. Having 
 shipped .so much o\er the Chicago & Alton 
 road he got Mr. Chappel to ship the stone 
 free of freight charges. This stone made an 
 excellent foundation for the city streets. He 
 has taken an acti\-e interest in promoting 
 the welfare of the town and county, en- 
 couraging and aiding all enterprises tending 
 tcj benefit the i)ublic. and enjoys in a high 
 degree the confidence and esteem of his fel- 
 low men. 
 
 LEOXARl) \\"1:BF.R. 
 
 Leonard ^^'eber, a representative agri- 
 culturist of Pike township, residing on sec- 
 lion 10. has made his home in Livingston 
 county since 1869 and has taken an active 
 part in its de\'elopment. He was born in 
 Xew York February 2, 1850, and is a son 
 of ( "leorge Weber, w ho was l)orn in Wurtem- 
 burg, CJermany, about 1822. and emigrated 
 to the L'nited States when a young man, 
 locating near L'tica, Xew York, where he 
 married Sophia Horner, also a native of 
 Wurtemburg. Her father died in Germany 
 and she came to America at the .same time 
 as her future husband. In this country Mr. 
 Weber worked for others and also engaged 
 in teaming in Xew York for some years, 
 three of his children having been born in 
 that state, but in 1856 he came to Illinois 
 and first settled in Woodford county, where 
 he engaged in farming on rented land for 
 several years. At length he was able to pur- 
 chase a small place in the southern part of 
 the county, and on disposing of the same, 
 in 1869, he bought a farm of one hundred
 
 94 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and sixty acres in Pike township. Livings- 
 ton county, which at that time was but sHght- 
 ly improved. After operating it for several 
 years he sold and bough.t another place in 
 Pike townsliip, which he subsequently dis- 
 posed of, and now makes his home in Pon- 
 tiac township, where he owns a \-aIuable 
 farm of three hundred and twenty acres. 
 
 The subject of this sketch was a lad of 
 six years when he came to this state, and in 
 Woodford and Livingston counties he grew 
 to manhood, his education being acquired in 
 the public schools near his home. He re- 
 mained with his father until he attained his 
 majority, and then rented a farm on section 
 3. Pike township, where he engaged in farm- 
 ing for about six years. Mr. ^^'ebcr was 
 married in this county. April 2. 1878, to 
 Miss Barbara Fischer, a native of W'oixlford 
 county. Illinois, and a daughter of Joseph 
 Fischer, a substantial farmer of Pike town- 
 ship, Livingston county, who was formerly 
 a resident of Woodford county and was born 
 in Germany. Mrs. Weber was reared and 
 educated in this ci^unty. Our subject and 
 his wife Iia\e a family of three children : 
 Barbara S.. Joseph G. ami Leonard F.. all 
 at home. 
 
 After his marriage ]\lr. \\'eber contin- 
 ued to engage in farming upon rented land 
 for about five years. He rented his present 
 farm of one hundred and si.xty acres on sec- 
 tion 10, Pike township, for two years and 
 then purchased the place, to the further im- 
 pr6vement and cultivation of which he has 
 since devoted his energies. In his farming 
 operations he is meeting with marked suc- 
 cess and the prosperity that has come to him 
 is certainly justly merited, for it is due en- 
 tirely to his own unaided efforts and good 
 management. Politically Mr. \\'eber is 
 identified with the Democratic party on na- 
 
 tional issues, but at local elections votes for 
 the men whom he believes best qualified to 
 fill the offices regardless of party lines. For 
 three years he ser\-ed as school director. l)ut 
 has never cared for political honors. Re- 
 ligiously both he and jiis wife are members 
 of the Evangelical church of Eppards Point. 
 
 EDWWRD O. REED. 
 
 Edward O. Reed, who for several years 
 lias been prominently identified with the 
 public afi^airs of Livingston county, and is 
 now most acceptably serving as count}" treas- 
 urer, Avas born in Bloomington, Illinois. June 
 12, i860, a son of Captain Henry B. and 
 Esther (Beck) Reed. The father is a native 
 of Pennsylvania, born near Pottsville, 
 Schuylkill county, January 29, 1833, and 
 there grew to manhood and married. In 
 early life he learned the shoemaker's trade, 
 which he followed prior to the Civil war. 
 On coming to Illinois, he settled in Xaper- 
 ville, later spent a short time in Joliet. and 
 then mc^ved to Bloomington. In the fall 
 of i860 he came to Pontiac, where he was 
 engaged in the shoe business mitil the follow- 
 ing spring, when he enlisted in Compan}- D, 
 Twentieth Illinois \^olunteer Infantry, with 
 which he served initil after the Ijattle of 
 Shiloh. On the field at Fort Donelson, he 
 was promoted for gallant service to the rank 
 of second lieutenant, and our subject now 
 has in his possession a reward of merit is- 
 sued bv (iovernor Yates. His term of en- 
 listment having expired. Lieutenant Reed 
 returned home. \Miile being paid off at St. 
 Louis, the paymaster told the government 
 needed such men as he and suggested that 
 he see Governor Yates. This he failed to
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 95 
 
 do, but tlie Go\ernor sent for liini aiul asked 
 him to help recruit three companies in tliis 
 part of tlie state. He helped recruit five, 
 and again went to tlie front as captain of 
 Company G. One Hundred and Twenty- 
 ninth Illinois A'olunteer Infantry. He was 
 with Sherman on the march to the sea and 
 remained in the service until the close of the 
 war. participating in the grand review at 
 \\'ashingt<)n. District of Columbia. Re- 
 turning to his liome in Pontiac. he resumed 
 the shoe business, which he carried on un- 
 til appointed by Governor Oglesby as custo- 
 dian of memorial hall in the state house at 
 Springfield, and served four years at that 
 time, being the first in the new hall and at- 
 tending to the arranging of all the flags, 
 etc. He proved a most capable official and 
 \\as re-apijohited by Governor Fifer. He 
 is an honored member and commander of T. 
 Lytle Dickey Post, G. A. R.. also belongs to 
 Pontiac Lodge. Xo. 294. F. & A. 'SI., and 
 both lie and his wife are members of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church. He is now liv- 
 ing a retired life in Pontiac. A nmre e.x- 
 tended mention of this worthy gentleman 
 may be fnuntl on another page of this vol- 
 ume. 
 
 Our subject was educated -in the public 
 schools of Pontiac, and during his youth 
 served an apjirenticeship to the cigarmaker's 
 trade, at which he worked until twenty-seven 
 years of age. when he formed a partnershij) 
 with John C. Riess, luider the firm name of 
 Reed & Riess, and started a manufactory of 
 tlieir own, which they still conduct. They 
 have met with marked success in the under- 
 taking and furnish employment to six or 
 eight men. Mr. Reed built up the trade as 
 a traveling man. but the firm now sells their 
 goods mainly to home consumers, in this 
 county. He owns a good store building and 
 
 a fine residence on South Mill street, where 
 he makes his home. He was married, De- 
 cember 15. 1897. to Miss Eunice Stott, a 
 daughter of John Martin Stott, of Chicago, 
 and they have one daughter, Esther. 
 
 Since attaining his majority Mr. Reed 
 has been an ardent Republican in politics 
 and has taken a prominent and influential 
 part in public affairs. He was serving as 
 alderman from the third ward when the 
 water works were put in and the sewer sys- 
 tem adojued. the city being bonded to put in 
 the sewers. Before his term expired he was 
 elected assistant supervisor and was a mem- 
 ber of the finance committee that found the 
 ways and means by wiiich the county could 
 build the new court house, the contract being 
 let to a contractor providing he would take 
 the county warrants. It was built at a cost 
 of sixty tiiousand dollars and is one of the 
 finest in tliis section of the state. In the 
 fall of 1894, before his time as assistant 
 supervisor expired, Mr. Reed was elected 
 county sheriff and entered uixjn the duties 
 of the (itfice in December, that year. That 
 he filled the position in a most creditable and 
 satisfactory manner is shown by his being 
 elected county treasurer prior to the expira- 
 tion of his term as sherifi^. taking the office 
 of treasurer the day he left the other ofiice. 
 \\'hen the auditing committee of the county 
 checkeil up his four years as sheriff they 
 found that the ct)unty was sixty dollars in 
 his debt instead of their being deficiency. 
 He was a member of the Sheriff's Associa- 
 tion of the state. He is now supervisor of 
 assessment of the county, which makes his 
 position a very large and res]xinsible one, 
 and he handles over one hundred and fifty 
 thousantl dollars a year. His oflicial duties 
 have always been discharged with a fidelity 
 and promptness worthy of the highest com-
 
 96 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 mendation.and he has proved a most popular 
 and efficient officer. Mr. Reed is now, in 
 1900, chairman of the RepubHcan central 
 committee of Livingston county, and the 
 party organization will, under his adminis- 
 tration, he kept intact, and the full \'ote nf 
 the part}- Ije pulled. Fraternally he is a 
 member of Pontiac Lodge. Xo. 294. F. & A. 
 M. ; Fairbury Chapter, R. A. M. ; the Council 
 R. & S. M., of Gibson City; and St. Paul 
 Commandery, No. 34, K. T., of Fairbury. 
 He also belongs to a number of mutual or- 
 ders, including the Modern ^^'oodmen of 
 America. 
 
 MRS. MARIA 0\\EX. 
 
 ]\Irs. Maria Owen, who now has the dis- 
 tinction of having been a resident of Ponti- 
 a': longer than any other of its citizens, came 
 h.ere with her husband in 1842. She has 
 ■witnessed almost the entire development of 
 the county, has seen its wild lands trans- 
 fr.rmed into beautiful homes and farms, its 
 hamlets grow into ^•illages and tln-iving 
 towns anfl all of the interests and evidences 
 of an advanced civilization introduced. 
 
 ^Irs. Owen was born Januar\- lO. 18 12. 
 in X'ew York, fourteen miles from Lake 
 Ontario, and is a daughter of Starks and 
 Esther (Gilbert) Tracy. The father was 
 a native of Sharon, New York, born April 
 3. 1778, and an early settler of Oswego coun- 
 t\. where he bought land prior to his mar- 
 riage and there continued to make his home 
 throughout life. He was a farmer by oc- 
 cupation and one of the highly respected 
 men of his community. His estimable wife 
 v,as a member of the Congregational church. 
 I;(.th (lied in Oswego county. New York. 
 Mrs. Owen"s maternal grandfather was 
 
 Allen Gilbert, a soldier of the Revolutionarv 
 w<,r, who was severely wounded in the head 
 and left for dead on the battle-field, but was 
 found and cared for mitil he recovered. At 
 an early day he removed from Schoharie 
 county. New York, to Oswego county, where 
 his daughter, Mrs. Tracy, was liorn August 
 -3- 1793- He, too, was a farmer and a 
 prominent man in his community. 
 
 In 1840 Mrs. Owen married Augustins 
 Fellows, who, with his 1)rother, owned a large 
 farm in Oswego county. New York, but in 
 1842 he sold his interest in the same and 
 purchased property in Pontiac, Illinois, 
 whither the famil)- remo\-e(l in the fall of 
 that year. The trip was made liv wav of 
 the great lakes and W'elland canal in a small 
 propeller to Chicago, and the}- l)rought with 
 them all their household effects, which were 
 conveyed from that city to Ottawa, Illinois, 
 by teamsters who were returning to the 
 latter place, where Mr. Fellows had a sister 
 living. There teams were hired to convev 
 the family and their effects to their new home 
 in Pontiac. A farm of two hundred acres 
 and a number of town lots belonged to the 
 estate they had traded for before coming 
 west, so that they practically owned all of the 
 jiresent city at that time. There were onl}' 
 three families living there, and the build- 
 ings of the town consisted of a small frame 
 house and the court house. Lpon the farm, 
 v.liich adioined the A-illage on the east was 
 a good two-room log house, with large fire 
 places in both rooms, making it ])erfectly 
 comfortable. 
 
 Selling his town lots, Air. Fellciws turned 
 his attention to the improvement and culti- 
 \ ation of his farm and met \N-ith success in 
 its operation. ( )n the lot now occupietl b}- 
 Squire \\'oodrow's residence he Iniilt the 
 lirst large hotel in Pontiac in 1847, '*''"i '^^'^'^
 
 ELIJAH B. OWEN.
 
 MRS. MARIA OWEN.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 a laro^e liarii. In 1848 they rented tlie hotel 
 iiiid that summer returned east t)n a visit. 
 but in 1849 took chargfe i)f the property. 
 While thus employed Mr. Fellows died of 
 cholera in the summer of 1849. ^"d ^^^'^ '^* 
 their children, aged seven and two years, 
 respectively, died of the same dread disease. 
 Having lost their three other children prior 
 to this time. Mrs. Fellows was thus left 
 alone. For over a year she carried on the 
 hotel and farm, hut found it a very difficult 
 task. 
 
 In the fall of 1850 she married Xelson 
 Buck, a surveyor and nurseryman of Bloom- 
 ington, where he was engaged in business 
 for some years. For several years they 
 conducted the hotel and also the farm, and 
 their place became the leading hostelry in 
 this section. In those early days before the 
 railroad was built drovers often stopped at 
 their house in large numl)ers. One man 
 v.onld come in an hour in advance of the rest, 
 .saying that twelve or fourteen men would 
 be there for supper. They also had a large 
 barn for the teams of the manv movers pass- 
 ing through this part of the state at that 
 tmie. In the spring of 1854. when the Chi- 
 cago S: Alton Railroad was built, they 
 boarded the construction hands and did an 
 extensive business. Mrs. Owen has. enter- 
 tained .\braham Lincoln, Judge David 
 Davis and other illustrious men. Her hus- 
 band received api^ointment to conduct the 
 j;overnment survey between Kansas and Xe- 
 1 raska. and while thus engaged he and his 
 l>arty were killed by the Indians in July, 
 T86g. Thus she \vas again left alone with a 
 h'Tge pri)pertv to care for. including the 
 farm, hotel and city lots. Mr. Buck had 
 three children by his first marriage, namely : 
 W'illard. a soldier of the Civil war, who is 
 now living in Wisconsin : Clarissa, deceased ; 
 
 and Cordelia, widow of William Watson 
 and a resident of Pontiac. 
 
 .\t intervals Mrs. Owen continued to 
 conduct her hotel for many years, it being 
 rented in the meantime. She made her 
 l-.ome on Water street until 1899. when her 
 present elegant home on North Main street 
 was built. It is supplied with all modern 
 conveniences and accessories, including elec- 
 tric light, hot water, etc.. and here, sur- 
 rounded bv every comfort, she is spending 
 her declining days, loved and respected by 
 all who know her. Her youngest sister, 
 Marv (].. was also one of the pioneers of the 
 county, locatin? here about the same time as 
 Mrs. Owen, and her home was two miles 
 li]) the river. Her first husband was Mr. 
 Burgett, her second Mr. Fricks and her third 
 Mr. Winslow. .\fter her last marriage she 
 lived f>n a farm two miles from Pontiac. but 
 spent her last days in the city, dying at the 
 home of Mrs. Owen February 16. 1900. 
 
 For her third husband our subject mar- 
 ried Elijah Owen, who came from near El- 
 n-.j-a. Chemung county. New York, and dur- 
 ing his active business career engaged in 
 farming but later lived retired in Pontiac. 
 Mr. Buck laid off two additions from her 
 original farm and Mr. Owen laid off the re- 
 n'.ainder. the additions being known as 
 Buck's first and second additions and Owen's 
 addition. Her name appears on many of 
 the deeds of this place. She was one of 
 the original stockholders of both of the na- 
 tional banks of Pontiac and has displayed 
 remarkable business and e.xecutive aliility in 
 tl.e management of her business affairs. 
 She united with the Presbyterian church in 
 Pont'ac on its organization, and has since 
 been one of its active and prominent mem- 
 bers. When she first located here the only 
 religious services were prayer meetings held
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in the cmirt liouse on Sundays, l.nit as soon 
 as the raih'oad was Iniilt churclies were 
 erected, and to their erection and support 
 she lias alwa^'s contrilxited liberally. She 
 is a most estimable ladv of many sterling 
 qualities, and has a large circle of friends in 
 the city which has so long: been her home. 
 
 LOUIS A. XAFFZIGER. 
 
 Louis A. Xaffziger. the popular cashier 
 of the Bank of Dwight, has won the enyiable 
 reputation as a most capable financier and 
 occupies a position of no little prominence 
 in connection with the public affairs of the 
 town. His life demonstrates what may be 
 accomplished through energy, careful man- 
 agement, keen foresight, and the utilization 
 of the powers with which nature has en- 
 dowed one. and the opportunities with which 
 the times surround him. 
 
 ^Ir. NaiTziger is proud to claim Illinois 
 as his natiye state, his birth occurring in 
 McLean county, !March 31, i860. His fa- 
 ther, Peter NafTziger, was born in Darm- 
 stadt, Germany, March 4, 1831, and there 
 he remained until reaching his majority, 
 when he came to America and located first 
 iiL McLean county on a farm, later went to 
 Butler county, Ohio, where he worked on a 
 farm, the next year remo\'ing to Chicago, 
 where he worked at his trade of baker for a 
 time. \\ hen his parents came to America 
 lie remo\ed with them to Putnam county, 
 later remo\'ing to McLean county. At the 
 age of twenty-eight he was married in ^Ic- 
 Lean county, Ilinois, to Miss Catherine 
 Stuckey, who was born in Hamilton county, 
 Ohio, August 30, 1840. Her father, Peter 
 
 Stuckey, was born in Switzerland in August, 
 1799, and died February 23, i860. In 1821. 
 he married Elizabeth Sommers, who was 
 born oyember 24, 1801, in Alsace-Loraine, 
 and in 1830 they emigrated to the United 
 States and located in Butler county, Ohio, 
 where they resided twenty years. In Octo- 
 ber, 1850, they remoyed to McLean county, 
 Illinois, and took up their residence in Dan- 
 vers township. Mrs. Stuckey died in 1885 
 in Pike to^ynship, Liyingston county. 
 
 After his marriage Peter Xafifziger en- 
 gaged in farming in McLean county until 
 1869, when he came to Waldo township, 
 Liyingston county, and purchased a tract 
 of raw land, which he commenced imme- 
 diately to improye and cultivate, conyerting 
 it into a fine farm, on which he lived for 
 many years. In 1876 he mo-\-ed to Wash- 
 ington, Illinois, where he was engaged in 
 mercantile business for a few years, and 
 later followed the same pursuit in Stanford, 
 Illinois, until 1896, when he went to Slaugh- 
 ter, East Felician Parish, Louisiana, where 
 he is now engaged in cotton planting. Of his 
 four children, Louis A., our subject, is the 
 oldest ; Emilc died at the age of nine years, 
 the result of an accident: Bertha is the wife 
 of George L. Riggs,a farmer and stock raiser 
 of Botna, Iowa, and one son died in infancy. 
 
 Christian Xaffziger, the paternal grand- 
 father of our subject, was born in Darm- 
 stadt, Germany, January 17, 1803, and came 
 to this cinuitry, locating in Putnam county, 
 later moving to McLean county, Illinois, 
 dying there March 8, 1893. His wife, who 
 bore the maiden name of Barbara Staley, 
 was born January 22, 1805, and died Feb- 
 ruary 19, 1898. 
 
 Louis A. Xaffziger, our subject, re- 
 received his primary education in the public 
 schools of McLean county, and later at-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 103 
 
 tended tlie high school of \\'ashington, Illi- 
 nois, at the same time clerking in a cloth- 
 ing store mornings and evenings, and stead- 
 ily through the summer months. Leaving 
 school at the age of sixteen, he continueil 
 to clerk in the clothing store of John Burkey 
 lor one year, and then entered the dry goods 
 establishment of E. E. Hornish as clerk and 
 bookkeeper, remaining with him in that ca- 
 pacity for three years. In the spring of 
 1880 A. G. Danforth, of the banking firm 
 of A. G. Danforth & Company, of Wash- 
 ington, Illinois, made Mr. Xaffziger a prop- 
 osition to enter the bank as bookkeeper and 
 assistant cashier, which he accepted, remain- 
 ing with him three years. At the end of 
 that time, March 15, 1883. he accepted a po- 
 sition with David McW illiams of the Bank 
 of Dwight as l>5okkeeper and assistant cash- 
 ier, and in the fall of that year, when the 
 atshier, J. \\'. \\'atkins, resigned, he was 
 appointed to that position, which he has 
 ^ince so efficiently filled. In September, 
 1 89 1, he built his present pleasant home on 
 the corner of Seminole and Clinton streets, 
 and besides this property he owns a well 
 improved farm of one hundred and sixty 
 acres in section 2, Broughton township. Liv- 
 ingston county, and also some western lands. 
 On the 1st of June, i88j, Mr. Xalifziger 
 \\as united in marriage with Miss M. Car- 
 rie Hukill, of Washington, Tazewell county, 
 Illinois, who was born in McLean county, 
 a daughter of Jackson and Maria (Kern J 
 Hukill. Her father was born in Fayette 
 county, Ohio, October 12, 1823. and for a 
 number of years was a traveling salesman, 
 representing a school furniture company of 
 Wabash, Indiana. In early days he also en- 
 gaged in mercantile business in Lincoln, 
 Illinois. He died July 2~. 1893, '^""^ '^'* 
 
 v, ife. who was born in Mount Pleasant, 
 Pennsylvania, December 28. 1829. is still 
 living and continues to make her home in 
 Washington, Illinois. Their children were 
 James H., M. Carrie, Ida Belle and Grace. 
 The last named is deceased. Mr. and Mrs. 
 XatYziger have two children : Clara, born 
 June II, 1883, and Oliver Hukill, born Oc- 
 tober 29, 1887. The former is attending 
 the high school, the latter tlie grammar 
 schools of Dwight. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Xaflfziger are active 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 of which he has been an official member for 
 ten years, serving as sui^erintendent of the 
 Sunday school two years; one of the lx)ard 
 of stewards at the present time, and chair- 
 man of the finance committee of the church. 
 As a Republican, he has taken an active 
 and prominent part in local politics since 
 attaining his maority, and was secretary of 
 the Republican club of Dwight during tiie 
 McKinley campaign of 1896. His first of- 
 fice was that of village clerk, and he was 
 afterward appointed village treasurer, uliich 
 pxjsition he filled two years. During the 
 boom of the town a sewerage sxslem, cost- 
 ing over twenty-eight thousand dollars, was 
 lilt in, and Mr. Xaftziger was appointed col- 
 lector of special assessment by ci.e president 
 of the village board. He was electe/l trus- 
 tee of the village aiid scrvcf". m tliat capacity 
 two years; was appointed township treasurer 
 and held that office si.x years. In all the re- 
 lations of life he has been found true to 
 every trust reposed in him, whether public or 
 private, and is numbered among ihe valued 
 and useful citizens of Dwight, for he is pre- 
 eminently public spirited and pii;gressive, 
 and takes an active interest in the enterprises 
 tending to public develiij)ment.
 
 I04 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 AUGUSTUS \\". CO\\'AN. 
 
 Augustus ^^'. Cowan, who is now suc- 
 cessfully engaged in the abstract business 
 in Pontiac, with office at No. io8 West 
 A\'ashington street, was born near Water- 
 town, New York, October 14, 1837, a son 
 of William and Emeline (Coffeen) Cowan, 
 also natives of the Empire state. For S9me 
 years the father was engaged in business 
 as a tinsmith and hardware merchant, in 
 Watertown, but died in Naples, New York, 
 in 1 85 1, at about the age of forty-eight 
 years, our subjects maternal grandparents 
 were Henry Dale and Delight (Whitney) 
 Coffeen. Througliout life the former en- 
 gaged in farming near Watertown, in 
 Jefiferson county. New York, and was a 
 term as sheriff of that county. The 
 paternal grandparents of our subject 
 were Andrew and Eujjhemia (Kelly) 
 Cowan, natives of Scotland, who came 'to 
 the United States in 1797, and settled in 
 Schenectady, New York, where they made 
 their home throughout the remainder oi their 
 lives. On leaving their nati\'e land the fol- 
 lowing testimonials \\ere given them : 
 
 "Wegtown, 25th March, 1797. 
 "That Andrew Cowan and his wife Eu- 
 ]>hemia Kelly are members of the Associate 
 Congregation here and now remove from 
 this country to North America with un- 
 blemished characters is attested by 
 
 Theo. Ogil\'ie. Minister. 
 
 "We. the magistrates of the borough of 
 Wegtown. North Britain, hereby certify and 
 declare that the bearer Mr. Andrew Cowan 
 has resided in this borough since his infancy 
 and lias always maintained an unexception- 
 able character for honesty and sobriety, and 
 being about to depart fur Xdrtli .\merica 
 with his wife and children, also of good 
 
 character, ought to meet with no molestation 
 or hindrance, lie continuing to beha\'e as 
 becometh. 
 
 "Given under our hand and the common 
 seal of the borough this 25th day of March, 
 1797 year. 
 
 John Nathom, 
 (Seal) James Hem mag. 
 
 Appended by 
 
 \\'m. \\'. Connels, 
 
 Town Clerk. 
 
 The suliject of this sketch remained in 
 ^^'atertown until eighteen years of age, and 
 was educated at the Jefferson County Insti- 
 tute. He came west in 1854 and the follow- 
 ing year took up his residence in Pontiac, 
 where he clerked in a general store for some 
 years. He then formed a partnership with 
 Judge Jonathan Duff in the banking and 
 real-estate business, conducting it with such 
 success that in a few years the firm had 
 gathered together a considerable fortune, ir.- 
 \'ested mainly in lands in this section. In 
 1870 tlie partnership was dissoh'ed. Al- 
 though the business relations were discontin- 
 ued there still remained such warm personal 
 feeling as exists between brothers and the 
 closest friends, until the Judge's death in 
 
 1 88 1. Bound together by ties not only of 
 personal friendship but that of political affin- 
 ity and the brotherhood of secret societies, 
 the two memjjers of the firm were regarded 
 as almost members of one family, and it 
 was natural that the lix'ing memlier of the 
 firm should be deeply affected at the depart- 
 ure of one he loved so well. Mr. Cow-an 
 continued in the real-estate business until 
 
 1882, when he was elected county treasurer 
 and for four years held that office, discharg- 
 ing its duties in a commendable and satis- 
 factory manner. Since 1889 he has been 
 owner of the Livingston county title ab-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 105 
 
 stracts and has devoted his time and atten- 
 tion to that husiness. meetiiiij with good 
 success. 
 
 At Rome. Xew York, .\ugust 21. 1867, 
 was celeltrated tlie marriage of Mr. Cowan 
 and Miss Mary H. P. Christian, a daughter 
 of Lutlier and Margaret (George) Cliristian, 
 natives of tliat state. Tiie uKither died in 
 Rome, in 1868, after whicli the fatlier lived 
 v,ith our subject for some time, but died at 
 tlie home of his son in Port Erie, Canada, 
 in 1 87 1. Tlirougliout liis active business 
 life he engaged in blacksmithing. !Mr. and 
 ^Irs. Cowan have one child, Emeline, who 
 was born in Pontiac, in 1872. and is at home. 
 The family all attend the Episcopal church, 
 and Mr. Cowan is connected with Pontiac 
 Lodge, No. 294, F. & A. M.. and the higher 
 urders of Masonry, belonging to the Com- 
 niandery at Bloomington. L"ntil 1896 he 
 always affiliated with the Democratic party, 
 and besides serving as county treasurer he 
 has been called upon to fill several minor 
 offices in his township and city. He has 
 always taken a deep interest in public affairs, 
 as every true American citizen sliould, and 
 gives a hearty support to those enterprises 
 which he lielieves will prove of public benefit. 
 
 JOB FARLEY. 
 
 Job Farley, deceased, was for many 
 years one of the leading agriculturists of 
 Eppards Point township, a man honored 
 and respected wherever known. He was 
 born in \\'iltshire, England, September 16, 
 1829, and a son of Xias and Mary (Sell- 
 wood) Farley, both natives of the southern 
 l>art of England. They lived as farming 
 
 l-eople in tiiat country tlirougliout their en- 
 tire lives, botli dying at about the age of 
 sixty-five years. 
 
 Our cul)ject was reared and educated at 
 the place of his birth, and before coming to 
 America he was a member of the London 
 police force two years, and the force at 
 Shaftsbury one year. It was in 1859 that he 
 crossed the board Atlantic and came at once 
 to Illinois, settling first near Oneida, Knox 
 county, where he commenced farming, an 
 occupation he continued to follow until life's 
 labors were ended. After seven years spent 
 in Kno.K county, he removed to Henry couii- 
 t}', where fifteen years were passed, and in 
 1883 came to Livingston county, locating on 
 section 28, Eppards Point township. In 
 1875 he purchased one hundred and sixty 
 acres on this section, and in 1882 eighty 
 acres more, to which he added from time to 
 time until at his death he was the owner of 
 five eighty-acre tracts, with the exception 
 of one acre used for school purposes, all un- 
 der a high state of cultivation and a com- 
 fortable house on each farm. These were 
 purchased and improved with the view of 
 providing homes for his children. 
 
 On the 14th of April, 1863, in Knox- 
 ville, Knox county, Illinois, Mr. Farley mar- 
 ried Miss Elizabeth ^\'alker, a daughter of 
 James and Mary (Smith) Walker, also na- 
 tives of Leeds, Yorkshire, England, where 
 lier father, a machinist by trade, died at the 
 age of thirty-six years when Mrs. Farley was 
 only eleven years old. Her mother had 
 died eight years previous. She came to the 
 L'nited States in 1855, when nineteen years 
 old, and lived with her uncle and aunt, John 
 and Mary Else, in Truro township, Knox 
 county, Illinois, until her marriage. Mr. 
 Else, who was a farmer by occupation, died 
 in Peoria in 1882, after which his wife made
 
 io6 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lier Imme with ]\Ir. and ]\Ii"s. Farley, where 
 slie (ht'd Februar}- ii, 1900. 
 
 Oi the se\'en children liorn to our snb- 
 ject and his wife live are still living, namely : 
 ( I ) Ilia, born in Knok county, March 27, 
 1864, is the wife of Edward Folsom, a far- 
 mer of Eppards Point, and they have one 
 child, Edith. (2) Onias W., born in Knox 
 count}-, July 3, 1865, married Lizzie 
 A.rendts, and until recently was engaged in 
 farming, but is now living in Pontiac. 
 (3) Mary, born in Knox county, August 12, 
 1867, is the wife of Charles Mofifett, a far- 
 mer of Eppards Point township, and they 
 have three children, Lela Heath, Merton J- 
 and Harold. (4) Anna S., born in Henry 
 county, May 28, 1869, is the wife of Sher- 
 man Myer, also a farmer of Eppards Point 
 township, and to them were born five chil- 
 dren, three of whom are now living, Maud 
 M., Glenn and Lee C. (5) John J., burn in 
 Henry county, ]\Iay :i, 1872, died January 
 26, 1874. (6) Arthur J., born January 7, 
 1S74, married Anna Earhardt, and follows 
 farming in Eppards Point. (7} The young- 
 est child died in infancy minamed. 
 
 Mr. Farley died at his home in Eppards 
 Point township, January 9, 1895, after an 
 illness of about six months, though he had 
 been a sufferer from dropsy for twenty 
 years and was often in great pain. The fu- 
 neral was held at his home and the services 
 were conducted by Rev. Hussey, assisted 
 by Rev. Hobbs. The remains were interred 
 in Payne's cemetery. In his religious belief 
 Mr. Farley was an Episcopalian, and in po- 
 litical sentiment was a Democrat. Though 
 he never sought office, he was called upon to 
 serve as township commissioner in Henry 
 county for nine years and also as school di- 
 rector. He was a hard working and indus- 
 trious man, strictly upright and honorable 
 
 in all his dealings and one who made many 
 friends and no enemies. He was a dtvoted 
 husband and father and took great delight 
 in his home and children. He accumulated 
 considerable wealtli and was able to leave 
 his family in comfortable circumstances. 
 Since her husband's death I\Irs. Farle}' has 
 moved to Pontiac and purchased a pleasant 
 home at Xo. 506 South Vermilion street, 
 where she now resides. She is a most esti- 
 mable lady, highly respected by all who 
 know her. 
 
 ANDREW J. HOOBLER. 
 
 Andrew J. Hoobler, who is now living 
 a retired life in Streator, Illinois, was 
 for many years actively identified with the 
 business interests of Livingston county, and 
 was one of its honored and representative 
 citizens. He is a native of Indiana, born 
 in \'ermillion county, in October, iSj7, and 
 there grew to manhood. His father, John 
 Hoobler, was born in Pennsylvania, in 1801, 
 of old Pennsylvania Dutch stock, and was 
 one of the pioneer farmers of Vermillion 
 county, Indiana. In 1853 ^''^ came to Liv- 
 ingston county, Illinois, and entered about 
 fourteen hundred acres of land in Newton 
 township, becoming one of the large land 
 owners of the county in his day. Here he 
 continue<.l to make his home throughout the 
 remaintler of his life, dying in 1885. He 
 was elected a representative to the legisla- 
 ture on the Whig ticket and filled that posi- 
 tion one term. He was one of the pioneer 
 United Brethren circuit riders and rode the 
 state over at one time. He established the 
 church of that denomination in his township, 
 and spent most of his means in founding 
 churches throughout Illinois, being prac- 
 ticallv the father of them all.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 107 
 
 Upon tlie lionie farm Andrew J- Hoobler 
 grew to nianli<ii)(l. receiving the usual edu- 
 cational advantages of the tlay. He married 
 Miss Sarah Leonard, a daughter of Dexter 
 and Elizabeth Leonard, natives of Massa- 
 chusetts and early settlers of this county, 
 'i hree children were born of this union, 
 namely: Mrs. Fanny Syphers of Cornell, 
 Illinois; Wilder, of Manville, this county, 
 and Erastus, the present popular circuit 
 clerk, whose sketch appears on another page 
 of this volume. 
 
 Mr. Hoobler purchased a farm in Xew- 
 ti 'wn township, but after operating it for a 
 few years he turned his attention to mer- 
 cantile business, conducting a store in what 
 is now Manville (,t!ien the village of New- 
 town) for some seventeen or eighteen years. 
 He met with marked success in the enter- 
 prise, and finally retired from business, turn- 
 ing it over to his sons. Moving to Streator 
 ht has since lived retired. He is well known 
 throughout Livingston county, and has the 
 confidence and respect of all with whom he 
 has come in contact either in business or so- 
 cial life. 
 
 JOIIX M. FIX LEV. 
 
 John M. Finley, a successful farmer 
 lid honored citizen of Pontiac township, 
 ' wns and oiierates a well-improved and 
 valuable farm of two hundred and forty 
 acres on sections 3 and 4, three ami tliree- 
 i|uarters miles north of the city of Pontiac. 
 i le is a native of Ohio, born in Delaware 
 ounty, November 25, 1831, and is a son of 
 Robert Finley, who was born in Virginia in 
 1801. The family is of Irish origin and 
 was founded in the Old Dominion at an early 
 day. Our subject's ])aternal grand fathi-r was 
 
 Jiihn Finley. a soldier nf the Revolutionary 
 war. who removed from \'irginia to Ohio 
 and opened up a farm in Delaware coiuu}'. 
 There Robert Finley grew to manhood and 
 married Elizabeth Riley, who was born in 
 Pennsylvania of German ancestry. Her 
 father, Joseph Riley, was a native of Ger- 
 many, and when a child came to America. 
 The vessel on whic he sailed was wrecked 
 and his parents were drowned. He was then 
 taken to the home of strangers and readed 
 by them, at the same time adopting their 
 name. For a few years after his marriage 
 Robert Finley engaged in farming in Ohio, 
 and in 1837 came to Illinois, locating on 
 the Fox river, near St. Charles, Kane conty, 
 where he opened up a farm and spent his re- 
 maining years, dying there in 1886, at the 
 ripe old age of seventy-five years. His wife 
 had passed away two years previously at the 
 age of sixty-nine years. 
 
 Our subject was about six years of age 
 v.hen brought by his parents to this state, 
 and in Kane county he grew to manhood. 
 He attended the common schools, but is 
 mostly self-educated, haing always been a 
 great reader, and is to-day a well-informed 
 man. On leaving home in 1854 he came to 
 Livingston county, where he and his brother 
 Joseph had purchased land in 1852 and 
 ii^^;^, and after locating thereon they oper- 
 ated it together until 1 861. 
 
 On the 2ist of November, 1861, in this 
 county, ^Ir. Finley married Miss Frances 
 E. McDougall, a native of New Vork, and 
 a daughter of Robert and Christiana ^Ic- 
 Dougall, who came from that stale to Illi- 
 nois about 1850 and settled in La Salie coun- 
 ty, where her father died in 1857. Her 
 mother is still living in California at the age 
 of eighty-two. ^Irs. Finley was jiricipally 
 reared in that count v. To our >i'')iect and
 
 io8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his wife were l)orn two cliildren : ^larian 
 E., who was educated at the lontiac high 
 school and Dixon College, and has success- 
 fully engaged in teaching in this county, 
 but is now at home with her parents, and 
 Orilla Eloise, wife of Warren Collins, who 
 operates a part of the Finley homestead. 
 
 Mr. and i\Irs. Finley began their do- 
 mestic life upon his present farm. He has 
 since erected a neat and substantial resi- 
 dence, good barns and other outbuildings, 
 has tilled the place and set out fruit and 
 ornamental trees, so that it is now one of 
 the best improved farms in the localit}'. In 
 connection with general farming he has en- 
 gaged in raising and feeding stock of a go :J 
 grade, and in all his undertakings he has 
 met with excellent success, becoming quite 
 well to do. He and his brother had little 
 means on locating here, but being indus- 
 trious, persevering and ambitious, his labors 
 were soon crowned with success. As a pab- 
 lic spirited citizen he takes a deep and com- 
 mendable interest in public affairs and gives 
 his support to those enterprises wh.ich he be- 
 lieves will advance the general welfare. 
 Originally, he was a staunch Republican in 
 politics and cast his fir^t presidential vote 
 for John C. Fremont in iS_v'', continuing 
 to affiliate with that party until JS96, when 
 he voted for \\\ J. Bryan and free sdver. 
 He has been a delegate to riunicrous con- 
 \entions, and for a quarter of a century has 
 been an efficient member of the school board, 
 but cares nothing for political preferment. 
 
 APOLLOS CAMP. 
 
 Apollos Camp, deceased, was fur o\-er 
 forty years prominently identified with the 
 agricultural and business interests of Li\- 
 
 ingst(in county, and was justly numbered 
 among her honored pioneers and leading 
 citizens, having located here in the spring of 
 185 1. He was born in Thomaston (then 
 Plymouth Hollow), Connecticut, March 19. 
 1806, and was a son of Ephraim Camp, a 
 Revolutionary hero, who was born in 1750 
 and sjjcnt his entire life in Connecticut, 
 Mhere he owned and operated a mill. Our 
 suljject grew to manhood in his nati\e place 
 and there learned the stone mason's trade in 
 early life. 
 
 There 'Sir. Camp married Miss Nancy 
 Thomas, a niece of Seth Thomas, the noted 
 clockmaker, by whom our subject was em- 
 ployed as superintendent of his outdoor 
 work for some time, and lived upon Sir. 
 Thomas' large farm for eighteen years. His 
 health failing. Sh. Camp purchased a farm 
 near bv and for three years devoted his at- 
 tention to agricultural pursuits. 
 
 In the spring of 1851 Mr. Camp came to 
 Livingston county, Illinois, and located lanil 
 in Sunbury township, but the family did 
 not come tnitil one year later, when the trip 
 to this state was made by water. In the fall 
 of 1852 he moved to Esmen township, his 
 first home in Illinois, where he took up a sec- 
 tion of land, though he still continued to 
 own a three-hundred-and-twenty-acre tract 
 ii' Sunbury township. He built the best 
 house in Esmen township at that time. His 
 nearest neighbor was then three miles away, 
 and if he required anything such as black- 
 smithing or a supply of groceries he had to 
 go to Ottawa, fordinp- all the streams antl 
 taking two days to make the trip, so sparsely 
 was the country settled at that time, so few 
 miprovements having been made and so few 
 towns estal)lished. Mr. Camp continued t<i 
 reside upon his farm until 1876. when he 
 remox'ed ti3 Pontiac. but went dav after day
 
 APOLLOS CAMP.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ti- his farm until past eighty years of age. 
 He added to his landed possessions from 
 time to time until he and his son-in-law, 
 Mr. Humiston. together owned two thou- 
 sand acres of valuable land, most of wliich 
 was improved and under a high state of cul- 
 tivation. Of excellent business ability and 
 broad resources, he attained a j)rominent 
 place among the wealthy and substantial citi- 
 zens of the county. On locating here he 
 had six thousand dollars in gold, and being 
 a wide-awake business man of keen discrim- 
 ination and sound judgment his accumula- 
 tions rapidly increased. He and his son-in- 
 law engaged in business together until the 
 hitter's death. They were among the orig- 
 inal stockholders of the National Bank of 
 I'ontiac. of which he was one of tlie early 
 (!irect(jrs. His career was such as to warrant 
 the trust and confidence of the business 
 world, for he conducted all transactions on 
 the strictest principles of honor and integ- 
 rity, and he was highlv respected and es- 
 teemed by all who knew him. 
 
 Mr. Camp died May 2, 1892, and his 
 wife departed this life January 23, 1864. 
 She was a meml>er of the Presbyterian 
 church for some years. To them were liorn 
 two children, but Edward Thomas died Sep- 
 tember It. 1861. before he attained iiis twen- 
 ty-first year. The only representative of the 
 family now living is Harriet, widow of Ben- 
 net Humiston, whose .sketch appears on an- 
 other page of this volume. 
 
 JOHX H. SMITH. 
 
 This gentleman is entitled to distinction 
 as one of the most progressi\e anil enter- 
 prising men of Pontiac, with whose business 
 
 interests he has been prominently identified 
 for many years. Uix>n the commercial ac- 
 tivity of a community dejjends its prosperity 
 and the men who are now recognized as 
 leading citizens are those who are at the 
 head of important business enterprises. He 
 is a man of broad capabilities who carries 
 forward to successful completion whatexer 
 he undertakes. 
 
 Mr. Smith was born in Half Moon \'al- 
 ley. Centre county. Pennsylvania, August 
 12, 1839, a son of Jacob and Lydia Ann 
 ( Henderson ) Smith. The father was born 
 in Union county, that state, of old Pennsyl- 
 vania Dutch stock, and being left fatherless 
 at the age of nine years was bound out to 
 strangers. There were only two children 
 ir; the family and his sister was taken to 
 another place. In Centre county, he mar- 
 ried Lydia Ann, daughter of David Hender- 
 son, who lived near Tyrone. Centre county. 
 Later he located near Pine Grove, Pennsyl- 
 sylvania, where he engaged in farming and 
 on stormy days worked at the gvmsmith's 
 trade which he had learned during his youth. 
 Later he lived in Huntingdon county, the 
 same state, but was with our subject in Pon- 
 tiac, Illinois, a short time prior to his death. 
 Both he and his wife were consistent and 
 faithful members of *the Methodist Episco- 
 pal church. 
 
 In the county of his nativity, John H. 
 Smith was reared and obtained a good prac- 
 tical education in its common schools. At 
 the age of eighteen he was bound as an ap- 
 prentice to a cari^enter, working for his 
 board and clothes and the privilege of at- 
 tending scIkxiI four months during the win- 
 terter. For three years and four months he 
 was thus employed, during wliich time he 
 thoroughly mastered the trade, including the 
 making of doors, sash. etc.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 On the30tli of Decemlser. 1863. ]\Ir. Smith 
 married Miss Mary J. Duff, who was born 
 Decemljer 8, 1840. Her paternal great-grand- 
 father come to tliis country from Scotland. 
 The grandfather. John Duf¥, was born in 
 Philadelphia, and at an early day removed 
 to Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, v>'hei-e 
 he spent the remainder of his life as a farmer. 
 He married Winifred Couch, of Philadel- 
 phia, a daughter of William Couch, who 
 was from Great Britain. !Mrs. Smith's 
 father, Charles Dufif, ^\■as born May 24, 
 1816, in Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, 
 where he grew to manhood and engag'ed in 
 farming for many years. There he was 
 married, August 31, 1838, to Eliza Cun- 
 ningham, who v.-as born October 2, 1819, a 
 daughter of Robinson and ]Mary J. (Lane) 
 Cunningham, of the same county. Her fa- 
 ther, a farmer of Huntingdon county, was 
 born in that state, but his father was a na- 
 tive of England. Charles DufY continued to 
 reside on the old home farm in Pennsylvania 
 until 1865, when he came to Pontiac, Illi- 
 nois, and purchased one hundred and si.xty 
 acres of land east of the corporation, which 
 he improved and which continued to be his 
 home throughout life. He also owned two 
 hundred and forty acres of land north of 
 Pontiac, and in all had about six hundred 
 acres. He was one of the prominent and 
 wealthy men of his community and was 
 highly respected by all who knew him. He 
 died September 9, 1873. and his wife passed 
 away July it, i 887. Both were earn-est 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
 After learning his trade, Mr. Smith be- 
 gan taking contracts and erected many build- 
 ings in Huntingdon. Centre and Clearfield 
 counties, Pennsyhania. He met with ex- 
 cellent success, and although a young man 
 lie often employed eight hands. ^^'hile 
 
 erecting a large church in Kerwinsville, 
 Clearfield cuunty. he cast his first vote for 
 Abraham Lincoln, and when the war broke 
 out the work was dropped as most of his 
 workmen entered the service. Returning 
 tc Tyrone, he aided in the construction of 
 the one-mile trestle of the Tyrone and 
 Clearfield Railroad at that place, remaining 
 there until going to Oil City, \'enango coun- 
 ty, (luring the excitement of 1864. There 
 he put down many wells, one of which was 
 fourteen hundred feet deep and the average 
 depth of the seventeen he drilled was six 
 hundred and fifty feet. For this work he 
 received one dollar per foot and an eighth 
 mterest in the well, which proved quite 
 quite profitable, as the one dollar per foot 
 paid all expenses, and he sold liis eighth in- 
 terest from eight hundred to two thousand 
 dollars a well. On first going into the oil 
 region he was engaged by the New York 
 Oil Company, of which Mr. Hamilton, of 
 New York, was president, in the erection of 
 derricks. ]\Ir. Hamilton noticing the rapid- 
 it)' with which he worked asked him how 
 much a foot he would ask to drill the wells, 
 and later asked him to name a sum per' 
 year as superintendent of all their wells. Not 
 caring particularly to engage in that work, 
 he named two thousand dollars per year, 
 l)elieving the sum greater than the com- 
 pany would I)e willing to pay. His terms, 
 liowever, were accepted, and he remained 
 with the firm one year, and then refused an 
 offer of two thousand five hundred dollars 
 a year to continue. Leaving the employ of 
 the oil company he commenced drilling wells 
 for himself, and his first well, wdiich took 
 him twenty-six days to drill. lie sold for 
 eighteen hundred dollars. During the time 
 he spent there he made enough to purchase 
 his father's farm of one hundred and sixty
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 113 
 
 acres for eight thousand dollars, and he 
 nperatcd the place one year. 
 
 .\t the end (^f that time .Mr. Smith sold 
 1 ut and came to Pontiac. Illinois, and ])nr- 
 cliased a farm three-(|uarters uf a mile east 
 I 'l' the city, for which he paid fifty dollars 
 jier acre although it was poorly impro\ed 
 land. He huilt one of the largest and best 
 harns in this section at that time. He fenced 
 1 1x1 tiled the land, bringing the first carload 
 ; tile into the county. This he bought in 
 Jnliet. paying thirty-seven dollars and a half 
 I'cr thousand for three inch tile. Previous 
 I" this he had put in some clapboard tile 
 i:d finding that it benefited the land, he re- 
 lived to thoroughly tile it. Some of it is 
 still in working order although in use for 
 I o\er thirty years. Mr. Smith's next ])ur- 
 I chase consisted of a quarter-section of land 
 ' owned by Charles Uuff, which adjoins the 
 ty, and he also bought one hundred acres 
 ' Mr. Dnft" north of his first home, making 
 iiiur hundreil and twenty acres adjoining 
 the town. All of this he has thoroughly 
 \ tiled and im))roved, and being well located, 
 i' is now among the best and m:'>st \-alua1:)le 
 land (if the county. -\t ])resenl he rents 
 his farm ])roperty. 
 
 l'"ur two years Mr. Smith rented and 
 operated a tile factory near town erected 
 by H. C. Bruner, and met with success in 
 that enterprise. In 1890 he erected a fine 
 brick residence on the corner of Walnut 
 and Washington streets, one of the tirst and 
 best brick houses in the city at that time. 
 ^ It is heated by steam, lighted by electricity 
 and supplied with all modern conveniences, 
 w bile the lawn about the house is a quarter 
 of a block in extent. Mr. Smith also 
 erected a store building on Madison street 
 o])posite the court house and still owns that 
 property. In 1893 he bought the coal shaft 
 
 at Pontiac. which he ojjerated a vear, and 
 sank a shaft within twenty-eight feet of the 
 third vein of coal, afterward selling the 
 same at a jirolit. being the imly nnc tn make 
 any nidney in th;U \-cnture. I'nr the [)ast 
 two years he has again given his attention 
 to the tile business and furnishes employment 
 to seventeen men in manufacturing I)oth 
 brick and tile. 
 
 Mr. Smith began life for himself with- 
 out a dollar, antl in fact was si.xty-two dol- 
 lars and fifty cents in debt. As already 
 stated he was apprenticeil to learn the car- 
 ])enter's trade. I'or the first year he was 
 to receive thirty dollars; the second year 
 fort}--fi\e dollars: and the third year sixty 
 dollars. lioard was included and in ad- 
 dition he was to have four months schooling 
 each year. The first year he was permitted 
 to go to scIkjoI, according to contract, but 
 during the succeeding years on one pretext 
 or another he was kejjt at work. On the 
 advice of his mother he permitted his last 
 Aear's wages to remain with his employer 
 until the end of the >'ear in order that he 
 might ha\-e a means to purchase a set of 
 car])enter's tools. His em[)loyer failed 
 about the end of his third year, and he never 
 recei\ed a cent. .\ local merchant kindly 
 agreed to furnish him the set of tools needed 
 and which amounted to sixty-two dollars and 
 fifty cents, and wait his convenience in pay- 
 ing. Securing the outfit he went to work 
 as a journeyman carpenter, and in due time 
 paid for his tools and felt like a free man. 
 On conn'ng to Illinois, his father loaned him 
 fi\e hundred dollars, but the wealth he has 
 since acf|uired has been secured through 
 his own enterprise, good business alMlity 
 and sound judgment. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Smith have three children, 
 namely: Elizabeth is the wife of Cary W.
 
 114 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Hill, of Pontiac, and they have one son, 
 ?Iarold Smith; Charles is engaged in busi- 
 ness with his father and now manages the 
 tile works; and Winifred, twin sister of 
 Charles, is the wife of Franklin Laver, who 
 oi)erates the home farm and they ha\'e one 
 child, Alfred A'eron. 
 
 During the Civil war, [Mr. Smith was a 
 member of the Pennsylvania militia, which 
 was not supposed to leave the state, but they 
 Avent to Hagerstown, [Maryland, and par- 
 ticipated in the battle of Antietam. At his 
 home he could hear the cannonading at Get- 
 tysburg and also during the Morgan raid. 
 He has ser\-ed as school director, but has 
 never cared for political honors, preferring 
 to devote his entire time and attention to 
 his business interests. Both he and his 
 wife are members of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal church and are highly respected and 
 esteemed bv all who know them. 
 
 ERASTUS HOOBLER. 
 
 Erastus Hooliler. the present well- 
 known circuit clerk, is one of the most 
 prominent young men of Livingston county, 
 a leader in political and business circles, 
 and whether in public or private life he 
 is always a courteous genial gentleman, well 
 deserving the high regardd in which he is 
 held. 
 
 A native of this county. [Mr. Hoobler 
 was born in Xewtown township, December 
 II, 1867, and is a son of Andrew J. and 
 Sarah (Leonard) Hoobler, a sketch of 
 whom appears elsewhere in this work. He 
 was educated in the public schools, which 
 he attended constantly until eighteen years 
 of age, and then began his Ijusiness career 
 
 as a merchant of [Mehille, he and his 
 b.rother Wilder purchasing the store f^ir- 
 mery owned by their father and conducting 
 it under the firm name of Hoobler Brothers. 
 They did a large and successful business for 
 some seven or eight years, being energetic 
 and progressive yoiuig men of good busi- 
 ness ability and industrial habits. 
 
 On the 9th of June, 1888, Air. Hoobler 
 was united in marriage wdth Miss Jodie 
 Beach, a daughter of Anson and Ph'jebe 
 Beach, formerly of La Salle county, and to 
 them have been born one child, Ernest E. 
 The parents both hold membership in the 
 Methodist Episcopal church, and Mr. Hoob- 
 ler is now serving as one of the stewards 
 of the church in Pontiac. Fraternally, he 
 is a member of the [Modern \\"oodmen of 
 America and of Beacon Lodge, No. 618, I. 
 O. O. F., of Cornell. 
 
 Since reaching man's estate [Mr. Hoob- 
 ler has always been active in Republican 
 politics, doing all within his power for the 
 success of his party. In the spring of 1894 
 he sold his store, and two years later was 
 nominated as circuit clerk for Livingston 
 county, to which office he was elected that 
 fall by a handsome majority. He has since 
 efficinetly discharged the duties of that po- 
 sition, and in 1900 was renominated by ac- 
 clamation. 
 
 JAMES XICOL. 
 
 James Xichol is the proprietor of an 
 excellent farm of two hundred and forty 
 acres on sections 1 1 and 3, Pike township, 
 Livingston county. The well-tilled fields 
 and neat and thrifty appearance of the place 
 testify to careful supervision of a painstak- 
 ins: owner — one who is a thorough farmer
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 15 
 
 and successful business man. He was born 
 in Arbroath, F"orfarshire, Scotland. June 6, 
 1849, a son of William and Jane (Simpson) 
 Xicol, also natives of that country, where 
 the mother spent her entire life. After lier 
 death the father married again. He was 
 born in Forfarshire in 1813. a son of James 
 Xicol, and in his native land was employed 
 as a pattern or model maker. In 1865 he 
 emigrated to the new world and came direct 
 to Livingston county, Illinois, where he ha<l 
 previously purchased eighty acres of land on 
 section 3, Pike township, where onr subject 
 now resides. At that time the tract was 
 v.ild prairie land, but he at once commenced 
 to fence, break and improve it. Later he 
 built a good house and made many other 
 permanent improvements. In connection 
 with farming he also worked at the car- 
 penter's and joiner's trade and built many 
 of the residences in his part of the county. 
 .\s one of the prominent and honored citi- 
 zens of his community, he was called upon 
 tL fill the offices of supervisor, justice of 
 the peace, school director and clerk of the 
 district some years. He was a man of sterl- 
 ing worth and strict integrity and was pre- 
 eminently i)ublic spirited and progressive. 
 
 Reared in his native land, James Xicol 
 received the advantages of a good common 
 school education, and served a five-years' 
 apprenticeship to the cabinetmaker's trade 
 after which he worked as a journeyman for 
 two years. In 1868 he decided to join his 
 father in .\merica and sailed from (ilasgow 
 to Xew York, landing in the latter city in 
 September of that year. He proceeded at 
 once to his father's home in this county, and 
 for the first si.x nuniths of his residence here 
 he worked at the carpenter's trade. The fol- 
 lowing two years he engaged in farming and 
 then went to Chicago, where he was em- 
 
 I^loyed at his trade for six months, rcturniu.'; 
 ti> this county at the end of that time. He 
 lias since devoted his time to agricultural 
 ])ursuits, and now owns the old homestead, 
 which he has greatly imro\ed. and to w'.iich 
 he lias added one huntlred and si.xty acres, 
 making a fine farm of two hundred and 
 forty acres. 
 
 In Livingston county. Xovember 24, 
 18873, ^^^- ^icol was united in marriage 
 with Miss Elizabeth Petrie. who was born, 
 reared and educated in the same towri as 
 her husband, and is a daughter of William 
 Petrie, who is still living in Scotland at the 
 advanced age of seventy-nine years. By 
 this union have been born seven cliildren, 
 namely : William P. and James, both farm- 
 ers of this county: Mabel May, Alfred. Ed- 
 ward Arthur. D. Harry and .\nnio Kdiili. 
 all at home. 
 
 In his political afifiliations Mr. Nicol is an 
 ardent Republican and cast his first presiden- 
 tial vote for Rutherford B. Ha>es. He 
 has been a delegate to county conventions, 
 .served as township clerk about seven years 
 and was a member of the school board and 
 cierk of the district twelve years. Socially, 
 he is a member of the Modern Woodmen 
 camp of Chenoa. and religiously is a member 
 of the Presbyterian church, to which his 
 wife also belongs. In all life's relations he 
 has been true to every trust reposed in him, 
 and is justly numbered among the valued 
 and useful citizens of his communitv. 
 
 JOHX C.rTHRIE. 
 
 John Guthrie, who for over a third 
 of a century has been identified with the 
 agricultural interests of Livingston county, 
 and now makes his home on section 10, Pike
 
 ii6 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 township, was born in tlie city of Glasgow, 
 Scotland, December 26, 1827, a son of 
 James and Jane ( McMurtrie) Guthrie, who 
 spent their entire lives in Scotland, mostly 
 in Glasgow, locating- there soon after their 
 marriage. There all of their children were 
 born in that city and both parents died. By 
 trade the father was a stonecutter. 
 
 Our subject grew to manhood in his na- 
 tive land and obtained a good education in 
 an Ayrshire village school. He served a 
 four years' apprenticeship to the weaver's 
 trade with his uncle, David McMurtrie, and 
 tlien returned to Glasgow, where he worked 
 in a factory, having charge of one depart- 
 ment four years. Later he was employed in 
 a wholesale store for three years, and then 
 emigrated to America, in 1850, takmg pass- 
 sage on a sailing vessel at Greenock on the 
 Clyde for Montreal, and arriving in the lat- 
 ter city after a stormy voyage of eight 
 weeks. \Miile in the Gulf of St. Lawrence 
 the masts \\-ere broken and they were delayed 
 two weeks at Sidney, Cape Breton, while 
 new masts were set up. Mr. Guthrie and 
 two other men worked all one night at the 
 pumps in order to save the \-essel from de- 
 struction. It was twehe weeks from the 
 time he left home until he reached his desti- 
 nation in Kendall county, Illinois, in Sep- 
 tember, 1850. There he had an uncle liv- 
 ing, while another uncle made the voyage 
 with him. The following year he com- 
 menced work in Kendall county gathering 
 corn for ten dollars per mcnth, and, being- 
 unused to such work, the skin Avas worn 
 froni his fingers in a short time. 
 
 In 1852 \lr. Guthrie went to ]\Iadison 
 county, Iowa, where he spent one year, and 
 on his return to Illinois settled in \\'ood- 
 ford county, where he worked by the month 
 until 1864. During that year he purcliased 
 
 the farm in Pike township, Livingston coun- 
 ty, where he now resides, but engaged in 
 farming upon rented land in Tazewell 
 county for two years, at the end of which 
 time he located upon his own land, ha\- 
 ing since February, 1861, made it his hume. 
 He has planted an orchard and considerable 
 small fruit, has divided his land into fields 
 of convenient size by good fences, has erect- 
 ed a pleasant residence and substantial out- 
 buildings and now has a well-improved and 
 desirable farm of eighty acres. 
 
 In Tazewell county Mr. Guthrie was 
 married, in 1864, to Miss Betsy Nicol, who 
 was born and reared in Arbroath, Scotland, 
 and came to the new world with her mother 
 in 1853. She died, lea\'ing no children, and 
 for his second wife Mr. Guthrie married 
 Mrs. Eliza (McCracken) McNeil, who was 
 born and reared in Ireland. By her first 
 married she has three children : Martha, 
 wife of Henry Crabb, of Livingston county; 
 Lizzie, wife of Charles Richardson, of Pike 
 township, and James, a resident of Chicago. 
 Mr. Guthrie has two children by his second 
 r.iarriage : David M. and Alaggic May, 
 both at home. 
 
 Since casting- his first presidential ballot 
 for General U. S. Grant, in 1868. Mr. Guth- 
 rie has been a stanch Republican, but has 
 never cared for political honors. Both he 
 and his wife are active members of the 
 Presbyterian church of Chenoa, and are peo- 
 ple of sterling worth and strict integrity. 
 
 JOHN H. CRUMBAKER. 
 
 John H. Crunibaker. a well-known and 
 highly respected citizen of Avoca township. 
 Livingston county, Illinois, was born in 
 Muskingum county, Ohio, August 11, 1845,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 117 
 
 and is a son of William .\. and Margaret 
 (Piper) Cruinbaker, natives of \'irginia 
 and Pennsylvania, respectively. As chil- 
 dren they went to Ohio, and after that con- 
 tinued til reside in that state for many years, 
 the father being engaged in fanning. In 
 1864 they came to Illinois and settled near 
 Lexington, where they still reside on a farm 
 of forty acres. Both are consistent mem- 
 bers of the Methodist church, and in politics 
 the father was formerly a Whig and is now 
 a Republican. To them were burn twehe 
 children, two of whom died in infancy, while 
 th.ose who reached , years of maturity are 
 John H., our subject; Marion \'.. a Meth- 
 odist Episcopal minister of Kankakee; Sarah 
 C. wife of S. S. Smith, of Nebraska; Maria 
 V... wife of William Stickler, postmaster of 
 Lexington: Oliver M., a resident of Cropsey 
 township, McLean county; Samuel, a resi- 
 dent of the state of Washington; Joanna, 
 wife of J. C. Finley, of Nebraska; Jonas A., 
 of Washington; Margaret, wife of H. Wil- 
 son, who lives near Lexington, Illinois; and 
 Alice E., wife of Ralph Wilson, of Ne- 
 braska. 
 
 The early education of Julin II. Ciuni- 
 baker was obtained in the common schools 
 of Ohio, and after coming to Illinois with 
 the family, at the age of eighteen years, he 
 totik an elective course at the Wesieyan Uiti- 
 versit\- in Bloomington and also attended 
 school in Onarga for a short time. Subse- 
 ([uently he taught school in different parts 
 of ilcLean county during the winter months 
 for sixteen years, while through the sum- 
 mer season he engaged in farming. In 1885 
 he came to Livingston county and first rent- 
 ed a farm near Wing. Since then he has 
 lived in Avoca townshij) and has made his 
 home upon the J. L. McDowell farm of 
 three hundred and ten acres since 1894. 
 
 Two hundreil acres of this tract are under 
 cultivation and he devotes the same to the 
 raising of grain. 
 
 On the J5th of [March, uSfig. Mr. Crum- 
 liaker married .Miss Elizabeth Jane Wilson, 
 \vh(i was born near Cincinnati, Ohio, in 
 JS50, and they have become the i)arents of 
 eight children, two of whom died in child- 
 hood. Those living are \'ictor .\., who is 
 preparing for the ministry at Du Pauw 
 University of Indiana; William, who lives 
 near Chalmers. Indiana, is married, and has 
 two children, Bessie and an infant ;D. Theo- 
 dore, who is engaged in farming near Fair- 
 bmy, and resides at ho.nie:Jonas K., George 
 R. and John P., who are all at home assist- 
 ing their father on the farm. 
 
 By his ballot Air. Crumbaker supports 
 the men and measures of the Republican 
 i;arty, has served as collector of his town- 
 ship two terms, town clerk two years and 
 school director three years. Religiously, he 
 is an active meml)er and supporter of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church, and has the 
 confidence and respect of all who know him 
 on account of his sterling worth and strict 
 iiiteyritv. 
 
 SOLON C. DLXIIAM. 
 
 Solon C. Dunham, a wellknown agricult- 
 lUMSt of Epijards Point township, who owns 
 and operates a fine farm i)f one hundreil 
 and seventy-two acres on section 31, is a 
 native of Illinois, his birth having occurred 
 in Morgan county, October 18, 1848. His 
 father, Ebenezer Dunham, was born in New 
 Plampshire, in 18 10, and was a son of Will- 
 iam Dunham, also a native of the old Ciranite 
 state. About 1831 Ebenezer Dunham came 
 west and located in Morgan county, where he
 
 Ii8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 married Catherine Sweet, a native of tiiis 
 state and a daughter of Peleg Sweet, one of 
 the earliest settlers of that county. There 
 Mr. Dunham followed farming some years, 
 later spent about eighteen years in Wash- 
 burn, JNIarshall county, and in 1865 came to 
 Livingston county and purchased the farm 
 on which our subject now resides. At that 
 time it was a tract of wild prairie land, and 
 tc its improvement and cultixation he de- 
 voted his energies throughout the remainder 
 of his life. There he died in 1884, lion- 
 ored and respected by all who knew him, 
 and is still survived by his wife, who resides 
 on the old homestead with her son. 
 
 During his boyhood and youth Solon 
 C. Dunham attended the local schools and 
 assisted his father in tlie labors of the farm, 
 and after reaching man's estate took charge 
 of the farm and business, which he has since 
 carried on with marked success. He has 
 erected a large, neat and substantial resi- 
 dence, built a commodious barn, and has 
 made many other improvements, wdiich add 
 to the beauty and value of the place. 
 
 In this county, Mr. Dunham was married, 
 in 1880, to Miss Anna Stuckey. who was 
 born in England, but was rearetl in McLean 
 and Li\ ingston counties, Illinois. By this 
 union ha\-e been born f(_)ur children, namely: 
 Ralph, Roscoe B.. Earl and Inez, all at 
 home. ]\Irs. Dunham and Mrs. Dunham's 
 mother are meml)ers of the Baptist church 
 and tlie family is widely and favorably 
 known. In his political views I\Ir. Dunham 
 is a stanch Republican, and cast his first 
 presidential vote for General U. S. Grant, 
 in 1872, but he has never cared for the honors 
 or emoluments of public oftice. He is. how- 
 ever, a staunch friend of etlucation, and has 
 l)een an efficient member of the school board 
 for some years. 
 
 E. W. PEARSON. 
 
 Among the pleasantest rural homes of 
 Esmen township, Livingston county, is tlic 
 one belonging- to this gentleman on section 
 26. and his farm is one of the model places 
 of that locality, being supplied with all 
 modern conxeniences and accessories needed 
 liy the ]irogressi\-e agriculturist of the pres- 
 ent day. 
 
 Mr. Pearson was born in Miami countv, 
 Ohio. August II. 1836. and l)elongs to a 
 family which was founded in that state by 
 his grandfather, Enos Pearson, a native of 
 V'irginia. His ancestry can he traced back 
 to two peers of England, in which country 
 the family was (|uite noted, .\aron Pear- 
 S(jn, father of our suliject, grew to manhood 
 in Miami countv, Ohio, and there marrietl 
 Rachel Moore, who was born in that state of 
 Cierman ])arentage. In earl}- life the father 
 followed farming and later engaged in the 
 manufacture of lumber. He died in Ohio 
 when our subject was about seven years old, 
 his wife three years later. In their family 
 were five children, four sons and one daugh- 
 ter, but only E. \\'., our subject, and John, a 
 resident of Marion count}'. Ohio, are now 
 Ining. 
 
 Our subject's school prix'ileges during his 
 bi.ivhood were limited, and he is alnn)st 
 V\ho]l}- self-educated. Being left an orphan, 
 he was thrown upon bis own resources when 
 a lad of seven years. He grew to manhood 
 upon- a farm and remained in his native 
 county until October, 1855. when he came 
 to Illinois, joining his guardian in Bloom- 
 ington. He came to this state by himself, 
 dri\-int;' across the country with a team of 
 liorses. In Xo\-ember of the same vear he 
 located in Livingston county and bought 
 eighty acres of land in Odell township, to
 
 E. W. PEARSON.
 
 THE BIOGR-\PHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the improvement and cultivation of which 
 lie devoted his attention until 1865, when 
 he sold that place and bought one hundred 
 and sixty acres of wild prairie land in Es- 
 men township, where he now resides. He 
 has since added to it an eighty-acre tract, 
 making a fine farm of two hundred and forty 
 ores, which he has ])laced under a high state 
 I cultivation. He has erected a modern 
 and commodious residence some distance 
 from the road, and leading up to it is a nice 
 driveway thrt)ugh grounds shaded by lovely 
 evergreen and other shade trees. The land 
 i; well tiled, there are two good orchards 
 ui)on the place and a flowing well, which, 
 operate<l by a windpump. supplies the water 
 both for house and stock. Besides tliis valu- 
 able property Mr. Pearson owns two well- 
 unproved farms near Hartley. O'Brien 
 county, Iowa, one of two hundred and forty. 
 [ the other of eighty acres, and has two farms 
 of one hundred and sixty acres each in Col- 
 rado and one of three hundred and twenty 
 acres in Kansas, used as cattle ranches. In 
 connection with farming he has been en- 
 gaged in buying and selling real estate. He 
 is an energetic and progressive business man 
 who carries forward to successful completion 
 whatever he undertakes, anti his prosperity 
 due entirely to his own well-directed and 
 riiergetic efforts. He was one of the orig- 
 . inators and charter members of the Pontiac 
 Mutual Fire Insurance Company, organized 
 ii! 1892, and was elected its first president, 
 which position he has filled most satisfac- 
 torily since that time. 
 
 Returning to his old home in Miami 
 county, Ohio, Mr. Pearson was married 
 there, October 28, 1858, to Miss Rachel 
 Sheafer, who was lx)rn in Pennsylvania, but 
 was reared in that county, and is a daughter 
 of Eckert Sheafer. Bv this union were born 
 
 six children, namely: Rachel, at home: 
 Abraham L.. who is marrieil and engaged in 
 farmin?^ and fruit raising in California: 
 Arthur, who is married and follows farming 
 in Esmen township. Livingston county, Illi- 
 nois: Emma, wife of R. E. Knapp. of Ponti- 
 ac: Anna, wife of Robert Brunskill. a farm- 
 er of Esmen township: and Ida M.. who 
 was graduated at the State Normal School 
 and has successfuUv engaged in teaching for 
 some years, beinp" first assistant principal 
 of the Jefferson Park high school at El Paso 
 at the present time. 
 
 Politically Mr. Pearson was formerly 
 identified with the Republican party and cast 
 l.is first presidental vote for John C. Fre- 
 tront in 1856. but of late years has been in- 
 ciependent in politics. He is a stanch friend 
 of education, was elected a member of the 
 school board of Odell when nineteen years 
 of age antl filled that jKisition almost con- 
 tinually until moving to Esmen township, 
 he has served as township treasurer since 
 1870 and at intervals has been a member of 
 the county board of su])ervisors for about 
 fifteen years, during which time he was a 
 member of various committees and chairman 
 of the building committee in charge of build- 
 ing the poor house after the death of Mr. 
 Morrow. He has been a delegate to nu- 
 merous county, congressional and state con- 
 ventions of his party and to two national 
 conventions, helping to nominate J. B. Weav- 
 er at the first Populist convention, and at the 
 St. Louis convention, in 1896. helping to 
 nominate Bryan and Watson. He is always 
 to be found on the Populist county commit- 
 tee, having served as its chairman, and is 
 popularily known as the father of the party 
 in this county, and he has always taken an 
 active and commendable interest in public 
 affairs. He is pre-eminently jniblic-spirited
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and priigressixe. and as a citizen has always 
 Ijeen found true to every trust repi.ised in 
 liim. 
 
 THOMAS JOHXSTOX 
 
 Tlionias Johnston, the well-known super- 
 intendent of the Puntiac Diamond Co-opera- 
 tive Coal Company of Pontiac Illinois, is a 
 native of England, born in Staffordshire, 
 April JO, 1884, and is a son of Thomas and 
 Mary Ann (Brown) Johnston. The father 
 was born in Ireland, but wdien quite young 
 \\ent to England, where he continued tcT 
 make his b(jme throughout life, d}'ing 
 ]\Iarcb 12, 1878, at the age of sixty-seven 
 years. Tlie mother died on the 21st of the 
 same month He was always a hard work- 
 ing man and for many years was foreman of 
 an iron works in Staffordshire. 
 
 Oor subject is the sixth in order of birth 
 in a family of eleven children, nine of wdiom 
 are still living, but he is the only one in this 
 country. -He obtained his education in the 
 common schools of Staffordshire and 
 learned the trade of an engineer in the em- 
 ploy of the Apedale Coal & Iron Company 
 of that place, remaining with them five years. 
 In the fall of 1880 he came to the United 
 States, and first located in Streator, Illinois, 
 where he engaged in coal mining, and after- 
 ward became engineer for the Chicago, 
 Vermilion & Wilmington Coal Company at 
 that place, but only remained with tliem a 
 year or two. He was next employed as en- 
 gineer with the Star Coal Company of 
 Streator for three or four years, and for 
 eleven years was with the Richard Evans 
 Coal Company of the same place. In De- 
 cember, 1895, he came to Pontiac to take 
 charge of a shaft at this place as engineer, 
 
 and was thus employed until 1897, wdien the 
 shaft was leased by the present co-operative 
 company, of which Mr. Johnston is manager, 
 being associated with five others : Thomas 
 Velvin, president : Charles F. Acklin, treas- 
 in"er ; Walter H(_)gan, mine manager, and 
 ^lathew Dickman and William Schress, di- 
 rectors, all of whom reside in Pontiac. The 
 shaft was leased for a period of fifteen years 
 from October, 1899, and the entire man- 
 agement is with the six men mentioned. Ac- 
 cording to the present law only six men can 
 work in one shaft, but the company has now 
 sunk another escape shaft and can put more 
 men to work so that they will be able to take 
 nut from two hundred and fifty to three 
 liundred tons of coal per day. 
 
 Before leaving England ^^Ir. Johnston 
 was married, July 8, 1878, to Aliss ]Mary 
 Ann Pickerill, of Staffordshire, a daughter 
 of Robert and Sarah (Eccles) Pickerill The 
 father was a shoe manufacturer and fol- 
 lowed that occupation throughout his active 
 business life, but is now living a retired life 
 in Staffordshire, at the age of seventy-seven 
 years. The mother died in 1893, at the age 
 of sixty-six. Only two of their family came 
 to America: !Mrs. lohnston and Anna, wife 
 of Benjamin Copeland,a conl miner of Strea- 
 or, Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Johnston have a 
 family of four children, namely : Thomas 
 Bowyer, born in Staffordshire, England, De- 
 cember 29, 1878, was educated in Streator, 
 and is now living in \\'enona, Illinois, where 
 he is a hoisting engineer for the \\'enona 
 Coal Company. Sarah Ann, born in Staf- 
 fordshire, June 9, 1880, is at home; Fan- 
 nie, born in Livingston county, Illinois, 
 June 19, 1883, graduated from the public 
 schools of Pontiac in 1900. and Pearl, born 
 in Fulton county, Illinois. January 3, 1890, 
 is attending school.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 123 
 
 By liis 1)all(it ^[r. Ji'linstmi lias always 
 supported the men ami measures oi the Dem- 
 ocratic party, but has never sought nor de- 
 sired pul)lic office, though often urged by 
 his friends to become a candidate. He is a 
 prominent member and financial secretary 
 of the Episcopal church of Pontiac. which his 
 family also attend. He is also a memlier of 
 Court Pride. Foresters of America, of Pon- 
 tiac. of which he has served as trustee one 
 term ; is a member of the Court of Honor. 
 No. 18^, of Pontiac. and the National 
 Brotherhood Association of Coal Hoisting 
 Engineers. As a 1)usiness man he is thor- 
 oughly reliable and the success that he has 
 achieved in life is justly merited, for it is 
 tlue entirely to his own industry, enterprise 
 and good management. He has a good 
 home. 411 East Prairie street, which he 
 bought in 1898. 
 
 WILLIAM WOODING. 
 
 William Wooding, a retired farmer 
 • ■\ Pontiac, who came to this country in 
 the spring of 1869, is a typical self-made 
 num, and in the following record of his ca- 
 reer there is much to arouse respect and es- 
 teem. He has placed his reliance upon in- 
 dustry and perseverance, and by making the 
 most of circumstances, however discourag- 
 ing, has made his way to substantial suc- 
 cess, his fine farm in Pike township being a 
 tangilile evidence of prosperity. 
 
 Mr. Wooding is a native of England, 
 born in Yarley Hastings, Northamptonshire, 
 November 17, 1831. and is a son of Jesse 
 and Ann (Rainbow) Wooding, who were 
 married September 13, 18 j8. The father 
 was born m the same place in 1805. and 
 
 there maile bis home until coining l() this 
 country two years after our subject crossed 
 the Atlantic, but died the ninth day after 
 landing at the home of our subject in New 
 Jersey. The mother came to America with 
 her husband and died here in 1871. 
 
 William Wooding acquired his educa- 
 tion in the public schools of his nati\e land. 
 As a young man of nineteen years he emi- 
 grated to the United States and located first 
 in Salem county. New^ Jersey, where he 
 v,i irked on a farm and also in a tile factory, 
 which was probably the first started in the 
 L'nited States, the proprietor ha\ing sent 
 to England for the machinery. Our sub- 
 ject and his brother worked for him five 
 years and then came to Illinois, in 856, 
 with the intention of starting a factory of 
 their own. but finding land so cheap they re- 
 solved to engage in agricultural jjursuits. 
 After looking over the field Mr. Wooding 
 located near Farmington, Fultiin county, 
 where he engaged in farming for nine years. 
 
 In the spring of 1869 he came to Li\ing- 
 ston county and in partnership with his 
 brother purchased a farm of two hundred 
 and sixty acres in Pike township, which they 
 improved and operated together for 1 time, 
 but finally divided the property. Our subje ct 
 still owns an excellent farm of one hundred 
 and eighty-one acres in that and Eppards 
 Point township, which he has thoroughly 
 tiled and transformed into one of the most 
 highly cultivated and productive tracts in 
 the locality. It is hedged and cross hedged 
 and improved with good and substantial 
 buildings, which stand as a momiment to his 
 thrift and enterprise. In connection with 
 general farming he engaged in stock raising 
 quite extensively, and usually had a carload 
 of hogs for shipment each fall. I'esides his 
 farm in this count v, he owns land in Indiana,
 
 124 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 \\hicli lie is now improving; lie built a good 
 home at No. 303 West Moulton street, at 
 the corner of Plum street, Pontiac, where he 
 has resided since the spring of 1896, having 
 retired from active labor to enjoy a well 
 earned rest. 
 
 Mr. Wooding has been twice married, 
 his lirst AN'ife being Amanda Humphry, a 
 native of Washington county, Indiana. He 
 tootook her to Kearney, Nebraska, in 1885, 
 with the hope of benefiting herhealth, but 
 she died there the same fall, leaving three 
 children, namely: Mary, now the wife of 
 Perry Morton, of Pontiac, ]\v whom she has 
 two children, Mabel and Leonora; Lucy, 
 wife of Wesley Porter, of Owego township, 
 I)y whom she has two sons, Harry and 
 Charles; antl \\'illiam, who married Leona 
 Perry, and has two children, Orville and 
 Hazel Lorena. He lives on the home farm 
 in Pike township. 
 
 Returning to England in 1887, Mr. 
 Wooding there married Miss Mary Berrill, 
 of Yardley Hastings, a daughter of John and 
 Elizabeth (Morris) Berrill, and by this 
 union has been born a daughter, V- mifred. 
 For twenty-five years Mrs. Wooding's sis- 
 ter, Sarah Berrill, has held the position of 
 maid with Lady Southampton, who is a lady 
 in waiting on Queen \'ictoria, and as such 
 makes all the trips with the Queen's escort. 
 Pier father, John Berrill, was a native of 
 Northampton, where his ancestors have re- 
 sided for at least three or four generations, 
 and on the maternal side Mrs. Wootling is 
 of an old and respected family that for many 
 generations have been born on the Martpiis 
 of Northampton's estate. Her grandfather 
 Morris was a shepherd by occupation. The 
 records of the family are to be found in the 
 parish church. In tracing his ancestry back 
 five or si.\. generations, Mr. Wooding finds 
 
 that he springs from the same family as his 
 wife. His mother, Elizabeth Rainljow, was 
 a daughter of James and Elizabeth Ratley, 
 and the latter was a daughter of John and 
 Ann Berrill, who were the great-grandpar- 
 ents of Mrs. Wooding. Her grandfather 
 was Richard, who in turn was a son of John 
 and Ann Berrill, previously mentioned. All 
 were residents of Yardley Hastings. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Wooding have traveled 
 quite extensively, and visited their native 
 land again in 1890. He has ever taken an 
 active interest in educational affairs and 
 most efficiently served as school director of 
 his township while residing in the country. 
 He is a consistent and faithful member of 
 the Baptist church, and one of the highly re- 
 spected and honored citizens of the com- 
 munitv. 
 
 JAMES MURPHY. 
 
 James Murph}', the well-known engineer 
 of the water works in Pontiac, Illinois, was 
 born in Campbellford, Northumberland 
 county, Ontario, Canada, August 7. 1854, 
 and is a son of Peter and Ann (Spence) 
 Murphv. The father was born in Xewray, 
 County Down, Ireland, about 1822. and 
 there gained a thorough knowledge of the 
 shoemaker's trade. When a young man 
 he emigrated to Canada, where he married 
 Ann Spence, a native of Nottingham. Eng- 
 land, who had moved to Canada with an 
 aunt after the death of her prents. In 1864 
 they came to Pontiac and were among the 
 early property owners of the city, building 
 their own house on west W ater street. 
 Tluoughout the greater part of his life the 
 father engaged in mining. He died in
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 125 
 
 April, 1895. the mother April 16. 1899. 
 Both were devout members of St. Mary's 
 Catholic church, and were hjohly respected 
 hv all who knew them. 
 
 Tills wortiiy oiui)le left a family of eight 
 children, of whom our subject is the second 
 in order of birth. He began his education 
 in Canada and after the remo\al of the fam- 
 ily to Pontiac attentled the public schools 
 here for a time. After the completion of 
 his education he was variously employed 
 for a time, but for the past twenty-five years 
 he has l>een principally engaged in running 
 stationary engines, operating some of the 
 first ever brought to Pontiac. In 1884 he 
 purchased one hundred and sixty acres of 
 wild land in York county. Nebraska, wliicli 
 he converted into a well improved farm, 
 and there he successfully engaged in mixed 
 farming for some time, during which period 
 the country was well settled up and became 
 a thriving agricultural district. He was one 
 of the school directors in his township for 
 four years, during which time a school house 
 was built in his district. Renting his farm 
 he returned to Pontiac in 1896 and was 
 appointed engineer of the water works, 
 which position he has since filled in a most 
 efficient and satisfactory manner, having 
 charge of two Gordon pumps with a capac- 
 ity of one million and five hundred thousand 
 gallons daily, which are fully taxed most of 
 the time. These are kept running day and 
 night, his son serving as night engineer. 
 Fraternally he is a mem1)er of the Modern 
 \\oodmen of America. 
 
 On the 14th of September. 1881, Mr. 
 Murphy was united in marriage with Miss 
 Bridget Sullivan, and to them have been 
 born four children, namely : James, who 
 is an engineer with his father: Katie. Joseph 
 and Mary. Michael Sullivan, Mrs. Mur- 
 
 phy's father, was born in Limerick. Ire- 
 land, and as ayoung man came to America. 
 After some time spent in New York state 
 he came to Chicago, and entered the employ 
 of the Chicago & Alton Railroad, aiding in 
 its construction from Dwight to Blooming- 
 ton. P)eing pleased with tliis locality he 
 located in Pontiac when it was a very small 
 \illage;. being among its early residents, 
 building a home on North ^'ermillion street. 
 At Lake Station he had previously married 
 Catlierinc .\nnan. of Chicago. \vho was 
 born in W'aterford. county Cork. Ireland, 
 and jirior to her marriage worked in New 
 York and latter in Chicago. They were 
 memljcrs of the Catholic church, and before 
 a church was established in Pontiac mass 
 was said at the homes of the different mem- 
 bers. In 1880 they. too. removed to York 
 county. Nebraska, and purchased a tract of 
 one hundred and sixty acres adjoining our 
 subject's farm, and upon that place Mr. Sulli- 
 van died June 2. 1885. his wife, February 
 2\. 1896. In their family were only two 
 children, William, a resident of Nebraska ; 
 and Bridget, wife of our subject. 
 
 LARS EXGELSEN. 
 
 Lars Engelsen, a well-known agricult- 
 urist residing on section 10, Esman town- 
 ship. Livingston county, was born in Nor- 
 way, July 12, 1845, and is the only child of 
 Engel and Ella (Mickleson) Engelsen. also 
 natives of that countr}-. where the father 
 followed farming until his death in 1852. 
 Five years later the wife afid son came to 
 America on a sailing vessel, and were about 
 three weks in crossing the Atlantic from Ber- 
 gen to Quebec. They proceeded at once to
 
 126 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Morris. Grundy county, Illinois, and in the 
 fall of the same year moved to La Salle 
 ci^untv. where Mrs. Engelsen was married, 
 in 1859. to Torris Johnson, also a Xnrwe- 
 . gian by birth and a cooper by trade, follow- 
 ing that ocupation in Dayton. Illinois, f in- 
 many years. Later they moved to Indian 
 Creek, the same county, where Mrs. John- 
 son died. 
 
 Lars Engelsen lived with his mother and 
 step-father until grown, and received a fair 
 education in the schools of La Salle county. 
 He l-jegan life for himself as a farm hand 
 and was thus employed for several years 
 before and after his marriage. He subse- 
 quently rented land. In 1868 he came to 
 Livingston county and located upon his 
 present farm in 1880, it being a part of the 
 large tract of land owned by Apollos Camp 
 of Pontiac, for whom our subject w(.irked 
 about seven years and wdio virtually ga\-e 
 him the place. Mr. Engelsen has erected 
 thereon a large and substantial residence, 
 a good barn and other outbuildings, and 
 has made many other impro\-ements upim 
 the farm. In connection with its (opera- 
 tions he also cultivates about one Inuulred 
 acres more, and has been quite successful 
 in his farm business. 
 
 On the 14th of February, 1865, Air. 
 Engelsen was married in La Salle county, 
 to Miss Anna Dora Engelsen, who was 
 born and reared in Norway, and when a 
 young lady came to America, where she 
 attended the English schools for a short 
 time. By this union were born six chil- 
 dren who are still living, namely : Engle 
 B., a resident of Iowa; Elmer T., of Xorth 
 Dakota; Joseph E., who is in this county; 
 Milton L., Bertha E. and Ellen M.. all at 
 home. Those deceased were James M.. who 
 died at the age of seventeen years; Lilly .\., 
 
 who died at the age of eighteen ; Bertha and 
 Angeline. who died of scarlet fever at the 
 age of f(jur and two }-ears. respectively, 
 and one who died in infancy. 
 
 ]Mr. Englesen has been a stanch Repub- 
 lican since casting his first vote for General 
 U. S. Grant in 1868, but he has never cared 
 for political preferment. In the spring of 
 1900 he was elected township assessor, and 
 for some years was a member of the school 
 board in Pontiac township. Religiously, he 
 and his wife and daughters are members of 
 the Lutheran church, while some of his sons 
 hold memliership in the i\Iethodist Episco- 
 pal church. His life has been one of indus- 
 try and perseverance and he is deserving of 
 the hioh reeard in which he is held. 
 
 PATRICK H. KANE. 
 
 Patrick H. Kane, the genial and popular 
 proprietor of the Transient House of Pon- 
 tiac. which is conveniently located near the 
 Chicago & Alton Railroad depot, was born 
 in Holyoke, Massachusetts, March 14, i860. 
 a son of John and Mary (Lannan) Kane. m 
 
 The father was a native of Ireland and as a il 
 young man came to America, locating first 
 in ^Massachusetts, where he worked in the 
 woolen mills for many years, being night 
 foreman for some time. On leaving that 
 state in 1863 he came to Illinois and set- 
 tled fi\e miles southwest of Ottawa. La 
 Salle county, where he engaged in farming, ■ 
 later following the same pursuit in Allen • * 
 township, the same county. Selling out he 
 came to Li\'ingston county and took up his 
 residence in Xe\'ada township, but his last 
 days were spent as a farmer in Sullivan 
 township, where he held different township
 
 THE BIOGRArHICAL RECORD. 
 
 127 
 
 offices. He was a Democrat in politics and 
 one of tlie early members of tlie Catholic 
 church of Dwight. He died in July. 1895. 
 antl his wife passed away in the fall of 1881. 
 
 During his boyhood our subject attended 
 the public schools of La Salle and Livings- 
 ton counties, and at the age of eighteen years 
 l)egan life for himself by working as a farm 
 hand. lia\ing become thoroughly familiar 
 with that occupation on his father's farm. 
 Subsef|uently he went to Xel)raska and en- 
 tered the emi)l(y of the L'nion Pacific Rail- 
 road as brakenian on the line running from 
 Lincoln to \'alparaiso and later to Strawns- 
 burg on the main line, remaining with the 
 company four years and four mi:)nths, after 
 which he returned to Illinois. 
 
 iNlr. Kane was married. July 2. 1881. 
 the day President Garfield was shot, to Miss 
 Rosa Young, a native of Lincoln, Illinois, 
 and a daughter of Joseph Young, one of the 
 early farmers of Saunders county. Nebraska. 
 They lived in \'alparai.so, Nebraska, early 
 in 1883, before returning to Pontiac, where 
 Mr. Kane worked for H. C. Bruner as fore- 
 man and burner at his tile and brick works, 
 doing all the burning until he severed his 
 connection with that gentleman in Jime. 
 189O. For two years he had entire charge of 
 the plant and Inirned eighteen or nineteen 
 kilns a week. Later he was with John H. 
 i-mith, when he run the factory, and had the 
 entire confidence and respect of both gentle- 
 men. Before leaving their employ be built a 
 house in River ^'iew addition to Pontiac, 
 which lie traded in 1895 *'"■ ^ hotel in Clav 
 City, Illinois, but after conducting the latter 
 for a year he returned to Pontiac, where he 
 engaged in the restaurant, bakery and con- 
 itctionery Inisiness until May 24, i899.when 
 he bought the Transient House and has since 
 successfully engaged in the hotel business. 
 
 It is a nice two-story frame building, and 
 in connection with this Mr. Kane owns a 
 large lot. He also has a good hou.se and 
 lot on Madison street and has successfully 
 engaged in the real estate business for him- 
 self, having owned a number of different 
 places. 'He is a good, reliable business 
 man, and the prosperity that has attended 
 his efforts is certainly justly merited. 
 
 Mr. Kane's first wife died while on a 
 visit to her old home, in 1888. leaving two 
 children, Elvira and Sadie, who are now 
 being educated in a convent. In 1894 he 
 married Mrs. Xancy Adams, of Pontiac, 
 a daughter of Samuel Garner, who was one 
 of the pioneer residents of this city and at 
 one time a prominent property owner. 
 
 As a Democrat Mr. Kane has e\er taken 
 an actixe part in local politics, but has never 
 been an aspirant for office, though he took a 
 leading part in the political affairs of the first 
 ward, and is to-day one of the most promi- 
 nent Democrats in the ward where he is 
 now living. 
 
 S.V-MUEL H. BOYER. 
 
 Samuel H. Boyer, a well-known livery- 
 man and highly respected citizen of Dwight, 
 Illinois, was born in Blair county, Penn- 
 sylvania, July 25, 1858, a son of George 
 W. and Mary Ann (Turnbaugh) Boyer. 
 The Boyer family is of German origin and 
 was founded in this country in early colonial 
 da}s. His great-grandfather. John Boyer, 
 was born in .\merica, and throughout life 
 engaged in farming in Lancaster county, 
 Pennsylvania. The grandfather, (ieorge 
 Boyer. was born in that county, in 1800, 
 and married Lydia Rupp, daughter of Jac<jb 
 Rupp, who lived near Reading, and belonged
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to a family of German origin, \\hich was 
 founded in Cumberland county, Pennsyl- 
 vania, soon after the landing of William 
 Penn. To George and Lydia (Rupp) Beyer 
 were born six children : Jacob, John, George 
 W., William, Samuel and Sarah. The father 
 of this family died in Pennsylvania, at the 
 age of sixty-eight years. He was a Lu- 
 theran in religious belief and a Republican 
 in politics. 
 
 George A\'. Boyer, father of our sub- 
 ject, was born in Lancaster county, Pennsyl- 
 vania. Februar}- 20. 1827, and accompanied 
 his parents on their removal to Blair county, 
 that state, \\here he engaged in farming se\'- 
 eral years. He was reared on a farm and 
 received a common-school education. On 
 the 24th of May, 1849, li^ married Mary 
 Ann, daughter of Henry and Catherine 
 (Cherry) Turnbaugh, who were of German 
 ancestry and lived near Altoona, Blair coun- 
 ty. By this union were born seven children, 
 namely : Henr}-, who married Nellie Mor- 
 ris ; Annetta, who married James B. Austin ; 
 Samuel H., our subject; Sarah C, wife of 
 Dwight P. Mills; Climenia E., now Mrs. 
 Muro Bertholic; Alfred A., of Dwight; and 
 George W.. who died at the age of twelve 
 years. The father was a member of Company 
 E, One Hundred and Fourth Pennsyh'ania 
 Volunteer Infantry, during the latter part 
 of the Civil war, and was honorably dis- 
 charged at Philadelphia, after which he re- 
 turned to his home in Blair county. In 1867 
 be came to Lix'ingston count}-, Illinois, and 
 purchased a farm on section 20, Dwight 
 township, where he resided until a few years 
 ago, when he retired to Dwight. He has 
 always affiliated with the Republican party 
 and has held several township offices, in- 
 cluding those of school director and road 
 commissioner. Both he and his wife are 
 
 members of the Lutheran church and are 
 highly respected and esteemed by all who 
 . know them. 
 
 Samuel H. Boyer was only nine years 
 of age on the removal of the family to this 
 county, and in the schools of Dwight town- 
 ship he acquired his education. He remained 
 at home until twenty-five years of age. On 
 the 30th of January, 1884, Mr. Boyer was 
 united in marriage with Miss Jennie Lower, 
 also a native of Blair county, Pennsylvania, 
 and a daughter of Samuel and Mary E. 
 (Downs) Lower, who were born in the 
 same state. In early life her father learned 
 the lilacksmith's trade, which he continued 
 to follow until his retirement recently from 
 active labor. He brought his family to Illi- 
 nois in i86s and first located in Lanark, but 
 a few years later came to Dwight, where 
 he has since made his home, with the excep- 
 tion of a short time spent in farming in 
 Broughton township, this county. In 1891 
 he built a hotel in Dwight, to which he gave 
 the name of Pennsylvania House, and which 
 he conducted for seven years, and where he 
 still resides. In his family were ten chil- 
 dren, of whom seven are now living, !Mrs. 
 Boyer being the second in order of birth. 
 Her mother died in February, 1898. To our 
 subject and his wife have been born five 
 children, namely : Harvey, Ehvood, Clar- 
 ence, Ira and Ralph. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Boyer engaged in 
 farming upon rented land for a time and 
 then operated Mr. Lower's farm in Brough- 
 ton township for six years. In the fall of 
 1 89 1 he built a large livery stable in Dwight 
 and to tliat place he removed in January of 
 the following year, and has since devoted 
 his time and attention to the livery business 
 with good success. 
 
 In politics Mr. Boyer is a Reijublican, but
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 129 
 
 has never l»een an as])irant tor ctffice. He 
 attends tlie Metliodist Ejjiscdpal church and 
 affihates with Dwight Canii>. Xo. jjo, S. 
 (if \'.. of which lie is captain ; Hebron Lodge, 
 Xo. 513. I. O. O. ¥.. and Dwight Court of 
 Honor. X<i. :;oS. 
 
 JOHX ck.\r,r.. 
 
 Jolin Craljl). who is industriously en- 
 gaged in agricuhural pursuits upon a good 
 farm of one hundred and twenty acres on 
 section 9, Pike townsliip. Livingston coun- 
 ty. Ilhnois. was l)orn in Forfarshire. Scot- 
 land. July I. 1)^39, a son of James and Ce- 
 celia ( Monroe ) Crabb, also natives of that 
 country, where the mother died. The fa- 
 ther was of English descent. 
 
 Our subject was reared and educated in 
 his native land and for three years prir)r 
 to his emigration to America he worked in 
 a foundrA-. At the age of eighteen he de- 
 cided to try his fortune on this side of the 
 Atlantic and took passage on a sailing ves- 
 sel at Montrose. The voyage lasted six 
 weeks, during which time they encountered 
 two severe storms, but finally landed at Que- 
 bec in safety in .\ugust. 1857, and proceeded 
 at once to Tazewell county, Illinois, where 
 his brothers, Henry and Archie, had pre- 
 \iously located. They were joined b\' their 
 father two or three years later and he made 
 his home in this country throughout the re- 
 mainder of his life, dying in 1875 ^^ ^''^ '''1"^ 
 old age of eighty-one years. 
 
 .\t first John Crabb worked on a farm by 
 the mouth and later he and his brother, 
 Archie, rented land and engaged in farm- 
 ing together for seven years. At the end 
 of that period the ])ro]>erty was divided and 
 our subject came to Livingston county and 
 
 ])urcha.sed a tract of raw prairie land in 
 Pike township, to Ihe improvement and 
 cultivation of which he devoted his energies 
 until 1889, when he sold that place and 
 bought his present farm of one hundred and 
 twenty acres of land on section 9, the same 
 township. At that time it was only .slightly 
 improved, but he has remodeled the resi- 
 dence, tiled the land, erected good outbuild- 
 ings and made many other improvements, 
 transforming it into a most ilesirable farm. 
 
 On the J5th of December, 1865. in Liv- 
 ingston county. Mr. Crabb was united in 
 marriage with Miss Hannah E. Capes, a 
 sister of I)a\id D. Capes, whose sketch ap- 
 pears on another i)age of this volume. She 
 was born in Lincolnshire. England, but was 
 only three years old when brought to this 
 Country by her father, Willoughby Capes, 
 who first settled in Tazewell county, Illi- 
 nois. I)ut later came to Livingston countv. 
 ^Ir. and Mrs. Crabb have a family of seven 
 children, namely: Charles, who is married 
 and engaged in farming in this county : Wal- 
 ter, at home; Ada, wife of Henry Beeks. 
 a farmer of Benton county, Indiana ; Eliza- 
 beth, wife of Lucius Phillips, a farmer of 
 Pike township, this county; Dora, Ethel and 
 Zephyr, all at home. 
 
 Politically, Mr. Crabb was originally a 
 Rejiublican, but of late years has supported 
 the Democratic party, and being a friend of 
 temperance he takes an interest in the Pro- 
 l-.ibition movement. He was an efficient 
 member of the school board for some vears 
 and gives his support to every enterprise 
 which he believes calculated to advance the 
 moral, educational or social welfare of the 
 community in which he lives. Religiously, 
 both he and his estimable wife are earnest 
 and consistent members of the Bethel Meth- 
 odist Episcopal church.
 
 I30 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 CHARLES A. McGKECOR. 
 
 Few men are more ])n)minent <>i" nmre 
 ■\videlv known in tlie enterprising city of 
 Pontine than the gentleman whose name 
 introduces this sketcli. He was born in WW- 
 mington, CHnton county, Ohio, IVIarch 14. 
 1843. and is a son of John H. McGregor, 
 who was born in Orange county. North 
 CaroHna, August 30, 181 4. The grandfa- 
 ther, John McGregor, a native of the higli- 
 lands of Scotland, settled in North Caro- 
 Hna on his emigration to this counry, and 
 there he was a professor in an educational 
 institution and also a land owner. \Vhen his 
 son, John H., was three years old he re- 
 moved with his family to Green River, Ken- 
 tucky, where he purchased a large amount 
 of land, but seven years later disposed of his 
 property there and moved to Clinton coun- 
 ty, Ohio, where he bought more land, mak- 
 ing his home there throughout the remainder 
 of his life. 
 
 John H. McGregor, father of our sub- 
 ject, was educated in Lcjuisville, Kentucky. 
 and was admitted to the Ijar in Clinton coun- 
 ty, Ohio. In Wilmington, Ohio, he was 
 married, October 3, 1838, by Rev. Joseph L. 
 Irvin, to J^Iiss Mary J. Buxton, who was 
 born in W'arren county, that state, March 
 27, 1 82 1, a daughter of Charles and Eliza 
 (Vandoren) Buxton. Her father, who was 
 of English birth, died when she was only 
 four years old. At an early day the father 
 of our subject removed to the territory of 
 Iowa and located in Davenport, owning the 
 original claim on which that city was 
 founded in partnership with his^jrother and 
 another gentleman. In 1850 he remo\ed to 
 Ottawa, Illinois, where he engaged in the 
 practice of law, having his ofifice with Dr. 
 Stout, the noted abolitionist, and in Octo- 
 
 ber, 1852. before the railroad was built, 
 came to I'ontiac. where he was first engaged 
 ii; practice with Mr. DeW'itt. the earliest at- 
 torney of the ])lace. but later was a member 
 of the firm of McGregor & Dart. He 
 erected one of the first buildings of any 
 size in the town, the lumber being hauled 
 from Ottawa, a distance of forty miles, and 
 was one of the most prominent citizens of 
 tontiac in that day, as well as one of the 
 leading lawyers of this section of the state, 
 being engaged in practice with Lincoln, 
 Caton and other illustrious men. He died 
 Januarv 5, 1856, honored and respected by 
 all who knew him. His wife is still living 
 and is one of the two surviving charter mem- 
 bers of the Presbyterian church of Pontiac. 
 He left five children, namelx' : Elizabeth, 
 who married A. J. Laws, but is now de- 
 ceased ; Emma, Charles A.. Alonzo H. and 
 H. Burton, all residents of Pontiac. 
 
 The early education of Charles A. Mc- 
 Gregor, acquired in the public schools, was 
 supplemented by a course at Dickinson Col- 
 lege, Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He left col- 
 lege to return home and enlisted in the spring 
 of 1863, joining Company C, Thirty-ninth 
 Illinois \'olunteer Infantry, which was then 
 stationed in front of Richmond. From that 
 time on he was in all the engagements in 
 which his regiment took part, including the 
 battles around Richmond and Petersburg, 
 and after Lee's surrender did provost duty, 
 remaining in the service until December, 
 1865, when he was honorably discharged. 
 
 Returning to Pontiac Mr. ^IcGregor was 
 interested in a grocery store one year. He 
 had been practically brought up in the drug 
 business, as from the age of thirteen years 
 he had worked in a drug store when not in 
 school until he entered the army, and so 
 had acquired a very good knowledge of that
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 '31 
 
 business. As a clerk lie had charge (if the 
 grocery store of Mr. Turner, but also re- 
 ceived a percentage of the profits, and so 
 was really interested in the business. In 
 1807, in partnership with [. A. Caldwell, 
 under the firm name of Caldwell & McGreg- 
 or, he embarked in the drug business on his 
 own account on Mill street, where business 
 was carried on for a number of years, but 
 in 1S72 they built a fine block on the corner 
 of Mill and Madison streets, which at that 
 time was the best business house in the city, 
 it being 20x1 10 feet in dimensions and two 
 stories in height. Here Mr. McGregor is 
 still engaged in business, occupying all of 
 the main floor, part of the second and most 
 of the liasement. The firm built up the 
 largest drug trade in this section of the state 
 and about twenty years added to their stock 
 a fine line of jewelry and silverware, which 
 ])roved quite i)rofitable. They also dealt in 
 books, stationery, wall paper, etc. They 
 erected the building adjoining their store and 
 also owned another where the Sterry block 
 now stands. In February. 1895, Mr. Mc- 
 Gregor purchased his partner's interest and 
 has since been alone in business. He has 
 erected a number of business blocks, owning 
 five buildings on the main business streets 
 of the city besides the one he occupies, and 
 also has considerable residence property and, 
 with his children, owns several farms. He 
 was one of the early stockholders of the 
 Livingston County National Bank and an 
 original stockholder of the Pontiac Nationni 
 Bank, as well as a director of both. In 
 business affairs he is energetic, prompt and 
 notably reliable and carries forward to suc- 
 cessful completion whatever he undertakes. 
 On the 23d of November, 1871, Mr. 
 McGregor married Miss Eunice J. Johnson, 
 a native of Tohnson's Cross Roads, Green- 
 
 brier county, \'irginia, and a daughter of 
 Morris Johnson, who came to Pontiac about 
 i860 and was here engaged in general mer- 
 chandising and the stock business for man}' 
 years. By this union were born five chil- 
 dren, of whom three still live: Bernice E. ; 
 VJWs J., now a student in the law depart- 
 ment of the L'nivcrsity nf Michigan; and 
 Lewis C. at home. I'hc wife and mother, 
 who was a consistent member of the Meth- 
 odist Episco])aI church and a most estimable 
 woman, died in January, 1888. Mr. Mc- 
 Gregor hi lids nienil)crship in the Presby- 
 terian church and for many years has been a 
 trustee of the same. He also took an active 
 ])art in Sunday school work for some years. 
 He has never had time nor inclination for 
 ])olitical affairs, though he has served as 
 alderman from his ward and ever stands 
 ready to discharge any duty devolving upon 
 him. 
 
 HON. LAB.\X M. STROUD. 
 
 Hon. Laban M. Stroud, who is now 
 living a retired life on his farm near Pon- 
 tiac, has been a resident of the state since 
 1830. He is a native of Tennessee, born 
 near the city of Nashville, Di.xon county, 
 September 27, 1822, and is the son of 
 'I'homas and Sally (Thompson) Stroud, the 
 former a native of North Carolina, born in 
 1791, and the latter a native of Virginia 
 and daughter of Neal Thompson, who lo- 
 cated in Tennessee in 1789, and there be- 
 came a large and wealthy planter and where 
 the remainder of his life was passed. Thomas 
 Stroud was a son of Jesse and grandson of 
 Peter Stroud, both of whom were natives 
 of North Carolina, but of English and Irish 
 ancestry. Jesse Stroud moved from North
 
 ^y- 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Carolina to Tennessee and located in Obion 
 county, where he owned a large plantation 
 and a number of slaves. 
 
 Thomas Stroud grew to manhood in 
 Tennessee and in 1812 married Sally 
 Thompson, by whom he iiad a family of 
 two sons and seven daughters, two only of 
 the number now living, our subject and his 
 sister, Mrs. Artimissa Higgs, now living 
 with our subject. The other members of 
 the family were Cassa R.. Fanetta, Sinia 
 Sabury, l{!llen. Obedience Lee, Mourning 
 Tilford, Julian and Milton P. 
 
 Thomas Stroud was a soldier in the 
 war of 1812 and served under General Jack- 
 son. He was a planter in Tennessee for, 
 some years after his marriage, but. with the 
 desire to better provide for his family, he 
 came to Illinois in 1830. tirst stopping in 
 Sangamon county, where he spent one sea- 
 son, and then moved to that portion of Taze- 
 well county which was later detached and 
 now forms the county of Logan. On settling 
 in the latter county he took up a claim of one 
 hundred and sixty acres, a part of which was 
 government land, which he improved and on 
 which he continued to live until his death, 
 March 7, 1858. His wife passed away in 
 1857. 
 
 The subject of this sketch was eight 
 years of age when he came with his parents 
 to Illinois. His educational advantages 
 were limited, but his advantages for work 
 were not. The farm was to be improved, 
 crops were to be planted and harvested, and 
 he must do his share of the work. In his 
 youth, however, he learned the carpenter's 
 trade with his uncle. Colonel S. M. Thomp- 
 son, but he continued to make his home with 
 his parents until some years after attaining 
 his majority. 
 
 On the 7th of April, 1847. ^Ir. Stroud 
 
 was united in marriage with Miss Eh'v 
 Adams, who was born in Bedford county, 
 Tennessee, January 9, 1826, and daughter 
 of Captain John G. Adams, a native of one 
 of the Carolinas. but who came to Illinois 
 and located in Tazewell county in 1828, 
 when his daughter was but two years old. 
 He was in command of a cavalry companv 
 in the Black Hawk war and was killed by 
 the Indians. His wife was so shocked by the 
 death of her husljand that she lost her mind 
 and never recovered, though she lived many 
 yeard afterward., dying when seventy-five 
 years old. The family were of Scotch an- 
 cestry and were early settlers of North Caro- 
 lina, from which state they moved to Ten- 
 nessee and later to Illinois. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Stroud bought 
 one hundred and sixty acres of unimproved 
 land, which he improved and on which he 
 continued to live until 1879, in the mean- 
 time adding to its area until it comprised a 
 well improved farm of four hundred and 
 twenty-five acres. Renting his place he 
 moved to Minier, where he bought residence 
 property and wliere he made his home for 
 ten years. He then came to Livingston 
 county and took up his residence on his 
 farm adjoining the city of Pontiac, which he 
 purchased at that time, comprising one hun- 
 dred and sixty-three acres, all of which is 
 under improvement. He had previously, in 
 1885, purchased a farm of four hundred 
 acres lying northeast of 'the city of Pontiac. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Stroud seven children 
 were born. Louisa is the wife of H. H. 
 Darnell, of Tazewell county, Illinois. Mar- 
 tha is the wife of William Neal Mountjoy, 
 of Logan county, Illinois. Thomas Frank 
 resides in Omaha, Nebraska. Mrs. Sarah 
 Jane Livesay is a resident of Livingston 
 countv. Parmelia Annie resides at home.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 •33 
 
 Joliii (I. is marriecl aiul is entjageil in farm- 
 ing in Livingston county. Warren M. is 
 carrying on the home farm, .\fter fifty-twi) 
 \-ears of a happy wedded life Mrs. Stroud 
 passed to licr reward December 5, iSgt), 
 while on a visit to the old neighborhuod in 
 Logan county, where so many years of her 
 life were s])ent. Her remains were laid tn 
 rest in the Xiblack cemetery, there tn wait 
 the resurrection day. She was a faith fvU 
 heliimeet to her husband, to whom she was 
 greatly attached, and was a most loving 
 mother. The familv and all who knew her 
 in tliis life will always hold her in gr;iteful 
 remembrance. 
 
 I'olitically Mr. Stroud isa Jack.s<!n Dem- 
 ocrat and he has been an earnest advocate 
 of the principles of his party throughout 
 life. His first presidential vote was cast for 
 James K. Polk in 1844, and from that time 
 to the present the nominee of his party lias 
 always received his ballot. By his fellow- 
 citizens he has been honored with \arious 
 local ofHces. ser\ing for many years as a 
 member of the coiuuy bnard of supervisors. 
 In 1872 he was elected by his party a mem- 
 ber of the Cieneral.\ssembly,the district com- 
 prising the counties of Tazewell and Logan, 
 and ser\ed two years, during which time he 
 served on several inijjrotant committees and 
 was known as a working member. Believ- 
 ing that iithers shoidd serve, he declined 
 further political honors. Since he was eigh- 
 teen iif age Mr. Stroud has been a member 
 of the Christian church and has e\er taken 
 an interest in the work of the church and in 
 the evangelization of the world. His good 
 wife was also-a member of the same church. 
 At the ])resent time his membership is with 
 the church in Pontiac. 
 
 Like thousands of the well-to-do luen of 
 this countrv, Mr. Stroud began life with but 
 
 little means, but he had health, a gond con- 
 stitution, a stiiut heart and willing hands. 
 lie was not afraid nf work, and with tem- 
 ])er;ile habits and an earnest desire to do 
 right with his fellnw men. he has labored on 
 until to-dav he is the owner of si.x well ini- 
 l)ro\ed farms, comprising about two thou- 
 sand acres, and is well content to live a (|uiet 
 life, enjoying the fruits of his labor in the 
 past, while others shall take up the more 
 active duties. Well knuwn ;m<l universally 
 respected, he can quietlv re\iew the jiast w ith 
 the satisfaction nf cme wlm has nut lived in 
 \ain. while those that know him can feel 
 that the world is better for the life that he 
 has li\'ed. 
 
 WILLIAM T, CR.VWl'ORl). 
 
 William T. Crawford, a prominent horse 
 dealer, who has since 1875 been an active 
 factor in the business life of I'lntiac, Illi- 
 nois, was b(jrn in \'ew \'iirk City October 
 13, i8_^_'. and is a son of .\ndrew and Eliz- 
 abeth (Turner) Crawford, the former a 
 native of Ireland, the latter of .Xew N'ork, 
 where their marriage was celebrated, the 
 father having come to this country when a 
 voung man. Meeting with business reverses 
 in the metroplis, he removed to Harrison 
 count V, ( )hio. where he to(]k up laml and 
 Commenced life anew in very limiteil cir- 
 cumstances. Though the country where he 
 settled was hilly and stonv and covered with 
 a heavy growth of timlier. he steadily ])ros- 
 pered, and by hard work, good management 
 and close econ«)my he became possessed of 
 considerable land, being (piite well off at 
 the time of his death, which occurred in 
 .Xovember, i88(>. The mother died on the 
 old home farm in 1897. Both were faithful
 
 134 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 meml)ers of tlie Methodist Episcdpal church 
 and were higlily esteemed in the cir.nniunity 
 where they made their home. 
 
 The subject of this sketch began his edu- 
 cation in the schools of New Yori< Cit}', 
 but was only eight years old when the family 
 removed to Ohio. The school house nearest 
 his father's home was two miles distance 
 and the ]3ath lay through the wnods. His 
 mother went \vitli him the first day, carry- 
 ing a hatchet, with which she marked the 
 trees that he might find his way lionie again 
 at night. The school proved quite different 
 from the one he had attended in the city, 
 but he managed to acquire a good practical 
 education. On leaving home, in 1 854, at the 
 age of twenty-one years, he went to Scott 
 county, Iowa, and spent one year on a farm 
 some twentv miles west of Davenport. 
 
 ]\Ir. Crawford then returneil home and 
 ■was married, February 14, 1856, to Miss 
 Sarah Johnston, daughter of Andrew John- 
 ston, who was of Scotch-Irish ancestry, and 
 to them have been born six children, namely : 
 Elizabeth, now the wife of Charles Strevelle, 
 of Salt Lake City, Utah ; George A., who is 
 in business with his father and has served 
 as alderman in Pontiac; Ada, wife of Albert 
 Dolde; Elmer, a resident of Montana; Will- 
 iam, who has been connected with the Na- 
 tional Bank of Pontiac for some years; and 
 Maude, at home. 
 
 In the spring of \H^('>. a short time after 
 his marriage, Mr. L'rawford mo\-ed to 
 Bloomington, Illinois, where he followed 
 farming for three years, and then bought a 
 farm in Tazewell county, which he operated 
 six years. His ne.xt home was a farm north- 
 west of Bloomington, nn which was laid out 
 the town of Yuton, and on selling that place 
 he mo\-ed to Bloomington. where he was en- 
 gaged in the horse and cattle business for a 
 
 number of years, beciuning a \-ery extensi\'e 
 shipper of cattle and hogs. He was among* 
 the first from that city to send cattle to the 
 Union stockyards, Chicago, to be sold on 
 ci^mmission, and was the first to ship horses 
 there fur that purpose. He owned- the first 
 car-load of horses e\er put in the old brick 
 barn knuwn as the G:ioper barn, and has 
 handled those animals on quite an extensive 
 scale e\er since. He buys mainly in Iowa 
 and Montana, and sells from three to five 
 hundred western h(.irses ex'ery year, dealing' 
 in draft horses and fine drivers. No one in 
 this section handles as many as the Craw- 
 fords — father and son — and they have met 
 with most excellent success. Although he 
 has traveled so extensively in the interests 
 of his business and been brought in contact 
 with all classes of iieople, Mr. Crawford has 
 ne\-er tasted intoxicating drinks, and has 
 led a most exemplary life, commanding the 
 respect and confidence of all who know him. 
 He has never taken an active part in poli- 
 tics, ]ireferring" to give his undix'ided atten- 
 tion to his business interests. 
 
 JOHN DENEHE. 
 
 It is said that biograjihy yields to no 
 cither su1)ject in ])oint of interest and profit 
 and is is especially interesting to note the 
 ])rogress that has been made along various 
 lines of business by those of foreign birth, 
 who have sought homes in America — the 
 readiness with which they adapt themselves 
 to the different methods and customs of 
 America, recognize the advantages offered 
 and utilize the o])portunities which the new 
 world attords. \\'e find a worth}- repre- 
 sentative of this class in John Denehe, the
 
 THE LiOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 
 
 135 
 
 present foreman of the locomotive and car 
 dei)artnient at tlic rouiul house in Dwiglit. 
 whicli is the end of the Peoria (U\ ision of 
 tlie C'liicagfo & Alton Railroad. 
 
 Mr. Henehe was I>orn in ci>unty Water- 
 ford, Ireland, Decemher 23, 1846, a son of 
 Edward and Margaret Denelie, farming peo- 
 l>le, wliii spent their entire lives in that coun- 
 trv. ( )ur suhect grew to manhood on the 
 lK>me farm with \-ery limited educational ad- 
 vantages. At the age of twenty years he 
 crossed the ocean alone anil landed on .\mer- 
 ican soil, a stranger in a strange land, lie 
 stopped first in Xew \'(irk, and remaineil 
 ahont three vears in that city and \icinity. 
 where he \\:is eniplciycd as a gardener and 
 farm lahorcr. 
 
 .\t h'lathusli, Xew \i<vk, Mr. Denehe was 
 marrie<l. .\ugust J, iS()8, to Miss Briilget 
 Taylor, a nati\e of count}' West Meath, Ire- 
 land, who came to this country ahont the 
 same time as her husband. They have three 
 sons: 'i'homas ]•".., inspector and repairer of 
 cars at Dwight: William, who married 
 limma Smith, of JJwight, and is now a tire- 
 man on the Chicago & Alton Railroatl, and 
 John E., at home. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Denehe moved 
 to \ alparaiso, Indiana, where he worked in 
 a saw-mill one season, and then went to Ee- 
 mont, Illinois, where he was employed on 
 the construction of the canal two years. In 
 1871 he took up his residence in Blooming- 
 ton and entered the shops of the Chicago & 
 Alton Railroad, where he worked as car 
 truck builder until the fall of iS/j. Xeed- 
 iiig a reliable man at Dwight, the company 
 sent Mr. Denehe there in September of that 
 year to take charge of the car department. 
 He held that jHisition until 1885, when he 
 was promoted to foreman, in which capacit}' 
 he has since served the road to their entire 
 
 satisfaction. He has under him four men 
 in the car department and seven in the lo- 
 comotive de[)artnient, besides seven regular 
 train crews. He also has charge of their 
 shop at \\'ashington, Illinois, and for some 
 lime had charge of those at Eacon and 
 Streator. He came U< the new world with 
 the hope of making his fortune and his 
 lireams have been more than realized, and 
 he is to-day a well-to-do man. Besides his 
 ])leasant residence in Dwight, erected by 
 him in 1874, he has a fine farm of six hun- 
 dred and twenty acres in Trego county, Kan- 
 sas. He is intelligent and well informed 
 and that he has pro\-ed an efficient and x'alued 
 cniplciyee is proxed by his long retention 
 with one company, for he has now been with 
 liie Chicago iS; Alton Railroad Com])any for 
 twenty-eight years. His success in life is 
 (hie entire!}' to his own well-directed and 
 energetic efforts, for he came to this coun- 
 try empty-handed and has had to make his 
 own way in the world unaided. He and his 
 family are communicants of the Catholic 
 church, and he is identified w ilh the Republi- 
 can i^art}'. He takes an acti\e interest in 
 public affairs and has efticiently servetl as 
 .school trustee. Eratcrnallv, he is a mem- 
 ber of the Ancient (_)rder of Hiijernians, 
 and was one of the charter members of the 
 lodge in Dwight. He has held all the offices 
 in the lodge, l)eing active in the order as 
 \\ell as in public affairs. 
 
 Hi:RM.\X EOM.M.VTSCH. 
 
 Many of the most enteri)rising and pri/- 
 gressive farmers r)f Livingsttjn cciunty have 
 come from the land beyond the sea. and al- 
 though they had no capital when the}' lo-
 
 136 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cated liere they are now prosperous and suc- 
 cessful. Among the most prominent of tliese 
 is Herman Lommatsch, wlio owns and oc- 
 cupies on excellent farm of three hundred 
 and twenty acres on sections 23 and 24, I'ike 
 township, and also has property elsewhere 
 in the county. 
 
 He was horn in Saxon\-. (ierniany, Oc- 
 tober. 27. 1835. '^''"' ^^'^^ reared on a farm 
 in his native land, at the same time attentl- 
 ing school for eigljt years. In 1854, at the 
 age of nineteen, he came to America with 
 his father. \\'illiam Lommatsch. taking i)as- 
 sage on a sailing vessel at Bremen and ar- 
 riving in Xew ^'ork after a \i)\age of six 
 ^\'eeks. They ])roceeded at once to Cincin- 
 nati, and from there went to Riple\' county. 
 Indiana, where for fi\e ^■ears our subject as- 
 sisted his father in opening up a farm. 
 
 There !Mr. Lommatsch was married, in 
 June, t8^C), to Augusta I'ellwock. also a 
 native of Saxony, who came to the new 
 world when a girl of tweKe \ears and grew 
 to womanhood in Indiana. Ily this union 
 ha\e been born nine children. namely :Kmma. 
 Wife of Jonathan Chicodanse. a farmer of 
 Pike township, Lixingston county: Laura, 
 wife of Fred Altnian, of the same comity; 
 Theodore, who is married and li\es on the 
 farm in Pike township, where Mr. Lom- 
 matsch first settled: Louis, w lio is married 
 and follows farming in the same township: 
 Charles, who is married and enga.ged in 
 business in Chenoa ; Herman 1-., a farmer 
 of Eppards I'tiiiU township; Melan, a 
 farmer, at honie : Lena and Xettie, both at 
 home. 
 
 After his marriage ^Ir. Lommatsch con- 
 tinued to engage in farnnng upon his fa- 
 ther's place in Ripley county. Iniliana, for 
 two years. In 1861 he came to Livingston 
 county, Illinois, and purcha.sed eighty acres 
 
 f)f land in Pike township, but for two years 
 he operated a rented farm in Eppards Point 
 townshi].). and then located upon his own 
 place, which he impros'ed by the erection 
 of a comfortable resilience. That farm was 
 his home for several years, during which 
 time he added to it a tract of one hundred 
 and forty acres adjoining, so that he had 
 two hundred and twenty acres in all. Sub- 
 scc|uently he purchased eighty acres wdiere 
 he now resides, and located thereon in 1878. 
 He has extended the boundaries of his place 
 until the\' now include three hundred and 
 twenty acres, and to its improvement and 
 cidtivation he has devoted his energies with 
 excellent results. He has erected a large, 
 neat residence, a commodious barn, cribs and 
 sheds, has tiled the land, set out shade and 
 fruit trees, and has converted it into one 
 of the most desirable farms in the township, 
 i'.esides his valuable property he has an- 
 other farm of one hundred and si.xty-seven 
 acres in Eppards Point township. His suc- 
 cess is due to his industry, energy and i)er- 
 severance. and c<imes as a fitting reward for 
 honest toil. J'olitically, ]\lr. Lommatsch is 
 a stanch Republican, and religiouslv he and 
 l-.is famil\- are members of the I'^-vangelical 
 cluu'ch. 
 
 JOSIAH X. I'..\RR. 
 
 For forty-five years this gentleman has 
 been identified witli the agricultural interests 
 of Livingston county, and now owns antl 
 operates a well-improved farm of one hun- 
 dred and eighty acres on section 17, F'lsmen 
 township. He was born in Lancaster coun- 
 ty, Pennsylvania, July 6, 1833, and is a son 
 of Jacob and Susan (Rarr) Barr. also na- 
 tives of Pennsvlvania and of German de-
 
 J. N. BARR.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 139 
 
 scent. Our subject's paternal grandtatlier. 
 Jacob Barr. Sr.. was one of the pioneers of 
 I ancaster county, wbere tlie family con- 
 tinued ti> make their home until 1836, when 
 tiie parents of our subject moved to Clark 
 county, Ohio, and tliere tiie father cleared 
 and improved a farm. In that county they 
 spent the remainder of their lives, the mother 
 dyinji' January, 1846. and the fatlier in 1848. 
 At the death of the mother there were seven 
 children living, of whom five yet survive: 
 Jacob, cif Lawrence county. Illinois: Josiah 
 X.. oiu" subject; Cyrus, of Dwight, Illinois; 
 Susan, now Mrs. Kemp, of Iowa, and Laura 
 B., now Mrs. Foy, a widow living in Wash- 
 ington county, Nebraska. The oldest daugh- 
 ter. Elizabeth, died in November, 1846. 
 
 Josiah N. Barr was fifteen years old 
 <it the time of his father's death. He then 
 went to work for various farmers, and con- 
 tinued to be thus employed in that vicinity 
 mitil he was twentj'-one years old, in the 
 meantinie securing a fair common scimol e<l- 
 tication. and then came to Illinois, in 1834. 
 locating first in Kane county, where he 
 worked by the month as a farm hand for one 
 year. At llie cn<i of that time lie purcliased 
 one liundretl and si.xty acres of land on sec- 
 tion 17, Esmen township, Livingston countv, 
 where he now resides, to its improvement 
 and cultivation he has since devoted his en- 
 ergies with tiie e.xception of the time spent 
 in his country's service during the Civil war. 
 He broke about half of this tract before en- 
 tering the army. It is now a well improved 
 place, being tiled, fenced and under a high 
 state of culti\ation. The buildings are neat 
 and .substantial, and tiie whole farm indicates 
 the thrift and enterjjrise of the owner. 
 
 On the 30th of August, 1862. Mr. I'arr 
 enlisted in Company M, I'irst Illinois Ar- 
 tillery, which was organized at Camp Doug- 
 
 las and sent from there to Louisville, spend- 
 ing the time from October until the follow- 
 ing J'cbruary in Kentucky in ])ursuit of 
 Morgan. They ne.xt went down the Ohio 
 and uj) the Cumberland rivers, joining Rose- 
 crans at Fort Donelson, where they were 
 held in reserve for a time, afterward going 
 to Naslnille and Franklin. As a re.serve 
 corps tliey proceeded to Chickamauga, in 
 whicli engagement they took ])art. it being 
 their first important battle. . Later they 
 were in the battle of Missionary Ridge, and 
 were sent with Sherman to relieve the forces 
 at KnoxviJJe. ( )ii the Jd day of May, 1864, 
 they started on the .\tlanta campaign, and for 
 ninety da\s were under fire almost constant- 
 ly. They i)articii)ated in the battle of Kene- 
 saw Mountain and assisted in the capture 
 of Atlanta, after which the artillery was sent 
 back to Chattanooga, where thev were on 
 duty until the following spring, and then 
 ])roceeded to Cleveland, Tennessee, remain- 
 ing there until the clnse i)f the war. .Mr. 
 Harr was honor;ibly discharged at Camp 
 Douglas July J^. 1865. He had lost but 
 little time on ;iccount of sickness, and, al- 
 though disabled for dnt_\- a sJiort time, lie w;is 
 ne\er in the Imspital. 
 
 -Mr. r>arr w:is married, in Livingston 
 county. December 24. 187J, to Miss Tinnie 
 .\nnis, a nati\e of London, Englanil, and a 
 tlanghter of .Mr. Chalmers. .\s her father 
 died when she was (piite small, she was 
 adojjted by a Mrs. .\nnis. with whom she 
 came to America during childhood. They 
 located first in \ ermont. but when she was 
 about nine years of age moved to Nebraska, 
 where she grew to womanhood. She died 
 .September jj. 1895, and was laid to rest 
 in the Esmen cemetery. By this union were 
 born four children, namely: Lutie, who is 
 now keeping house for her father; Lorenzo
 
 140 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 N., a pliarmacist, \\'lio is now engas^ed in tlie 
 drug business in Idaho, and Tlieda M. and 
 Loren C, both at home. 
 
 Islv. Barr cast his first j^residential vote 
 for John C. Fremont, in 1856, and as a Re- 
 ])ubHcan lie has since taken an active and 
 prominent part in local politics. He helped 
 organize his tnwnship and was elected first 
 collector, in which capacity he .served for 
 two years. He was township trustee six 
 years, and at interxals has filled the office of 
 supervisor for twelve years, during which 
 time he served on various important commit- 
 tees. He has also been a delegate to nu- 
 merous county conventions of his party, and 
 whate\er position he has been called upon 
 to fill, it duties he has always faithfull}^ and 
 satisfactorily performed. He was a member 
 of the Wesleyan Methodist church until it 
 was disbanded, and now attends the Method- 
 ist Episcopal church, to which he contributes 
 liberally. He takes quite an active and 
 jirominent ])art in church and Sabbath school 
 work, and is now serving as superintendent 
 of the Sabbath school. He has witnessed 
 the wonderful development and progress 
 made in this region in the last half-century, 
 has seen Pontiac grow from a cross roads 
 town of two stores to be one of the important 
 cities in this section of the state, and in the 
 work of advancement he has e\er borne an 
 active part and is numbered among the most 
 useful and valued citizens of his comnumitv. 
 
 XELSOX COUXTRYMAX. 
 
 Xelson Countryman, deceased, was for 
 several years prominently identified with the 
 business interests of Pontiac, where he lo- 
 cated in 1859, and bore an active part in the 
 
 early develnijment of the city. He was born 
 in St. Johnsxille. Xew York, July ir, 1832, 
 a son I if Jacob Cnuntrx-man. The father, 
 who belonged to an old Xew York family, 
 was a shipbuilder by trade, and also engaged 
 in the i^ractice of law in that state. For a 
 time he made his home in Syracuse and 
 later in Buffalo, and built many of the early 
 lake boats. On coming west he soon located 
 in Ottawa, Illinois, where he purchasetl land 
 and engaged in farming until 1859, which 
 year witnessed his arrival in P'ontiac, \\here, 
 as a well-to-do man he li\ed retired until his 
 death, which occurred ten or fifteen vears 
 later. He erected one of the first brick 
 stores on the square. Religioush", he was a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
 
 X'elson Countryman was educated in the 
 schools of Syracuse and Buffalo, Xew York, 
 and later accompanied his parents rm their 
 removal to Ottawa, Illinois. As previously 
 stated the family came to this county in 
 1859, and our subject bought and openetl up 
 the first stone quarry near Pontiac, it being- 
 three-quarters of a mile northeast of the 
 court house, and for this land he gave two 
 hundred dollars per acre. From his quarry 
 nearly the stone for the foundations of 
 buildings in the city were obtained. He did 
 a large and prosperous business, furnishing 
 employment to many men, and had the name 
 of being one of the best workmen in his line 
 in this seceion of the state. He c<.intracted 
 to put in foundaticins and also shipped rock 
 and sand. 
 
 On the 3(1 of October, 1854, INIr. Coun- 
 tryman married Miss Paskalenia Reynolds, 
 and to them were born two children, namely : 
 Mary E.. wife of D. B. Shiland, of Pontiac, 
 and ?ilinnie, wife of Frank Sinclair, also of 
 Pontiac. Beniamin B. Reynolds, Mrs. 
 CountrvmanV father, was born in Lewiston,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 141 
 
 Minlin county. Pennsylvania. June 10. 1810. 
 an<l there inarrieil rjeamn" Scut'ield. who was 
 horn in Clearfield. Clearfield eountv, Penn- 
 sylvania. August 14, 181J. He was en- 
 gaged in the hanlware husiness in I,e\viston 
 until 1833, when, with his wife and two chil- 
 dren, he removed to Ottawa, Illinois, being 
 one of its first settlers. He had lost a fort- 
 une of nearly fifty thousand dollars by the 
 I'aiiure of the state to jiav for an ac(|ueduct. 
 In La Salle county, he purchased six hun- 
 dred anil forty acres of land six miles from 
 Ottawa, where he made his home until 1877, 
 and then went to Indiana, but his last days 
 were passed in Texas. His brother. Dr. 
 John P. Reynolds, was killed at the Alamo, 
 and his property, consisting of four thou- 
 sand and forty-seven acres of land and two 
 thousand dollars fell to Mrs. Countryman's 
 father and his sister in Indiana. The fa- 
 ther went south to take possession ui the land 
 antl located every acre. The property also 
 included thirteen houses and lots in Wells 
 Point, Texas. He died in that state Febru- 
 ary 2, 1882, leaving eight children, his wife 
 passed away February 16. 1874. P)oth were 
 active members of the Methodist Episcopal 
 church, and were people of prominence in 
 the community where they resided. 
 
 Mrs. Countryman was reared on a farm 
 near Ottawa and was mostly educated by her 
 father, who had been a professor of sciiools 
 for thirty years. He also served as super- 
 visor of his township for over forty years, 
 and was considered the leading man of the 
 community, his fellow citizens always gi\- 
 ing him their political support regardless of 
 party lines. He also took an active interest 
 in state affairs, and was well acquainted with 
 l^incoln and other prominent politici.ans cif 
 his day. 
 
 Mr, and Mrs. Countrvman resided for 
 
 a short time in Wisconsin, and then returned 
 to Ponliac. where she has since made her 
 home at .\'o, 313 I'.ast Lix'ingston street. 
 Here be died b'cbruary 23, 1886, Through 
 bis own well-directed efforts he acijuired a 
 comfortable competence, and also won by an 
 honorable, upright life, an untarnished name, 
 and the record which he left behind is one 
 well worth)' of emulation. Since her hus- 
 band's death Mrs. Comitryni:ui has carried 
 on the business and (|uarry interests and has 
 met with marked success. ba\ing more or- 
 tlers than she can till, although she knew 
 nothing of the business when it came under 
 her management. She gives employment 
 to ten men, and ships stone quite extensively, 
 having the only quarry in this neighborhood. 
 Jt is a \-ery valuable piece of property, co\- 
 ering two acres of the eighteen and a half 
 tract which she owns. She is a member of 
 the liaptist church, and is honored, mU alone 
 for her business ability, but for her straight- 
 forward, womanly course and true nobility 
 of character. Her circle of friends and ac- 
 iiuaintances is e.\tensi\'e. 
 
 WALTER HART, 
 
 Walter Mart, a successful florist now en- 
 gaged in business at a'o, 507 North Ladd 
 street, Pontiac. Illinois, was Ixjrn near Xor- 
 age, England, February 27, 1833, and when 
 eighteen years of age emigrated to Amer- 
 ica with his i)arents, Ceorge and Mary Ann 
 (Locke) Hart, also natives of England, 
 where the father earned a livelihood as 
 a fisherman. The family settled near 
 Aurora, in Kane county, Illinois, where 
 the father engaged in farming until a 
 few vears before his death, when he came
 
 142 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to Pdiitiac, w here he passed awa}- SeiJteniber 
 15. 1884. at the age of seventy-three years. 
 After his death the mother lived with our 
 suhject and at his home she died Decemljer 
 9, 1884, at the age of nearly eighty-four. 
 They had a family of nine children, all Ixiru 
 in England, but only three are now li\ing. 
 namelv: Dennis, a farmer of Sac county. 
 Iowa : George, a machinist of Des Moines. 
 Jowa, and Walter, our suhject. The others 
 all (hed in England, with the exception of 
 ^Irs. Alehalah Huggins. who died in Dwight, 
 Illinois. 
 
 ^\'alter Hart never left the home of his 
 parents until his father's death. He ob- 
 tained the greater part of his literary educa- 
 tion in the evening schools of Norage, Eng- 
 land, and for a brief time after coming to 
 this country attended school in Bristol, Ken- 
 dall county, Illinois, where his father was 
 engaged in farming. In November, 1875, 
 he came to Pontiac with his parents and 
 entered the employ of the Illinois State Re- 
 formatory as gardener, remaining in their 
 employ for two years, after which he leaseil 
 a greenhouse on Maplewood avenue, and en- 
 gaged in business there as a florist for fi\e 
 years. The following eight years he carried 
 on business in the northern part of the cit}-. 
 and then purchased his present place at Xo. 
 507 North Ladd street. Here he constructed 
 :i greenhouse, but his business has increased 
 50 rapidly that it is fast outgrowing his pres- 
 ent (|uarters. A man of artistic tastes and 
 go(vd Imsiness ability, he has met with suc- 
 cess in his chosen calling. He lias been a 
 life-long member of the Methodist church, 
 and his career has ever been such as to com- 
 mend him to the confidence and high regard 
 of all with whom he has come in contact, 
 either in business or social life. In his po- 
 litical views he is a Republican. 
 
 In i860, in Kendall county, Illinois, was 
 celebrated the marriage of ]\Ir. Hart and 
 ;\Iiss Sarah Springer, of that county, the 
 sixth child of James and Katherine Springer. 
 She was bi un in Indiana and came to this 
 state with her parents when quite young. 
 Tn Mr. and ISIrs. Hart were born seven chil- 
 dren, namely: Anna C., who died at the age 
 of one year and eleven months; Sebina, who 
 died in Pontiac at the age of five months; 
 one who died in infancy unnamed; James 
 \\ .. who married Laura McKinsev. of Mc- 
 Dowell, Illinois, and is an electrician in the 
 emplo)' of the Electric Light Company of 
 I'ontiac ; Marv Ann, wife of Pearl Carrier, 
 a farmer of Chenoa, Illinois; .\deline, wife 
 I if Charles Page, a painter and paper hanger 
 of I'ontiac, and George R., who is employed 
 i:; a shoe factor^• in Pontiac. 
 
 JOHN H.KNCOCK. 
 
 John Hancock, whose home is on section 
 25, Pike townshii), Li\ingston county, is one 
 of the most preeminent and influential citi- 
 zens of his commimity. He takes an active 
 and commendable interest in public affairs, 
 and gives his support to all enterprises which 
 he believes will prove of public lienefit or 
 will in any wa_\' ad\ance the interests of his 
 adoptetl county. 
 
 Mr. Hancock was born in Franklin coun- 
 ty, Pennsylvania, January 13, 1839, a son of 
 John and Catherine (Mooney ) Hancock, na- 
 li\es of iMaryland and Pemisylvania, re- 
 s]iectively. Throughout the greater por- 
 tion of his life the father made his home in 
 Franklin county, Pennsylvania, his time and 
 attention being devoted to agricultural pur- 
 suits, and he died there in 1875. His wife,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 143 
 
 who still survives him. a liale and hearty nld 
 lady of seventy-five years, continues to re- 
 side on the old homestead with lier xnunt^- 
 est son, Solomon Hancock. 
 
 During^ his boyhood our suhject attended 
 the common schools and remained in his na- 
 tive county until eighteen years of age. when 
 he came to Illinois, locating in McLean 
 county. March i, 1857. There he worked 
 by the month tor two years, and then came 
 to Livingston county, operating rented land 
 in I'ike township until the imtbreak of the 
 Civil war. On the 14th of June, 18O1, he 
 enlisted for three years, in Company .\. 
 First Illinois Cavalry, which was assigned 
 to the western army, and his tirst engagement 
 was at Lexington, Missouri. He partici- 
 pated in numerous skirmishes in that state 
 and .\rkansas, and was in active service two 
 years, being mustered out and honorably 
 discharged at Benton Barracks, St. Louis, 
 in 1863. After his return from the war Mr. 
 Hancock continued to engage in farming 
 upon rented for several years, after which 
 he speculated in farm property quite exten- 
 sively, buying and selling several places. In 
 1878 lie purchased his. present farm of one 
 hundred and sixty acres, on section 25, Pike 
 township, and has since successfully engaged 
 in its operation. He has erected thereon 
 good and substantial buildings, and has made 
 many other improvements, which add greatlv 
 to the value and attractive appearance of the 
 place, making it one of the best farms of its 
 size in the township. By untiring industry 
 and sound judgment he has won a merited 
 success in his undertakings, and is in all re- 
 spects worthy the high regard in which he 
 is held by his fellow citizens. 
 
 On the 2d of June, 1863, in Livingston 
 county, while home on a furlough, Mr. Han- 
 cock was united in marriage with Miss 
 
 Rachel Campbell, who was born antl reared 
 in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, and 
 is a daughter of Archibald Campbell, a 
 teacher by profession, and a life-long resi- 
 tlent of the Keystone state. To Mr. and 
 Mrs. Hancock were \x)t\\ five children, 
 namely: Ida, wife of Harry Reed, of Pon- 
 tiac; Lettie, Charles, Josephine and Bessie, 
 all at home. Josephine was educated at the 
 Pontiac high school and is now one of the 
 successful teachers of the county, and Bessie 
 is now a student at the Chenoa high school. 
 Formerl}- Mr. Hancock was identified 
 with the Republican party and cast his first 
 presidential ballot for Abraham Lincoln, in 
 i860, but is now a stanch Democrat, and 
 takes quite an active and prominent part in 
 local politics and public affairs, having served 
 his fellow citizens as township collector, com- 
 missioner of highways and a member of the 
 school board. He has filled the last position 
 for some \cars and is now president of the 
 board. As a citizen he ever stands ready 
 to discharge any duty devolving upon him, 
 and has taken an active interest in promot- 
 ing the welfare of his township and county, 
 his patriotism being manifest in days of peace 
 as well as when he followed the old flag 
 to victory on southern battle fields. He is 
 an honored member of the Grand Army Post 
 of Chenoa, and both he and his wife hold 
 membership in the Presbyterian church of 
 that place, with which he has been connected 
 since I8^8. 
 
 JOHN STEWART. 
 
 John Stewart is a well known rejjre- 
 sentative of the business interests of Dwight, 
 Illinois, where he is extensively engaged in 
 contracting and building, and also deals in
 
 '44 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lunilier and cual. Of excellent business abil- 
 ity and bniad resources, he has become one 
 of the well-to-do citizens of tiie place. He 
 has won success by his well-directed, ener- 
 getic efforts, and the prosperit)- that has 
 come to him is certainly well deserved. 
 
 Mr. Stewart was born in the north of 
 Ireland June ii. 1846. and is a son of John 
 and Mary A. (McKelvey) Stewart, also 
 natives of Ireland, but of Scotch parentage. 
 There the father learned the weaver's trade, 
 A\hich he followed until his emigration to 
 America in 1850, bringing with him his 
 family, consisting of wife and eight children. 
 He located in Warrensburg. Warren coun- 
 ty. New York, and accepted a position as 
 finisher in a tannery, but he was not long 
 permitted to enjoy his new home, for he 
 died five years after his arrival, at the age 
 of sixty-three. He had ten children : Jane, 
 \\'illiam, Mary A., Robert, Thomas, Eliza- 
 beth. Ellen, Margaret, John and Rosa, all 
 still living, but none residing in this county 
 with the exception of our subject. He has 
 one brother and three sisters in Aurora, 
 Kane county; one sister in Kendall county, 
 Illinois; a brother in Missouri, and the 
 others are in New York state. 
 
 Our subject was only four years old when 
 brought by his parents to this country, and 
 he received his education in the common 
 schools and seminary of Warrensburg, New 
 York. After leaving school he worked in 
 lumber mills for four years, and on the 1 5th 
 of March, 1865, came to Aurora, Illinois, 
 working one year on a farm in Sugar Grcne 
 township, Kane county. He then entered 
 the car shops of the Chicago, Burlington & 
 Ouincy Railroad, where he followed the 
 trade of a carbuilder four years, but on the 
 advice of his physician he again turned his 
 attention to agricultural pursuits. Going to 
 
 Grundy county, Illinois, he rented a farm for 
 a vear and a half, and then came to Livings- 
 tun county, pm-chasing a farm of eighty acres 
 (if im])rii\-ed land in Ne\:i la tciwnship, to 
 the culti\ation nf which he at once turned 
 his attention. About six years later he 
 bought another eighty-acre tract, making in 
 all a fine farm of one hundred and sixty 
 acres on section 12, Nevada township, which 
 he thoroughly tiled and placed under a high 
 state of cultivation. He gave the greater 
 [jart of his time and attention to the raising 
 of st(_ick, feeding from two to three car- 
 loads of cattle per year and one of hogs. In 
 this way he more than used all of the grain 
 raised upon his own land. After fourteen 
 years devoted to agricultural pursuits, Mr, 
 Stewart moved to Dwight in the spring of 
 1890 and commenced working at the carpen- 
 ter's trade. Since the fall of 1891 he has en- 
 gaged in contracting and building on his 
 own account and has erected many of the 
 fine residences in the place. In 1900 he 
 ])urchased the coal business of F. B. Chester, 
 known as the Dwight Coal Company, and 
 now carries it on in connection with his 
 other Ijusiness. 
 
 On the 14th of September, 1870, Mr. 
 Stewart was united in marriage with Miss 
 Mary E. \^eale, a native of Grundy county, 
 Illinois, and a daughter of Charles and Mary 
 \'eale, who were born in England and came 
 to this country in early life, settling in Grun- 
 dy county, where Imth died when Mrs. Stew- 
 art was a child of four years. She then 
 made her home with her uncle, John Vick- 
 erv. Thev were among the first settlers 
 i)f Grundy count}- and while improving his 
 l;:nd ^Ir. A'eale lived in a wagon. To Mr. 
 and ^Irs. Stewart were born three children, 
 namely: Ernest P., who died on his thir- 
 teenth birthday and the anniversary of his
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 145 
 
 parents" marriage: Xellie O.. who was grad- 
 uated from the Dwight h'gli school in tlie 
 spring of 1899 and is at home; and Roliert 
 Earl, aged ten vears. is still in school. 
 
 Mr. Stewart is an earnest memher of 
 the .Methodist Episcopal church, has always 
 Ined up ti) his jirofessions and taken an ac- 
 tive part in churcli work. He lias heen an 
 official nieniher for the past si.xteen years 
 and is now trustee of the church and super- 
 intendent of the Sunday school. Eraternally 
 he is a memher of Dwight Lodge. Xo. 513, 
 I. (). (). E., of which he is deputy, and po- 
 litically is a Prohihitionist and served as 
 a delegate to the county conventions of his 
 ])arty and as chairman of the township Pro- 
 hihition committee. When there is no Pro- 
 hihitinn ticket in the field he sup])iirls the 
 Repuhlican party. Eor the last four years 
 he has heen an active and efficient mem- 
 ber of the village hoard of trustees and has 
 been chairman of the water works committee 
 for the past three years, during which time 
 the system has been im])roved and a stand- 
 pipe placed. He has the entire confidence 
 and respect of his fellow citizens and is held 
 in high regard I)y all with whom he comes in 
 contact, either in business nr scKial life. 
 
 SAML"I:L (iOODWILL .MORKISOX. 
 
 .Samuel (inodwill Morrison, a promi- 
 nent farmer of Avoca townshi]) and a worth}' 
 representative of one of its old and honored 
 families, was Ijorn in the house he now oc- 
 cupies October 20, 1857, a sou of Samuel 
 and Mary A. (Rockwood) Morri.son, both 
 of whom were born near Buffalo, Xew 
 ^'i>rk. and with their respective parents came 
 tci Illinois when children, being married in 
 this state. Our subject's paternal grand- 
 
 father only lived a few years after settling 
 in Livingston county, and his wife did not 
 long survive him. They were pioneers of 
 the county and made their home near where 
 our subject now resides. The Rockwood 
 lamily were also among the early settlers, 
 who. by persistent labors, subdued the wild 
 l)rairie lauds and made homes for their de- 
 scendants. The grandparents both died in 
 Livingston county. The father was one of 
 the most successful farmers of .\\oca town- 
 ship, where at one time he owned five hun- 
 dred acres of land, but later sold all but two 
 hundred and forty-four .-icrgs. which he re- 
 tained as a home ])lace. This was .school 
 land when he ])urchased it and abounded 
 with pniirie grass and rattle snakes, but he 
 impro\e<l and ci>n\erle(l the same into one 
 of the most fruitful and valuable farms of 
 his locality. In politics he was a Republican 
 and held minor offices in the township, which 
 were thrust upon him, as he never sought 
 political honors. His first wife died in 1866. 
 Si.x children were born to them, four sons 
 and two daughters, namely: Betsy, who 
 died in infancy: Susan .\., wife of C. D. 
 Hering. of Indiana; John O., an employee 
 of H. O. Babcock. of Pontiac ; George D., 
 a successful farmer of .\voca township; 
 James ).. a resident of Spear, Xebraska; 
 and Samuel G., our subject. For his second 
 wife the father married Maria Phillips, of 
 Livingston county, by whom he had seven 
 children: Xellie. wife of Joel W. Banker, 
 of Pontiac ; Joseph C, of I'age county. Iowa ; 
 Lenora. wife of Charles Friant, of .Avoca 
 township; \\'illiam R., of Owego township; 
 Harry L., of Lodemia; iMary, who lives 
 with our subject; and Charles, a farmer of 
 .\voca township, .\fter a successful and 
 hou(jrable career the father died at home 
 May I, 1884, at the age of sixtv-five vears.
 
 146 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 During liis Imyliorid Samuel (i. Morri- 
 son pursued liis studies in tlie district scliool 
 near his home and when his efhication was 
 completed he worked witii his father on the 
 farm until the latter's death, when he was 
 appointed administrator of the estate. He 
 purchased the interests of the other heirs 
 in the home farm and now has one hundred 
 and eighty acres, on which he is successfully 
 engaged in general farming and raising stock 
 for market. 
 
 On the 1 8th of February, 1892, Mr. 
 Morrison was united in marriage with Miss 
 Rose Gregg, who was born in Osceola coun- 
 ty, Iowa, in 1868, and he brought his bride 
 to the farm which has since been their home. 
 Two children bless their union : I\-an G. 
 and Samuel \\'.. both bright boys. ]Mrs. 
 Morrison is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal church and her husband is a supporter 
 of the same. He holds membership in the 
 Modern Woodmen Camp, Xo. 6, of Fair- 
 bury, and n politics always affiliates with 
 the Republican party, though he would never 
 accept public office other than school di- 
 restor, a position he acceptably filled for 
 twelve years. He has led a quiet, uneventful 
 life in the same neighborh(X)d where there 
 are many who were his boyhood friends, and 
 those who know him best hold him in the 
 highest regard. His genial, pleasant man- 
 ner makes him quite popular, and he is rec- 
 ognized as a valued citizen of the com- 
 munitv. 
 
 DAVID E. CAPES. 
 
 David E. Capes, a successful ice dealer 
 of Pontiac, is a native of Illinois, his birth 
 occurring June 16, 1862,, six miles south 
 of Washington, in Tazewell county. His 
 
 parents, Willoughby and Elizabeth ( Milner) 
 Capes, were born, reared and married in 
 Lincolnshire, England, where they continued 
 to make their home until after the birth of 
 three of their children. Then the family, in 
 1852, came to the new world and settled in 
 Washington, Illinois, where for two years the 
 father supported his wife and children by 
 workingasadaylaborer at fifty cents per da\-. 
 The second year he was able to purchase a 
 horse, and the following year bought another, 
 after which he engaged in farming on his 
 own account, operating rented land for 
 eleven years. At the end of that period he 
 purchased one hundred and si.xty acres of 
 raw prairie land on section 9, Pike township, 
 Livingston county, for which he paid se\en 
 dollars and a quarter per acre. He located 
 thereon in the spring of 1864, aiid at once 
 turned his attention to the improvement and 
 cultivation of his place, soon converting it 
 into a most desirable farm. In connection 
 with general farming he was also engaged 
 in stock raising, and each fall shipped a car- 
 lod of hogs to market. He built a fine house 
 upon his place and made many other im- 
 provements, costing as much as two sections 
 of land would have cost when he purchased 
 his property. As an agriculturist he met 
 with marked success and was able to assist 
 his sons in getting a start in life. He was 
 one of the early members of the Bethel 
 Methodist Episcopal church at Greymont, 
 which he helped to establish, and was one 
 of the main standbys in the erection of the 
 house of worship. From the first he served 
 as steward of the church, and was recognized 
 as one of the most honest, honored and 
 highly respected men of his community. 
 He was never an aspirant for ofifice, but was 
 always a consistent and earnest Republican, 
 and never failed in his duties of citizenship. 
 
 i
 
 WILLOUGHBY CAPES.
 
 D. E. CAPES.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 151 
 
 He was lidrn at Mar's Chapel, near (irimsey, 
 Lincolnshire, England, October 18, 1819. 
 and died October 4, 1899. He was united 
 in marriage with Elizal)eth Milner. in 1844, 
 and they became tiie parents of thirteen chil- 
 dren. She was born in Yorkshire, England, 
 March 13. 1827. in her seventeenth year 
 she was converted and joined the Methodist 
 Episcopal church, and iicr lite was freely 
 given to the labors of the church, and her in- 
 fluence upon Bethel community will be felt 
 in the years tt) come. After a long illness 
 she fell asleep September 4, 1898. 
 
 Our subject was the eighth in order of 
 birth in the family born to this worthy 
 ci luple. 1 )uring his boyhood he attended the 
 l>ublic schools of Pike township, and aided 
 his father in the work of the home farm vmtil 
 he attained his majority. On the 28th of 
 December, 1882, he was united in marriage 
 with Miss Alice A. i'iper, of Rock Creek, 
 Illinois, and they now have two children; 
 Delbert R., born January 8, 1884, and Cora 
 Belle, born February i, 1886. Both are now 
 attending the high school of Pontiac. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Capes remained 
 at home until the fall of 1883, when he pur- 
 chased eighty acres of raw prairie land only 
 three miles from Pontiac — a rare thing for 
 that late date. He had no money and it was 
 only with the help of his father as security 
 for the first payment that he was able to pur- 
 chase it. That fall he built a house and com- 
 menced breaking the land. He tiled it the 
 next spring and continued the work of im- 
 provement and cultivation until he had one 
 of the best farms of its size in the locality, 
 raising as nuich on it, b)' working it thor- 
 oughly, as many did who owned twice the 
 number of acres. At the age of sixteen he 
 commenced rutming a threshing machine, 
 which he operated thirteen years, and this 
 
 helped him out considerably in paying for 
 his lands which was soon free from debt; 
 He was one of the youngest threshers in the 
 county and made a success of the business.' 
 He continued to carry on his farm until 
 1893. when he sold it for ninety-tive dollars 
 per acre, having paid forty dollars for it. 
 Mr. Capes then moved to Pontiac, where 
 he was engaged in different lines of trade 
 for a time, including the implement and milk 
 business. In Jul\-, 1895, he turned his 
 attention to the ice business. At that 
 time there were two tirms of the kind 
 in the city ; one of these he got his 
 brother to bu)', while he purchased the 
 other and then, buying his brother's business, 
 he had entire control of the ice trade. His 
 ice houses were located on the Vermilion 
 ri\er near the Wabash Railroad, where he 
 owns two acres of land, (jn which are six 
 houses, with a storage capacity of eight 
 thousand tons. He puts up a full supply 
 and gives employment to many men in cut- 
 ting the ice. During the summer he runs 
 iour teams and employs nine men in its dis- 
 tribution to his customers, and for the past 
 three years has controlled the ice trade of 
 tlie cit)- and done a good business. He has 
 a fine property on the south side of the river, 
 opposite the Chautauciua grounds and ex- 
 tending to the river. Here he has a nice 
 home where he can enjoy the results of his 
 labor. He belongs to that class of men 
 whom the world terms self-made, for, com- 
 mencing life empty handed, he has con- 
 quered the obstacles in the path to success, 
 and has not only secured a comfortable com- 
 petence, but by his efforts has materially 
 advanced the interests of the community 
 with which he is associated. Politically, he 
 is identified with the Republican party and 
 fraternally affiliated with the Knights of
 
 152 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Pythias. Modern Woodmen of America, 
 Royal Neighbors and Toilers Fraternity. He 
 attends and aids in the support of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church, of which his 
 wife is a member. 
 
 SAMUEL J. PRISK. 
 
 Samuel J. P'risk. a well-known nursery 
 man and highly respected citizen of Pontiac. 
 who has made his home in this county for 
 the past eighteen years, was born in Corn- 
 wall, England, December 20, 1836, a son of 
 Samuel and Grace (Williams) Prisk, na- 
 tives of the same place, where the father 
 engaged in mining until his emigration to 
 America in 1840. The grandfather, Joseph 
 Prisk, had previously crossed the Atlantic 
 and located on a branch of the East Fork 
 river, four miles southeast of Galena, erect- 
 ing one of the pioneer homes of that lo- 
 cality. With his two sons, William and 
 Paul, he built the first ?\Iethodist Episcopal 
 church east of Galena, a log structure, also 
 laid out a cemetery and a mound there, which 
 is still known as Joseph Prisk mound. He 
 owned and operated a farm of forty acres 
 and also engaged in mining. He was a 
 very active member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal church and his home became the stop- 
 ping place for all the ministers. The fa- 
 ther of our .subject bought a farm of eighty 
 acres between Scales Mound and Council 
 Hill, Jo Daviess county, and built 'the first 
 stone house in that part of the country, it 
 being also the first good house. During the 
 construction of the Illinois Central Rail- 
 road through that locality be boarded the 
 hands, and throughout his active business 
 life engaged in farming and mining. He 
 
 finally sold his farm and bought a two-hun- 
 dred-and-twenty-acre farm on Rush creek in 
 Woodbine township, living on it unt'l his 
 death, which occurred in July, 1861. His 
 wife died June 14. 189J. at the ripe old age 
 of seventy-seven years. Both were earnest 
 and consistent members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church. 
 
 At a very early age our subject began 
 work, and all the education he acquired was 
 obtained at Sunday school, which he at- 
 tended about three hours every Sunday, but 
 Ijy reading and observation in later vears 
 he has become a man of broad practical 
 knowledge. He worked with bis father in 
 the lead mines from the age of eight years 
 until he attained his majority, when he 
 started out in life for liimself. Going to La 
 Salle, he found em])loyment in the coal 
 mines, where he worked fifteen years. 
 
 There Mr. Prisk was married, December 
 31, 1859, to Miss Mary Ann Case, who was 
 born in Preble county, Ohio, in 1843. Her 
 father, Conrad Case, was a native of Penn- 
 sylvania and went to Preble county, Ohio, 
 when a young man, locating eighteen miles 
 from Dayton, where he married Sarah Ann 
 Combs. He engaged in farming there until 
 1854, when he came to Illinois and settled at 
 Jericho, near Aurora, where he followed 
 the same occupation two or three years. His 
 next home was four miles from De Witt, 
 Iowa, where he located when the country 
 was all wild and unimproved, but he bought 
 land, built a house and engaged in the cul- 
 tivation of his farm for three years, at the 
 end of which time he sold out and returned 
 to Illinois, this time locating in La Salle, 
 but his last days were spent in Ohio, where 
 he died in 1863. His wife had died in Jeri- 
 cho, Illinois. Both were members of the 
 Lutheran church. He was a cooper by trade. 
 
 i
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 "53 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Prisk have eight children 
 hving, while Mary Jane, wife of Albert Ber- 
 nell, of Streator, died at the age of twenty- 
 four year.s. Allen, a re.-;ident of Poiitiac, 
 married Maggie Lampkin and has four chil- 
 dren, Robert. Marguerite. Allen and Levi. 
 William J- is now living in Springfield. 
 Samuel, a resident of Pontiac, married Ida 
 Block, and has four children. May, Lloyd 
 Lincoln, Lillian and Dewey, Lillie is at 
 home. Mrs. Estella McGill has one child. 
 Pearl, and lives with her parents. Wesley 
 married Emma Laycock, now decea.sed, and 
 is serving as corpciral of Company H, Thir- 
 ty-ninth United States Volunteer Infantry, 
 in the Philippines. Clara and May are both 
 at home. 
 
 After President Lincoln's first call for 
 seventy-five thousand men at the opening 
 of the Civil war, Mr. Prisk was the eight- 
 eenth to enroll his name among the volir 
 teers at La Salle, and was a member of the 
 first company to leave that place, it being 
 Comj)any K, Eleventh Illinois Volunteer In- 
 fantry. They went to Springfield, Illinois. 
 April 20, 1 86 1, and from there proceedeil 
 to Villa Ridge, near Cairo, where they were 
 detailed to guard a bridge. They were next 
 ordered to Bridge Point, Missouri, and when 
 their term of enlistment expired were honor- 
 ably discharged. 
 
 Returning to La Salle. Mr. Prisk en- 
 gaged in mining and farming there for some 
 time and then devoted four years to the latter 
 inirsuit at Rush creek, Jo Daviess count}', 
 after which he returned to La Salle, where 
 he again followed farming. Sul)sequently 
 he engaged in mining at Streator until com- 
 ing to Livingston county in 1882, when he 
 U-cated northwest of Pontiac and engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits until 1889, in the 
 meantime serving as roadmaster two years. 
 
 He then came to Pontiac and has since de- 
 voted his attention to the nursery business, 
 becoming one of the best known and most 
 successful nursery men of this section. In 
 1895 he built a fine home at No. 117 Park 
 street, facing River \'iew Park. He was 
 the first to build on that street and the peo- 
 ple laughed at him for going so far out, but 
 it is now well built up and is one of the most 
 pleasant parts of the city, being advan- 
 tageously located near the park and river. 
 Mr. Prisk has charge of the park, in which 
 the Chautauqua Association is held. He 
 is a member of T. Lyle Dickey Post, No. 
 105, G. A. R., of which he is now officer 
 of the guard, and both he and his wife are 
 active and faithful members of the Methodist 
 Lpisco])al church, in which he has served as 
 steward, class leader and suijcrintendent of 
 the Sundav school. 
 
 JOHN C. TAYLOR. 
 
 John C. Taylor, who resides on section 
 36, Pontiac township, Livingston county, is 
 the owner of a fine farm of two hundred 
 and thirty-six acres, within three and a half 
 miles of the city of Pontiac. He is a na- 
 tive of Saratoga county. New York, born 
 near the great Saratoga springs October 5. 
 1843, and is a son of George C. Taylor, a 
 native of the West Indies, born on the island 
 of St. Bartholomew January 30, 181 7. The 
 grandfather, George W. Taylor, was a pro- 
 fessional sailor and followed the sea for 
 many years, but later settled in Saratoga 
 county. New York, where his last days were 
 spent. George C. Taylor was reared in Sar- 
 atoga county and there married Miss Uretta 
 Bentley, a native of Saratoga county and
 
 '54 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 a daughter of Otis Bentley. one of the pin- 
 neers of Saratoga count}-, who lived to the 
 remarkable old age of ninety-nine years and 
 six months, and whose faculties were pre- 
 served to tlie last. He continued to vote 
 at every election until within one month of 
 his death, voting at an election in March and 
 dying the next April. He never wore glasses 
 and could see to read until near the last. 
 
 In Saratoga county George C. Taylor 
 engaged in agricultural pursuits until his 
 removal to Livingston county in 1858. Here 
 he purchased an undivided half of a half- 
 section of land which had !:>een entered by his 
 brother. John J. Taylor, and which had been 
 partially improxed. In partnership with his 
 brother he commenced the further improve- 
 ment of the place and in due time had one of 
 the best farms in the township. He later 
 jxirchased the interest of his brother in the 
 half-section and continued to li\'e on that 
 homestead until his death. Decemlier 9. 1893, 
 ' at the age of seventy-six years. He was 
 twice married, liis^ first \\ife d}-ing ]\Iarch 
 8, 1877. The second wife is )-et living. By 
 the first wife three sons were born. Otis B. 
 was a soldier in the Civil war and died in 
 1862, at Buck's Lodge, Tennessee, while in 
 the service. John C, of this review, was the 
 second in order of birth. George W. died 
 at the ag-e of twenty-one years. He died 
 in Saratoga county and at his death was 
 just the same age as his brother when he 
 died. 
 
 John C. Taylor came to Livingston coun- 
 ty in his fifteenth )-ear. His educatit)n, 
 which was begun in the common schools of 
 his native state, was completed in the com- 
 mon schools of Livingston county. While 
 he gave the greater portion of his time in 
 assisting his father with the farm work, 
 he spent a short time in teaching in the dis- 
 
 trict schools, in which line he met with a 
 reasonable degree of success. He was first 
 married, April 22, 1866, to Miss Cecelia 
 Zeph, a native of W'urtemberg, Germany, 
 but who came to this country in early life 
 and was reared to womanhood in Livingston 
 county. By this union were three children, 
 as follows : Hattie, now the wife of Grant 
 McCormack, of Livingston county; Zephyr, 
 wife of Lincoln Tuttle, of Graymont, Illi- 
 nois : and \Villiam, who married Daisy 
 I'earre, and now resides in Arkansas, where 
 he is engaged in farming. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Taylor continued 
 tc operate the home farm, on which he made 
 many improvements, including the erection 
 of a large barn. For some years he engaged 
 quite extensively in the stock business, in 
 which he met with good success. His wife 
 died in 1872 and October i, 1873, '''^ mar- 
 ried Miss Eliza McManis, a native of Ohio 
 and daughter of Joseph McManis, who was 
 born in Pennsylvania, but who removed to 
 Ohio and later to Illinois. He was married 
 three times and was the father of nineteen 
 children, sixteen of whom grew to mature 
 years. Mrs. Taylor was mostly reared in 
 Livingston county. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Taylor ha\-e five children : 
 George, who is assisting in the cultivation 
 of the home farm ; John, a teacher in St. 
 Alban Academy, Knoxville, Illinois; Ar- 
 thur G., a student at Zion College, Chicago; 
 -Mice, a student in the Pontiac high school; 
 and Harry, in the home school. 
 
 Politically Mr. Taylor was originally a 
 Republican and supported the men and meas- 
 ures of that party for many years. Of late 
 he has given his support to the Prohibition 
 jiarty. He never sought or desired public 
 office and declined several that were offered 
 him ; however, he served for a time as a
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 155 
 
 nieniljer of tlie scIkidI Ixianl and as president 
 of his school district. Reared a Baptist, lie 
 lias since undergone a cliange of faith and is 
 now a member of the Christian CatlioHc 
 ciiurch in Zion, of whicli body liis wife is 
 also a member. As a citizen lie has always 
 enjoyed the resided and confidence of those 
 l.v whom he is surrounded and by those who 
 know him best. 
 
 WILLI. \.M II. P,K.\CK. 
 
 William II. I'race. who is now success- 
 fully engaged in the milk business in Ponti- 
 ac, Illinois, was born in Baldwinsville. Xew 
 York. February 21, 1845. a son of Moses 
 and Frances (Sibbelds) Brace, also natives 
 of the Empire state. His paternal grand- 
 father. Benjamin Brace, was born in Eng- 
 land and on his emigration to this countr\- 
 settled in Baldwins\ille. \\ hen our subject 
 was eight years old his father remove<l to 
 Chicago and shortly afterward located in 
 Will county. Illinois, where he engaged in 
 farming throughout the remainder of his 
 life. 
 
 William II. Brace was reared on the 
 home fartii in Manhattan townshiij, \\ ill 
 county, and was educated in the local schools. 
 In .\ugust, i86j. he enlisted in Company 
 E, One Hundredth Illinois X'olunteer Infan- 
 try, being one of the youngest to serve for 
 three years as a regular soldier. His regi- 
 ment, which was assigned to the Army of 
 the Cumberland, went first to Louisville and 
 spent some time in Kentucky following 
 Bragg's army. Mr. Brace's first battle was 
 that of Perryville, followed by the engage- 
 ments at Stone River, Nashville and Chick- 
 amauga. He i)articipatecl in the siege of 
 .\tlanta and went with Sherman on the 
 
 march to the sea. He was mustered out at 
 Chicago in .\ugu.st, 1865. At Chickamauga 
 he received two fiesh wounds, but was never 
 seriously injured. 
 
 While home on a furlough, in 1864; Mr. 
 Brace married Miss Adeline Mosscnv, of 
 Manhattan, Illinois, who came here fnmi 
 Xew ^'ork. .\fter the war our subject en- 
 gaged in farming in Will county on his own 
 account for two years, and then went to 
 Chicago, where he had charge of the team- 
 ing business of .\. II. Andrews & Company 
 for eight years. On leaving there he came 
 to Chatsworth, Livingston county, where he 
 followed farrming one year, and engaged in 
 the same pursuit in Eppards Point township, 
 successfully operating a farm of one hundred 
 and si.xty accres for eight years. On sell- 
 ing out, he mo\ed to Pontiac and bought 
 thirteen lots on West Washington street, 
 where he has a nice home surrounded by a 
 beautiful lawn. He also has a house and lot 
 elsewhere. For four years, under Dr. 
 Scouller, he held the position of night of^ 
 ficer at the reform school, having charge of 
 a dormitory, but on account of ill health he 
 was obliged to resign, and after a six-months' 
 rest he became night police in I'oniiac, serv- 
 ing as such for ten years with credit to him- 
 self and satisfaction of all concerned, being 
 one of the best-known and most highly-re- 
 spected ofificials the city has e\er had. lie 
 resigned that position in 1898 and embarked 
 in the dairy business, keeping cows and sell- 
 ing his own milk, but on account of his wife's 
 health he sold his dairy, though he still re- 
 tains his milk route, which is the largest in 
 the city. He is a good business man, being 
 energetic and nrogressive, and has met with 
 success in this undertaking. 
 
 Mr. Brace lost his first wife May 30^ 
 1894. and on the 7th of October, i8g6, he
 
 156 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 married Miss Lizzie Krell, of Pontiac, a 
 daughter of John Krell, of Havana, Illinois. 
 In his political views he is a stanch Repub- 
 lican, and while living in the county served 
 as deputy under three different sheriffs. 
 Fraternallv he is a member of T. Lyle 
 Dickey Post, G. A. R. A pleasant, genial 
 gentleman, he makes friends and is held in 
 high regard by all who know him. 
 
 PETER BAUMAN. 
 
 Peter Bauman, one of the representative 
 German-American citizens of Livingston 
 county and a prosperous farmer, residing on 
 section 26, Pike township, two miles from 
 Chenoa, was born in Luxemburg, Germany, 
 April 30, 1834, and there grew to manhood. 
 He had good educational advantages, at- 
 tending school eight years, becoming familiar 
 with the German language, but his knowl- 
 edge of English has been acquired through 
 his own unaided efforts since coming to the 
 new world. In 1854 he was one of the pas- 
 sengers on a sailing vessel, which left the 
 harbor of Havre, France, and arrived in 
 New York after twenty-eight days spent upon 
 tlie water, which was considered a quick 
 trip at that time. He proceeded at once to 
 Chicago, joining his brother, Michael Bau- 
 man, who had located in Illinois in 1849. 
 
 Our subject found emploment on a farm 
 in ^\'oodford county, working by the month 
 several years there and in Marshall county. 
 His first purchase of land was a partially im- 
 proved farm of one hundred acres in the lat- 
 ter county, on which was standing a small 
 house, and there he made his home for sev- 
 eral years. In 1888 he bought the farm of 
 one hundred and si.xtv acres on section 26, 
 
 Pike township, Livingston county, where he 
 now resides, and to its further improvement 
 and development he has since devoted his 
 time and attention, success attending his well- 
 directed efforts. 
 
 While a resident of Woodford county, 
 Mr. Bauman was married, in January, 1861, 
 to Miss Helen Balbach, who was born and 
 reared in Bavaria, Germany, and is a daugh- 
 ter of August and Anna Elizabeth (Keeler) 
 Balbach. The mother died in that country, 
 and in 1854, the father, with his three daugh- 
 ters and one son, came to America, joining 
 his older son, Jacob Balback, who had been 
 a resident of W'oodford county, Illinois, since 
 1852, and who is now a merchant of Chenoa. 
 The other son, Paul Balbach, is a farmer of 
 Pike township, Livingston county. The fa- 
 ther died in Woodford county, in 1856. Mr 
 and Mrs. Bauman have a family of eight 
 children, namely: ]\Iar\-. wife of Chris 
 Pfeffinger, of Waldo township, Livingston 
 county; Lizzie, at home; Effie, widow of 
 Alaxander Black, and a resident of Wood- 
 ford county ; Peter, who is married and lives 
 in Pekin, Illinois; Lena, Anna and Clara, all 
 at home. The last named was educated at 
 Chenoa and the normal college at Valpar- 
 aiso, Indiana, and is now one of the success- 
 ful teachers of Livingston county. 
 
 Politically Mr.- Bauman is a stanch Dem- 
 ocrat, and cast his first presidential ballot 
 for Stephen A. Douglas, in i860. He has 
 never cared for public office, but has pre- 
 ferred to devote his undivided time and at- 
 tention to his business interests. His life 
 has been one of industry and due success has 
 not been denied him. His honorable, upright 
 course commends him to the confidence and 
 respect of all, and he is well worthy of rep- 
 resentation in the history of his atlopted 
 countv. 
 
 J
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 "57 
 
 W ILLIA.M I. St. JOHX. 
 
 \\'illiam I. St. Juliii. an lionored veteran 
 of the Civil war. \\ Iki is ncnv living a retired 
 life in Pontiac, was horn in \\ arren connty, 
 Indiana, July 20, 1844, a son of Samuel and 
 Margaret (Coldren) St. John, both of whom 
 were horn in Ohio, the latter near Zanesville, 
 but were married in Indiana, where the fa- 
 ther located when a young man, and where 
 he engaged in farming until coming to Liv- 
 ingston county, Illinois, about 1853. He 
 settled near Ocoya, in Eppards Point town- 
 ship, where he purchased one hundred and 
 si.xty acres of unimproved land. That lo- 
 cality was then all wild, there being but four 
 houses scattered through the timber, and his 
 nearest neighbor was some ilistance away. 
 He devoted his time and attention to the im- 
 ])rovement and cultivation of that farm until 
 1866, when he rented it and moved to 
 Chenoa, where he worked at wagonmaking 
 until called to his final rest. He was one 
 of the early members of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal church in this county, and was a Re- 
 j)ul)lican in jjolitics. 
 
 IJefore k'a\ing Indiana, \\'illiam I. St. 
 John attended school a term or two. but there 
 was no school hou.se in his district when the 
 family came to Illinois, and he was well 
 grown before a school which he could at- 
 tend was built. His educational advantages 
 were therefore limited, but he has become 
 a well informed ni.ui by reading and ob- 
 ser\ation in later years. He remained on 
 the home farm until after the Ci\il war broke 
 out, when he enlisted, August 6, i86j, in 
 Company (i. One Hundred and Twenty- 
 ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. The regi- 
 ment spent much time in Louisville, hut par- 
 ticipated in the engagements at Frankfort, 
 Crab Orchard and Bowling Green, and did 
 
 garrison duty at Mitchellville, Tunnel Hill 
 and Gallatin, Tennessee. From there they 
 went to Nash\-ille and participated in the bat- 
 ties of Chattanooga and Missionary Ridge, 
 being on the march most of the time during 
 that campaign. They were also with Sher- 
 man on his celebrated march to the sea, and 
 at Peach Tree Creek, in front of .\tlanta, 
 Mr. St. John was wounded He was sent to 
 the hospital at Chattanooga, was later trans- 
 ferred to Xashville, and from there was sent 
 home. At the end of three months he was 
 able to rejoin his regiment in time to take 
 part in the Carolina campaign. He was in 
 the battle of Goldsl)oro, and was at Raleigh 
 when lobnston surrendered. He then 
 marched to Washington. D. C, and partici- 
 pated in the grand review, after which he was 
 mustered out at that place and discharged at 
 Chicago, after almost three years of faithful 
 service on .southern battle fields. 
 
 Returning to his home, i\Ir. St. John 
 engaged in farm work one year, and then 
 went to Chenoa, where he worked at the 
 carpenter's trade four years. On the fjth of 
 September. 1866, he was united in marriage 
 with Miss Amelia Stone, a daughter of Will- 
 iam Stone, a farmer of Ohio. By this union 
 were born two children : William Seth, who 
 now operates his father's farm, married 
 Minnie Talbot and has four children : Mabel, 
 Roy, Bert and an infant. Burton G. is a 
 resident of I'ontiac. 
 
 On leaving Chcn(}a Mr. St. John pur- 
 chased a farm of forty acres in Ejjpards 
 Point township, which he sold three years 
 later and boughtfi fifty acres of land in .\mity 
 township, but this he disposed of a year later 
 and bought an eighty-acre tract in the same 
 township, where he successfully engaged 
 in farming for twelve years. At the end of 
 tha ttime he traded it for a farm of two hun-
 
 TSi 
 
 THE • BIOGRAPHICAlL RECORD. 
 
 dred and thirty-fi\e acres in Amity town- 
 ship, which lie has greatly improved and 
 still owns. In 1880. he- moved to Pontiac 
 and bought property at No. 2 1 1 South Ver- 
 milion street, where he has a large and nicely 
 kept place. Here he worked at the carpen- 
 ter's trade for a time, but is now living re- 
 tired, enjoying a well-earned rest, tree from 
 the cares arid responsibilities of business life. 
 Religiously both he and his wife are members 
 of the Methodist Episcopal church, and he 
 'also belongs to T. Lyle Dickey Post, G. A. 
 R., of which he is junior vice commander. 
 He has always been a stanch supporter of the 
 Republican party and its principles, and he 
 has ever been a loyal citizen, co-operating 
 in all that is calculated to promote the inter- 
 ests of his state or nation, his patriotism 
 being manifest in times of peace as well as 
 in war. 
 
 BEXNET HL'MISTOX. 
 
 Bennet Humistcjn. deceased, was one of 
 the leading business men of Pontiac, Illi- 
 nois, who in his successful career showed 
 that he had the ability to plan wisely and 
 execute with energy, a combination which, 
 when possessed by men in any walk of life, 
 never fails to effect notable results. 
 
 Mr. Humiston was born in I'lyniouth 
 Hollow, Connecticut, September 6, 1830. a 
 son of Bennet and Emily ( Warner) Humis- 
 ton, representatives of old and honored fam- 
 ilies of that state. On attaining to man's 
 estate the father started out in life for him- 
 self as a peddlet, traveli'ig tiirough the 
 south for many years, but after his marriage 
 he settled on a farm in Plymouth and de- 
 \()ted the remainder of his life to agricult- 
 ural ]jursuits. 
 
 Our subject grew to manhootl on the 
 home farm and was provided with better 
 educational- privileges than most farmer 
 boysi attending school at Warren, Litchfield 
 county, Connecticut, for two years. He then 
 followed farming in his native state until 
 the fall of 1852, when he came west with 
 Apollos Camp, and together they took up 
 a section of land in Esmen township, Liv- 
 ingston county, Illinois. May 22. 1856. he 
 married his partner's daughter. Miss Harriet 
 Camp, and they made their home on his half- 
 section of land until 1876. In the mean- 
 time he erected good and substantial build- 
 ings thereon and placed the land under a 
 high state of cultivation. He introduced 
 some of the first fine horses into the countv 
 and at the time of his death, which occurred 
 Xo\-eml)er 15. 1883. '^^ '''^'' ""^ hundred 
 heatl. He and Mr. Cam]) were always in 
 business together and owned in the neigh- 
 borhood of two thousand acres of \'aluahle 
 land. The}- expended larse anmunts in til- 
 ing and con\erting their land into highl_\- 
 productive tracts. They were among the 
 original stockholders of the Pontiac Xa- 
 tional Bank, of Pontiac, of which Mr, Camp 
 was also a director. In his political views 
 Mr. Hinniston was a Democrat. He was a 
 member of the Masonic fraternit}- anil a 
 Uian of high standing in the community. 
 Of keen perceptit)n. of unbounded enterprise, 
 his success in life was due to his own well-di- 
 rected efforts, and he deserves jjrominent 
 mention among the leading and representa- 
 ti\e business men of the coimt\'. 
 
 Since her husband's death Mrs. Humis- 
 ton has successfully carried on the vast es- 
 tate, and has displayed most excellent busi- 
 ness and executive ability in its management. 
 She was one of the heavy original stock- 
 holders of the Pontiac State Bank, and from
 
 BENNET HUMISTON.
 
 THE BIOGiiAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 i6i 
 
 its i_)rganization has been a director. She 
 t.wns a good deal of property in Pt)ntiac. 
 also in Odell. Illinois, and Eldorado. Mis- 
 souri, wliere she has a business block. She 
 has been a liberal donator to the public li- 
 brarv of Pontiac and other charitable insti- 
 tiitions. and never witliholds her liberal sun- 
 port from any enterprise which she Ijeheves 
 will i)rove of benefit to the community. In 
 1876 Mr. Humiston built a lieautiful resi- 
 <lence on North Main street. Pontiac. which 
 is still owned and occupied by his widow. 
 I: occupies a whcjle block on the hill and is 
 one of the most attractive places in the city. 
 Over this home Mrs. Humiston presides 
 with fjiacious dignity and its hospitable 
 <loors are ever open for tlie reception of lier 
 manv friends. 
 
 JOHN T. ARMSTROXC;. 
 
 The subject of this personal narrative is 
 one of the most successful and prosperous 
 farmers of Eppards Point township.hishome 
 being on section 16, five miles .south of Pon- 
 tiac. He has made his special field of in- 
 dustry an eminent success, and is highly re- 
 spected and esteemed by those who know 
 him. 
 
 Mr. Armstrong was born in Madiscjn. 
 Ohio. April 28. 1839. and there grew to man- 
 hood, receiving a common-school education. 
 In April. 1864. during the dark days of the 
 Civil war, he enlisted in the one-hundred-day 
 service, as a private in Company C, One 
 Hundred and Forty-fourth Ohio National 
 Guards. The regiment went to Virginia and 
 took jiart in the battle of New Creek and 
 several skirmishes, but only one man died 
 in the service, his death occurring in a hos- 
 pital. On the expiration of his term of en- 
 
 listment. Mr. Arnistrong was honorably dis- 
 charged at Camp Dennison, in August. 1864, 
 and returned to his Ohio liome. 
 
 Jn. the spring of 1865 he came to Liv- 
 ingston county, Illinois, and located upon lus 
 present farm in Ei)pards Point township, 
 purchasing four hundred acres, about half 
 of which had been broken and a small house 
 erected thereon. He has since purchased 
 more land, and to the further improvement 
 and cultivation of his place he has devoted 
 his energies with most gratifying results, so 
 that he now has one of the best farms in the 
 township. In connection with general farm- 
 ing he is engaged in feeding and dealing in 
 slock, and in this branch of his business he 
 has also prospered. 
 
 Returning to his old home in Madison 
 county. Ohio, in March. 1869. Mr. Arm- 
 trong married Lydia Cousins, who was 
 born in Pickaway, that state, but was reared 
 in the same neighborhood as her husband 
 and educated in the same .school. They 
 became the parents of six children, but only 
 three are now living ;.\rchic ]•... a pharmacist 
 of Dwight: Lida W. and (irant C, both at 
 iinine. Bernard C. and jolm Ixith died in 
 childhood, and Sarah L.. wife of O. I. Ellis, 
 died in Ancona. Illinois, at the age of twenty- 
 two years, leaving two children. (). 1. and 
 Sadie Ellis. 
 
 Mr. .Xrmstrong cast his first presidential 
 vote for .\hraham Lincoln, in i860, and has 
 since been an ardent Republican. Although 
 he has never sought i)olitical preferment, he 
 was elected and served three years as high- 
 way commissioner and was a member of the 
 school hoard f(jr a number of years, during 
 which time he did all in his power to secure 
 competent teachers and advance the educa- 
 tional interests of his community. Relig- 
 iouslv. both he and his wife are active mem-
 
 1 62 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 bers of tlie Centre Methodist Episcopal 
 churcli and they give their support to every 
 worthy enterprise which they lieheve calcu- 
 lated to advance the moral, social or material 
 welfare of the township and county in which 
 thev live. 
 
 JARVIS C. SUMXER. 
 
 Jarvis C. Sumner, one of the l)est known 
 citizens of Pontiac, was born in Elkhart, In- 
 diana, November 7, 1843. '^ *'"! '^f John M. 
 and Ann (Strong) Sumner. The father 
 was born in New York, March 3, 181 2, and 
 was a son of Harvey and Sally (Sherwin) 
 Sumner, who were born, reared and married 
 in \''ermont. The latter was a daughter of 
 Ahamaz Sherwin, a drum major from \'er- 
 niont in the Revolutionary war. At an early 
 day Harvey Sumner and wife moved to 
 Westport township, Essex C(junty, New 
 York, and in 181 8 went to Ohio, .sailing out 
 of BufYalo on the first steajner that ever navi- 
 gated the great lakes. They located four 
 miles east of Cleveland, where Mr. Sumner 
 followed farming for some time, but spent 
 his last days in Elkhart, Indiana. His wife 
 died in Cleveland about 1825. 
 
 John M. Sumner, father of our subject, 
 accompanied his parents on their removal to 
 Oiiio, and later went with his father to Elk- 
 hart, Indiana, in the fall of 1834, when that 
 place contained but few inhabitants. On his 
 arrival there he had but six and one-fourth 
 cents, but he soon found employment and 
 the next summer was able to purchase forty 
 acres of land. ^ There he married Ann Strong, 
 a daughter of Walter Strong, who went to 
 Indiana from Ohio, but was born in Con- 
 necticut. He gave his daughter forty acres 
 of land, and upon that place Mr. and Mrs. 
 
 Sumner lived until 1850, when they moved 
 to Wisconsin, but a year later returned to 
 Indiana, He followed farming throughout 
 the greater part of his active business life, 
 but is now living retired with our subject. 
 The wife and mother, who was a member 
 of the Universalist church, died November 
 24, 1886. 
 
 Our subject acquired his education in the 
 common and high schools of Elkhart, and 
 assisted his father in the operation of the 
 home farm until twenty-one years of age. 
 He manifested his patriotism by enlisting in 
 the Civil war, but was discharged on account 
 of illness and sent home before leavinv the 
 state. He was a member of the Chandler 
 Horse Guards of Coldwater. 
 
 In 1864 Mr. Sumner moved to Eureka, 
 Illinois, where he engaged in farming on his 
 own account. Prior to his removal, he was 
 married, in Cass county, Michigan, to Miss 
 Sarah ■Martin, who was born in Elkhart 
 county, Indiana, February 6, 1846, a daugh- 
 ter of A\'illiam and Mary .A. (^Clinger) 
 Martin, nati\es of Ohio, whose home was 
 five miles east of Middlebury, in La Grange 
 county, Indiana. The mother died when 
 Mrs. Sumner was only two years old, and the 
 father departed this life at Benton Harbor, 
 ^Michigan, September 27, 1872. ]\Ir. and 
 Airs. Sumner have three children, namely : 
 Charles M., May Belle and William Roy. 
 The last named was a member of the state 
 militia, but was not accepted into the United 
 States service during our recent war with 
 Spain. 
 
 \\'hile at Eureka, Mr. Sumner served as 
 constable and deputy sheriff under Frank 
 Roman and Garman Gish for eight years. 
 He attended to all the sherifif's business in 
 his part of the county and served all the pa- 
 pers in the Workman murder case. He also
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 163 
 
 carried on the largest and most imjxsrtant 
 livery business in the town. He finally sold 
 out and moved to Livingston county, in 
 tiie spring of 1881. For two years he was 
 engaged in farming in Pontiac township, 
 and then mo\ed to the city of Pontiac that 
 lie might provide his children with better 
 educational advantages, but was mostly en- 
 gaged in farming and teaming until ap- 
 jK)inted deputy by Sheriff Reed. He was re- 
 appointed by SheritY Talbot and most cred- 
 itably and satisfactorily filled that jMsition 
 for seven years. He did a good deal of work 
 in connection witii the bank robbery case 
 of Cornell and the Rightsel murder case of 
 Fairbury, besides a large amount of civil 
 business and collecting. In November, 
 1896, he was elected constable, and is still 
 filling that office in a most capable manner. 
 He also has considerable property in his 
 Jiands to rent, and does a good life insurance 
 business. He owns a lovely home situated 
 on a large lot at the corner i>f Plum and , 
 Cleary streets, surrounded 1)y Iteautiful trees 
 and shrubs and is one of the l)est kept 
 places of the city. Since attaining his ma- 
 jority Mr. Sumner has affiliated with the 
 Republican party, and both he and his wife 
 are members of the Presbvterian church. 
 
 WTLLI.VM H. KFiTCH.X.M. 
 
 One of the lousiest, most energetic and 
 most enterprising men of Dwight, Illinois, 
 ii the subject of this sketch, w ho is success- 
 fully engaged in the real estate and loan busi- 
 ness, as well as the practice of law. He was 
 born in that place, February 9, 1861, and 
 there the greater part of iiis life has been 
 
 spent — an important facti>r in business and 
 ])ublic affairs. 
 
 William H. Ketchani. Sr., father of our 
 subject, was born in Fishkill. Dutchess coun- 
 ty. New ^'ork, November 28, 1821. He re- 
 ceived a good English education and re- 
 mained at home until 1852, when he set sail 
 for California, leaving New York, February 
 4, and arriving in San Francisco Auril i. 
 He was shi])wrecked ofY the coast of Mexico 
 and delayed five weeks. He was success- 
 fully engaged in mining about three years 
 and a half near Marys ville, and then returned 
 to his native state by way of the Isthmus of 
 P'anama. In Dutchess county, he was mar- 
 ried, November 30, 1840, to Miss Mary E. 
 Losee, who was born there May 2^, 1822,. 
 and was a daughter of John Losee, whose 
 ancestry can be traced back to \\'ilbur Weber, 
 King of Holland and a son of the Prince of 
 Orange. His daughter, Anna Kanjanse 
 \\ eber, married Everetus Bogardus, the first 
 ])reacher who came to New York Cit\'. Mrs. 
 Ketcham was the se\'enth generation from 
 this king, wlio left an immense fortune, now 
 amounting to ajjout five million dollars, and, 
 which is in litigation at present. In the fall 
 of 1855, shortly after his return to New 
 York from California, Mr. Ketcham mi- 
 grated to Dwight, Illinois, which place then 
 contained only eight families. Here he at 
 first worked at anything he could find to do, 
 and for a time engaged in farming and op- 
 erated a corn sheller a number of years. He 
 was a public-spirited man and did much to 
 advance the interests of his adopted town, 
 taking ([uite an active part in public affairs, 
 and serving as justice of the peace fourteen 
 }ears. school director a number of years, 
 and also village trustee some time, and dep- 
 uty sheriff of the county in early days. In 
 1874 he joined Dwight Lodge, No. 513,
 
 •164 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 I. O. O. F., and later became a member of 
 Pacific Encampment, No. 126. He died, 
 April 19, 1882. 
 
 The subject of this sketch is the young- 
 est in a family of seven children, the others 
 being as follows: Berwin L., the eldest, died 
 in infancy. John L., a member of the One 
 Hundred and Twenty-ninth Infantry, was 
 wounded in the battle of Kenesaw Mountain, 
 and died in the hospital at Chattanooga, June 
 25, 1864. Jane E. married J. J. Smith and 
 both are now deceased. Frank is the wife 
 of Hugh Thompson, of Poatiac. Mary H. is 
 the wife of George Hoover, of Chicago. 
 Emma Y. is the widow of W. A. Chamberl- 
 lain and resides with her children, Marietta 
 and Frank William, who live in Chicago. 
 
 William H. Ketcham, Jr., was reared and 
 educated in Dwight, and began his business 
 career as bookkeeper in the grain elevator 
 of Hugh Thompson, of that place, remain- 
 ng with him one year. He then became in- 
 terested in the stock business, which he car- 
 ried on alone for one year, buying cattle in 
 Livingston and Grundy counties. .\t the 
 end of that time he formed a partnership 
 with John Thompson in the same business, 
 shipping stock to the Chicago market. This 
 connection lasted two years, and Mr. Ketch- 
 am ne.xt purchased the real estate business 
 of Alexander McKay, which he conducted 
 from December, 1886, until April, 1887, 
 when he sold out to Hetzel & Romberger. 
 
 After disposing of his real estate busi- 
 ness, Mr. Ketcham moved to Marion county, 
 Kansas, where he was interested in the same 
 pursuit until the fall of 1887, when he en- 
 tered the law office of Kellar & Dean, study- 
 ing under their instruction and at the same 
 time doing office work. Before his admis- 
 sion to the bar he drew up the papers for 
 twenty-one forclosures in one week. He 
 
 v.as admitted to practice by examination be- 
 fore Judge Doster, the present chief justice 
 of the state of Kansas, August 20, 1888, 
 and before the supreme court at Topeka, 
 June 2, 1891. He was associated in prac- 
 tice with W. H. Carpenter, of Marion, Kan- 
 sas, from 1889 to July, 1891, when he re- 
 turned to Dwight and resumed business as 
 a real estate dealer, in partnership with Frank 
 1. Smith, under the firm name of Ketcham 
 & Smith. On the 23d of March, 1892, he 
 was admitted to practice in lUinois, and later 
 in the state of Indiana. By mutual agree- 
 ment the partnership between Mr. Ketcham 
 and Mr. Smith was dissolved in October, 
 1895, since which time our subject has been 
 alone in business. He gi\'es the greater part 
 of his attention to real estate, but is also en- 
 gaged in the practice of law in the courts of 
 this state and Indiana. He carried the 
 Clauson case through the supreme court of 
 Illinois. 
 
 On the 19th of .April, 1893, Mr. Ketcham 
 was united in marriage with Miss Nora A. 
 Taylor, a native of Grundy county, Illinois, 
 and one of a family of four daughters, all 
 living. Her father, G. L. Taylor, was one 
 of the first settlers of Grundy county, but 
 is now a resident of Dwight township, Liv- 
 ingston county. Mr. and Mrs. Ketcham 
 have three children, namely : Mary Emma, 
 Gertrude Nora and Nellie Maurine. 
 
 Fraternally, Mr. Ketcham is a member 
 of Dwight Lodge, No. 513, and Pacific En- 
 campment, No. 313. I. O. O. F., and Liv- 
 ingston Lodge, No. 371, F. & A. M. Since 
 reaching his majority he has always affil- 
 iated with the Democratic party and taken 
 an active interest in politics. He is now an 
 advocate of the free coinage of silver, and in 
 1896 took the stump, speaking in Chicago 
 and other parts of the state. \Mule engaged
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 165 
 
 in the i)ractice of law in Kansas lie assisted 
 tiie county attorney and during liis residence 
 in Dwight has taken an active part in puhlic 
 affairs. He was elected mayor in 1896 and 
 efficiently tilled the office one term, during 
 which time the park ordinance was passed 
 and Udtahle improvements made. He was 
 once a candidate hefore the Democratic con- 
 vention, f<ir judge on the Democratic ticket, 
 but was defeated. In 1886 he was elected 
 village treasurer and was filling that office 
 when he moved to Kansas, and in April, 
 1900, was elected village trustee, in which 
 capacity lie is now serving in a most credit- 
 able and satisfactory manner. A man of 
 keen perception, of unbounded enterprise, his 
 success in life is due to his own efforts, and 
 he deserves prominent mention among the 
 leading representative business men of the 
 county. His genial, pleasing manner makes 
 him quite popular in both business and social 
 circles, and as a pul)lic-si)irited, enterpris- 
 ing man he is recognized as a valued citizen 
 of the communitv. 
 
 JOHN R. OUGHTOX. 
 
 To the ])rcscnt mayor of Dwight. Hon. 
 John R. (Jughton. the city owes a deep 
 debt of gratitude, for through many years 
 he has been an important factor in its prog- 
 ress and ad\ancement along social, educa- 
 tional, material and moral lines. His active 
 co-operation has been given to every move- 
 ment for the public good, and his support has 
 been withheld from no movement calculated 
 to advance the general welfare. His aid, 
 too, has been of a practical nature and the 
 substantial growth of the city is the out- 
 come of his well-directed and discriminat- 
 ing effort. 
 
 It is not an easy task to descrilje ade- 
 <|uately a man w ho has lead an eminently act- 
 ive and busy life and who has attained to a 
 position of high relative distinction in the 
 more important and exacting fields of human 
 endeavor. But biography finds its most 
 perfect justification, nevertheless, in the 
 tracing and recording of such a life historv. 
 It is, then, witii a full a])])reciation of all 
 that is demanded, and oi the painstaking 
 scrutiny that must be accorded each state- 
 ment, and yet witli a feeling of significant 
 satisfaction, that the writer essays the task 
 of touchinbg brietly upon the details of such 
 a record as has ben the voice of the char- 
 acter of the hoiKired sulijcct whose life no\v' 
 comes under review. 
 
 John R. Ougluoii was burn in County 
 Tip])erary, Ireland, in 1857. and resided in 
 his iiati\e land until sixteen _\ears of age, 
 when he crossed the Atlantic U) America, lo- 
 cating in Chicago, Illinois. He acquired his 
 preliminary education in the schools of Ire- 
 land and there took up the study of chemis- 
 try: After reaching Chicago he resumed 
 his studies along that line in the Chicago 
 College of Pharmacy and later in the Rush 
 Medical College. Previous to entering col- 
 lege, however, he engaged as a clerk in the 
 drug store of his cousin, Mr. Lee, who was 
 doing business on the west side of the city. 
 After completing his collegiate course he 
 came to Dwight and soon afterward formed 
 an association with Dr. Keeley in the work 
 which has since made, them and the city of 
 their residence famous throughout the land. 
 For many years Mr. Oughton was vice- 
 president and chemist of the Leslie E. 
 Keeley Company, but after the death of Dr. 
 Keeley he was elected president and has since 
 served in that capacity. The history of the 
 institution is too well known to need further
 
 1 66 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 comment liere. Its splendid work is shown 
 by thousands of reformed men to wiiom 
 manhood has been restored and who now oc- 
 cupy Iionored positions in society and in 
 business life. The volume of their business 
 has constantly increased and has assumed gi- 
 gantic proportions. Their extensive insti- 
 tution is fitted up with one of the most com- 
 plete laboratories of the country, and the 
 work is progressing with undiminished 
 strength, its beneficent purpose resulting in 
 good immeasurable. 
 
 Mr. Oughton has two children, sons, 
 James H. and John R. Socially he is a Ma- 
 son and has taken the degrees of the blue 
 l(jdge, chapter commandery, consistory and 
 the Mystic shrine. He belongs to the Epis- 
 copal church, and in his political affiliations 
 is a Republican, ardent and earnest in his ad- 
 ^'ocacy of the principles of the party. He 
 has served as a member of the school board, 
 has held a number other city offices, and in 
 the spring of 1896 was elected mayor of 
 Dwight, to which position he has been re- 
 elected each succeeding spring. In 1898 
 Mr. Oughton, Major Judd and Dr. Leslie E. 
 Keeley erected and gave to the city of 
 Dwight the present standpipe and water- 
 works, built at a cost of twenty thousand 
 dollars and unequalled by any system in the 
 state in a town approaching the size of 
 Dwight. The cement sidewalks of the city 
 have been constructed during the mayoralty 
 of Mr. Oughton and the town now has bet- 
 ter sidewalks in proportion to its size than 
 any other in the state. Many other im- 
 provements have received his co-operation 
 and Dwight owes much to his progressive 
 spirit. 
 
 In 1895 Mr. Oughton erected his pala- 
 tial residence at a cost of about one hundred 
 thousand dollars — one of the finest homes in 
 
 Illinois and the best in this section of the 
 state. He is the owner of a very fine ken- 
 nel, having some very fine dogs, including 
 the famous prize winner, "Heather Lad," 
 valued at six thousand dollars. This fine an- 
 imal has taken prizes at all of the bench 
 shows, and in 1893 and 1894 carried off first 
 prize at everv bench show in the United 
 States. Mr. Oughton also has a deer park 
 upon his place, containing some fifteen or 
 twenty head of fine deer. His saddle horses 
 are noted throughout this section of the state 
 and for a number of years Mr. Oughton 
 was extensively engaged in breeding fine 
 Kentucky stock. He owns over four thou- 
 sand acres of land in Livingston and Grundy 
 counties, and with the exception of eight hun- 
 dred acres, all is in Dwight township and is 
 under a high state of cultivation. While 
 intensely devoted to business and a man of 
 very decided views and strong convictions, 
 he is, by nature, of a very gentle and affec- 
 tionate disposition. His moral standing is 
 high and he lives up to it. His genial com- 
 panionship, his tenacious regard for the sim- 
 l)le truth, his unostentatious generosity and 
 his large-hearted Christian benevolence are 
 among the qualities which have greatly en- 
 deared him to his fellow men. His wealth 
 has made no difference in his friendships and 
 the humblest can obtain from him an 
 audience. 
 
 FRANCIS FREMONT FRAKES 
 
 Francis Fremont Frakes, a well-known 
 carpenter of Pontiac, Illinois, was born in 
 Avoca township, September 12, 1856, a son 
 of Labin and Mary A. (Tracy) Frakes. 
 The mother was born at Sandy Creek, New 
 York, not far from Syracuse, a daughter of
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 167 
 
 A. E. Tracy, and came liere alioiit tlie same 
 time as her sister, Mrs. Maria Owens, a 
 pioneer of Pontiac. wliose sketcli appears on 
 another page of tiiis volume. 
 
 Labin Frakes, father cif our subject, was 
 born in the southern part of this state, near 
 the Missouri line, and as a young man came 
 to Pontiac, where he purchased property. He 
 was a tailor by trade, but here he engaged 
 ii\ the real estate business and also con- 
 ducted a liverv stable and stage and transfer 
 line between Pontiac and Bloomington. He 
 was married here and later moved to Ne- 
 vada City, Missouri, where he owned proper- 
 ty. He also built a large livery stable at that 
 place and ran a stage between Sadlia to Fort 
 Scott. After the railroad was built he re- 
 moved to Sullivan county, Indiana, and 
 while there the Civil wr broke out and he 
 enlisted. He participated in the first and 
 second battles of Bull Run, and was wounded 
 in the latter engagement, being taken to 
 Beverly, West \'irginia, where he died from 
 the effects of his wounds. His wife then 
 returned to Pontiac, where she spent the re- 
 mainder of her life. 
 
 After the death of his lather Francis F. 
 Frakes lived witii his aunt, Mrs. Maria 
 Owens, in Pontiac, for seven years, and at- 
 tended school. The only schot)l house then 
 in the place stood on the banks of the river 
 near the jail. He served a two years' ap- 
 prenticeship to the carpenter's trade with 
 Andrew Pierce, and later was with William 
 Holmes, during which time he helped erect 
 many of the early buildings of Pontiac. .Vs 
 a journeman he worked in most of the build- 
 ings erected at that time, and also those built 
 in later years, including the Sterry block. 
 He is now one of the oldest carpenters erf the 
 city in years of continuous .service, and is 
 an expert and skillful workman. 
 
 On the _'4th of March, 1878. Mr. Frakes 
 was united in marriage with Miss Orilla 
 I'.ngland, a native of Pontiac and a daugh- 
 ter of Rue I'jigland, who came here from 
 Ohio in ])ioneer days. P.y this union were 
 born six children, namely: Orxille Leon 
 and Rud\' Rue, who are both emploved in 
 the shoe factory in Pontiac; Coral, who was 
 graduated from the public schools in 1900; 
 Lorene. Fremont and Emma Susan, who are 
 all attending school. Mrs. Frakes and the 
 children are members of the Episcopal 
 church, while our subject leans toward the 
 Methodist E])iscoi)al church in religious be- 
 lief. The family is tpiite well known and 
 highly respected. Mr. ]->akes purchased 
 over a half-acre of ground ;it 1003 West 
 ^Ladi.son street, and has erected thereon a 
 nice residence which has now been his home 
 for se\en years, though he is one of the 
 oldest property holders of the citv. 
 
 JEAX 1". A. \L\CEXT. 
 
 Jean P. A. X'incent, deceased, for many 
 years one of the honored and highly-re- 
 spected citizens of Pontiac, was born in De- 
 troit, Michigan, January 9, 1827, a son of 
 Xarcis.se and Clotilda (Prevolsel) Vincent, 
 both of French descent. He died the .same 
 year at Detroit when our subject was about 
 eleven years of age, and he was then ap- 
 l)renticed to Charles Buhl, a hat manufac- 
 turer of that city, with whom he remained 
 until attaining his majority. There he re- 
 ceived his education in the public schools. 
 
 At the age of twenty-one, Mr. \'incent 
 was sent by the firm of Buhl Brothers to their 
 Chicago store, where he clerked for one year, 
 and then was employed on a railroad survey
 
 1 68 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tlirougli Bureau 'county.' Illinois. In 1859 
 lie entered' the service of the government 
 to go to the northAve'st with a party to take 
 meteorological observations, receiving his ap- 
 pointment to this position through the influ- 
 ence of General Lewis Cass, of Michigan,, 
 who always took a warm personal interest in 
 our subject and befriended him in many 
 ways. Remaining with this expedition 
 over a year and a half, Mr. Vincent returned 
 to Illinois in the fall of i860, and went to 
 Cairo and also to Vicksburg, where he was 
 in government employ. While at the lat- 
 ter place he was drafted, and served in Com- 
 pany C, Fifty-ninth Illinois Volunteer In- 
 fantrv. until the close of the Civil war, when 
 he returned to Illinois and passed the winter 
 in \\'enona. In the following spring he 
 mo\-ed to Pontiac, where he was engaged in 
 the sale of pumps, etc., for about five years, 
 when, on account of failing health, he re- 
 tired from active business. 
 
 In Lacon, Illinois, August 17, 1861, Mr. 
 Vincent was united in marriage with Miss 
 Emma Stevens, a daughter of Nathaniel W. 
 and Mary (Mix) Stevens. In early life her 
 father was a resident of Lowell, Massa- 
 chusetts, but shortly after his marriage re- 
 moved to Lacon, Illinois, where his death oc- 
 curred. His wife died at Spring Valley, 
 this state, in 1888, at the age of seventy- 
 four years. 
 
 Two children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Vincent. Lewis Cass, the elder, died in 
 Henry, Illinois, at the age of fifteen months. 
 He was named for General Lewis Cass, of 
 Detroit, previously mentioned as a friend of 
 Mr. Vincent. Nathaniel N., born in Stark 
 county, Illinois, April 8, 1864, is now a resi- 
 dent of Spring Valley, where he is engaged 
 in the manufacture of cigars. He mar- 
 ried Lucy O'Keef, by whom he had two chil- 
 
 dren, Pauline and Gwendoline, who, since 
 the death of their mother, have made their 
 home with Mr. X'incent in Pontiac. For his 
 second wife Nathaniel married Agnes Weir. 
 The only child born of this union died in 
 infancy. 
 
 Mr. Vincent died at his home in Pontiac 
 from a stroke of paralysis January 16, 1898, 
 at the age of seventy-one years. He had 
 drawn a pension since the close of the war. 
 He was always a stanch supporter of the 
 Republican party and its principles, and was 
 an honored member of the Grand Army of 
 the Republic and the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows, belonging to the latter fra- 
 ternity in Chicago. An honest, upright man. 
 he was highly respected by all who knew 
 him, and was a faithful and consistent mem- 
 ber of the Presbyterian church. Mrs. Vin- 
 cent, who is a most estimable lady, resides 
 in a pleasant home on North Hazel street, 
 Pontiac. 
 
 JOEL D. FOSDICK. 
 
 Joel D. Fosdick. familiarly known as 
 Squire Fosdick, owns and operates a valu- 
 able farm of four hundred acres on sec- 
 tion 20, Pike township, whose neat and 
 thrifty appearance well indicates his care- 
 ful supervision. Substantial improvements 
 are surrounded by well tilled fields and all 
 the accessories and conveniences of a model 
 farm are there found. 
 
 Mr. Fosdick was born in Allegany coun- 
 ty. New York, October 4, 1832, a son of 
 Aaron C. and Olive (Moon) Fosdick, also 
 natives of that state. The father, who was 
 Ijorn in 1808, was a carpenter by trade and 
 was also engaged in the manufacture of lum- 
 ber for a quarter of a century. In 1844 he
 
 J. D. FOSDICK.
 
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 MRS. J. D. FOSDICK.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 173 
 
 came to TUinciis. niaking- tlie tri]i with a team 
 in twenty-two days, and locating in Mar- 
 shall county, where he bought one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land and opened u[i a 
 farm. He sul)sequently purchased two hun- 
 tlred acres, and was engaged in the manu- 
 facture of lumber in Peoria county for al)Out 
 six years, after which he returned to his 
 farm in Marshall county, but spent his last 
 years with a daughter in Weston, where he 
 died April 5. 1885. 
 
 Our subject was a lad of twebe years 
 when he came with the family to Illinois, 
 and in Marshall county he -^rew to manhood, 
 his education being obtained in the common 
 schools. He remained at home assisting in 
 the operation of the farm until twenty-the 
 years of age, and was then married, in 
 Boyd's Grove church. Bureau covuity. May 
 24, 1857. to Miss Caroline C". (;riswi>ld, a 
 native of that county and a daughter of 
 Henry Griswold, one of its early settlers. 
 Of the five ciiildren born of this imion three 
 are living, namely: Olive, wife of John 
 Scanlan; and Charles and Albert, who are 
 l)oth married and live on the home farm. 
 L'elphi E. died at the age of eighteen years, 
 and Joel C. died at the age of eleven. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Fosdick pur- 
 chased a farm of eighty acres in Saratoga 
 township, Marshall county, but operated one 
 hundred and sixty acres, and on disposing 
 of that place bought eighty acres adjoining 
 his fatiier's place and thirty acres along the 
 creek. This lie broke, fenced and improved, 
 and continued its cultivation until 1875, 
 \\hen he traded it for three himdred and 
 twenty acres of his present farm in Pike 
 township, Li\ingston county, to which he 
 lias since added an eighty-acre tract, making 
 a valuble place of four hundred acres. He 
 also owns eighty acres in Odell township. 
 
 He commenced life for himself in limited 
 circumstances, but being industrious, enter- 
 l)risiug and of good business ability and 
 .sound judgment he has steadily prospered, 
 and is to-day one of the most substantial and 
 prosperous men of his community, as well 
 as one of its highly honored and respected 
 citizens. In connection with farming he 
 iil)crated a threshing machine during season 
 fur fort}' \-ears. and in that iniderlaking was 
 also successful. 
 
 .Since casting his first ]>residcntial ballot 
 for Abraham Lincoln in i860 Mr. Fosdick 
 has been a stanch Republican, but has never 
 sought nor desiretl public office. He has, 
 howe\er, taken an active interest in educa- 
 tional afl'airs and has been an efficient mem- 
 ber of the school board for twenty-five 
 years. Without his knowledge he was 
 elected justice of the peace and filled that 
 office to the satisfaction of all. 
 
 EPHRAIM HOUDER. 
 
 Ephraim Houder, an industrious and 
 skillful farmer who is now practically liv- 
 ing a retired life on section 13, Eppards 
 I'oint township, Livingston county, was born 
 in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, Decem- 
 ber 24, 1822, and is a son of Jacob and Bar- 
 bara (Kurtz) Houder, the former also a na- 
 tive of that county, the latter of Germany. 
 Our subject'o paternal grandfather, David 
 Houder, was of German descent. In 183 1 
 the fatlicr, with his family, moved to Mont- 
 gomery county, Ohio, where he cleared and 
 improved a farm, making it his home until 
 his emigration to Ilinois in 1856, when he lo- 
 cated in Livingston county, buying a farm 
 three miles southeast of Pontiac, upon which
 
 174 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lie spent t!ie remainder of his life. He died 
 in i86j. his wife the year following. In 
 their family were six children, three sons and 
 tnree daughters, of whom Ephrann is the 
 oldest : David is a resident of Pontiac ; Eliz- 
 abeth and Mary both died luimarried ; Henry 
 was killed in the Civil war; Martha is the 
 wife of Joseph Thomas, of Pontiac; and 
 Nancy is the wife of Daniel Shafer, of Mont- 
 gomery county, Ohio. 
 
 Oiu- subject received a fair common- 
 school education in Montgomery county, 
 Ohio, and there grew to manhood. He 
 c.'ime with the family to this state in 1856, 
 and in October, 1861, enlisted in Company 
 C, Thirty-ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, 
 which was assigned to the Army of the Po- 
 tomac and was first under the command of 
 General Butler. They participated in the 
 battles of Hancock, Virginia, Winchester, 
 Chapins farm and Weirbottom Church, 
 where Mr. Houder received a gun shot 
 wound through the ankle and was disabled 
 for a time. His next engagement was at 
 Fort Wagner, followed by the battle of 
 Drury Bluff, and many others. He enteretl 
 the service as a private, but was promoted 
 to corporal; and as such was honorably dis- 
 charged December 6, 1865. After his re- 
 turn home he helped carry on the farm for a 
 few years. 
 
 In Joliet, Illinois, May 15, 1867, Mr. 
 Houder was united in marriage with Miss 
 Hannah F. Harder, who was born near Port 
 Byron, Wayne county. New York, where 
 she was reared and educated, and when a 
 young lady came to Ilinois. Her father, 
 John I. Harder, was a native of Hudson, 
 New York, and from that place to Wayne 
 county, where he espent the remainder of his 
 life." Mr. and Mrs. Houder began their do- 
 mestic life upon his father's farm near Pon- 
 
 tiac, w here they remained several years, and 
 then moved to a farm in Eppards Point 
 township, which was their home three years. 
 The following year was spent in McLean 
 county, and at the end of that time our sub- 
 ject purchased his present farm of eighty 
 acres on section 13, Eppards Point township, 
 Livingston county, which at that time was 
 only partially improved. He has tiled the 
 place, built a barn and niaile" other substan- 
 tial improvements, but is now living retired, 
 while his only son, Leroy G. Houder, oper- 
 ates the farm. Besides this property he 
 owns another farm of eighty acres in Owego 
 township. 
 
 In 1852 Mr. Houder suppported Frank- 
 lin Pierce for the presidency, but since the 
 organization of the Republican party four 
 years later he has been one of its stalwart 
 supporters and earnest advocates of its prin- 
 ciples. He w'as formerly a member of the 
 school board, but has never sought nor de- 
 sired public office. At one time he and his 
 family were members of the Christian church 
 at Pontiac, but since it broke up they attend 
 the Baptist church. They are well and 
 favorably known throughout the community 
 in which they reside and justly deserve the 
 high regard in which thev are held. 
 
 ORLIX CONVERSE. 
 
 Orlin Converse, a worthy representative 
 of the agricultural interests of Livingston 
 county, owns and occupies a fine farm of two 
 hundred acres of well-improved and valuable 
 land on section 33, Owego township, and 
 also has an eighty-acre tract two miles from 
 his home. A native of Addison county, 
 Vermont, he was born on Lake Champlain,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 175 
 
 under the shadows of tlie Green mountains, 
 Xoember i, 1834, and is a son of Heman 
 Converse, who was born in the same state in 
 1799, his ancestors being among the pioneers 
 of Vermont. There his grandfather, Pain 
 Converse, spent his entire life. He was a 
 soldier of the war of 181 2. The father grew 
 to manhood in his native county, and married 
 Hannah Crampton, who was born in the 
 same house where our subject's birth occur- 
 red, and where both parents died, the fatiier 
 in 1870, at the age of seventy-one years, tlie 
 mother in 1888. 
 
 Oriin Converse passed his boyhood and 
 youth on the home farm, aiding in its opera- 
 tion and attending the common schools of the 
 neighborhood. He came west in 1855, join- 
 ing his sister Emily, wife of Robert Smith, 
 who had located in Livingston county, Illi- 
 nois, a year or two previously. He en- 
 gaged in farming in partnership with his 
 brother-in-law until August. 1862, when he 
 enlisted for three years or during the war in 
 Company G, One Hundred and Twenty- 
 ninth \'olunteer Infantry, which was as- 
 signed to the Army of the Cumberland. He 
 participated in the battles of Resaca and 
 Kenesaw, and all the engagements of the 
 Atlanta campaign, being under fire every 
 day for a month. After the capture of the 
 city the regiment went with Sherman on the 
 march to the sea, and was in the Carolina 
 campaign, taking part in the last battle of the 
 war — that of Bentonville, North Carolina. 
 Marching through Richmond, they proceed- 
 ed to Washington, D. C, and participated in 
 the grand review in that city. Hostilities 
 having ceased, Mr. Converse was honorably 
 discharged and returned to his home in Illi- 
 nois. He had lost no time from illness or 
 other causes, with exception of the twenty 
 days' furlough he was given in 1864. 
 
 Before entering the service Mr. Con- 
 verse was married, in this county, January 
 7. 1862, to Miss Rebecca Rockwood, who 
 was born here. Her father. Daniel Rock- 
 wood, was a native of Massachusetts and one 
 of the pioneers of Livingston county, hav- 
 ing located here in 1834. He helped to lay 
 out tlie county seat and organize Owego 
 township, where he took up a claim and en- 
 tered land, making it his home until his 
 death. Two children were born to Mr. and 
 Mrs. Converse, but Rollin P. enlisted in the 
 Third United States Infantry during the 
 Spanish-.Vmerican war, and was taken ill 
 and died at Atlanta, Georgia, September 2^, 
 1898. His remains were brought back and 
 interred in Patty cemetery. Jessie, the only 
 daughter, died in 1870, at the age of nearly 
 three years. 
 
 Mr. Converse's first purchase of land 
 consisted of forty acres in Owego township 
 where he now resides, and as his financial 
 resources increased he added to it from time 
 to time until he now has over two hundred 
 and eighty acres oi fine farming land, which 
 he has placed under a high state of cultiva- 
 tion and improved with good and substantial 
 buildings. He commenced life here in lim- 
 ited circumstances, and the success that he 
 has achieved is due entirely to his own well- 
 directed and energetic efforts.' After resid- 
 ing here for five years he returned east in 
 1861 to visit his mother, friends and scenes 
 of his youth. By this time he had accu- 
 mulated three hundred and fifty dollars in 
 the old George Smith money of Atlanta, 
 Georgia, but one week after his return home 
 it was worth only fifty cents on the dollar, 
 and at the end of another the entire amount 
 was not worth a dollar. He was thus forced 
 to walk back and was six weeks in reaching 
 this county.
 
 176 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Since casting his first presidential vote 
 for John C. Fremont in 1856, Mr. Converse 
 has been a stanch supporter of the Repubh- 
 can party, and he most acceptably served as 
 supervisor of his township two terms, during 
 which time he was a member of some import- 
 ant committees. He has ever taken an 
 active and commendable interest in educa- 
 tional affairs, has been a member of the 
 school board twenty years, and clerk of the 
 district during that entire time. He has 
 watched with interest the wonderful devel- 
 opment of this region during his residence 
 here and has always borne his part in its up- 
 building and advancement. 
 
 JUDGE NATHANIEL J. PILLSBURY. 
 
 During the last half century the lawyer 
 has been a pre-eminent factor in all affairs of 
 private concern and national importance. He 
 has been depended upon to conserve the best 
 and permanent interests of the whole peo- 
 ple and is a recognized power in all the ave- 
 nues o5 life. He stands as the protector of 
 the rights and liberties of his fellow men, 
 and is the representative of a profession 
 whose followers, if they would gain honor, 
 fame and success, must be men of merit and 
 ability. Such a one is Judge Pillsbury, 
 who served three terms as circuit judge and 
 is to-day a prominent citizen of Pontiac. 
 
 He was born in Shapleigh, York county, 
 Maine, October 21, 1834, a son of Stephen 
 N. and Susan (Averill) Pillsbury, also na- 
 tives of that county and representatives of 
 good old New England families. He is of 
 the ninth generation in direct descent from 
 William Pillsbury, who came to the new 
 world in 1640 and settled in Dorchester, 
 
 Massachusetts, where he lived until 185 1, 
 and then moved to Newburyport, the same 
 state, where he purchased land that is still in 
 possession of his lineal descendants. From 
 him all the Pillsburys in this country are 
 descended. The father of our subject, who 
 was a farmer and machinist by occupation, 
 continued his residence in York county, 
 Maine, until after the birth of all of his six 
 children, and held different local offices 
 there, including those of selectman and 
 school agent. In the fall of 1855 he re- 
 moved to Bureau county, Illinois, where our 
 subject had located the previous spring, and 
 engaged in farming near Princeton for three 
 3-ears. In 1857 both father and son pur- 
 chased raw land in Nebraska township, Liv- 
 ingston county, where the former made a 
 good home, living there until 1884, when he 
 moved to Pontiac and built a residence. This 
 continued to be his home throughout the re- 
 mainder of his life, though he died in Iowa. 
 In politics he was first a Whig and later a 
 Republican, and he held doflerent township 
 offices here. He was born July 12, 1812, 
 and died in November, 1890, while his wife 
 was born in August, 18 12, and also died in 
 Iowa, in the fall of 1885. She was a daugh- 
 ter of Joseph Averill. 
 
 Judge Pillsbury received a good common 
 school education and also attended an acad- 
 emy in his native county for one term. He 
 remained on the home farm with his parents 
 until 1 85 1, after which he engaged in teach- 
 ing school for two years. He accompanied 
 tlie family on their removal to Saco, Maine, 
 where he was in the employ of the York 
 Manufacturing Company for a time and also 
 taught school until 1855. On the ist of Jan- 
 uary, that year, he married Miss Eliza J. 
 Cole, and the same spring, being threatened 
 w ith consumption, he came to Illinois.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 177 
 
 Thougli the journey was made by rail it 
 ])roved a long and tedious one. taking six 
 days to reach Chicago. 
 
 As previously stated the Judge first lo- 
 cated in Bureau county, and in 1857 bought 
 a farm in Nebraska township, this county, 
 which he operated until the spring of 1863. 
 Moving to Pontiac he entered the office of 
 Samuel Fleming, and after studying law for 
 some time was admitted to the bar by e.xami- 
 nation. He then formed a partnership with 
 Mr. Fleming and in a short time had ac- 
 (;uired a lucrative practice and excellent rep- 
 utation as a sound and honest lawyer. In 
 1869 he was elected a meml)er of the consti- 
 tutional convention which met the following 
 year, and in 1873 was elected judge of the 
 thirteenth judicial circuit, then composed of 
 Livineston, Kankakee and Iroquois counties. 
 I'our years later the circuit was enlarged by 
 adding McLean and Ford counties and be- 
 came the eleventh. He was re-elected in 
 1879 and again in 1885. serving in all eight- 
 een years to the entire satisfaction of all con- 
 cerned. He was also one of the first judges 
 of the appellate court, being on that bench 
 fen and a half years from 1877, and an un- 
 deniable proof of his popularity is found in 
 his re-elections He wrote many opinions 
 that are to be found in the first sixteen vol- 
 umes I if the appellate court rejiorts of the 
 state of Illinois 
 
 In 1891 Judge Pillshury was urged to 
 become a candidate for a fourth term by the 
 bi.r and people generally, but on account of 
 injuries recei\ed during his second term he 
 did not feel physically able to undertake the 
 work. On the ist of June. 1882, while re- 
 turning to his home from Chicago the train 
 on which he was a passenger was besieged 
 by a mob of union strikers who desired to 
 capture and beat certain non-union lalx)rers 
 
 who were being carried to their homes by 
 the railroad company. The rioters began 
 firing in and about the cars and the Judge 
 received a painful wound from which he has 
 never recovered. He held the railroad com- 
 pany liable and brought suit to recover dam- 
 ages. After a long and tedious litigation 
 he carried it to a successful conclusion, al- 
 tluiuo-h the great majority of the bar of the 
 state, who knew of the circumstances, were 
 against his views. The case is reported in 
 volume 123. rejjorts of the supreme court, 
 being written by Judge John M. Scott, of 
 P.loomington. 
 
 For some time after his retirement from 
 the bench Judge Pillshury attended to some 
 selected cases, but "was not able to do a 
 heavy general practice. He owns consider- 
 heavy general practice. He owns consider- 
 able real estate in Pontiac and built the first 
 two-story double flat building ever erected 
 ii; the city, it being planned by himself. At 
 one time he had a valuable farm of four 
 hundred and fifty acres south of the city, 
 and at different times has owned consider- 
 able real estate in Nebraska, Kansas and 
 California. He still has a fine ranch in south- 
 ern California, devoted to oranges and 
 lemons, and has spent a number of winters 
 on the Pacific coast on account of his health. 
 He has traveled (piite extensively and 
 crossed the continent a dozen times. 
 
 The Judge and his wife have a family 
 of three children, namely : Clara .\. is the 
 wife of S. E. Sims, of Pontiac, and they 
 have one child. Gladys ; C. .Xvis is the wife 
 of E. J. Walker, of Sheridan, Indiana, and 
 tl.ey have one son, Ernest P. ; and Dale E., 
 at home, is engaged in the real estate and 
 loan business. Mrs. Pillshury is a member 
 of the Presbyterian church. 
 
 In his j)olitical affiliations Judge Pills-
 
 178 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 bury is a Republican and has been a delegate 
 to different state, county and judicial con- 
 ventions. Socially he is a Knight Templar 
 Mason, a member of Pontiac Lodge, No. 
 344, F. & A. M. ; Fairbury Chapter, R. A. 
 M ; and St. Paul Commandery, No. 34, K. 
 T. He is also a member of the Odd Fel- 
 lows lodge and encampment, in which he 
 has held all the offices and has been a mem- 
 ber of the grand lodge and grand encamp- 
 ment since 1868. He was chairman of the 
 building committee and of the trustees that 
 erected the Odd Fellows block, but gave up 
 liis official position when elected to the Ijench. 
 He is a man of high intellectuality, broad 
 human sympathies and tolerance, and is im- 
 bued with fine sensibilities and clearly de- 
 fined principles. Honor and integrity are 
 synonymous with his name and he enjoys 
 the respect, confidence and high regard of 
 the people of this section of the state. 
 
 NELSON D. LAWRENCE. 
 
 Nelson D. Lawrence, one of Livingston 
 county's thrifty and prosperous farmers re- 
 siding on section 26, Pontiac township, with- 
 in a mile of the city of Pontiac. was born in 
 Warren county, Indiana. June 26, 1850, and 
 is a son of Richard Lawrence, whose birth 
 occurred in Ohio March 8, 1826. His grand- 
 father, William Lawrence, a native of Del- 
 aware, was one of the early settlers of Ohio 
 and also of Warren county, Indiana. In 
 the latter state Richard Lawrence grew to 
 manhood and in Vermillion county, Indiana, 
 he married Amanda Deyo, a native of that 
 county. In 1854 they came to Livingston 
 county, Illinois, and settled on a tract of one 
 hundred and sixty acres of wild land near 
 
 Pontiac, which Mr. Lawrence transformed 
 into a good farm. While a resident of Indi- 
 ana he conducted a wagon shop, but he soon 
 became a thorough farmer and acquired a 
 comfortable competence. He was a man of 
 fair education and sound judgment and 
 was well and favorably known. He spent 
 liis last years in this county, but died while 
 at Kirksville, Missouri, March 16, 1894. His 
 first wife had passed away many years be- 
 fore, dying October 24, 1858. She was 
 born February 6, 1830. 
 
 On the home farm Nelson D. Lawrence 
 grew to manhootl, assisting in the oi>eration 
 of the same and attending the local schools. 
 He remained with' his father until grown 
 and then worked by the month as a farm 
 hand for seven or eight years, after which 
 he rented land and engaged in farming on 
 his own account. In 1880 he purchased his 
 present farm and since his marriage, in 
 1885, he has resided thereon, having im- 
 proved the place with a good residence and 
 substantial outbuildings. He has broken 
 thirty acres of virgin soil, has laid many rods 
 of tiling and converted the farm into one 
 of the most valuable of its size in this sec- 
 tion of the county. 
 
 Mr. Lawrence was married, April g, 
 1883, to Miss Caroline M. McKee. a daugh- 
 ter of James and Nancy ( Sterrett ) McKee. 
 natives of Ohio. Her father was born in 
 Brown county, that state, June 19, 1813, 
 and brought his family to Illinois in 1856, 
 locating in Livingston county, where he i^- 
 chased land and successfully engaged in 
 farming for some years, Init for the j^ast 
 five years has lived retired with Mr. and 
 Mrs. Lawrence. His first wife, who was 
 the mother of Mrs. Lawrence, dietl Sej)- 
 tember 5, 1868. She was born July 14, 
 1822, and married ]\Ir. ]\IcKee ]March 17, 
 
 1 
 1
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 '79 
 
 184 J. Ten cliiklreii were Iiorn of tliat union, 
 five sons and five daughters, of whom nine 
 readied mature years, and five sons and two 
 dausnters are still living. Mr. McKee was 
 ])ostniaster of Rook's Creek postoffice for 
 manv years. Mrs. Lawrence was reared and 
 educated in tliis county and hy her marriage 
 to our suhject lias become the mother of 
 four children, one of whom died in infancy. 
 Octa 1). antl James are students in the home 
 school. Alethea M. died June 29. 1900. 
 
 In jxilitics Mr. Lawrence is independent, 
 \oting for the men he believes best (jualified 
 to fill the offices, regardless of party lines. 
 He takes an active interest in educational 
 affairs and for fifteen years has been a most 
 efficient member of the school Ixiard. serving 
 as clerk of the board five or six years. His 
 estimable wife is a member of the Presby- 
 terian church and both are held in high re- 
 gard 1) \all will) lia\e the ]ileasure of their 
 • accptaintance. 
 
 CH.\RLES R. TRL'ITT. 
 
 Charles R. Truitt. the well-known and 
 j)opular editor and proprietor of the Sentinel 
 of Pontiac. was born near HillsbDrn, Mnut- 
 goniery cnunty. Illinois. Juh- 22. ICS58, a 
 >on of .Samuel and Cynthia Ann ( Carr ) 
 Truitt. The father was born aliout 1S18. 
 not far from Louisville. Kentucky, where 
 he grew to manhood aiul married. On com- 
 ing to Illinois he first located in Greene coun- 
 t}-, where he spent a few years, and then 
 made an overland trip to California during 
 the early days of the gold excitement, re- 
 maining there three years and meeting with 
 fair success. He thus obtained a goo<l start 
 in life, and on his return to this state pur- 
 chased land in Montgomery county, becom- 
 
 ing one of its early .settlers and extensive 
 farmers, owning and operating some five 
 hundred acres of land. There he spent the 
 remainder of his life, dying in February, 
 1863. He took cpiite an active interest in 
 educational affairs, but was never an as- 
 ])irant for political honors. His wife sur- 
 \i\ed him for many years, dying in the sum- 
 mer of iS<;4. Se was a faithful member of 
 the Christian cluu-ch and a most estimable 
 woman. 
 
 In the county of his nativi^*- Charles R. 
 Iruitt was reared, accpiiring his early edu- 
 cation in its common schools. He is a grad- 
 uate of the W'illiston Seminary, a prepar- 
 atory schmil of East Hamjiton, Massachu- 
 setts,and for three years attended La Fayette 
 College at Easton, Pennsyhania. Later he 
 successfully engaged in teaching for .some 
 years, being assistant princi|)al of the ]niblic 
 schools at Hillsboro. He next became in- 
 terested in newspaper work in the office of 
 the Hillsboro Journal and later purclia.sed 
 the pai)er, which he conducted about four- 
 teen years with good success. While there 
 he took an active part in Re])ublican politics, 
 was a member of the county and township 
 central committees and served as a delegate 
 to the state convention of his party. L'nder 
 1 resident Harrison he served as <leputy col- 
 lector of internal re\enue in the eight of 
 Springfield district for two years. 
 
 .\fter selling the llillsboro Journal, in 
 1895. Mr. Truitt was out of business one 
 year and then went to Belvidere, Illinois, 
 and ])urcha.sed a half interest in the Belvi- 
 dere Xorthwestern, which he sold in the 
 sjiring of 1897. In July of that year he came 
 to Pontiac and bought the Sentinel, which is 
 the oldest paper in the county, being estab- 
 lished in 1857. and which has always been 
 the official Republican \y.\\>cx of the county.
 
 i8o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHiCAL RECORD. 
 
 It is an eijsi'ht-page weekly journal with a 
 large circulation, which extends all ov?r the 
 county, and is in a flourishing comlition 
 under the ahle management of our suhject, 
 who has entire charge of its publication. 
 Socially he is a member of the Modern 
 Woodmen of America and the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows, and is past grand in 
 the latter lodge at both Hillsboro and Belvi- 
 dere. He attends and supports the Presby- 
 terian church, of which his wife is a mem- 
 ber. 
 
 On the ist of October, 1882, Mv. Truitt 
 n arried Miss Libbie E. Webber, whc^ was 
 born near Collinsville, Madison county, Illi- 
 nois, a daughter of Nicholas W'ebber, and 
 they have become the parents of three chil- 
 dren : Ora, Albert and Beulah. 
 
 JEREMIAH COLLI XS. 
 
 Jeremiah Collins is one of the representa- 
 tive agriculturists of Esmen tiiwnship, his 
 fine farm of two hundred and forty acres be- 
 ii'g con\eniently located on sections 23 and 
 2S, w.ithin two miles and a half of CayUga. 
 He was born in Miami county. Ohio. Jan- 
 uary 22, 1 83 1, find is a son of Daniel Col- 
 lins, a native of Darke county, the same 
 state. His grandfather. Captain Jeremiah 
 Collins, was born and reared in Erance and 
 came to the United States with La Fayette 
 to fight for American independence. He 
 held a captain's commission in the Revolu- 
 tionary war. His last days were spent in 
 Darke county, Ohio, where he opened a 
 farm. There Daniel Collins grew to man- 
 hood and married Nancy Penney, a native 
 of Kentucky and a daughter of James Pen- 
 ney, who was born in Virginia and was later 
 
 one of the pioneers of Kentucky, In early 
 life the father of otn- subject followed black- 
 smithing in his native state until 1835. when 
 he moved to Michigan and settled at St. 
 Joseijh, but three years later he crossed the 
 lake and came to La Salle county, Illinois, 
 becoming one of the first blacksmiths of Ot- 
 tawa, where he arrived July 16, 1838; and 
 where he made his home' for some years. In 
 1844 he located on a farm in Rutland town- 
 ship and resided there until crossing the 
 ])lains to California in 1850. After two 
 vears spent in the mines he returned east 
 l)-"" wav of the Panama route and New York. 
 He continired to live on his farm for many 
 years, but died at the home of a daughter 
 ir Seneca about 1890. His wife had passed 
 a wav some years previously. Of their thir- 
 teen children, six reached years of maturity, 
 but only Jeremiah and Maria, wife of 
 (leorge Pope, of Seneca, Illinois, are now 
 In-ing. 
 
 Our subject grew to manhood in La 
 Salle county and obtained a rather limited 
 education in the district schools. In 1852 
 h.e, too, crossed the plains to the Pacific slope, 
 being six months upon the road, anil arriv- 
 ing in \"olcano, California, September 16, 
 that )ear. He spent three years in that state, 
 but only engaged in mining for a short time. 
 He raised a crop of fall wheat, worked in 
 the lumber wocxls over two years and in the 
 fall of 185^ operated a threshing- machine. 
 In- way of the Panama route he returned 
 home and saw the first railroad train he ever 
 saw on the isthmus. From New York he 
 proceeded to Chicago and arrived home in 
 October, 1855. He purchased a farm in 
 La Salle county, which he operated until 
 1872 and then sold, coming to Livingston 
 county. He bought one hundred and sixty 
 acres of land where he now resides ; not a
 
 JEREMIAH COLLINS.
 
 MRS. JEREMIAH COLLINS.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 -^ 185 
 
 tree or shrul) adorned tlie place, with tlie 
 exception of a wild rose, and the house was 
 small, hut to its improvement and cultiva- 
 tion he has since devoted his energies and 
 now has one nt tlic most desirahle farms of 
 its size in the township. He has erected 
 thereon a pleasant residence, two good harns 
 and other outhuildings, lias tiled the land 
 and placed it under a high state of cultiva- 
 tion and has set out both fruit and shade 
 trees, which add not a little to the attractive 
 appearance of the place. He has also added 
 an eight}--acre tract to his first purchase. 
 
 In La Salle county, November 19, 1865, 
 Mr. Collins married Miss Eliza J. Turner, 
 a native of England and a daughter of 
 George Turner, who came to the L'nited 
 States in 1844 and started as operator in 
 the first woolen mills at Dayton, Illinois. 
 Mrs. Collins died in La Salle county Feliru- 
 ary 6, 1872, leaving five children: (jeorge; 
 William; Martha J., wife of Simon Slyder, 
 of Owego township. Livingston countx'; 
 Charles; and Warren. Mrs. Slyder is the 
 owner of a can of cherries jiut up by her 
 mother in July, 1859, and they arc still in 
 a perfect state of i)reservation an<l which 
 are claimed to be the oldest in the state. .Ml 
 of the sons are married and li\'e in Esmen 
 township with exception of A\'arren, who 
 makes his home in Pontiac township. Mr. 
 Collins was again married, in Livingston 
 county, October 20, 1872, his second union 
 being with Miss Rachel \\'ilkerson, who was 
 born and reared in Bixinesboro, Kentucky, 
 and came to McLean county, Illinois, with 
 her parents, John and Mary Wilkerson. P.y 
 this marriage four children were born, 
 namely; Mary, wife of Samuel Spears, a 
 farmer of Pontiac township; Grace, wife of 
 Arthur Donahue, a farmer of Miimesota ; 
 John E. and Sadie, both at home. 
 
 Politically IMr. Collins and all his sons 
 are stanch supporters of the l\ei)ublicau 
 party. He was originally a Democrat and 
 cast his first presidential vote for Franklin 
 Pierce in 1852. On the 5th of August, 1862, 
 he enlisted in Company C, Eighty-eighth 
 Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and participated 
 in the battle of Perryville, Kentucky, Init 
 was soon discharged for disability, after 
 being confined in the hospital at Xashville 
 for some time. He is now a member of the 
 T. Lyle Dickey Post. Xo. 105, G. .\. R., at 
 pontiac. -Mways a friend of education and 
 our public schools, he was for some years 
 an active member of the school board both 
 ir La Salle and Livingston counties. He 
 lias been a resident of this state for sixty- 
 two years and has therefore witnessed al- 
 most its entire develoi)ment, at the same time 
 aiding in its advancement and progress. 
 
 .\LBERT L. Y.\TES. 
 
 Albert L. Yates, a successful veterinary 
 surgeon of Dwight, Illinois, was born in 
 this county November 21, 1868, a son of Dr. 
 Chri.stopher and Almira (Beal) Yates, l)oth 
 natives of New York, the former born in 
 Montgomery county December 25, 1837, the 
 latter in Yates county December 23, 1842. 
 The father, who was also a prominent 
 veterinary surgeon, enlisted in the govern- 
 ment service in that capacity during the 
 Civil war and served over three years. 
 -Vfter the w;vr he located in Livingston 
 cotmty, Illinois, and engaged in farming on 
 the Smith farm in Dwight township for 
 some time, then removed to Kankakee coun- 
 tv and from there to Inxjuois county, but 
 in 1880 he returned to this county and again
 
 1 86 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 took up his residence on a farm in Dwight 
 townsliip. His s^ns then l)eing; old enough 
 to carry on the farm work, he devoted his 
 time to the practice of \eterinary surgery. 
 In 1885 lie moved to tlie village of Dwight 
 and from that time until his death he gave 
 his entire attention to practice. Politically 
 he was an active worker for the Repuhlican 
 party and held a number of local ofifices in 
 Livingston count v. He was a man of fine 
 phvsi(|ue, being over six feet in height, was 
 well informed, intelligent and generous to 
 a fault, and possessed a kindly disposition. 
 Fraternally he was a member of the Masonic 
 order and Grand Army of tiie Republic. His 
 wife died in Dwight township October 27. 
 1 88 1, and iiis death occurred in the village 
 November 17, 1892. 
 
 After the death of the mother the eldest 
 daughter took her place as far as possible, 
 and the family remained together on the 
 farm, which the boys operated. There were 
 eight children, namely : George C. and 
 ^Viliiam E.. who are now farmers of South 
 Dakota: Albert L., our subject: Nellie M., 
 wife of John Perkins, of Montgomery. Kane 
 county, Illinois : Bert, a farmer and school 
 teacher of South Dakota : Harry, who was 
 born July 2. 1877, and died December 21. 
 1880: Alice, wife of \\'illiam Neel, of Kane 
 county; and Lefa M.. wife of Fred Neel. a 
 brother of William. 
 
 The boyhood and ynuth of iiur subject 
 were passed u]ion the home farm and as he 
 grew up he receixed excellent practical train- 
 ing and experience in ^■eterinary work from 
 association with his father. He assisted 
 him in his work and also pursued a course 
 of study untler his direction. He then passed 
 a creditable examination and was granted 
 a license by the state board. After his fa- 
 ther's death he succeeded to his practice and 
 
 was alone until 1895. \^hen he formed a 
 partnershij) with M. L. Livingston, a grad- 
 uate of the Ontario \'eterinary College, but 
 after being associated with him in practice 
 for two years he purchased his interest and 
 has since been alone. Possessed of excellent 
 ability and skill in his chosen profession he 
 has built up a large practice, and by his 
 straightforward course has won the esteem 
 of the community in which he lives. Po- 
 litically the Doctor is a stanch Republican, 
 and fraternally is a member of the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows and the Sons 
 of Veterans. 
 
 Mr. Yates was married. May 29, 1900, 
 to Miss Agnes Chalmers, of Dwight, which 
 was her home from childhood. She is a 
 member of the Congregational church of 
 Dwight. 
 
 SAMUEL H. NICHOLS. 
 
 Samuel H. Nichols, a dealer in paints, 
 wall paper, etc.. at No. 1 13-1 15 West Water 
 street, Pontiac, and one of its leading busi- 
 ness men, was bom in that city January t, 
 1863, a son of Samuel B. and Lucretia 
 ( Fox) Nichols. The father was a native 
 of Norwich, England, where he was reared 
 and educated. At the age of twenty years 
 he crossed the broad Atlantic and settled 
 in Hamilton. Canada, where he was engaged 
 as a sailor on the great lakes and followed 
 that life for some years. He came to Pon- 
 tiac, Illinois, on the 4th of July, 1853. ar- 
 riving in this city on the first train that came 
 over the Chicago & Alton Railroad. He 
 had been previously married, at Cincinnati. 
 Ohio, to Miss Lucretia Fox, a nati\e of 
 Keene. New Hampshire, and a daughter of 
 Samuel and Dorothv Fox, and bv this union
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 187 
 
 were born two cliildren : Mrs. L. G. 
 Sdiwartz. i)t Cliicago, and Samuel H., our 
 subject. After coming to Pontiac the fa- 
 tlier engaged in the restaurant business, 
 which lie continued until his death, wliich oc- 
 curred September 30, 1865. He was a sol- 
 liier of the Me.xican war and a man liiglily 
 respected and esteemed by all who knew 
 him. His wife survived him many vears, 
 dying at Pontiac. in 1887. at the age of six- 
 ty-three years. 
 
 The subject of this sketch is indebted 
 to the public schools of Pontiac for his edu- 
 cational advantages. During his youth he 
 learned the painter's and paper hanger's 
 trade and worked as a journeyman until 
 1884. when he embarked in the same busi- 
 ness on his own account, and has succeeded 
 in building up a large and lucrative trade. 
 He has the only exclusive wall paper and 
 jiaint store in the city or in fact in the coun- 
 ty, and occupies two large sales rooms. Xo. 
 1 13 and 1 15 West Water street, keeping on 
 hand a large stock of paints, oils, brushes, 
 wall paper, room moulding, etc. Mr. Nich- 
 ols devotes his entire time to the store, tak- 
 ing contracts for large jobs of painting and 
 paper hanging, and furnishes emplovnient 
 to a large force of skilled workmen. 
 
 On the 8th of September, 1888, in Pon- 
 tiac, Mr. Nichols married Miss Mollie Har- 
 rison, of Carthage, Missouri, a daughter of 
 John W. and Mary Ann Harrison, of that 
 city, where her father is engaged in business 
 as a dealer in staple and fancy groceries at 
 731 West Chestnut street. At present Mr. 
 Nichols is living at 705 West Howard 
 street, Pontiac, in a modern two-story frame 
 dwelling erected by him in 1898. 
 
 He is an active and prominent member 
 of Pontiac Camp, No. 5, M. W. .A., of which 
 he is at present banker, antl a member of 
 
 the Pioneer Reserve .Association, in which 
 order lie is serving as local deputy. Re- 
 ligiously he is a member of the Presbyterian 
 church. By his ballot he supports the men 
 and measures of the Republican party, and 
 in the spring of 1900 was its candidate for 
 alderman from the secontl ward, where he 
 is so well anil faxorably known, it having 
 always been his home. As a business man 
 lu ranks among the ablest in the city, being 
 enterprising, energetic and industrious, and 
 the success that he has achieved in life is due 
 to his own well-directed efforts, for in start- 
 ing out in life for himself he was without 
 capital or influential friends to aitl him, but 
 to-day is a prosperous and successful busi- 
 ness man. 
 
 JOHN MUNSON. 
 
 John Munson. one of the honored vet- 
 erans of the Civil war and a well known 
 tarmer residing on section 20. Owego town- 
 shi]), four miles from Pontiac. was born 
 Xo\ember _'8, 184J. in Denmark, where he 
 was reared and educated. He worked on a 
 farm and learned the carpenter's trade l)e- 
 forc bis emigration to .\mcrica in i860. 
 On landing in this country he proceeded to 
 ]-a Salle county. Illinois, where he found 
 employment as a farm hand for one year. 
 In i86j he enlisted in Company B, One 
 Hundred and Fourth Illinois Volunteer In- 
 fantry, which formed a part of the .Vrmy of 
 the Tennes.see, and he participated in the 
 battle of Hartsville, Tennessee, where he 
 was taken prisoner with his regiment. He 
 was held a captive at Murfreesboro until 
 ])aroIed and sent to Camp Chase, Ohio, and 
 later to Camp Douglas, Chicago, where he 
 was exchanged at the end of si.x weeks. In
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the meantime he contracted inflammatory 
 rheumatism and was sent to the hospital. 
 When lie had sufficiently recovered his 
 health to he about he was placed on hospital 
 duty and served in that capacity until hon- 
 orably discharged at the close of the war, in 
 1865. He has never yet full}- reco\-ered 
 from the effects of his army service. 
 
 On receiving his discharge Mr. Munson 
 joined a brother in Livingston county, but 
 later returned to La Salle county, where he 
 spent one year. At the end of that time he 
 located permanently in this county, where he 
 and his brother operated a rented farm fur 
 two or three years, and for three years he 
 clerked in a store in Pontiac. Subsecjuently 
 he engaged in the clothin.o- and gents fur- 
 nishing business in that city for fi\-e years, 
 and at the end of that time traded his stock 
 of goods for a farm west of Pontiac, but 
 sold that place at the end of a year and 
 bought the farm in Owego township where 
 he now resides. At that time it was but 
 slightly improved, but he has planted an 
 orchard, erected a neat and substantial resi- 
 dence and a good l)arn, and to-day has a 
 well-improved and valuable farm of eighty 
 acres. He also has another eighty acres on 
 section 18. the same township. This prop- 
 erty has all been acquired by industry, per- 
 severance and good management, for be 
 came to this county empty-handed and has 
 had to make his own way in the world un- 
 aided. 
 
 On the 30th of Decemlier, 1874, Air. 
 Munson was united in marriage with Miss 
 Elizabeth Dufif, a native of Huntingdon 
 county, Pennsylvania, who came to Illinois 
 with her father, Charles Duff, in 1866, at 
 the age of about fifteen years, locating on a 
 farm in P*ontiac township, this county. Bv 
 this union were Ixirn two children. Eva, the 
 
 elder, is now the wife of Benjamin Miller, 
 a farmer of Owego township, and they have 
 two children. AN'ilbur John and Frances Eliz- 
 abeth. Louis D., the only son of our sub- 
 ject, assists in the operation of the home 
 farm. Mr. and Mrs. Munson have given 
 a home to a little girl, Toleto Hansen, whom 
 they are now rearing. 
 
 Politically Mr. Munson is a stanch sup- 
 p<:irter of the Republican party, having cast 
 liis first presidential vote for U. S. Grant in 
 1868, and for every nominee of the party 
 since that time. Socially he is a Master 
 Mason, and religiously both he and his wife 
 are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
 church of Pontiac. They are widely and 
 favorably known and ha\'e a host of warm 
 friends in the communitv where they re- 
 side. 
 
 HORATIO N. VAUGHAN. 
 
 Horatio N. Vaugban, whose home 
 is at No. 522 North Chicago street, Pontiac, 
 Illinois, is one of the prominent citizens of 
 that place, a leader in musical circles. He 
 is a native of Springfield, Sullivan county, 
 New Hampshire, and a son of John 
 and Mary (Moran) Vaughan. Her paternal 
 grandparents were Samuel and Elizabeth 
 (Rider) Vaughan, natives of Halifax, Nova 
 Scotia, who moved from there to St. Mar- 
 tin's, New Brunswick, where the grandfa- 
 ther died at an advanced age. He followed 
 the ship carpenter's trade throughout life, 
 but also devoted a great deal of time to the 
 study of music and was a proficient player 
 on several instruments, his favorite being 
 the violin. He was a member of an orches- 
 tra antl band in St. Johns, New Bruns- 
 wick.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 189 
 
 Jolin \*aughan, the father of our subject, 
 was also born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and 
 was married at St. Martin's, New Bruns- 
 wick, but soon afterward lie left Canada and 
 removed to Sullivan ciuiniy. New Hamp- 
 shire, where all of his ten children were 
 born, our subject being the youngest. There 
 he engaged in fanning on quite an extensi\e 
 scale, though, during his early life in Nova 
 Scotia, he had followed the ship carpenter's 
 trade. In 1837 1'^ came to Illinois and was 
 one of the first settlers of Princeton, where 
 he conducted a hotel for ten years and then 
 lived retired until his death, which occurred 
 in 1877, when he was eighty-seven years 
 of age. Only two of his family are now 
 living, our subject and his brother, John, a 
 retired merchant of Seattle, Washington. 
 
 Until he attained his majority, Horatio 
 N.A'aughan remained under the parental roof 
 and was educated in Illinois by private 
 tutors. At the age of twelve years he com- 
 menced the study of music and received in- 
 struction on the violin from some of the 
 best local teachers of that day. He contin- 
 ued his studies for a number of years and 
 he has since given his time and attention to 
 that art as a profession. About 1862 he 
 became connected with the band and orches- 
 tra of a theatrical company, and, as leader 
 of the orchestra, traveled with some of the 
 leading theatrical and show companies as 
 the Van Amberg, and others, at that time. 
 Leaving the road in 1872, he taught music 
 as a band instructor in various cities of Illi- 
 nois and Wisconsin until locating in Ponti- 
 ac in December, 1877. Here he formed a 
 class on the violin, and with the exception 
 of a few years spent in Seattle, Washington, 
 he has since taught music at this place. 
 About nine years ago he organized and be- 
 came leader of the Vaughan orchestra of 
 
 Pontiac, consisting of fourteen pieces, which 
 still exists and is the leading musical organi- 
 zation of the city, its services being in great 
 demand. Most of the players were former 
 pupils of ]\Ir. Vaughan. 
 
 In May, 1880, at Pontiac, Mr. \'aughan 
 married Miss Margaret A. Stites, a daugh- 
 ter of Dr. J. J. Stites, one of the prominent 
 physicians of this city. She is a highly ed- 
 ucated lady and also an accomplished mu- 
 sician, receiving her musical education at the 
 College of Music in Cincinnati, under the 
 management of Theodore Thomas, one of 
 the most noted musicians this country has 
 produced. She plays first violin in her hus- 
 band's orchestra, and as teacher of the piano 
 forte has a large private class. She is also 
 supervisor of music in the public schools of 
 Pontiac, a position she has most creditably 
 tilled for a number of years, and which re- 
 quires much of her time and attention every 
 day. As will be seen Mr. and Mrs. Vaughan 
 are among the most prominent musicians of 
 the city and are entirely devoted to their 
 art. 
 
 OWEN PEEHAN. 
 
 Owen Feehan, one of the most popular 
 and influential citizens of Nevada township, 
 Livingston county, whose home is on sec- 
 tion 20, was born in Grundy county, Illi- 
 nois, June 15, 1861, and is a son of Owen 
 and Maria (Killian) Feehan, natives of 
 Kings county, Ireland, where the father 
 followed the occupation of farming. Soon 
 after their marriage they emigrated to the 
 United States and took up their residence 
 in Grundy county, Illinois, where he pur- 
 chased land, making their home there until 
 1869, when they removed to Nevada town-
 
 ipo 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ship, Livingfston county. Here he liad pre- 
 viously purchased the south half of section 
 20, which at that time was unimproved land, 
 but was soon transformed by him into one 
 of the most desirable farms in the locality. 
 He continued to reside there until the spring 
 of 1892, when he moved to Odell and has 
 since lived in retirement from active labor, 
 enjoying a well-earned rest. He and his 
 wife are members of the Catholic church of 
 that place, and are highly respected and es- 
 teemed by all who know them. To this 
 worthy couple were born ten children, eight 
 of whom reached man and womanhood, 
 namely : Patrick, a resident of Nevada town- 
 ship; John, of Seward county, Nebraska; 
 Lawrence, of Nevada township, this county; 
 Ellen, wife of J. C. Lennan, a merchant 
 of Odell; Charles, a molder by trade and a 
 resident of Morris, Illinois; Lizzie, wife of 
 John Carey, a farmer living near Kinsman, 
 Grundy countv; Owen, our subject, and Ed- 
 ward, who was accidentally killed by the 
 train at a crossing- at Kinsman. 
 
 The subject of this review began his ed- 
 ucation in the schools of Grundy county, 
 and after coming to this county, at the age 
 of eight years, continued his studies in the 
 schools of Nevada township. When he first 
 located here the nearest school was three 
 miles from his home. He continued to at- 
 tend school at intervals until he attained his 
 majority, and acquired a good, practical ed- 
 ucation. 
 
 On the 1st of June, 1887, Mr. Feehan 
 married Miss Julia A. Feehan, who was born 
 in Grundy county, June 18, 1861, and suc- 
 cessfully engaged in teaching for seven years 
 prior to her marriage, having charge of the 
 school in district No. 4, where she now re- 
 sides, besides six years in other counties. 
 She was educated in L^tica, La Salle countv, 
 
 Illinois. Her father, John Feehan, was a 
 nati\e of Ireland and came to the new world 
 in early youth. He resided in La Salle 
 county for many years, but his last davs 
 were spent in Grundy county, where he died 
 in 1891. He had a family of seven chil- 
 dren, six of whom grew to maturity, and in 
 order of birth these are as follows : Sarah, 
 wife of M. J. Dempsey, who is engaged in 
 the shoe business in Chicago; Kate, widow 
 of J. M. Dempsey, who was engaged in the 
 grocery and meat business in that city, where 
 she still resides; John, a detective and ser- 
 geant on the Chicago police force; Thomas 
 I'., who conducts a grocery and meat mar- 
 ket in the same city; Julia A., wife of our 
 subject, and Vincent, who is in the employ of 
 the Cuhady Meat Company, pf Chicago. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Feehan were born five chil- 
 dren, namely: Edith Balbina, who died at 
 the age of eleven months; Mary Alice, Grace 
 Agnes and Julia K., all in school, ^nd Eliza- 
 beth Veronica, a bright baby of two and a 
 half years. 
 
 After his marriage, Mr. Feehan moved 
 to Chicago, where he was engaged in busi- 
 ness for two years, but at the end of that 
 time he returned to Livingston county. He 
 operated rented land for a time, and then lo- 
 cated on the old homestead, where he is op- 
 erating one hundred and sixty acres of well 
 impro\ed and highly cultivated land, and is 
 meeting with good success. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Feehan are members 
 of the Catholic church of Odell, of which 
 Father Griffey is pastor, and he also belongs 
 to St. Paul's Court, No. 618, Catholic Order 
 of Foresters, of the same place, of which he 
 is one of the trustees, and is a member of 
 Nevada Camp, No. 4070, Modern Woodmen 
 of America, of which he is advisor. As a 
 Democrat he has always taken an active part
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 191 
 
 in politics; has been a delegate to county 
 conventions a number of times, and is now a 
 member of the township central committee 
 of his party. On attaining^ his majority, he 
 was elected school director, which office he 
 held for six years, and for one year he 
 served as collector. He was road commis- 
 sioner the same length of time, and assessor 
 six years. In the spring of 1900 he was 
 elected supervisor of his township and re- 
 signed the office of assessor. 
 
 His public service has been most exem- 
 plary and his private life has been marked 
 by the utmost fidelity to duty. He has 
 given his supixjrt to all measures for the pui> 
 lic good, and is justly numbered among the 
 valued and useful citizens of his communitv. 
 
 \\1LL1A.M F. C. LEHAIAXN. 
 
 Germany has furnished to the new world 
 many of its most enterprising and progres- 
 sive citizens — men who have taken an active 
 part in the development of the locality in 
 which the}- make their home, and have ex- 
 erted a great influence for good in the com- 
 munity. Mr. Lehmann is a worthy repre- 
 sentative of this class. He has met with 
 well deserved success in his adopted country, 
 and is now the owner of a valuable farm of 
 four hundred acres on section 29, Owego 
 townshi]), Livingston county, Illinois, four 
 miles and a half east of Tontiac. 
 
 Mr. Lehmann was born in Mecklenburg, 
 Germany, May i, 1853, and attended the 
 schools of his native land, but is wholly 
 self-educated in English. In 1871, at the 
 age of eighteen years he emigrated to the 
 United States and first located in Peoria 
 county, Illinois, where some friends from 
 
 the fatherland were living. He obtained 
 work on the farm of William Spicer, a sub- 
 stantial farmer of that county, wlm proved 
 a good friend to the German hul, and he re- 
 mained in his employ four years. In 1876 
 he came to near Clienoa, in Livingston coun- 
 ty, where he commenced life for himself 
 upon a rented farm of one hundred and sixty 
 acres, which he successfully operated for 
 seven years. At length, in 188 J, he was 
 able to purchase one hundred and twenty 
 acres of land in Owego township, where he 
 now resides. At that time it was only par- 
 tially improved, and the house standing 
 thereon was quite small, but it has since been 
 replaced by a more commodious and sub- 
 stantial residence, the land has been tiled, 
 fences built, also a good barn, and water 
 works and stock scales addetl, making it one 
 e)f the best ecpiipijcd farms in the locality. 
 He has also extended the boundaries of his 
 farm until they now include four huiulred 
 acres of rich and fertile land. This prop- 
 erty has all been acquired through his own 
 well-directed efforts, and he is to-day one 
 of the substantial men of Owego township. 
 In this county, Mr. Lehmann was mar- 
 ried, January 22, 1877, to Miss Augusta, 
 Louise Leduc, who was born in New York 
 City. Her father. General Louis Leduc, 
 was a native of France and a highly edu- 
 cated gentleman, .speaking eight different 
 languages. He was an officer in the French 
 army and took part in several wars. Later 
 he came to America and was married in New 
 York city, where he made his home for some 
 time, but subsequently came to Livingston 
 county, Illinois. Here Mrs. Lehmann was 
 reared and educated by her father. Of the 
 ten children born to our sul)ject and his wife, 
 two died in infancy. Those living are : Lena, 
 now the wife of George Rights, a farmer of
 
 192 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Owego townsliip, by wliom she liad a son, 
 William; Albert, who assists his father in 
 the operation of tlie farm; Emma, William, 
 Mattie, Julius, Rudolph and Willis Ellis, all 
 at home. 
 
 By his ballot Mr. Lehmann supports the 
 men and measures of the Repviblican party, 
 but has never cared for official honors. He 
 is now serving as Canada thistle commis- 
 sioner and as school director, having been 
 president of the district board for fourteen 
 years. He and his wife are prominent and 
 influential members of the German Baptist 
 church,and he takes a very active part in Sun- 
 day school work, serving as president of the 
 township Sunday school society seven years. 
 For some years he was superintendent of the 
 Methodist Episcopal Sunday school, and 
 now holds the same position in the Swigart 
 Sunday school. For a few years he was su- 
 perintendent of both Sunday schools at 
 the same time. In all the relations of life 
 he has been found true to every trust reposed 
 in him, whether public or private, and justly 
 deserves in the high regard in which he is 
 uniformly held. 
 
 JOHN KLEIN. 
 
 John Klein, one of Pike township's most 
 progressive and public-spirited citizens, 
 owns and operates a well-improved and val- 
 uable farm of two hundred and forty acres 
 on section 22. He is a native of Germany, 
 born in Rheinpfalz, Bavaria, August 24, 
 1833, and is a son of Jacob and Margaret 
 (Weiser) Klein, also natives of that coun- 
 try, where the father followed the weaver's 
 trade. In 1855, accompanied by his family, 
 he emigrated to America and located in 
 
 lazewell county, where some of his friends 
 from Germany had previously settled and 
 where he rented a little house. At that time 
 he had four sons and one daughter, all of 
 \\hom worked and it took their wages for 
 one year to pay their passage across the At- 
 lantic and the expenses of their trip to this 
 state. The second year the father rented a 
 farm in Deer Creek township, Tazewell 
 county, for one-half the crop raised, and in 
 1864 purchased, a farm in Pike township, 
 Livingston county, tipon which he spent the 
 remainder of his life, dying there in Decem- 
 ber, 1878, his wife in 1874. In their family 
 were seven children, of whom four sons and 
 one daughter are still living. 
 
 Our subject acquired a good practical 
 education in the common schools of his na- 
 tive land, which he attended for eight years, 
 but his knowledge of the English language 
 has been self-acquired. At the age of four- 
 teen he commenced earning his own liveli- 
 liood. working out while in Germany, and 
 for four years after coming to this country 
 he worked for and assisted his father in get- 
 tmg a start. He then began life for him- 
 self as a farmer upon rented land. 
 
 In Tazewell county Mr. Klein was mar- 
 ried, January 25, 1864, to Miss Margaret 
 Moschel, also a native of Bavaria and a 
 daughter of Christian and Margaret 
 Moschel. Her father, who was a cabinet- 
 maker by trade, died in Germany, and sub- 
 sequently she and her mother and seven 
 children came to the new world in 1862, lo- 
 cating in Tazewell county, Illinois, where 
 she lived for several years and then came to 
 Pike township, Livingston county, where 
 she purchased a farm and there died Octo- 
 ber 4, 1886. IMr. and Mrs. Klein are the 
 parents of seven children, namely : Katie, 
 wife of Theodore Lommatsch, of Pike town-
 
 JOHN KLEIN.
 
 MRS. JOHN KLEIN.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 197 
 
 ship, lias two children. Clara and Raliili ; 
 Lena, wife (if Louis Lommatsch. uf the 
 same township, has one son. Elnier ; 
 -\nna, at home; John married Miss Katie 
 Schocn])eck, and they liave one daughter, 
 Mahcl, and he operates a part of his father's 
 farm; Matilda. August and I'.melia, at 
 liome; one, the oldest of the family, died in 
 infancy. 
 
 For finir years after his marria.<;e Mr. 
 Klein cnntiuued to rent land in Tazewell 
 county, and in 1869 came to Livingston 
 county, locating upon a partially impro\ed 
 tarm of forty acres in Pike township, which 
 he had ])urchased a year or two hefore. As 
 his financial rest)urces have increased lie has 
 added to his landed possessions from time 
 to time until he now lijis two hundred and 
 forty acres of rich and arahle land, which 
 he has placed under excellent cultivation and 
 unproved with a gtiod set of farm huildings. 
 His success in life is due to his industry, 
 enterprise and good management. He is 
 a man of good husiness ahility and sound 
 judgment, and carries forward to successful 
 completion whatever he undertakes. 
 
 Originally Mr. Klein was identitied with 
 the Democratic party and cast his first pres- 
 idential vote for Samuel J. Tilden in 1876. 
 but of recent years has been independent in 
 politics, supporting the best men, regardless 
 of party affiliations. He has taken a very 
 active and influential part in public afifairs, 
 has been a delegate to many county, sena- 
 torial, congressional and state conventions, 
 and has been honored with a number of im- 
 portant official positions, having ser\ed as 
 township clerk fourteen years, supervisor 
 two years, assessor two years, justice of the 
 peace eight years, a member oi the school 
 board, and president ami clerk of the dis- 
 trict many years. His official duties have 
 
 always been most faithfully and satisfac- 
 torily performed, winning the commenda- 
 tion of all concerned. In 1885 Mr. Klein 
 and X. J. Myer antl others established the 
 Eppards Point Fire Insurance Company, 
 and the former was made i)resident, the 
 latter secretary of the same. Our subject 
 is one of the most public spirited and enter- 
 prising men of his community and has done 
 much to aid in the development and further 
 the interests of Pike townshi]). Religiously 
 he and his wife are members (jf the Lu- 
 theran church. 
 
 CHARLES l-:i)\VAR]) WATSOX. 
 
 Charles Edward W^atson, now deceased, 
 was born in Indiana, in which state he was 
 reared and educated. In his youth he learned 
 the trade of wagonmaker and when a young 
 man he came to Pontiac, first, in 1857, and 
 for a time engaged in his chosen occupation. 
 He later returned to his native state, but in 
 1862 again came to Pontiac, which continued 
 his home until his death. 
 
 On the 19th of April, 1864, Mr. Watson 
 was united in marriage with Miss Cordelia 
 JUick, by whom he had three children. Clara 
 \\'. is now the wife of Ale.xander Algeo, a 
 frn-nier of Rooks Creek township, and they 
 have two children, .Anna Louise and Walter 
 Samuel. Jesse X., born January 13, 1870, 
 married April 14, 1897, Miss Mary Lorena 
 Cross, of Peoria, and they reside in Chicago, 
 where he is engaged as a draughtsman. 
 Willim A., born September 4, 1872, is a 
 contractor and builder in Larkin, Kansas. 
 While still residing in Pontiac, he did a 
 good deal of architectural work. 
 
 Mr. W'atson was called to his reward 
 May 4, 1887. Fraternally he was a member
 
 198 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
 Politically he was a Repuhlican, and for a 
 time held the office of street cnnimissioner 
 of Pontiac. 
 
 Mrs. Watson still makes her home in 
 Ptjntiac, where she is well known and great- 
 ly esteemed. She inherited the musical 
 talent of her father and has sung in the 
 choirs of the Methodist Episcopal, Baptist 
 and Presbyterian churches of Pontiac, thus 
 aiding bv her voice the worship in song in 
 the various churches. 
 
 JOHN H. OLESOX. 
 
 Among the prospert)us and successful 
 farmers of Esmen township, Livingston 
 county, who have made their own way in the 
 world imaided and have succeeded in ac- 
 cumulating a handsome competence, is John 
 H. Oleson, whose home is on section 30. 
 He was born in Norway, in 1850, and when 
 seven years of age was brought to the United 
 States by his father, Ole H. Oleson. who 
 first settled in La Salle county, Illinois, and 
 came to Livingston county five years later, 
 locating in Esmen township, where he is 
 now living a retired life with his youngest 
 son, at the age of seventj'-eight years. He, 
 too, was an agriculturist anil met with ex- 
 cellent success in his labors. 
 
 Since the age of twelve years John H. 
 Oleson has been a resident of Livingston 
 county and is indebted to her public schools 
 for his educational advantages. The old 
 homestead adjoins the farm where he now 
 lives, and he aided in its operation until 
 twenty-four years of age. He was then 
 married, in this county, June 10, 1874, to 
 Miss Isabel Highland, who was also born 
 
 in Norway, and came to this country at the 
 age of six years with her father, Ole High- 
 land. The}" settled in Li\ingston cnuntv, 
 where she grew to womanhood. The chil- 
 dren born to our subject and his wife are: 
 Elsie, wife of Benjamin Peterson, of Liv- 
 ingston count}- : Cordelia, wife of Oscar 
 Hetland ; Ida, wife of George Thompson; 
 Clara and Obeil. both at home. 
 
 For two years after his marriage Mr. 
 Oleson engaged in farming upon rentetl land 
 and then purchased eighty acres of raw- 
 prairie land, on which he now resides, and to 
 the improvement and cultivation of which 
 he has since devoted his energies with most 
 gratifying results. As he has prospered he 
 has added to his farm two eighty-acre tracts, 
 and now- has a fine place of two hundred antl 
 forty acres, which he has tiled, fenced and 
 placed under a high state of cultivation. 
 In addition to this he has an eighty-acre 
 tract, given him by his father, making a total 
 of three hundred and twenty acres. He 
 j)ossesses many of the admirable character- 
 istics of the Norwegian people, being in- 
 tlustrious, economical and persevering, anil 
 to these may be attributed his wonderful suc- 
 cess. By his ballot he supports the men and 
 measures of the Republican party, and has 
 served as school director in his district. He 
 and his wife are members of the Lutheran 
 cliUrch and are widely and favorably known 
 throughout their section of the countv. 
 
 CHRISTIAN VERCLER. 
 
 For over a quarter of a centur}- this gen- 
 tleman has been prominently identified with 
 the agricultural interests of Livingston coun- 
 ty, and now owns and successfully operates 
 a valuable farm of three hundred and twenty
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 199 
 
 acres on sections 27, 31 and 33. Pike town- 
 ship. He was born July 14. 1852. in the 
 jjrovince of Lorraine, France, now a ])art of 
 Germany, and is a son of Christian X'ercler, 
 Sr.. one of the most prosperous and pro- 
 gressive farmers in that part of the county. 
 He was echicated in Imth the Frencli and 
 Cierman languages, but has acquired iiis 
 knowledge of English since coming to Amer- 
 ica. He sailed from Havre and landed in 
 Xew York. September 2"^, 1872, and came 
 direct to Livingston county, Illinois. Two 
 }ears later he was joined by his father, who 
 bought two hundred and forty acres of land 
 in Pike township, but was not long permitted 
 to enjoy his new home, as he died the same 
 year. 
 
 On liis arrival here uiu' subject com- 
 menced working Ly the month at farm labor, 
 and was thus employed for a year and a 
 half. He then assisted his father in the im- 
 provement and cultivation of the place, and 
 after the latter's tleatb, he and his brothers, 
 Andrew, Joseph, Jacob and Peter, continued 
 its t)peration fur three years. In 1881 our 
 .subject purchased eighty acres of his present 
 farm, and to it he has since added until be 
 now owns an excellent farm of three hun- 
 dred and twenty acres, wliicli he has jjlaced 
 under a high state of cultivation and im- 
 proved with good and substantial buildings. 
 He has made for himself an honorable rect)rd 
 in business and by bis well-directed efforts 
 has acquired a handsome competence. 
 
 On the 1st of January, 1881, in Pike 
 township, Mr. \'ercler was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Emma B. Le Due, a native 
 of that township and a daughter of one of its 
 most prominent old settlers. Louis Le Due. 
 I'ive children blessed this union, but Bertha 
 died in childhood. Those living are, Will- 
 iam, Alice, Rudolph and Nettie. 
 
 By bis ballot Mr. \'ercler usually sup- 
 ports the men and measures of the Demo- 
 cratic party, but at local elections votes in- 
 dejjendent of party lines, supporting the men 
 whi>m he believes best qualified to fill the 
 offices. He served some years as township 
 clerk, collector of taxes one year, highway 
 commissioner si.x years, and a member of the 
 school board and district clerk nineteen 
 years. He is a worthy representative of 
 that class of citizens wlu) lead (juiet. in- 
 dustrious, honest and useful lives, and con- 
 stitute the best portion of the community. 
 Religiously he is a member of the Mennonite 
 church. Mrs. Vercler is a member of the 
 German Baptist church. 
 
 JOHN W. r.KLXER. 
 
 Jiijni W. liruner, a ijrominent and repre- 
 sentative business man of P<Mitiac, residmg 
 on East Water street, was born in Greene 
 county, Ohio. July 8, 1837, a son of Peter 
 and Elizabeth (Tytusj Bruner. The father 
 and mother were both born in Loudoun 
 county, Virginia, and about 1835 removed 
 to Ohio, locating near Xenia, where he en- 
 gaged in milling and mercantile business. 
 J-ater be carried on the dry-goods business 
 in Butler county and at Germantown, Mont- 
 gomery county, Ohio, and from that state 
 he inoxed to Wabash county, Indiana, where 
 he purchased a large tract of land and en- 
 gaged in farming throughout the remainder 
 of his life, dying there in 1852. His widow- 
 continued to reside on the farm until 1855, 
 when she went to live with her brother, F. 
 J. Tytus a prominent merchant and pork 
 packer of Middletown, Butler county. Ohio, 
 and a \ ery wealthy and benevolent man, who
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 was born February 5, 1806, ami died at the 
 age of sixty years. After li\ing' with him 
 two years, Mrs. Bruner made Iier home with 
 her son-in-law, Dr. Samuel Stew art, in Ham- 
 ilton, Ohio, where she died at the age of 
 about sixty years. The Bruner family is of 
 German descent, tlie grandfather of our sub- 
 ject having come to this country from Ger- 
 many with three brothers and settled m the 
 west. Peter Bruner. who was born Decem- 
 ber 2, 1791, was a son of George Peter 
 Bruner. His wife, Elizabeth, liorn Febru- 
 ary 23, 1801, was a daughter of Tunis and 
 Jane Tytus. 
 
 To Peter and Elizabeth (Tytus) Bruner 
 were born five children, four of whom 
 reached years of maturity, namely : ( i ) 
 Francis J., who owned a large sugar plan- 
 tation in Louisiana, was a Confederate sol- 
 dier in the Civil war, and died in that state 
 in 1899. Three of his children are still liv- 
 ing on the plantation. [2) Jennie E. is the 
 widow of Dr. Samuel Stewart and is now 
 living in Pontiac, Illinois. She has three 
 children : Frank, a tinisher in the shoe fac- 
 tory of that place; Lizzie, wife of S. W. 
 Strong, assistant superintendent of the Illi- 
 nois state reformatory, and John R., who 
 is employed in the shoe factory. (3) Will- 
 iam H. married Elizabeth Cook, of Pontiac, 
 and is engaged in the grocery business in 
 that city. (4) John W., our subject, is the 
 youngest of the family. 
 
 During his boyhood John W. Bruner at- 
 tended the common schools of Butler county, 
 Ohio, and completed his education at Den- 
 nison University, Granville, that state. He 
 remained at home tintil 1852, and after leav- 
 ing college entered the dry goods business 
 at Cincinnati and later at Middletown, in 
 1861, where he remained until the fall of 
 1864, when he sold out and came to Pon- 
 
 tiac, Illinois. For nine years he carried on 
 farming in Pontiac township. Livingston 
 county, where he owned twci hundred and 
 sixty acres, and also three hundred and 
 t\\ enty acres in Eppards Point townshi]), and 
 also raised, bought and sold stock. At the 
 end of that period he removed to the city of 
 Pontiac, where he has since engaged in the 
 real estate and stock business, meeting with 
 marked success. He has also three thousand 
 acres of land near Stuttgart, Arkansas, 
 w hich is devoted to stock raising at the pres- 
 ent time. He is an enterprising and pro- 
 gressive business man, energetic and reliable, 
 and easily wins the confidence and good will 
 of all with whom he comes in contact. Po- 
 litically, he is a stanch Republican, but has 
 never cared for official honors, while re- 
 ligiously he is a member of the Baptist 
 church, and socially affiliates with the 
 Knights of Pythias, being one of the older 
 members. 
 
 On the 15th of August, 1861, Mr. 
 Bruner married Miss Eliza J. Crane, a 
 daughter of Stephen C. and Elizabeth 
 (Simpson) Crane. Her father, a native of 
 New York, moved to Butler county, Ohio, 
 at an early day and there engaged in farm- 
 ing with most gratifying success, becoming 
 the owner of a large aniou;''*^ of both farm 
 and city property. About 1865 he brought 
 his family to Pontiac, where he engaged in 
 the real estate business cjuite extensi\ely. 
 He was a large stockholder in the first coal 
 shaft sunk at this place, and was also con- 
 nected with the first woolen mill established 
 here. He seemed to prosper in all his lui- 
 dertakings and accumulated considerable 
 wealth. He died in Pontiac, in 1880, leav- 
 ing over two thousand acres of improved 
 farming land in Livingston county, besides 
 a large amount of city property and a thou-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sand acres of land in otlier parts of the 
 west. Mrs. Bruner was born in Butler coun- 
 ty, Ohio, January 25, 1843. Of the four 
 children born to our subject and his wife 
 only one is living. Hal C, residing at 208 
 East Water street, is engaged in the tile 
 business in Pontiac, and is also interested 
 in a manufacturing , business in Chicago. 
 He married Carrie S. Sims, of Pontiac. and 
 they liave three cliiklren. namely: E\a. 
 Eeonora and Crane. 
 
 JOHX BALMER. Sr. 
 
 A brilliant example of a self-made .Amer- 
 ican citizen and a grand examplification of 
 the progress that an ambitious foreigner can 
 make in this country of unbounded oppor- 
 tunities, is shown in the ca.se of John Balmer. 
 one of the most successful and prosperous 
 farmers and stock raisers of Livingston 
 county. He resides on section 26, Pontiac 
 township, within one mile nf the city of Pon- 
 tiac. 
 
 Mr. Balmer was Ixirn in Switzerlanil, Oc- 
 tober 31, 1829, and came to .\merica with 
 his father. Christian Balmer, in 1840. ln- 
 cating first in Hancock county. Ohio, near 
 the present city of Findlay, where the father 
 bought land. With the assistance of his 
 sons he cleared and improved his place, trans- 
 forming it into a good farm. There he died 
 about 1853. 
 
 Our subject attended the public schools 
 of his native land, but his knowletlge of Eng- 
 lish has been acquired through his own ef- 
 forts since coming to the new world, at the 
 age of eleven years. He aided his father in 
 tl;e arduous task of clearing the home farm, 
 and remained with him until grown. It was 
 
 in 1852 that he came to Livingston county, 
 Illinois, and the following year he purchased 
 the farm where he now resides, consisting of 
 t)ne hundred and thirty-seven acres, which he 
 bought in partnership with his brother-in- 
 law, but since 1861 he has been sole owner 
 of the place. As an agriculturist he has 
 steadily prospered, and has added to his 
 landed possessions from time to time imtil 
 he is now the owner of eleven hundred acres 
 i)f valuable land in this county, besides his 
 investments in Nebraska and Kansas. In 
 connection with general farming he has en- 
 gaged extensively in the raising and feeding 
 (if cattle for market. 
 
 In the fall of 1854. Mr. Balmer tlrove 
 back to Ohio, and was there married to Miss 
 Xancy .\tlkins, a native of Pickaway county, 
 that state, and a daughter of David .Adkins. 
 By this union four children have been born, 
 namely: Melissa is now the wife of Allen 
 Scott, of Joplin, Missouri, and they have 
 two children, John and Pearl; J. P., who 
 assists in the operation of the home farm, 
 married Anna Belle Blair, and they have 
 two children living, Everet and .Angle, two 
 ha\ing died ; Leonard S. is at home, and 
 -Anna is the wife of Madison Phipps, a 
 farmer of this county, and they have one 
 child, Jesse R. 
 
 In his ])olitical views Mr. Balmer is a 
 stanch Republican, but at IcKal elections he 
 endeavors to support the best man, regard- 
 less of part affiliations. He has never cared 
 for public office, preferring to devote his 
 entire time and attention to his extensive 
 business interests. Socially he is a mem- 
 ber of the Odd Fellows society at Pontiac. 
 and has filled all the chairs, being at present 
 past grand of his lodge. For almost a half- 
 century he has made his home in Livingston 
 county, and has bore his part in its develop-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ment during; that period. He lias seen the 
 swamps drained, and a large tract of what 
 at first appeared to be waste land trans- 
 formed into rich and fertile fields. The 
 career of Mr. Balmer seems almost phe- 
 nomenal, yet his success is by no means the 
 result of fortunate circumstances. It has 
 come to him through energy, labor and per- 
 severance, directed by an evenly balanced 
 mind and honorable business principles. He 
 has always made the most of his opportuni- 
 ties.and his successful life excites the admira- 
 tion of all. 
 
 \\ILLIAM ARAIITAGE. 
 
 \\ illiani Armitage, deceased, was born in 
 Tipperary, Ireland, on the 13th of Decem- 
 ber, 1826, and when twenty-two years of age 
 came ti.i the United States with his father, 
 Richard Armitage, who settled in Wayne 
 county. New York, where he died at an ad- 
 vanced age. Our subject located in Roch- 
 ester, New York, where he engaged in the 
 manufacture of brick for a short time, and 
 in 1865 came to Illinois, settling near Odell, 
 Livingston county, where he engaged in 
 farming for a few years and then established 
 himself in the brick and tile lousiness in 
 Odell. in which line he was engaged for 
 over twent}' years. He commenced life as a 
 poor boy, but by his industry, perseverance 
 and upright dealing with all with whom he 
 came in business contact, he soon became a 
 thrifty business man, and one who had the 
 respect of all his fellow citizens. 
 
 When Mr. Armitage first settled in Odell 
 there was no church or cemetery in the place, 
 and he helped build the first church and was 
 always a large contributor to its support. 
 His business constantly increased under his 
 
 al)le management until it became one of the 
 leading industries of that part of the coun- 
 try, furnishing employment to a large num- 
 ber of men and turning out a product all 
 knew as excellent. Later he sold the tile 
 and brick business to Trecker Brothers and 
 mo\ed to Iowa, but after spending two years 
 in that state he returned to Odell, where he 
 made his home until the fall of 1899 and 
 then came to Pontiac to live quietly after 
 the labors of a well-spent life, during which 
 he had prospered. He had surrounded him- 
 self by all the comforts of life and was en- 
 joying the rest which comes to the faith- 
 ful worker, when he was called to that long 
 and peaceful rest, February 25, 1900, after 
 an illness of only a few days, leaving a 
 widow and four children to mourn the de- 
 parture of a devoted husband and a kind and 
 mdulgent father. 
 
 Mr. Armitage was married, in Tyre. 
 New York, in 1854, to Miss Ann M. Thorp. 
 a daughter of Munson and Ann Eliza (Ar- 
 mitage) Thorp. Her father was a native 
 of New Hampshire, but at an early age 
 moved to New York and located in Onon- 
 daga county, where as a mechanic he spent 
 over sixty years of his life, dying there at 
 the age of eighty-seven. His wife died in 
 Wayne county, the same state, when Mrs. 
 Armitage was only four years of age. Mrs. 
 Armitage has only a brother living. Rev. 
 \\'allace W. Thorp, a Presbyterian minister 
 of Poughkeepsie, New York. 
 
 To our subject and his wife were born 
 eight children, three of whom died in New 
 York state and one in Odell, this county. 
 'i"he living are as follows : ( i ) Clara Belle 
 is the wife of Alfred Burns, a farmer of this 
 county, and they have two daughters : Ruth 
 A. and Charlotte. (2) Wesley L., of Odell, 
 married Edith Bockman, and thev have three
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 203 
 
 cliildren. \\'illiam S.. Lucile and Floyd B. 
 (3) Elton C, an attorney of Chicago, mar- 
 ried Alice McConnell. and tliey have one 
 child. Edna. (4) Lillian F. is the wife of 
 S. X. Donahue, who has a large restaurant 
 and bakery in Pontiac. 
 
 Mr. Arniitage was converted antl united 
 with the Methodist Episcopal cinirch at tlie 
 age of twenty-three years. He was soon 
 elected superintendent of the Sunday school, 
 and was also a class leader. .\ devoted 
 Christian, an upright citizen and business 
 man, he was always t\)und on the right siilc 
 of every moral issue, and was strictly tem- 
 perate and a faithful worker in the temper- 
 ance movement, and was a constant reader 
 ( f tlie best literature, having a well-stocked 
 library. \\ bile devoted to his business and 
 the accumulation of property, be found time 
 to gratify bis fondness for field sports with 
 rod and gun. In politics be was a Republi- 
 can. l)ut took no active part in political mat- 
 ters, yet was always interestetl in all public 
 afifairs that tended to advance the wlfare of 
 the community in which he lived. Mrs. Ar- 
 niitage laid the remains of her beloed luis- 
 band to rest in the cemetery at Odell, where 
 so many years of their happy life bad been 
 passed, near the church be had helped to 
 build, and of which he had been such a de- 
 voted member and constant attendant. Mrs. 
 Arniitage has bought a large, pleasant home 
 on East North street, Pontiac. where she 
 e.xpects to spend her remaining years be- 
 loved and resi)ected by all wliu know her. 
 
 JOHX FKAXCIS SULL1\".\X. 
 
 John Francis Sulli\an, a well known 
 and prominent ilruggist, of Cbatswortli, was 
 born in Peoria, Illinois, March 10, 1868, a 
 
 son of John and Ellen Sullivan. The fa- 
 ther, who was Ixirn in county Cork, Ireland, 
 came to America in 1862, and after .spend- 
 ing five years in New York City, became 
 a resident of Peoria, Illinois, Where for two 
 years he was employed as section foreman 
 on the Toledo, Peoria & Wabash Railroad. 
 His wife died in 1873, leaving three chil- 
 tlren : Mary Ellen, who died in Sciota, Illi- 
 nois, in 1893; Julia, a resident of Xew 
 York Citv, and John F., our subject. Shortly 
 before the death of bis wife Mr. Sullivan 
 moved to Sciota, McDonough county, Illi- 
 nois, where he made his home for twenty- 
 rive years, being in the employ of the rail- 
 road as section foreman nearly all of that 
 time. He owned a farm, which he improved 
 and operated for about two years. He is 
 now a resident of Chatsworth and is still 
 in the employ of the railroad, having been 
 connected with section work for thirty-one 
 years. For his second wife he wedded 
 Mary Laverv. by whom be has four chidren : 
 Cornelius, who is married and lives in Ma- 
 comb, Illinois; Sarah, Annie and Elizabeth, 
 all at home with their parents. 
 
 Our subject received his educatiun in the 
 public schools of Sciota and at the Macomb 
 Xormal School. He remained at home 
 witii his father until sixteen years of age, 
 and then entered the Chicago College of 
 I'barmacy, where be took a two-years course 
 and was graduateil in 1884. He found em- 
 ployment as prescription clerk in different 
 drug stores of Chicago for nine years, and 
 in 1893 came to Chatsworth, where there 
 appeared to be a good opening and purchased 
 the old established business of H. M. Bangs. 
 Since the store came into his possession he 
 has increased the stock to double the amount, 
 and the volume of business is several times 
 what it was. He carries a complete line of
 
 204 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 drugs,clruggists| sundries, wall paper, paints, 
 oit§,..etc., and is meeting with well deserved 
 snccess. 
 
 Mr. Sullivan was married, Tune 28, 1895, 
 to Miss Mary Eva Smith, a native of Chats- 
 worthj and the oldest daughter of James 
 A. Smith. They have one son, Richard 
 Francis, born June 19, 1896. In his po- 
 litical affiliations, Mr. Sullivan is a Repub- 
 lican, but has never accepted office, though 
 he has been tendered public position, pre- 
 ferring to give his entire time and attention 
 to his business interests. He is a communi- 
 cant of the Catholic church, and a member 
 of the Modern Woodmen Camp, No. 1829, 
 of Chatsworth. 
 
 NELSON BUCK. 
 
 Nelson Buck, deceased, was a well 
 known citizen of Pontiac from 1850 to 1869. 
 He was born in Chemung county. New 
 York, April 10, 1808. and was a son of 
 Aholiab and Annis (Drake) Buck, natives 
 of Chemung county. New York, Init who 
 at a verv early da_\' came west and located in 
 Peoria county, Illinois. On his removal to 
 Illinois, on the present site of the city of 
 Peoria there was only a block house and the 
 place was known as Fort Clark. Aholiab 
 Buck took up a tract of land from the gen- 
 eral government about eleven miles from the 
 present city, which he improx'ecl and on 
 which he resided until his death. His wife, 
 who was a memlier of the Presbyterian 
 church, survived him for some years, dying 
 in i860, at the age of nearly eighty-three 
 years. She was a daughter of Benjamin 
 Drake, a native of one of the eastern states. 
 
 Nelson Buck grew to manhood in his 
 native coimty and there received a gCKxl 
 
 literary and nnisical education, ])eing for 
 Some years a teacher of vocal music. He 
 first married Miss Fidelia W'ithey. of Port 
 Bvron, New York, and they made their 
 home in that place until her death. \\'ith 
 his father's family he then came west to 
 Peoria county, and later married Miss Annis 
 Knapp, daug'hter of James and Margaret 
 (Drake) Knapp, also eastern people from 
 near Homer, New York. She was born in 
 1812. 
 
 After his arrival in Peoria county Mr. 
 Buck learned surveying and followed the 
 occupation of a surveyor during the re- 
 maintler of his residence in that county, do- 
 ing nnich of the early survey work, and 
 being a careful and methodical man the cor- 
 rectness of his lines was seldom cjuestioned. 
 He continued to reside in Peoria county 
 until about 1840, when he moved with his 
 family to Bloomington, McLean county, 
 where he continued to follow his chosen 
 occupation. He also established one of the 
 first nurseries in that vicinity, in which line 
 of business he was quite successful. While 
 residing in Bloomington, in 1844, his wife 
 (lied, leaving five children, Clarissa died, a 
 ytiung, lady, in 1854, in Pontiac. Willard 
 P. was a member of the Forty-seventh Illi- 
 nois \*olunteer Infantry during the Civil 
 war, and faithfully served his country in 
 that terrible struggle for the preservation of 
 the Lnion. He is now a resident of Grand 
 Rapids, Michigan. Cordelia is now the 
 widow of Charles Watson and resides in 
 Pontiac. Alice and Edwin died young. 
 
 iMr. Buck lived in Bloomington and con- 
 tinued his business there until his marriage, 
 in 1850, with Mrs. Maria Fellows, of Pon- 
 tiac. when he removed to the latter city and 
 t<x:)k charge of her estate, which consisted 
 of a farm, hotel and many town lots and
 
 NELSON BUCK.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 207 
 
 undivided real estate in that place. By his 
 sound business judgment he put the estate 
 into good shape antl which later reali2e<l a 
 handsome return. He never would permit 
 a bar to be run in connection with the hotel, 
 but run it on strict temperance principles, 
 li burned down July 9. 1856. 
 
 Mr. Buck's skill as a surveyor secured 
 him the appointment as government sur- 
 veyor in 1869, and he was sent to resurvey 
 the line between Kansas and Nebraska. He 
 left Plattsmouth, Nebraska, July 5. 1869, 
 and was last heard from at Fort Kearney, 
 from which place he started for Fort Mc- 
 Pherson, Init never reached the latter place, 
 being killed by the Indians while <•» route. 
 
 In the various places where he made his 
 home. Mr. Buck became somewhat promi- 
 nent in business, social and musical circles. 
 He was one of the early trustees of the vil- 
 lage of Pontiac, before the present thriving 
 place put on city airs. He tix^k an active 
 part in the prosecution of every moN-ement 
 for the improvement of the village, and 
 much credit is due him for its substantial 
 growth just prior to and after the close of 
 the C"i\il war. 
 
 Mr. Buck never lost his interest in nm- 
 sical affairs and while residing in Bloom- 
 mgton he was one of the most ])rominent 
 musicians of the place. He was a luember 
 of the Presbyterian church, connected with 
 its choir and early introduced a violin as a 
 help to the musical exercises of its services, 
 much to the horror of some of the good, 
 staid old members of the church, a few of 
 whom arose and walked out of the church. 
 On his removal to Pontiac he became prom- 
 inent in musical circles here, as well as lead- 
 er of the choir in the Methodist Episcopal 
 church. Fraternally he was a member of 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
 
 Few men in Livingston county were bet- 
 ter known or held in higher esteem than 
 Nelson Buck, arid his untimely death was 
 mourned not alone by his immediate family 
 but the entire cominunitv as well. 
 
 WILLIAM ROOK. 
 
 William Rook, a thrifty and prosperous 
 farmer residing on section j6. Forrest towu- 
 ship. Livingston county, Illinois, was born 
 October jo, 1821, in Lincolnshire. England, 
 where his [jarents, Thomas and Mar\- (Sut- 
 ton ) Roi^k, sjient their entire li\-es. The 
 father was a prosperous farmer, was a hard 
 working, industrious man. and highly re- 
 siiected by all who knew him. P)oth he and 
 his wife held membership in the church ni 
 England. He died at the age of seventy- 
 five years, and his wife, who passed away 
 several years ])re\ious. died at the age of 
 sixty. ( )ur subject was the oldest of their 
 eight children, four of whom came to this 
 country. 
 
 William Rnuk dbtained his early educa- 
 tion in the cumnmn sclmols of his birth - 
 ])!ace. and reni;iined at home assisting his 
 lather on the farm until 1851. when he 
 emi<''rated to .\nicrica. landing in Phila- 
 delphia July i^). lie first went to Delaware, 
 where he worked on a farm two summers, 
 and then removed to New York state, but 
 remained there only a few months, not being 
 pleased with the outlook in that state, and 
 hearing of the cheap lands in Illinois, he 
 decided to locate here, and on the 8th of 
 October, 1853, he arrived in Peoria comity, 
 where he rented land and engaged in farm- 
 ing for twelve years. For two years he 
 worked bv the month and in 1868 came to
 
 208 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Livingston county, where lie purchased 
 eighty acres of raw land on section 27. For- 
 rest townsliip. This he broke, tiled and im- 
 proved, by the erection of a good residence 
 and large barn, and he still owns the prop- 
 erty. It was his home until 1882. when he 
 purchased one hundred and sixty acres on 
 section j6, the same townshij). and erected 
 another set of farm buildings. He has added 
 other impnn'enients from time to time and 
 now has one of the best farms in his local- 
 itv. He has a pleasant home. Avhich is pre- 
 sided over by his daughter. Mrs. Spray. 
 
 On the 5th of May, 185 1, Mr. Rook was 
 united in marriage with Miss Mary Bickett, 
 also a native of England and the only child 
 of very highly respected parents. She died 
 September 2. 1873. at the age of forty-seven 
 years, and was laid to rest in Forrest cem- 
 eterv. She was a consistent member of the 
 Methcxlist Episcopal church, a woman of 
 many excellent finalities, a devoted wife and 
 loving mother. Hers was a well-spent life 
 and Mr. Rook gives her credit for a large 
 share of his success. She was indtistrions 
 and amljitious and was ever a cheerful help- 
 meet. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Rook were born ti\-e 
 cbiUlren. namely: ( 1 ) Marry, bcjrn in Del- 
 aware, in .Kugust. 1852, is now the wife of 
 George Swartz. a prosperous farmer of Ne- 
 braska, and they have five children. Emma. 
 William. Harry. Clara and OUie. all torn in 
 Livingston county. Illinois, except Ollie, 
 who was born in Nebraska, (j) J- ^^'ill- 
 iam, Iiorn in Peoria countw Illinois, in 
 ]March. 1854, wedded Mary Gouldsbury, and 
 li\-ed on the original homestead of the fam- 
 iiv on section 27, Forrest townsliip. I)ut is 
 now working by the month on a farm in 
 McDonough county, this state. His wife is 
 now deceased, leaving one son, Frederick, 
 
 who was born in F(~irrest townshi]i. and is 
 now sixteen years of age. He is working on 
 l"iis uncle's farm on section 27, that town- 
 sliip. (3) Eliza, born in Peoria county, 
 March 6, 1S36, was educated in the common 
 schools of Livingston county, and was mar- 
 ried. February 4, 1875, to Ephraim R. 
 Sprav, who was born in Fountain count\'. 
 Indiana. February 18, 1850, a son of J. T. 
 and Mary Spray, and died October 18, 1881. 
 He was conscious up to the time of his death 
 and expressed a willingness to die. He was 
 aware of the approach of the end, saying. 
 "Oh. motiier. the great transaction is done, 
 it is all well with me." His remains were 
 interred in Forrest cemetery. He was a de- 
 voted husband and father, and left a wife 
 and three children to mourn his loss. Of 
 the children Mary, born in Livingston coun- 
 ty April 12. 1876. was married. January 12. 
 1898, to Robert McKinley. who is engagetl 
 in farming on a quarter-section of land in 
 Charlotte township. Living'ston county, and 
 they have one child. Clarence, born Decem- 
 ber 26, 1899. John, born June 3, 1878, and 
 Charles, born .\ugust 18, 1880, were edu- 
 cated in the district schools of Forrest town- 
 ship, and are now working u]ion our sub- 
 ject's farm. (4) Thomas, born in Peoria 
 county in October. 1858. married Katie 
 Faragher, of Forrest township, and lives 
 on his father's farm of eighty acres on sec- 
 tion 2/. although he owns a farm of bis 
 own. (5) Sarah, born in Peoria county, 
 died at the age of three years and was buried 
 there. 
 
 Since casting his first presidential vote 
 for Stephen A. Douglas Mr. Rook has af- 
 filiated with the Democratic party, and as a 
 public-spirited citizen he takes an active in- 
 terest in all that tends to the improvement 
 and advancement of the ciMiimunitv in which 
 
 i
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 209 
 
 lie lives. He li.is always lieen a hard work 
 irsf and persevering man. whose spirit was 
 not cast down l)y the hardships of his early 
 pioneer life, and his determination to suc- 
 ceed .soon enabled him to accumulate prop- 
 erty, so that he is to-day one of the pros- 
 perous as well as one of the highly respected 
 citizens of the township. He has many 
 friends and no enemies, and now, at a ripe 
 old age. is enjoying the fruits of his early 
 industry. 
 
 JACOB E. BROWX. 
 
 Jacul) K. Mrown, who is engaged in the 
 general banking business, together with the 
 ii surance and loan business, has been a resi- 
 dent of Li\ingston county since 1857. dur- 
 ing which time he has been an imjxirtant 
 factor in its material growth and j^rosperity. 
 He was born near W'atertown, Jefferson 
 county. New \'nrk, Se])tember 29, 1838, 
 and is the son of 'i'honias Y. and Mary A. 
 (Everett) i'rowu, both of whom were na- 
 tix'es of Xew \ drk, born in the same local- 
 ity, near llrownsville. 
 
 The paternal grandfather of our subject, 
 Ilenr}' county, was born in Bucks county, 
 I'ennsylvania, near the city of f'hiladel])liia, 
 but in an early day moved to Jefferson coun- 
 t\-. Xew York, where he cleared the land of 
 timber and made a farm of eight lumdred 
 acres. The city of Brownsville was named 
 in his honor. There he lived and died. Dur- 
 ing the boyhood of our subject there were in 
 the neighborhood of Brownsville about eight 
 hundred peo])le. o\er three-fifths of whom 
 bore the name of Brown, and all related. 
 
 Thomas Yarley Brown, the father of 
 our subject, was engaged in farming in his 
 native state, a portion of the time in partner- 
 
 ship with his father. For some years he 
 was a brigade commander in the Xew York 
 militia, serving with credit to himself and 
 the state. In 1855 he came west and piu"- 
 chased a large tract of land in what is now 
 (ierman\-ille township. Livingston county, 
 and in 1856 he came out with the intention 
 o* making it his permanent abode. In 1857 
 his wife and family joined him and they took 
 up their residence in a story and a half 
 frame cottage which he had erected for the 
 l)urpose. It was 16.X24 feet and ser\ed as 
 the home for the family a few years, when 
 ii was added to. making a larger residence. 
 On that farm he continued to reside until 
 1S70. when be mo\ed into the village of 
 Chatsworth. where he lived a (|uiet. retired 
 life until his death. February 4. 1899. H's 
 wife is yet li\ing and makes her home with 
 our subject. They were the parents of three 
 children, of whom our subject is the oldest. 
 Sarah .\. is the wife of J. C. Shear, of 
 Onarga. Illinois, where he is living a re- 
 tn-cd life. Mary Frances is the wife of Joel 
 R. .Strawn, who for many _\'ears was en- 
 gaged in I'arming in b'orrest townshi]). but 
 is now li\"ing retired in the \illage of For- 
 rest. Mrs. Mary .\. Brown is now eighty- 
 three years of age and is a well preserved 
 woman. She was a member of the Episco- 
 pal church. Her husband was past e'ghty- 
 eight years old at the time of his death, his 
 father. Henry Brown, also dying at the 
 same age. In politics he was originally a 
 Whig, but later a Republican. In the early 
 days he ser\ed as assessor for some years, 
 and was also a member of the school board 
 for many years, and served for a time as a 
 member of the board of trustees of the vil- 
 lage of Chatsworth. He was a member of 
 the board in Chatsworth when the present 
 school house was erected.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Jacob E. Brown, our subject, was named 
 for General Brown, who was commander-in- 
 chief of the United States army for a time, 
 a man of more than ordinary abiHty. His 
 boyhood and youth were spent in his native 
 county and state, and in the pubHc schools of 
 Brownsville he took his primary course, 
 after which he entered Brownsville Acad- 
 emy, and after pursuing the regular course 
 he graduated therefrom. After coming 
 west he took a commercial course at East- 
 man's Business College, Chicago. 
 
 Coming west with the family Mr. Brown 
 remained with his parents, assisting in the 
 management of the farm until in .\ugust, 
 1862, when he enlisted in Company M. Ninth 
 Illinois Cavalry, and was mustered into the 
 service at Springfield, Illinois. The regi- 
 ment was sent to Chicago, and in November, 
 1862, was sent south, having its first brush 
 with the enemy at Pilot Knob, Missouri. 
 From that time until the close of the war 
 it was in active service. Crossing the Mis- 
 sissippi river at Helena. Arkansas, it took 
 ]iart in many shirmishes from Cairo to 
 A'icksburg, and also around Little Rock, 
 Arkansas, and up the White river, the na- 
 ture of the service partaking of a guerrilla 
 ■warfare. This was the case until the spring 
 of 1864. It was then with the main army 
 through Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, 
 and all through that section until the close 
 of the war. During its term of service it 
 enlisted oxer eight thousand men, but only 
 about six hundred returned home at the close 
 of the war. It was in some very severe en- 
 gagements. .\t La Grange. Arkansas, the 
 division with which it was connected lost 
 o\er two thousand men in an hour and a 
 lialf. 
 
 Mr. Brown entered the service as a 
 pri\ate, but in a short time was appointed 
 
 corporal and later sergeant in his company. 
 On the 19th of November, 1864, with forty- 
 two other men. he was taken prisoner at 
 Shoal Creek, Tennessee, while reconnoiter- 
 ing in front of Hood's army, which was 
 making its advance on Nashville, Tennes- 
 see. He was held a prisoner until March, 
 1865. when he was paroled and sent to the 
 parole camp at Vicksburg. He was impris- 
 oned at Cahaba, Alabama, where ten thou- 
 sand LTnion prisoners were held. While 
 yet a prisoner he was commissioned second 
 lieutenant and was later assigned to the 
 staff of Cienera] Hatch. He was honorably 
 discharged from the service in May, 1865, 
 with the rank of second lieutenant. 
 
 After receiving his discharge Lieutenant 
 Brown returned home and shortly after- 
 ward took the course in Eastman's Business 
 College, as already stated. Completing the 
 course he returned to the farm and continued 
 to be actively engaged in farm labor until 
 1875, having the management of the home 
 farm of over twelve hundred acres. The 
 hard work necessary to the management of 
 such an estate told upon his health, so much 
 so that he was compelled to abandon it, and 
 in January. 1875, he moved to the village of 
 Chatsworth and for a time engaged in no 
 active business. 
 
 On the 16th of January, 1868, ]\Ir. 
 Brown was united in marriage with Miss 
 Elizabeth B. Pope, a native of Kentucky and 
 fourth in order of birth in a family of seven 
 children. Her father, Thomas A\'. Pope, 
 moved from Kentucky to Illinois in 1856. 
 locating in a grove in Ford county, now 
 known as Pope's grove, and which was 
 named for him. There he engaged in farm- 
 ing for many years and then mo\'ed to Piper 
 City, Ford count}', Illinois, where he lived 
 retired and where his death occurred.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Brown were born tliree 
 children. R. Finley, who is engaged with 
 I. IS father in tlie banking business, and who 
 is vice-president of the bank, was a mem- 
 ber of Troop K, First IlHnois Ca\alry. dur- 
 ing tlie Spanisli- American war. W'itli his 
 regiment lie was sent to Chickamauga Park, 
 where he was taken ill and returned home. 
 Later he was sent to Fort Sheridan, where 
 he was honorably discharged and mustered 
 out of the service. He is a graduate of 
 Peeksville, Xew York. Military .\cademy, 
 and also of the Xew \'ork Military .\cadcmy 
 at Cornwall, Xew York. Elizabeth McKee, 
 at home, is a graduate of a female seminary 
 near Peekskill. Xew York. Madge Everett 
 is attending O.xford College at Oxford. 
 Ohio. 
 
 On bis restoration to health, about one 
 year after his removal to Chatsworth, Mr. 
 Bnjwn went into the bank of C. .\. \\'ilson 
 & Comj)any as cashier, and held that posi- 
 tion until 1885, when he purchased the 
 business, and under the firm name of J. E. 
 Brown & Company it was continued until 
 January, 1900, when it was re-organized as 
 the Bank of Chatsworth, with Mr. Brown 
 as president, R. Finley Brown, vice-presi- 
 dent, and Ed M. Reesing. cashier. The 
 bank is doing a verj" satisfactory business 
 and has the confidence of the entire com- 
 munity. In addition to his regular banking 
 business Mr. Brown is agent of some of the 
 leading fire insurance companies of the 
 L'nited States, in which he has placed many 
 policies. He is also interestcfl in farm lands 
 in Illinois, Indiana and Xorth Dakota, and 
 in the latter state has two thousand, five 
 hundred and sixty acres in the counties of 
 Steele and Cass. He was formerly largeiv 
 interested in the Ogallala Land & Cattle 
 Company, importers of Hereford cattle, but 
 
 o'. late years he has confined himself to his 
 private business. 
 
 Mr. Brown is a worker in the Presby- 
 terian church of Chatsworth. in which for 
 many years he has been one of the trustees. 
 Fraternally he is a member of Chatsworth 
 Lodge. Xo. 538, A. F. & .\. M. ; Fairbury 
 Chapter, Xo. 99, R. .\. M.. and St. Paul's 
 Commandery, Xo. 34, K. T.. of Fairbury. 
 He is also a member of E. C.. Trask Post, 
 Xo. 388, Ci. A. R., and was its first com- 
 mander, and has since almost continuously 
 served in that office. In politics he is a 
 Republican and cast his first presidential 
 vote for the great Abraham Lincoln. He 
 has served as a member of the village board 
 of trustees and has been ])resitlent of the 
 same. He also served on the school boanl 
 while residing on the farm. He has, how- 
 ever, ne\ er been a seeker after office. 
 
 As a citizn Mr. Brown has always been 
 enterprising, ready to do his duty when that 
 duty is presented to him. He shipped the 
 first car-load of corn from Chatsworth, go- 
 ing to Oilman to order the car. At that time 
 corn was shelled with a hand sheller, there 
 being no others in use. In the forty-three 
 years in which he has been a citizen of Liv- 
 ingston county rapid changes have been 
 made, the county n(jw ranking with the 
 best in the entire state, with improvements 
 second to none. In all that has been done 
 he has borne well his yrnvt. 
 
 JOSEPH F.\RXEY. 
 
 Joseph Farney, who is successfully en- 
 gaged in agricultural pursuits on section 
 28, Forrest township, Livingston county, 
 Illinois, was born in Lewis county, Xew 
 York, March 16, 1842, a son of John and
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Annie (Zehr) Farney. The father, a native 
 <if Germany, came to the United States at 
 the age of sixteen years and located in Lewis 
 cmmty. New "S'ork, becoming- one of its well- 
 ti >-tlo and prosperous farmers. He died 
 there at aljout tlie age of sixty-three years. 
 His wife is stih living near the old home- 
 stead at the age of eighty years. Our suh- 
 iect is the oldest of their nine children, six 
 of whom survix'e. 
 
 Josepli h'arney remained at home with 
 his parents, assisting in the work of the farm 
 until 1868. when he came to Livingston 
 county. Illinois, and purchased a farm of 
 eighty acres in Forrest township, which he 
 t iperated for ten years. He then bought one 
 hundred and forty acres of h's present farm. 
 which at that time was only partially im- 
 pn)\ed. and to its further development and 
 culti\-ation he has since devoted his energies 
 with most gratifying success. He has ex- 
 tended its boundaries until he now has two 
 hundred and forty acres, upon which he has 
 built a substantial residence, a commodious 
 barn and other outbuildings, and now has 
 line of the best impro\-ed farms in the local- 
 it}-. His success is well deser\-ed. as he is 
 an industrious, enterprising n-ian — (ine who 
 lias helped to make the county what it is 
 to-day, one of the richest farming districts 
 in the state. Besides the \'aluable farni al- 
 ready mentioned he now owns fort)' acres 
 on section 21 and eighty acres on section 
 16, Forrest township. For several years he 
 has held the office of school trustee and has 
 done n-iuch to improve the schools of district 
 Xo. 8. 
 
 On the 1.2th of April, 1871, Mr. Far- 
 ney married Miss Lena Yoder, one of a 
 familv of six children, whose parents were 
 Joseph and .\nnie (Kempf ) Yoder. The fa- 
 ther was l)orn in .\lsace, France, in 182J, 
 
 and when a boy came to America, residing 
 in the New England states until he reached 
 luanhood. Subsequently he made his home 
 in New York state for a number of years, 
 and in the spring of 1867 came to Livings- 
 ton County. Illinois, and purchased a farm 
 in F"orrest township, which he improved and 
 culti\-ated for S(irne time, but the last three 
 V'ears of his life were spent in retirement 
 from active labor in Fairburv. He became 
 (|uite a prominent and prosperous man of his 
 community. He died May 23. 1888, leaving 
 a widow, who is still living, three sons, three 
 daughters and twenty-seven grandchildren. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Farney are the parents of 
 seventeen children, all li\ing with the ex- 
 ception of Lydia, who died at the ag;e of 
 eight weeks. John, the eldest, now twenty- 
 seven years of age, is a farmer in the em- 
 ploy of Mr. Watson, of Forrest township; 
 Samuel works on his father's farm ; Edward 
 operates eighty acres belonging to his fa- 
 ther : Joseph is engaged in farming near the 
 homestead ; Andrew is also an agriculturist ; 
 Rachel, now residing with her father, is the 
 widow of Andrew Weisser, a carpenter, 
 who died May 24, 1899, leaving one child. 
 Aldine, born March 3, 1899; Mina is the 
 wife of Conrad Wenger, a farmer of Fair- 
 bury, and they ha\-e one child, Roy ; Annie, 
 Emma and Elmer, twins, Fred, Malinda, 
 Orviile, Walter, Jess and Arthur are all 
 at home. All were born in Livingston coun- 
 ty, educated in the local schools and live on 
 the home farm or near it. 
 
 A BR AM LOWER. 
 
 ,\hram Lower, a prominent and intluen- 
 tial citizen of Broughton township, residing 
 on section 10, has been a resident of Liv-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 213 
 
 ineston county since tlie spring of i860, 
 and has been actively ident tied with its as;- 
 ricuhural and polit cal interests. He was 
 born in Blair comity, I'eiinsyhan'a, Octo- 
 I)er 10, 1835, a son of Da\ id and Susan 
 (Rhodes) Lower. Tliough in early life the 
 fatiier learned the trades of weaver, carpen- 
 ter and joiner, he followed fanning prin- 
 cipally. On coming to Illinois in 1861 he 
 settled in Livingston county, but two years 
 later moved to Carroll county, and dieil at 
 his home in Lanark, in i88j, at the age of 
 eight V years. His wife surxixed him for 
 some time, dying in December, 1898. at tliL 
 age of eighty-eight years. To them were 
 born ten children, of whom one died in in- 
 fancy. The others were Levi, a \eteran of 
 the civil war, who now li\es in Kansas and 
 whose sons are prominent in banking cir- 
 cles; Samuel, a resident of Dwight. Illinois: 
 Abram, our subject; Catlierine, wife of 
 Samuel McCoy, of Lanark; Kel)ecca. who 
 died in 1864; Martin, who died from disease 
 contracted in the army during the civil war: 
 Anna, wife of John Chestnut, of Adair, 
 Iowa; Leah, wife of (jeorge Weed, of La- 
 n.ark; and Eli L.. who was also one of the 
 boys in blue during the civil war and is now 
 a resident of Lanark. 
 
 .\bram Lower received his education in 
 the common schools of his nati\e state and 
 was reared upon his father's farm. In 1858 
 he came to Illinois and settled on the pres- 
 ent site of Lanark, the locality at that time 
 being unbroken prairie. In i860 he came to 
 Livingston county, where his father had jnir- 
 cliased land, and he undertook the arduous 
 task of opening up the farm, on which not 
 a furrow had been turned nor an improve- 
 ment made. For some time he operated a 
 half-section of land and still owns one hun- 
 
 dred and si.xty acres in the home place on 
 section 10, Broughton township, and eighty 
 acres on section 14, all of which has been 
 under cultivation fur many years and is 
 well imi)ro\ed. In connection with general 
 farming he carries on stock raising and has 
 made a decided success of his life work. 
 
 October 16, i860. Mr. Lower married 
 Miss Catherine Miller, a daughter of George 
 and Margaret (Davis) Miller, natives of 
 Germany and Pennsylvania, respectively. 
 The Miller family made their home in Penn- 
 sylvania until 1834, when the_\- came ti 1 Illi- 
 nois and settled in Carroll comity, where the 
 ]jarents spent the remainder of their lives, 
 the father dying in June, 1877, the mother in 
 December, i8gi. They had thirteen chil- 
 dren, of whom twii died in infancy. The 
 others are still living, uameK' : Mar\- .\.. 
 wife of C. v.. Cross, a veteran (if the ci\il 
 war and a railroad engineer residing in 
 Marion, biwa; Catherine, wife of our sub- 
 ject, who was born .Vugust 7. 1842; Samuel 
 E., a resident of Chenoa. Illinois; Emma 
 R.. wife of Philip Galwicks, of Butler coun- 
 t\'. .X'ebraska ; William .\., a hotelman of 
 Streator; John L., of Beatrice, Nebraska; 
 Martin 1... twin iirother of John L. and a 
 resident of Mt. Carroll; Upton, a magnetic 
 healer; Gertrude, wife of Edward Sullivan, 
 of .Aurora; .\. L., a physician of Dixon; 
 and Margaret, a resident of Rockford. The 
 three \-omigest were biu'n in lllinnis. the 
 others in Peimsylvania. 
 
 Of the twelve children born to Mi", and 
 Mrs. Lower three died in infancy. The 
 others were as follows: ( i ) Maggie is the 
 wife of Walter Morrison, a railroad man of 
 Omaha. Nebraska, and they have four chil- 
 dren : Clarence. Lillie, Eethel and Clara. 
 (2) Augusta is the wife of P. D. (ilnver.
 
 214 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 a farmer of Custer county, Nebraska, and 
 they have seven cliildren : Earl, Fay, Guy. 
 Ruth, Lloyd, Glenn and Rex. (3) Albert, 
 who lives on his father's farm, is extensively 
 engaged in general farming on a half -section 
 of land and also carries on stock raising. 
 He married Mary E. Lorigan, and has five 
 children : Abram, Salisbury, Bernice. .\1- 
 bert and ]\Iadeline. (4) Le Roy, a pros- 
 perous farmer and stock raiser, operating a 
 farm of one hundred and sixty acres in 
 Broughton township, married Hannah E. 
 Morris and has two children, Arthur and an 
 infant. (5) Frank D., also a farmer and 
 stock raiser of Broughton township, married 
 Mary E. \\'eller and has one daughter, 
 Eulalia. (6) ^^Larriette is the wife of Cyrus 
 Hiddleson, of Broughton township, and they 
 have two children. Vera and George. (7) 
 Lillian is a dressmaker residing at home. 
 (8) Grace is the wife of Benjamin Morris, 
 of Round Grove township, and they ha\e 
 one daughter, Lila. {9) Gertrude is at 
 home. 
 
 In politics Mr. Lower is a stanch Dem- 
 ocrat, and his fellow citizens, recognizing his 
 worth and. ability, have often called him to 
 office. He has served as supervisor fi\-€ 
 vears, road commissioner seventeen years, 
 and after assisting in organizing the school 
 district in i860 was made one of the first 
 directors, which office he held for fifteen 
 vears. He assisted in layino- out all of the 
 njads of Broughton township, and did not 
 resign his [KJsition as commissioner until 
 the last mile had been opened up. He is one 
 of the best known men of his community, 
 and that he has the entire confidence and 
 respect of his fellow citizens is manifest by 
 his being called upon to act as guardian for 
 se\'eral children and as administrator of sev- 
 
 eral estates, which were settled up most sat- 
 isfactorily. Since 1894 he has lived a 
 retired life u])<in his farm, surrounded by all 
 the comforts which earnest toil in former 
 vears have Ijrought him. 
 
 ROBERT RUMBOLD. 
 
 Robert Rumbold, who is engaged in the 
 insurance business in Chatsworth, dates his 
 residence in Livingston county from 1856, 
 almost half a centur}'. He was born in 
 Hampshire. England, July 23, 1831, and 
 is a son of Joseph and Martha (Sherman) 
 Rumbold, both of whom were also natives 
 of England, the latter dying there about 
 1845. They were the parents of seven chil- 
 dren, three of whom died in infancy, while 
 the family were yet residing in England, 
 and three died after coming to the United 
 States, so that our subject is the sole living 
 representative of the family. Joseph Rum- 
 bold became a veterinary surgeon in Eng- 
 land, and followed that profession, in con- 
 nection with farming, after coming to this 
 country. Shortly after the death of his 
 wife Joseph Rumbold, Sr., came with his 
 family to the United States, and first lo- 
 cated at Lock-port, Will county, Illinois, but 
 shortly afterward moved to Livingston 
 county and commenced farming near Fair- 
 bury, an occupation in which he success- 
 fully continued until his death, in 1868. 
 
 Robert Rumbold, the subject of this 
 sketch, received his education in the board- 
 ing schools of his native country, and was 
 twenty-one years old when he accompanied 
 his father to the United States. On his ar- 
 rival he engaged in farming, in connection 
 with his father, and thev were extensively
 
 ROBERT RUMBOLD.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 217 
 
 enjjag^eii in tariiiiiig on rented land in Ken- 
 ilall cnunty, until 1836. when they came to 
 Livingston county. Our subject here i)ur- 
 cliased an interest in a quarter section of 
 land near Fairbury and was successfully en- 
 gaged in farming there until iHfxj, when he 
 dis[)ose(l of his interest in that farm and pur- 
 chased eighty acres of his present farm in 
 Chatsworth township, which was then un- 
 improved prairie lantl. This he began to 
 improve and soon had it all under cultiva- 
 tion, and on that farm he has since contin- 
 ued to reside. For some years he continued 
 to superintend the work ot the farm, but has 
 now given its management into the hands 
 ot his son, who is a thorough and practical 
 farmer. 
 
 in 1859, after he had made a start in 
 this new ccnuUr}', .Mr. Rumbold visited his 
 nati\e laud, and while there was united in 
 marriage with Miss Sarah Osmond, who 
 was born, in 1830, in Hampshire, England. 
 With his bride, he returned to his new 
 home, since when he has been identified with 
 the county in many ways. Se\en children 
 came to bless their union, two of whom 
 died in infancy. Of the five living chil- 
 dren, Edward H. resides in West Pullman, 
 where he is engaged in the real estate and 
 insurance business, in which he is making 
 i. success. He is married and lias unc 
 daughter, Esther. Alice M. is the wife of 
 Samuel M. Wilson, and they have one 
 ilaughter, Edna. Their home is also in West 
 Pullman, where he is assisting his brother- 
 in-law in the real estate and insurance busi- 
 ness. .\nn Elizabeth is cashier for her 
 brother in his ofifice at West Pullman. Cecil 
 Robert is assisting his father in the insur- 
 ance business in Chatsworth. Joseph B., 
 who, after leaving school, engaged in teach- 
 ing for one year, is now managing the farm 
 
 of his father, and is doing a successful busi- 
 ness. 
 
 .Mr. Rumbold comnicnccd the insurance 
 business in 18O9 and is now one of the old- 
 est in point of service in this line of busi- 
 ness of any in Livingston county. He has 
 the agency of fourteen of the best tire and life 
 insurance companies in the country, including 
 the Aetna, of Hartford, Connecticut; Home, 
 of Xew York; Continental, of New York; 
 Insurance Company of North America, of 
 Philadeli)hia : Underwriters, of Philadelphia; 
 .\merican, of Philadelphia, and the Wash- 
 iiigton Life Insurance Company. For the 
 last twenty-five years, Mr. Rumbold has 
 given bis entire time to the insurance busi- 
 ness and has built up an excellent trade, 
 ha\-ing many patrons, not only in Livings- 
 ton, but in adjoining counties. He has 
 made a success of the business and deserves 
 all that he has made. 
 
 Mr. Rumbold came to this country at 
 a time when the slavery question was the 
 all-absorbing topic of interest and he be- 
 came a voter just about the time of the or- 
 ganization of the Republican party. With 
 that party he became identified and has since 
 been an earnest advocate of its principles. 
 While he has always manifested a com- 
 mendable interest in the c[uestions of the 
 day, he has never been a politician as the 
 term is generally understood. By his friends, 
 be has been elected and served as assessor 
 of his township, collector, justice of the 
 peace, and is now serving as trustee of 
 schools. He has been a delegate to many 
 county conventions, and also to the con- 
 gressional convention of his party. He is 
 a man ever ready to take his share of re- 
 sponsibility and to advocate any good cause 
 beneficial to the community in which he 
 lives.
 
 2l8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Fraternally. ^Fr. Rumhokl is a Mas(in. 
 first becoming identified with the t)rder 
 while livingr in (irundy county. He is now 
 a member of Chatsworth Lodge, No. 339. 
 A. F. & A. M.: of Fairbury Chapter. Xo. 
 ()g, R. A. M.. and oi Fairbury Command- 
 erv. No. 34. K. T. He is the only living 
 charter member of the blue lodge in Fair- 
 bury. In the ])rincii)les of the order he has 
 ever had an abiding faith, believing them 
 to be beneficial to mankind. On the occa- 
 sion of Mr. Rumbold's" re-election for the 
 twenty-first time as treasurer of the Chats- 
 worth Lodge, he was presented with a beau- 
 tiful gold headed cane bearing the inscrip- 
 tion : 
 
 "Presented December 16, 1S98, to 
 Robert Rumbold at his twenty-first election 
 as treasurer of Chatsworth Lodge, No. 539, 
 A. F. & A. M." 
 
 It is needless to say J\Ir. Rumliold \alues 
 the gift very highly, not for its intrinsic 
 \alue, but from the associations surrountl- 
 ing the gift. Mr. Rumbold has passed 
 through all the chairs of the lodge and is 
 now hokling the office of worshipful master. 
 Reared in the Episcopalian faith, he has al- 
 ways adhered to the teachings of that de- 
 nomination. As a citizen, no man in Li\- 
 ingston county is held in higher esteem. 
 Of a social nature, it is easy for him to make 
 and retain friends. 
 
 :^IICHAEL REISING. 
 
 Michael Reising. engaged in the general 
 mercantile business. Chatsworth. Illinois, is 
 a natixe of Hanover. Bremen, Germany, 
 and was born July 17, 1838. He is a son of 
 George A. and Margaret ( Reising) Reis'ng. 
 
 who, although of the same name, were not 
 related. Both were natives of Bavaria. Ger- 
 many, where they were married. By occu- 
 pation Georp^e A. Re'sing was a farmer in 
 his native land, a xncatum which he follmved 
 throughout life. \\'ith a \'ew of bettering 
 l;is Condition he left the old world, with his 
 familv, when our subject was but a few 
 weeks old. coming to the L'nited States and 
 direct to Woodford coiuUy. Illinois. On his 
 arrival in the latter cnuntx' he jjurchased 
 one hundred and sixty acres of land, only 
 one acre of which had been j)lowed. Clear- 
 ing the land of its timber he commenced the 
 improvement of the farm and later added to 
 its area by the purchase of eiglity acres from 
 the government and forty acres from an- 
 other man. W'itli the exception of two years 
 .spent in Peoria. IlHnois, he spent the re- 
 mainder of his life on that farm, dying when 
 sixtv-one years old. His wife died when 
 she was fortv-seven vears old. They were 
 the parents of six children that grew to ma- 
 turity and two that died in early childhood. 
 Those who grew to man and womanhood 
 were Peter. Adam P.. Mary, iMichael. Eliz- 
 abeth and Annie. All are yii li\ing save 
 I"ilizabeth. 
 
 The subject of this sketch grew to man- 
 h(;od on his father's farm in Woodford coim- 
 t\-. Illinois, aiul as the opportunity was af- 
 forded him attended the common suliscrip- 
 tion school, having to walk a distance of 
 two miles to the school house. He could 
 onlv attend a few weeks in the winter, as 
 his services were needetl on the farm at other 
 times. He remained at home until he at- 
 tained his majority, when he rented land 
 and engaged in farming for himself. After 
 the death of his father he went to Tazewell 
 coimtv. where he rented a farm and engaged 
 in its cultivation for two vears. bVom
 
 THE BIOGRArHICAL RECORD. 
 
 219 
 
 Tazewell he returned to Woodford county 
 and hoiiijlit eighty acres of land near El 
 I'aso. which he farmed for ahout three years. 
 SelKng this place he moved to Claremont 
 county. Ohio, where he remained for four 
 years. He then returned to Woodford coun- 
 ty. Illinois, and engaged in farming f »■ 
 two years. We next came to Chatsworth. 
 Illinois, and purchased the general store of 
 Mrs. Barhara Scherer. and here he has since 
 continued to reside. In 1883 Mr. Reising 
 met with a serious misfortune that left h'm 
 thirty-five hundred dollars worse than pemii- 
 Ifss. hut with that sturdy determination that 
 characterizes the German race he would not 
 own that he was beaten, but jmshed forward 
 ir the face of obstacles that wnuld have dis- 
 mayed almost any other man, and by dint of 
 hard work and perseverance succeeded in 
 again establishing himself in business, .\fter 
 a few years, however, seeing that he was 
 paying out his pnjfits for rent, lie assumed 
 fresh indebtedness and built the fine store 
 building that he now owns. F"ew men could 
 have accomplished what Mr. Reising has. 
 being forced as he was to start over the bat- 
 tle of life at almost fifty years of age. For 
 the i)ast twenty years Mrs. Re'sing has been 
 engaged in the millinery business in connec- 
 tion. She has a good trade and gives sat- 
 isfaction to her patrons. 
 
 On the 24th of January, i860. Mr. Reis- 
 ing was united in marriage with Miss Mar- 
 garet FM'arr. a native of Claremont county, 
 Ohio, and daughter of George I'farr. a na- 
 tive of Germany, who came to this country 
 when a young man, locating in Claremont 
 county, and later moving to Woodford coun- 
 tv. Illinois. Mrs. Reising is one of a family 
 of si.x children, the others being Barbara. 
 Mary. Peter, Kate and John. Of these Bar- 
 bara and Peter are now deceased. Mr. and 
 
 Mrs. Reising have no children of their own. 
 but have an ado])ted .son, Joseph, who bears 
 their name. 
 
 Mr. and .Mrs. Reising are members of the 
 Catholic church, and in politics he is a Dem- 
 ocrat, having voted the party ticket since at- 
 taining his majority. He has served sev- 
 eral terms as a member of the village board 
 of trustees of Chatsworth. but has no in- 
 clination for office holding. He prefers to 
 give his time and attention to his business 
 and work for the interests of the people in 
 selling them goods at living prices. He 
 aims at all times to carry as complete a 
 stock of goods as the wants of the commun- 
 ity will warrant. His residence of twenty- 
 seven years in Chatsworth has made him 
 manv friends. 
 
 RE\'. S.\MUEL ELBRIDGE \'AXXE. 
 
 Rev. Samuel Elbridge Vance, who is now 
 living a retired life in Pontiac. enjoying a 
 well-earned rest, was for many years actively 
 engaged in religious work as a Presbyterian 
 minister. He was born in Paris, Edgar 
 county, Illinois, July 29, 1835, a son of .An- 
 drew Milton and Esther ( Shelledy ) Vance, 
 who were married in that city, of which city 
 iiis paternal grandfather, Samuel Vance, 
 was a prominent pioneer. He was a native 
 of Abingdon. Virginia, and on leaving that 
 state removed to east Tennessee, but as 
 earlv as 1822 he came to Illinois and took 
 u]) his residence in Paris, erecting the sec- 
 ond house in that place. There he engaged 
 in farming throughout the remainder of his 
 life, dying about 1857. at the age of eighty- 
 five vears. He was an elder in the Presby- 
 terian church of Paris for a great many 
 vears, and donated all the brick for the first
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 church of that denomination erected there. 
 He was a life-long Democrat, and in the 
 south liad been a slave owner, but freed al^ 
 his slaves on coming to this state. The fa- 
 ther of our subject was born in \'irginia. 
 in 1809. In 1826 he came to Illinois and 
 followed merchandising in Paris through- 
 out his active business life. He died there in 
 1874, at the age of sixty-four years. He held 
 some minor offices, but never sought political 
 honors, and in politics was a Democrat until 
 the organization of the Republican party, 
 when he joined its ranks, becoming a stanch 
 supporter of its principles. He, too, was an 
 elder in the Presbyterian church for many 
 years, and was a man honored and respected 
 bv all who knew him. The mother of our 
 subject died when he was only twelve years 
 old, leaving three children, of whom he 
 was the oldest. Julia married J. C. CoUom, 
 a merchant of F'aris, and died leaving a 
 family. James A., a resident of Pierce City, 
 Missouri, was a soldier of the civil war 
 and is an attorney by profession. He is 
 married and has a family. 
 
 Our subject remained at home until 
 twenty vears of age, and was prepared for 
 college at Edgar Academy, in Paris. Later 
 he spent one year in Hanover College, In- 
 diana, and then entered Jefferson College 
 (now known as Washington and Jefferson 
 College), Pennsylvania, where he pursued 
 a literary course and was graduated in i860. 
 He was next a student at the Northwestern 
 Theological Seminary, Chicago, and was 
 graduated at that institution in the spring 
 of 1863. He was licensed and ordained by 
 the Presbytery of Palestine, now known as 
 the Presbytery of Mattoon, and his first 
 charge was John Knox church, in Knox 
 county, Illinois. At the same time he also 
 preached in the village of Oneida, the same 
 
 ctiunty. remaining there six years. Subse- 
 (juently he was at Lexington, Illinois, for 
 five and a half years, and from there went to 
 Wisconsin, where he spent sixteen years in 
 the work of the ministry. His health fail- 
 ing him, he went to Kansas, where he re- 
 mained some years, and in 1895 came to 
 I'ontiac, Illinois, where she has since lead a 
 retired life, having never recovered his usual 
 health. 
 
 On the 22(1 of December, 1863, at Mor- 
 ris, Grundy county, Illinois, Mr. Vance was 
 united in marriage with Miss Catherine 
 Erame, a daughter of Rev. Reuben and Mar- 
 garet Stewart (Selby) Erame, and grand- 
 daughter of Captain Selby, who followed 
 the sea throughout life. Eor many years 
 her father was in charge of the Presby- 
 terian church in Morris, but died in Chi- 
 cago, in 1 89 1, at the age of eighty-seven 
 years. His widow is still living in that 
 city at the advanced age of ninety-two years, 
 making her home with a daughter. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Vance have a family of 
 live children, three sons and two daughters, 
 (i) Selby Erame, born in Knox county, 
 November 17, 1864, was ordained a Pres- 
 byterian minister and preached for some 
 years, but is now professor of Greek at 
 Wooster University, Ohio. He is married 
 and has one child. (2) Harriet Shelledey, 
 a native of Knox county, is a graduate of the 
 classical department of Lake Forest Uni- 
 versity, and once held a position in a young 
 ladies" seminary, but for the past five years 
 has been one of Pontiac"s best photog- 
 raphers, having won special praise for her 
 artistic work, especially of babies and chil- 
 dren. She was the first to introduce the 
 platinum finish in the city. (3) Edward 
 Elbridge, a native of Illinois, is a Presby- 
 terian minister of Cooksville, McLean coun-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ty, Illinois, and is now traveling in tlie west 
 on account of ill health. (4) James Milton, 
 born in Lexington, Illinois, is also a gradu- 
 ate of Lake Poorest L'niversivty, and fnr 
 three years taught Latin and Greek in the 
 township high school of Pontiac, but is miw 
 attending the Theological Seminar}' at 
 Princeton, New Jersey, studying for the 
 ministry. (5) Catherine Stewart, Ixnn in 
 ortage county, Wisconsin, is now fourteen 
 years of age and is attending the high school 
 of Pontiac. 
 
 GEORGE ERV. 
 
 (jeorge Fry, the owner nf a good farm of 
 eighty acres on section 29, I'orrest town- 
 ship, Livingston county, is a native of Eng- 
 land, born in dJevonshire, in 1834, and is 
 a son of John Fry. He lost his mother 
 when quite young, but his father, who was 
 also a farmer by occupation, lived to the ad- 
 \anced age of ninety-two years, and was 
 still very active at the time of his death, 
 having a short time before walked a dis- 
 tance of nine miles and sheared forty sheep. 
 Our subject is the youngest of a family of 
 ten children, and he and his brother, Ricii- 
 ard. were the only ones to come to this ci>un- 
 irv. 
 
 George Fry remained in his native land 
 until seventeen years of age, when he crossed 
 the ocean and settled in Lisbon, Kendall 
 county, Illinois, where he worked on a 
 farm and then oprated rented land for seevral 
 years. In 1866 he became a resideiU of 
 Livingston county, and after farming for si.K 
 years in Belle Prairie townshi]), he came to 
 I'orrest township and boui;ht the eighty- 
 acre farm which has been his home ever 
 since. He started out in life as a poor boy. 
 
 but by industry and good management has 
 secured a comfortable competence. 
 
 Mr. Frve married Mrs. Susan Evans, 
 also a native of England, who died nine 
 months later, leaving one child, by her 
 former marriage — William h'vans — now a 
 resident of Kansas. Mr. Fry was again 
 married at the end of four years, his second 
 union being with Mrs. Susan Gas, of Penn- 
 sylvaia, whose first husband was killed in 
 the civil war. She is now seventy-seven 
 ysar of age and although nearly blind and 
 tpiite deaf, she bears up patiently under her 
 afflictions. She and her husband have many 
 warm friends and are highly resi)ected and 
 esteemed bv all who know them. 
 
 HXRV RIXGLER. 
 
 Henry Ringler, a ])rominent business 
 man of Strawn, Livingston county, Illinois, 
 was born in the province of Hersfeld, Ger- 
 many, June 16, 1844, a son of Peter and 
 Gertrude (More) Ringler, who were of 
 pure German ancestry. The mother died 
 in that country at the age of thirty-eight 
 years. She was the third wife of Peter 
 Ringler and the mother of eight sons : Peter; 
 George; one who died in infancy unnamed; 
 Henry and John, twins; William; Fritz and 
 August. With the exception of the one who 
 died in infancy, all came to this country 
 and fi\e are still living. It being the custom 
 from time immemorial for the Kurfusten- 
 tlnim Hessen to give the father of seven suc- 
 cessive sons forty-two dollars, Mr. Ringler 
 received that amount from Em])eror Will- 
 iam, the grandfather of the present ruler of 
 Germany. Of this family Fritz and August 
 are residents of Xew York Citv, and com-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 posed the firm of F. A. Ringler & Company, 
 who have the largest electrotype toiuKlry 
 in the world, employing over one hundred 
 and fifty hands, and are prominent business 
 men of that city. Two years ago they cele- 
 brated the twenty-fifth anniversary of the es- 
 tablishment of their business, and at the 
 World's Fair, in 1893, received the first 
 prize for an engraving of Columbus dis- 
 covering America. They came to the United 
 States in 1867. George Ringler, another 
 brother of our subject, emigrated to Amer- 
 ica in 1858, and also located in New York 
 City, where he was foreman of a brewery 
 for some years, and then, in partnership 
 with another gentleman, engaged in that 
 business on his own account. The business 
 established by him is still carried on under 
 the firm name of George Ringler & Com- 
 pany, its present officers being his son, Will- 
 iam G. Ringler. president : George J. Jetter, 
 vice-president: J. Edward Jetter, secretary 
 and manager, and Henry Hachemeister, 
 treasurer — one of the largest in New York 
 City — and have a large and elegant office 
 at the corner of Ninety-second and Third 
 a\-enue. while their brewery is fitted up with 
 the latest improved machinery and was one 
 of the first to put in operation an ice plant. 
 George Ringler died about ten years ago, 
 leaving an estate valued at over one million 
 dollars. He had two children : William G., 
 mentioned above, and Rose, wife of George 
 J. Jetter. 
 
 In 1869 Peter Ringler. the father of our 
 sul)ject, came to the Uniteil States, and after 
 residing for a time in New York state, came 
 to Livingston county, Illinois, locating in 
 Belle Prairie township, where he engaged in 
 farming, and also contracting and building 
 for a time. He had previously done e.x- 
 tensive business as a contractor and builder 
 
 ol roads and railroads and accumulated a 
 large fortune, which he lost through the 
 schemes of a railroad company. He died 
 in Belle Prairie township, in 1875, at the 
 age of se\enty-two years, and was laid to 
 rest in the cemetery at Fairbury. He was 
 four times married, his last wife being Cath- 
 erine Shirteruff. by whom he had four chil- 
 dren : Peter, now a prosperous farmer of 
 Iowa: Catherine, wife oi Conrad Heppe, a 
 farmer of Chatsworth, Illinois: Anton, a 
 farmer of Cullom. and Lizzie, wife of A. 
 M. Marks, of New York City. 
 
 Henry Ringler was educated in the 
 schools of his native land, and later spent 
 about five years in traveling. He worked 
 for a year and a half at the blacksmith's 
 trade in Germany, and after coming to this 
 country followed the same occupation for 
 several years. He crossed the broad At- 
 lantic at the age of eighteen years, and in 
 1866 became a resident of Livingston coun- 
 ty. Illinois, locating first in Indian Gro\'e 
 township, where he leased a farm of one 
 hundred and twenty acres for six. years 
 Later he rented a farm in Forrest township 
 for four years, and at the end of that time 
 came to Strawn, where he purchased prop- 
 erty, embarking in the grocery business at 
 that place in 1877, and carrying it on seven 
 years. He then purchased a half-section of 
 land on section 3. Fayette township, which 
 he operated eleven years, and then sold, re- 
 turning to Strawn to resume the grocery 
 business, which he has since successfully car- 
 ried on. He is one of the prosperous men 
 of his community, whose success in life is 
 due to his own unaided efforts, good man- 
 agement and sound judgment. 
 
 On the 1st of March, 1868, in Belle 
 Prairie township, Mr. Ringler was united 
 in marriage with Miss Catherine Fox, also
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 223 
 
 a native of (ierinany. and a daugliter of 
 Jacob and Elizalieth (Fry) Vox. who emi- 
 grated to America about 1866, and lived in 
 Cliicago until 1870. Tbeir last years were 
 spent witli oiu' suliject in Livingston cnun- 
 ty, where tiie mother died in 187 J. the fa- 
 ther in 187S. leaving a large family of chii- 
 <lren. To Mr. and .Mrs. Ringler were burn 
 eight children, all of whom are slill living. 
 namely: ( i ) Fritz, who is now foreman of 
 iiis uncle's electrotype foundry, in Xew 
 York, and commanding a high salary, mar- 
 ried Lizzie Shutt, and had one child that 
 tlied in infancy. ( j ) Lizzie is the wife of 
 Thomas Dolan. secretary of the Western 
 L nion Newspaper C(iin])any. nf Denver. Col- 
 orado, and they have twn children, \irgil 
 and Gertrude. ( 3 ) .\ugusl, a successful 
 contractor and builder of Strawn, married 
 Rosa Kuntz. ancl they have four children, 
 Raymond, Dora, Ellen and August. (4) 
 Mary is the wife of D. F. Keller, a printer, 
 of Chicago, and they have one child, \'ert>n- 
 ica. ( 5 ) Henry married Hermine Bousand 
 and is engaged in the saloon business in 
 I'ontiac. (6) George is engaged in the 
 brewery business in Hrookyln, Xew York. 
 ( 7 ) Katie it at home, and ( 8 ) William, also 
 ai home, is clerking in his father's store. 
 All (if the chililren were born in Livingston 
 County, and educated in the townshi]) 
 schools. 
 
 As one <if the leading business men and 
 ir.tluential citizens of Strawn, .Mr. Ringler 
 lias been called upon to fill several imixirtant 
 official positions, the duties of which he has 
 always faithfully and satisfactorily ])er- 
 formed. lie was supervisor of b'ayette 
 township foiu" vears : school director, ten 
 years; a member of the town board a num- 
 ber of years, and is at present police magis- 
 trate of the village, being elected in the 
 
 spring of i()(")o. In politics he is intle- 
 jiendent, voting for the man and not the 
 party, and in his religious connections he 
 and his familv are members of the Reformed 
 Lutheran church, l-'or thirteen vears he 
 was a member of the Independent Order of 
 Odd Fellows, but recently withdrew from the 
 order, though he still holds membership in 
 Sibley Lodge. Xo. j()i. !•". cV A. M. I'ro- 
 gressive and [jublic spirited, he takes a deep 
 interest in i)ublic affairs, and is justly num- 
 bered among the valued citizens of his town 
 and countv. 
 
 REV. j.V.MES j. (Jl"L\X. 
 
 Rev. James J. Ouinn, resident pastor of 
 St. J(^hn's Catholic church, of Chatsworth, 
 \v as born in Tolono, Chami)aign county, Illi- 
 nois, May 16, 1857. and is the second chilil 
 of Patrick j. and Margaret (Doheney) 
 (Juinn, both of whom were natives of coun- 
 ty Tijjperary, Irelantl, and came to the 
 United States when young. For several 
 years the father was successfully engaged in 
 the mercantile business in .Xew N'ork. and 
 while a resident of that city was married, 
 a't St. Peter's Catholic church, ami llarclay 
 street. June 1 1. 1854. Shortly afterward he 
 came to Illinois and located in Tolono. where 
 he opened a general store, being one of the 
 first merchants of that village. While liv- 
 ing there he assisted in building the Catho- 
 lic church and in securing twenty-two acres 
 of land adjoining for church use. Since 
 1883 he has lived a retired life, and has 
 made his home in Danville the last few 
 years. In his family were si.x children, four 
 .sons and two daughters, but the daughters 
 are both deceased, and I'Vank, a successful 
 physician and surgeon, of Peoria, died in
 
 224 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1896. Of those living, James J. is the old- 
 est. John P. is now pastor of St. John's 
 Catholic church of Peoria, where he has be- 
 come prominent as a snccessfnl organizer 
 and builder of churches. Joseph W. is 
 station agent for the Chicago, Milwaukee 
 &• St. Paul Railroad at Milwaukee. The 
 sons were all graduated at Xotre Dame, 
 ('ollege. Indiana. 
 
 Father Quinn. of this review, remained 
 at home until fifteen years of age attending 
 the public schools and worked with his fa- 
 ther in the mercantile business. He also 
 spent two years with a large wholesale firm 
 in Chicago. At the age of seventeen he en- 
 tered Notre Dame College, where he was 
 graduated in law in 1878. and in the clas- 
 sical course in 187Q. For one vear he en- 
 gaged in the practice of law, and then en- 
 tered the Theological Semilary, where he 
 was ordained to the priesthood by Cardinal 
 Gibbons, in 1882, The following year he 
 served as secretary to Bishop Spalding of 
 Peoria, and in 1884 as assistant to Rev. T. 
 S. Ketling of Champaign. From 1884 to 
 1887 he was assistant to Rev. W'eldon. of 
 Holy Trinity church, Bloomington, and dur- 
 ing this time aided in building -several 
 churches, being especially (|ualified for that 
 Avork by the business training he had re- 
 ceived. From 1887 to 1889 he was pastor 
 of the churches at Chebanse and Clifton, 
 Iroquois countv, and the churches at both 
 places were built under his pastorate. In 
 1889 he was given his present charge in 
 Chatsworth, and there again his business 
 ability has been called into play. He pur- 
 chased property and erected a modern brick 
 edifice, also a parsonage and academy, which 
 are now valuetl at o\-er sixty thousand dol- 
 lars. The church is a model affair, being 
 the most substantial and beautiful, as well 
 
 as valuable property, in the Peoria diocese. 
 The furnishings were all imported and the 
 \ery best obtainable. 
 
 The school organized bv Father Uuinn 
 is one of the best in the county, is supported 
 by money collected irom the i)arishioners, 
 and is open to the children of the town and 
 county, while the teachers are among the 
 l)est in this countrv, all talentetl ladies of the 
 Order of Sisters of the Holy Cross of Notre 
 Dame. Father Quinn began work on the 
 church in 1889, and in 1894 the debt was 
 lifted through his skillful management. He 
 also erected the church at Forrest, which 
 property is valued at twenty-five hundred 
 dollars, and in eight months it was dedi- 
 cated and free from indebtedness. He is 
 ri;\ered l)y all his people and is their chosen 
 leader. Through his early experiences and 
 business education he has acijuired a knowl- 
 edge which is invaluable to him as a pastor, 
 bringing him in touch with his congrega- 
 tion, of whom he has the entire confidence. 
 He is also one to whom the town owes much 
 of its advancement, both in business and 
 social life, and his advice is sought by all 
 who know him, both Protestants and Catho- 
 lics. His familiarity with the law and busi- 
 ness affairs gives him a decided advantage, 
 and he interests himself in any enterprise 
 which he believes will benefit the jjcople of 
 his town or countv. 
 
 JOHN A. PETTETT. 
 
 John A. Pettett, a well-known postal 
 clerk in charpe of the sixth division on the 
 Chicago & Alton Railroad, from Chicago to 
 St. Louis, and a prominent citizen of 
 Dwight, Illinois, who has always been es- 
 peciallv acti\e and jirominent in fraternal
 
 J. A. PETTETT.
 
 MISS MATILDA F. PETTETT.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 229 
 
 societies, was born in Hastings, Sussex, 
 I'lngland, December 20, 1846, and is a son of 
 Hein'v and Mary .Vnn (Standin) Pettett, 
 representatives of old EngHsb families. On 
 crossing' tlie Atlantic, the jjarents first 
 located in Canada, but after a sh(M-t time 
 spent there, they went to Tonica, Illinois, 
 and from there came to Dwight, where the 
 father followed his trade of mason until 
 called to his final rest, February 2, 1 892. 
 Jn politics he was a Republican and in re- 
 ligious belief a Methodist. His wife died 
 January 26, 1892. To this worthy couple 
 were born se\en children, three of wluMn 
 died in England during childhood. The 
 others are (ieorge T., a resident of Dwight : 
 John .\., our subject; Henry S., who is 
 living a retired life in Lacon, Illinois, and 
 Howard C, Republican nominee for states 
 attorney of Peoria county, Illinois, in 1900, 
 antl a resident of Chillicothe. 
 
 The boyhood and youth of our subject 
 were passed under the parental roof, and 
 his education was obtained in the common 
 schools. At the age of thirteen he worked 
 in a tailor's shop in his native town of 
 Hastings, and followed that occupation until 
 coming to America, in 1868. Before leav- 
 ing England he was married, in October, 
 1865, to Miss Fannie I-'recnian, a native of 
 Biddenden, England, and a daughter of 
 James Freeman. By this union were horn 
 four children, namely: Matilda F., her fa- 
 ther's faithful and efficient housekeeper; 
 Henry J., who married Xellie Lutz, and is 
 now an employee of the Santa l'"e Rail- 
 road, residing in Streator, Illinois; (Ieorge 
 T.. who is engaged in the InUcher and mar- 
 ket business in Kingfisher, Oklahoma, and 
 Alice E., who died at the age of two and a 
 half years. 
 
 Coming to the United .States in iSdS, 
 
 Mr. Pettett located in Tonica, Illinois. He 
 concluded to try some em])loynient which 
 would give him more outdoor exercise than 
 his trade, and being willing to accept and hon- 
 est and honorable work, he tocik that which 
 was most available, and for some vears was 
 engaged in farm labor, which he found, 
 when i)ursued on the hustling, hurrving 
 [dan of the Illinois farmer, to jiresent (|uite 
 a Contrast to his previous sedeiUary occupa- 
 tion. On the 20th of March, 1870, he came 
 to Dwight and entered the service of the 
 Chicago & .\lton Railroad, being employed 
 for ;il)out ten years in \arious capacities 
 in the round house and as fireman on the 
 road. In 1880 he entered the general bag- 
 gage otifice of the same road at Chicago, 
 where he spent two years, and in 1882 was 
 appointed railway postal clerk from Chicago 
 to Peoria, but after a few weeks was trans- 
 ferred to the Chicago and St. Louis run 
 in the sixth division, which position he has 
 faithfully and efficiently filled for eighteen 
 years. J'"or sexeral years past he has served 
 as clerk in charge of the force on this di- 
 \ision, which is com])osed of three men Jie- 
 sides himself. This dixision is one of the 
 most imporl.mt in the state, being between 
 the two principal cities of the .Mississii)pi 
 valley. 
 
 The greatest misfortune that lias be- 
 fallen Mr. Pettett was the fleath of his wife, 
 who was to him a faithful companion and 
 helpmeet and was beloved by all who knew 
 her. She passed away September 19, 1874, 
 and his ])arents then made their home with 
 him until they, too, were called to their final 
 rest. ]'"or three years he has now been a 
 resident of Dwight and is numbered among 
 its honored and highly respected citizens. 
 His present responsible position indicates 
 the character of his .service and its apprecia-
 
 !30 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tion Ijv tliose cner him. His exacting du- 
 ties have always i)revente(l him fmm taking 
 any active part in nolitical affairs, and al- 
 thdugli lie is an uncompromising siippt)rter 
 of ReiHihlican principles and a worker in the 
 ranks of his party, he has never aspired 
 to political honors. The only public office 
 he has ever accepted has been in connectidu 
 with educational work as a member of the 
 school board, and he resigned that position 
 after serving five years. He is a member 
 of the Hamilton Republican Club, of Chi- 
 cago, and is an active and official member 
 of the Methodist E])iscopal church, of 
 Dwight. 
 
 It IS in social and fraternal matters that 
 Mr. Pettett is Ijest known to the public, hav- 
 ing always taken an active part in such work. 
 He is a thirty-second-degree Mason, a mem- 
 ber of Livingston Lodge, No. 371. F. & 
 A. M.. of Dwight; Wilmington Chapter, 
 No. 142, R. A. ;\I.; St. Bernard Command- 
 ery. No. 35, K. T.. in which he has served 
 as commissary and quartermaster; Chicago 
 Council, No. 4, R. & S. M. ; Oriental Con- 
 sistory, of Chicago, and Medinah Temple 
 of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member 
 of the St. Bernard Drill Corps, which is 
 conceded to be the best in the United States 
 and has wt)n many honors in competitixe 
 exemplification of the work, antl in 189 1 
 he organized Dwight Chapter, No. j66, O. 
 E. S., of which both he and his daughter 
 are charter members, and take an acti\e 
 part in its work. He first joined Blooming- 
 ton Chapter, No. 50, but on account of dis- 
 tance and inconveniences, he set on foot 
 measures which resulted in the organiza- 
 tion of Dwight Chapter, with himself as 
 wt)rthy patron. In this, as in other fra- 
 ternity work, Mr. Pettett has taken much 
 pains and is given high praise by the 
 
 founder of the floral work of the order, 
 tor his inimitable manner of exemplifying 
 the work. His daughter is at present hold- 
 ing the office of worthy matron, antl like her 
 father takes a deep interest in the order, 
 as well as in other society and church work. 
 Both are charter members of Prairie Queen 
 Chapter, No. 370, Daughters of Rebecca, 
 and she has twice served as presiding officer 
 and as representative to the grand lodge. 
 Mr. Pettett is a prominent member of 
 Dwight Lodge, No. 513, I. O. O. F., of 
 which he is past noble grand, and is also 
 past chief patriarch of Pacific Encampment, 
 No. 126. He is a charter member of 
 Hebron Lodge, No. 175, K. P., of Dwight, 
 and for twenty years has been a member of 
 the Independent Order of Mutual Aid. He 
 is the organizer of Pettett Lodge, No. 347, 
 A. O. U. W'., of Dwight, which was named 
 i:i his honor. He was elected the first 
 master xvorkman at its organizatit)n, in 
 March, 1888, and since then has served con- 
 tinuously as deputy grand master and rev)- 
 resentative to the grand lodge. In the work 
 of all these orders he has taken an active 
 and prominent part and stands deservedly 
 high in the esteem of his fraternal brethren. 
 Probably no man in the state is better or 
 more fa\-oral)ly known in fraternal circles 
 than he, and he is also numberetl among 
 the representative citizens of Dwight — one 
 whose genial, cordial nature has made him 
 hosts of friends. 
 
 JOSEPH S. FRANCIS. 
 
 One of the most straightforward, ener- 
 getic and successful business men of Liv- 
 ingston county is Joseph S. Francis, who is
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 23' 
 
 now ])n)niinently and actixely cnnnected 
 witli the commercial iiuerests of Forrest. 
 In the field of husiness opportunity is un- 
 limited. Military and ])olitical life have 
 high honors for hut few. hut in tlie field of 
 trade the possibilities are many, and tlie am- 
 bitious, energetic and determined man ma\ 
 work his way steadily upwaid, attaining a 
 position of affluance and prominence that 
 camniands the respect and admiration of all. 
 This Mr. Francis has won. and the salient 
 features in his success are indefatigalile 
 energy, unt.'ring labor and sound bu.siness 
 judgment. 
 
 He was horn in Jackson township. 
 Brown count}-. Ohio. August iC), 1845. '^ 
 son of John and Margaret ( Ross) h'rancis. 
 The father was horn in county Ca\an, Ire- 
 land, in F'ebruary. 1H12. and when five years 
 of age came to the United States in com- 
 pany with his father. Edward FVancis, who 
 brought his family to this country. The 
 grandfather of our .subject was born in Scot- 
 land and on account of the feudal wars went 
 to England, where he married. He after- 
 ward removed to the luncrald Isle, where 
 he carried on farming. On crossing the 
 Atlantic he located in Brown county. Ohio. 
 where he purchased a farm at a place called 
 Ash Ridge. There he built a good home and 
 became one of the leading residents of the 
 community. He belongetl to the Presby- 
 terian church and died in that faith in 1852. 
 
 John F"rancis was one of a familv of four 
 sons and three daughters. He was reared 
 in Brown county. Ohio, there learned the 
 coo])er's trade, and after his marriage also 
 engaged in farming, making his home in 
 Ohio until i860. In early life he joined the 
 Methodist Episcojjal church and became one 
 of the leading members of his congrega- 
 tion — the Mount Olivet church. The house 
 
 of worship was located on his farm. He 
 ser\eil as class-leader and steward and his 
 home was always the place of entertainment 
 for the ministers who visited in that locahty. 
 .Ml of his seven children were also mem- 
 bers of ih.it church. In his farming opera- 
 tions he was also very successful. He was 
 also recognized as one of the public-spirited 
 men of the community, held a number of 
 offices, including those of school tlirector 
 and supervisor, and faithfuhy discharged 
 every trust reposed in him. On the 16th 
 of .\ugusi. i8_^7, he married Miss Margaret 
 Ross, a nati\e of Ohio and a daughter of 
 Lazarus Ross, who was born in X'irginia 
 and at one time was engaged in packing 
 salt across the mountains to Cincinnati, 
 where he traded it to tiie settlers. He finally 
 located in Claremont comity. Ohio, where 
 his daughter Margaret was horn. Subse- 
 (|uently he moved to Brown county, Ohio, 
 and lived with his children for some time, 
 hut his death occurred in (irant county. In 
 (liana. 
 
 .Ml of the children of Jdjni and Miu"- 
 garet brancis were born in Brown county. 
 ( Jliio. and in i860 the family removed thence 
 to Illinois, the father purchasing two hun- 
 ilred and forty acres of laiul adj(jining the 
 town of I'orrest on tlie south. I lis pioneer 
 home was only ij.\i4 feel, but as time 
 pased he made many sul)stantial improve- 
 ments on his place, erected a more commo- 
 dious residence, and. by additional pu'"- 
 chase. extended the boundaries of his farm. 
 When he came to the county there were but 
 five or six members of the Methodist Epis- 
 a>\rd\ church in tlie locality. He at once 
 identified himself with the earnest little band 
 of Christians, was one of the most liberal 
 contributors toward the building of the new 
 house of worship and was o-ie of the four
 
 232 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 who guaranteed t'^e payment f,>r the huild 
 iug (it ;he chLiroh. His contrihutions to the 
 Avtjrk amounted to three thousand dollars. 
 He ser\-ed as class leader and steward and 
 did all in his power to promote the growth 
 «)f the church. For several years prior to 
 his death he li\-ed in town and devoted most 
 of his time to church work. He was one 
 of the first justices of the peace of his neigh- 
 horhood. elected in 1861, and in that office 
 he served through the exciting period of the 
 war. He was also school treasurer for sev- 
 eral years, and held that office at the time 
 of the erection of the new building. He 
 died September 5, 1893, respected by all who 
 knew him. His widow, who was born 
 January 14, 1814, still survives. They had 
 five sons and two daughters, all of whom 
 are lixing, namely: James G., now of Fair- 
 hury : Edward R.. of Forrest; \\'illiam W'., 
 of Monticello, Indiana; J. S., of this re- 
 \iew : Albert, who is living on the old home- 
 stead ; Emma J., now the wife of H. B. 
 Watson, of Forrest ; and Lydia F., wife of 
 Xathan Hurt, of Oakland, California. 
 
 Mr. Francis, whose name introduces this 
 review, began his education in Ohio. He 
 worked on the home farm through the sum- 
 mer months and in the winter attended the 
 <listrict schools. \\'ith his parents he came 
 to Livingston count}- in i860, and in 1864, 
 at the age of nineteen, he enlisted in Com- 
 pany E. One Hundred and Twenty-ninth 
 Illinois Infantry. He was sent to Chatta- 
 noga and joined his regiment at Atlanta, 
 just before Sherman started on the march to 
 the sea. He took part in that celebrated 
 movement, participated in all the engage- 
 ments of that campaign and was in the 
 (jrand Rex'iew at Washington. He was dis- 
 charged from Company E and assigned to 
 the Forty fifth Illinois Regiment, sent to 
 
 Springfield, and was there paid off anil dis- 
 charged, in June, 1865.' 
 
 For two years thereafter iNIr. Francis 
 remained on the home farm. In 1869 he 
 came to Forrest and was employed as a clerk 
 in a general store until 1871, when he began 
 dealing in general merchandise on his own 
 account, continuing in the business until 
 1876, when he returned to the farm. He 
 then engaged in agricultural pursuits, and 
 in connection with his lirother Albert he es- 
 tablished the first tile factor)- in this part of 
 the state, continuing its operation with 
 marked success until the fall of 1885, when 
 he sold his interest to his brother and came 
 to Forrest. Here he began dealing in coal 
 and feed at his present location. He soon 
 seciu'ed a large trade, and in 1892 he e.x- 
 tended the held of his operations by pur- 
 chasing a half interest in a grain warehouse 
 and elevator. He began buying and ship- 
 ping grain, carrying on a verv extensive 
 business, with Chicago as his market. He 
 afterward became sole proprietor of the en- 
 terprise, which he carried on very prosper- 
 ously until April, 1900, when he sold out. 
 He still deals in coal, feed and stone and 
 takes contracts for stone work and building. 
 His business interests are always carefully 
 directed, and his sound judgment and un- 
 faltering energy ha\-e enabled him to work 
 his way continuously upward. For seven 
 or eight years he has been a director in the 
 Building & Loan Association of Forrest. 
 
 On the 16th of August, 1881, Mr. Fran- 
 cis was united in marriage to Miss Ella S. 
 Williamson, a daughter of William J. and 
 Xancy (Snedeker) Williamson. Her father 
 was from Russellville, Brown county, Ohio, 
 where he spent his entire life, engaged in 
 farming. Both he and his wife were very 
 earnest and ardent members of the Presby-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 233 
 
 terian clnircli of Russellvilie. Unto Mr. and 
 Mrs. Francis liave been born nine cliildren, 
 seven of wliom are livinsj : Luln \\ .. 15erth:i 
 J.. Xancv M.. Mary E.. Josie. La\\ rence 1). 
 and Morris L. l lie two deceased were 
 Walter, who died at the age of fonr years; 
 and Homer, who died when two montlis old. 
 Tiiey have a beautiful three-story brick resi- 
 dence in Forrest — tlie first brick house in 
 the city, anil the household is noted for its 
 charming hospitality. 
 
 His fellow townsmen, recognizing his 
 worth and ability, have frequently called 
 upon Mr. Francis to serve in positions of 
 jiublic trust. He served as highway com- 
 missioner from 1884 until 1898, during 
 which time all of the iron and steel bridges 
 of the township were built. He was a mem- 
 ber of the board of education three terms 
 and was on the building committee when the 
 school-house was enlarged. He and his 
 wife are members of the Congregational 
 church, and he also served on its building 
 committee at the time of the erection of its 
 house of worship. He has twice served as 
 sui)erintendent of the Sunday-school and 
 has always taken an active part in the work 
 of .the church, contributing most liberally 
 to its support, lie belongs to Forrest Post, 
 \o. 114, (]. A. R., has several times been its 
 ctimmander and has been its representative 
 U> encampments. He is a charter member 
 of the Modern Woodmen Camp at Forrest, 
 has six times been its principal ofificer and 
 has twice been delegate to the grand lodge. 
 As has been indicated in this sketch, Mr. 
 Francis is a prominent factor in business, 
 social and political life in Forrest. He 
 withholds his support from no movement 
 or measure calculated to prove of public 
 good, and is indeed a public-spirited and 
 valued citizen; in business his word is as 
 
 good as any bon<l that was ever solemnized 
 by signature or seal; and in private life he 
 has an unassailable reputation, which com- 
 mands the respect and has won him the con- 
 htlence of all. 
 
 WILLIAM LARGE. 
 
 William Large, a representative farmer 
 of Pleasant township, Livingston county, 
 who owns a good farm of one hundred and 
 twenty acres on section 14, was born in 
 England, March 15, 1856, and when a year 
 and a half old was brought to America by 
 his parents, Leonard and Sarah (Mitchell) 
 Large. The family first located in W'ood- 
 ford count}', illinc^is, where the father pur- 
 chased land and engaged in farming for a 
 time, but about 1873 sold that property and 
 bought eight)' acres of land in Pleasant 
 Ridge township, Livingston county, south 
 of our subject's present farm. He im- 
 proved that place and made his home there 
 until death. There the mother is still living 
 at the age of seventy. 
 
 1 he greater part of the education of our 
 subject was ac(|uired in the public schools 
 of Woodford county, though after coming 
 to Livingston county he atended school 
 for four or five winters, his advantages 
 along that line being beter than the aver- 
 age boy of that time. When not in school 
 he assisted in the work of the farm, and at 
 the age of twenty-one commenced operating 
 a farm on his own account, meeting with 
 success from the start. Prior to his mar- 
 riage he purchased his present place, which 
 at that time was only partially improved. 
 He has since built a good house and barn, 
 set out trees and placed the land under a 
 high state of cultivation. In connection'
 
 234 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 with general farming he is engaged in stock 
 raising, making a specialty of hogs. Besides 
 his property here, he owns land in White and 
 Jasper counties. Indiana, wh.'ch he has im- 
 ])r()\ed. and he is acknowledged as one of 
 the most successful farmers of the county. 
 On the 20th of September, 1881, Mr. 
 Large married Miss Clara Sutton, a daugh- 
 ter i)f J. B. Sutton, whose sketch appears on 
 another page of this volume. She died 
 July 3. 1893, leaving four children: Maude, 
 Dw.ght, Marion and Ethel, who have been 
 given good school advantages and are still at 
 home. Mr. Large is an active member and 
 liberal supporter of the Methodist Episco- 
 pal churcli. of which his wife was also a 
 member. He is alst) connectetl with the 
 Court of Honor and affiliates with the Re- 
 publican party. \\'here\er known he is held 
 in high regard and his friends are many 
 throughout the count\'. 
 
 GEORGE W . McCABE. 
 
 George W. McCabe, tiie leading Ijanker 
 of Chatsworth antl one of the representa- 
 tive business men of Li\ingston county, is 
 a native of Illinois, born in Brimtield, Peoria 
 county, March i, 1863. His father, Pat- 
 rick McCabe, was a native of Ireland, and 
 in 1845 came to the United States, landing 
 in New Orleans. During this time he en- 
 listed and served aboiu eighteen months in 
 tlie Mexican war. He settled in Peoria 
 county, Illinois, three x'ears later, but in Xew 
 Orleans he was married, in 1850, to Cath- 
 erine F(l^, who was also born in Ireland 
 and came to America about the same time as 
 her husband. Since his marriage he has 
 made his home permanenty in this state. 
 
 and until 1894 carried on farming very suc- 
 cessfully, though devoting most of his time 
 to the stock business. He came to this 
 ct)untry with the hope of securing a home, 
 and w:th the characterist.c energy of his 
 race he succeeded far beyond his expecta- 
 tions, and was the owner of a well- 
 improved farm of two hundred and forty 
 acres in Peoria county. In 1894 he re- 
 tired from acti\"e labor and moved to the 
 city of Peoria, where he purchased a com- 
 fortable home and resided there until his 
 death, August 14, 1900, at the age of sev- 
 enty-eight years. HiS widow survives him, 
 being se\'enty-one vears of age. To this 
 worth}- coupie were born eight children, of 
 whom fi\'e are st.ll living, namely: Alice 
 is now the widow of J. McClary, of Chicago. 
 Edward D., a graduate of the Michigan 
 L'ni\ersity at Ann .Arbor, and now a promi- 
 nent attorneys of Peoria, has been success- 
 full\' engaged in practice for several years 
 and is one of the best probate and chancery 
 attorneys in the city. He served four years 
 under President Cleveland as government 
 storekeeper at Peoria. Elisha B. follows 
 farming on the old home place in Peoria 
 county. George \\'., our subject, is next 
 in order of birth. Kate E. is at home with 
 her parents in Peoria. 
 
 '1 he early education of George W. Mc- 
 Cal)e was acquired in the common schools 
 of Brimfield, and he later took a commer- 
 cial course at St. Viatur's College at Kan- 
 kakee, and a business course at Bryant & 
 Stratton"s College, in Chicago. During the 
 vear of 1892 he read law with his brother 
 in Peoria, but the following year came to 
 Chatsworth and purchased a lot, upon which 
 he erected a modern fire-proof bank building, 
 beginning work in April and opening for 
 business in October of that year. Almost
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 235 
 
 immetliatcly he secured a liberal patronage, 
 and is nnw dning the leading general hank- 
 ing business nf the community, having as his 
 assistant H. S. Cowling, a jjrominent young 
 man of Chatsworth. He is enterprising, 
 energetic and progressive and has conducted 
 the business for seven years w ithout the loss 
 of a dollar. He is also (juite extensively 
 interested in real estate and loans, and is 
 president of the Peoria & ICastern Telephone 
 Ciim])any. a growing concern, having sev- 
 eral exchanges in the system. In iHqj Mr. 
 McCahe purchased a l<it at the corner of 
 Fourth and Hickory streets and erected a 
 modern residence, fitted with all improve- 
 ments, and one of the handsomest and most 
 con\enient houses in Chatsworth. On the 
 jd of -August, 1900, was incorporated the 
 Com'mercial National Bank of Chatsworth. 
 with capital stuck amounting to twenty-tive 
 thou.sand dollars. i>\ which amount Mr. Mc- 
 Cabe took nineteen thousand dollars. To the 
 new institution he turned over the entire as- 
 sets of his private bank, and it w ;is mainly 
 through his efforts that the bank was organ- 
 ized. Believing that a National bank afforded 
 more security to the depositors of the bank, 
 and would the lietter secure the confidence of 
 the community, he undertook the wf)rl; cf or- 
 ganization and incorporation. This new in- 
 stitution w'ill afford to the citizens of Chats- 
 worthand vicinity every facility for safe 
 banking, and under the general management 
 of Mr. McCabe it will secure the confidence 
 of the community, as he occupies the po- 
 sition of cashier anil general manager. The 
 other officers of the bank are Stei)hen Herr. 
 j)resi(lent; John F. Ryan, \ice-])resident ; 
 and H. S. Cowling, assistant cashier. 
 
 On the jcjth nf September. 1897. Mr. 
 Cabe married Miss Thresa M. Kehoe. a na- 
 tive of Chicago, of which city her father has 
 
 been a ])rogressive merchant for several 
 
 vears. I'v this uninn have been Imrn two 
 children: Katherine (i. and (ieorge K. In 
 polit cs Mr. McCabe is a Democrat '<n na- 
 tional issues, but in local affairs always sup- 
 ports the men best iiualified to fill the offices 
 regardless of party lines. He is a member 
 of the State Rankers" .\ssociation of Illinois, 
 and fur ci\er six years has been a member 
 of the Knights of Pythias Lodge of Chats- 
 worth. in which he has held the office of 
 chancellor commander fur some time. Re- 
 ligious] v he is :i member of Sts. I'eter's and 
 Paul's Catholic church. In manner he is 
 l)leasant and genial, and is (juite ])opular both 
 in social and business circles. 
 
 JOHN' w. i-]:llo\vs. 
 
 John W. b'ellows. one nf the oldest resi- 
 dents of Pleasant Ridge township, Livings- 
 ton county. Illinois, was born in Otisco, 
 Onondaga county. Xew ^■ork, September 
 13, i8jo, a son of Daniel and Jerusha ( Ful- 
 ler) I'elhjws. The father was a native of 
 (ierman\- and a farmer by occupation. In 
 the ciiunty nf his nati\ity nur subject was 
 reared and educated in much the usual man- 
 ner of farmer boys of his day. 
 
 There Mr. I'ellows was married. Oc- 
 tober _'o. 184^1. to Miss Margaret M. Len- 
 son. who was born September 5. 1828. Her 
 father, Nicholas Lenson, was also a native 
 (■f (iermany, and on his emigration to the 
 L'nited States settled in Tully townshi]), 
 Onondaga county. New York. Mr. and Mrs. 
 I'ellows have four children living, nanielv: 
 lames II.. a wholesale dealer and manu- 
 facturer of cand\- in Kankakee. Illinois; 
 Stephen, resident of Watseka; Daniel D., of
 
 23*5 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Wing, and Alfred W'.. who weddeil Mary 
 Tobenski and li\es at liume with his parents. 
 Nicholas A. went south as a foreman in 
 1869 and is supposed to have died of yellow 
 fever, and J. Henry died in W^ing, Illinois, 
 at the age of forty-two years, leaving five 
 children. 
 
 After theif marriage Mr. and Mrs. Fel- 
 lows continued their residence in New York 
 until 1852, when they started west. They 
 made the journey by boat from Bufifalo to 
 Chicago, where they arrived on the 2d of 
 November, that year, when that city was 
 (|uite small, and then drove across the coun- 
 try with a team to Plainfield, Will county, 
 Illinois, where Mr. Fellows engaged in farm- 
 ing upon rented land for seven years. The 
 following two years were spent in McLean 
 county. Determined to have a home, Mrs. 
 Fellows worked hard until she had earned 
 enough to purchase eightv acres of land in 
 Pleasant Ridge township, Livingston coun- 
 ty, to which she still holds the deed. The 
 family located here in 1862, and the logs for 
 their first home were hauled from Avoca. 
 In 1 78 1 a good frame residence was built 
 and is still the home of the family. Mr. 
 Fellows purchased eighty acres of land ad- 
 joining his wife "^property, has tiled the en- 
 tire amount and placed it under a high state 
 «if cultivation. They have planted shade 
 trees and converted the place into a pleasant 
 home. He has always engaged in general 
 farming and has been quite successful. Al- 
 tliough he has never taken a very active 
 part in public affairs, he has served as school 
 director and takes an active interest in all 
 enterprises for the public good. 
 
 Since the age of twelve years Mrs. Fel- 
 lows has been an earnest and consistent mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal church, and 
 has been a subscriber to the Christian Advo- 
 
 cate since the first number of that paper 
 was issued. She is quite fond of reading 
 and is a most estimable lady. She and her 
 luisband have watched with interest the won- 
 derful changes that have taken place in this 
 region since locating here, have seen the 
 wolves, deer and wild turkeys disappear, 
 the railroad, telegraphs and telephones in- 
 troduced, and towns and villages spring up. 
 
 0\VEX MURTAUGH. 
 
 Owen Murtaugh, an honored and highly 
 respected citizen of Chatsworth, is the pos- 
 sessor of a handsome propert}- which now 
 enables him to spend his declining years in 
 the pleasurable enjoyment of his accumula- 
 tions. The record of his life, jjrevious to 
 1890, is that of an active, energetic, meth- 
 odical and sagacious business man, who bent 
 his energies to the honorable accpirement 
 of a comfortable competence for himself and 
 family. 
 
 Mr. Murtaugh was born in county 
 Louth, Ireland, June 8, 1826, and belongs to 
 a race of people who have been renowned 
 for their energy and willingness to brave 
 any danger that they may better themselves. 
 He received his education in the common 
 schools of his native land and remained in 
 Ireland until twenty-six years of age, when 
 he resolved to try his fortunes on this side 
 of the Atlantic. Coming to what was then 
 considered the far west, he located in Bing- 
 hamton, now Aniboy, Lee county, Illinois, 
 befnre the Illinois Central Railroad had been 
 surveyed. He purchased eighty acres of 
 raw prairie land near Sublette, that county, 
 which he partly improved and then disposed 
 of at a profit. He had previously worked as
 
 OWEN MURTAUGH.
 
 
 E '^^^^H 
 
 
 
 REV. WILLIAM M. MURTAUGH.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 241 
 
 a farm hand for some time, and with tiie 
 money tlius obtained he purchaseil that prop- 
 erty. Eater lie purcha.sed a tract oi nuim- 
 proxcd land in Marshall county, where he 
 made his home for .some time. 
 
 While residing there, Mr. Murtangh was 
 married, in 1855. t" Miss Bridget Lawless, 
 also a native of Ireland, and an only daugh- 
 ter, who came to America with her parents 
 in 1849. ''"'1 <l'cd in i8()4. By this union 
 were horn two s(_)ns : William Matthew, 
 horn in i860, took a business course at St. 
 \'iateur"s College, in Kankakee, and began 
 studying for the priesthood at Watertown, 
 Wisconsin, where he remained three years. 
 Later he attendeil school in Montreal, Can- 
 ada, for a year, and was graduated from St. 
 Mar)"s in P>altimore, ^larylainl, being or- 
 tlained to the priesthood at Peoria, Illinois, 
 in 1888, by Bishop Spalding. He served 
 as assistant to l-'ather Hedges, of Pontiac, 
 llliniiis. for cme \car. and for nine years was 
 stationed at Keithsburg, Illinois, where by 
 his business ability and good management 
 he built a fine church and parsonage. In 
 i8y8 he was transferred to Sheffield, and is 
 now doing a good work in improving that 
 parish. Erancis, the younger son, owns and 
 operates a valuable farm of one hundred and 
 si.xty acres in Charlotte township, Liv-- 
 ingston county. He married Sarah Har- 
 rington, and they have four children: 
 Agnes M., Hazel C., Owen W'. and James 
 J. E., all attending the district schools. 
 
 Soon after his marriage, upon seeing the 
 men who were returning from the gold 
 fields of California, and hearing the reports 
 they made, Mr. Murtaugh decided he coidd 
 make money there, being young and strong, 
 as well as willing to brave any dangers that 
 he might add to the comfort of himself and 
 his young wife. After making prepara- 
 
 tions for the journey he went to New Or- 
 leans by way of the Mississippi river, and 
 then crossed the Isthmus, and by steamer 
 proceeded to San Erancisco, where he landed 
 after an interesting voyage of four w'eeks. 
 Eor eighteen months he followed mining antl 
 prospecting, meeting with hardships and 
 encountering many Indians and wild beasts 
 in the mountains. Eeeling abundantly re- 
 paid lor his labors, his thoughts turned to- 
 ward hiime and the bride he had left in Illi- 
 nois, in 1857, by way of the I'anama 
 route, he returned to Marshall county, Illi- 
 nois. In March of the following year, with 
 his family, he came to Livingston county 
 anil purchased a (juarter-.section of land in 
 Charlotte township, which at that time was 
 all swamp and prairie land. The nature of 
 the country is shown by the following ad- 
 \enture which one ilay befell him. He 
 started from Pontiac with alnnU eight him- 
 tlred feet of lumber, but owing to the poor 
 condition of the raods was obliged to throw 
 about half of the load off when half way 
 home, and nearly all of the remainder when 
 within five miles of home, where he arrived 
 on horseback with only a few boards, find- 
 ing that an empty wagon was a load of 
 itself through the swamps. The family 
 camped out for a few weeks until he could 
 erect a cabin. After eleven years of hard 
 labor he succeeded in getting his land well 
 improved. Not having enough land, Mr. 
 Murtaugh sold his farm in Livingston 
 county, in iSOg, and Ijy moving about a mile 
 away purchased four hundred and forty 
 acres in Ford county, which was then but 
 poorly improved, but he soon transformed it 
 into a most desirable farm, and successfully 
 engaged in farming there until 1890. He 
 made a specialty of stock raising, and also 
 bought and fattened stock for the Chicago
 
 242 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 markets, shipping on an average of two car- 
 loads of cattle and the same amount of hugs 
 per year. He met with success in all his 
 undertakings and became one of the well- 
 to-do men of his community. He sold one 
 hundred and twenty acres of his farm and 
 gave the proceeds to his son Francis to give 
 him a start in life, but still retains three 
 hundred and twenty acres, which he rents, 
 it bringing him a snug income. In 1890 he 
 purchased a pleasant home in Chatsworth, 
 for which he paid one thousand dollars, and 
 which he has since greatly improved, and 
 there he is now ii\-ing a quiet, retired life, 
 free from all care and responsibility. 
 
 In 1865, ]\Ir. ]\Iurtaugh was again mar- 
 ried, his second union being with Miss Alice 
 Cleary, who was born in Ireland in 1828, 
 and came to America in 1852. After lix'ing 
 in the east for a time, she came to Will 
 county, Illinois, in 1859, and was living 
 there at the time of her marriage. Three 
 children were born to them, namely : ^lary, 
 who died in 1889; Eugene P., who was 
 killed by the kick of a horse, June 8, 1891 ; 
 and Alice E., an accomplished young lady, 
 at home with her parents. 
 
 In politics Mr. Murtaugh is a Democrat, 
 though he cast his first vote for Abraham 
 Lincoln, and at local elections supports the 
 men whom he considers best qualified to 
 fill the offices regardless of party lines. He 
 has never been radical in his views. Dur- 
 ing his early residence in this county he 
 served as school trustee, and filled the same 
 oiifice in Ford county for twenty-one years, 
 also road commissioner for several years. 
 He is a member of the Catholic church of 
 Chatsworth, and is highly respected and es- 
 .esteemed by all who know him, his pleasant, 
 genial manner wimiing him many friends. 
 In 1873 Mr. Murtaugh returned to Ireland 
 
 to visit the scenes 6i his boyhood, and un his 
 arrival there found that his father. Matthew 
 Murtaugh, had been dead about three 
 months. He spent three months in renew- 
 ing early acquaintances and traveling over 
 Ireland and Wales, and also visiting several 
 places of interest in Scotland. As he ex- 
 presses it, he "went for a good time and had 
 one." 
 
 HARVEY BUTTON. 
 
 There is no rule for achieving success, 
 ^ et certain elements are always found in the 
 accjuirement of prosperity and these are 
 close application, indefatigable energy and 
 sound judgment — -qualities which ha\-e 
 prcjven salient features in the success which 
 has attended the efforts of Mr. Button anil 
 made him one of the substantial citizens of 
 Forrest. From a humble apprenticeship, he 
 has adxanced steadily step by step, until he 
 has long since left the ranks of the many 
 to stand among the prosperous few, and at 
 all times his career has been such as to 
 command the public adimralion and the re- 
 spect and confidence of those with whom 
 he has been associated. He is now engaged 
 in looking- after his real estate investments, 
 including both city and country property, 
 but for many years he was a well known 
 figure in railroad circles. 
 
 Mr. Button was born at Palatine Bridge, 
 Montgomery county, New York, November 
 II, 1838, a son of Jesse and Nancy (\'an 
 Slyke) Button. His father was born in 
 Syracuse, New York, in Marcli, 1820, and 
 the grandfather was Jesse Button, who was 
 probably a native of Syracuse, but was born 
 of English parentage. He became a promi- 
 nent farmer near Syracuse and died in that
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 243 
 
 citv at tlie a(l\ance(l age of eighty vears. 
 The lather of our subject was reared at 
 Syracuse and in early manhood went to Pala- 
 tine Bridge, where he engaged in contract- 
 ing and building. There he married Miss 
 \ an Slyke, a daughter of William \'an 
 Slyke, who was born at Palatine Bridge or 
 in that locality. He was a farmer and a 
 member of the Lutheran church. His father 
 was a native of Holland, but came to .Amer- 
 ica in colonial days and served in the Revo- 
 lutionary war with the colonial army. 
 
 The father of our subject removed to 
 Little Falls, Xew York, about 1849. and 
 there continued contracting and building 
 ifntil he was killed while raising a building, 
 in 1861. He left seven children, of whom 
 our subject was the eldest son and second 
 child. The mother, who lived in Illinois 
 for Slime years, died at Palatine Bridge, in 
 January. i8y8. at the age of eighty, her 
 birth having occurred on the ist of March, 
 18 18. The parents were worthy members 
 of the L'niversalist church. 
 
 Mr. Button, of this review, was edu- 
 cated in his native town and at Little Falls, 
 spending two years in an academy. He 
 then learned the trade of a machinist, serv- 
 ing regular apprenticeship of three years. 
 In 1856, soon after its completion, he went 
 to Detroit, Alichigan, and there began rail- 
 road work, being employed near ^\'indsor, 
 on the construction of the old Great Western 
 Railroad. He was then working on the 
 Michigan Central from Detroit, filling the 
 position of fireman until i860, when he was 
 made an engineer, and ran from Detroit ta 
 Marshall. He served in that capacity for 
 two years, after which he spent si.x months 
 on the construction engine of the Chicago, 
 Burlington & Onincy, running from Men- 
 <lota, Illinois. After the expiration of that 
 
 period he ran from Aurora to Galesburg 
 and Ouincy, being thus engaged until the 
 fall of 1865. He hauled nianv of the sol- 
 diers proceeding to the south. He carried 
 eighteen cars of soldiers out of Quincy one 
 day and another train of eighteen cars fol- 
 lowed. They stopped at Keokuk Junction 
 for water and the second train oertook them. 
 Ihe soldiers had been fooling with the hand- 
 brakes, and Mr. Button told the officers if 
 they did not keep the men away from the 
 brakes they woukl be stopped and the other 
 train would run into them. This did little 
 good and after si.x or seven more miles had 
 been passed, as they were going around a 
 curve near Augusta, the soldiers again 
 .'.topped the train. Mr. Button then jumped 
 off and told the conductor to start the train 
 as soon as he coulil get the brakes ofif, and 
 lie (Mr. Button) would crawl over, the train 
 and into his engine, liis object being to get 
 the brakes off as soon as possible and get 
 out of the way of the other train. He just 
 succeeded in this when the other train came 
 around the curve, and he signalled to the 
 fireman to go ahead and get out of the way, 
 thus saving the lives of many soldiers. Mr. 
 Button then again saw the officers in charge 
 and told them he would not pull out until a 
 guard was put at the brakes. This was 
 done, after which all went well. 
 
 In the fall of 1865 Mr. Button went to 
 Springfield, Illinois, and ran an engine on 
 the Wabash road until the fall of 1880, when 
 he was sent to Forrest to take charge of the 
 shops as general foreman, holding that posi- 
 tion until January, 1893. This is an im- 
 portant shop, in which many men are em- 
 ployed. It was not then finished and he 
 put in the machinery, placing everything in 
 working operation. He had charge of about 
 sixty men and continued as superintendent
 
 244 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of the shops and his retirement from active 
 business labor, other than the supervision of 
 his property interests. Working his way 
 steadily upward, he was familiar with e\ery 
 branch of the work and was therefore very 
 competent to direct the labors of others. 
 He was one of the most trusted representa- 
 tives of the road, enjoying the confidence 
 of the corporation and the respect of all 
 v>'hom he superintended. 
 
 In the meantime Mr. Button had be- 
 come the owner of both farm and town pri_)p- 
 erty, and in addition to his realty in Liv- 
 ingston county, he owns farms in McLean 
 county, Illinois, and also in Indiana. He 
 erected the business block at the corner oc- 
 cupied by the drug store and by the Masonic 
 lodge — one of the best blocks in the town. 
 He has also built a large two-story brick 
 building on the next corner — one of the most 
 modern and improved in the city. Since 
 1893 his attention has been given to the 
 management ui his investments and to real 
 estate dealing. 
 
 While in Mendota Mr. Button was mar- 
 ried on the 24th of December, 1863, to 
 Miss Jennie Jewitt, daughter of Charles 
 Jewitt, who removed to Mendota from De 
 Kalb county, where he had engaged in farm- 
 ing until 1849, ^vhen he went to California, 
 where he remained until 1852. He then 
 engaged in the grain business in IMendota. 
 He had come to Illinois from Yorkshire, 
 England. After his first residence in Cali- 
 fornia, he aeain spent two years there, and 
 then once more livetl in Mendota for a time, 
 Init ultimately removed to Remington, In- 
 diana, where he purchased a farm. The 
 marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Button has been 
 blessed with one child, Clara, now the wife 
 of David T. Torrence, of Chicago. Mr. 
 Button is a Republican in his political views 
 
 anil votes for the men and measures of the 
 party! but has never been an aspirant for 
 ofiice. He belongs to Forrest Lodge, No. 
 614, F. & A. ]\I., and attends and supports 
 the Congregational church. In politics he 
 is recognized as an important factor in local 
 party ranks and has frequently been a dele- 
 gate to county and state conventions. He 
 aided in nominating Governor Fifer, was 
 again a member of the state convention in 
 1892, and supported Governor Tanner's 
 candidacy in 1896. His life has been one 
 of marked industry and usefulness, and in 
 every relation of life he has commanded the 
 respect, confidence and esteem of his fellow 
 men. Always just and upright, ofttimes 
 generous and liberal, ever an advocate of the 
 right, his life stands in exemplification of 
 our highest ty]je of .American manhood. 
 
 \\ILLIA-M A. WILLIAMSON. 
 
 William A. Williamson, one of the high- 
 ly respected and honored citizens of Saune- 
 min township, Lixingston county, Illinois, 
 was born near Russellville, Brown county, 
 Ohio, March 18, 1858. His father, William 
 Williamson, was a native of Fleming coun- 
 ty, Kentuck}-, and a son of John William- 
 son, a Revolutionary soldier, who removed 
 to southern Ohio when his son was only ten 
 }-ears old and there followed farming through- 
 out the remainder of his life. He died at 
 the advanced age of eighty-nine years. The 
 father grew to manhood in Ohio and also 
 followed the occupation of farming in that 
 state until his death, which occurred October 
 20, 1889. He was quite an extensive farmer 
 and served as justice of the peace. In early 
 life he married Nancy Snedaker, a native of
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 245 
 
 southern Ohio and a (laughter of Garrett 
 Sne<laker. who moved from Pennsylvania 
 to tiiat state and was also an agriculturist. 
 Mrs. Williamson now makes her home with 
 our subject. She is a consistent member of 
 the Presbyterian church, of which her hus- 
 band was an elder f(;r twenty years and a 
 Sunday school teacher many years, always 
 liaving taken an active part in church affairs. 
 
 During his boyhood and youth William 
 A. Williamson obtained a good education 
 in the common schools near his home and 
 ;'t Russellville. Ohio. At the age of twenty 
 years he left home and commenced life for 
 himself as a farmer. In 1884 he came to 
 Livingston county, Illinois, and rented a 
 farm in Forrest township for eight years. 
 In the fall of iSgi he purchased his present 
 fiirni III one huntlred and sixty acres in 
 Saunemin township, but did not locate there- 
 on until the spring of 1893. It had pre- 
 \iously been used as a pasture and there was 
 ni)t a single improvement upon it. but he 
 erected a pleasant residence, a good barn 
 and windmill, set out trees, and made many 
 other improvements which add greatly to the 
 value and beauty of the place. 
 
 On the 4th of September, 1884. Mr. 
 W illiamson was united in marriage with 
 Miss Ella Heckert of Forrest, a daughter 
 of Joseph and Margaret (Miller) Heckert. 
 She was reared by E. R. Francis, as her 
 mother died when she was quite young. By 
 this union have been born five children : Ed- 
 ward. Susie and Harry, living, and Morris 
 and Ada. deceased. The parents are both 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 and the family is one of high standing in the 
 community where they reside. Socially, 
 Mr. Williamson affiliates with the Modern 
 W'odmen of .\nierica. and politically, is 
 identified with the Republican party. For 
 
 si.x years he has served as school director, 
 and in 1900 was elected road commissioner, 
 in which capacity he has assisted in making 
 many improvements in his township, includ- 
 iiig the construction of a new bridge over 
 the \'ermilion river at a cost of three thou- 
 sand dollars. 
 
 WILLIAM r. GOEMBEL. 
 
 When after years of long and earnest 
 labor in some honorable field of business, a 
 man puts aside all cares to spend his re- 
 maining years in the enjoyment of the 
 fruits of his former toil, it is certainly a 
 well deserved reward of his early industry. 
 
 •' How blest is he who crowns in shades hke these 
 A youth of labor with an age of ease," 
 
 wrote the poet, and the world everywhere 
 recognizes the justice of a season of rest 
 following an active period of business life. 
 Mr. Goembel is now living retired at his 
 home on section 4, Fayette township. Liv- 
 ingston county, and his history is one that 
 shows the accomplishment of well-directed 
 labor. 
 
 Mr. Goembel was born in Hesse-Cassel, 
 Germany. February 20. 1833. a son of Philip 
 and Caroline Eliza (Stoeber) Goembel, also 
 natives of that country, where the father 
 carried on a damask manufactory for a pe- 
 riod of thirty years. He then came to the 
 United States in 1851, and first settled in 
 Tazewell county. Illinois, where he followed 
 f;irming five years. At the en'd of that time 
 he came to Livingston county, and made 
 his home in the extreme southea.stern part 
 of what was then known as Oliver's Grove, 
 but is now Germanville township, until his 
 death in 1875. In early life he was an in-
 
 246 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 (lustrious. energetic man, hut spent liis last 
 years in retirement from active labor. His 
 wife also died in Germanville township in 
 1872, and they now sleep side by siile. In 
 their family were only two children : ^\'ill- 
 Kim P., our subject; and Caroline, also a 
 native of Germany, and now the wife of 
 Nicholas Froebe, a well-to-do farmer of 
 California, who still owns over two hundred 
 acres of land in Germanville township, Liv- 
 ingston county, Illinois, which he leases. 
 They had six children, namely: William 
 P., a farmer of that township, who died at 
 the age of thirty-eight years, leaving a 
 widow and five children, the former now de- 
 ceased ; Caroline, wife of Plenry Hendricks, 
 a prosperous farmer of Germanville town- 
 ship, by whom she has six chiklren ; ]\Ia- 
 tilda. who married Henr)- Huhimel, a well- 
 to-do farmer of the same townshi]), and 
 diet! in 1896, leaving four children; Eliza- 
 beth, wife of John Hummel, of German\-ille 
 township, by whom she has several children; 
 Emma, who is with her parents in Califor- 
 nia; and Charles, a farmer of that state, who 
 is married and has one child. 
 
 William P. Goembel was educated in 
 private schools of his native land, and ac- 
 companied the family on their emigration 
 to America, remaining with his parents un- 
 til twenty-three years of age, when he com- 
 menced farming for himself in Tazewell 
 county. In the fall of 1S56 he came to Liv- 
 ir.gston coiuit)- and purchased one hundreil 
 and four acres of raw prairie land in (ier- 
 manville township, which he tiletl, broke 
 and improved, making it one of the best 
 farms in that locality. He resided there 
 twenty-four years, during which time he 
 bought a large amount of land, including 
 two hundred and fnrt}' acres in Charlotte 
 township; one hundred and sixty acres ad- 
 
 joining his home farm in (iermanville town- 
 ship, and also property in Chatsworth and 
 Fayette townships, Livingston county. In 
 connection with general farming he devoted 
 considerable attention to the raising of stock. 
 In November, 1880. he moved to the village 
 of Strawn, where he successfully engaged 
 in business as a dealer in grain, lumber, coal 
 and farming implements until 189 1, when 
 he located upon his present farm on section 
 4, Fayette township, making it his home 
 ever since. It consists of three hundred 
 and twenty acres of rich and arable land, and 
 is successfully operated by his sons. After 
 his removal to the farm, Mr. Goembel con- 
 tinued to carry on his business in the vil- 
 lage for a few years, but for the past six or 
 se\en years has lived a retired life. 
 
 On the 13th ni December, 1863, Mr. 
 Goeml)el married IVliss Elizabeth Shroen, 
 also a native of Hesse-Cassel, Germany, 
 born in 1844, on the farm of her father, 
 who spent his entire life on his nati\-e S(_)il, 
 dying there in 1852. Her mother came to 
 this country and died in Fayette township, 
 Livingston county. To Mr. and Mrs. 
 Goembel were born the following children : 
 Catherine is the wife of Nelson Kiner, a 
 prosperous farmer of Marseilles, Illinois, 
 and thev ha\e two children. Earl and Eva; 
 !Mollie is the wife of F. M. Cur3-ea. a farmer 
 of Fayette township; Maggie is the wife of 
 J. I\I. Mahon. station agent for the Big Four 
 Railroad Company at Mansfield, Illinois; 
 John, a farmer of Fayette township, married 
 Laura Welling, and they have two children, 
 ^Marguerite and William P.; Charles N. is 
 living on the home farm; Mary is the wife 
 of C. J. Bartlett, station agent on the Wa- 
 bash Railroad at Mansfield, and they have 
 two children, Clinton and Elizabeth; Will- 
 iam, a farmer of Belle Prairie township,
 
 THE BlOCiKAl'HlCAL RECORD. 
 
 247 
 
 Livingston county, married Ida Vmniger. 
 ;iiul they liave one child: Paulina and Min- 
 nie are Imth at home: and Delia died in Fav- 
 ette township, Septemher 17, 1889. 
 
 The family are members of tlie Clerman 
 Lutheran ciuirch, and Mr. Cloemhel is also 
 a member of Sibley Lodge, V. & .\. M.. ami 
 the Ciiapter and Commandery at I-'airliury. 
 In his political affiliations he is a Democrat, 
 and has taken ciuite an active and influential 
 [)art in local politics. During his entire 
 residence in Strawn he was a member of the 
 village boarol ; was the first supervisor of 
 dermanville township, which office he held 
 for a number of j'ears in that township, and 
 for some time in F"ayette township. He has 
 also served as township treasurer several 
 \-ears and as justice of the peace, and lakes 
 a tleep and commendable interest in i)ublic 
 affairs, doing all in his power to promote 
 the general welfare. 
 
 jOUX THOMAS LOX'I'.LI,. 
 
 Jcilin Thiimas Luvell, nne i>i the most 
 sr.ccessful agriculturists of Broughton t">wn- 
 shi)), Livingston county, and one of its rcj)- 
 resentative citizens, was liorn in ISarnwell, 
 Nortbamiitonshire, England, .\pril 3. 1837, 
 and is a sou of Moses and Mary ( Bowen ) 
 Lovell. Throughout life the father was em- 
 pl('yed as a shepherd in thai cnuiUry. and 
 also as a stacker during barxest. After a 
 long and useful life he died, in 1888. and 
 I'lis wife passed away in 1883. In their f:nn- 
 ily were five chiklren, namely: William, 
 who died at the age of nineteen years: 
 jdhn T., our .subject; James, a farmer of 
 Kniix county, Nebraska: Samuel, a resident 
 of England: and Elizabeth, wife of Henry 
 
 (iolden. a cabinetmaker of that country. 
 Only our subject and James came to the 
 I'nited States. 
 
 John T. Lo\ell was reared on a farm and 
 attended the public schools of his native 
 land. .\t the age of eighteen years he came 
 to America, landing in Xew \'ork, and first 
 settled in Castleton, Rutland county, \'er- 
 mont, where he was in the employ of Dr. 
 Joseph Perkins, a professor in the Burling- 
 t(.n Medical Callege for eight years, work- 
 ing at first for twelve dollars per month. He 
 remained with him until after the civil war, 
 and in 1866 came to Illinois, spending a year 
 and a half in Cirundy county, where he 
 herded cattle or w< irked at anything he could 
 find to do. Sulise(|ueiuly he rented a farm 
 and began life for himself. 
 
 In 1867 Mr. Lovell married Miss Caro- 
 line Coskey, a daughter of John and Eliza- 
 beth (Xooks) Co.skey. The m<ither is now- 
 deceased, but the father is still living at the 
 age of seventy-eight years and makes his 
 h.ome in Braceville, CJrundy county. Mrs. 
 Lovell was born in Lockjxirt. Illinois, in 
 May, 1850, but was li\ing in (irundy county 
 at the lime of her marriage. She is the 
 oldest of a family of eight children, the 
 others being .Mice. Lmm;i. .\larth:i. Louisa, 
 Marv, b'rederick and Charles, a farmer of 
 Sullivan lownshi]), Livingston county. Our 
 subject and iiis wife bad four children, of 
 whom .\lvin died at the age of six- 
 teen years, William, a farmer of Broughton 
 lownshi]). married Lena Trecker and they 
 have two children, John and Frederick, 
 lierlram operates the home farm for his fa- 
 ther. Ollie Mae is the wife of (ieorge Ker- 
 sev, a farmer of Cardriff, Illinois. 
 
 On coming to Livingston county in 1867 
 Mr. Lovell jnirchased forty acres of wild 
 prairie land in Broughton township and has
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 made every improvement upon tlie place, in- 
 cluding the erection of a barn and resi- 
 dence, the planting of an orchard and the 
 tiling of the land. So successful has he been 
 that he has added to his landed possessions 
 from time to time until he now owns six 
 forty-acre tracts, all under a high state of 
 cultivation. In June. 1887, he had the mis- 
 fortune to lose his barn, which was struck 
 by lightning, killing his horses and destroy- 
 ing his hay. His loss, which amounted to 
 about one thousand dollars, was imi1\- partlv 
 covered by insurance. With characteristic 
 energy, however, he at once erected a larger 
 and better barn. He carries on botli farming 
 and stock raising, and has prospered through 
 his own unaided efforts. He is a man of 
 good business ability and sound judgment 
 and well deserves the success that he has 
 achieved. Since 1898 he has practicallv 
 lived a retired life, and has recentlv pur- 
 chaseil a comfortable residence in Cabery, 
 where he e.xpects to make his home and 
 enjoy a well-earned rest. 
 
 In his political views Mr. Lovell is a Re- 
 publican and during almost his entire resi- 
 dence in this county has filled the office of 
 school director in a most acceptable man- 
 ner, having always taken an active interest 
 in maintaining good schools. He also served 
 as constable four vears. 
 
 GEORGE H. CHAPMAX. 
 
 r 
 
 George H. Chapman, a progressive, en- 
 ergetic and successful agriculturist, whose 
 home is on section 12, Odell township, Liv- 
 ingston county. Illinois, is a native of New 
 York, his birth occurring in Ontario coun- 
 ty, January 4, 1851. His parents, Hiraiu 
 
 W. and Ann E. (Davis) Chapman, were 
 born in the same county of good old New 
 England stock, and were farming people, 
 who continued to reside in New York until 
 1855, in which year they moved to La Salle 
 county, Illinois, the father purchasing a 
 quarter-section of land near Marseilles, to 
 which he subsecpiently added another cjuar- 
 ter-section. He speculated in land quite ex- 
 tensi\'ely, and was very successful in his 
 operations, t>wning at the time of his death 
 about fi\-e hundred acres. In political senti- 
 ment he was a Republican, but at local elec- 
 tions \-oted for the man and not the party. 
 Although he was not a member of any 
 church, he gave to their support, and his 
 wife was a member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal church. She died on the old home 
 farm in 1882, at the age of fifty-nine years. 
 'I hree years later he retired from active 
 labor, and died March 2, 1897, at the age of 
 se\'enty-se\en. In their family were six 
 sons and one daughter, of whom two died in 
 infancy. The others are George H.. our 
 subject ; Osmer, who was born in New 
 ^ Ork, and is now engaged in farmmg near 
 the old homestead in La Salle county : Frank 
 O.. who is engaged in farming and the rais- 
 ing of full-blooded Poland China hogs and 
 Short-horn cattle near the homestead: Lu- 
 cina, who died in 1878. sot>n after grad- 
 uating at a school in Battle Creek, Michigan; 
 and Otis, who also lives on the old home 
 farm. Those living are married and have 
 families of their own. 
 
 During his boyhood anil youth George 
 H. Chapman aided in the work of the farm 
 through the summer season and attended 
 school in winter. He remained under the 
 parental roof until he was married. January 
 24. 1877. to Miss Roselle Olmstead, who 
 was bom in Grundv countv, Illinois. Mav
 
 G. H. CHAPMAN.
 
 MRS. G. H. CHAPMAN.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 253 
 
 I, 1S55. a daughter of Andrus and Ann 
 E. (Arcliibald) Olmstead, residents n{ La 
 Salle and C.rundy counties for over fifty 
 years. The mother, who was of Scotch 
 descent, dietl in 1884. but the father is still 
 living at the age of sixty-eight years and 
 finds a pleasant home with our subject, lie 
 hatl four daughters besides Mrs. Chapman, 
 namelv: Mrs. J. E. Fingston. whose hus- 
 bend is a liutcher of Odell ; Mrs. Eliza Lay- 
 man, a resident of Scandia. Kansas ; Mrs. 
 Helen Duttenhavor, who lives near Kent- 
 land. Indiana ; and Mrs. Esther Pope, who 
 died in Odell. in 1883. Of the seven chil- 
 dren, four sons and three daughters, born 
 to Mr. and Mrs. Chajiman. ime died in in- 
 fancy, and Harr\- at the age of nineteen 
 years. Those living are Fred; .Annie: Hat- 
 tie, twin sister of Harry; Ernest and Gracie. 
 They were educated in the Odell high school 
 and the sons are now assisting their father 
 on the farm. 
 
 For one year after his marriage Mr. 
 Cha])man was employed as a traveling 
 salesman. ha\ing previously followed that 
 occupation during the winter for eight years 
 with good success. He lived upon a part 
 of his father's land in La Salle county until 
 the 1st of January, 1883. when he came to 
 Livingston county and purchased one hun- 
 dred and si.xty acres of land in Odell town- 
 shi]), which he improved and transformed 
 into a good farm. Later he bought one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land near 
 Dwight. which he fully improved and after- 
 ward sold, and at one time owned a similar 
 amount in Iowa, which he sold at a good 
 profit. Upon his fine farm in Odell town- 
 ship he has now (in the summer of 1900) 
 erected a commodious and beautiful resi- 
 dence at a cost of thirty-five hundred dol- 
 lars, fitted with all modern improvements 
 
 and finished in natural woods, mostly 
 cypress. It is beautifully located and will 
 he one of the finest homes in the township. 
 In connection with general farming Mr. 
 Chapman has carried on dairying and has 
 also dealt in short-horn cattle, for which he 
 finds a ready sale in the local markets. For 
 the past three years he has lived retired from 
 active labor, but still superintends the opera- 
 tion of his farm. 
 
 .\t notional elections Mr. Chapman sup- 
 ports the Republican party, but in local 
 affairs he votes independent of party lines, 
 sui)porting the men whom he believes best 
 (jualified for office. lie has served as 
 ])athmaster and school director, hut ha:5 
 never cared for political preferment. So- 
 ciallv he is a member of the Independenc 
 Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern 
 Woodmen of America, being chief consul 
 of his camp three years and a charter mem- 
 ber of the same. He is a man of high 
 standing in the community where he lesides, 
 and has many friends both in La Salle and 
 Livingston counties. 
 
 EL\'U-: T. POTTER. 
 
 I':ivie T. Potter, a i)rosperous farmer 
 an<l one of the most popular and in- 
 rtuential citizens of Round Grove township. 
 Livingston county, Illinois, his home being 
 on section 15. was born March 9. 1857. in 
 the house where he still resides, a son of 
 Stephen and Mary .\. ( Killmer) Potter, na- 
 tives of Washington county. New York, 
 the former born .\i)ril 1. 1806. the latter 
 February 2;^. 181 4. In the county of his 
 nati\ity the father was reared on a farm 
 and educated in the common schools until
 
 = 54 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 fourteen years of age,, when he went to Es- 
 sex county. New York, and was tliere mar- 
 ried August 25. 1834. Immediately after 
 his marriage he removed to Cuyahoga 
 ctiunty, Ohio, where he Ijouglit one hun- 
 dred acres of liea\ilv timheretl lanch to 
 tlie imprcn-ement autl cu1ti\ation of wliicii 
 he tle\oted his energies until 1844. when 
 he sold the place and moved to Joliet, 
 Illinois, becoming one of its earl\- pio- 
 neers. Leaving his family in that city he 
 went to California in 1849, ^'""1 engaged in 
 mining for five years with good success. 
 He returned to Joliet in 1854. and in the 
 spring of 1855 came to Livingston county, 
 wliere he purchased a claim, consisting of 
 the south half of section 15, Round Grove 
 township, which at that time was all raw 
 prairie. He erected thereon a story and a 
 half frame house, eighteen by eighteen feet, 
 it being the fifth house in the township and 
 the first frame house, the rest being built 
 of logs along the east branch of the Mazon. 
 He made his home there until his death, 
 which occurred August 31, 1889. and his 
 remains were interred in Round Gro\e cem- 
 etery. He tnnk an actix'e part in public 
 affairs and always supported the Democratic 
 party. He was one of the leaders in organ- 
 izing his town, and held most of the town- 
 ship offices. He was especially actixe 
 in school matters, having assisted in 
 organizing the school districts and build- 
 ing the first frame house. Inuring the 
 most of his life he was a meiuber of the 
 school board, serving as either director or 
 trustee. His wife is still lixing antl now re- 
 sides with a daughter in Dwight. His 
 parents, Thomas and Wealthy ( W'eller) 
 Potter, were also natives of New York, 
 while the former was of English and the 
 latter of German extraction. 
 
 The subject of this sketch is the }-(iung- 
 est in a fanfily of eight children, the others 
 being as follows: Charlotte B., born Octo- 
 ber 17, 1835, married Jesse Eldred, of 
 Round Grove township, and died leaving 
 fi^ur children : Cora, wife of Anthony Kern. 
 of Streator, Illinois: L. J., a resident of 
 Stockton, California ; Stephen, of San Fran- 
 cisco ; and Minnie, wife of William Farrar, 
 of Peru, Indiana. (2) Mary died in chikl- 
 hood. (3) George W., born October ly, 
 1839, is connected with the Enterprise Man- 
 ufacturing Company, of Joliet. He married 
 Emma Godfrey, of Du Page county, IIli- 
 niiis, and they have three children : Edna, 
 wife of Roy Hess, of Joliet ; Pearl and Ciaire. 
 (4) ^largaret S. is living with her mother 
 in Dwight. (5) Reuben K.. horn September 
 26, 1844, was telegraph operator and sta- 
 tion agent at Dwight and Joliet for many 
 years, and died July 7, 1885, unmarried. 
 (6) Albert, born December 3, 1847, wa^ 
 engaged in detective work for some years, 
 and is now servmg as deputy sheriff of 
 Miami county, Indiana, his home being in 
 Peru. He married Louisa Hubbanl. of 
 Round Grove township, this county, and 
 has tme son, Guy E. (7) Alanson, born Oc- 
 tober 2-j, 1855, died January 28, 1858. 
 
 Elvie T. Potter grew to manhood on the 
 old homestead and was educated in the dis- 
 trict schools of the neighborhood. His 
 brothers had all left home by the time he 
 was fifteen years old, and he was therefore 
 his father's (_)nlv assistant in his extensive 
 farming and stock raising operations. For 
 ten years prior to his father's death our sub- 
 ject had entire charge (.>f the place, and 
 since then has purchased the interests of 
 the other heirs in the farm, consisting of 
 two hundred anil forty acres of rich and 
 arable lanil. He has engaged extensivelv
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 255 
 
 ill feeding cattle and raising Hambletonian 
 liorses, and was actively engaged in agricult- 
 ural pursuits up to within the last two years, 
 when he leased his land, though he still re- 
 sides thereon. 
 
 .\t the home of his father. .-\])ril 22. 
 188C), Mr. Potter wedded Miss Mary (ilover, 
 a popular and successful teacher, who taught 
 school in this and Grundy counties for ten 
 \'ears jirior to her marriage. Her parents 
 were Samuel L. and Martha J. (Dunn) 
 (ilover. also early settlers nf this county. 
 their home being in Broughton township. 
 Her father was a native of Xew \'nrk. her 
 mother of Pennsylvania, where their mar- 
 riage was celebrated. They are now resi- 
 dents of Xel)raska. and Imth here and in 
 that state. Mr. Glover has taken an active 
 part in jniblic affairs, serving as sujiervisor 
 and school trustee. He is a Republican in 
 politics, and in early life was a member of 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and 
 was active in organizing the (irange. In 
 his family were the following children : 
 Deett. wife of Warren McKae. a tarmcr of 
 Custer county. Nebraska; Mary, wife of 
 our subject : Grace, wife of E. \' . Sparks, 
 a ranchman and teacher of Trapahoc c unity, 
 Colorado; Henry B., who is at home with 
 his ])arents in Custer county, Nebraska ; 
 Percy 1)., who married Augusta Lower, of 
 Broughton township, this county, and is 
 now living in Custer county, Nebraska; and 
 Sidney L., a carpenter, who is li\ing with 
 our subject. 
 
 Mr. Potter las always taken an active part 
 in political affairs and is a stanch supporter 
 of tlie Democratic party. The first office he 
 was called u])on to fill was that of township 
 collector, in which capacity he served his 
 fellow citizens from 1887 to 1894, inclusive. 
 Pie was also elected supervi.sor of his town- 
 
 ship in 1887 and held that office for eight 
 consecutive years, at the end of which time 
 he declined a re-nomination. For several 
 years there had been no opposing candidate, 
 antl when there was he was always elected 
 by a large majority. I ie served on the equali- 
 zation ccinimittee his entire term; was chair- 
 man of the judiciary committee two years, 
 and was also a member of the committees 
 on education, fees and salaries, auditing, 
 jail and jail acounis. During his admin- 
 istration the new county house was erected. 
 I'or sixteen years he has served as school 
 director in district No. 5. In 1892 he re- 
 ceived the Democratic nomination for the 
 legislature, and. notwithstanding the large 
 Republican majority in other nortions of the 
 district, he received a \ 1 ite sut^icient tt) make 
 his campaign a wortliy one as an inde.x to 
 his popularity and ab-lity. In all the rela- 
 tions of life he has been found true tt) every 
 trust reposed in him, and commands the 
 respect and confidence of all with wliom he 
 comes in contact, either in jnililic or private 
 life. Socially he is a charter member of 
 Campus Camp. No. 2019, Modern W oodmen 
 of America. 
 
 ALI'.KRT J. SXb:VD. 
 
 Albert J. Sneyd. one of Clial>wi;rtir-; 
 representative business men and most pro- 
 gressive citizens, was born in Lockport, Illi- 
 nois, July 19, 1867, a son of Josei)h and 
 Mary ( Kobliska) Sneyd, natives of .\ustria, 
 who came to America with their resi)ective 
 parents when about fourteen years of age. 
 The families settled near Lockport. Illinois. 
 where the grandparents of our subject d-x<\ 
 soon afterward. There the father worked 
 as a farm hand for eleven years, and after 
 his marriage moved to Ashkuni. Illinois.
 
 256 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wliere he ]nircl:ase(l and iniprcned a lialf- 
 secticm (if land. He was successfully en- 
 gaged in general farming and stock raising 
 until his death, which occurred in 1890. 
 His wife died at the home of our subject in 
 Chatsworth in 1896. Both were members of 
 the Catholic church and he was a Democrat. 
 l)ut never took any active part in politics 
 aside from x'oting. 
 
 Albert J. Snevd grew to manhncid on the 
 home farm, aiding his father in its opera- 
 tion and attended the public schools of Ash- 
 kum. On leaving the farm in 1893 '''^ came 
 to Chatsworth. where, in partnership with 
 Charles Burns, he embarked in the hardware 
 business, purchasing the stock of E. A. Jack- 
 son. Under the firm name of Sneyd & Burns 
 they successfully carried on business for six 
 years, during which time they enlarged their 
 stock, as well as increased the volume of 
 trade. In the spring of 1899 Mr. Sneyd 
 sold his interest to Mr. Burns, who still 
 continues the business, and for a year lived 
 retired, but in the spring of 1900 he pur- 
 chased a lot, upon which he erected a com- 
 modious warehouse and stocked it with a 
 full line of buggies, wagons, planters, and in 
 fact all kinds of heavy and light farm ma- 
 chinery and implements. He has made a 
 decided success for the first season's venture 
 in the new enterprise, for, being among 
 the well-known and reliable business men of 
 the town, he has secured a liberal share of the 
 public patronage. He not only owns his 
 present place of business, but has a half 
 interest in the building where he was for- 
 merly engaged in the hardware trade, his 
 home property in Chatsworth and a fine 
 farm of one hundred and ten acres on sec- 
 tions 16 and 17. Ashkum township, Iro- 
 quois county, which was part of the old 
 homestead. 
 
 On the J^i\ of May, 1894, Mr. Sneyd 
 was united in marriage with Miss Annie E. 
 Phillips, who was born in Chebanse, Illinois, 
 October i, 1869, a daughter of Thomas and 
 Kate (McGlone) Phillips. Her father is 
 now deceased, but her mother is still living 
 and resides on the old liome farm near Ash- 
 kum. To Mr. and Mrs. Sneyd have been 
 born two children : Francis and Leo Al- 
 bert, bright children, who are the jov of the 
 home. The parents are both members of 
 the Catholic church and Mr. Sneytl is also 
 a member of the Modern Woodmen Cam]), 
 No. 1829, of Chatsworth. Politically he 
 affiliates with the Democratic party. He 
 is wideh' and favorably known and in social 
 as well as business circles stands deservedly 
 hieh. 
 
 WILLIAM D. McMILLAX. 
 
 William D. McMillan, the well-known 
 Forrest, Illinois, and a member of the vil- 
 lage board of trustees, is a native of Liv- 
 ingston county, born in Rooks Creek town- 
 ship October 5, 1846, and is a son of Will- 
 iam and grandson of Andrew McMillan. 
 The father was born in Jonesville, Lee coun- 
 ty, Virginia. September 27. 1802. and there 
 grew to manhood upon his father's farm. 
 He came to Livingston county, Illinois, as 
 early as 1834, and located in Rcxiks Creek 
 township, when the Indians were still liv- 
 ing in this region. Here he took up a large 
 tiact of government land, about four hun- 
 dred acres, which he improved, retaining 
 most of it until his death. He became one 
 of the most prominent and influential citi- 
 zens of his community, in politics was first 
 a Whig and later a Democrat, and held the 
 office of justice of the peace from the earliest
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 257 
 
 recollection of our subject. In 18.^8 he mar- 
 ried Eliza Breckenridge. a daughter of Rob- 
 ert Breckenridge, who was also one of the 
 pioneers and land holders of Rooks Creek 
 township, ha\ing come here from near Sar- 
 dinia. Brown county. Ohio, about the same 
 time as Mr. .McMillan. By this marriage 
 were horn four chiklren. three nf whom 
 are still li\ing. one of these being our sub- 
 ject. The mother, who was a member of 
 the Methodist church, died in 1849. ''"^l ^lie 
 father subse(|uently married her sister. Mrs. 
 Anna .\nderson. He died in June. 1864. 
 honored and respected by all who knew him. 
 
 The earl}- education of William D. Mc- 
 I^Iillan was acquired in the common schools 
 of RcK)ks Creek township, and he remained 
 at home until his father's death. Desiring 
 a better education he sold forty acres of the 
 iiomc farm, and after gi\ine his mother 
 her dowry used the remainder in paying 
 his expenses at Eureka College. Having 
 thus secured a good practical education he 
 returned home and engaged in farming until 
 1870. when he went to Pontiac. The fol- 
 lowing year he commenced learning photog- 
 raphy and devoted iiis attention to that art 
 until 1874, when he entered the service of 
 the United States Express Company at Pon- 
 tiac. A year later he was transferred to 
 SpringficUl, and in 1880 was made express 
 messenger on the Forrest and Streator train 
 of the Wabash Railroad. On the ist of 
 June. 1893. he was appointed agent at For- 
 rest, where tlie company does a large lousi- 
 ness, as the town has two lines of railroad. 
 The position is therefore one of much re- 
 sponsibility, and he discharges his duties 
 in a most creditable and satisfactory man- 
 ner. 
 
 On the 8th of .April, 1876. Mr. McMillan 
 married Miss Laura Harper, of Livings- 
 
 ton county, who was born in Waynestown, 
 Indiana, a daughter of John Harper, an old 
 resident here, who settled in this county 
 w hen Mrs. McMillan was only six years old. 
 By this union have been born five children : 
 Ira Douglas (decea.sed). Frederick \V., 
 -Artie Ray (deceased). Leslie C. and I'.dna 
 E. The parents are both members of the 
 .Methodist Episcopal church, in which Mr. 
 McMillan is now serving as steward. He 
 cast his first vote for the Democratic party, 
 but since then has been a stanch Republican, 
 though he has taken no active part in politi- 
 cal affairs. While a resident of Rooks 
 Creek township he filled the office of col- 
 lector, and without his knowledge he was 
 nominated as a member of the city council 
 on the no-license board in 1899 ''"'-1 elected 
 l)y a good majority, though he made no ef- 
 fort to secure the ofifice. During his term 
 the board has done considerable toward 
 street improvements, which have greatly 
 pleased the people of the town. Fraternally 
 Mr. McMillan is a member of the Modern 
 Woodmen of America and the Independent 
 Order of Odd Fellows. 
 
 JOHN ELLIXGER. 
 
 John I'Jlinger, a ])rominent tarnicr of 
 section 35, Pontiac township. Livingston 
 county, comes from the fatherland, and 
 the strongest and mostcreditable character- 
 istics of the eutonic race have been inarked 
 elements in his life and have enabled him 
 to win success in the face of opposing cir- 
 cumstances. He posses.ses the energy and. 
 determination which mark the i:)eople of Ger- 
 many, and by the exercise of his powers 
 has steadily progressed, and has not onl}- 
 won a handsome competence but has com-
 
 258 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 manded universal respect liy his straight- 
 forward business methods. 
 
 Mr. Ellinger was born in \\'urteniluu-o-, 
 Germany, October i6, 1849, ^ son of George 
 and Carrie D. (Keibler) Ellinger, life-long 
 residents of that place and active members 
 of the Lutheran church. The father was a 
 farmer and -land owner and was one of the 
 highly respected men of his community. 
 He died in 1893, the mother about eight 
 years before. 
 
 Our subject obtained a good practical ed- 
 ucation in the public schools of his nati\e 
 land, and at the age of fifteen went into 
 the \illaee of Oppenweiler, which was near 
 lus father's home, devoting a year and nine 
 months to learning the baker's trade. Not 
 liking the business, he decided to try his 
 fortune on this side of the Atlantic, and 
 celebrated the seventeenth anniver:-ary of his 
 birth on board a vessel bound for America. 
 His ticket ttiok him to Washington. Illinois, 
 where he borrowed three dollars with which 
 to proceed to Peoria, from a fellcv.- passen- 
 ger, his own means being exhausted by this 
 time. He secured work on a farm near that 
 city, \\h.ere he remained for some time, and 
 with his employer went to Peoria, work- 
 ing for him two years, but his wages v,ere 
 never paid for the last six months. Secur- 
 ing an old h.orse he again started for the 
 country and after spending a few weeks in 
 El Paso, he hired out to a farmer north- 
 west of that place for one }-ear. Later, 
 being refused the privilege of attending 
 church, he entered the employ of a neighbor, 
 for whom he worked until fall. He was 
 employed in that neighborhood for five 
 years during which time he managed to 
 save enough money to start in life for him- 
 self, renting eighty acres of land in Ford 
 county for two years. 
 
 In the meantime Mr. Ellinger was mar- 
 rried, July 27, 1870, to Miss Sophia Muel- 
 ler, a native of Pennsylvania, and a daugh- 
 ter of George Mueller, who with his family 
 moved from that state to Indiana and later 
 to Illinois. To our subject and wife have 
 been born twelve children, namely : Carrie, 
 now the wife of John Schaffer of Eppards 
 Point township, Livingston county; Lizzie, 
 wife of William Schaffer, of the same town- 
 ship; George, wlio married Maggie Young, 
 and also li\es in Eppards Point township; 
 John, who married Alta Porter and resides 
 in Pontiac : Emma, wife of Edward Greid- 
 ner of that city ; Katie, William, Christian, 
 Arthur, .\lbert, Frank and Robert, all at 
 home. 
 
 In 187J Mr. Ellinger came to Living- 
 ston county and successfully engaged in 
 farming upon rented land in Saunemin 
 township two years, at the end of which 
 time he purchased eighty acres of land in 
 that township, but hard times coming on, 
 he lost it, and again rented a number of years, 
 one year being spent in Sullivan township. 
 and ten on one farm in Owego township. 
 Subsequently he bought eighty acres in Char- 
 lotte township, which he soon sold to ad- 
 \antage, and then came to Pontiac town- 
 ship, where he rented a half-section of land 
 one }-ear. It being sold at that time he had 
 to UKive, and in 1893 he purchased his pres- 
 ent fine farm of two hundred and forty 
 acres, one and a half miles from Pontiac, 
 for which he paid ninety-two dollars and a 
 luilf per acre. It is one of the finest and 
 most productive farms in the county, and 
 is well improved with good buildings. In 
 connection with general farming, Mr. Ell- 
 inger gives considerable attention to the 
 raising of cattle and hogs. While a resi- 
 dent of Owego township he bought a half- 
 
 1
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 259 
 
 section of land in Minnesota, for which he 
 paid cash, and whicli he held until 1899. 
 
 In 1899 Mr. Ellinger returned to his old 
 home in Germany to visit his father. Since 
 the age of nineteen years he has been a mem- 
 ber of the Evangelical church, and he and 
 his family are now connected with the church 
 at Eppards Point. He is a Republican in 
 politics but has never been an aspirant for 
 office, thougii he served as school director 
 three vears. 
 
 Cll.VRLES T. BURNS. 
 
 Charles T. Burns, who is engaged in 
 the hardware business in Chatsworth, 
 Livingston county, has been one of the 
 leading business men of the city since 
 1893. He commenced business as a junior 
 member of the firm of Sneyd & Burns, Xo- 
 \ ember 29, 1893, and that relation was con- 
 tinued until 1899, when his brother, Thom- 
 as, purchased the interest of Mr. Sneyd, and 
 the business has since been conducted under 
 the firm name of Burns Brothers. 
 
 Charles T. Burns was born in Chicago, 
 Illinois, June 11, 1863, and is the son of 
 Thomas and Eliza (Gallagher) Burns, both 
 of whom were born in Ireland, and both 
 coming to this country in childhood, the 
 former locating in Boston, ^lassachusetts, 
 and the latter in Chicago, Illinois. In his 
 youth Thomas Burns learned the ship car- 
 penter's trade, which he followed for some 
 j^ears, and until coming west and locating 
 in Chicago, where his marriage with Miss 
 Gallagher was celebrated. He is now en- 
 gaged in farming in Iroquois county, Illi- 
 nois, which has been his home for some 
 years, and where he owns a farm of two 
 hundred acres of well improved land. In 
 
 his family were nine children: Charles T., 
 the subject of this sketch ; James, living on 
 a farm in Iroquois county; Anna, living at 
 home; Mary, who resides in Chicago; 
 1 homas, now in partnership w.th our sub- 
 ject; Kate, wife of O. Ergang, who is in 
 the postal service in Chicago, which is their 
 home; Walter, in a grain office in Ashkum, 
 Illinois; Terrence and William, at home with 
 their father. The mother of these children 
 died in 1886. She was a devout member of 
 the Catlii)lic church, in which faith she died. 
 
 The subject of this sketch grew to man- 
 hood on the farm in Iroquois county, and in 
 its public schools received his education, 
 which was supplemented by one term in the 
 commercial department of the Northern In- 
 diana Normal School at \'alparaiso, Indi- 
 ana. He remained at home until he came 
 to Chatsworth in 1893 and embarked in his 
 present business. Success has crowned his 
 efforts, and in addition to his stock of hard- 
 ware, paints, oils, etc., he owns residence 
 property in the city and an interest in the 
 store building occupied by himself and 
 brotlier. The firm carry a fine stock of goods 
 and have an excellent trade, wdiich e.xtends 
 many miles into the surrounding country. 
 
 In politics Mr. Burns is a Democrat in 
 national affairs, but in local matters he votes 
 for the best man for the office regardless of 
 party ties. By his fellow citizens he has 
 been honored with local office, having served 
 as alderman for five successive years. As a 
 member of the board he has shown himself 
 a progressive citizen, advocating every meas- 
 ure proposed that seemed beneficial to the 
 best interests of the place. He was interested 
 in the putting in of brick walks, the building 
 of the bell tower, the improvement of the 
 water works, and the erection of the new 
 brick city hall. He is chairman of the fire
 
 26o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and water committees and a member of the 
 finance committee and other committees. He 
 is also a member of the volunteer fire com- 
 pany. 
 
 Eraternally Mr. Burns is a member of 
 Camp No. 1829, Mcodern Woodmen of 
 America, and religiously he is a member of 
 the Catholic church. As a citizen he is en- 
 terprising and loyal to his adopted city and 
 county. 
 
 CAPTAIN HENRY FOX. 
 
 Captain Henry Fox, a gallant ana fear- 
 less officer of the civil war, and now a prom- 
 inent citizen of Dwight, Illinois, was born 
 in Wurtemburg. Germany, October 4, 1833. 
 He was educated in a college near Stutt- 
 gart, taking a literary course, and on leav- 
 ing school entered a general mercantile 
 establishment, where he served a three- 
 years' apprenticeship and was then granted 
 a diploma. He remained with that firm 
 two years longer and then entered the em- 
 ploy of a commission house, where he con- 
 tinued to work until his emigration to the 
 United States in 1854, landing in New 
 York city on the day he attained his ma- 
 jority. 
 
 Business being dull there, Mr. Fox pro- 
 ceeded to Milwaukee, \\'isconsin, where he 
 clerked in a wholesale dry-goods house for 
 two years, and while there served as second 
 lieutenant in the \Visconsin Mihtia. His 
 company was sent to Madison on the in- 
 stallation of a new governor, in January, 
 1856, they having much the same trouble 
 as has recently been experienced in Ken- 
 tucky. The incumbent of the office denied 
 the validity of the claimant and who had 
 the certificate of the canvassing board and 
 
 refused to give up the office. This was the 
 Bash ford and Barstow contest which cre- 
 ated great excitement throughout the coun- 
 try at the time. In September, 1856. Mr. 
 Fo.x went to St. Louis, where he engaged 
 in clerking for a short time, and then re- 
 moved to Mt. Pulaski, Logan county, Illi- 
 nois, where he was employed in the general 
 store of John ^Mayer, who was engaged in 
 business there for many years, and was one 
 of the first settlers of Logan county. While 
 there Air. Fox married his empkiyer's 
 daughter. Miss Alagdalene Alayer, Septem- 
 ber 10, 1857. After his marriage he was 
 engaged in business for himself at Mt. Pu- 
 laski a short time, but in the spring of 1861 
 removed to Lincoln, Illinois, where he was 
 living at the outbreak of the civil war. 
 
 In August, 1862, Mr. Fox enlisted as 
 sergeant in Company H, One Hundred and 
 Sixth Illinois \'olunteer Infantry, and was 
 mustered in at Lincoln, being ordered to 
 Jackson, Tennessee, in September. In refer- 
 ence to his service we quote the following 
 from the Chicago Inter-Ocean : "A Sol- 
 dier's Brave Deed. In the later part of 
 December, 1862, when a small detachment 
 of soldiers was scattered along the line of 
 the railroad from Columbus, Kentucky, to 
 Holly Springs, Mississippi, guarding the 
 bridges and trestle work, the following in- 
 cident took place, which for cool coiu'age 
 excelled anything that came to my attention 
 during my three years' service. After the 
 capture of Holly Springs, Mississippi, Gen- 
 eral Forrest's cavalry made a raid north- 
 ward upon this line of railroad and captured 
 every station between Jackson, Tennessee, 
 and Columbus, Kentucky, exceut a small 
 detachment of about seventy-five men who 
 were guarding the bridge and the long tres- 
 tle work across the Obion river about ten
 
 HENRY FOX.
 
 i
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 263 
 
 miles north uf Jackson. This detachment 
 was composed of parts of Companies H and 
 I, One Hundred and Sixth lUinois Infantry, 
 and commanded l)_v Captain 1'. \\ . Harts, 
 now of Springfield, Illinois, and Captain 
 John Slmckey. now of Pappinsville, Mis- 
 souri. Alter the attack on Jackson and the 
 capture of Colonel Ingersoll and a part of 
 the Eleventh Illinois Cavalry, a detachment 
 of some five hundred of Forrest's cavalry, 
 with two pieces of artillery, was sent by 
 General Forrest against this handful of men 
 guarding the Obion bridge. The Federal 
 guard had hastily made rude breastworks 
 directly under the bridge, determined to 
 make the best possible defense. Promptly 
 at I o'clock on December 23, before the 
 l)reastw(_)rks were completeil, this station 
 north of the river were surroundetl by these 
 five hundred rebel cavalry, who, after mak- 
 ing a great display on horseback, riding 
 round in a circle three or four times, thus 
 making believe that the whole of Forrest's 
 cavalry was present, dismounted and made 
 a desperate etYort to capture the guard and 
 destroy the britlge and trestle-works in order 
 to break the railroad communication with 
 Jackson, Tennessee. Here the unequal bat- 
 tle raged until the middle of the afternoon, 
 the shrieking shells and the swishing bul- 
 lets crashed through the heavy bridge tim- 
 bers with which the breastworks were made. 
 Capture seemed inevitable. Reinforcements 
 could only be hoped for from Jackson. It 
 was decided that some one should venture 
 to leave the fort, climb the open trestle some 
 fifteen feet high and run over this, about 
 one hundred and twenty rods, then through 
 the timber toward Jackson, to secure rein- 
 forcements. This task was solicited by 
 Sergeant Henry Fox, of Company H. Hand 
 over band he gained the top of the bridge, 
 
 and then with a regular double-cjuick step, 
 he ran from tie to tie across this dreadful 
 line, the enemy from both sides of the road 
 sho(jting at him, but while his cl()thes bore 
 ample evidence of the danger he had run, 
 he was untouched. Fortunately, the fire 
 from the breastworks was too dangerous to 
 permit the enemy to bring then" artillery 
 through the woods within close range of the 
 fort and from the distance the heavy tim- 
 ber olistrucied the effectiveness of the 
 shot and shell. The station was not cap- 
 tured, the bridge was saved, reinforcements 
 arrived after dark, and after the enemy had 
 withdrawn and left their dead in the farm- 
 iiouse on the hill. Sergeant Fox, after call- 
 ing for reinforcements, returned alone, mak- 
 ing the run of nine miles in one hour and 
 forty minutes." This article was written and 
 signed by David Harts, captain of Company 
 C, One Plundred and Sixth Illinois Volun- 
 teer Infantry. For this gallant service our 
 subject received a medal from congress with 
 the following inscription; "The congress 
 of the United States to Serg't Henry Fox, 
 Company H, One Hundred and Sixth Illi- 
 nois Infantr)-, for gallantry near Jackson, 
 Tennessee, December 23, i86j." In Janu- 
 ary, 1863, he was detailed as recorder of 
 military commission at Memphis, and in 
 May was appointed by General Hurlbut as 
 captain of the Fifty-ninth Regiment United 
 States Colored Troops, being mustered in 
 as such June i, 1863. He participated in 
 the battles of Parker's Cross Road, Gun- 
 town and Tupolo, and went on to the ex- 
 pedition of Oxford. In April, 1865, l^c was 
 detailed as acting assistant inspector gen- 
 eral of post and defenses at Memphis, Ten- 
 nessee, and was on the staff of Brevet Major- 
 General A. L. Chetlain. In July, 1865, he 
 was detailed on the staff' of Major-General
 
 264 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Jolin E. Smith, United States Army, in the 
 same capacity, for the district of Tennessee, 
 and was finally mustered out on the last day 
 of January, 1866. 
 
 Returning to liis home in Lincoln, Illi- 
 nois, Captain Fox worked in the lumher 
 office of BufYham & Company for a year and 
 a half, then for Elliott & Company in the 
 same business until New Year's Day, 1869. 
 By his doctor's advice, he then removed to 
 a farm in Logan county, which he had pur- 
 chased alxuU a year previous, hut as his 
 health did not improve, in May, 1874, he 
 nioxed to Dwight. Illinois, where he has 
 since had charge of William Ccully's lands, 
 consisting of several thousand acres, which 
 he has managed in a most creditable and 
 satisfactory manner. 
 
 To the Captain and his wife were born 
 eight children, namely : Frederick W., 
 whn died in February, 1897, at the age of 
 forty years, leaving a widow and two chil- 
 dren : Henry, who has charge of a large 
 tract of land for Mr. Scully in Nelson, Ne- 
 braska; Anna E.. wife of Benjamin Show- 
 waiter, of Davenport, Nebraska; Lydia L., 
 who is teaching in the public schools of 
 Dwight; Louis E., a resident of Kansas 
 City, Missouri; Susan M., who is an artist 
 of superior ability and is now giving paint- 
 ing lessons in Dwight and neighboring 
 cities : Pauline E., bookkeeper and cashier 
 for Miller Brothers, at Dwight; and Daniel 
 S. Fox, who was born in Dwight, Illinois, 
 January 27, 1876, and was educated in the 
 city and high school. He was then with 
 his father until the time of his enlistment, 
 April 26, 1898. in Company A, Third Illi- 
 nois Cavalry, for a term of two years. The 
 regiment was organized at Springfield, Illi- 
 nois, from which place it was sent to Chick- 
 amauga, where, on the 6th of July, 1898, he 
 
 was appointed corporal. From Chicka- 
 mauga the regiment was sent to Porto Rico 
 with Alajor-General Brooks, it being his 
 guard. With his regiment Daniel S. re- 
 mained until after the close of hostilities, 
 when it returned, and he was honorably dis- 
 charged at Streator, Illinois. January 20, 
 1899. and returned to his home, and is as- 
 sisting his father in the business. The 
 mother of these children died October 7, 
 1879, and was buried in Dwight. Captain 
 Fox was again married, October 28, 1880, 
 his second union being with Miss Hattie A. 
 Chamberlain, who was born near Syracuse, 
 New York, and came to Illinois in 1873. 
 Her father, William Chamberlain, never 
 came west. She has proved a true helpmeet 
 to her husband and a devoted mother to his 
 children, who were young when she married 
 him. 
 
 Captain Fox is a prominent member of 
 several civic societies, including Livingston 
 Lodge. No. 371, F. & A. M. ; Wilmington 
 Chapter, No. 142, R. A. M. : Streatur 
 Council, R. & S. M. : Blaney Command- 
 ery. No. 5, K. T., of Morris, Illinois ; 
 Dwight Lodge, No. 513, and Dwight En- 
 campment. No. 126, I. O. O. F., of which 
 fraternitv he has been a member for forty- 
 two years. In the subordinate lodge he has 
 served as noble grand, and is now past chief 
 patriarch of the Encampment. He is also 
 an honored member and past commander of 
 Dwight Post, No. 626. G. A. R., and a 
 member of the Military Order of the Loyal 
 Legion. Politically he is a stanch Repub- 
 lican, but at local elections, when no issue is 
 involved, he votes independent of party 
 lines. He has ever taken an active and 
 prominent part in local politics, and has been 
 a member of the town board four times and 
 served as mavor of Dwight two terms. He
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 265 
 
 has ever manifested tlie same loyalty in days 
 of peace as in time of war, and by all who 
 know liini is held in high regard. 
 
 SAML'EL A. LEISEROW ITZ. 
 
 Samnel A. Leiserowitz. a prominent 
 citizen of Cnllom. and a member of the well- 
 known firm of Leiserowitz Brothers, general 
 merchants of Cnllom, Herscher and Cabery, 
 Illinois, was born in Sarle, State of Korne, 
 Rnssia, Jnne 21, 1861. His father. Mendel 
 Leiserowitz, a rabbi and school teacher of 
 that country, has been active in church work 
 since seventeen years of age and for the 
 ])ast fifty-three years has engaged in preach- 
 ing and scluM)! teaching. He is very well 
 educated and is a well known expounder of 
 the Hebrew faith. He has preached in 
 Sarle, Moscow, and manv smaller ]jlaces in 
 Russia, and while visiting in this country 
 ])reached and taught school in South Chi- 
 cago for four years. His father, Moses 
 Leiserowitz, was also a rabbi and school 
 teacher, and died while reading the Bible 
 at his home in Yurgenborg, Russia, at the 
 age of eighty-three years. To the parents 
 of our subject were born eleven children, 
 six of whcim are living, and one of the 
 numl)er is still living in Russia taking care 
 of the parents. Those in .\nicrica are : 
 Tane L.. who is engaged in general mer- 
 cantile business in Kempton, Illinois: L. L., 
 who is engagetl in the painting business in 
 Chicago ; Samuel .\., our subject ; Wolf, 
 ]>artner of our subject and a resident (i 
 Herscher, Illinois; and Simon, who conducts 
 the store for his Ijrothers at Cabery. 
 
 Samuel .\. Leiserowitz attended school 
 in his native land, but his earlv education 
 
 has been greatly supplemented by reading 
 and observation in later years. .\t the age 
 of twehe years he began his business career, 
 being employed in the office of a dealer in 
 grain and all kinds of produce until he at- 
 tained his majority. He then entered the 
 Russian army. December i. 188 1, and served 
 until August I. 1886. He was first a mem- 
 ber of the Twentieth Foot Division, but on 
 the 1st of August. 1882. was transferred to 
 the brass band, his instrument being a 
 French horn. .\s a common soldier he re- 
 cieved ninety cents pay every four months 
 or two dollars and seventy cents per year, 
 but being promoted to what corresponds 
 to our corporal his salary was raised to 
 four dollars per year. In giving a dcs- 
 cri])tion of the Russian army Mr. Leisero- 
 witz says: "Besides their high salary the 
 .soldiers were given their clothes, consisting 
 of one overcoat made of material resembling 
 horse blankets, an under coat of a finer 
 grade of goods, a cap and trousers made of 
 t^ie same material. These were supposed 
 to last two years with exception of the trous- 
 ers which were worn a year. Vests were 
 not worn in the scr\ice. Each .soldier re- 
 ceived a pair and a half of leather boots 
 each year, the leggings of the first pair do- 
 ing service for the second. For under and 
 o\er wear linen similar to course towling 
 was furnished. For hosiery the same kind 
 of goods was used, and instead of being 
 drawn on the feet was wrapped around. Mit- 
 tens and neckties were of black blanket 
 goods, and the ties were worn as Catholic 
 l)riests wear them. Out of their salaries 
 the soldiers have to pay for making their 
 boots and underwear . buying blackening for 
 shoes and belts and oil for guns. Each are 
 given .seventy cents extra for incidentals, but 
 this with their salarv does not half cover
 
 266 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 their expenses. They are given three pounds 
 of rye bread a day and six cents in money 
 to pay for other food, but when a company 
 is stationed at one place the money goes 
 into the general fund for cooking purposes, 
 amounting to six dollars for one hundred 
 men per day. Each soldier gets about a 
 half pound of beef and soup, which is made 
 of barley broken up and boiled with the 
 meat. This they have for dinner and sup- 
 per, while for breakfast they have only 
 bread, salt and water — plenty of water but 
 not always salt. A mess of ten or fifteen 
 men arc given a wooden pail in which the 
 soup is served. They carry a red wooden 
 spoon in their boot leg and with these each 
 dip into the bucket as they have no other 
 dishes, knives or forks. After the meal 
 however, they are generally as happy as 
 larks, singing and dancing. The higher 
 officers are treated as ours are. 
 
 When his term of service expired, Mr. 
 Liserowitz received a recommndation from 
 his general testifying to his conduct, temper- 
 ate habits, and general behavior and that 
 should he again desire to enter the army he 
 was to be taken back at one hundred and 
 twenty dollars per year. Returning to his 
 home, he remained there until January i, 
 1887, when he sailed from Hamburg by way 
 of Li\'erpool for New York. He proceeded 
 at once to Chicago and on the train met a 
 conductor, who was a relative of his father 
 and who took charge of him, seeing that 
 he got to his brother all right. He remained 
 about twenty-four hours in Chicago. His 
 money by this time was exhausted but he 
 finally found a relative who let him have 
 enough to go to Danforth, Illinois, where 
 his brothers Wolf and Tane were then liv- 
 ing. A week later the brother Wolf ordered 
 for him a stock of goods amounting to little 
 
 over forty-nine dollars, and with this he 
 started out as apeddler with his pack upon his 
 back. His brother drove a team and went 
 a couple of miles ahead toward Cullom their 
 destination. Our subject met with most 
 excellent success from the start and at the 
 end of three weeks was able to buy a horse 
 from Frank Drendel, living east of Cullom. 
 for which he paid eighteen tlollars, to be 
 taken out in trade. He then went to Dan- 
 forth where his brother Tane was living 
 and bought a wagon. With horse and 
 wagon he traveled for one year, and at the 
 end of that time he and his brother Tane 
 bought property in Cullom, where they suc- 
 cessfully conducted a pool and billard hall 
 one year. On selling out, in 1889, he and 
 his brother Wolf started a store with a small 
 stock of goods costing about two thousand 
 dollars, and later took in another partner 
 B. Brode, who was a member of the firm 
 for about a year, but this venture did not 
 prove a success, as three families could not 
 live oiT the profits of the small store. The 
 brother then went to Herscher, where he has 
 since prospered, but our subject remained 
 in Cullom, where he rented a building of 
 J. \y. White for two years, and then of 
 Walter Rider of Saunemin for five years, 
 but at the end of five months he purchased 
 the latter, which he subsquently enlarged. 
 Later he bought a house and lot adjoining, 
 sold the house and moved the oldest store, 
 and erected a double store building, 40x120 
 feet, and half of which is two stories in 
 height, the other one story. He has stead- 
 ily prospered and has never yet had occasion 
 to regret his emigration to the new world. 
 In March, 1899, he and his brother W'oli 
 formed a partnership, and under the firm 
 name of Leiserowitz Brothers have the larg- 
 est stores at Cullom and Herscher, and also
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 267 
 
 have a good store in Caherry, the building 
 also being owned by them. To-day they are 
 numbered among the most successful and 
 progressive business men of this section. 
 The Cullom store is in use as a department 
 store, having added hardware, paints, wail 
 paper and undertaking in addition to the 
 general line handled before. There is a 
 special department of silverware, jewelry, 
 clocks and watches. A watchmaker of thirty 
 years experience. Mr. Lawrence Holland, 
 is in charge of this department. He for 
 the past twelve years has been a resident of 
 Cullom. 
 
 In August, 1886, Mr. Leiserowitz mar- 
 ried Miss Golda S. Cohn, and to them were 
 born se\-en children, but tlie three oldest 
 died in infancy. The other.-;. Joseph, Jane, 
 Isadore and Esther, are all attending school. 
 In politics Mr. Leiserowitz is a Republican, 
 and in his social relations is a member of 
 Saunemin Lodge, Xo. 728. I. O. O. P., and 
 is a charter member of Star Camp, Xo. 1886, 
 M. \V. A. of Cullom. 
 
 SHERMAX H. JOKXSOX. 
 
 Sherman H. Johnson, who is ])rominently 
 identified with the agricultural interests of 
 Germanville township, Livingston county, 
 owns and operates a fine farm of one hun- 
 dred and twenty acres on section 15. The 
 neat and thrifty apjiearance of the place 
 testifies to his careful supervision, and shows 
 him to be not only a thorough and skillful 
 farmer, but also a man of good business 
 ability. 
 
 Mr. Johnson was born in the town of 
 Peru, Clinton county, Xew York, September 
 13, 1847. ^ son of Jeremiah and Harriet 
 
 (Bridges) Johnson. The father was born 
 in Hartford, Connecticut, and resided there 
 for some years. He enlisted in the war of 
 1812, and served for five years under Gen- 
 eral Scott, coming out of the service as first 
 lieutenant. After receiving his discharge 
 at Plattsburg, X'^ew York, he remained at 
 that place and engaged in the lumber busi- 
 ness, which he carried on until sixty-eight 
 years of age, when meeting with loss from 
 fire, he retired from active business. He 
 died in 1872, at the age of ninety-two years, 
 his wife in the same year at the age of 
 eighty-two. In their family were twelve 
 children, eight of whom are still living. Our 
 subject is the youngest son, but has two 
 younger sisters. 
 
 In the common schools of his birthplace 
 Sherman H. Johnson ac(|uired his educa- 
 tion, and remained at home until eighteen 
 years of age, when, in 1865, he came toLiv- 
 ingston county. Illinois. After sjjending a 
 few months in Belle Prairie township, how- 
 ever, he went to Minnesota, where he worked 
 by the month two years, and then returned 
 to this county, being engaged in farming 
 upon rented land in Belle Prairie township 
 for a number of years. Subseciuently he 
 leased a farm in McLean county, whicli he 
 afterward bought, and on selling that prop- 
 erty in 1876 went to Bates county. Missouri, 
 where he followed farming one year. Re- 
 turning to Belle Prairie township. Livingston 
 county, he rented a farm for three years, 
 and then moved to Forrest township, where 
 he leased a half section of land for the same 
 length of time. During the following three 
 years we again find him in Belle Prairie 
 township, and in 1888 he located upon his 
 present farm in Germanville township^ He 
 purchased two hundred and eighty acres, 
 and two vears later sold one hundred and
 
 26S 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sixty acres to Henry Nettleton. but still owns 
 the remainder, which was only partially im- 
 proved w'hen it came into his possession, but 
 he has since erected a lar^^e and substantial 
 barn, improved the house, and tiled the land, 
 placing it under excellent cultivation. In 
 connection with general farming he raises 
 considerable stock, including short-horn 
 cattle and Poland China hogs. 
 
 On the 7th of October, 1869, in Belle 
 Prairie township, Mr. Johnson led to the 
 marriage altar Miss Emeline Alford, a 
 daughter of Wesly J. and Emiline C. 
 (Randall) Alford. The father was born 
 in Vermont, but when a small child moved 
 with his parents to New York state, where 
 he continued to make his home until Mrs 
 Johnson was two years old, and then brought 
 his family to Illinois, locating in Kendall 
 county, where he engaged in farming for 
 some time, but is now living a retired life in 
 Rose Lawn, Indiana. He was a very prosper- 
 ous man and highly respected. His wife died 
 six years ago, leaving a family of seven 
 children, of whom Mrs. Johnson is the fifth 
 in order of birth. Ten children have been 
 born to our subject and his wife, namely : 
 William H.. a well-driller of Strawn, -who 
 married Clara Johnson and has four chil- 
 dren. Myrtle. Pearl. Elmer and Clarence 
 Sherman ; Cornelia, wife of William Day, a 
 farmer of Ford county, Illinois, by whom 
 she has five children, Myron William. Sarah, 
 Annie and Hershal A. ; Lorenzo. Hannah 
 and Bertha, all at home; Myron, who died 
 at the age of sixteen years ; Myra, who died 
 in Missouri, at the age of three years ; and 
 three, who died in infancy. 
 
 Mr. Johnson is a supporter of the Repub- 
 hcan party, and as a public-spirited and pro- 
 gressive citizen is an advocate of those en- 
 terprises that tend toward public develop- 
 
 ment. He filled the ofifice of school director 
 during the first seven years of his residence 
 in Germanville township, and has efficiently 
 served in the same capacity for the last three 
 years, during which time he has done much 
 toward bettering the schools in his locality. 
 He is an active member of the Methodist 
 church, in which he served as deacon four 
 vears. 
 
 JAMES J. BROADHEAD. 
 
 James J. Broadhead, a prominent repre- 
 sentative of the business interests of Forrest 
 is a native of Illinois, his birth having oc- 
 curred near Mackinaw, September 22, 1857. 
 His father, Edward Broadhead, was born 
 July 2, 1827, in Manchester. England, where 
 he grew to manhood and learned the trade 
 of a machinist. There he was married, 
 March 6, 1847, to Miss Nancy McDonald, 
 also a native of Manchester, and in 1855 
 they came to the United States, locating first 
 in Tazewell count}-, Illinois, where he found 
 employment on a farm. In 1859 he settled 
 near Danvers, McLean county, and com- 
 menced farming on his own account. In 
 1867 he purchased a farm of one hundred 
 and sixty acres of wild prairie land in For- 
 rest township, Livingston ccnuity, for which 
 lie paid fifteen dollars per acre, and for 
 w hich he was later offered one hundred dol- 
 lars per acre. He made all of the improve- 
 ments upon the place, erecting a good set of 
 farm buildings, tiling the land and placing 
 it under excellent cultivation, and dividing 
 it into fields of sufficient size by good hedge 
 fences. He also planted trees and ornament- 
 al shrubs, and made his farm one of the best 
 in the locality. He continued to actively en- 
 gage in agricultural pursuits until six or
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 269 
 
 seven years before his death, wlien he nioveil 
 to Forrest and hved retired, dying there 
 Marcli 8, 1896. He purciiased a good resi- 
 dence in that town, wliich is now the home 
 of his widow. On coming to this country 
 lie was in \ ery limited circumstances and his 
 success tliat he acliieved in Hfe was due en- 
 tirely to his well-directed labors. Politically 
 he was always identified with the Republican 
 party, and religiously was a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church, to which his 
 wife also belongs. To them were born eight 
 children. sc\en of whom are now liv- 
 ing, namely : William, a resident of 
 Xiinnal. Illinois ; John, of Chatsworth ; Mary 
 J. resides with her nif^ther ; James J., our sub- 
 ject; George H.. of Indiana; Cornelia, wife 
 of W. B. Moyer, of Galva, Illinois; and 
 Loxina, wife of J. L. Moyer. of Forrest. 
 I he subject of this review was a lad of 
 ten years when the family came to Liv- 
 ingston county, and he attended both the 
 country schools and those of Forrest. 
 On the home farm he acquired an ex- 
 cellent knowledge of agriculture, and on 
 starting out in life for himself at the 
 age of twenty-one years comiuenced 
 farming, which occupation he fe)llowed 
 with good success until his removal to 
 Forrest, in 1897. He had previously spent 
 two winters in town, those of 1893 and 
 1894. He now conducts the only real estate 
 office in the place, ar.d handles a large amount 
 of city and farm property. He is also en- 
 gaged in merchandising and the fire and life 
 insurance business, and is a director of the 
 Peoria Eastern Telephone Company, of 
 which he was one of the original incorpora- 
 tors and was an active member of the com- 
 pany when the lines were put in operation. 
 As a business man he is reliable, energetic 
 and progressive, and generally carries for- 
 
 ward to successful completion whatever he 
 undertakes. 
 
 On the 20th of March, 1884, Mr. Broad- 
 head was united in marriage with Miss Ella 
 Rose, of Fairbury, a daughter of I. V. Rose, 
 a farmer of Indian Grove township. Living- 
 ston county, and to them have been born 
 two children; Ralph R. and Ray V. The 
 family have a pleasant home in Forrest and 
 attend the Methodist Episcopal church, of 
 which Mrs. Broadhead is a member. So- 
 cially Mr. Broadhead is connected with the 
 Knights of Pythias, the Modern Woodmen 
 ot Amreica, and the Court of Honor, and is 
 now keeper of records and seals in the first 
 named order. Since attaining his majority 
 he has affiliated with the Republican party, 
 and although he has never aspired to office 
 he was elected trustee of the village, taking 
 his seat May i, 1900. He is public-spirited 
 and progressive and as a citizen ever stands 
 ready to discharge any duty devolving upon 
 him. 
 
 THRONE & HATFIELD. 
 
 Throne & Hatfield is the name of a well- 
 known firm of Cullom, Illinois, comixtscd of 
 Charles H. Throne and George H. Hatfield, 
 tw(3 of the most enterprising and progress- 
 ive business men of that town. They are 
 successfull)' engaged in the livery business 
 and also have control of the dray line. 
 
 Mr. Throne is a native of Livingston 
 county, born in .Sullivan township. Septem- 
 ber 23. 1876, an<l is a son of W . H. and 
 Laura E. ( Edwards) Throne, who were 
 also born in this state. The father, who is 
 a farmer by occupation, lived in Sullivan 
 township many years, but for the jiast 
 eighteen years has made his home in Cullom.
 
 270 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 His children are : Maggie, wife of B. A. 
 Park, of Fisher, Illinois; Calvin, a general 
 merchant of McCook, Nebraska; Bertha, 
 wife of S. M. Boeman, of Cullom, Illinois; 
 Nellie, wife of Frank Copp, of Fisher; 
 Charles H., our subject; and Reta, at home. 
 
 Mr. Throne was educated in the schools 
 of Cullom, and at the age of thirteen years 
 began his business career as clerk in the 
 general store of Enos Flessner, of that place, 
 remaining with him six j-ears, and with the 
 firm of Flessner & Amachee four years. In 
 1896, in connection with John Tyrrell, he 
 purchased the livery stable and dray line 
 of John Fritzon, and at the end of four 
 months George H. Hatfield purchased Mr. 
 Tyrrell's interest in the business, which has 
 since been successfully conducted imder the 
 firm name of Throne & Hatfield. In 1898 
 Mr. Throne and B. A. Park purchased a 
 livery and sale stable in Fisher, Illinois, 
 which they carried on together until the 
 spring of 1900, when our subject sold out 
 to his partner. During all this time Air. 
 Throne was still employed in the mercantile 
 establishment of Flessner & Amachee, but 
 in March, 1900, concluded to give his whole 
 time and attention to the livery and dray 
 business, which he has since done. 
 
 On the 6th of September, 1899, Mr. 
 Throne married Miss Jennie Kewley, a na- 
 tive of Ford county, Illinois, and daughter 
 of Thomas Kewley, one of its old settlers. 
 She is second in order of birth in a family of 
 five children. Politically Mr. Throne is a 
 Republican, and socially is a member of 
 Cullom Camp, No. 1886, M. W. A. 
 
 Mr. Hatfield, the junior member of the 
 firm, was born in Mona township. Ford 
 county, Illinois, September 12, 1876, a son 
 of Jesse S. and Sarah (Cart) Hatfield, na- 
 tives of Indiana. The father carried on 
 
 blacksmithing in Ford county until 1880, 
 when he removed with his family to Cul- 
 lom, where he opened a shop and has since 
 conducted a successful business. He is a 
 veteran of the Civil war. In his political 
 ^■iews he is a Democrat. He has two chil- 
 dren : George H., our subject; and Edward, 
 at home with his parents. 
 
 George H. Hatfield received his educa- 
 tion in the public schools of Cullom. When 
 about twenty-one years of age he embarked 
 in the livery business with Mr. Throne ami 
 has since devoted his energies to that en- 
 terprise. They are wide-awake business 
 men of known reliability, and are meeting 
 with well-deserved success. Mr. Hatfield is 
 a Republican in politics, anil is an acti\-e 
 member of Star Camp, No. 1886, M. W. 
 A., of Cullom, and Livingston Cnuntv 
 Lodge, No. 264, K. P., of Chatsworth. 
 
 ALPHA BAKER. 
 
 Alpha Baker, an honored and highly 
 respected citizen of Dwight, Illinois, who 
 is now living a retired life, was born in 
 Oneida county. New York, September 19, 
 183 1, and is a son of Samuel A. and Sophia 
 (Porter) Baker, who spent their entire lives 
 in that county, where the father cleared and 
 improved a good farm of one hundred and 
 sixty acres. He was a most progressive and 
 enterprising man and an excellent judge of 
 good stock, to the raising of which he de- 
 voted considerable attention. He died at 
 about the age of sixty years, his wife at the 
 age of seventy-seven. His father was Henry 
 Baker, a ship carpenter in early life. Our 
 subject is the second in order of birth in a 
 familv of three children. Ellis, the oldest,
 
 A. BAKER.
 
 MRS. A. BAKER.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 now seventy-two years of age, followed 
 farming, and is now living on his old home 
 farm in Xew York state. Hope, the young- 
 est, died in girlhood. 
 
 In the county of his nativity. Alpha 
 Baker was reared and educated, and re- 
 mianed under the parental roof until twen- 
 ty-three years of age, when he Aent to Con- 
 necticut, working three years in Hartford 
 and New Haven counties. At the end of 
 that time he moved to Warren, Ohio, where 
 he worked about a }ear at anything lie 
 could find to d6, and then cafne to Illinois, 
 stopping in Grundy county from 1856 until 
 1890. The winter of 1856-7 was spent in 
 the lumber woods on the Eau Claire river, 
 Wisconsin, but the following spring he re- 
 turned to Grundy county. Illinois, where he 
 worked by the month one year. He next 
 rented a farm in Mazon township, which 
 he operated three years, and then purchased 
 a wild tract of one hundred and sixty acres, 
 which he commenced immediately to im- 
 prove and cultivate, erecting first a house, 
 22x22 feet in dimensions and containing 
 three rooms. 
 
 Mr. Baker was married, September 25, 
 1861, to Miss Sarah J. Collar, a native of 
 St. Lawrence county. New York, and a 
 daughter of Lyman and Eliza Jane (Crabb) 
 Collar, also natives of that state. The 
 father engaged in farming and also followed 
 the wagon-maker's trade in St. Lawrence 
 county until Mrs. Baker was eight years of 
 age. when he came to Illinois with his fam- 
 ily, locating in Grundy county, when it con- 
 tained only a few houses and these widely 
 scattered. He took up a tract of govern- 
 ment land, to which he later added by pur- 
 chase. He lived to the advenced age of 
 ninety years. In his family were ten chil- 
 dren, of whom five died young, namely: 
 
 Addison. Jessie, Reuben, Frank and Har- 
 riet. Those living are Norman, a resident 
 of Iowa; George, of Joliet, Illinois; Alfred, 
 of Iowa; Malinda, ' of Mazon township, 
 Grundy county. Illinois; and Sarah J., wife 
 of our subject. Eight chiitlren were born 
 to Mr. and Mrs. Baker, but four died in in- 
 fancy. The others are Frank, who is now 
 engaged in farming in Storm Lake, Iowa; 
 Emery, a stock raiser of Lincoln county, 
 Nebraska ; Stella and Ada Sigourney, at 
 home. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Baker took up 
 his residence upon the farm which he had 
 previously purchased, and five years later 
 added to it a tract of eighty acres and after- 
 ward one hundred and twenty-six acres 
 more. His landed possessions in Grundy 
 county now aggregate six hundred and 
 sixty-two acres, consisting of two hundred 
 and forty acre's on section 12 and one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres on section 24, High- 
 land township; and one hundred and twen- 
 ty-six on section 7, and one hundred and 
 thirty-six acres on section 19, Goodform 
 township. He also owns one hundred and 
 ninety acres of improved land in York coun- 
 ty, Nebraska, and ten lots in Dwight. In 
 connection with general farming he always 
 engaged in stock raising, but since Febru- 
 ary, 1890, he has made his home in Dwight 
 and lived retired, la3'ing aside all business 
 cares. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Baker is a member of 
 \'erona Lodge, No. 757, F. & A. M., of 
 Verona, in which he has held office. He 
 is idejjendent in politics, voting for the man 
 whom he believes best qualified f(jr ofiice re- 
 gardless of party lines. He efticiently 
 served as commissioner of highways for 
 two terms of three years each and put up 
 the first iron bridges and stone abutments
 
 2/6 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in Highland township during his term. For 
 a number of years he and his wife have 
 traveled in the west quite extensively, and 
 can now take life easy after their earh' years 
 of toil and privations. As a business man 
 Mr. Baker has been remarkably successful, 
 and his career affords an excellent example 
 to the young in that he commenced life 
 without capital, but having a determination 
 to succeed he industriously applied himself 
 until he has acquired a handsome property, 
 and has also won the confidence and respect 
 of his fellow men in a marked desfree. 
 
 JAMES BROWN. 
 
 The career of him whose name heads 
 this review illustrates most forcibly the pos- 
 sibilities that are open to young men who 
 possess sterling business qualifications. It 
 proves that neither wealth or the assistance 
 of influential friends at the outset of his 
 career are necessary to place him on the road 
 to success. It also proves that ambition, 
 perseverance, steadfast purpose and inde- 
 fatigable industry, combined with sound 
 business principles will be rewarded, and that 
 true success follows individual effort only. 
 For many years Mr. Brown was actively 
 identified with the agricultural and stock 
 raising interests of Livingston county, but 
 is now living a retired life in Dwight. hav- 
 ing accumulated a handsome competence 
 through his own well directed efforts. 
 
 He was born in Oneida county. New 
 York, September 14, 1828, a son of David 
 and Sophia (Mumford) Brown, the former 
 a native of Scotland, the latter of Connecti- 
 cut. When David Brown was ten years of 
 age he was brought to America by his fa- 
 
 ther, David Brown, Sr., a stocking weaver 
 by trade, who settled in Herkimer county, 
 New York, and in the midst of the forest 
 cleared and developed a farm of one hundred 
 acres, upon which he set out one of the finest 
 orchards in the country. In those early 
 days it often happened that he sold his best 
 apples for six cents a bushel and farmers 
 would come from miles around to get them. 
 He also owned and operated a cider mill, 
 maiuifacturing from two to three hundred 
 barrels of cider in one season. He died at 
 the age of si.xty-six years, his wife at the age 
 of eighty. In their family were twelve chil- 
 dren. Our subject's maternal grandfather. 
 Captain William Mumford, of the Revo- 
 lutionary war, died at the age of about sev- 
 enty, while his wife lived to the advanced 
 age of ninety-five years. To them were also 
 born twelve children. After reaching man- 
 hood. David Brown, Jr.. also followed 
 farming and became quite well-to-do, being 
 able to give his children good educational 
 advantages. He died at the age of ninety 
 years, while the mother of our subject de- 
 parted this life at the age of forty-four. For 
 his second wife he married Cornelia ]\Iarvin, 
 but had no children by that marriage. By 
 the first union nine children were born, 
 seven of whom reached years of maturity, 
 namely: Charlotte. Jeanette, Mary. David, 
 James, John and Elizabeth. All are living 
 with the exception of Jeanette, and all are 
 residents of New York state except our sub- 
 ject. 
 
 During his boyhood James Brown at- 
 tended the public schools of his native coun- 
 t\- until fifteen years of age, when he went to 
 live with his uncle. James Brown, a lawyer 
 of Oswego, New York, who sent him to 
 school and also assisted him in his algebra, 
 geometry, trigonometry, philosophy and as
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 2-n 
 
 tniiiomy at home during the evenings, in 
 this way acquiring a good education. He 
 was a student at tlie W'hitesboro Academy, 
 L'tica, New York, for a time, and after 
 leaving that institution tauglit scliool for six 
 winters, while tlirough tlie summer montlis 
 he engaged in farming. 
 
 At the end of that time Mr. Brown liad 
 saved one thousand dollars, which he invest- 
 ed in cattle, and for fi\e years was success- 
 fully engaged in the butcher business. He 
 then went to Wayne county. New York, 
 where he bought some dairy stock, which 
 he shipped to Herkimer county, and from 
 that time on was extensively interested in 
 the stock business, traveling all o\er w estern 
 New York and Canada buying dairy stock 
 most of the time and shipping the same to 
 every station from Bufifalo and Erie. 
 
 Coming to Livingston county, Illinois, 
 in 1867. Mr. Brown purchased an improved 
 farm of one hundred and eighty acres in 
 Nevada township but did not locate thereon 
 until 1869, and the first year raised nothing 
 as the season was so wet. He had married 
 July 2"^, 1866, Miss Eudora Wood, a native 
 of Oswego county. New York, and a daugh- 
 ter of Moses Wood, one of the early settlers 
 of that county and a successful farmer and 
 cattle dealer. She was the second in order 
 or birth in a family of twelve children, nine 
 of whom grew to maturity. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Brown had one son on coming to this coun- 
 ty, and here the family circles was increased 
 by the birth of seven other children. They 
 were as follows : James, who died at the age 
 of eighteen months ; Eva, who married Wil- 
 bur Reed, a business man of Chicago, and 
 has two children. James and George; Ade- 
 laide, at home ; George, who is engaged in 
 the stock business and resides at home : Ma- 
 bel, who died at the age of three years : Da- 
 
 vid, who died at the age of five years; 
 Blanche, who is attending school in Dwight; 
 and one who died in infancy. 
 
 When he located here Mr. Brown had 
 about one hundred steers, and being unable 
 to buy corn to feed them he went to Mason 
 county, where he purchased five thousand 
 bushels and shipped to his home. He con- 
 tinued to feed from one hundred and fifty 
 to two hundred head of cattle each year un- 
 til 1888, when he turned his attention to the 
 raising of blooded stock, making a specialty 
 of Norman draft horses, starting in this 
 business with a capital of seven thou.sand 
 dollars. He was interested in that enterprise 
 until 1897, when he retired from business, 
 having at that time ninety-five head of 
 horses. He had previously given considera- 
 ble attention to the raising of Poland China 
 hogs, shipping about two hundred each year. 
 He never sold any of the ^raiu Xhat he 
 raised upon his land, but fed it all to his 
 stock. He still owns eight hundred acres 
 on sections 12, 13 and 24, Nevada township, 
 and also has fourteen hundred acres of land 
 in LaPorte county, Indiana, which he pur- 
 chased in 1897. and which is partly improved 
 and cultivated. He formerly owned lands 
 in Kansas and Nebraska, but has since dis- 
 posed of them. He has building ])roj>erty in 
 l^wight. where he removed in November, 
 1899, 'I'l'l 'i^s since made his home. Start- 
 ing out in life for himself with no capital 
 his success seems almost phenomenal, but it 
 is due to his own industry, enterprise, per- 
 severance and good management. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Brown hold membership 
 in the Methodist Episcojial church, and he is 
 identified with the Republican party, but 
 has never taken an active part in politics 
 aside from voting. ])referring to give his 
 entire time and attention to his business in-
 
 278 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 terests. He and his wife have returned to 
 New York on visits several times. After 
 a useful and honorable career he can well 
 afford to lay aside all business cares and 
 live in ease and retirement, enjoying a well 
 earned rest. 
 
 SAMUEL HOKE. 
 
 Samuel Hoke, deceased, was for many 
 years prominently identified with the agri- 
 cultural and business interests of Livingston 
 county, and also took quite an active and in- 
 fluential part in pubHc affairs, especially 
 along educational lines. He became a 
 resident of the county in 1859, coming here 
 from Williamsburg, Blair county, Pennsyl- 
 vania, then a part, of Bedford county, and 
 spent his last days in Odell. 
 
 Mr. Hoke was born in Bedford county, 
 Pennsylvania, April 24, 1827, a son of 
 Jacob and Margaret Rebecca Hoke, natives 
 of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, whose parents 
 came from Germany to America sometime 
 during the eighteenth century. The father 
 of our subject was a soldier of the war of 
 18 12, and was a potter by trade, following 
 that occupation in Gettysburg and McCon- 
 nellsburg, Pennsylvania. Samuel was the 
 youngest in his family c)f ten children, six 
 sons and four daughters, of whom ^Irs. 
 Julia Phenice, of Tacoma, Washington, is 
 now the only survivor. 
 
 In the common schools of his native 
 county Sanuiel Hoke acquired his education 
 and remained with his father until reach- 
 ing man's estate. In early life he learned 
 the trade of paper hanger and cabinet-maker 
 in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and for 
 eleven years worked at the same in that 
 state. Taking an active part in political 
 
 affairs, he sered as deputy sheriff of his na- 
 tive county, school director and trustee. 
 
 On the i8th of April, 1850, Mr. Hoke 
 was united in marriage with Miss Laura 
 M. Kenney, who was also born in Bedford 
 county, November 22, i8ji, a daughter of 
 Alexander W. and Hannah E. (Harvey) 
 Kenney. Her ancestry were residents of 
 Pennsylvania for many generations, and 
 were among the first settlers of Philadel- 
 phia. She is only one of a family of seven 
 children now living.. Having received a 
 good common school education, she success- 
 fully engaged in teaching for several years, 
 and also served as assistant in the postoffice 
 at Williamsburg, of which her father was 
 postmaster for twenty-five consecutive years. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Hoke were born si.x 
 sons and one daughter, namely : ( i ) Alex- 
 ander R. took a course at the Wesleyan Nor- 
 mal School, of Bloomington, Illinois, and 
 followed teaching for some time, but is now 
 employed at the State Reformatory in Pon- 
 tiac. He is married and has two children, 
 Frank F. and Samuel L. (2) Hannah M. 
 is the wife of J. W. Houchins, who was 
 graduated at a college in Chicago and en- 
 gaged in teaching during his active business 
 career, but is now living retired in Odell. 
 He owns a large amount of land in Illinois 
 and Nebraska. (3) William E. is repre- 
 sented on another page of this volume. (4) 
 Charles H., who is now living in Pontiac 
 and serving as deputy sheriff of the county, 
 was formerly engaged in the undertaking 
 business in Odell for some time, and has filled 
 the offices of constable and collector. He 
 is married and has one daughter, Georgetta 
 D. (5) George K., a farmer and liveryman, 
 died at his home in Odell from the effects 
 of injuries received in the collapse of a 
 brick Iniilding during a cyclone in 1886.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 279 
 
 He was married and had one daughter, 
 Laura R. (6) Samuel L., deceased, was 
 graduated at the Odell high school in 1885, 
 and the Xorthern Illinois Normal School at 
 Dixon in 1886, and followed teaching for 
 several years, but was preparing to enter the 
 ministry at the time of his death in 1887. 
 (7) Frank Lincoln, who lives at home with 
 his mother, has a good education and is a 
 harness maker by trade. He took the gov- 
 ernment census in Odell in 1900. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Hoke continued 
 to reside in Pennsylvania until 1859, when 
 he sold his property there and came to 
 Dwight, Illinois, where he was engaged in 
 the furniture and undertaking business for 
 six months. He then located on the farm 
 i)-^ Odell township, which he had previously 
 purchased, it being a tract of eighty acres 
 of wild prairie land, whicli now forms a 
 part of Union township. He erected build- 
 ings thereon, made many other improve- 
 ments, and added to his property until at 
 one time he had five hundred acres of val- 
 uable land, nearly all improved by himself. 
 During the civil war he was drafted but hired 
 a substitute, and met with excellent success 
 in his business affairs during that period. 
 Although his early training fitted him for 
 far different work, he prospered in his farm- 
 ing operations, being a man of sound judg- 
 ment, observant and energetic. He made a 
 specialty of the raising of horses and cattle, 
 and was wonderfully successful. 
 
 Mr. Hoke was one of the men who laid 
 out the school districts of Union township, 
 and his wife was one of the first teachers, 
 conducting a school in their own home, in 
 addition to taking care of her three chil- 
 tiren. She taught six months for twenty 
 dollars pkr month and with the money 
 thus earned purchased their first horse. 
 
 I'heirs was the third school house of the 
 township, and was built on land donated by 
 Mr. Hoke for that purpose. He served as 
 school director and school trustee for many 
 years, and was one of the influential Repub- 
 licans of his community, with which party 
 his sons also affiliate. For over twenty 
 years he successfully engaged in farming, 
 and in 1880 moved to Odell, purchasing the 
 house now occupied by his widow. He 
 sold one hundred and sixty acres of his 
 land and engaged in the loan and real es- 
 tate business, still retaining two hundred 
 and forty acres of the original farm, which 
 is all under a high state of cultivation. At 
 the age of eighteen years Mr. Hoke joined 
 the Sons of Temperance, and was also a 
 member of the Independent Order of Odd 
 Fellows and the Presbyterian church, though 
 he later in life attended the Congregational 
 church. He died at his home in Odell, May 
 23, 1898, honored and respected by all who 
 knew him. His estimable wife still carries 
 on the business left by him, and has met 
 with excellent success in all her business 
 ventures, being a woman of more than or- 
 dinary business ability and sound judgment. 
 
 JAY G. BARXHIZER, M. D. 
 
 Jay G. Barnhizer, M. D., a prominent 
 and successful homeopathic physician of 
 Forrest, IlUnois, was born in Thornburg, 
 Iowa, January 11, 1875, and is a son of 
 Joseph and Samantha (Stout) Barnhizer. 
 His paternal grandfather was Joseph Barn- 
 hizer, a native of Holland and a soldier of 
 the Revolutionary war, who lived to the ex- 
 treme old age of one hundred and six years. 
 The father was born, reared and educated
 
 28o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in Pennsylvania, and in early life went to 
 Ohio, where he married Samantha Stout, 
 a native of Leipsic, that state, of which place 
 her father, Elisha Stout, was one of the 
 pioneers and a wealthy farmer and miller. 
 He was also one of the early members and 
 a minister of the Christian church. In 1874 
 the Doctor's parents moved to Coal Creek, 
 Iowa. His father had been successfully 
 engaged in milling in Ohio, and traded his 
 milling property there for a half section of 
 land near Thornburg, Iowa, which place he 
 improved and operated with marked success 
 until 1888, when he sold out and moved to 
 California. After a short time spent in 
 Pasadena, he returned to Iowa and pur- 
 chased a farm adjoining Sigourney, in which 
 town he lived until his death, which occurred 
 April 9, 1898. He was quite wealthy, his 
 capital being largely invested in stock. Re- 
 ligiously both he and his wife were promi- 
 nent members and active workers in the 
 Christian church, and practically building 
 the church at Sigourney. She died Decem- 
 ber 9. 1893. 
 
 Dr. Barnhizer obtained a good common - 
 school education, graduating at the high 
 school of Sigourney in the class of i8qi. 
 and he then read medicine with Dr. F. A. 
 Strawbridge, of that place in 1893 and 1894 
 He took his first course of lectures in the 
 medical department of the Iowa State Uni- 
 versity at Iowa City, in the latter year, and 
 was graduated at the Chicago Homeopathic 
 Medical College in 1898, the same year tak- 
 ing a post graduate course at that institu- 
 tion. For a year he was engaged in practice 
 at Oilman, Illinois, and in April, 1899, came 
 to Forrest and opened an office. Although 
 he has been here only a short time, he has 
 already built up a large and constantly in- 
 creasing practice, and the liberal patronage 
 
 he enjoys attests his skill and ability in his 
 chosen calling. He is examiner for the 
 Court of Honor. On the 24th of October. 
 1899, Dr. Barnhizer married Miss Eliza- 
 beth D. Bond, of Sigourney, Iowa, a daugh- 
 ter of Lorenzo D. Bond, and the young 
 couple have already made many warm 
 friends in their adopted city. 
 
 WILLIAM T. GARDNER. 
 
 William T. Gardner, dealer in hard- 
 ware, stoves, tinware, staple and fancy gro- 
 ceries, Chatsworth, Illinois, was born near 
 Lawrence, Kansas. June 6, 1862, and is a 
 son of John J. and Mary (Lambourne) 
 Gardner, the former a native of Scotland and 
 the latter of England. She is a sister of 
 Mrs. D. B. Puffer, of Chatsworth. John 
 P. Gardner emigrated from Scotlantl to 
 Canada, where he resided for a time. He 
 was a coal miner in the old country, and was 
 engaged in that occupation for some years. 
 From Canada he removed to Kansas where 
 he engaged in farming, but later came to 
 Illinois and located near Streator. where he 
 remained a short time and then removed to 
 Deer Park township. La Salle county : James, 
 engaged in farming. He yet makes his 
 home in that township, where he owns a 
 farm of two hundred and fifty acres. His 
 wife died in 1898. They were the parents 
 of fourteen children, eight sons and six 
 daughters, of whom two died in childhood, 
 and Emma, in 1898, at the age of nineten 
 years. The living are Matthew T., a farmer 
 of Pleasant Ridge township. Livingston 
 county; William T., the subject of this 
 sketch: Mary, wife of Emerson Calkins, of 
 La Salle ceuntv : lohn. living in Iowa Falls,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Iowa; Jennie, wife of Thomas Nicholson, 
 hving in Iowa Falls, Iowa ; Fred, also of 
 Iowa Falls ; Nellie, wife of L. Calkins, of 
 Der Park township. La Salle county ; James, 
 of Vermillonville, La Salle county: Char- 
 lotte, wife of Roy Logfan. of La Salle county ; 
 Sadie and George, residing at home witli 
 their father. In politics John P. Gardner 
 is a Democrat, hut has never sought or would 
 serve in any official capacity. Religiously 
 he is an Adventist. For several years he 
 has heen living a retired life in X'ermillion- 
 ville. 
 
 The suhject of this sketch was but a 
 small child when his parents removed to 
 La Salle county, Illinois, and on his father's 
 farm in that county he grew to manhood, 
 and in the district schools he received his 
 education. He remained at home until he 
 was twenty-one years of age, when he came 
 to Charlotte township, Livingston county, 
 where he engaged in farming for himself. 
 After remaining on that farm for two years 
 he went hack to La Salle county, and, in 1885, 
 was married to Miss Anna Hampson, who 
 was horn near Washington. PennSyKania. 
 and a daughter of Lindsey and Martha 
 (Earl) Hampson, both of whom were also 
 natives of Pennsylvania, where their mar- 
 riage occurred. Tliey later moved to La 
 Salle county, Illinois, but are now deceased. 
 They had a family of three sons and three 
 daughters, all of whom are living, as fol- 
 lows: Mary, wife of William Eaton, ol 
 Deer Park township. La Salle county; .\nna, 
 wife of our subject : William. Clara, James 
 and Minor, all of whom are living in La 
 Salle county. 
 
 After his marriage, Mr. Gardner engaged 
 in farming on a forty-acre tract. He re- 
 mained there for three years, left it, but re- 
 turned and remained there five years longer, 
 
 when he was compelled to give up farming. 
 He then moved to Chats worth, purchased 
 a lot, erected a building and opened up in 
 the restaurant and hotel business on the 
 15th of August, 1893. He continued in 
 that business very successfully until Novem- 
 ber. 1898. when he closed out and put in 
 a stock of hardware and groceries. He 
 now carries a full line of shelf and heavy 
 hardware, stoves and tinware, staple and 
 fancy groceries, and is doing a good business. 
 Owning the building in which his store is 
 located, his expenses are light, and he can 
 and does compete with stores in the larger 
 towns. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Gardner ha\e l)een 
 born five children, as follows: Gertrude, 
 Edith. Edna. Ola and Leslie J., all of 
 whom are jmpils in the public schools, with 
 the e.xception of the last named. 
 
 In politics Mr. (lardner is a Denii crat, 
 and while he has in\ariably refused to ac- 
 cept public office, was elected a memljer ;)f 
 the board of education in 1900. Fraternally 
 lie is a member of Camp No. 1829, M. W. 
 .\. He is on the working team in his camp, 
 and takes great interest in its proceedings. 
 .\s a citizen he is enterprising and progress- 
 ive, ever willing to do his share in advancing 
 the welfare of his adopted city and county. 
 
 WILLI. \M S. SKIXXER. M. D. 
 
 William S. Skinner, M. 1).. a prominent 
 and successful i)hysician and surgeon of For- 
 rest, Illinois, was born in London. Ontario, 
 Canada, January 20. 1872, and is a son of 
 George R. and Dina (Reeves) Skinner, na- 
 tives of the same place. His paternal grand- 
 father. Rev. James Skinner, a Presbyterian 
 minister, removed from Scotland to Canada
 
 282 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in 1837, and for twenty-six years was pas- 
 tor of a church in the township of London, 
 Ontario. He also served as superintend- 
 ent of schools for Middlesex county a num- 
 ber of years, and died there about 1866. 
 The Doctor's maternal grandfather, \\'ill- 
 iam Reeves, was a native of England, an 
 early settler of London, Canada, where he 
 followed the occupation of farming through- 
 out life. The father of our subject engaged 
 in the same pursuit, and became quite an 
 extensive dealer in real estate in Dakota. 
 He is now a resident of Manitoba, where he 
 conducts a large stock and grain farm. In 
 his family of seven children the Doctor is 
 the second in order of birth. 
 
 Dr. Skinner began his education in the 
 public schools of London, Ontario, and spent 
 three years at the Collegiate Institute. He 
 next attended the AVestern Medical College, 
 of London, one year and then entered the 
 medical department of the Northwestern 
 University, at Chicago, where he took a full 
 three-years" course, during which time he 
 was assistant to Professor McDiarmiel, who 
 occupied the chair of gynecology and ob- 
 stetrics in the Post-Graduate School. He 
 was graduated in 1899 and took a competi- 
 tive examination fur a position in the Ly- 
 ing-in Hospital, and standing third highest 
 was resident physician there for a time. He 
 then came to Forrest and opened an office, 
 buying the practice of an old physician. He 
 has had a remarkably successful career for 
 so young a man and his practice is steadily 
 increasing. His practice now is of a general 
 character, tending toward a specialty in sur- 
 gery. The Doctor is now a member of the 
 board of health of Forrest and assistant 
 physician for the Wabash and Toledo, Pe- 
 oria and Warsaw Railroads, in which ca- 
 pacity he does much work. 
 
 On the 4th of Xovember, 1899, Dr. 
 Skinner was united in marriage with Miss 
 Mabel Cracraft, of Forrest, formerly of 
 Wilmington, Illinois. She is a well-edu- 
 cated lady and has successfully engaged in 
 teaching school. Both the Doctor and his 
 wiie are active members of the Congrega- 
 tional church, and she is now serving as sec- 
 retary of the Ladies" Aid Society and holds 
 the same office in the Eastern Star. Fra- 
 ternally the Doctor is a member of the }iIod- 
 ern Woodmen of America. He is the med- 
 ical examiner for the Laiion Central Life In- 
 surance Company, of Cincinnati. 
 
 WILLIAM LOUIS RABE, M. D. 
 
 William Louis Rabe, M. D., is a skilled 
 ph}'sician and surgeon of Dwight, whose 
 knowledge of the science of medicine is 
 broad and comprehensive, and whose ability 
 ill applying its principles to the needs of suf- 
 fering humanity has gained him an enviable 
 prestige in professional circles. 
 
 The family to which the Doctor belongs 
 was founded in America by his paternal 
 grandfather, Jacob Rabe, a native of Ger- 
 many, who came to this country when a 
 young man prior to the war of 1812. His 
 ancestors had for many generations been 
 widely known throughout Prussia, and two 
 of his brothers were publishers at Berlin. 
 On his arrival in America he located on a 
 tract of land near what was then the unim- 
 portant little town of Monongahela, Penn- 
 sylvania, where he spent the remainder of 
 his life as a farmer. There he married 
 and reared a family of three children, and 
 was a soldier of the war of 188 12. Being 
 a temperate man and of good habits, he
 
 WILLIAM LOUIS RABE, M. D.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 285 
 
 lived to the extreme old age of one Inindred 
 years and three months, and preserved his 
 mental and physical strength tn a rcniark- 
 ahle decree. He was noted tHr his indns- 
 try and intet^rity. and whether at home or 
 ami)n<j his neighhors nreserxcd that C(|na- 
 nimity of temper and welUhred manner 
 w hich at once singled him out as a gentleman 
 hy birth and breeding. The celebrated 
 opera singers, the Rabe sisters, belonged 
 to the same family, and were widely known 
 throughout Europe, where they made a for 
 tune l)y their talent, who in the early '30s an<l 
 "4OS twice crossed the Atlantic to ]>lcasc and 
 delight the (iothaniilcs with the songs and 
 melodies of h'atlierland. 
 
 John Rahe, the Doctor's father, was 
 born on the old homestead near .Mmionga- 
 hela, Pennsylvania, and in the schools of 
 tliat locality iitted himself for the teacher's 
 profession, which he followed for some 
 lime, also farmed during .summer. On 
 reaching manhood he married i\liss Eliza- 
 beth Luce, also a nati\e of Pennsylvania, 
 and to them were born the following chil- 
 li ren : Melesendra, wife of Dr. Henry Mor- 
 rison, of Pittsbure; Amanda, wife of Samuel 
 A. Erederick, of Ohio; Maria, who diet! at 
 tiie age of sixteen years: Hiram, a capitalist 
 of Clyde, Ohio; John, a physician of Mo- 
 nongahela, Pennsyhania ; and William L., 
 our subject. In 1820 the father moved with 
 his family t(j Jefferson county, Ohio, and 
 I'urchased a farm, which continued to be his 
 home until called to his final rest in 1872. 
 1 le was a man of more than ordinar\- abilitw 
 and was at once recognized as a valuable 
 addition to the community. Religiously 
 he was a prominent member of the Presby- 
 terian church, and politicall_\- was first a 
 Whig and later a Republican. As one of 
 
 the leading citizens of his township he was 
 16 
 
 called u])on to fill \arious local offices. He 
 sought to wield a healthy influence over his 
 children, to whom he gave a liberal educa- 
 tion and encouraged them in the e.xercise 
 oi those virtues by which they became valued 
 and reputable citizens. 
 
 William J-ouis Rabe was born near 
 Steubenville, Ohio, May 8, 1839. His ele- 
 mentary education was conducted chiefiy by 
 his father, an intelligent farmer and teacher. 
 ■Snb.sequently he was thoroughly trained in 
 the higher branches, first taking a course in 
 Richmond College and then matriculating in 
 the Cleveland Medical University. He be- 
 gan the practice of his profession at Wells- 
 ville, Ohio, the larger portion of w Inch was 
 on the Virginia side of the Ohio river. Dur- 
 ing the ci\il war he served as assistant sur- 
 geon with the Union forces, and was 
 wounded upon the occasion of General Mor- 
 gan's capture in Columbiana county. As 
 hostilities drew to a clo.se, in common with 
 other industrious citizens he prepared to re- 
 sume the occuijations of peace. Eor a time 
 his decision wa\ered between the adoption 
 of the clerical and the medical professions. 
 In 1862 he was chosen president of the Rich- 
 mond (Ohio) College, which position he 
 resigned after filling it two terms. In iS()5 
 he entered both the McCormick Theological 
 Seminary and Rush Medical College, of 
 Chicago, two years thereafter receiving a 
 diploma from each of the institutions named. 
 After his graduation he was honored with 
 calls from the First Presljyterian church, of 
 Hloomington, Illinois, Ahuioon. Illinois, an.] 
 LaPorte, Lidiana. In i^()j he located at 
 the place first named and remained there 
 nine years, when he removed to Dwight to 
 engage in the practice of medicine. Here 
 for more than twenty years he has given 
 faithful and effective attention to his pro-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 fessional duties, and has esta1)lished one of 
 the largest and most hicrative practices to 
 be found in the interior of the state. He is 
 a constant reader of the best medical litera- 
 ture of the (lay. to which he is also a valued 
 contribute ir. He is a member of the state, 
 inter-state and national societies, and cor- 
 respondent of the World's Medical Con- 
 gress. He has repeatedly deliveretl ad- 
 dresses before medical associations. The 
 following is an e.xtract from an adilress 
 made before the Inter-State Association: 
 •'Gentlemen or Brothers — Wise and learned 
 as we are supposed or ought to be — walking 
 or moving thesaurus of medical knowledge, 
 can anyone answer satisfactorily why nr of 
 what a pain is? Why are so many so se- 
 riously sick? Or most of all, why do so 
 many die?" 
 
 Conservati\-e in medical practices as he 
 is, in theory he is always respecting and try- 
 ing a new remedy. He never discharges an 
 old soldier (so to speak) in old attire for a 
 recruit in costlier dress, until he knows the 
 latter can mure quickly wound or kill one 
 or more of the twenty-five hundred diseases 
 that not nnlv afflict hut by which mankind 
 ultimately dies. He has a bitter hatred of 
 artful or underhanded dealing of any kind; 
 is in fact an uncompromising but honest 
 fighter when he believes he is in the right or 
 has been unjustly assailed. A case in point 
 was the protracted contest which was waged 
 against him by the Keeley Company. A 
 jjost graduate of the Keeley Institute, and 
 at the same time an attorney for the same, 
 had him called before the United States 
 court fi>r a technical violation of the reve- 
 nue laws. The Doctor was asked to plead 
 for himself and in ten minutes his case was 
 dismissed, the United States district at- 
 torney emphasizing the fact by the remark ; 
 
 "This is a vindication of a noble man." The 
 closing period of Dr. Rabe"s address was as 
 follows: "If there is any secret oath re- 
 corded as I know on earth, and I trust in 
 heaven, it is that I am a good Templar. And 
 more: I have on my body the mark .of a 
 wound out of which blood fiowed. more 
 than several drops of l)lood. over thirty 
 years ago, in defense of a country the best 
 of which history gives any record. Now 
 please do not even intimate when I am get- 
 ting old and gray and feel I am verging to- 
 wards the close of active life, that I should 
 for any cause be forgetful of the past, recre- 
 ant to sacred duty; in a word, be a semi- 
 traitor to tlie strong, lasting, lienefiicent 
 government that not only protects mj- prop- 
 erty, but graciously shields and preser\-es 
 my person." The secjuence of the case was 
 the dismissal of the attorney by the ctmi- 
 pany, and they in turn were siuiimoned by 
 the people to appear before the bar of one 
 of the lower and higher courts of the com- 
 monwealth of Illinois for actual violation of 
 law and good order. 
 
 In 1S67 Dr. Rabe was married to Miss 
 Emma Clay Temple, of Bloomington, Illi- 
 nois, whose parents were natives of Vir- 
 ginia, and lineal descendants of the I'arke 
 Curtis (Martha Washington) family. Mrs. 
 Rabe died in August, 1888, leaving four 
 children: Mildred T., born July 17, 1868, 
 is the widow of Leonard How lett, of Syra- 
 cuse, New York, ' anil a resident of that 
 place; William L., born October 8, 1869, is 
 connected with the Chicago & Alton Railroad 
 and is a resident of Washington, Illinois; 
 Clarence Parke, born January 10, iSjJ, is 
 connected with the firm of Nicolas Cramer 
 & Company, dealers in real estate, insurance 
 and loans, of Chicago: Lucy E., born Jan- 
 uary Ji, 1S74. is at home. All lia\e l>een
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 287 
 
 provided with good educational advantages, 
 and Mrs. Howlett studied music for two 
 years under Professor Phelps, of Chicago. 
 Both she and her sisters are singers of unu- 
 sual ahility. The former is and has been 
 for several years a salaried soloist in the 
 First Presbyterian church, of Syracuse. Xew 
 York, devoting herself to concert and church 
 service, or engagements. 
 
 J.XMES .McCOK.MICK. 
 
 James McCormick. one of the early set- 
 tlers and highly respected citizens of Living- 
 .stnn county, who is now living a retired life 
 in the village of Strawn. Fayette township, 
 is a native of this state, born in La Salle 
 county, October 21, 1837. and is a son of 
 Alfred and Amanda ( Downerd ) McCor- 
 mick. His paternal grandfatlier was Charles 
 McCormick, a native of County Tyrone. 
 Ireland, who, on coming to this country at 
 an early day, settled in Fayette ounty, Penn- 
 sylvania, where his three sons and two 
 daughters were born and reared. He went 
 to La Salle county. Illinois, with the father 
 of our subject, and engaged in farming in 
 Farm Ridge township for many years, but 
 died in Bruce township at the age of 
 se\enty-three years. His wife, who 
 survived him several years, died in 
 the same place and was laid to rest by his 
 side. Alfred McCormick was born in Fay- 
 ette county, Pennsylvania, about 1808, and 
 remained there until twenty-five years of 
 age. assisting his father in the work of the 
 farm. In 1833 he moved to La Salle coun- 
 ty. Illinois, and purchased one hundred and 
 sixty acres of. government land in Farm 
 Ridge township, wJiich property he improved 
 
 and made his home for about eight years. 
 On selling out he bought another farm in 
 the .same township, and lived there for a 
 number of years, when he disposed of that 
 place and moved to Streator. where he spent 
 the last ten years of his life in retirement 
 from active labor, dying there in 1886. He 
 was a consistent member of the Methodist 
 church, which his family attended, and was 
 a life-long Democrat, but never sought nor 
 held ])ublic oftice. He was a public-spirited 
 man, an advocate of ail that would tend to 
 advance or im])rove the community in which 
 he lived. His wife survived him about three 
 years, and also died in Streator. Of their 
 eleven children, eight are still living, our 
 subject being the second in order of birth. 
 
 Until he attained his majority James Mc- 
 Cormick lived with his parents, assisting in 
 the farm work and attending the common 
 schools of La Salle county. He then en- 
 gaged in farming for himself upon rented 
 land in that county until after the Civil war 
 broke out. when he enlisted at Ottawa, in 
 .\ugust. 1862, in Company E. One Hundred 
 and Fourth Illinois V'olunteer Infantry. 
 At Hartsville. Tennessee, he was taken 
 prisoner, and held for about si.\ months 
 before being exchanged. Returning home 
 sick, he was finally discharged at Ottawa, in 
 the winter of 1863. 
 
 -After recovering his health Mr. McCor- 
 mick came to Livingston county, where for 
 a year he worked by the month for Mr. 
 Morgan, one of the earliest settlers of the 
 county, and for the same length of time 
 herded cattle where the town of Strawn now 
 stands. He next engaged in farming for 
 himself in Fayette township, and followed 
 that occupation continuously for twenty 
 years. For four years he was then engaged 
 in the liquor business in Strawn, and at
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Kangley. La Salle county, ten years, after 
 which he returned to Strawn. where he con- 
 tlucted a saloon one year, but since tliat time 
 has lived a retired life, enjoying the fruits 
 of former toil. Since attaining his major- 
 ity Mr. McCormick has always affiliated 
 with the Democratic party, and is a member 
 of the Roman Catholic church of Strawn, to 
 which his family also belong. He is widely 
 and favorably known and has many friends 
 throughout Livingston and La Salle coun- 
 ties. 
 
 In Farm Ridge township. La Salle coun- 
 ty, Mr. McCormick was married. February 
 4, 1858, to Miss Jane Conelly, a native of 
 Oswego, New Ynrk, and the thirtl in order 
 of birth in a family i)f ten children, seven of 
 who are still living. Her parents were 
 Michael and ALirgaret (Coregan) Conelly. 
 Her father, who was a miller by trade, died 
 in Oswego, at the age of thirty years, but 
 her mother li\-ed to the advanced age of 
 ninety and died in Fayette township. Living'- 
 ston county. September 24. 1899. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. McCormick were born 
 the following children: (i) Thomas P. 
 died at the age of two months. (2) Ed- 
 ward, an engineer on the Union Pacific Rail- 
 road and a resident of Pittsburg, Kansas, has 
 been married three times, his first wife being 
 Mary Saughnessey, by whom he had four 
 children : James ; Thomas, who died at the 
 age of sixteen years; William and Edna 
 Jane, who both died in infancy. His second 
 wife was Florence Lossing and to them were 
 born two children, Ruth and Edith. His 
 present wife was Delia Otterman. (3) 
 Maggie is the widow of Thomas Smoot, a 
 telegraph operator of Strawn, where she is 
 now keeping a boarding house. She had three 
 children : Robert, Maude and Thomas, all 
 living; and Catherine, deceased. (4) Min- 
 
 nie is the wife of William A. Somers, of 
 Strawn. and they had nine children, namely : 
 Frank, Elizabeth J., Geneva, Wiliiarii. Peter, 
 Katie. Cora. Alarie and William. 2nd. (5) 
 Rose, the first white child born in Fayette 
 township, Livingston county, is the wife of 
 James Keeley, a farmer of Forrest township, 
 and they have seven children : Edward, 
 Maggie. Thomas, May, Agnes, Teresa and 
 James. (6) Cora died at the age of nine 
 months. (7) Agnes is the wife of W. A. 
 Myers, of Chicago, superintendent of the 
 Harlem race track. (8) Lizzie is at home. 
 (9) Teresa is now teaching in the public 
 schools of Sibley, and also taught in Kangley 
 five years. ( 10) Katie dietl at the age of 
 two years and four months. (.11) Martha 
 is the wife of Elmer Davis, a farmer oi For- 
 rest township, and they have two children, 
 Josephine and Jane Frances. 
 
 AUGCSTl-S ROBINSON. 
 
 Augustus Robinson, who for a third of a 
 century has been prominently identified with 
 the agricultural interests of Broughton town- 
 ship, Livingston county, his home being on, 
 section 30, is a native of Illinois, born in La 
 Salle county, October 24, 1840, and is a 
 son of James and Sophia (Richey) Robin- 
 son, who were born in Ohio, in 181 5 and 
 1 818, respectively, and when young came to 
 this state with their parents, settling in La 
 Salle county during the Indian troubles. 
 There the families engaged in farming un- 
 der great difficulties, hauling their wheat 
 to Chicago markets. The grandparents of 
 our subject all died in La Salle county upon 
 land which they had taken up from the gov- 
 ernment. His grandfather, Nathaniel Richey.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 289 
 
 served as a private in the war of 181 2. Our 
 subject's parents were married in La Salle 
 county and settled on government lantl 
 where they made their home throughout life, 
 the father dying June 2, 1899, the mother 
 in 1864. He was a radical Republican in 
 politics, but never took an active part in po- 
 litical affairs, however, and both were earn- 
 est and consistent members of the Congre- 
 gational church. Augustus was their old- 
 est child, the others being Priscilla. wife of 
 Ellison Shepherd, a farmer of La Platte, 
 Missouri; Alexander, a farmer of High- 
 more, South Dakota: Andrew J., a resident 
 of Granville, Illinois; Eva S., wife of R. N. 
 West, of Mexico, Missouri; Jolin 11.. who 
 is living near that place; James \'., wim lives 
 near Geneva. Nebraska; and Sophia, wife 
 of William E. Hoke, of Odell. 
 
 Augustus Robinson is indebted to the 
 public .schools of La Salle county for his 
 early educational advantages. He remained 
 upon the home farm until he attained his 
 majority, and then enlisted in 1862 in Com- 
 pany B, One Hundred and Fourth Illinois 
 Volunteer Infantry. He followed his regi- 
 ment to the Cumberland mountains, where 
 he was taken ill and assigned to other duty. 
 He participated in the battle of Nashville, 
 and was honorably discharged in July, 1865. 
 After his return home he rented land and 
 lived near his parents until his marriage. In 
 1866 he purchased one hundred and sixty 
 acres of unimproved land in Broughton 
 township, Livingston county, but did not lo- 
 cate thereon until two years later. It was 
 canal land, which by hard work and skill- 
 ful management he has transformed into one 
 of the most productive and best improved 
 farms n{ the locality. .\s he succeeded he 
 added another one hundred and eighteen 
 acres to his farm, and now has two hundred 
 
 and seventy-eight acres on section 30 under 
 a high state of cultivation. He has made 
 a specialty of stock raising, devoting his at- 
 tention principaljy to hogs. 
 
 Mr. Robinson was united in marriage 
 January 9, 1868, with Miss Alice Hayward, 
 who was born in county Kent, England. 
 August 25, 1842, and about 1850 emigrated 
 to Toronto, Canada, with her parents, John 
 and Mary (Waghorne) Hayward. In 1866 
 she came to La Salle county, Illinois. Her 
 parents made their home in Saugatuck, 
 Michigan, but her father died while on a 
 visit at the home nf our subject. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Robinson have live children : ( i ) 
 William A., who lives near Kirksville. Mis- 
 souri, married Edith Gilbert, daughter of 
 C H. Gill)ert. of Emington, Illinois, and 
 they have four children. Elsie G., Lael F., 
 Clyde A. and Mary A. (2) Mattie 1.. who 
 was educated at 01)erlin College, is the wife 
 of Dr. C. P. Wikoff. a prominent physician 
 of Emington. and they have one daughter, 
 Alice F. (3) Gertrude took a course of 
 music at Wheaton College, and is ncnv at 
 home. (4) Horace E., who operates a 
 part of his father's farm, married .Alice 
 Drew, (laughter of Thomas Drew, of Eming- 
 ton. and they have two ciiildren, Harland 
 Drew and Irving Clare. ( 5 ) Charles .\. 
 is at home. 
 
 Politically Mr. Robinson is a stanch Re- 
 publican, and has held nearly every office 
 in the township, serving as collector, assessor 
 and supervisor one term each, and school 
 treasurer .since 1875. He takes quite an 
 active and prominent part in local politics, 
 and has been a delegate to state and county 
 conventions of his party. Fraternally he is 
 a member of the Grand .\rmy Post of Saune- 
 min; and religiously is a member of the 
 Congregational church, of which he is treas-
 
 >90 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 urer and trustee. He is a worthy Christian 
 gentleman, well liked by all who know 
 him. 
 
 ELIAS HARTMAN. 
 
 Elias Hartman, a prosperous and sub- 
 stantial farmer residing on section 23, Sulli- 
 van township, Livingston county, Illinois, 
 was born in Tazewell county, this state, July 
 20, 1842, a son of Peter and Agnes (Hart- 
 man) Hartman, who, though of the same 
 name, were not related prior to their mar- 
 riage. They were natives of Germany, and 
 shortly after their marriage emigrated to 
 the new world, locating first in Lancaster 
 county, Pennsylvania. Not long afterward 
 they went to Ohio, and after a short time 
 spent in that state came to Tazewell county, 
 Illinois, where they were numbered among 
 the early settlers. There the father pur- 
 chased land and engaged in farming until 
 his death. In the family were si.x children : 
 Ann, who died young; Henry, a resident of 
 Tazewell county; Elias, our subject; Ben- 
 jamin, deceased, who spent his entire life in 
 Tazewell county; Sarah and Emanuel, still 
 residents of that county. 
 
 The subject of this review began his edu- 
 cation in an old log school-house in Tazewell 
 county, one mile from his boyhood home, 
 where he pursued his studies for two months 
 tluring the winter, and later walked two 
 miles to school through timber, over hills 
 and hollows. At intervals he attended 
 school through the winter as he had oppor- 
 tunity until about twenty years of age, and 
 thus acquired a good practical education. 
 His father had died when the family was 
 young, and he remained at home with his 
 mother until he attained his majority, and 
 
 then commenced farming on a small tract 
 of land for himself, at the same time assist- 
 ing in the management of the home jjlace. 
 In 1866 he came to Livingston and bouglit 
 a forty-acre tract of land adjoining the 
 eighty acres of raw prairie land purchased 
 by his mother, and that year broke both 
 places. As he was unmarried he returned 
 to the old home in Tazewell county each 
 winter for four years., and in the spring 
 would resume his farming operations here. 
 On the _'4th of January, i8ji. Mr. Hart- 
 man was united in marriage with AIiss Sarah 
 Shell}', a native of Butler cinint}-, Pennsyl- 
 \ania. and a daughter of Henry and Marga- 
 ret ( Drushel ) Sholly who was also born in 
 that county, and spent his last days in Kan- 
 kakee county, Illinois. She is the second in 
 order of birth in a family of five children, 
 the others being Elizabeth, wife of Emanuel 
 Hartman, of Tazewell; Reinhard, a resident 
 of Round Grove township. Livingston coun- 
 ty; Matilda, wife of Albert Wild, of Ogle 
 count}-, Illinois; and Mar}-, who died at 
 about the age of ten years. Of the twelve 
 children born to Mr. and Mrs. Hartman 
 one died in infancy. The others are Mar- 
 tha, wife of Elias Christophel, residing on 
 section 12, Sulli\'an township, Livingston 
 county; Henry, who married Ida Engle and 
 lives in Tazewell county; Peter, a resident of 
 Li\ingsti)n county; Margaret, wife of John 
 Diebel, li\ing on section 22. Sullivan town- 
 ship; and John, Emanuel. Levi, .\manda, 
 Ilarvev, Reuben and Lewis, all at home. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Hartman moved 
 into a house on his mother's' eighty-acre 
 farm in Livingston county, and three years 
 later built his present residence on his own 
 land. A year or two after making the first 
 purchase he bought another forty acres, and 
 in course of ten vears bought the eighty
 
 THE BlOGRArHlCAL RECORD. 
 
 291 
 
 acres lielonging to his mother, so that hs 
 owned all of the northeast quarter of sec- 
 tion 23, Sulhvan townsliip. lie lias since 
 hought eighty acres on section 14, and the 
 southwest quarter of section 22. making- 
 four hundred acres, lacking one acre, un 
 which the school-house is located, and the 
 track (if the Illinois Central Railroad, which 
 runs through one quarter-section, lie is a 
 thorough and skillful farmer, a man of good 
 business ability and sound judgment, and 
 has met with well-merited success in his 
 farming operations. Both Mr. antl .Mrs. 
 llartman are members of the .Mennoniic 
 church, of Cullom, and he is indepenilcnl 
 in politics, voting for the men best (jualitied 
 for the ])ositii)ns regardless of party lines. 
 
 JOSEPH KLXTZ. 
 
 Joseph Kuntz, a highly esteemed and 
 hiinored citizen of Strawn, Livingston coun- 
 ty, Illinois, was born in Alsace, France, 
 July I'l, 1825, and is a son of Michael and 
 r>;irl);u"a (I'mcli) Kuntz, who spent almost 
 their entire li\es as farming penpk- in Ba- 
 \aria, (iermany, going there in iSjy. 
 in their family were ti\e children, namely; 
 Jacnl). h'rederick, Joseph, Alagdalena and 
 Barbara. 
 
 The early life of owv subject was spent 
 in his native land, but in 1865 he crossed 
 the broad Atlantic and took up his residence 
 in Tazewell county, Illinois, where he en- 
 gaged in farming until coming to Livingston 
 county, in 1868. He then purcha.sed one 
 lunidred and sixty acres on section 18. Fay- 
 ette township, to which he added from time 
 to time until he became the owner of seven 
 hundred and twentv acres of rich and arable 
 
 land, having one of the largest and best 
 improved farms in the county. In connection 
 with general farming he engaged in stock 
 raising quite e.xtensivel}', and in all his un- 
 dertakings met with most gratifying suc- 
 cess. He has c\er been found upright and 
 honorable in all his dealings, and the pros- 
 [jcrity that has ct)me to him is certainly 
 well (leser\ed. 
 
 On the jth of .\pril, 1836, Mr. Kuntz 
 married Miss Barbara Meister, who was 
 ;dso horn in (iermany, September 17, 1837, 
 and to them were born the following chd- 
 dren : ( i ) Peter, a resident of Fayette town- 
 ship, married Elizabeth Garboge, and they 
 have six children, Joseph, William, Her- 
 mann, Clara, Catherine, llallie and an in- 
 fant daughter. ( _' ) Joseph, a resident of 
 Ford county, Illinois, married j-'lizabeth 
 Kanauer. and has one son, I-'rank. (3) Hen- 
 ry, a farmer of McLean county, married 
 Emma l-'nday. (4) .Mary is now the wife of 
 liric .\. (lullberg, mentioned below. (5) 
 Susan is the wife of Henry W'itzburger, a 
 farmer of P'ayette tow^nship, Livingston 
 county, and they have one daughter, Stella. 
 ( ()) -Mbert married .Sarah .Schrine and re- 
 sides in Ford county, (j) John married 
 Lena .Schrine and resides on the home farm 
 of .Mr. Kuritz. (8| Kiltie married Andrew 
 Roth and the_\- li\e in b'ord count)-. ( <; ) Rosa 
 married dustolph Uingle, and resides in 
 .Straw n. 
 
 .Mr. Kuntz and his family are dexout 
 members of the Catholic church, and are 
 people of jiromincnt-e in the communities 
 where they reside. Politicaly he is identi- 
 fied with the Democratic [)arty, and has ever 
 taken a deep and commendable interest in 
 public affairs. He lilled the oftice of road 
 commissioner two terms and school director 
 for the same length of time.
 
 292 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Eric N. Gullberg, one of the leading 
 business men of Strawn, was born in the 
 southern part of Sweden, January i8, 1858, 
 a son of Nels and Anna (Olson) Erickson. 
 For about eighteen years the father was en- 
 gaged in the manufacture of shoes, conduct- 
 ing a large shop and emploj'ng seven or 
 eight hands. On retiring from that business 
 he turned his attention to farming, which he 
 followed for many years. He died at his 
 home in Sweden, in 1881, at the age of 
 sixty-five years, and tiie mother departed 
 this life in 1895, ^t the age of eighty-one. 
 In their family were six children, three of 
 whom are still living, namely : Peter N. 
 Erickson, who is now engaged in the shoe 
 business in St. Paul, Minnesota : Nellie 
 Erickson, who is unmarried and still resides 
 in Sweden ; and Eric N. Gullberg, our sub- 
 ject. 
 
 Mr. Gullberg was reared and educated in 
 Sweden, attending the high school of his 
 birth-place. He worked on his father's 
 farm until seventeen years of age, and then 
 entered the Swedish army, serving five years 
 as a corporal in a cavalry regiment, and 
 during his vacations was employed in a 
 wholesale house in Sullvesburg. On enter- 
 nig the army he changed his name from 
 Erickson to Gullberg, which was the name of 
 one of his cousins, and has since retained 
 the latter. In 1883 he embarked in the gro- 
 cery business in Pukawic, but his store was 
 destroyed by fire in August, 1885, and he lost 
 all he had. He then worked in a grocery 
 store until coming to the United States 
 April 15. 1890. He made his home in Chi- 
 cago until March, 1891, and then went to 
 Goodland, Indiana, where he worked on a 
 farm for nearly a year. On the 3d of Febru- 
 ary, 1892, he came to Strawn, and after 
 being employed as a farm liand for about 
 
 four years, he embarked in the liquor busi- 
 ness in that village, which he still carries on 
 with good success. 
 
 On the 23d of August, 1898, in Strawn, 
 Mr. Gullberg was imited in marriage with 
 Mrs. Mary L. Benway. daughter of Joseph 
 Kuntz. and widow of Joseph Benway, by 
 whom she had three children, all still liv- 
 ing, namely : Albert J., Oscar W. and Will- 
 iam J. In his political views Mr. Gullberg 
 is a Republican, and in his social relations is 
 a member of Payson Lodge, No. 705. 1. O. 
 O. F.. and Fayette Lodge, No. 458, K. P., 
 of Strawn. He has passed all the chairs in 
 both orders, and is now secretary and repre- 
 sentative in the former and master of ex- 
 chequer in the latter, having held the last 
 named office for the past three years. He is 
 also a prominent member of the Living- 
 ston County Liquor Dealers' Association, 
 and has been treasurer of the same since its 
 oroanization. 
 
 CHARLES H. HOKE. 
 
 Charles H. Hoke, chief deputy sheriff 
 of Livingston county, and one of the lead- 
 ing citizens of Pontiac, was born in Union 
 township, this county, June 28, 1861, a son 
 of Samuel and Laura X. (Kenney) Ploke. 
 The father was born in Bedford county. 
 Pennsylvania, and there grew to manhood 
 and learned the cabinet-maker's trade. The 
 mother was a native of Williamsburg, the 
 same state, and a dughter of a Mr. Kenney, 
 a well-kn(3wn attorney of that place. Three 
 of their children were born in Penn.sylvania 
 before the family came to Illinois. There 
 the father conducted a large furnture and 
 undertaking establishment, but on account of 
 failing health be was obliged to discontinue
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 293 
 
 tlie lousiness. Selling" his store, lie came to 
 Livingston county, Illinois, in 1859, and 
 purchased eighty acres of land in Uninn 
 township for eight dollars per acre. In tlie 
 house he erected thereon his wife taught the 
 first school in the township, having pre- 
 viously eneaged in teaching in her nati\e 
 state. He turned his attention to the im- 
 provement and cultivation of his land, and 
 so successful was he in his farming opera- 
 tit)ns that he added to his place until he had 
 four hundred acres, two hundred and forty 
 acres of which is still in possession of the 
 family. He tiled the land and converted it 
 into < )ne of the hest farms of the county. He 
 took a prominent and active part in puhlic 
 atYairs. especially along educational lines, 
 serving as a school directt)r and memher of 
 the hoard for many years. He also filled 
 the office of assessor for a nuniher 0/ years, 
 and was a stanch Republican in politics. In 
 18 — he left the farm and moved to Odell, 
 v.here he lived retired until his death, in 
 i8y8. He was a faithful memher of the 
 Congregational church, to which his wife 
 also belonged. She is still a resident of 
 Odell. In their family were five children, 
 namely : Ale.xander R., a teacher who lives 
 in the Illinois State Reformatory: Mrs. 
 Margaret Houchin: William E.. a real es- 
 tate dealer of Odell; Charles H., our sub- 
 ject: and I""rank L., a harness-maker of 
 Odell. 
 
 Our subject commenced his education in 
 the district schools of Union township, and 
 later attended the Odell high school. On 
 leaving the home farm at the age of twenty- 
 two years, he went to Odell, where he suc- 
 cessfully conducted a livery, sale, feed and 
 e.xchange stable, building up a large and 
 I)rofital)le business and shipping in car- 
 load lots to Xew York, Chicago and other 
 
 markets. He was a fine judge of horses 
 and was thoroughly conversant with e\ery 
 department of the business. 
 
 While engaged in business at OtlcU Mr. 
 Hoke became interested in Republican pcjli- 
 tics, and was elected constable, which posi- 
 tion he acceptably filled for twelve years. 
 He was a delegate to most of the county and 
 state conventions of his part\-, and served 
 as deputy sheriff for Odell under Sheriff 
 Wilson for two years; four years under T. 
 W. Coe, and four years under E. O. Reed, 
 the present county treasurer. He was also 
 prominently mentioned as candidate for 
 sheriff in 1897, and received the second 
 highest number of votes, W. L. Talliott 
 being the successful candidate of the seven 
 in the field. Mr. Hoke made a thorough 
 canvass and after the election was at once 
 a])pointed chief deputy by Sheriff Talbott. 
 Since then he has been a resident of 
 Pontiac, and now owns a beautiful home 
 at No. 610 East Madison street. In his 
 present position he has had charge of a 
 number of noted criminals, including Sam- 
 uel Rightsel, convicted of murder at Fair- 
 bury; and the six bank robbers who looted 
 the Cornell Piank. He has prosed a most 
 efficient and satisfactor\- otiicer. being 
 prompt and faithful in the discharge of his 
 duties and true to e\er_\' trust reposed in 
 him. whether public or ])rivate. 
 
 On the _'2d of .\\n-\\. 1893. Mr. Hoke 
 was united in marriage with Miss Minnie 
 G. Worthley. of Harvey, Illinois, a daugh- 
 ter of Daniel Worthley, a veteran of the 
 Civil war and an early settler of this state 
 from Ohio, who is now living retired in 
 Pontiac. By this union lias been born one 
 child, Georgetta D. The}- attend and sup- 
 ])ort the Presbyterian church, of which Mrs. 
 Hoke is a member. I'raternalK- Mr. Hoke
 
 294 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 is an honored member of the Odd Fellows 
 Lodge, No. 464, of Odell, of which he is 
 past grand ; also a member of the encamp- 
 ment : the Court of Honor at Pontiac. and 
 one of the charter members of the Toilers" 
 Fraternit\'. 
 
 ALBERT GRAXT TUTTLE. 
 
 Albert Grant Tvittle, one of the most en- 
 terprising agriculturists of Livingston coun- 
 t}', now owns and operates the northwest 
 Cjuarter of section i, Saunemin township, 
 \\ hich he has converted into one of the best 
 improved farms of that locality. He was 
 born in \'erona township, Oneida county, 
 New York, June 28, 1845, ^^^'^ is the only 
 child of Solomon and Emeline (Page) Tut- 
 tle. The father was born near Camden, 
 New Yoi;k, August 15, 18 15, and is a son 
 of Zopher Tuttle, a soldier of the war of 
 181 2, who was born in England and on first 
 coming to this country located in Connecti- 
 cut, where he married, but later moved to 
 Oneida county. New York. He followed 
 farming and reared a large family of chil- 
 dren, one of whom, Zopher Tuttle. became 
 a prominent pioneer of Illinois and a large 
 land owner, who recently dietl in Wichita, 
 Kansas. 
 
 The father of our subject grew to man- 
 hood in Oneida county, New York, and in 
 early life was a successful boat builder on 
 the Erie canal. He invested his capital 
 largely in real estate and the dairy business 
 and made quite a fortune. He was one of 
 the early land owners in La Salle cnunt}', 
 Illinois, and for years was a director and 
 large stockholder of the First National 
 Bank, of Rome, New York. He was une 
 of the most influential men in his commu- 
 
 nity in raising money and soldiers fnr the 
 Civil war, and has always been a stanch sup- 
 porter of the Republican party. He served 
 as supervisor of liis township for some years, 
 and is one of its most highly esteemed citi- 
 zens. Religiously he is an active member of 
 the Methodist Episcopal church, to which 
 the mother of our subject also belonged, 
 has e\er taken an active part in its work, 
 and is one of its most liberal supporters. 
 The mother died when our subject was only 
 a few days old. She was a native of Oneida 
 county. New York, and a daughter of Na- 
 thaniel Pase, who at one time was a prom- 
 ment boat builder and real estate owner of 
 that county.. He was born in England, and 
 before his removal to Oneida county lived 
 in Herkimer, New York, for a time. When 
 our subject was two years old his father 
 married Sarah Bailey, by whom he had 
 three sons. 
 
 During his boyhood Grant Tuttle at- 
 tended the common schools of New London, 
 New York, and remained at home until he 
 attained his majority, when he started out 
 to make' his own way in the world, working 
 as a dri\er on canal boats for si.x months. 
 The following year he steered, and then ran 
 a boat for one man two seasons, at the end 
 of which time he bought a boat and success- 
 fully engaged in the same business fur him- 
 self, making seven trips each season between 
 Buffalo and New York. He became well 
 acquainted with the boatmen along the canal, 
 and, when business began to drop off and 
 he sold his boat, he was offered a position 
 with a commission house in Buffalo, at good 
 wages, the firm trying hard to get him. In 
 September, 1882, Mr. Tuttle came tn Li\- 
 ingston county, Illinois, and purchased his 
 present farm in Saunemin township, which 
 at that time was entirelv unimproved. Af-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 295 
 
 tor building a small house he was joined by 
 his family, December 12, i88j. He has 
 thoroughly tiled his land, which was at first 
 swampy, has buiU fences, a good set of farm 
 buildings, and a beautiful country hduie in 
 iS()3 — one of the finest in the townshi]). He 
 has been (|uite extensively engaged in horse 
 r.iis'ng. hut now devotes most of lii,s atten- 
 tion to general farming, in which he has 
 met with well-merited success. 
 
 Mr. Tuttle was married. Octolier i. 1S7J. 
 ti' Miss Henrietta Belcher, a native of \'c- 
 rniia. .\'cw York, and a daughter ni Alex- 
 ander I'iclcher. ;i well-km iwn farmer and 
 mill iiwncr of that place. ( )i' the se\en 
 children born to them two are deceased. 
 Tlio.se li\ing are .Marcia. Wells. .Morris, 
 Julia and iCllis, all at home, .\lthough f;rm- 
 erly Methodists. Mr. and ^lr^. Tuttle now 
 attend and support the Ennngton Congre- 
 gational church. He is a stanch supporter 
 of the Republican jiarty. but has never been 
 an aspirant for ofiice. preferring to devote 
 his undivided attention to his business in- 
 terests. He is. however. public-s])iritcd an 1 
 progressive, and gives his inthience toward 
 advancing ;uiy enterprise which he believes 
 Vvill pro\e of i)ublic lienefit. 
 
 GEORGE J. \\ALTER. 
 
 George J. Walter, who has success- 
 fully engaged in the manufacture of 
 brick and tile for the past twenty \ears, is 
 numbered among the leading and most suc- 
 cessful of the business men of Chatsworth, 
 of which city he has been a resident since 
 September, 1S66. He was born in Xew 
 "^'ork city, December 5, 1852, and is tlie son 
 of John and Elizabeth (Reille) Walter, the 
 
 former a native of Baden, Germany, and the 
 latter of Wurtemburg, Germany, but who 
 came to this country in early man and wom- 
 anhood and were married in New York city, 
 wliere they lived for some years. 
 
 In his youth John Walter learned the 
 shoemaker's trade which he followed for 
 twentv-five years, after which he engaged 
 in the mercantile trade, in which lie con- 
 tinued until about uSc/). since which time he 
 has lived a retired life. After leaving Xew' 
 \'ork he remained for a time in Indiana, 
 and then came with his family to Chats- 
 worth, in 1866, and here has since con- 
 tinued to reside. Eor many years he was 
 one of the leading business men of the city, 
 and carried a general stock of goods. For a 
 number of years he' served on the school 
 board of that city, and was also for sev- 
 eral years a member of the village board of 
 trustees. John and Elizabeth Walter were 
 the parents of six children, two of whom died 
 in infancy, while Elizabeth died at the age of 
 twenty-one years. GeorgeJ. is the subject of 
 this .sketch. Louis .\ . is in the lumber busi- 
 ness in Chatsworth. while .\lbert F. is in 
 the dry goods business in the same cit\'. 
 
 George J. Walter was fourteen \ears old 
 when he came to Chatsworth. His educa- 
 tion, begun in the public schools of his native 
 city, was continued in the public schools 
 of Indiana, where, as stated, the family re- 
 sidetl for a time. On coming to Chatsworth 
 he entered the public schools of the place and 
 for about three years attended the high 
 school. The education received in the 
 schools was a practical one. and on lea\;ng 
 school he entered the store of his father, 
 and later, in com]ian\- with his brother 
 1.1 nis. took cha.rge of the business foi- .about 
 tw o years. 
 
 In September. 1877. .Mr. Walter was
 
 296 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 united in marriage with Miss Lena Heil- 
 mann, who was born in Baden, Germany, in 
 1857, and who came to this country with her 
 parents when but two years of age. By this 
 union tliere have been born si.x children, 
 one of whom died in infancy. Edna E. is at- 
 tending Northwestern College, Naperville. 
 Illinois, where she is taking a commercial 
 course, and als(j the music and art course. 
 Lydia is at home attending the high school 
 of Chatsworth. Clara, Arthur and Esther 
 are all at home. 
 
 After his marriage. Mr. Walter eml)arked 
 in the bakery business in which he remained 
 about two years with a fair degree of suc- 
 cess. He was then one year in the furniture 
 business, and in 1880 sold out and broke 
 ground for his present plant for the manu- 
 facture of brick and tile, and at once engaged 
 in the business. He has four kilns for burn- 
 ing brick and tile, and has erected large 
 buildings and sheds for drying, with a floor 
 space of nine thousand scjuare feet. In 1881 
 he put in an engine of eighty-five horse 
 power, and also two boilers of one hundred 
 and ten horse power. The plant has a ca- 
 pacity for thirty thousand brick and Mr, 
 Walter does the largest business of any firm 
 in the county, shipping his product by rail 
 to nianv points in and out of the county. 
 
 In politics Mr. Walter is a Republican, 
 and has taken an active interest in the politi- 
 cal affairs of his country, though never an 
 active politician. He has been a member of 
 the school board in Chatsworth for seven 
 years, and has taken great interest in main- 
 taining good schools. Religiously he and 
 his wife are members of the Evangelical 
 Association. 
 
 In his business life Mr. Walter has been 
 verv successful. For a short time he had 
 a i)artner. and fi ir aliout five years his fa- 
 
 ther was associated with him in business, 
 but for the greater part of the time he has 
 managed it alone, and as stated does the larg- 
 est business of any firm in the county in 
 like business, and he has the largest plant in 
 the county. In addition to the plant which 
 covers two and a half acres of ground, he 
 owns eighty acres adjoining the city on the 
 east. As a citizen no one is willing to do 
 more to advance the interests of his adopted 
 city and county, and as friend he is kind 
 and obliging, ever willing to do a good turn. 
 .\s such as he is entitled to a place in the 
 historical annals of his countv. 
 
 WALTER LEGGATE. 
 
 Walter Leggate, one of the leading agri- 
 culturists of Germanville township, whose 
 fine farm of one hundred and sixty acres is 
 pleasantly situated on section 14, was born 
 in the city of New York, December 7, 1853, a 
 son of John and Elizabeth (Fleming) Leg- 
 gate. The father was bom on the 25th of 
 August. 1816. in Lanarkshire, Scotland, 
 through which county flows the far-famed 
 and beautiful ri\er Clyde, and is a sun oi 
 James and Margaret (Dalgleish) Leg- 
 gate, who had three children : Robert, who 
 served for twenty years in the British army, 
 and died at his home in Scotland in 1885; 
 John, father of our subject ; and James, who 
 came to America when a young man and is 
 now living in New Jersey. In early life 
 John Leggate learned the weaver's trade, 
 and in 1837 married Elizabeth Fleming, also 
 a native of Lanarkshire. In 1848, witli their 
 family of four children, the}' took ])assage 
 on a sailing vessel at Glasgow, and after ten 
 weeks si)ent upon the water landed in .\e\v
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 297 
 
 ^t)^k city, where the father worked at liis 
 trade three years, and in a glass factory the 
 ^ame lengtli of time. Later he moved to 
 Canada, and made his home near London, 
 until 1857. being employed in a brickyard 
 most of the time. Having saved a little 
 money by close economy and untiring in- 
 dustry, he resolved to invest it in western 
 land and came to Livingston county. Illi- 
 nois, where he jnirchased eighty acres in 
 ( iermanville township. He prospered in his 
 new home, and at length became the owner 
 lit two hundred -.uul forty acres of valuable 
 hind on section 10. where he is now living 
 a retired life enjoying the fruits of former 
 toil. He is a man of many noble traits of 
 character, and is highly respected and es- 
 teemed by all who know him. Religiously 
 lie is a faithful member of the Presbyterian 
 church, and has always taken an acti\e part 
 in church and Sunday school work. In 
 h.is political views he is a Republican, and 
 filled the ofiice of justice of the ]ieace in his 
 tiiwnship for nian_\- yern"s. His wife died in 
 May. 1893. at about the age of seventy- 
 eight years, and was laid to rest in German- 
 ville cemetery. She, too. was a devout member 
 of the Presbyterian church and a most es- 
 tinicible lad v. 
 
 To this worthy coujjle were Ijorn nine 
 children, of whom four are now living; 
 James, a brick manufacturer of Chicago, 
 who first married Matilda Linn, and second 
 .\nna Smith, of Chicago; John, an engineer 
 of Chicago, who married Xancy McKav; 
 Walter, our subject; and Sarah, wife of 
 Owen McMahon. who operates his father- 
 in-law's farm in Germanville township. 
 Of those deceased Marion died when a small 
 child in Scotland ; Margaret married John 
 Beckman of Germanville township, and died 
 ii", Iowa, where her husband is now engaged 
 
 in farming; Robert served three years in 
 Company E. Eighty-ninth Illinois Volunteer 
 Infantry, and died in Iowa, leaving a wife 
 and two children; (jecirge. born in Scotland, 
 married Dora Lutson, of Germanville town- 
 slii]). where he followed farming for some 
 tune, but about fourteen years ago moved 
 t'l Iowa, where he died in March, 1898, leav- 
 ing a widow and four children; and Archie 
 died in Germanville, at the age of four 
 years. 
 
 Walter Leggate was only a year old 
 w hen the family mo\ed to Canada, and came 
 with them to Illinois, in the spring of 1857. 
 At the age of nine \ears he entered the pub- 
 lic schools of Germanville township, where 
 he was educated. He continued to assist in 
 the operation of the home farm until four- 
 teen yearge ago, when he located upon his 
 present place, and has since devoted his en- 
 ergies to its further improvement and culti- 
 vation. Politically he is identified with the 
 Republican party, and he has been called 
 u])iin III scr\c his fellow citizens as town- 
 ship collector several terms and also as con- 
 stable. He is widely and favorably known 
 in his ado|)ted county, and those who know 
 him best are numbered among his warmest 
 friends. 
 
 On the 25th of December. 1876, in Ger- 
 manville township, Mr. Leggate was united 
 in marriage with Miss Ruth Ellen Mahood, 
 a daughter of .Me.xander and Mary (Sum- 
 ney) Mahood. The father, who was a 
 prominent and prosperous farmer of that 
 township, died in 1874. and was buried there, 
 but the mother is still living at the age of 
 seventy-one years, and makes her home with 
 our subject. Mr. Leggate has been called 
 upon to mourn the loss of his estimable wife, 
 who died June i, 1897. leaving four chil- 
 dren, namely: John Alexander, born March
 
 298 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 30, 1878; Laura, August 26, 1880; Walter 
 F., July 12, 1884; and Eva May, January 
 26, 1889. All were born in Livingston 
 countv. and the family is one of prominence 
 in the community where they reside. 
 
 HON. CHARLES M. BARICKMAN. 
 
 Hon. Charles M. Barickman, judge of 
 the county and probate courts of Livingston 
 county, is a native of the county, and was 
 born in Newtown township, December 28, 
 1862. His father, Benjamin Barickman, is 
 one of the oldest living settlers of the county, 
 having located here in 1832, when a lad of 
 eight years. (See sketch on another page 
 of this work.) 
 
 On the home farm Charles M. grew to 
 manhood, and in the common schools of 
 the neighborhood he received his primary 
 education, while during his vacations he as- 
 sisted in the operation of the farm. \\'ith 
 the desire to obtain a more liberal education 
 than that afforded by the public schools, he 
 entered the Illinois Wesleyan University, 
 Bloomington, Illinois, from which institu- 
 tion he was graduated with the class ol 
 1887. 
 
 Lea\-ing the university for the next two 
 years, Mr. Barickman was engaged in teach- 
 ing, first at Ancona and later at Cornell, 
 spending one year in each place. During 
 that time, in his leisure linurs and during his 
 vacations, he read law and made such prog- 
 ress in his studies that in 1889 he was ad- 
 mitted to practice in all the courts of the 
 state bv the supreme court in session at Ml. 
 Vernon, Illinois. 
 
 On his admission to the bar, Mr. Barick- 
 man located in Pontiac and at once entered 
 
 upon the practice of his profession. He 
 very soon took rank with the leading prac- 
 titioners of the place, and became well 
 known throughout the county. His ability 
 as an attorney was recognized, and in 1894 
 he was nominated for the office of county 
 judge, and at the election in November of 
 that year he was elected by a majority of 
 about eight hundred over his Democratic 
 opponent. So well did he transact the 
 business of the olifice that in 1898 he was re- 
 nominated and elected by a largely increased 
 majority, receiving the largest number of 
 votes of any candidate upon the ticket, his 
 majority being twelve hundred and twenty- 
 six votes. He is now serving his second 
 term, and to say that his management of the 
 ofifice is satisfactory to the people goes with- 
 out question. 
 
 On the 1 6th of April, 1890, Judge Ba- 
 rickman was united in marriage with Miss 
 Rena M. Ten Eick and daughter of ^Matthew 
 and Mary (Means) Ten Eick, of Blooming- 
 tun. Illinois. The judge and his wife attend 
 and support the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 cf Pontiac, and socially they are held in the 
 highest esteem. They occupy a fine resi- 
 dence on Maplewood avenue, erected by the 
 Judge, and their home is ever open to their 
 many friends. 
 
 Judge Barickman was born during the 
 time of the civil war, and grew up a loyal 
 citizen and an ardent Republican. His 
 first presidential vote was cast for James 
 G. Blaine in 1884, and since that time he 
 has ever taken an active interest in politics, 
 and his influence has been felt in the councils 
 of his partv and in the county of which he 
 has been a life-long resident. Eratcrnally 
 he is a member of Pontiac Lodge, No. 294, 
 A. F. & A. M. ; and of Crescent Lodge, No. 
 118, K. P. In the latter lodge he has held
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 299 
 
 all the chairs, and has been a representative 
 to the Grand Lodge of the state. He is 
 also a member of the Uniformed Rank, K. 
 P., and has served as captain two terms. 
 As a citizen he is alive to all that has a tenil- 
 ency to make the city of his adoption and 
 the connty of his birth take rank with the 
 best in our fair state. 
 
 LEONARD LARGE. 
 
 Leonard Large, deceased, was for many 
 years identified with the agricultural inter- 
 ests of Pleasant Ridge township, Livingston 
 county, Illinois, and was numbered among 
 its highly respected citizens. He was born 
 May 3, 1818, in Farrington, five miles from 
 Lynn, England, and there grew to manhood 
 on a farm, his father being employed as a 
 farmer on an estate there. In 1853 he mar- 
 ried Miss Sarah F. Mitchell, who was born 
 near the same place. May 4, i8_'(j. Her 
 father was Freeman Mitchell, a native of 
 W ispich, England, and a blacksmith by 
 trade, who died when she was eight years 
 old, leaving a widow and four children. 
 
 For one year after their marriage Mr. 
 and Airs. Large made their home in Rose- 
 berry, Topham, Yorkshire, England, and 
 then came to the United States, settling first 
 in Stony Rocks, New York, not far from 
 Auburn, where they spent four years. At 
 the end of that time they came to Illinois 
 and bought a small tract of ten acres of land 
 five miles from Eureka, on which a log house 
 was built. As his financial resources in- 
 creased Mr. Large added to his property 
 little by little until he had forty acres, which 
 he subsetiuently sold for eleven hundred 
 <l(illars. In 1870 he came to Pleasant Ridge 
 
 township, Livingston county, and purchased 
 eighty acres of land on which the family 
 still reside. At that time not a fence had 
 been built or an improvement made, but he 
 erected a good house and barn, planted fruit 
 and shade trees, tiled the land and placed it 
 under a high state of cultivation, so that it 
 ii now a valuable farm. 
 
 Mr. Large died September 11, 1880, 
 houiired and respected by all who knew him. 
 J>oth be and his estimable wife held mem- 
 bership in the Episcopal church. In their 
 family were the following children : \Vill- 
 iam; Sarah A., deceased; Leonard, Isaac, 
 Thomas, Mrs. Rebecca Minear, Mrs. Martha 
 Bruner and John, all living near Lexington, 
 Nebraska; Rachel and Robert, both at home. 
 
 MILES DESIRE. 
 
 Miles Desire, a farmer and stock raisir, 
 residing on section 28, Chatsworth townshi]), 
 while not numbered among the earlv settlers 
 is a well known citizen of the county, which 
 has been his home since 1876. He is a na- 
 tive of iM-ance, born March r, 1853, and is 
 a son of Casimer W. and Mary (Savorvin) 
 Meillian, both of whom were also natives of 
 b'rance, where their entire lives were spent, 
 and where they died about 1896. They were 
 the parents of eight children, of whom one 
 (lied in infancy. The living are Desire, the 
 subject of this sketch: Marrius, Dennis, 
 Ferdinand, Julius, Mary and Susan. Of the 
 children none came to this country but our 
 subject and Dennis. The latter is living in 
 Colorado, where he is engaged in mining. 
 
 The subject of this sketch grew to man- 
 hood and was educated in the public schools 
 of his native land. He was reared to farm
 
 300 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 life and assisted his father on tlie home farm 
 until \SyT,. when he came to the United 
 States, with a \iew of bettering his condition 
 m life. On his arrir\al he took up his resi- 
 lience in Marshall county, Illinois, where 
 worked as a farm hand for three years. He 
 then came to Livingston county, rented land 
 in Germanville township, and commenced 
 farming for himself. Two years later, Sep- 
 tember 21, 1878. he was united in marriage 
 with Miss Martha Be\-ins, who was born in 
 Bureau county, Illinois, in i860. After his 
 marriage he continued to farm rented land 
 in Germanville township until 1881, when he 
 moved to Chatsworth township, where he 
 also rented and continued to farm until 1889, 
 when he purchased one hundred and sixty 
 acres on section 30, a partly improved farm. 
 To that farm he mo\-ed and put it under an 
 excellent state of cultivation.tiling and other- 
 wise improving the place. He remained on 
 that farm for six years and then purchased 
 three hundred and sixt}- acres of swamp 
 and timber land on section 28. This land 
 was entirly unimproved, havinj^- neither 
 building or fence on the place. He has since 
 cleared about two hundred acres of timber, 
 drained the swamp, and now has a good 
 farm. The first year he raised ninety bushels 
 of sod corn to tlie acre. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Desire are the parents of 
 three children : ]\Iary Ann. who is engaged 
 in dressmaking" in Chatsworth ; and Lizzie 
 and Joseph, at home. Mrs. Desire was one 
 of a family of four daugliters and one son. 
 as follows : Annie, wife of Carl Drake, liv- 
 ing in Chicago; Martha E., wife of our sub- 
 ject; Sarah E., wife of George Pyles, now 
 living in Missouri; Mary A., wife of M. 
 Krebb, of Chicago; and Caleb E., living in 
 Whiting, Indiana. 
 
 When Mr. Desire came to the United 
 
 States he could not speak a word of the Eng- 
 lish language, anil he was se\enteen dollars 
 in debt when he landed in Chicago. He 
 came here, howe\-er. with the intention of 
 overcoming all obstacles, and that he has 
 overcome them this record of his life will 
 attest. By his industry and enterprise he has 
 become the owner of a fine farm, well 
 stocked, and the future is bright before 
 him. In addition to general farming he has 
 usually engaged in the stock business, not 
 onlv raising but buying and shipping as 
 well, and in this he has met with a reasonable 
 degree of success. 
 
 Mr. Desire cast his first presidential vote 
 for Samuel J. Tilden, but now votes the 
 Republican ticket straight. He has served 
 as commissioner of highways for ten years, 
 urer of the commissioner of highways for 
 school director nine years, and has been tras- 
 the last three years. Fraternally he is a 
 member of the Knights of Pythias of Chats- 
 worth, and has lieen trustee of the same. 
 He is also a member of the Modern Wood- 
 men of America of Chatsworth. Religiously 
 he is a member of the Catholic church of 
 Chatsworth. He has been a successful man, 
 is well esteemed in the community which 
 lias been his home for nearly a (|uarter of a 
 century and has many warm friends. 
 
 DA\TD SHANTZ. 
 
 David Shantz, who owns and operates 
 a valuable farm of three hundred and twenty 
 acres on section 2/. Sullivan township, Liv- 
 ingston county. Illinois, is a native of Can- 
 ada, born in Berlin, Waterloo county, Jan- 
 uarv 30, 1846, and is a son of Isaac C. and 
 Elizabeth (Snyder) Shantz, both natives of
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 301 
 
 reniisylvania. Tlie Sliaiitz family came 
 <>rigiiiall\' from Switzerland, and were 
 among the tir.-it settlers of Bucks county. 
 Pennsylvania. Tlie great-grandfather of 
 our subject was Isaac Shantz, who was ■horn 
 in .Montgomery county, that state, January 
 14, 174S, anil was married, in 1774. to Piar- 
 hara Reiti'. who was born in September, 
 1753. When our subject's father was only 
 three years old, the grandfather. Christian 
 Shantz, took his family to Waterlot) county. 
 Canada, locating there when the Indians 
 were far more nuiuerous than the wliite set- 
 tlers. There he and his wife spent their re- 
 maining days. The father grew to manhood 
 in Canada and in early life learned the cab- 
 ir.ctmaker's trade. I'^or many years he ran 
 a sawmill and furniture factory at Man- 
 heim. manufacturing all kinds of furniture, 
 l)ut misfortune overtook him and he sold 
 out. In 1858 he removed to (iardner, Grun- 
 dy county. Illinois, where he engaged in 
 farming upon rented land for two years, 
 ar.d for the same length of time rented land 
 in Round Grove and Dwight townships. Liv- 
 ingston county. Coming to Sulli\an town- 
 ship in 1864 he purchased one hundred and 
 si.xty acres of land, for which he paid twenty 
 dollars per acre, it being the farm on which 
 our subject now lives. At the time of his 
 death he owned two hundred acres, a part of 
 which was wild prairie when he purchased 
 it. His first home here was a small struc- 
 ture. 14x16 feet, the lumber for which he 
 hauled from Pontiac, a distance of twenty 
 miles. While a resident of Dwight town- 
 ship he sold one horse for war purposes for 
 two hundred dollars. On first coming to 
 this county our subject herded cattle on the 
 prairies, bringing them from Ottawa each 
 s])ring and taking them back in the fall. For 
 this he received one dollar and a half per head 
 
 for the season, and has cared for as many 
 as .seven hundred at one time. The father 
 died September jo, 1885, at the age of 
 eighty-two years, and was laid to rest in 
 Sullivan Center cemetery, while the mother 
 died in December, 1892, at the age of eighty- 
 five years. Tn their familv were the follow- 
 ing children: Daniel, who died in Round 
 Grove township, at the age of twenty-eight 
 years, leaving two sons, who are still living; 
 Lena, wi(Unv of Jacob .\macher and a resi- 
 dent of Cullom. Illinois; Christian S., who is 
 now living retired in the same place; Eliza- 
 beth, wiio died at the age of two years; 
 David, our subject: and Isaac, a farmer of 
 Sulli\an t<»\\nship. 
 
 During his boyhood and youth David 
 Shantz attended school for two or three 
 months during the winter seasons, and re- 
 mained at home until he was married, Feb- 
 ruary 25, 1893, to Miss Elizabeth Wenger. 
 who was born in the Shenandoah valley, Ef- 
 fingham count}', \'irginia. Her parents, 
 Daniel and Sarah (Coffman) Wenger, were 
 natives of the same state, and her grandfa- 
 ther. Benjamin Wenger, was also a Virgin- 
 ian by birth and a planter, who in the midst 
 of the timber cleared and improved a farm. 
 The father, who also followed' the occupa- 
 tion of farming, died in 1889, the mother 
 in 1896. They had twelve children, namely: 
 Gideon, Benjamin, Samuel. Daniel, Annie, 
 David, Elizabeth, Sarah, Solomon, Mary, 
 Moses and John. With one exception all 
 reached years of maturity. One is now liv- 
 ing in Kansas, amjther in Michigan. Mrs. 
 Shantz in Illinois, and the others in Vir- 
 ginia, lohn and two sisters live on the old 
 homestead. Mr. and Mrs. Shantz have five 
 children: John and Sarah, who arc now 
 attending .school: Alvin and Earl, twins; 
 and Mary.
 
 302 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 In 1885 Mr Shantz purchased the inter- 
 est of the other heirs in his father's farm, 
 and in 18Q9 liought an adjoining tract of one 
 hundred and sixty acres, so that he now has 
 a fine farm of three hundred and twenty 
 acres, which is under a high state of cuhi- 
 vation and well improveil. He makes a 
 specialty of raising thoroughhred hrown 
 Swiss cattle, and also keeps a thoroughbred 
 shire stallion, "Barnie," for breeding pur- 
 poses. Since casting his first presidential 
 vote for U. S. Grant Mr. Shantz has always 
 supported the Republican party, hut would 
 never accept office, preferring to devote his 
 undivided attention to his business interests. 
 He and his wife are members of the ^len- 
 nonite church, and are hip-hly respected and 
 esteemed bv all who know them. 
 
 \VILLIA!\I :\I. MILLER. 
 
 U'illiam M. Miller, the well-known en- 
 gineer of the city water works of Dwight, 
 was born in Aurora, Illinois, October 25, 
 1855, and is a son of John S. and Celia J. 
 (Kennedy) Miller, natives of Fulton county. 
 New York, where they were reared and mar- 
 ried. In 1854 they came west and located m 
 Aurora, Illinois, where the father followed 
 his trade oi stone mason until 1S66, when he 
 removed to Dwight. Here he engaged in 
 ■contracting and did a great deal of the stone 
 work in Dwight and vicinity for many years, 
 but is now living a retired life, in his eighty- 
 eighth year. His wife died January 14, 
 1899, aged eightv years. Our subject's 
 paternal grandfather Miller came of a titled 
 Holland family. He was i)res,sed intu the 
 British army during the Revolutionary war 
 and brought in .\merica. 
 
 The subject of this sketch is the eighth 
 in order of birth in a family of eleven chil- 
 dren, ten sons and one daughter, of whom 
 the eldest, a son, died in infancy : James A. 
 enlisted, at Aurora, in the Forty-third Illi- 
 nois \'olunteer Infantry during the ci\il war, 
 and after two years re-enlisted as captain 
 in the One Hundred and Si.xty-si.xth regi- 
 ment, was captured at Fort Donelson and 
 (lied in .\ndersonville prison: Charles is a 
 contractor and builder of Chicago; .\ndrew 
 has been an engineer on the W'abast Rail- 
 road for thirteen years, and is now a resident 
 of Decatur, Illinois; Amos is a prominent 
 farmer of Ford county. Illinois : Robert was 
 for several years yard master for the Wis- 
 consin Central Railroad at tiie Roby street 
 yards, Chicago, in which city he died in Sep- 
 temlier, 1S95; Alfred was for eleven years 
 a conductor on the Indiana, Illinois & Iowa 
 Railroad, and was killed near \\'alkerton, 
 Indiana. April ^o, 1899, leaving a widow 
 and three children, who reside in Chicago ; 
 Jennie is the wife of Zerum Johnson, a resi- 
 dent of Dwight ; Joseph and Dewitt both 
 died of diphtheria, aged, respectively, seven 
 and four years. 
 
 ^^'illiam B. Miller was but a lad of eleven 
 }'ears when the family removed to Dwight, 
 which has been his home ever since. He 
 assisted his father in stone work until si.x- 
 teen years of age, when he entered the em- 
 plo)" of the Chicaeo iS: .\Iton Railroatl as 
 section hand, and in less than a year was 
 made foreman. Two years were sjient in 
 the round hou.se at Dwight, and he was then 
 promoted to engineer, running a local 
 freight from Dwight to Washington, Illi- 
 nois, for three years and a half. During 
 the big strike of 1892 he left the railroad 
 and for one year was ene\age(l in running 
 a stationary engine. In i8t\^ lie accejned his
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 303 
 
 ])resent position as engfineer of tlie city water 
 works at Dwight. and has since given his 
 entire attention to that work. The construc- 
 tiiMi of tile plant was commenced in 189J 
 and finished the following year, and at that 
 time was run by steam, but in 1897 tlie 
 Leslie E. Keeley Company donated to the 
 city a modern Fairbank & Morse gas engine 
 of twenty-five horse power, two Gould seven- 
 inch pumps with a lift capacity of seven 
 thousand gallons per hour, and a stand pipe 
 one hundred and twenty feet high, the upper 
 l)art of which is a still tank, fifty-two feet, 
 with a capacity of fifty thousand gallons. 
 This furnishes an ample fire protection as 
 well as supply for general use. 
 
 On the 18th of February. 1881. Mr. 
 Miller was united in marriage with Miss 
 Jennie Heffner. daughter of .Xndrew and 
 Jane ( Vocum) Heffner. Her lather was a 
 ])rominent citizen and miller of Huntingxlon 
 county. Pennsylvania, and was nct.d for his 
 l)ene\olent and charitable disposition. iMrs. 
 iMiller was born in that county October 27, 
 i860, and there our subject met her, while 
 on a visit to Pennsylvania. She is the fourth 
 in. order of birth in a family of si.x children, 
 the others being Mary, wife of Stewart 
 Africa, of Huntingdon county. Pennsyl- 
 vania ; Rachel, who is at home with her 
 mother ; John, who succeeded his father in 
 business; Rebecca, at home; and Thomas, 
 who is living on the old homestead. To 
 Mr. and iMrs. Miller were born eight chil- 
 dren, namely: Lawrence A., who died at 
 the age of twelve years; Celia J., Francis 
 J.. Ralphus A., Milton J., iMary R., Rachel 
 and Rebecca. 
 
 I-'raternally iMr. iMiller is a charter mem- 
 l;er of the Independent Order (jf Mutual 
 .Aid; of Hebron Lodge. Xo. 175. K. P., in 
 which he has filled most of the offices, and a 
 
 charter member of the Knights of Macca- 
 bees of Dwight. and finance keeper of the 
 same. He takes an active interest in the 
 progress and growth of his town, and by 
 his ballot supports the men and measures 
 of the Republican party. 
 
 JOHX LEGG.VTE. 
 
 John Leggate. one nf the highly honoretl 
 and respected citizens of Germanville towiv 
 ship, Livingston county, owns and occupies 
 a well-improved and highly cultivated farm 
 of one hundred and si.xty acres on section 
 10. and has most efficiently served as justice 
 of the peace for many years. He was born 
 in Lanarkshire, near (ilasgow. Scotland, Au- 
 gust 25, 1816, and is a son of James and 
 Margaret (Dalgleish) Leggate. who si>ent 
 their entire lives in that country. The 
 mother died when mir subject was only four 
 years old, and the father afterward married 
 Esther Cooper, also a nati.\e of Scotland. 
 He followed the occupation of weaving 
 throughout life and died at the age of forty- 
 seven years. IW his first marriage he had 
 three childrlcn, of whom our subject is the 
 oldest. James, who is now living retired 
 in Patteron, New Jersey, alsi^ followed 
 weaving during his active life and has ac- 
 cumulated considerable property. He mar- 
 ried Elizabeth Watson, of Scotland, and to 
 them have been born six children. Robert, 
 the other brother of our subject, served 
 twenty years in the British army, and died 
 at his home in Scotland at the age of fifty 
 years, leaving a family of children, none of 
 whom ever came to this country. By his sec- 
 ond marriage the father had four children: 
 Esther. George. William and William, all 
 of whom died when (luite \iiung.
 
 304 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 John Leggate was educated in the pub- 
 lic schools of his birthplace, and in early life 
 learned the weaver's trade with his father, 
 following that occupation continuously un- 
 til coming to tlii United States at the age 
 of thirty-two years. In his nati\-e land he 
 was married, December 29, 1837, to Miss 
 Elizabeth Fleming, a daughter of John and 
 Marian (Stuart) Fleming, life-long resi- 
 dents of Scotland. Her father was also a 
 weaver. 
 
 In 1848, with his wife and children, Mr. 
 Leggate sailed for America, and spent the 
 first six years of his residence here in New 
 York City, where he followed his trade three 
 years, and also worked in a stained glass 
 factory the same length of time. Subse- 
 quently he spent two years near London, 
 Canada, where he was engaged in the manu- 
 facture of brick, and in 1857 came to Liv- 
 ingston county, Illinois. He had previously 
 accjuired some capital, being economical and 
 industrious, and this he invested in land on 
 section 10, Germanville township, where he 
 now resides. As his financial resources have 
 increased he has added to his landed posses- 
 sions, and now owns two hundred and forty 
 acres of land, eighty acres of which are on 
 section 14, the same township. When it 
 came into his possession it was wild prairie 
 land, but acre after acre were soon placed 
 under the plow, a comfortable residence was 
 erected, good barns and outbuildings were 
 also built and many other improvements 
 made, so that it is now one of the most de- 
 sirable farm of that section of the county. 
 
 Of the nine children born to Mr. and 
 Mrs. Leggate only four are now living, 
 namelv : James, born in Scotland, is now 
 a brick manufacturer of Chicago. He mar- 
 ried Matilda Linn, by whom he had four 
 children, two still living, Lillie and Mancel. 
 
 His second wife was Anna Smith, of Chi- 
 cago. (2) John, born in Scotland, is an 
 engineer of Chicago. During the civil war 
 he enlisted in Company D, Eighty-ninth Illi- 
 iiois A*,)lunteer Infantry, but was wounded 
 shortl}- after entering the service and hon- 
 orably discharged. He married Nancy Mc- 
 Kay and has three children, Rebecca, Liz- 
 zie and ]\Iaggie. (3) \\'alter, a farmer 
 of Germanville township, is represented on 
 another page of this work. (4) Sarah is 
 the wife of Owen McMahon, who operates 
 iiur subject's farm. Of those deceased, 
 Marion died in Scotland when cjuite young. 
 Alargaret married John Beckman, of Ger- 
 manville township, and died in Lnva, at the 
 age of twenty-seven years. Robert, born in 
 Scotland, was a member of the same com- 
 ]iany as his brother John, and ser\-ecl until 
 the end of the war. He married Mary Sher- 
 man and died at the age of thirty-eight years, 
 lea\-ing two children. Viola and Etta. 
 George, born in Scotland, married Dora Lut- 
 son and lived in Germanville township for 
 some time, but spent his last days in Iowa, 
 where he died, leaving four children. Nancv 
 James, Viola and Martha. Archie died in 
 Germanville at the age of four years. 
 
 Since becoming an American citizen Mr. 
 Leggate has afiiliated with the Republican 
 party, and has taken quite an active interest 
 in public affairs. Since 1869 he has most 
 creditably and acceptably filled the ofiice of 
 justice of the peace, and at different times 
 has held all of the township offices, being 
 school treasurer twelve years. Lpright and 
 honorable in all things, he has been found 
 true to every trust reposed in him, whether 
 jjublic or private, and is accounted tme of 
 the most valued and useful citizens of his 
 comnnuiitv. In religious faith he and his 
 familv are Preshvterians. His estimable
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 30: 
 
 wife died in May, 1893, at the age of sev- 
 enty-eiglit years, and was laid to rest in the 
 Ciermanville cemetery. He is now practi- 
 cally living retired. surrc;)unded 1)y a large 
 circle of friends and ac(|uaintances, who es- 
 teem him higfhlv for liis sterline: worth. 
 
 A1).\M S MAKER. 
 
 Adam Shafer, who resides on section 27. 
 Chatsworth township, has been a resident of 
 Ei\'ingston county since 1863. He was born 
 in Koor, Hessen, German}-, September 26, 
 1S47. His father dying when he was but an 
 infant and his mother marrying again, he 
 Mas reared by an aunt until twelve years of 
 age, when he went to live with his mother 
 and .step- father, Jacob Gabriel. In 1857 
 tiie family came to the United States and lo- 
 cated in Tazewell county, Illinois, where 
 they remained for five years, and in 1863 
 moved to what was tiien the southern part 
 of Chatsworth township, but is now Ger- 
 manville township. On the farm of iiis step- 
 father our subject grew to manhood, in the 
 meantime receiving a limited education in 
 the pul)iic schools. From the time he was 
 old enough to follow a ])lmv he had to do 
 his share of the farm work, and therefore 
 he became a tlKjrough, practical farmer. 
 \\'hen twenty-one years old he left home 
 and for the next three vears worked as a 
 farm hand, during which time lie saved up 
 the greater jjart of liis earnings and was 
 enabled to commence farming for himself. 
 
 In December. 1870. Mr. Shafer was 
 united in marriage with Miss Kathrina 
 Xeiding, who was born in Germany in 1845. 
 She came to this country when twenty-three 
 years of age, after the deatli of her parents. 
 
 She had one brother and three sisters in this 
 country, but of the five her brother John 
 and her sister Martha are the only ones now 
 living. The latter is the wife of Henry 
 Brents, of Brule, Nebraska. The former is 
 engaged in farming in Chatsworth town- 
 ship. To Mr. and Mrs. Shafer were born 
 nine children, two of whom died in early 
 childhood. Those living are Christ, a pros- 
 perous young farmer ;n Chatsu'orth town- 
 shi]), who is married and has three children. 
 He is living on his father's farm in that 
 township. Lizzie is the wife of Henry 
 Klehm, and they ha\-e two children. They 
 reside on a farm in Ford county. Katie is 
 the wife of I'hilip Keosner, and thc\- live 
 near Chenoa, McLean county. They ha\e 
 one son. Edward, Charles, Bert'e and Lena 
 yet remain at home with their fath:r, the 
 sons assisting- in the farm work, while the 
 daughter attends to the housekeeping. 
 
 -After their marriage Mr. and ]\lrs. 
 Shafer continued to reside on rentd land in 
 Germainillc lownshi]) for five years, during 
 which time he succeeded in accunnilating 
 sufficient means to purchase eighty acres of 
 partially improved land in Chatsworth town- 
 ship, south of the city. To that farm they 
 removed, and here he has continued to reside 
 imtil the j^resent time. From time to time 
 he added to his possessions nnt 1 he now 
 owns two hundred acres on section i". one 
 hundred and twenty acres on section 2}^ and 
 one hundred and sixty aci-es on section 16. 
 Chatswiirtli township, all of which is inider 
 a high state of cultivation. When twenty- 
 one years old he had to face the world, a 
 young man without means and the owner 
 of not an acre of God's green earth, but by 
 industry and the help of his wife, and also 
 that of Iiis children in later years, he is now 
 possessed of a competency and can Jirne no 
 
 L
 
 3o6 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 fear of the future. During the greater part 
 of tlie time in which he has been accumulat- 
 ing his wife was in ill health, and for much 
 of the time under the care of a physician. 
 He never went into the field without fear in 
 his heart for the good wife at the house. 
 Notwithstanding her illnefs she was to him 
 a true helpmeet and an inspiration, and no 
 sacrifice but was cheerfully made to secure 
 her happiness. By her cheerful disposition 
 and loving counsel she assisted him in the 
 toils of the day. The improvements on his 
 farm, including the residence, and the barns, 
 the fences, the tiling and the orchard, is 
 the result of his own labors, and he has rea- 
 son to be proud of what has been accom- 
 plished. For a number of years he owned 
 and operated a corn sheller and a thresher. 
 which added materially to his income. 
 
 On the 24th of April. 1899. ]\Irs. Shafer 
 passed from her earthly cares to the haven of 
 rest. In the old country she was a number 
 of the Lutheran church, but after her ma 
 riage she united with the Evangelical Asso- 
 ciation, with which body she remained a 
 faithful and consistent member until her 
 death. She was a lo\'ing wife, a kind 
 mother and a deserving Christian woman, 
 beloved by all who knew her. With the 
 hope of a restoration to health she was taken 
 tu a hospital in Chicago, and there under- 
 went a severe surgical operation, but it was 
 without avail. Death claimed her, but she 
 was read}' to go. During her lung illness 
 she bore it all uncomplainingly, and when 
 the dread summons came she was ready, hav- 
 ing an abiding hope in her blessed Savior, 
 and with the full assurance that in the home 
 beyond she would meet her loved ones, for 
 they are all followers of the meek and lowly 
 one. In her life she was an earnest and 
 willing supporter of the church, and when 
 
 able a worker in the Sunday school. Her 
 life was a life of good works, and it can well 
 be said of her, "Blessed are the dead who 
 die in the Lord, for they shall rest from their 
 labors and their works do follow them." 
 
 Like his wife, Mr. Shafer is a member of 
 the Evangelical Association and a firm be- 
 liever in the Christian religion. Politically 
 he is a Repulilican, but he is not an office 
 seeker. Time and again has he refused local 
 office that would be forced on h'm liy well 
 meaning friends. His taste, however, did 
 not run in that direction. He preferred to 
 attend to his duties as a husband and father 
 and to his farm work. However, he served 
 as a school director for several years, but 
 only for the reason that he was interested 
 in the public schools and the cause of educa- 
 tion. He is a citizen deservedly held in high 
 esteem. 
 
 RE\'. GEORGE HERTLEIX. 
 
 Rev. George Hertlein, who is now liv- 
 ing a retired life in the village of Cullom, 
 Livingston county, Illinois, was born in 
 Bavaria, Germany, November 30, 1849, ^"^ 
 is a son of Lawrence and IMar)' Hertlein, 
 both of whom \\ere natives of the same 
 country and there spent their entire lives. 
 Thev were the parents of three children, one 
 of whom, Christ, died in 1897, at the age 
 of forty-five years. Elizabeth lives in Ba- 
 varia, and George is the subject of this 
 sketch. 
 
 George Hertlein grew to manhood in 
 his native country and was educated in the 
 parochial schools, supplemented by a four- 
 years' course in a theological seminary, pre- 
 paring for the ministry. He was graduated 
 from the seminarv and ordained to the min-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 307 
 
 istry in liis native country. In 1877 lie 
 came tu tlie I'nited States and located in 
 liiwa Cilv. Iowa, where he ser\ed as assist- 
 ant pastor of a ciiurch for six niontlis ami 
 was then called to the church at Sharon 
 Center. Iowa, and for two years served as 
 its pastor, tilling the duties of the sacred 
 office to the entire satisfaction of his pa- 
 rishioners, while enjoying the confidence of 
 the coniniunity at large. He was then taken 
 sick with inflammation of the lungs and was 
 compelled for a time to abandon the minis- 
 try. While yet resitling in his native land 
 he .served three years and a half in the Ger- 
 man arm\-, and his disability dates back to 
 that time. A half-brother. Rev. Lorenz 
 Schorr, preceded him to the United States, 
 coming in 1861. He died in 1871. and our 
 subject took up the work where his brother 
 left oft". 
 
 In 187S. aliout one year after his ar- 
 rival in this country. Mr. Hertlein was 
 unitetl in marriage with ^liss Mary Laub- 
 pender, a native of Ohio, born in 1856, but 
 who was then living in Sharon Center, Iowa, 
 where the wedding ceremony was solemn- 
 ized. By this union ten children have been 
 born, two of whom died in infancy. Of 
 those living, Sophia is now the wife of Pro- 
 fessor L. Sheldahl, professor of history ami 
 languages in the Iowa Synod College, at 
 W'averly, Iowa. They have one child, 
 Guido. Emma, at the age of eighteen, 
 graduated from Iowa College, having taken 
 the classical course. Matilda. Mary, Ame- 
 lia, Ruth and George are attending school 
 in Cullom. Hans is the youngest of the 
 chililren. 
 
 When comi)elled to relim|uish his charge 
 at Sharon, Iowa, Mr. Hertlein embarked in 
 the mercantile business at that place, in 
 which he remained some vcars. He was 
 
 also commissioned as postmaster and served 
 as such until 1883. Regaining his health, 
 he notified the Evangelical Lutheran Synod 
 of Iowa, with which he was connected, that 
 he was again prepared to take up his life 
 w ork, and receiving a call from the church 
 at Cullom, he moved to the place and for 
 six months engaged in his chosen calling. 
 He soon found that it would be impossible 
 to continue in that wt)rk, and. resigning, 
 again entered into the mercantile business, 
 carrying a general stock. Purchasing a 
 lot, he erected a building and commenced 
 what proxed a successful mercantile career. 
 In 189^) he sold out his stock, having in the 
 meantime, bv good management and the 
 exercise of good business ability and 
 sound judgment, acquired enough of 
 this world's goods to enaljle him to 
 live in comfort. He has now one hun- 
 dred and twenty acres of land in Indiana 
 and one hundred and sixty acres in Sulli- 
 van township. Livingston county, together 
 with some \illage property. In 1897 ha 
 erected on his business block a good two- 
 story brick building, well suited to the 
 wants of the place, and which adds mate- 
 rially to the business section of the town. 
 
 When Mr. Hertlein came to Cullom it 
 had only about one lnindre<l inhabitants, and 
 to him much of the credit is due for the 
 advancement it has made in jjopulation and 
 wealth. He assisted in securing the tile 
 factory for the place, and went into part- 
 nership with E. .\. Ortman in the business, 
 and they together operated it for seven years 
 with good success. In 1898 he sold his in- 
 tere.st to Mr. Ortman, since which time he 
 has li\ed a (luiet, retired life, .giving his at- 
 tention only to his farm and his village 
 property. 
 
 In ])olitics Mr. Hertlein was a Democrat
 
 308 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 until 1896, since wiiich time he has voted 
 independently of party lines. For two 
 terms he served as treasurer of the village, 
 and was elected \'illage trustee, but after 
 serving six months he resigned. He also 
 ser\-ed as a member of the school board for 
 se\'eral terms, and while no the l)oard he 
 succeeded in hax'ing consolidated districts 
 No. 6 and 7, and also secured the erection 
 of a fine school building, which is an honor 
 to the place. The first class to be grad- 
 uated from the school was in June, 1900, 
 and his daughter Mar}" was one of the grad- 
 uates. 
 
 I\lr. Hertlein was reared in the Evan- 
 gelical Ltuheran church and has e\'er been 
 an earnest ad\-ocate of its doctrines and its 
 polity. Since 1883 he has served as an 
 elder in the church, and until recently he 
 was treasurer of the chuich in CoUum. 
 When he came to the church as its pastor 
 there was a debt of thirteen hundred dol- 
 lars on the building and he made it his first 
 duty to clear that, which he did in a short 
 time by securing subscriptions from its 
 members and friends. He later as- 
 sisted in the erection of the parson- 
 age, and since the death of its last 
 minister he has had the financial man- 
 agement I if it, and has placed it in good 
 financial condition. He has always taken 
 an active interest in the Sunday-school 
 work, and is at present superintendent of 
 the school and also serves as teacher. 
 Acti\c in whatever he undertakes, he has 
 met with uniform success in all things, and 
 to such as he the general welfare of a com- 
 munity depends. All esteem him as a true 
 Christian, a successful Inisiness man and a 
 giidil citizen, one hax'ing at heart the l)est 
 \\-elfare nf the community in winch he 
 li\'es. 
 
 J. E. BANGS. 
 
 Joseph Edward Bangs, a well known 
 educator of this state, and the subject of' 
 this sketch, was born in Bureau county, 
 Illinois, and is the seventh in a family of 
 eight children, five of whom are now living. 
 His parents were Samuel L. Bangs and 
 Margaret (Howard) Bangs. 
 
 The father was a native of Massachu- 
 setts, where his ancestors had resided since 
 1624. They were originally from England. 
 Our subject's paternal grandfather served in 
 the Re\-olutionary war and Professor Bangs 
 is therefore a veritable "Son of the Revolu- 
 tion."' In the '50s Samuel L. Bangs came 
 to Illinois and settled in Bureau county, 
 liut later moved to La Salle county, which 
 was his h(_>me for nearly forty years. He 
 died in 1898 at the ripe age of ninety years, 
 having seen Illinois transformed from a wil- 
 derness to a garden. His wife, who is still 
 living, was born in England. She bejongs 
 to the well-known Howard family and is a 
 direct descendant from the Duke of Nor- 
 folk. She possesses an unusually bright in- 
 tellect and now, at the age of eighty-one, 
 is an interesting and lovable character. 
 
 Mr. Bangs is essentially a self-made man. 
 His boyhood was spent on the farm in La 
 Salle county, where he early learned self 
 sacrifice and endurance through the disci- 
 pline of hard work. At seven years of age 
 he was put to driving a team, at nine he 
 drove a four-horse reaper, at fourteen he 
 was making a "hand," regularly, binding be- 
 hind a I\IcCornnck harvester. From earli- 
 est boyhood he was a great reader and e\-er 
 anxious to secure an education, but, for manv 
 years, necessity compelled him to be content 
 with the schooling which the three months 
 Vv"inter school afforded. V>y studving at
 
 ir"-.
 
 PROF. J. E. BANGS.
 
 MRS. J. E. BANGS.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 311 
 
 night and by improving odd moments, how- 
 ever, he was able to keep up with his more 
 fortunate companions, who could attend 
 school the year around. From the age of 
 sixteen he earned his own spending money, 
 paid for his clothes and books, and later 
 made his own way through school. 
 
 On leaving college, he immediatel}- began 
 to teach, and after several years of successful 
 experience, he took the rigid four days' ex- 
 amination for a state license. This he suc- 
 cessfully passed and received the state's seal 
 upon his ability as an instructor in the form 
 vi a state certificate, good for life. 
 
 In the same year he took charge of the 
 schoL>ls of Washburn, Illinois, where he es- 
 tablished a course of study, doubled the en- 
 rullmeni of the high school, drawing in pu- 
 pils from outside tne district until one-half 
 of the high school was composed of tuition 
 pupils, who brought into the district enough 
 money to pay a goud teacher's salary. He 
 was especially successful in holding the boys 
 i;i school and in sending his graduates to 
 college. Here he graduated a class com- 
 posed entirely of boys, nearly all of whom 
 later entered college. His school became 
 the inspiration of the schools of the county, 
 w hile the results of the influences for higher 
 education which he set at work among the 
 people, can scarcely be estimated. 
 
 After four years at Washburn. Mr. 
 Bangs was called to a wider field of action 
 at Fairbury, where he remained eight years, 
 as superintendent and principal of the city 
 schools, and a similar result is found. Dur- 
 ing his administration, while the city in- 
 creased but a few per cent, in population, the 
 average daily attendance of the high school 
 increased over one hundred and fifty per 
 cent. A large increase was also found 
 in the amount of tuition received. At the 
 
 close of his work his patrons declared. "He 
 left the schools on a practical and firm basis, 
 second to none in the state." 
 
 In 1894 Fairbury reluctantly yielded Mr. 
 Bangs to Pontiac, where the buikling of a 
 township high school had opened a larger 
 field for the exercise of his executive ability. 
 Here his practical methods, his capacity for 
 details and his organizing talent brought the 
 school very soon into a creditable and con- 
 spicuous place among the educational insti- 
 tutions of Illinois. Every year has shown 
 a marked increase in the power and popu- 
 larity of the school,in the amount of the tui- 
 tion received from foreign students and in the 
 enrollment of boys. In 1900 there were en- 
 rolled one hundred and fourteen boys and 
 one hundred and four girls, and a class com- 
 posed of thirteen boys and six girls was grad- 
 uated, while over twelve hundred and fifty 
 dollars tuition was collected outside of the 
 thirty-six miles of free territory. During 
 the six years of ]Mr. Bangs' administration 
 he has collected and paid into the lowiisliii) 
 treasury' between fixe and six thousand 
 dollars of tuition money. If tlie same 
 average increase continues, it can be 
 expected that the high school building 
 will be paid for by outside tuition in a little 
 over a score of years. Tlie best test of any 
 school is found in what its product accom- 
 plishes after leaving school, judged by thi> 
 test, the township high school stands in the 
 front rank. Its graduates are making a 
 good record. In six years fifty graduates 
 have become teachers and as man\' more 
 uf its undergraduates. A large number 
 have gone to college and an unusually large 
 number are succeeding in business. 
 
 By conscientious effort, the grade of the 
 school has been steatlily raised until the in- 
 stitution is now recognized bv our leading
 
 312 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 colleges and universities and has a place 
 upon their lists of accredited schools. It is 
 doubtful if any township high school in the 
 state has made a better record in the first 
 six years of its existence than the Pontiac 
 high school under the direction of Mr. Bangs. 
 He has ever been found faithfully discharg- 
 ing his duties in the least pretentious posi- 
 tions as in the most important ones and his 
 efforts ha\'e in\'ariabl\' benefited the school 
 permanently. It has been well said that 
 "few men naturally possess the executive 
 ability and talent for organization that we 
 find in Mr. Bangs." This is amply proven 
 by the fact that he has built up every school 
 with which he has been connected. 
 
 In addition to his w^ork as principal antl 
 superintendent, during the past sixteen 
 years, Mr. Bangs has spent from three to 
 twelve weeks of his summer vacations, each 
 year, as an institute instructor or conductor, 
 so that his name is a familiar one in many 
 counties of the state, and he has justly 
 achieved the reputation of being a strong in- 
 stitute worker. In one county he has been 
 engaged twelve consecutive years. 
 
 Few men count more friends among 
 their fellow workers than does Mr. Bangs, 
 for teachers recognize in him an earnest, 
 sincere, loyal, helpful co-laborer — one who is 
 working for the best in education e\'ery- 
 where. This was markedly shown liv the 
 resolution of endorsement for state superin- 
 tendency given him by the Teachers' Asso- 
 ciation of Livingston county, in 1898. This 
 resolution w-as seconded by teachers of every 
 political party and unanimously adopted with 
 cordial enthusiasm. ]\Ir. Bangs is an ardent 
 Republican, and ever has been, but he never 
 lets party come befure principle ;ind where 
 he is known he commands the respect of all 
 parties. 
 
 He was for several years president of the 
 Livingston County Teachers' Association ; 
 has served in an active manner on various 
 committees in the state associations ; was 
 vice-president of the Northern Illinois 
 Teachers' Association in 1896, and is now — ■ 
 1900 — one of the vice-presidents of the Illi- 
 nois State Teachers' Association. 
 
 In 1898 Mr. Bangs was urged by his 
 friends to become a candidate for nomina- 
 tion for state superintendent of public in- 
 struction. Being engaged in teaching, he 
 made no canvass, but the race he made was 
 declared by old politicians to have been most 
 creditable. Starting with but twenty-seven 
 pledged votes, by the time the first ballot was 
 taken he had three hundred and sixty-five 
 recorded for him. A ijrominent jiaper in 
 speaking of the convention, said: "Xo can- 
 didate ever overcame odds more rapidly or 
 made friends faster than did Mr. Bangs. 
 His headquarters were always crowded. 
 Had he started on equal terms with the suc- 
 cessful candidate there is little doubt but that 
 he would ha\'e been nominated." 
 
 ]\Ir. Bangs is deeplv interested in all the 
 great moral, social and economic questions 
 of the day and is ever ready to help in any 
 good cause. He has been a teacher in Sab- 
 bath school nearly all his mature life, was 
 for some seven years superintendent of one, 
 and is a regular attendant on di\'ine service. 
 He is a stockholder and director in the Pon- 
 tiac Summer Chautauqua and has interests 
 in other public enterprises. 
 
 The principal fraternal societies claim him 
 as an active member. He belongs to the 
 Woodmen, Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias, 
 the various orders of Masonry and has 
 passed through the "chairs" and licen jjre- 
 siding officer in the mai<>rit\- (if them. He is 
 past commander of St. Paul commandery,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 313 
 
 Knights Templar, a member of the grand 
 commandery of Illinois and of the Past 
 commanders' Association of Chicago. He 
 was active in working up the uniform rank, 
 K. P., in the county and was successively 
 elected first lieutenant, then captain of divis- 
 ion No. 63, and later, in 1893, he was unani- 
 mously elected lieutenant colonel of the 
 Third Regiment, L'nifurm Rank. K. P., 
 which is composed of companies located at 
 J<.>liet, Seneca, Lemont. Ottawa, Kankakee, 
 Mazon, Streator, Pont^ac, Peoria. Fairljury. 
 In 1897 he was re-elected to this office and 
 has been for nearly eight years a held officer 
 of the Illinois brigade. In each of these po- 
 sitions he has served h!s brethren well and 
 faithfully, and they, in turn, have shown 
 their appreciation on various occasions, bv 
 testimonials of esteem and confidence. 
 
 Mr. Bangs is a member of the Marquetl; 
 Club and also of the Hamilton Club, both 
 of Chicago, and takes an active part in ad- 
 vancing their interests. Without e.xceptinn, 
 those who know Mr. Bangs best have always 
 said, "He is the right man in the right place," 
 and if his friends were to name his leading 
 characteristics they would say, "Executive 
 ability, industry, kmdness. honesty and strict 
 integrity." Some one has said of him, 
 "Having successfully fought his own way 
 through the difficulties which beset the poor 
 boy's path, he is eminently fitted to sympa- 
 thize with others similarly situated and to 
 guide them to a like profitable course of 
 action." As Mr. Bangs is yet in the prime 
 of life we may expect still greater service in 
 the years to come. 
 
 Mr. Bangs was married August i. 1894, 
 to Margaret R. Maloney. daughter of Dr. 
 X. \'. and Anna (Krater) iMaloney, ui 
 Washburn, Woodford county, Illino's. of 
 which her father was one of the pioneers 
 
 and prominent physicians. Both parents are 
 now dead, the father dying in 1892 and the 
 mother in 1898. Mrs. Bangs is a graduate 
 of Monticello Seminary and was valedic- 
 torian of her class. She was a remarkably 
 successful teacher, her work being in the 
 grammar school at Washburn, as superin- 
 tentlent of schools at Rutland, La Salle coun- 
 tv, for seven years, as i)rincipal (^f the Fair- 
 bury high school, with Mr. Bangs as superin- 
 tendent, and also in the I'ontiac townsliip 
 high school. 
 
 Mrs. Bangs was also a successful insti- 
 tute instructor, and was at one time the Re- 
 publican candidate for county superintendent 
 of schools in Woodford county. Her popu- 
 larity as a teacher was great and many 
 a boy and girl marks a mile stone in true 
 progress from the time they came under her 
 influence. Some one has said. "She thinks 
 of every one else first, herself last, or not 
 at all." She is a member of the Presby- 
 terian church, a teacher in the Sal)bath 
 school, an officer in the county Sunday 
 school (organization, secretary of the Asso- 
 ciated Charities and an active sympathizer 
 with the unfortunate everywhere. She is a 
 woman of excellent literary attainments, is 
 a ready writer, an able critic, has occasion- 
 ally contributed to 'eading periodicals and 
 has assisted in the ])reparatioti of several 
 text-books. 
 
 JOSEPH BROWX. 
 
 Joseph Brown, a prominent farmer, who 
 owns and operates one hundred and sixty 
 acres of \'aluable land on section 19. Pleas- 
 ant Ridge tow'nshi]>, Livingston county, Il- 
 linois, was born in Camillus, Onondago
 
 314 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 county, Xew York, September 7, 1840. 
 His father, Jolm Brown, was lx>rn in Edin- 
 btirg, Scotland, January 2, 1810, and when 
 twenty \ears of age crossed the broad At- 
 lantic and settled in Onondago county, Xew 
 York, where he worked on a farm for a 
 time. There he married Rebecca Conklin, 
 a native of Fulton county, Xew York, 
 and they continued to make their home 
 in Onondago county until 1856, when 
 the_\- came to Peoria, Illinois, where 
 tlie father engaged in farming until 
 the spring of 1868. On our sub- 
 ject purchasing a tract of wild prairie 
 land in Eppards Point township, Liv- 
 ingston county, he came with him and 
 made his home there with our subject 
 in Pleasant Ridge township until his death, 
 which occurred November 27, 1897. The 
 mother, who was a consistent member of 
 the ^lethodist Episcopal church, died in 
 1852. 
 
 The greater part of the early education 
 of our suliject was obtained in the schools 
 of Xew' York, though for a short time he 
 attended school in Peoria. In early life he 
 worked by the month as a farm hand for 
 six years. On the 2d of August, 1862, he 
 joined the boys in blue as a member of 
 Company H, One Hundred and Twenty- 
 second Xew York X'olunteer Infantry, and 
 went first to \Vashington, D. C. He par- 
 ticipated in the battles of Antietam, the 
 ^\'ilderness, Spotts_\-l\-ania, Cold Harbor, 
 Gettysburg, INIine Run, and the engage- 
 ments in the Shenandoah valley, being with 
 Sheridan at Winchester, Strasburg and 
 Fisher's Hill. They then joined Grant's 
 army at Deep Bottom, and from that time 
 until the close of the war were near the 
 Potomac. Mr. Brown was in the front line 
 of battle when Lee surrendered and par- 
 
 ticipated in the grand review at Washing- 
 ton, l)eing mustered out July 2, 1865. 
 
 Returning to Peoria, he worked in the 
 ciial mines there for two years, and then 
 purchased a farm of eighty acres in Ep- 
 pards Point township, Livingston county, 
 upon which he made all of the improve- 
 ments, but in 1883 he traded that property 
 for his present farm of one hundred and 
 sixty acres in Pleasant Ridge township, 
 which at that time was only partially im- 
 prLsxed. He has since thoroughly tiled the 
 place, using from twenty-five to thirty thou- 
 sand tiles, has planted an orchard and erected 
 a good residence and barn, so that he now 
 has one of the most desirable farms of its 
 size in the township. Every foot of space 
 is now available for cultivation. Besides 
 this valuable farm. ]\Ir. Brown owns another 
 one hundred and sixty-acre tract in Ford 
 county, all of which has been acquired 
 through liis own well-directed and ener- 
 getic efforts since 1865. 
 
 On the 24th of October, 1865, "Mr. 
 Brown married Miss Emily L. Archdale, 
 of Peoria. Her parents, XN'illiam and Sarah 
 (Lacey) Archdale, who were born, reared 
 and married in Yorkshire, England, came 
 to the L'nited States in 1837, being among 
 the pioneers of Peoria. The father died 
 there August 15, 1870, the mother Xovem- 
 ber 1, 1872, lo Mr. and Mrs. Brown were 
 born eight children, namely: William L., 
 born December 6, 1866, is a resident of 
 Ford county, and has filled the office of 
 school director. Alice M., born October 
 29, 1869, is ow the wife of Edison Howe, 
 of Windom, Minnesota, and they have three 
 children: Joseph, born Februarv 16, 1894; 
 Francis, born June 22, 1898; and Harry, 
 born December 7, 1899. Charles R., born 
 X"o\ember 24, 1872, lives in Ford count v.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 315 
 
 He married Nellie Day and has two chil- 
 dren: Emily P., born November 5. 1897; 
 and ora, born September 20, 1899. Jo- 
 seph, born March 26, 1878, is living at home 
 and ser\ino- as school tlirector. Edwin, 
 born February 6, 1881, and P'lorence. born 
 May ig, 1883, are both at home. 
 
 Mr. Brown is a member of Fairbury 
 Post, No. 75. Cj. A. R., antl attemls and 
 supports tlie .Metliodist Episcopal church. 
 In bis political views be is a Republican, and 
 has filled the offices of road commissioner 
 and school director, serving in the latter 
 position ten or fifteen years and always tak- 
 ing a deep and conimendal)le interest in edu- 
 cational affairs. In all the relations of life 
 be has been found true to everv trust reposed 
 in him, and has manifested his loyalty and 
 patriotism in days of peace as well as in 
 tune of w ar. 
 
 CONRAD TRECKER. 
 
 Among the representative business men 
 of Livingston county none are more de- 
 serving of representation in this volume 
 than Conrad Trecker, the well-known tile 
 manufacturer of Odell, who, through his 
 own well-directed efforts, has gained a 
 comfortable competence that numbers him 
 among the substantial men of his commu- 
 nity. He was born in Prussia, Germany, 
 October 2, 1850, a son of Theodore and 
 Elizabeth (Franken) Trecker, natives of the 
 same place where the father followed the 
 carpenter's trade, which he had learned when 
 a young man. In 1852 he brought his 
 family to America and first located in P-?ru, 
 Illinois, where he lived four years, later 
 making his home in Mendota, and following 
 
 his trade in each place. In 1868 he i)ur- 
 chased one hundred and sixty acres of land 
 in Union township. Livingston county, 
 which he (leve!<>])ed fmm raw land into a 
 good farm and which he successfully oper- 
 ated until his death, dying in 1886, at the age 
 of si.xty-three years. He was a self-made 
 man, lia\ing no capital when he came to this 
 country. In politics he was a Democrat, and 
 in religious views both he and his wife were 
 Catholics. She died in 1897, at the age 
 of sixty-nine years, and the property in 
 L'nion township was then divided among 
 the children. The family consisted of the 
 following named : William, a shoemaker of 
 Cabrey, Illinois, died in 1884; Conrad is next 
 in order of birth ; Peter, a farmer, died in 
 Union township in 1881 ; Joseph is engaged 
 in farming in that township, and owns a 
 half interest in the tile works of which our 
 subject has charge; Katrina is the wife of 
 Charles Sieberg. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin ; 
 Elizabeth is the wife of John Cheslie, of the 
 same city: lillen died at the ln)me of her 
 sister in Kankakee, in 1887; Christina is 
 the wife of Peter Kettwich, of Peru, Illi- 
 nois: and riicodorc is the owner of a ma- 
 chine shop in -Milwaukee, ha\ing learned 
 the trade when young. 
 
 Conrad Trecker received only a limited 
 common-school education, and during his 
 boyhood he worked at farming and at the 
 carpenter's trade with his father. After the 
 latter purchased a farm our subject devoted 
 his entire time and attention to its cultiva- 
 tion until twenty-two years of age, and then 
 commenced operating rented land on bis 
 own account. He was married, in i>>j^, to 
 Miss Nettie Meyer, who was born near 
 Sandwich, Illinois, September 29, 1855. 
 Her parents, Henry and Elizabeth Meyer, 
 natives of Germanv, moved to Livingston 
 
 i
 
 3i6 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 county when she was but a small child. She 
 was the eldest of their eight children, the 
 others being William and Herman, both 
 farmers of Union township, Livingston 
 county; Albert, of Odell township; x\deline, 
 wife of George Miley, of Odell; Martha, 
 wife of William Bowers, of Odell; Norman, 
 who died at the home of his father in Iowa, 
 in 1898; and Frank, a resident of Sunbury 
 township, Livingston county. The mother 
 is deceased, but the father is still living and 
 makes his home in Iowa. To Mr. and Mrs. 
 Trecker have been born the following chil- 
 dren: Theodore, who assists his father in 
 his business; Elizabeth, who died in infancy; 
 Katie and Nettie, both at home; Joseph, 
 who died April 30, 1900; Addie, at home; 
 Henry, who died in infancy; Annie, Marr 
 and Conrad William, all at home. The 
 children have had the advantages of a high- 
 school education. 
 
 After his marriage J\Ir. Trecker con- 
 tmued farming and also managed and owned 
 a corn sheller and threshing outfit. He 
 commenced handling machinery at the age 
 of eighteen years, and met with excellent 
 success in that branch of his business, doing 
 more work along that line than any other 
 man in the community. He still owns an 
 interest in an outfit, but does not personally 
 attend to the business. In 1881 he pur- 
 chased eighty acres of land i" L^nion town- 
 ship, which he sold two years later on his 
 removal to Odell, and bought a half interest 
 in the old brick and tile yard, then operated 
 by horse power. New buildings were 
 erected, steam power put in, as well as pat- 
 ent kilns, and the manufacture of tile was 
 carried on on an extensive scale for five 
 years. During the following two years 
 Mr. Trecker engaged in the hardware and 
 implement business, and at the end of four 
 
 years he and his brother Joseph purchased 
 the tile factory, which he now conducts in 
 a most profitable and satisfactory manner, 
 doing a business which has amounted to as 
 much as twenty thousand dollars per year. 
 In the meantime he added to his land posses- 
 sions until he now owns two hundred and 
 eighty acres of land, all under cultivation, 
 and now divides his attention between tile 
 manufacturing and farming. When he 
 started out in life for himself he 
 had no capital, but being a good man- 
 ager, he has met with excellent suc- 
 cess in his labors, and he is today 
 one of the substantial citizens of his com- 
 munity. For the past three years he has 
 given considerable attention to the raising 
 of brown Swiss cattle for dairy and beef 
 purposes, owning some of the first brought 
 to this part of the country. They were pur- 
 chased by him at Roberts, Illinois, being 
 imported stock from Switzerland. Mr. 
 Trecker is a Democrat in politics, but has 
 never found time to accept or hold any 
 office. He and his family are members of 
 the Catholic church of Odell, and he is also 
 connected with the ^Mutual Aid Insurance 
 Company. 
 
 HERMAN' E. SIEGERT. 
 
 No better illustration of the character- 
 istic energy and enterprise of the typical 
 German-American citizen can be found than 
 that afforded by the career of this gentle- 
 man, the well-known proprietor of the elec- 
 tric light plant of Dwight, Illinois. Com- 
 ing to this country with little capital except 
 his abilities, he has made his way to success 
 through wisely-directed effort and he can
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 317 
 
 now look back with satisfaction upon past 
 struggles. 
 
 yh. Siegert was born May 26, 1830, in 
 Xeudam, Badenburg, Germany, in which 
 country his parents, Gotlieb and Sophia 
 (Siegert) Siegert, spent their entire lives. 
 His father was a paper manufacturer of 
 Xeudam-by-Custrin, where he was born, and 
 he inherited the factory from the grand- 
 father of our subject. He did quite an im- 
 portant business, which he continued up to 
 the time of his death. He died in 1836, 
 at the age of forty-five years, and his wife 
 departed this life in 1861, at the age of 
 about sixty-one. There were two other 
 children in their family, namely : Amelia, 
 who married and died in Germany ; and 
 Hannah, who is the wife of Frederick Mil- 
 ler, a printer of that country, near the old 
 home. 
 
 Herman E. Siegert, the only son, re- 
 mained with his mother until twenty-two 
 years of age. At the age of sixteen he com- 
 menced learning the millers trade at Quart- 
 shan, where he spent four years, and then 
 workeil as a journeyman miller and mill- 
 wright in various places for seven years. 
 In June, 1857, he sailed from Bremen on 
 the Asia, a sailing vessel, which, after a 
 \oyage of se\en weeks, landed him in New 
 York. He proceeded at once to Chicago, 
 and from there to Somonauk, Illinois, where 
 he was engaged in erecting a steam gristmill 
 for a Mr. Bliss, and remained in that town 
 for two years, working at the carpenter's 
 trade. From there he went to Morris, Illi- 
 nois, where he engaged in building a mill 
 and operating it for five years. 
 
 While there Mr. Siegert was married, 
 in October, 1863, to Miss Magdalene Born- 
 man, a native of Hohenvard, Saxon Wimer, 
 Eisenher, the place where Martin Luther 
 
 was imprisoned. She came to America 
 with her cousin and lived with relatives in 
 Morris, Illinois, until her marriage. By 
 this union were born seven children, of 
 whom five li\e, namely : Sophia, who was 
 born in 1864, and is now the wife of Leon- 
 ard G. Hahn, a grain dealer of Dwight; 
 George, who was born in 18O5, and is now 
 a resident of Los Angeles, California : John 
 C, born in 1868, and Henry E., born in 
 1 870, who now have charge of their father's 
 business; and Herman C, born in 1872, a 
 minister of the Lutheran church at Pipe 
 Stone, Minnesota; Anna and .Mary, twins, 
 born in July, 1869, died at the age of about 
 six months. 
 
 On leaving Morris, Mr. Siegert moved 
 to Channahon, Will county, Illinois, where 
 he leased a gristmill and successfully oper- 
 ated it for two years and a half. On the i:t 
 of April, 1867, he came to Dwight, and in 
 company with ^lichael Hahn bought the 
 old stone mill at that place, where he car- 
 ried on business in partnership for ten years, 
 at the end of which time Mr. Siegert pur- 
 chased his partner's interest and operated 
 it alone until 1891, when he put in an elec- 
 tric light plant, the first in Dwight. As the 
 latter business increased in importance and 
 the demand for more light, he ga\e up mill- 
 ing at the end of tliree years and converted 
 the old stone mill into his jiresent electric 
 light plant. This is supplied with a Cor- 
 liss engine of one hundred and seventy-five 
 horse-power, three dynamos, one for arc 
 and two for incandescent lights, there being 
 thirty arc lights used in the town and 
 tv.elve hundred incandescent lights. His 
 sons, John C. and Henry E., now attend to 
 the active business. 
 
 Mr. Siegert has a comfortable home in 
 Dwight, erected by him in 1871. In poll-
 
 3i8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tics he is independent, and in his social re- 
 lations is connected with the Independent 
 Order of Mutual Aid. He and his family 
 hiikl membership in the Lutheran church, 
 and he has ever taken an active part in its 
 \vork. serving as an officer of the church 
 for many years. For the success that he 
 has achie\-ed he deserxes great credit, it 
 being due entire!)' tn his own industry, per- 
 severance and good management, and he has 
 not only won a comfortable competence, but 
 has secured the high regard of all with whom 
 he has come in contact by his upright, hon- 
 orable life. He spent the spring of 1900 
 in visiting old friends and the familiar 
 scenes of his bovhood home in Germanv. 
 
 EXXO FLESSXER. 
 
 Enno Flessner, who is engaged in the 
 general mercantile business in the village of 
 Cullom, Livingston county, has been a resi- 
 dent of the county since 1888. He was born 
 in Ostfriesland, province of Hanover, Ger- 
 many, February 15, 1856, and is a son of 
 Joannes and Almuth Flessner, both of whom 
 were born in the same province and there 
 spent their entire li\es. They were the par- 
 ents (if ti\e children, of whom one died in 
 childhiKid. Helena is the wife nf Jerre 
 Gulmers, and they li\e in Charlotte town- 
 ship. Li\'ingston county, where he is en- 
 gaged in farming. Gretchen died in the old 
 country. Enno is the subject of this sketch. 
 Herman died in Germany. The father was 
 reared to the mercantile business, which he 
 followed during life and in which he met 
 with gratifying success. He was also the 
 owner of a farm, which was operated by 
 hired help, he devoting his time to his mer- 
 cantile business. 
 
 The subject of this sketch was reared in 
 his native coimtry and received a good high- 
 school education. At a \ery early age he 
 entered his father's store, and when not in 
 school was generally assisting in the store. 
 At the age of twenty he went into the 
 army and served three years with his regi- 
 ment in Berlin. Returning home at the 
 expiration of his term of service, he there 
 remained until 1883, when he resoh'ed on 
 emigrating to the new world. 
 
 Leaving his native land, Mr. Flessner 
 crossed the ocean and came direct to Liv- 
 igston county, Illinois, to first visit a sister. 
 He remained here for two years, and then 
 went to Iroquois county, Illinois, where he 
 engaged in farming for two years. \Miile 
 residing in that county, in 1886, he was 
 united in marriage to ]Miss Sarah Ricken, 
 a native of Illinois, born in 1865. of Ger- 
 man parents. Six children have come to 
 bless their union : — John, George. Alma, 
 Fred. Charles and ^larie. The four first 
 named are attending the public schools of 
 Cullom. 
 
 After his marriage, Mr. Flessner con- 
 tinued on the farm in Irocpiois county 
 until 1887. when he returned to Li\ingston 
 county and located in the village of Char- 
 lotte, where he formed a partnership with 
 Mr. Bruns erected a store building and put 
 in a general stock of merchandise. The 
 business was conducted one Aear by the firm 
 with good success, when Mr. Flessner s^ild 
 out to his partner, and in 1888 moved to 
 Cullom, where he rented a building and put 
 in a small stock of goods. As the volume 
 of his trade increased he enlarged his stock, 
 and now carries a \ery complete line of 
 dry-goods, groceries, ladies' and gents' fur- 
 nishing goods, queensware. and in fact 
 everything contained in a general store
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 3>9 
 
 suited to tlie wants of tlie community. He 
 lias met with gratifying success and iias a 
 trade of wliicli the more ])retentious mer- 
 chants of a larger town might well be 
 proud, lie owns a neat, modern residence, 
 which he has lately erected, and is acknowl- 
 edged as one of the leading and successful 
 husiness men of the place, one worthy of 
 the coiitidence and respect in whicii he is 
 held. 
 
 In politics ^Ir. Flessner is a Republican. 
 He has been a member of the town board for 
 se\eral terms, and as a member of the board 
 has taken ad\aiiced \iews in everything 
 where the l;)est interests of the peo[)'e were 
 at stake. He was on the coniniittee on per- 
 manent sidewalks and advocated the polic;' 
 of ha\ing the best suitable for tlic place, 
 in the spring of 1900 he was elected r. mem- 
 ber of the school board. He is a member 
 t)f the Evangelical Eutheran church of Cul- 
 loni, and has been one of its trustees, and 
 is now serving as treasurer of the church. 
 Interested in the work of the church, he has 
 always contributed generously of his means 
 for its support. 
 
 JOEL WALLACE WHITMIRE, M. D. 
 
 Joel Wallace Whitniire, M. D.. of Forrest, 
 Illinois, is one of the leading physicians of 
 Livingston county and surgeon for both the 
 Wabash and Toledo, Peoria and Warsaw 
 Railroads. He was born in Metamora, 
 Woodford county, October 25, 185 1, and 
 is a son of Dr. James S. and Sidney (Rob- 
 inson ) Whitniire. The father was born in 
 \'irgiiiia. in 1821, and in childliood removed 
 to Ohio with his parents. The grandfa- 
 ther Whitniire was a tanner and currier by 
 
 17 
 
 trade, and on his removal from Sidney, 
 Ohio, to \'irginia, Cass county, Illinois, look 
 with him a stock of leather, whicli he con- 
 verted into boots and shoes for the early 
 settlers. As a minister of the New Light 
 church, he also preached at that place for 
 some time. Later he became identified 
 with the Lliristian church, and always took 
 an active part in church work. His last 
 days were spent in Johnson county, Texas. 
 Our subject's father. Dr. James S. Whit- 
 mire, began the study of medicine with Dr. 
 Kyle, of Macomb, Illinois, and later was 
 graduated at the old Illinois Medical Col- 
 lege, in Jacksonville. In 1846 he settled at 
 Metamora, Illinois, where he engaged in 
 practice until 185 1, when he took his degree 
 at Rush Medical College, Chicago. He 
 returned to practice in Metamora, and later 
 took a third course at Jefferson Medical Col- 
 lege, Philadelphia. During the Civil war 
 he served as assistant surgeon with the Sixth 
 Illinois Regiment of cavalry one year, and 
 was then transferred to the Fifty-sixth Illi- 
 nois Infantry as surgeonof Greene 11 Raum's 
 regiment, w itli which he remained until after 
 the battle of \'icksburg, when he took charge 
 of his brother's private practice, allowing 
 the latter to go to Springfield and serve as 
 examining surgeon. He was one of the 
 most prominent physicians and surgeons of 
 his section of the state, and was also a prom- 
 inent charter member of tlie Woodford 
 County Medical Society and the North Cen- 
 tral Medical Society. The State Medical 
 Society had only been organized a short 
 time when he joined it. and he has served as 
 its vice-president a number of times, and 
 was i)resident for the first two, and an ex- 
 tensive writer for medical journals through- 
 out life. Socially he was a member of the 
 (jrand .\rniy of the Republic and the Ma-
 
 320 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sonic order. He died in July, 1897. 
 On the 4th of July, 1846, he married ]\Iiss 
 Sidney Robinson, a native of Morgan coun- 
 tv. Illinois, and a daughter of Joel Rol)in- 
 son, an early settler of that county, for- 
 merly of Ohio, where the families had been 
 intimate. The Robinsons were also from 
 Virginia. At his death the father of our 
 subject had three living children. 
 
 Dr. Joel W. Whitmire acquired his early 
 education in the scliools of Metamora and 
 later attended the Soldiers' College at Ful- 
 ton, Illinois, and then Eureka College- for 
 two years, finishing the junior year. He 
 commencetl the stud_\- of medicine with his 
 father, and took his first course of lectures 
 at Rush Medical College, Chicago, in the 
 winter of 1874-5, graduating from that 
 noted institution in tlie spring of 1877. It 
 is a peculiar fact that the father had two 
 brothers who read with him and graduated 
 from the same school, and also three sons 
 and one nephew. The other sons were Dr. 
 Clarence L., who was engaged in practice 
 at Sublette, Illinois, and later at W'averly, 
 Iowa, where he died; and Dr. Zach- 
 ariah Lincoln, of L'rbana, Illinois, who died 
 in 1899. After his graduation our subject 
 was engaged in practice with his father for 
 eight years, and then came to Forrest, where 
 he has successfully followed his chosen pro- 
 fession for fifteen years, being acknowl- 
 edged one of the best and most skillful phy- 
 sicians and surgeons in the eastern part of 
 the county. For some years he has been 
 surgeon for the Wabash and Toledo, 
 Peoria and Warsaw Railroads, and his duties 
 •were quite arduous when their shops were 
 located in Forrest. He is also a member of 
 the examining board for pensions, of which 
 he is treasurer; has been a member of the 
 board of health sf)me years, and was the 
 
 first to inaugurate the strict quarantine of 
 certain contagious diseases. He is exam- 
 iner for all the old-line life insurance com- 
 panies doing business in Forrest, and for 
 a time was engaged in the drug business at 
 that place. Fraternally he is an honored 
 member of the \\'oodford County, the 
 Xorth Central and the State Medical So- 
 cieties. 
 
 In September, 1877, Dr. Whitmire mar- 
 ried Miss Laura Xorthcott, of Christian 
 county, a relative of Lieutenant-Governor 
 Xorthcott, and to them have been born two 
 children, ^lary ]\Iaude June and Sidney. 
 The family have a beautiful home in the 
 west part of town, and attend the Christian 
 church, of which ]\Irs. Whitmire is a mem- 
 ber. The Doctor affiliates with the iMa- 
 sonic fraternity, the Knights of Pythias and 
 the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, He 
 joined the last named fraternity at Mata- 
 mora and was past grand there. In politics 
 he is an ardent Republican, and has fre- 
 quently been a delegate to different con- 
 ventions of his party, including the state 
 conventions, and has served as a member 
 of the township board. 
 
 HOX. MICHAEL CLEAR Y. 
 Hon. ]\Iichael Cleary, who is represent- 
 in the twentieth district as a member of the 
 General Assembly of Illinois, and who for 
 more than a quarter of a century has repre- 
 sented his township as a member of the coun- 
 ty board of supervisors of Livingston coun- 
 ty, was born in Clonmell, county Tipperary, 
 Ireland. February 9, 1840, and is a son of 
 Philip and Mary (Hefferman) Cleary, the 
 mother being a cousin of Colonel Heffer- 
 man, of Bloomington, who ser\ed on the 
 staff of Governor Altgeld.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 321 
 
 Philip Cleary was a farmer in county 
 Tii)i)erary, Ireland, on a ]ilacc which had 
 hceii the home of tlie famil\- lor many gen- 
 erations. Hearing so much of the great 
 United States, and with that laudable desire 
 to better provide for his family, he emigrated 
 with them to tliis country in 1840, landing at 
 Philadelphia on the 25th of May, our sub- 
 ject being then but a few montlis old. From 
 Philadelphia lie went direct to Youngstown, 
 Ohio, where he found em])loyment. with 
 others, in di.eging the Hocking Valley canal. 
 He remained at Youngstown one year and 
 then came to Illinois, locating at Spring 
 Creek, now Spring \'alley, Bureau county, 
 where he engaged in farming. In 1845 he 
 moved to Grundy county, Illinois, and was 
 working on the Illinois canal when it was 
 opened up the second time. He continued 
 to work on the canal until its completion, 
 in 1848, when he located near Ottawa, La 
 Salle county, and again resumed farming. 
 
 While residing in Bureau county Philip 
 Clarey hauled his grain to Chicago with oxen. 
 There were there no bridges and all the 
 streams had to be forded. The grain was 
 development of the home farm and in due 
 the wagon the more easily and carried across 
 the sltnighs when the oxen stuck in the mud. 
 Clothing for the family was all home-made, 
 and all were thankful for what they could 
 get. The family were among the first Cath- 
 olics to locate in Bureau county, and they 
 had to go to Peru to attend religious services. 
 While residing in Ottawa, in 1861, thei 
 mother died, and in 1868 the father came 
 to Livingston county and made his home 
 with our subject until his death, in 1884. 
 He was a firm believer in the Catholic relig- 
 ion and gave liberally for the support of the 
 Catholic church. 
 
 When the familv moved to Ottawa our 
 
 subject was about eight years old. From 
 that time nn he was of assistance in the 
 time was thoroughly conversant with the 
 details of farm work. He was educated in 
 the schools of Ottawa, but the broad gen- 
 eral information which he now possesses was 
 principally obtained in the school of ex- 
 perience. Like a dutiful son, he remained 
 at home and assisted his parents until he 
 was twentv-one years old, when he began 
 life for himself, and that his life has been 
 a successful one is fully attested by the 
 recortl here given. 
 
 On the 14th of .\ugust. 1865. Mr. Cleary 
 was united in marriage with Miss Ellen 
 Burke, of Sandwich, Illinois, but a native 
 of county Tipperary, Ireland, and daughter 
 of Jeffrey Burke, who was also born in coun- 
 ty Tipperary. By this union ten children 
 were born, all of whom are yet li\ing. \Vill- 
 iam P. is now a druggist in Odell, Illinois. 
 Hon. Jnhii M. graduatetl from the law de- 
 partment of the \\'esleyan University, of 
 Bloomington. with the degree of LL. B. 
 He is now one of the leading attorneys of 
 Kansas City, Missouri, and is a member of 
 the legislature of that state. Katherine, 
 Alice, Ellen and Lillie are each graduates of 
 the best convent schools of the country. 
 Frank. .Albert, Joseph and Leo are engaged 
 in farming. All of them have had good ed- 
 ucational and other advantages. 
 
 Immediately after his marriage Mr. 
 Cleary rented a farm near Ottawa, Illinois, 
 and engaged in general farming and stock 
 raising. With limited capital, but with un- 
 bounded courage and steadfast determina- 
 tion, he began farming, and in three years 
 he accumulated means sufficient to purchase 
 a farm for himself. In 1868 he came to 
 Livingston county and purchased the south 
 half of section i, Odell township, and at
 
 322 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 once began its improvement. The land was 
 in its virgin state and the first thing neces- 
 sary was the erection of a house for his fam- 
 ily. This done, he set out a hedge fence, 
 broke the ground and cammenced tilling the 
 soil. That first three hundred and twenty 
 acres he yet owns, but he has added to his 
 possessions until he has thirteen hundred 
 acres in the vicinity, all of which it under 
 the highest state of cultivation. Being a 
 broad guaged man he has ever been willing 
 to learn and to adopt any theory or sugges- 
 tion that seemed best, and which would in- 
 crease the value of his farm and possessions. 
 He constructed the first ditches for drain- 
 ing in his vicinity, and also laid the first 
 tile, hauling the same a distance of fifteen 
 miles. In 1879 he moved "out of the old 
 house into the new." At that time he built 
 and now occupies one of the finest houses in 
 Livingston county, and which, when erected, 
 was far superior to any. The large elegant 
 parlors, with their furnishings, would grace 
 a modern city home. 
 
 Mr. Cleary has also one of the finest 
 barns in the state, which was erected about 
 the same time that his house was built. It 
 is occupied by grain bins and by his horses, 
 being used for cattle, while the second story 
 is occupied by grain bins and by his hoi'Ses, 
 and the third floor for agricultural imple- 
 ments and hay. He has bins for six thou- 
 sand bushels of oats, and from the bins, 
 b)- means of spouts, the grain is carried 
 to the basement. He has also large cribs for 
 corn, of which a great quantity is always 
 kept on hand for feeding purposes. 
 
 While carrying on general farming Mr. 
 Cleary has been especially interested in the 
 importation and breeding of the best grades 
 of cattle and hogs. He had the first Poland 
 China hogs in the countv, and did much to 
 
 secure the general introduction of this breed, 
 to the great benefit of all farmers. He al- 
 ways has upon his place a large number of 
 short-horned cattle, which he feeds and pre- 
 pares for the market. He has been one of 
 the most successful farmers in the county, 
 being thoroughly progressive in all things. 
 While others complained of the times and 
 of Providence, he worked, and the result 
 is plainly to be seen. In addition to his Liv- 
 ingston county property he owns a half- 
 section of well improved land in Iowa, and 
 a full section in South Dakota. 
 
 In politics Mr. Cleary has always been 
 a Democrat and since he attained his ma- 
 jority he has always taken an active interest 
 in political affairs. He has never been able 
 to see the necessity of leaving political af- 
 fairs to the professional men and to the ward 
 politician, but believes that every man should 
 take such interest in public matters as will 
 elevate politics and make better citizens. 
 Since coming to Livingston county he has 
 had large influence in moulding public opin- 
 ion and in the dissemination of Democratic 
 jirinciples. He has served on the county cen- 
 tral committee of his party and has repeat- 
 edly been a delegate to its state conventions. 
 In 1892 he was one of the Cleveland electors 
 and had the honor of being a member of the 
 electoral college that elected a president, an 
 honor that comes to but few. 
 
 Although in a Republican township Mr. 
 Cleary, in 1874, was elected to represent it 
 as a member of the board of supervisors, 
 and from that time to the present has been 
 continuously re-elected, and is now the old- 
 est member of the board in point of serxice. 
 His influence on the board has always been 
 felt and for many years he served as its 
 president. When not chairman of the gen- 
 eral board he has usuallv serx'ed as chairman
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 323 
 
 of some of its most important committees. 
 During his first year the e<-ection of the pres- 
 ent court house of tlie county was com- 
 menced, tlie old building having been de- 
 stroyed by fire July 4, 1874. He has been 
 chairman of the county farm committee, and 
 of the public projierty committee, and in 
 every position he has acted for the best gond 
 of the public. Under the new re\enue law 
 creating a l)()ard of public review, he was 
 chairman of that board in 1899. 
 
 In iS8j Mr. Cleary was elected a mem- 
 ber of the legislature and was re-elected in 
 
 1884 and in 1886. During his first term 
 he introduced into the bouse the present 
 tarni drainage law, which was supported in 
 the senate by Hon. George Torrance. In 
 
 1885 he secured the passage in the house of 
 a bill to regulate charges in the stock yards, 
 which was known as the stock _\-ards l)ilh 
 but it was defeated in the senate, for the 
 reason that that lxidy seemed more friendly 
 to corporations. In 1887 he secured the pas- 
 sage of the game bill for the protection of 
 wild fowl, which liill passed the senate and 
 became a law. .\fter an interval of ten 
 years Mr. Cleary was again nominated by his 
 l)arty and was elected to the legislature. In 
 the session of 1898-99 he introduced a l)ill 
 into the house limiting the rate of interest 
 in the state to five per cent. The monied in- 
 terests were too strong for him and the bill 
 failed of passage. It will be seen, however, 
 that when a member of the General Assem- 
 bly Mr. Cleary was an active one, and all 
 his acts were in the interest of the people. 
 His princi])al work has been in the committee 
 room, but whether in committee or on the 
 lloor of the house he has always exerted 
 a commanding influence. 
 
 Realizing the benefits of a good educa- 
 tion Mr. Cicarv has alwavs been a friend 
 
 of the public schools, and for many years 
 served as a member of the school board, 
 and it is safe to say that his influence was 
 always for the general grxxl and for im- 
 proved methods. While Catholic in re- 
 ligion, he is liberal in his views, and is will- 
 ing to grant to others the same liberty he 
 asks for him.self in religious afifairs, and he 
 numbers among his strongest friends those 
 of the J'rotestant religion. For the erection 
 of churches he has ever been a liberal con- 
 tributtjr, it mattered not what the denomina- 
 tion represented, lie is a member of St. 
 I'aul's Catholic church of Odell, and was 
 the treasin-er oi the committee of five who 
 built and paid for the church before even a 
 priest hatl locatetl there. He was one of 
 the first members of the Catholic church in 
 his vicinity. His wife and family are also 
 members of the same church. 
 
 For nearly a third of a centurv Mr. 
 Cleary has been a citizen of Livingston 
 count}', and no man within its borders is 
 better known, or who has more earnest, 
 steadfast frientls. With few advantages in 
 his youth, and starting in life for himself 
 with very limited means, he has labored 
 early and late, in sunshine and in shade, 
 initil to-day he is numbered among the most 
 prosper(nis residents of the county, sur- 
 rounded by all the comforts and many of the 
 lu.xuries of life, and more than all, by a 
 contented and happy family, a loving wife; 
 who has been a helpmeet indeed to him, and 
 children hel])ful to him as age creeps on. 
 In the years that ha\e pasesd he has not 
 selfishly given his entire time and best ener- 
 gies to the material welfare of himself and 
 family, but has given much time and his 
 best thoughts to the general good of the 
 community in which he has lived. As a 
 member of the county board o^ supervisors,
 
 324 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and legislative halls, he has made his mark, 
 and the confidence and respect in which he 
 is held by those who knriw him best is at- 
 tested by his continual re-election to office. 
 A thorough, progressive and energetic 
 farmer, a wise legislator, a good, substan- 
 tial citizen and a faithful friend, such, in- 
 deed, is Hon. jNIichael Cleary, of Living- 
 ston county. 
 
 AAROX JAAIES BEXXETT. 
 
 Aaron James Bennett, a representative 
 farmer of A\'oca township, Livingston coun- 
 ty, was born in the house now occupied by 
 him, February 28, 1865, and is a son of 
 John and Rachel (Shaw) Bennett, both of 
 whom were born in Cape May, X^ew Jerse\', 
 and in early life moved with their respective 
 parents to Ohio, but after spending one 
 winter in that state the families went to 
 Indiana, settling near Rossville. It was 
 there that the parents of our subject were 
 united in marriage, and there the father be- 
 gan a successful career as a farmer and also 
 did teaming from Chicago to Lafayette, In- 
 diana. In 1852 he came to Livingston 
 county, Illinois, and rented land in Avoca 
 township for three years. He then pur- 
 chased one hundred and twenty acres of 
 government land, which is now a part of the 
 old homestead farm. By hard work and 
 untiring perseverance he converted this wild 
 tract into a fine farm, adding to its value 
 by erecting modern buildings, fencing, til- 
 ing and otherwise improving the same. He 
 also purchased other land until he now owns 
 a half-section, which has nearly all been 
 improved by himself or under his direction. 
 In 1888 he purchased a comfortable home 
 
 in Fairbur}', where he now resides, and 
 where his wife died in 1890. lu politics 
 he is a stanch Republican, and being a well- 
 educated and popular man, has been elected 
 to numerous offices in his township, serving 
 as collector some time, supervisor six years, 
 and trustee of the school district a number of 
 }'ears. 
 
 The suliject of this sketch is the seventh 
 in order of birth in a family of eight chil- 
 dren, the others being as follows : Sarah, 
 who lives with her father in Fairbury; Ma- 
 rian, wife of Joshua Mills, of Springfield, 
 Ilhnois; W. Scott, also at home; John E., 
 a resident of Thawville, Illino.s; George 
 H., a resident of Bell Prairie township; 
 Emma, wife of John Mitten, an employe of 
 Walton Brothers, of Fairbury; and Alary 
 D., at home. 
 
 Aaron J. Bennett attended the district 
 schools near his boyhood home, also took 
 a course in the public schools of Fairbury, 
 and later was a student at Onarga for a few 
 months. He grew to manhood upon his 
 father's farm, assisting in its operation until 
 he attained man's estate, and he now rents 
 the place, being successfully engaged in the 
 cultivation of two hundred acres. He is 
 also interested in stock raising, which he 
 finds cjuite profitable. 
 
 In 1888 Mr. Bennett was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Clara Davis, who was born 
 in Ohio in 1868. Her parents, Eben and 
 Dorothy (Maurice) Davis, still reside in 
 that state. Clara is the oldest of their four 
 children; Rose is the wife of Fred Liedolf, 
 of Fort Wayne, Indiana; Edward is a resi- 
 dent of Lima, Ohio ; and Harry is a mem- 
 ber of the Fourth United States Infantry, 
 and is now with the army in the Philippines. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Bennett have two children: 
 Walter R., born June 20, 1889; and Rachel
 
 THE BIOGRArHICAL RECORD. 
 
 325 
 
 D.. born July 22, 1890. are both attending 
 tlie district scliool. 
 
 By liis balUit Mr. ]jennett supports tlic 
 men and measures of the Repulilican parly 
 and is an active worker at the polls, li" iking 
 alter the \<-)ters of his districe. Fur nine 
 years lie served as school director, as schno! 
 trustee two years, and was then apponited 
 school treasurer, which position he now 
 liolds. He has never sought office, but when 
 elected has served the people faithfully and 
 well. He is upright and honorable in all 
 his dealings and sujjports church work, hieing 
 a member of the Methodist Episcopal church 
 of Fairbury, as is his wife. Fraternally he 
 is a member of the Mutual Aid Society df 
 F'airburv. 
 
 THOM.\S J. O'COXXOK. 
 
 Thomas J. O'Connor, a well-to-do and 
 successful farmer residing on section 6, 
 Ciermanville tiiwnship, Livingston county, 
 is a native' of Illinois, born in La Salle coun- 
 ty. March 19, 1861, and is a son of Timothy 
 and Margaret (Murphy) O'Connor. The 
 father, a native of Ireland, came to the 
 L'nited States at the age of nineteen, ami 
 1 1 veil for some years in Xew York state 
 before coming to Illinois. He engaged in 
 farming near Ottawa, La Salle county, un- 
 til the fall of 1868, when he moved to Liv- 
 ingstDii county, taking up his residence in 
 Charlotte tuvvnship, where he purchased a 
 farm of eighty acres. Later he added to it 
 until he had one hundred and sixty acres, 
 and successfully engaged in its operation for 
 some years, but is now living a retired life 
 in Cliatsworth, where he located in the spring 
 of 1892. He made all of the improvements 
 I- on his place and transformed the wild 
 
 land into a highly productive farm. His 
 wife is still living, as are also five of their 
 six children, our subject being the oldest. 
 
 louring his boyhood and youth Thomas 
 J. O'Connor attended the jjublic schools, and 
 remained at home with his parents, assist- 
 ing in the work of the farm, until they re- 
 moved to Cliatsworth. He served as clerk 
 of Charlotte township seven years, and al- 
 wavs took a deep and commendable interest 
 in imblic affairs. In the spring of 1892 he 
 removed ti> ( lernianville township and 
 bought the farm nf one hundred and sixtv 
 acres which is now his home. He has since 
 made nianv improvements mi the place, and 
 has one of the most desirable farms of its 
 size in the township. He is now serving 
 as town clerk of (iennanville, ai!d has al- 
 ready become prominently identified with 
 the interests of that section of the county. 
 
 On the 26th of October, 1887, in Chats- 
 worth. Mr. O'Connor was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Julia Murphy, a daughter 
 of Patrick .Murphy, of La Salle county, who 
 is now engaged in farming in Cliatsworth 
 township, hour children bless this imion, 
 who.se names and dates of birth are as fol- 
 lows : lunniet, .\pril 17, 1889: \era. De- 
 cember 27. i8(jo: Lucile, April 2. 1892; 
 and Julia, Septemljer 8, 1898. The first 
 two were born in Charlotte township, the 
 others in (iermanvilie township. 
 
 THOMAS AXDKEWS. 
 
 Thomas Andrews, of Pontiac. Illinois, 
 is now living a retired life in the enjoy- 
 ment of a rest which he has truly earned 
 and richly deserves by reason of his indus- 
 trious efforts of former years. Acconi-
 
 326 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 plislinient and progress ever imply labor, 
 energy and diligence, and it was these quali- 
 ties which enabled our subject to rise from 
 the ranks of the many and stand among the 
 successful few. He is one of the highly 
 respected citizens of Pontiac, and his long 
 residence in Livingston county and the 
 active part he has taken in its development 
 well entitle him to representation in its his- 
 tory. 
 
 Mr. Andrews was born in Stamford, 
 Lincolnshire, England, October i6, 1S44, a 
 son of James and Elizabeth (Plowright) 
 Andrews, natives of the same place. In 
 1855 the family emigrated to the United 
 States and located near Tonica, La Salle 
 county, Illinois, where the father worked 
 and rented property for some time until he 
 accumulated enough to purchase land, ex- 
 periencing all the hardships and trials of 
 pioneer life. On landing in this state he 
 had hut five dollars remaining and a wife 
 and six children to support. They received 
 twenty-five ilollars at Cleveland, sent them 
 by Mrs. Andrews' sister, but, having lost the 
 address of the man who was to identify him, 
 Mr. Andrews found considerable troulile in 
 securing the money. It was during the panic 
 tha the located here, which made it much 
 more difficult for liim to secure a start, but 
 after a few years of hard work he was al)le 
 to purchase three hundred and twenty acres 
 of wild land from the Illinois Central Rail- 
 road Company by having enough money to 
 pay the interest on the amount, but going 
 in debt for the principal. He would shell 
 corn with a small sheller, and after hauling 
 it to (h'idley over very bad roads would 
 only recei\'e ten cents per ])ushel for the 
 crop. Steadily and persistently he worked 
 his way upward to success, paying for his 
 place and transforming it into a fine farm. 
 
 with good and substantial buildings sur- 
 rounded by trees, while the land was placed 
 under a high state of cultivation. He en- 
 gaged in stock raising in connection with 
 farming and became quite well-to-do, though 
 he at first thought he would feel independ- 
 ent if he ever got a good team of his own. 
 He was recognized as one of the leading 
 men of his community, and was called upon 
 to serve as highway commissioner, school 
 director and fill other local offices of honor 
 and trust. Religiously he was a Congre- 
 gationalist. He died upon his farm Au- 
 gust 6, 1883, leaving a family of nine chil- 
 dren, of whom our subject is the oldest. 
 He ga\'e each of his sons forty acres of 
 land, which they have since traded so that 
 it might all belong to a few of them. The 
 mother died October 30, 1899. She would 
 h.ave been se\enty-fnur years of age had she 
 li\-ed until the following February. 
 
 Thomas Andrews received his educa- 
 tion in the schools of his native land, his 
 school days being over when he came to this 
 country, for, being the oklest in the family, 
 he was obliged ti help in their support. 
 On account of his }-outh he was discouraged 
 from entering the armv during the civil 
 war. He remained with his parents until 
 past the age of nineteen years and then went 
 to Eureka, Illinois, where he worked four 
 months. Returning to Tonica, La Salle 
 county, he rented land, antl while there was 
 married. May i, 1866, to Miss Mary E. 
 Brady, a daughter of James and Elizabeth 
 (Moore) Brady, natives of Brown county, 
 Ohio, of which her paternal grandfather 
 was one of the pioneers. Her grandfather, 
 Mr)ses Moore, spent his entire life there as 
 a farmer, and there her parents also died, 
 the mother when Mrs. Andrews was only 
 two months old. and the father a few vears
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 327 
 
 later. He was a blacksmith by trade. She 
 was raised by an aunt, with whom she came 
 to Tonica, Illinois. 
 
 Of the seven children born to Mr. and 
 jNIrs. Andrews, three died in infancy. Those 
 living are James H., a business man of Grid- 
 ley, Illinois, who married Minnie Settle and 
 has four children, Thomas, Amy E., Henry 
 and an infant; Sarah Ann, who married H. 
 U. Grant, of EUettsville. Indiana, and has 
 one child, Delos Andrews; Susan Elizabeth, 
 who married Joseph Solon, of Graymont, 
 this county, and has four children, Florence, 
 Helen, Duane and Evaline; and Mary Eva- 
 line, who is teaching in the public schools 
 of I'ontiac. The children all received good 
 educations, the father having left the farm 
 and nii)\ed to town f(_>r that purpose. 
 
 In the fall of 1S6S Mr. Andrews bought 
 eighty acres of land in Rock Creek town- 
 ship, which he improved and paid for in six 
 years, and then sold, buying one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land east of Pontiac in 
 1875. ^ his land was entirely unimproved 
 and \ery wet, on which account it was C(.)n- 
 sidered very undesirable property, but he 
 tiled it and to-day has one of the best farms 
 in Pontiac township. lie erected thereon 
 a good residence, substantial nutluiildings, 
 set out shade trees, and made many other 
 improvements which add greatlv to its 
 \alue and attractive appearance. Leaving 
 the farm, which he still owns, he moved to 
 Cayuga, where he was successfully en- 
 gaged in merchandising for some years 
 and a resident for eleven years, but since 
 1893 has lived in Pontiac, having built a 
 pleasant residence on Xorth Main street. 
 He has owned property in Cayuga, but sold 
 it, autl now has two hundred acres of im- 
 priived rich land near Hamlet, Indiana, not 
 far from South Bend. In improving two 
 
 farms for him.self and aiding in the de\-elop- 
 ment of his father's place he has materially 
 ad\anced the interests of his adopted coun- 
 ty and promoted its prosperity. He and 
 his wife are active meml)ers of the Methodist 
 Epi.scopal church, and are honored and 
 highl)' respected by their fellow citizens who 
 appreciate their sterling wurtli and mauv 
 excellencies of character. 
 
 WILLIAM E. HDKE. 
 
 William E. Hoke, a well-known real- 
 estate dealer of Odell. Illinois, was born in 
 Williamsburg, I'ennsylvania, October 2, 
 1S56, a son of Samuel and Laura X. (Ken- 
 ney) Hoke, and a grandson of Jacob Hoke, 
 who was of old Pennsylvania stock and a 
 soldier of the Revolutionary war. The 
 father was born in McConnellsburg, Penn- 
 sylvania, April 12, 1824, and when a young 
 man learned the trades of cabinet-maker and 
 painter at Gettysburg. In 1859 he brought 
 his family to Livingston county, Illinois, 
 and purchased a farm four and a halt miles 
 southeast of Odell. 
 
 On that place our subject grew to man- 
 hood and atended the common schocils of the 
 neighborhood. Being injured at the age 
 of fourteen years and unable to engage in 
 active labor, he entered the Odell high 
 school two years later, and later engaged 
 in teaching school. At the age of twenty- 
 to years he became a stutlent at Lincoln 
 L'niversity, Lincoln, Illinois, but his health 
 failed before he had completed the course 
 antl he was obliged to gi\e up study. He 
 tlien taught school until twenty-four, when 
 he was appointed postmaster at Kmington. 
 during President Hayes' administration, at
 
 328 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Avhicli time the town was started, and he 
 completed tlie second building in the place, 
 opening a hardware store there. He 
 also named the town in honor of the wife 
 of the owner of the land on which it was 
 located, her name lieing Emma. As the 
 first postmaster he installed the office and 
 got it in good running order, but at the end 
 of two years his health again failed and he 
 was compelled to resign his office and sell 
 his business. He had built up a good trade 
 and was doing a successful business. He 
 then went to Pella, Iowa, for Herbert 
 Spencer & Company, to open a hardware 
 store for \'an Houten Brothers. 
 
 ^\'hi!e there Mr. Hoke was married, 
 J\Iarch J3, 1882, to ^liss Sophia Robinson, 
 who was born in La Salle county, Illinois, 
 March 25, i860, and was there reared and 
 educated. Her father, James Robinson, 
 of Peru, Illinois, was also a native of La 
 Salle county, a representative of one of its 
 oldest families, and spent his last days on the 
 homestead taken up from the government. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hoke hail three children : 
 Laura M., who was born April 13, 1882, 
 and died at the age of two years : Harry 
 Harvey, born January 13, 1884: and Albert 
 E., born October 4, 1885. The .sons are 
 still in school. The name of Harvey is an 
 old one in the famil}^, it being the maiden 
 name of Mrs. Hoke's maternal great-grand- 
 mother, who traced her ancestry back to 
 Lord Harvey. 
 
 After eight months spent in Iowa, Mr. 
 Hoke returned to Livingston county, Illi- 
 nois, and rented his father's farm near Odell 
 for three years. He met with success in 
 his farming operations, but was crippled by 
 barbed wire, which resulted in blood poison- 
 ing, and he lost all he had in his efforts to 
 save his life. In 1888 he located in Odell, 
 
 where he has since engaged in the real- 
 estate business, and has been remarkably 
 successful in that undertaking. He has 
 handled a large amount of western property 
 in Iowa and ^linnesota. and his patrons, who 
 are mostly his frientls, have been well satis- 
 fied with their investments. He has sold 
 many thousand acres of land, in one year 
 disposing of twenty-one thousand acres, and 
 has secured good homes for hundreds of 
 people, whom he has sent to those states. 
 Since buying a home for himself in Odell 
 he has invested every dollar he could get 
 in western lands, and now has over one thou- 
 sand acres in two different tracts in Wright 
 and Hancock counties, Iowa. He is a wide- 
 awake, energetic business man, of progres- 
 sive ideas and indomitable enterprise, and 
 his success is certainlv well deserved, for he 
 has had many difficulties to overcome. In 
 politics he is a strong and active Republican, 
 and has ser\ed as a member of the school 
 board, though he cares nothing for political 
 honors. Religiously he supports the Con- 
 gregational church. 
 
 \\TLLIA:M H. TAYLOR. 
 
 William H. Taylor, the present well- 
 known and efficient highwaycommissionerof 
 Dwight township, and a resident of the town 
 of Dwight, has through his own exertions 
 attained an honorable position and marked 
 •prestige among the representative men of 
 his community, and with signal consistency 
 it may be said that he is the architect of his 
 own fortunes, for he started out in life for 
 himself at the age of nine years and has 
 since made his way in the world unaided. 
 
 Mr. Tavlor was born in Lancastershire,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 329 
 
 England, March 9, 1843, ^ son of James and 
 Betty (Mills) Taylor, also natives of Lan- 
 castersliire, where the father followed the 
 blacksmith's trade for many years. In early 
 days during the gold excitement in Califor- 
 nia, he came to America and crossed the 
 ])lains to the Pacific slope, where he spent 
 two years, meeting with fair success in his 
 mining operations. His Ijruther-in-law, 
 Robert Mills, who went with him to Cali- 
 fornia, died a millionaire in that state a 
 couple of years ago. After returning to 
 England from California Mr. Taylor brought 
 his family to the United States and located 
 ill Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, where he 
 worked at his trade for the PennsyKania 
 railroad many years. There he .spent the re- 
 mainder of bis life, dying at the age of sev- 
 enty-si.x years. His wife survived him about 
 two years. They were the parents of eight 
 children: Elizabeth, William, John, Rachel, 
 Ellen, James. Charles and Delia, all of whom 
 reached mature years and all are still living 
 with the exception of James. Our subject 
 is the only one living in the west, the others 
 being still residents of Allegheny county, 
 Pennsylvania. 
 
 William H. Taylor was a mere lad on 
 the emigration of the family to America. 
 He attended school at Pittsburg, but at the 
 age of nine years he commenced earning his 
 own livelihood, and ever afterward supported 
 himself. In early manhood he went to In- 
 diana, and worked on a farm in De Kalb 
 county for a few years. From there he went 
 to Chicago, where he found employment in 
 the stock yards about two years, after which 
 he returned to his old home in Pennsylvania 
 and remained there about a year, when he 
 again went to Chicago and worked in the 
 stock yards a year. In 1866 he came to 
 Livingston county, Illinois, in the employ of 
 
 a Mr. McPherson, for whom he had worked 
 in Chicago, it being jiis intention to remain 
 only thirty days, but he has now l)een here 
 o\er thirty-three years. He continued to 
 \\(irk for Mr. McPherson four years. 
 
 On the loth of December, 1868, Mv. Tay- 
 lor married Miss Lydia H'. Grub, a native of 
 I'.lair county, Pennsylvania, and a daughter 
 of l)a\i(l Grub, who never came west. To 
 our sul)ject and his wife were born four chil- 
 dren, namely: ^\'illiam J., the eldest, who is 
 engaged in farming in Dwight township, 
 married, first, Maggie Jenkins,who died leav- 
 ing one child. Rebecca, and for his second 
 wife he married Catherine Del)by ]\Iorris. 
 Charles and .\nnic are both at lii;me. The 
 youngest, a daughter, died in infancy. 
 
 .A.fter his marriage Mr. Taylor rented his 
 present farm in Dwight township for several 
 years, and in 1873 purchased twenty acres, 
 to which he later added until he now owns 
 eighty acres, all now within the corporate 
 limits of the town of Dwight. Formerly 
 he gave considerable attention to the raising 
 of stock, making a specialty of thoroughbred 
 animals, and for a number of years he dealt 
 in stock, selling ])rincipally to the local ship- 
 pers. 
 
 Keligiousl}- Mr. and Mrs. Taxlor are 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 and ])olitically he is identified with the Re- 
 publican party. He was a member of the 
 \illage board during the Dwight boom, and 
 for the past sixteen years has most efficientlv 
 and satisfactorily served as road commis- 
 sioner of Dwight township. With one ex- 
 ception he has Imilt all the bridges in the 
 township, and has made many other improve- 
 ments along that line. He is public-spirited 
 and progressive, and takes an active part in 
 all enterprises calculated to prove of public 
 benefit.
 
 330 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 THOMAS HUGHES. 
 
 Tliomas Hughes, now living a retired life 
 in Dwight, Illinois, is a man whose success- 
 ful struggle with adverse circumstances 
 shows what can he done by industry and 
 economy, especially if a sensible wife sec- 
 onds his efforts to secure a home and compe- 
 tence. Born of poor parents, he was obliged 
 to make his way in life without any of the 
 aids which are usually considered essential 
 to success. 
 
 Air. Hughes was born in county ]Mayo, 
 Ireland, in 1841, a son of Thomas and Mary 
 (Dowd) Hughes, who spent their entire 
 lives in that county, the father being em- 
 ployed as a herder on a large estate. Our 
 subject left home at the age of thirteen years 
 and came to the United States with his uncle, 
 James Hays, who was mate on a sailing ves- 
 ■ sel. He landed in New York and from there 
 went to Long Island, where he found em- 
 ployment with a farmer and market gardener 
 near Flushing. His employer was a Mr. 
 Bayton, a Pennsylvanian by birth, and with 
 him Mr. Hughes remained until he attained 
 his majority, receiving little more than his 
 board and clothes for his seven years' labor. 
 At the age of twenty-one he went to Xew 
 York City, where he worked as a laborer 
 for two years, and in 1864 he came to Chi- 
 cago, where the following two years were 
 passed, during which time he assisted in lay- 
 ing the pipes for the city water works. He 
 next found employment at the docks unload- 
 ing vessels, and followed that occupation for 
 five years. 
 
 On the 25th of December, 1868, in Chi- 
 cago, Mr. Hughes married Miss Margaret 
 Higgins, a daughter of Francis and Mary 
 ( Brady) Higgins. To them have been born 
 seven children, namelv : Francis, now an elec- 
 
 trician of Seattle, Washington; John H., who 
 married Julia Dunn and lives on the home 
 farm in this county; Nellie M., a successful 
 and popular teacher of Livingston and 
 Grundy counties ; Emma, who is clerking in 
 the store of Gordon Brothers of Dwight; 
 Julia, a graduate of the Dwight high school, 
 and now a successful teacher; and two who 
 died in infancy. 
 
 In the fall of 1869, Mr. and Mrs. Hughes 
 came to Dwight, where her father had lo- 
 cated some four years previous. Here, in 
 partnership with his brother-in-law, our sub- 
 ject engaged in farming for two years, and 
 then rented one hundred and sixty acres of 
 land from F. O. Caldwell in Round Grove 
 township, operating that place nine years. 
 In 1 87 1 he made his first purchase of land, 
 consisting of one hundred and sixty acres 
 on the northeast quarter of section 23, Round 
 Grove township, which was ail raw land, en- 
 tirely unimproved. Here he erected an 
 humble home, sixteen by twenty-four feet, 
 with a kitchen twenty by fourteen foet. He 
 planted fifty acres of flax and broke all but 
 six acres of his land the first year. During 
 the ten years he resided thereon he placed 
 the land under a high state of cultivation, 
 and in connection with general farming en- 
 gaged in stock raising, feeding usually from 
 one to two hundred head of hogs. In Feb- 
 ruary, 1889, he bought a tract of thirty-six 
 acres of land just east of Dwight, and located 
 there in order that his children mieht have 
 better educational advantages. He lived there 
 two years, cultivating his little farm, and in 
 1889 bought one acre of land in the village, 
 upon which he erected his present beautiful 
 home at a cost of five thousand dollars. It 
 is one of the most elegant residences in the 
 citv. He has added to his landed possessions 
 from time to time and now has three bun-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 331 
 
 dred and sixty acres of valued and well-im- 
 proved land. He Ts one- of the successful 
 citizens of the county and deserves much 
 creflit for what he has accomplished. Look- 
 ing hack tlirough the vista of the past we see 
 a friendless boy who came to the New World 
 in search of home and fortune, at present we 
 see his ambitious dream realized, and ct)uld 
 the \eil of the future 1>© lifted we wnuld 
 tliiubtlcss see an honored old age crowned 
 with respect and veneration which is ac- 
 cortled a well-si)ent life. In pnlitics ho is 
 independent, and in religious belief is a 
 Catholic. 
 
 WILLI A.\l L. (Jl'lX.X. 
 
 William L. Uuinn is one of the prosper- 
 ous citizens of Strawn, who has laid aside 
 all business cares and is now living a retired 
 life. Success has attended his well-directed 
 effiorts and he is ot-day in possession of a 
 comfortable competence which enables him 
 to spend his declining years in ease and re- 
 tirement from active labor. 
 
 Mr. Quinn was born in Ireland in 1842, 
 and is a son of Charles and Unity (Lyncli) 
 Quinn. also natives of that country, born in 
 county Tyrone. The father, who was a 
 farmer by occupation, died there at the ad- 
 vanced age of ninety- four years. The 
 mother had died at the age of twenty-four 
 years, and for his second wife he married 
 Jane Campljell, who is still living in Ireland 
 at the age of sevent)'-five. By the first union 
 there were three children, of whom our sub- 
 ject is the second in order of birth and the 
 only survivor. James died at the age of 
 twenty-four years, and one unnamed died in 
 infancy. Of the twelve children born of the 
 second marriage, seven came to the United 
 
 States, three locating in Living.ston county, 
 Illinois, tho otjiers in i.os Angeles, Califor- 
 nia. Michael crossed the Atlantic in 1X69, 
 and after six years spent in Ottawa, Illinois, 
 took up his residence in Livingston county, 
 w here he at first operated one of our subject's 
 farms and thon purchased three hundred and 
 twenty acres of land on sections 5 and 6. Ger- 
 nian\ille townshii). He is an industrious and 
 prosperous farmer, and the father of six chil- 
 dren. Alexandor came to America in 1874, 
 and also settled in Ottawa, Illinois, where 
 he worked for E. V. Griggs one year. Hj 
 then settled on a farm on sections 7 and 8, 
 Germanville township, owned by our sub- 
 ject, and there he continues to make his 
 home. He owns eightv acres of land on sec- 
 tion 8. He is married and has six children, 
 four sons and two daughters. 
 
 The subject of this review was reared 
 and educated in his native land, and in i860, 
 at the age of eighteen years, came to .Amer- 
 ica. For twenty-three years he was in the 
 employof Andrew Lynch, a general merchant 
 of Ottawa, Illinois, and at the end of that 
 time, in 1883, came to Strawn, He worked 
 on the farm with his brother Michael for one 
 year, but since that time has lived a retired 
 life in the village. In 1874, while still a res- 
 ident of Ottawa, he purchased three hundred 
 and twenty acres of land on sections 5 and 6, 
 Germanville township, which at that time 
 was all raw land and which was operated by 
 his brothers. He made all of the improve- 
 ments upon the place, including the erection 
 of a commodious and pleasant residence in 
 1879, which at that time was one of the best 
 in the county, and he also built a large barn 
 and laid over fifty thousand tiles. In due 
 time the land was all placed under a high 
 state of cultivation. In 1880 Mr. Quinn 
 bought one hundred and sixty acres of land
 
 332 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 on sections 7 and 8, the same township, and 
 also improved that place with the assistance 
 of his brothers. Besides this property he 
 has sixty-three acres on section 7, German- 
 ville township, purchased by him in 1893, 
 and now leased to a tenant, and one hundred 
 and sixty acres of fine pasture land at Em- 
 poria, Lyon county, Kansas, purchased in 
 1 88 1. The same year he bought a house in 
 Strawn, which he has re^nodeled and made 
 one of the best in the village. It is a beau- 
 tiful place, surrounded by a large lawn, and 
 neat and tastefully furnished. For about 
 nine months Mr. Ouinn clerked in the hard- 
 ■\vare and grocery store of Joseph Kuntz, in 
 Strawn, but with that exception has lived 
 retired during his residence here. 
 
 In Chicago, Illinois, February 20, 1884, 
 Mr. Ouinn married Miss Bridget Conlin, a 
 native of Ireland, who came to this country 
 in 1865. Her mother died in Ireland, after 
 which her father emigrated to America and 
 spent his last days in retirement from active 
 labor in La Salle, Illinois, where he died at 
 the age of eighty years in 1879. He had 
 followed farming in his native land. 
 
 Although Mr. Ouinn has been a resident 
 of Livingston county only seventeen years, 
 he has by the improvements of his property 
 here been identified with its development for 
 many years. As a Democrat he takes an 
 active interest in political affairs, and gives 
 his support to those enterprises which tend 
 to advance the interest of his adopted coun- 
 try. He has served as trustee of the village 
 of Strawn for fourteen years, and village 
 treasurer nine years, and his official duties 
 were always most faithfully and conscien- 
 tiously discharged. Religiously both he and 
 his wife are devout members of the Roman 
 Catholic church, and are highly respecte-d 
 and esteemed bv all who know them. 
 
 WALSH BROTHERS. 
 
 \\'alsh Brothers, consisting of L. F. and 
 T. AI. Walsh, are the leading merchants of 
 Campus, Illinois, carrying a large and well 
 selected stock of general merchandise, furni- 
 ture, hardware, agricultural implements, car- 
 riages, wagons, coal, lumber, lime, cement, 
 and all kinds of building materials. They 
 also do a large undertaking business, keep- 
 ing a hearse and full equipments for the 
 same. In size and quality of stock and char- 
 actor of the building, their department store 
 would grace a much larger town, it being 
 something not often found in a place the size 
 of Campus, though Campus cannot be 
 judged by the average Illinois village of 
 three hundred population, possessing as it 
 does a standpipe and good water works; a 
 church and Sisters' school, both fine brick 
 structures ; and numerous elegant residences. 
 The people are enterprising and progressive 
 and give to the place an air of thrift. 
 Walsh Brothers have an elegant and com- 
 modious two-story brick beuilding, fifty by 
 eighty feet, with a basement, which was 
 erected by them in 1897 to take the place of 
 the old frame building recently destroyed by 
 fire. Forming a partnership, they pur- 
 chased the business of J. J. Foltz & Son, in 
 1 89 1, and continued business at the old stand 
 until it was reduced to ashes. Besides their 
 store building they have another large build- 
 ing in which seasoned lumber is kept. They 
 do an extensive business as contractors and 
 builders, and have erected many of the 
 buildings in Campus and vicinity, including 
 nearly all those in the new mining town of 
 Cardiff, where in the spring of 1900 they put 
 up a large store, which will be conducted as 
 a branch store of the one at Campus, and be 
 in charge of J. H. Walsh, another brother.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 333 
 
 Thomas J\I. \\'alsli, the junior member 
 of the firm of Walsh Brothers, is a native of 
 tliis county, born in Broughton township, , 
 February 15, 1866, and is a son of Patrick 
 and Ann (Smith) Walsh, both natives of 
 Ireland. The father emigrated to America 
 in 1849, 'i'ltl six years later took up his res- 
 idence in Livingston county, Illinois, being 
 one of its early settlers and successful farm- 
 ers. He is now living a retired life in Cam- 
 pus. In his family are nine children, name- 
 ly: John P., a resident of Chicago; L. F., 
 the senior member of the firm of Walsh 
 Brothers; Kate E., at home; Thomas M., 
 the junior member of the firm ; Mathew, who 
 is in the employ of his brothers; James H., 
 who has charge of the branch store in Car- 
 diff; Mary A., wife of William Mortison of 
 Chicago; George C, who is with his broth- 
 ers, and Blandina, bookkeeper for her 
 brothers. 
 
 On the home farm Thomas M. Walsh 
 grew to manhood, his early education being 
 obtained in the common schools and the high 
 sdiool of Dwight. Subsetpiently he took a 
 literary course at St. Viature's College, and 
 a commercial course at Dixon College, from 
 which he was graduated in 1890. The fol- 
 lowing year he formed a partnership with 
 his brother L. F., as previously stated, and 
 has since successfully engaged in active busi- 
 ness at Campus. Fraternally he affiliates 
 with Campus Camp, No. 2619, M. W^ A., 
 and politically is identified with the Repub- 
 lican party. He has served as postmaster of 
 Campus since 1897; has filled the office of 
 justice of the peace since 1892, and has been 
 a member of the board of education for tho 
 past six years. As a business man he is 
 wide-awake, progressive and energetic, and 
 carries forward to successful completion 
 whatever he undertakes, while as a citizen he 
 
 has promptly and faithfully discharged every 
 duty that has devolved upon him. On the 
 9th of February, 1892, he married Miss Mag- 
 gie Steger, who was born and reared in 
 Round (Jroxe township, this county, a daugh- 
 ter of Christian and Louise Steger. By this 
 union were born three children, namely : 
 Francis Herbert, Clyde A., and Philomean, 
 who died at the age of seven years. 
 
 ]-. !•". Walsh, the senior member of the 
 firm of Walsh Brothers, is also an enterpris- 
 ing business man of known reliability. He 
 was born March 18, i860, was reared on the 
 home farm and attended in the local schools, 
 completing his education, however, by a 
 general course at the Northern Indiana Nor- 
 mal School at Valjiaraiso, Indiana. He was 
 married, November 2-, 1896, to Miss Lena 
 Flynn, a daughter of Patrick Fl\nn, and to 
 them have been burn three chiklrcn, \'iola, 
 Leo and Bernice. 
 
 JAMES P. GOURLEY. 
 
 James P. Gourley, a representative 
 farmer and highly esteeme-d citizen of Esmen 
 township, residing on section 17, was born 
 in Harrison county. West Virginia, October 
 8, i860. His father, Alfred Gourley, was 
 born and reared in the Old Dominion, and 
 when a young man went to West \'irginia, 
 locating in Harrison county, where he mar- 
 ried Rebecca Jane Farris, a native of that 
 state. There the father continued to carry 
 on farming for some years, but in 1865 
 moved to Livingston county, Illinois, where 
 two of his brothers had previously located. 
 He first came to the county in 1855. but soon 
 returned to \\'est \"irginia and did not locate 
 permanently here luitil ten years later, when
 
 334 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he purcliased land in Amity township. He 
 prospered in his new home, being a thorough 
 farmer and good business man. and became 
 the possessor of a vahiable farm of four hun- 
 dred and forty acres. Upon that place he 
 continued to make his home throughout life, 
 dying there May 30, 1898. His wife sur- 
 vives him, and continues to reside on the old 
 homestead with her son Charley. 
 
 In Amity township James P. Gourley 
 grew to manhood, and was educated in the 
 country schools near his home. He as- 
 sisted his father in the operations of the farm 
 until nineteen years of age, and then worked 
 on the farm of a cousin for two years. On 
 the 24th of December, 1882, in Livingston 
 county, he was united in marriage with Miss 
 Ida Buren, who was born and reared in 
 Grundy county, Illinois, and they have be- 
 come the parents of seven children, namely : 
 Ray, Fay, Clarence, Earl, Flavins, Florence 
 and Edith. All are living with the excep- 
 tion of Fay, who died at the age of eight 
 years, and the sons aid their father in carry- 
 ing on the farm. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Gourley located 
 on the farm where he now resides, but after 
 operating it for four years he moved to the 
 Buren farm in Grundy county, in 1886, and 
 lived there for the same length of time. In 
 1 89 1 he returned to the farm in Esmen town- 
 ship, Livingston county, on which he now re- 
 sides. Here he owns sixty acres, and also 
 operates an adjoining one hundred and sixty 
 acre tract belonging to the Gourley heirs, 
 and eighty acres more near by. He also 
 rents one hundred and sixty acres of pasture 
 land. He owns a valuable farm of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres in St. Joseph county, 
 Indiana, and in connection with his brother 
 Charles has a piece of three hundred acres in 
 LaPorte county, that state. In connection 
 
 with farming he is engaged in stock raising, 
 his specialty being hogs, but he also keeps a 
 good grade of cattle, including some full- 
 blooded registered Durhams. He is ac- 
 counted one of the most successful farmers 
 and stock men in his part of the county, and 
 is numbered among its most reliable and pro- 
 gressive business men. 
 
 In politics 'Mr. Gourley is independent 
 and cast his first presidential vote for Grover 
 Cleveland, the Democratic nominee, his last 
 for William McKinley, the Republican can- 
 didate. Fraternally he is a member of the 
 Cornell Camp of Modern Woodmen, and he 
 is held in high regard by all with whom he 
 comes in contact either in business or social 
 life. 
 
 ARTHUR MARSHALL. 
 
 Arthur Marshall, a prominent and rep- 
 resentative farmer of Livingston county, was 
 born near Sandy Hill, Washington county. 
 New York, March 16, 1834. and died in 
 Dwight, May 30, 1899. As his parents died 
 when he \\'as quite small, he remembered 
 nothing of his mother and but little of his 
 father. His early life was spent in western 
 New York and Pennsylvania, and in 1857 
 he came to Illinois, locating first in Bureau 
 county, but in March of the following year 
 he drove across the country to Livingston 
 county, where he continued to make his.home 
 until his death. He purchased one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land in Union township, 
 to the cultivation and improvement of which 
 he devoted his energies until 1898, and in 
 his farming operations was quite successful. 
 He was a lover of good stock, especially 
 horses, and he fed cattle and hogs exten- 
 sively. In politics he was a strong Repub- 
 lican, verv radical in his views, but would
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 335 
 
 never accept any public office whato/er. say- 
 ing that lie would not be president if lie was 
 capable and the position was offered him. 
 Until late in life he was a nieniljcr nt tlio 
 Presbyterian church, but in 1895, with his 
 wife, he united with the Congregational 
 church of Dwight. As in other affairs he 
 never would accept office, though ho took an 
 active interest in church and Supnday school 
 work and was an efficient and and able leader 
 in the Sunday school, lie was noted for his 
 kind and obliging disposition anil was alw ays 
 willing to assist those in neo;l even at an in- 
 convenience to himself. Surely the life rec- 
 ord of such a man is wurtli)- of perpetuation 
 anil will be read with interest by his many 
 frienils and aciiuaintances throughout the 
 County. 
 
 Mr. Marshall was three times marrieil, 
 first on the 24th of January, 1861, to Miss 
 Mary Thompson, a nati\e of Guernsey 
 count}'. Ohio, and a daughter of Mitchell and 
 lane riiompsdu. At an early age she and 
 her threo brothers were left motherless. 
 She came to Livingston county to keep house 
 fur Iwi) of them, William and Hugh, and 
 the other, Jefferson, located here later. The 
 first two were soldiers of the civil war, and 
 after their return from the war lived in 
 Union township, this county, but Hugh is 
 now a resident of Pontiac, while Jefferson 
 resides in Miles City, Montana. Mr. Mar- 
 shall made the acquaintance of his wife while- 
 she was keeping house for her brothers, but 
 she removeil to her father's hoiiie to be mar- 
 ried, and came as a bride to this county the 
 second time. She died June 12, i86g, leav- 
 ing three children: (i) William E., born 
 October 8, 1861, died June 5, 1895. (2) 
 Mary J., born January 23. 1864, is a gradu- 
 ate of the Dwight schools, and for some time 
 was a teachor of Livingston countv. She 
 
 had charge of an Indian agency school in the 
 west for a time, and was also connected with 
 the Haskell Institute in Lawrence, Kansas, 
 but is now teaching in Glendive, ]\Iontana. 
 (3) .\nna L., burn October 14. 1866, is the 
 wift.. of James W. McKinzic, of Glendive, 
 Montana. 
 
 Mr. Marshall was again married, March 
 7, 187 1, his second union being with Margaret 
 Ci. George, who was born in Belmont county, 
 Oliiii. April 9, 1831, a daughter of John and 
 .\nn (Cross) George, the former a native 
 of Ireland, the latter uf Maryland. Being 
 loft an orphan, her father came to America 
 at the age of nine years and grew to man- 
 hood in Ohio. He owned and operated a 
 farm of one hundred and sixty acres in 
 Dwight township, this coijnty, where he 
 made his home until 1864, and then moved 
 to Dwight, where his death occurred in 1872. 
 He was a liljeral supjjorter and active worker 
 in the Presbyterian church, in which he 
 ser\ed as elder for many years. In bis fam- 
 ily were twoKe children, ten of whom grew 
 to maturity, and four are still living, namely; 
 Sarah A., wiilow of Benjamin Ogg, and a 
 resident of Parker, Alissouri; James C, a 
 retired farmer of Washington, Kansas; Liz- 
 zie M., the third wife of our subject, and 
 Rebecca, widow of Henry McDonald, of Al- 
 gona. low a. Those deceased are as follows : 
 Wm. C, born October 29, 1826, died No- 
 vember 29, 1826; Mary, born May 17, 1842, 
 died the same day ; Leathy, born October 5, 
 1835, married Jesse Cowgill, and died May 
 2^, 1862, leaving two children, John Mc- 
 Daniel and Margaret A. ; Priscilla, born Oc- 
 tober 12, 1829, married John Cowgill, of 
 tiuernsey, Ohio, where she die-d in 1868, 
 leaving si.x children ; John C, born October 
 19, 1833, served three years in the Union 
 army during the civil war, and made his
 
 336 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 home in Dwight township, this county, where 
 he died September 17, 1899; Louisa, born 
 June 15, 1837, died unmarried at the age 
 of twenty-nine years and thirteen days ; and 
 Benjamin Cross, born May 22, 1839, married 
 Olhe Burr, and died in Nevada, lUinois, in 
 1866, leaving two children, John and Mary. 
 The father of these children was born De- 
 cember 25, 1796, and died August 12, 1877, 
 while the mother was born May 25, 1804, 
 and died May 25, 1885. Mrs. Margaret C. 
 Marshall, the second wife of our subject, died 
 January 10, 1887, leaving one daughter, 
 Minnie 2\I., now the wife of George Crandell, 
 residing on the old homestead in Union town- 
 ship, I hey had three children, but Olive, 
 born February 25, 1895, died April 27, 1897. 
 Those living are Mary M and John M. 
 
 On the 29th of October, 1888, Mr. Mav- 
 shall married Lizzie ^I, Brown, a sister of 
 his second wife, who was an invalid for sev- 
 eral years prior to her death, and Lizzie had 
 made her home with them for two years. 
 She was Ixirn October 2t,, 1844, and was 
 first married ^Nlay 7, 1868, to Edgar D. 
 Brown, by whom she had four children, 
 namely: Edgar C, a resident of Schoolcraft, 
 Michigan; Frank, a soldier in Porto Rico; 
 and Eleanora M., who is attending school in 
 Peoria, Illinois. By her second marriage, 
 Mrs. Marshall has one child, George A,, born 
 December 14, 1889, She has [made her 
 home in Dwight since 1898, and is highly 
 respected and esteemed by all who know her. 
 
 PETER G, XELLIS. 
 
 Peter G. Nellis, who for many years was 
 auditor of the Chicago & Alton Railroad, 
 but is now practically living a retired life in 
 
 Pontiac,. Illinois, is a man whose worth and 
 ability have gained him success, honor and 
 public confidence. He enjo\s the well- 
 earned distinction of being what the world 
 calls a "self-made man," and an analyzation 
 of his character re\-eals the fact that enter- 
 prise, well-directed eft'ort and honorable 
 dealing have been the essential features of 
 his prosperity. 
 
 Mr. Xellis was born in Fort Plain, Xew 
 York, April 11, 1825, a son of Gerritt and 
 ^Madeline (Ehle) Nellis. both natives of 
 Palatine Bridge, New York, His paternal 
 great-grandfather was a bishop of the Lu- 
 theran church, and a resident of Schenec- 
 tady, New York. The maternal grantl- 
 father, Peter Ehle, was descended from 
 German stock and was a farmer by C)ccupa- 
 tion. When a x'oung man the father of our 
 subject moved to Fort Plain, of which place 
 he became a well-known and prominent 
 farmer. In religious belief both he and his 
 wife were Lutherans, He died at Fovt 
 Plain, while his wife, who was born in 1800. 
 died December 22. 1889. 
 
 Of the three children liorn to this worthy 
 couple our subject is the oldest. He at- 
 tended the common schools of his native 
 town and completed his education by an 
 academic course. He remained on the home 
 farm until he attained his majority and about 
 1848 came west by boat from Buft'alo to 
 Detroit, by rail to Kalamazoo, then the west- 
 ern terminus of the Michigan Central Rail- 
 road, and from there crossed the lake to 
 Chicago, After spending a short time in 
 that city, he made a prospecting tour through 
 northern Illinois and Wisconsin, and finally 
 located in Lockport, Illinois, where he en- 
 gaged in merchandising, being one of the 
 first merchants of that place, which at that 
 time was a competitor of Joliet,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 337 
 
 Mr. Xellis spent two years in Lnckix^rt, 
 and tbo'e l:e was n:arriecl, Feliruary ji. 1850, 
 to Miss Louise Jennison. wlio was lioni anil 
 reared in Dundee. Scotland, and is a daugh- 
 ter of Captain Robert and Susan (Clarke) 
 Jennison. the former a nativo of Weymouth. 
 England, the latter of Dundee. Scotland, 
 here the family made their home until 
 coming to the United States in 1846. at 
 which time the father was a retired officer 
 of the Royal navy. They located in Chi- 
 cago, but later removed to Lockport. where 
 Captain Jennison owned a section of land. 
 though he never acti\ely engaged in its 
 operation. He spent his last days in Os- 
 wego. Illinois, where his wife also ilied. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Xellis have thri..; children : 
 Gerritt John, a resident of Chicago: Rufus 
 L.. of Denver; and Mrs. Loui.se Slocum, of 
 I'ontiac. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Xellis disposed of 
 I'lis business in Lockport and accepted the po- 
 sition of paymaster for the Illinois Central 
 Railroad, then being built at Cairo. The 
 rails were brought from England, and from 
 Xew Orleans were towo:l up the Mississippi 
 river on flatlioats. He handled large sums 
 of money for the road at a time when banks 
 and checks were fow and robbers plenty. 
 He remained with the company during the 
 entire construction of the road, General Mc- 
 Clellan being chief engineer and later vice- 
 president. After its completion Mr. Xellis 
 served as the first agent at Vandalia. and 
 later was trans f«;rred to LaSalle, being three 
 years at each place. He was next ajjpointed 
 traveling auditor for the Chicago & Alton 
 Railroad with home and headtjuarters at 
 Chicago, receiving his appointment when 
 Roswell B. Mason was president and general 
 manager of the road, and J. C. McMullen 
 general superintendent. He remained with 
 
 the company thirty-five years, traveling the 
 whole e.xtent of the road, which in extent of 
 time is un])aralleled by any case in railroad 
 h;story. Me was also considered one of the 
 finest accountants in the United States, and 
 most accountably filled the jjosition of auditor 
 until the retirement of T. B. Blackstone. the 
 pre.sident, in 1900, though he is still with the 
 road in a local way. For years he has made 
 his home in Pontiac. where, in 1890. he 
 erected the present residence where he now 
 lives. He is widely and favorably known 
 throughout the state and has a host of warm 
 friends in his adopted city. 
 
 •DEXJ.\.MIX BARICKM.\X. 
 
 Benjamin Barickman, who resides on 
 section 30. Xewton township, is numbered 
 among the pioneers of 1832, the date of his 
 arrival being at the time of the celebrated 
 Black Hawk war. He was a lad of eight 
 years at the time, and has a vivid recollec- 
 tion of the stirring events of that day. He 
 is a native of Atlanis county, Ohio, born De- 
 cember n, 1824, and is the son of Daniel 
 and Mary ( Pitchenger ) Barickman. both of 
 whom were natives of Maryland, where they 
 were united in marriage, and which was 
 their home until their removal to Ohio in 
 an early day. They made their home in 
 Adams county, that state, until 1832. when 
 they came to Illinois, making the journey 
 in a large "prairie schooner" drawn by oxen. 
 On their arrival they located on what is now 
 section 30, Xewton township, the farm yet 
 being in the jxissession of our subject. 
 
 Securing his location, Daniel Barickman 
 set about the erection of his house, the typi- 
 cal log ca1)in so well remembered bv the
 
 338 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 older resivlonts of the county. At that time 
 there were but few persons residing in what 
 is now Livingston county, but prairie wolves, 
 deer and other wild game were in abundance. 
 Our subject has counted as many as fifty 
 deer in one drove in the early day, and it was 
 many years before they were all extinct in 
 this section of the country. Prairie chick- 
 ens were so numerous they at tmies destroyed 
 tlie growing corn. 
 
 Daniel Barickman was a son of Daniel 
 Barickman, a native of Germany, wIki came 
 to this country with his wife early in their 
 married life, locating in Maryland, which re- 
 mained their home during the romainder of 
 their lives. Daniel and Mavy Barickman 
 were the parents of nine children. Bartley, 
 James, Prudence, Daniel, Harriot, Benja- 
 min, Jacob, Mary Ann and Upton. Of 
 these, four are yot living. Prudence, the 
 widow of Wesley Bishop, is living in Wel)- 
 ster Citv, Iowa. Daniel is living a retired 
 life in the city of Streator, LaSalle county. 
 Harriet is the wife of Preston Bishop and 
 they make their home in Towanda, Illinois. 
 The death of the father occurred when he 
 was seventy-four years old, and the mother 
 when she was seventy-one years old. In 
 politics, he was originally a Whig, but later 
 a Republican, and in political affairs he 
 always manifested a commendable interest. 
 
 The first purchase of land by Daniel 
 Barickman was of two hundred and forty 
 acres on which he erected his cabin and at 
 once commenced to improve. Xot a fur- 
 row had I)eon turned, and there was no sign 
 of civilization. Indian wigwams were to be 
 seen in the timber, and there was nothing 
 but the Indian trail and the path made bv 
 the deer as they came out of the timber. 
 Commencing the impro\ement of the place, 
 he soon had (|uite a large tract under culti- 
 
 vation, and in due time he added to his 
 original purchase and became a well-to-do 
 farmer. He continued to reside on his 
 original farm until his death. 
 
 The primary education of our subject 
 began in the common schools of his native 
 state, and soon after the arrival of the fam- 
 ily in Livingston county his father employed 
 a man named Button to teach school in an 
 out-house on his place, and to that school 
 he went, and later in a log school house 
 erected aljout two miles from their home. 
 There were yet no roads located and the 
 children went through the timber to the 
 school. In winter time it was \'ery hard to 
 make their way through the snow, which 
 sometimes was very deep. An education, 
 however, obtained under such circumstan- 
 ces is apt to be appreciated. 
 
 The early life of our subject was one of 
 hardship. The farm must be improved, 
 and e\ery member of the family must do 
 liis part. With his parents he remained, 
 assisting in the development of the place 
 until he was about twenty-two years of age, 
 when he was united in marriage with iMiss 
 iMary A. Latham, a native of Connecticut, 
 and daughter of Lyman S. Latham, one of 
 the early settlers of the county, who came 
 from the Xntmeg state about 1845. locating 
 in what is now Reading township. By this 
 union eight children were born, of whom 
 three — Augusta, Franklin and Benjamin — 
 died in childhood. The living are : Daniel, 
 a farmer of Xewtown township; Prudence, 
 wife of Joseph Coe, living in Chicago; Car- 
 rie, wife of Cephas Coe, living in Reading 
 township : Charles M., county judge of Liv- 
 ingston county, residing in Pontiac; and 
 Willis H., who is married and living on and 
 operating the home farm. 
 
 After his marriage i\Ir. Barickman con-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 339 
 
 tiiuied to reside on tlie home place, which he 
 managed for his father for some years, and 
 of whicii he later hecame the owner. To the 
 original farm he added eighty acres, whicli 
 he lias since deeded to one of his sons. As a 
 farmer he ranked among the best in the conn- 
 ty, and was fairly successfnl. He continued 
 to actively engage in the management of tlie 
 farm until 1898. since which time he has 
 been living a retired life. 
 
 For many years Mr. Barickman has been 
 a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 and for the greater part of the time he 
 served his church as a member of the official 
 board. He has always taken an active in- 
 terest in church work, and is a strong be- 
 liever in the teachings of the lowly Xaza- 
 rene. In politics he was originally a Whig, 
 with which party he was identified until its 
 dissolution, since which time he has been an 
 ardent Republican. He was never an office- 
 seeker, but believed in every man doing his 
 duty, politically, in the advocacy of the prin- 
 ciples and the proper support of his party. 
 
 For sixty-eight years Mr. Barickman 
 has been a citizen of Livingston county. As 
 already stated, when he came here the coun- 
 try was almost an unbroken wilderness. 
 Wolves, deer and wild game of all kinds 
 was in abundance. One could scarcely 
 look out from the door without seeing wolves 
 or deer. His brother was a great hunter. 
 and was considered the best shot on the river. 
 Our subject was a hunter of no mean ability, 
 and has in his time killed many deer in the 
 vicinity of his home. He remembers on 
 one occasion that a party of hunters were out 
 with their hounds on a deer hunt, and one of 
 the number shot a buck, which plunged into 
 the river. The dogs were sent in after him, 
 but the deer, fighting for his life, almost 
 drowned the dogs before an end was put to 
 
 his e.xistence. Many anecdotes and incidents 
 of pioneer life are related by Mr. Barick- 
 man, to the wonder and amusement of the 
 younger generation. But in the almost 
 three-score years and ten that he has lived in 
 this county he has witnessed many changes 
 indeed. He has seen the old plow, with its 
 wooden mold-board, give place to the mod- 
 ern implement of steel, the sickle and the 
 tlail superseded by the reaper and the steam 
 thresher; the log cabin replaced by the 
 stately farm house with all the comforts of 
 the nineteenth century. He has seen the 
 coming of the 'railroad, the telegraph and 
 the telephone. He has seen town and cities 
 spring up, and churches and school houses 
 find a place on almost every hillside, and in 
 every hamlet. Aladdin, with his lamp, 
 could never unfcild greater wonders than he 
 has witnessed since becoming a citizen of 
 Livingston, one of the best and most pros- 
 perous of the counties in Illinois. In the im- 
 provements that have here been made he has 
 borne his part, and he has a right to the 
 years of rest which it is hoped that he may 
 be able to enjoy. 
 
 JOSEPH O. ALBRECHT. 
 
 Josei)h O. Albrecht, one of the foremost 
 men of Waldo township, Livingston county, 
 is a native of Illinois, born in Princeton. Bu- 
 reau county, December IQ. 1859, and is a 
 sr)n of John and .\nnie ((lacho) Albrecht, 
 natives of Germany. In 1838. at the age of 
 four years, John Albrecht was brought to 
 this country by his parents, who settled in 
 Bureau county, Illinois. In the early days 
 of Chicago, the grandfather, Jacob Albrecht, 
 hauled his wheat to that citv from Bureau
 
 340 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 county in a wagon which he hewed out of 
 logs. Throughout Hfe he followed farming, 
 and at one time also owned and operated a 
 brewery at Princeton. He died in 1877. 
 In his family were eight children, five sons 
 and three daughters, of whom two, Christo- 
 pher and J(.)hn Albrecht, are prosperous 
 farmers li\ing at Tiskilwa, Bureau county. 
 
 The father of our subject followed farm- 
 ing in Bureau county until 1865, when he 
 came to Livingston county and bought the 
 west half of section 3, Waldo township, for 
 which he paid ten dollars per acre. Here 
 he prospered, and at the time of his death 
 owned seventeen hundred and twenty acres 
 of land besides several business blocks in 
 Flanagan. He died February 12, 1900, at the 
 the age of sixty-six years, two months 
 and twent\--two days. He was well 
 known and highly respected, and had 
 many friends throughout this section 
 of the state. O n the 8th of March, 
 1859, he married Anna Gacho, and 
 to them were born the following children : 
 Joseph O., our subject; August, who was 
 born June 16, 1861, and died February 16, 
 1892; John, who was born Mav 12, 1863, 
 and died February 21, 1885; Christopher, 
 v.ho was born December 24, 1865, antl died 
 October 20. 1890; Jacob, who was born 
 February 20, 1869, and died April 16, 
 1889; and Benjamin, who was born Novem- 
 ber 23, 1 87 1, and now resides in W'aklo 
 township, Livingston county. The mother 
 of these children departed this life Decem- 
 ber 2^. 1873, and on the 22d of November, 
 1874, the father married Barbara Nafciger, 
 also a native of Germanv. by wlmm he had 
 eight children, whose names and dates of 
 l)irth are as follows : Magdaline, Septem- 
 lier 18, 187;; Peter, February 17, 1877: 
 Annie, March 5, 1879; Samuel, August 'i. 
 
 1883; Lydia, \\\y 5, 1886: William, Septem- 
 ber 12, 1888; and Daniel, February 16, 1894. 
 The oldest daughter is now the wife of Peter 
 Good, of Waldo township. 
 
 The early education of Joseph O. Al- 
 brecht was acquired in the public schools near 
 his bo}-h(i(id home, and under the aljle direc- 
 tion of his father he soon acquired an ex- 
 cellent knowledge of e\'ery department of 
 farm w(.>rk. He has made agriculture his 
 life occupation, and now owns and operates 
 a quarter-section of land on section 9, Waldo 
 township, and also has eighty-two acres on 
 section 2, besides one hundred and sixty 
 acres in Iowa. He is a wide-awake, pvo- 
 gressi\e farmer, of good business abilitv and 
 sound iudpment, and is meeting with re- 
 markalile success in life. 
 
 On the loth of February, 1884, Mr. Al- 
 brecht was united in marriage with ISIiss 
 Lizzie, daughter of Christopher and Mary 
 (IngokD Ringenberg. of Tiskilwa, Bureau 
 county, and they now have one child, John 
 W., born December i, 1885. Mr. Albrecht 
 has held several local offices and takes a keen 
 interest in the welfare of his township and 
 countv. 
 
 JAMES E. GRAHAM. 
 
 James E. Graham, who is now living a 
 retired life in the village of Long Point, and 
 is efficiently serving as assessor of his town- 
 ship, has made his home in Livingston 
 county for over a third of a century, having 
 come here from near \\'enona. La Salle 
 county, in 1865. He was born at Port 
 William, Clinton county, Ohio, in 1842, a 
 son of Thomas B. and Elizabeth (Ellis) 
 Graham, also natives of Ohio. The father 
 was of Scotch ancestrv, the mother of Ger-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 341 
 
 man and English tiescent. W'lien a t-oung 
 man Tliomas B. Graham learned the trade 
 of a millwright and cabinet-maker, which he 
 I'ollowed throughout life, dying in Ohio in 
 1884. He left four children who reached 
 years of maturity, namely : Lydia, who 
 married Thomas Greer and died in Ohio 
 about 1855: John W"., an attorney and jus- 
 tice of the peace of Harrisonville, Cass 
 county, Missouri; Asa A., an attorney and 
 real estate dealer of Topeka, Kansas; and 
 James E., the subject of this sketch. After 
 the death i>f the father, the mother married 
 Absalom Kinsey, by whom she had five chil- 
 dren, but only two are now living: Isaac 
 \\'.. a farmer of Long Point township, Liv- 
 ingston county; antl Malinda. wife of James 
 Merrill, in the emplo\- of the L'nion Tea 
 Company at Champaign. In 1S54 the fam- 
 ily moved to Marshall county, Illinois, and a 
 year later to La Salle county, where Mr. 
 Kinsey followed farming, but both he and 
 his wife spent their last days in Long Point 
 township, Livingston county. She was 
 born June 11, 1813, and died July 19, 1894. 
 James E. Graham was educated in the 
 schools of La Salle county, and remained 
 with his mother until he entered the L'nion 
 army during the ci\il war, at the age of 
 eighteen }ears. He enlisted as a private 
 July I, .1861, in Company C, Forty-fourth 
 Illinois \'olunteer Infantry, and remained 
 with his regiment all through the war, tak- 
 ing part in the battles of Pea Ridge, P'erry- 
 ville, Stone River, Chickamauga and Mis- 
 sionary Riilge, and in all the engagements 
 of the Atlanta campaign. Although he had 
 many narrow escapes, he was never wound- 
 ed, and was ne\er in the hospital but for a 
 single night. At the close of the war he 
 was honorably discharged as commissary 
 sergeant September 26, 1865. 
 
 After being mustered out ]\Ir. Graham 
 located in W'enona, Illinois, and in 1866 
 came to Long Point township, Livingston 
 county, where he has since made his home 
 with the exception of one year. On the 
 29th of November, 1868, he was united 
 in marriage with Miss Emma Long, who 
 was born near Danville, \'ermilion county, 
 Illinois, Xoxember 30, 1843, ^ daughter of 
 Reuben and Phema (Lucas) Long, natives 
 of Ohio. Mr. Long was born June 18, 1813, 
 and died September 29, 1885. He was of 
 Irish and German and his wife of German 
 and English extraction. She was born July 
 5, 1816, and is still living on the home place 
 near Cornell. She became a resident of 
 \'ermilion county in 183 1, her husband in 
 1839, and in 1852 they removed to Living- 
 ston county, being among the early .settlers 
 of Amity townshii). Both held membership 
 in the Christian church, and has always af- 
 filiated with the Democratic party. In their 
 family were eleven children, eight of whom 
 are still living: Emma, wife of otn- sub- 
 ject; Clarissa, who is the widow of Ellis 
 Kinsey and lives near Flanagan, Illinois; 
 Orlean, who lives near Cornell, in Amity 
 townshi]); Joseph, who lives near Long 
 Point; )(ihn {twin of Joseph), who is a 
 carpenter and lives with his mother near 
 Cornell; Charlotte, who is a widow and also 
 lives with her mother; Lucretia, wife of Les- 
 lie Lawrence, living near Flanagan; and 
 Samantha, wife of Charles Talbott, of Amity 
 townshij). To Mr. and ]Mrs. Graham were 
 born three children, of whom one died in 
 infancy. Leon, born .August 30. 1872, was 
 educated at Eureka College, and is engaged 
 in school teaching. He married Laura 
 l-'ilby, and has one son, W'i-lbur. .\rvilla 
 Mae, born October 7, 1876, is the wife of 
 Louis Stilson, a prosperous farmer of Han-
 
 342 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cock county, Iowa, and tliey liave two chil- 
 dren. Gladys and Milliuni. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Graham took up 
 his residence upon a farm in Long Point 
 townsliip, and successfully engaged in gen- 
 eral farming until his removal to the village 
 of Long Point in March, 1898, since which 
 time he has practically lived a retired life. 
 He pnrcliased a pleasant home, and also 
 eighteen li)ts within the corporation limits. 
 In politics he is a pronounced Republican, 
 and has served the people faithfully and 
 well as cr)nstal)le: school director for sev- 
 eral years, and assessor for the past five 
 years. He is a prominent member of the 
 Grand Army Post. No. 784, of which he 
 is chaplain, and both he and his wife are 
 active members of the Christian church of 
 Long Point, of which he is an elder. 
 
 GEORGE W'HITHAM. 
 
 George W'hitham is a prominent busi- 
 ness man of Cornell, where he is now suc- 
 cessfullv carrying on operations as a dealer 
 in hardware, agricultural implements and 
 grain. In all nf his undertakings he has 
 steadilv i)n)si)ered, his excellent success l)e- 
 ing but the logical result of liis careful and 
 correct business methods. 
 
 Mr. Whitham is a native of Washington 
 county, Pennsylvania, born near Wheeling. 
 West \'irginia, Januarv 30, 1834. His 
 father. Alexander B. Whitham. was born in 
 Brown county. Ohio, and when a young man 
 went to Washington county. Pennsylvania, 
 where he married Martha J. Davis. In early 
 life he folowed the shoemaker's trade, but 
 later devoted his attention to agricultural 
 pursuits. On first coming to Illinois, in Feb- 
 
 ruary. 1857, he settled in Marshall county, 
 and did not locate in Livingston county un- 
 til 1876. Here he spent his last days on a 
 farm and died October .22, 1886. 
 
 Our subject grew to manhood in Mar- 
 shall county and was educated in the Lacon 
 high school. After the remo\al of the 
 family to Livingston county, he aided his 
 father with the farm work, and continued to 
 engage in agricultural pursuits in Esmen 
 township, until coming to Cornell in 1893. 
 when he purchased an established hardware 
 and implement business, which he has since 
 carried on with marked success. Since 1895 
 lie has also tlealt in grain and now ships 
 large quantities from Cornell. He is one of 
 the most active, enterprising and progressive 
 business men in his section of the county. 
 
 On the 1st of October, 1879. in Esmen 
 townsh'p. Mr. Whitham married Miss Emma 
 A. Rhodes, who was born near Lake Geneva, 
 iri Walworth county, Wisconsin, her father, 
 Leiand AI, Rhodes, being one of the pio- 
 neers of that county, and a native of New 
 York. He lironght his family to Li\-ingston 
 county, this state in 1876. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Whitham have five children, namely: Mil- 
 ton A.. Charles E.. Mina May. Gracie and 
 Carrie. Mrs. Whitham is a member of the 
 Baptist church and takes an active part in 
 the work of the church and Sabbath school. 
 Fraternally Mr. Whitham is a member of 
 the Modern Woodman Camp at the same 
 place, and has serveil as clerk a number of 
 years. In his political affiliations he has been 
 a life-long Democrat, and has taken quite 
 an. active and prominent part in local politics. 
 He has filled the otifice of assessor, collector, 
 township clerk and president of the village 
 board. In 1895 he was elected supervisor 
 and has served as such for six consecutive 
 years, .\lthough he has not met with strong
 
 GEORGE WHITHAM.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 345 
 
 opposition lie was re-elected by an increased 
 majority at each election. Me lias most 
 ably and satisfactorily represented his town- 
 ship on the board, has lieen appointed a mem- 
 ber of a nnmber of important committees, 
 and is now chairman of the one on rules. 
 His pul)lic and private life are alike above 
 re])roach, and he well deserves the success 
 that has come to hir.i. 
 
 EUGEXE A. \'AHEV. 
 
 luig'cne A. \'ahey. a piipular conductor 
 on the Wabash Railroad and a prominent 
 citizen of Forrest, Illinois, was born in Mt. 
 Carmel, Pennsylvania. August 31, 1851. and 
 is a son of Eugene and Julia ( Cosgrove) \'a- 
 hey. The father was alsi > a native of that 
 state and a contractor on railroad work, 
 doing an extensive business. He helped in 
 the construction of the Erie Railroad, Dela- 
 ware, Lackawanna & Western, and Lehigh 
 Valley Railroads, but during the last twenty 
 years of his life lived retired from active 
 business. He made his home in Pittston, 
 ] Pennsylvania, during the greater part of his 
 life, and died there January 10, 1892, while 
 his wife passed away September 15, 1882. 
 Both were meinbers of St. Paul's Catholic 
 church of that place, and in politics the fa- 
 ther was a Democrat. 
 
 Our subject was educated in the common 
 and high schools of Pittston, and for two 
 years was engaged in the grocery business 
 at that place. Selling out his interest, he 
 became connected with railroad work, in 
 1873, as brakeman on the Wyoming divis- 
 ion of the Lehigh \'alley Railroad, with 
 which he was connected three years. He 
 then went to Jersey City, Xew Jersey, and 
 
 entered the employ r)f the Pennsylvania 
 Railroad Company, and remained with them 
 until March 15, 1882, making up passenger 
 trains in the yards at that place. Coming 
 west, Mr. Vahey entered the service of the 
 ^^'abash Railroad on the 27th of that month, 
 as switchman at Forrest, Illinois, and six 
 months later was appointed yardmaster, at 
 a time when all freight stopped here. He 
 served in that capacity until September, 
 1888, when he went upon the road as con- 
 ductor, running at first from Forrest to 
 Chicago. Later he w;is assigned to the 
 Streator run, which is one of the best on the 
 road, as he gets home every night. In point 
 of service he and Mr. Stewart are the oldest 
 emi)loves of the Wabash Railroad living in 
 Forrest, and have the entire confidence and 
 respect of the comiiany. 
 
 On the 25th of November, 1875, Mr. 
 \'aliey was united in marriage with Miss 
 Mary J. Garri.son. of Paterson, Xew Jer- 
 sey, a native of that place and a daughter 
 of David and Mary A. (Garrettson) Garri- 
 son. The father, who was a carpenter and 
 a son of Henry Garrison, spent his entire life 
 in that city, and Mrs. Vahey's maternal 
 grandfather, Henry Garrettson, was also an 
 old resident of Paterson. Our subject and 
 his wife have two children : Marguerite, and 
 Charles E., a teacher at Reading, Illinois. 
 
 Mr. Vahey owns a nice home and other 
 ])ro])ertv in Forrest. He has been very suc- 
 cessful in business affairs, and was one of 
 the promoters, incorporators and member 
 of the first board of directors of the Forrest 
 Building & Loan Association. Originally 
 he was a Democrat in politics, but in 1896 
 voted for McKinley, and still affiliates with 
 the Republican party. He served as city 
 clerk one term, and as alderman of Forrest 
 two vears. I-"raternally he is a prominent
 
 346 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and influential memlier of W'aljasli Division, 
 No. 260, O. R. C, of wliich he has been sec- 
 retary- and treasurer, and was a representa- 
 tive to the conventions held in Atlanta in 
 1895 and Detroit in 1899. He has always 
 taken a leading part in the affairs of his di- 
 vision. Mr. Vahey is also connected with 
 Forrest Lodge, No. 614, F. & A. M., the 
 Chapter and Commandery at Fairbury ; and 
 Olive Branch Lodge, No. 154, K. P., of 
 which he has been chancellor commander 
 and deputy grand chancellor of his district, 
 instituting new lodges, including" the one at 
 Long Point, and installing the new officers 
 at each election. In all the relations of life 
 he has been found true to every trust re- 
 posed in him, and is justly regarded as one 
 of the valued citizens of Forrest. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Vahc}' are members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church at Forrest. 
 
 THOMAS K. BARTON. 
 
 For a quarter of a century Thomas K. 
 Barton has dwelt in Livingston county, and 
 during this period has become well-to-do 
 and prominent. His life has been exempla- 
 ry and worthy of emulation, and unbounded 
 confidence in his integrity and high stand- 
 ard of honor is felt b}' the friends and neigh- 
 bors who ha\-e long enjoyed his acquaint- 
 ance. 
 
 A native of Juniata county, Pennsylva- 
 nia. Mr. Barton is a descendant of sterling- 
 German pioneers of that state. His pater- 
 nal grandfather, Ephraim Barton, was born 
 in Germany, and at an early day in this 
 country's history cast in his lot with our 
 people. He participated in some of the In- 
 dian wars, and also fought in the war of 
 
 181 J. David B.. one of his sons, and fa- 
 ther of our subject, was born in Juniata 
 county about 1818, and departed this life in 
 1863. at his old home in the Keystone state. 
 His wife, Sarah, was a daughter of Thomas 
 Knox, also of Pennsylvania, and of Irish 
 extraction. 
 
 The birth of Thomas K. Barton oc- 
 curred December 15. 1844, and for twenty- 
 two years he resided on his father's farm in 
 Juniata county. In 1866 he determined to 
 seek his fortune in the west, and, coming 
 to Illinois, he found employment with farm- 
 ers in La Salle county. At the end of a 
 year he leased a farm, and soon afterwards 
 returned to the old home, with the purpose 
 of escorting his mother and younger brothers 
 and sisters to the new home he had loyally 
 provided for them, as the father had passed 
 to his reward. Mary, the eldest sister, be- 
 came the wife of George Vanata, and died 
 in 1897. Nancy, the next in order of birth, 
 wedded Joshua Frazer and lives in Ne- 
 braska. Samuel Barton is a citizen of \'er- 
 milion comity, Illinois, and Susan, the 
 youngest of the family, is deceased. 
 
 For five years subsequent to his return to 
 this state Thomas K. Barton and the other 
 members of the family dwelt together, the 
 circle being unbroken. His home was upon 
 a farm in La Salle county, and he continued 
 to lease the place until 1875, when he re- 
 mo\ed to another homestead, this being lo- 
 cated in Long Point township, Livingston 
 Cdunty. In 1883 he bought eighty acres in 
 section 30, Amity township — his present 
 home, and here he found a great task be- 
 fore him, for the improvements were very 
 poor, a log cabin and a few acres of broken 
 prairie constituting them. With character- 
 istic energy he commenced the work of mak- 
 inp- this a model farm, draining low lands
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 347 
 
 liy means of tiling, building fences, a large, 
 convenient house and good barns and other 
 necessary buildings. He also expended 
 some time and means in planting fruit and 
 shade trees, and at length he bought forty 
 acres of adjoining property, thus increas- 
 ing his possessions to one hundred and 
 twenty acres. 
 
 In all of his cares and joys. Mr. Barton 
 has been cheered and aided by his devoted 
 wife, formerly Miss Sarah E. Smith. They 
 were married in La Salle county, February 
 14. 1872, and have been numbered among 
 the upright, worthy inhabitants of this state 
 since they reached maturity. Mrs. Bar- 
 ton was born in Juniata county, Pennsylva- 
 nia, and was reared and educated there. Of 
 the five children born to our subject and 
 wife four are living, their little Jesse having 
 died when young. The eldest. Frank D., is 
 married and resides in Cornell, where he is 
 engaged in mercantile pursuits. Laura, 
 who received an excellent education, com- 
 pleting her studies in the Dixon (Illinois) 
 College, is one of the successful teachers of 
 this county. Leroy, an enterprising young 
 man. is at home, assisting in the manage- 
 ment of the farm. Frederick Carl, the 
 youngest, also is with his parents. 
 
 The first presidential ballot of our sub- 
 ect was cast for Lincoln in 1864. In na- 
 tional affairs, he supports Democratic nom- 
 inees, while in local elections he is inde- 
 pendent of party lines. For fifteen years 
 he served as a member of the school Iward, 
 thus evincing the genuine interest which he 
 feels in the vital matter of educating the 
 young. He had the honor of being presi- 
 dent of the board during the greater share 
 of that period, and to his heartfelt concern 
 in the subject much of the prosijerity of our 
 school system may be attributed. With his 
 
 estimable wife he holds membership in the 
 Methodist Protestant church. Fraternally 
 he is identified with the Cornell Lodge of the 
 Modern Woodmen of America, and is a 
 trustee of the lodge building. 
 
 CilBSOX B. BROWXSOX. 
 
 (iibson B. Brownson. the present super- 
 visor of Indian Grove township, in which 
 the city of Fairburg is located, was for 
 many years one of the leading contractors 
 and builders of that place, and many notable 
 examples of his skill are to be seen in this 
 section of the county, but he is now living 
 a retired life. Thoroughly reliable in all 
 things, the (|uality of his work is a convinc- 
 ing test of his own personal worth and the 
 same admirable trait is shown in his con- 
 scientious discharge of the duties of different 
 ]K)sitions of trust and resixinsibility to which 
 he has been chosen in jjolitical life. 
 
 Mr. Brownson was born in Bradford 
 county.' Pennsylvania. July 30, 1832. a son 
 of Elisha Brownson, whose birth occurred 
 in Massachusetts, May 27, 1791. The pa- 
 ternal grandfather. Isaac Brownson. was also 
 a native of the old Bay state and a soldier 
 of the Revolutionary war. being with Wash- 
 ington wlien he crossed the Delaware at 
 Trenton. When Elisha was eight years old 
 the family mo\ed to Sus(|uehanna county. 
 Pennsylvania, where he grew to manhood, 
 and was married. Octol:)er 20. 1823. to Mary 
 Titus, who was born December 27,. 1803. 
 .\fter his marriage he moved to Bradford 
 county. Pennsylvania, where he cleared a 
 heavily timbered tract of land and trans- 
 formed it into a good farm. There the 
 grandfather lived retired until his death.
 
 348 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 which occurred when our sul^ject was Ijut 
 twenty-one years of age. In 1856 the father 
 brought liis family to IlHnois and took up 
 his residence in Livingston county, where 
 he spent the remainder of his hfe, dying- 
 June 22. 1874. During the war of 181 2, 
 he tried to enhst, but on account of his health 
 was not accepted. In politics he was an 
 old-line \\'hig. a stanch Abolitionist, and 
 later a Republican. His wife died Novem- 
 ber 20. 1869. 
 
 Our subject had but a limited opportun- 
 ity to acquire an educatidU. not being able 
 to attend school more than one year during 
 his boyhood, but in later years he devoted 
 considerable time to reading and study, and 
 in this way obtained a good practical edu- 
 cation. During his youth he served a three 
 years' apprenticeship to the carjienter's trade 
 in New \ ork. only a short distance from his 
 liome. and received one hundred and fifty 
 dollars for his three years' work, out of 
 which he had to clothe himself. In 1854 
 he came west 1 m a prospecting tour and 
 passed through this county before the rail- 
 road was built, and not a house marked the 
 present site of Fairbury, while Pontiac was 
 a mere hamlet. Being homesick he did not 
 remain here long, but spent two years trav- 
 ing over the west. Being a good carpenter, 
 he could alwa}-s find employment, and spent 
 one summer working at his trade in Miss- 
 issippi. In this way he saw much of the 
 country. In December, 1856, he located in 
 this county, which has since been his home. 
 One year was spent in Avoca, which was 
 then ciuite a thriving little village, while 
 Fairbury was unknown, and he was one of 
 the few to vote on the township organization. 
 On leaving Avoca he took up his residence 
 on a farm and in connection with its opera- 
 tion worked at his trade in Fairburv, assist- 
 
 ing in the erection of one of the first houses 
 of that jjlace. 
 
 In September, 1861, Mr. Brcwnson 
 joined the boys in blue, becoming a member 
 of Company K, Third Illinois Cavalry, 
 which was sent to Springfield to organize 
 and from there to Missouri, being with 
 Fremont when he made his raid on Spring- 
 field, that state. Our subject was with his 
 company until they reached Helena, Arkan- 
 sas, and was then sent to the hospital. On 
 his recnxery he joined the ^lississippi Marine 
 Brigade, which was located on the river, 
 being in the cavalry department going up 
 and down that stream with horses on boats, 
 and whenever they discovered any scouts 
 landed and chased them. Mr. Brownson 
 was mustered out at Vicksburg, August 2Cj. 
 1864, with the rank of sergeant. 
 
 After his return north he worked for a 
 time at his trade in St. Louis, and then re- 
 turned to Fairbury, which had continued to 
 be his home. In partnership with liis brother, 
 he did an extensix'e business as a contractor 
 and builder and gave employment to four- 
 teen or fifteen men at one time. He erected 
 many of the residences, business blocks and 
 other houses of Fairbury, also built the 
 Catholic church — the first in the place: the 
 Presbyterian church which is still standing; 
 and other churches throughout the county. 
 Not a man li\ing here has had as much to 
 do with the construction of buildings as 
 has practically lived retired. His own 
 our subject, but for the past year or two he 
 pleasant residence was erected the year of 
 his marriage. 
 
 On the I ith of March, 1868, Mr. Brown- 
 son married Miss Susan Ormsby, of Brad- 
 ford county, Pennsylvania, a daughter of 
 Levi Ormsby, and to them have been born 
 two children, both of whom were provided
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 349 
 
 witli «(o(xl educational advantages, .\lice. 
 the older, attended school in Dixon, and 
 prior to her marriage engaged in leaching in 
 Fairhury. She is now the wife of John D. 
 Watkins, of Cleveland, Ohio, and they have 
 line son, John. Nellie I. was educated at 
 the W'esleyan University, at Blooniington. 
 and is now a successful teacher in the public 
 schools in Fairhury. The family attend the 
 Presbyterian church. 
 
 By his ballot Mr. Brownson has always 
 supported the Republican party, and in i<SOS 
 ser\e<l as assessor of Pleasant Ridge town- 
 ship. For nine years he was an active and 
 efficient member of the school board of Fair- 
 bury, during which time the first brick 
 school house was erected there, and was a 
 member of the board of village trustees when 
 the water works was put in. In Xovember, 
 1895. he was appointed to fill a vacancy as 
 supervisor, and at the ne.xt election was 
 elected to that office. He has since been re- 
 elected and is still filling that office in a 
 most creditable and satisfactory manner. 
 He has taken an important part in the work 
 of the Ixiard. and has proved a most com- 
 petent and trustworthy official, his duties 
 having always been most faithfully dis- 
 charged. Fraternally he is a member of 
 Aaron Weider Post, G. A. R. : Tarbolton 
 Lodge, Xo. 351, F. & A. :M., and the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Mutual Aid, in all of 
 v.liich he has held office. 
 
 WILLIAM ROBERT :\IORRlS. 
 
 William Robert Morris, a jjrogressive 
 member of the agricultural class of Living- 
 ston county, is one of the most successful 
 young farmers of Amity township. His 
 
 entire life has been spent in this immediate 
 1( cality, and here, where he is so well known, 
 ht l^ears a reputation for uprightness and 
 justice and a conscientious regard for the 
 rights of others and his duty as a citizen and 
 head of a household. 
 
 William R. Morris, more familiar known 
 as Robert Morris, comes from an old and 
 honored \'irginia family, and his grand- 
 father. Henry Morris, possessed that spirit 
 which has filled the hearts of all of the sturdy 
 brave pioneers who laid the foundations of 
 future civilization and prosperity. Henry 
 Morris first removed from the Old Dominion 
 to the wilderness of Ohio, subsequently lo- 
 cated in Indiana and as early as 1837. when 
 this country was new and sparsely settled, 
 cauie , to Livingston county. Choosing a 
 tract of land in Amity township, he spent the 
 remainder of his life here, his death oc- 
 curring in 1841. His homestead, which he 
 had partially cleared and prepared for culti- 
 vation, is the identical one now in the pos- 
 session of our subject. 
 
 C. F. Morris, father of William Robert 
 Morris, was I)orn in Tippecanoe county, In- 
 diana. December 12. 1828, and from his 
 tenth year until his death, February 10, 
 1900, he dwelt in Amity townshi]) — one of 
 her most esteemed citizens. His death is 
 felt to be a public loss in this community, 
 where so long and faithfully he used his in- 
 fluence for its i^ermanent welfare. In early 
 manhood he wedded Susanna, daughter of 
 Joseph Springer, who was an early settler in 
 this locality, also. The ycjung couple com- 
 menced keeping house in this township, and 
 in the course of time came to live on the old 
 Morris homestead, in section 17, having 
 bought the interests of the other heirs. Un- 
 der his management the place was wonder- 
 fully improved, and a well-lKiilt house and
 
 35° 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 barns added mucli to tlie value and desir- 
 ability of the farm. Mr. Morris was en- 
 gaged in the actual work of the farm until 
 about fifteen years ago, and in 1892 he re- 
 moved to Cornell, where he had purchased a 
 pleasant residence. His long and useful life 
 closed in peacefulness, and. surrounded by 
 his loving relatixxs and numerous sincere 
 friends he breached his last and passed to his 
 reward. His mortal remains were tenderly 
 laid away in the old Morris cemetery, on 
 the homestead, with which the name has been 
 associated for more than three-score years. 
 His first wife, the mother of our subject, 
 died in 1874, and he afterward married 
 again. Joseph C, his eldest son is a resi- 
 dent of Kansas City, and Gene\-a, the only 
 daughter, is the wife of William Gregory, 
 a farmer of this township. 
 
 The birth of William Robert Morris oc- 
 curred on the old homestead, May 20, 1868, 
 and here his boyhood days were passed in 
 tlie usual quiet pursuits of country lads. 
 After completing the curriculum of the com- 
 mcjn schools, he further qualified himself for 
 life's duties b}- attending c(_)llege at Dixon, 
 Illinois, where he was a student for two 
 years. He then returned home and assidu- 
 ously de\-oted himself to the cultivation of 
 the farm, deciding t'j make agriculture his 
 chief business in the future. Since 1890 
 he has had entire charge of the old farm, 
 and now manages about four hundred acres 
 of well cultivated and highly desirable land. 
 He is practical and in sympathy with the 
 progressive spirit of the age, and it is safe 
 to predict for him wealth and prominence, 
 though these things are not his chief aspira- 
 tions. 
 
 On the 27th of 2^Iay,, 1887, Ih. Morr.s 
 married Ella G. Blake, daughter of Daniel 
 Blake, of Cornell, her native place. Se\'en 
 
 children bless the union of this sterling 
 couple, namely: Fred, Lena, Robert B., 
 Gertrude. Chester Warner, Daniel B. and 
 Marv Geneva. 
 
 In his political faith 'Sir. Alorris is a 
 Democrat. For himself he has ne\er as- 
 pired to public otifice, as he finds his time 
 fully occupied in attending to his manifold 
 business affairs. Yielding to duty and the 
 desires of iiis neighbors, he has officiated as 
 district clerk and on the board of education, 
 giving his influence to all measures calcu- 
 lated to benefit the community permanently 
 in his opinion. 
 
 HEXRY J. SAXTELMAN. 
 
 Henry J. Santelman, one of the leading 
 agriculturists of Newton township, whose 
 home is on section 14, has been a resident of 
 Livingston county since 1884. He is a na- 
 tive of Illinois, born in La Salle county, De- 
 cember 21, 1862, and is a son of Henry and 
 Sophia (Freeman) Santelman, natives of 
 Germany, who came to this country in early 
 life and were married in La Salle county. 
 B}- trade the father was a glazier, but here 
 he devoted his attention to farming, and 
 although he had no capital with which to be- 
 gin life, he worked hard and at the time of 
 his death, which occurred March 12, 1898, 
 he owned two hundred and forty acres of 
 valuable land, acquired through his own 
 well-directed efforts. He was seventy-three 
 years of age at the time of his death. In 
 politics he was always a Republican, and 
 both he and his wife were, members of the 
 German Evangelical church. She is still 
 living at the age of sixty years, and makes 
 her home in Sunbury township, Livingston 
 countv. In their familv were nine chil-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 351 
 
 dren, namely : Charles, who owns and op- 
 erates a farm of one hundred and sixty acres 
 in Sunbury township; Amelia, wife of Will- 
 iam Russow, who has a farm of two hundred 
 and eighty acres in Xewtnwn township; 
 Henry J., our subject; Mary, wife of Chris- 
 tian Cates, of La Salle county; Eretlerick, a 
 resident of Sunbury township; William, wlm 
 lives on the home place in La Salle county ; 
 Edward, who works for his brother Charles; 
 Albert, who is with his mother: and Joseph, 
 will I is with his brother Charles. 
 
 The subject of this re\ iew received his 
 education in the common schools of La 
 Salle Count}', and remained at home until 
 attaining- his majority. On janu;u-y i, 1SS5, 
 he married .Miss Sophia Heckman, who was 
 born in (iermany, December 3. i8(),v and 
 when se\ cnteen years of age came to Amer- 
 ica with her mother and the other children 
 of the family, the father haxing ilied pre- 
 viously. She has one brother, John, who 
 owns and operates a farm in Rock comity, 
 Minnesota, and a sister, Mary, wife of 
 Charles Santelman. The mother is still liv- 
 ing with her cliiklren at the age of se\enty- 
 lliree years. ?klr. aiul Mrs. Santelman have 
 six children: Hilda, born September 27, 
 1885; Ella, September 17, 1889; Walter, 
 December 7, 1891 ; Laura, September 7, 
 1894; Fred, January J3, 1897; and Roy, 
 l-ebruary 12, 1900. 
 
 On starting out in life for himself Mr. 
 Santelman's father gave him hve hundred 
 dollars, a team and some farming inii)le- 
 ments. For nine years he successlullv en- 
 gaged in farming in Sunlniry township, ;md 
 on selling his property there bought his 
 present farm of one hundred and ninety 
 acres in Xewtown township, for which he 
 paid fifty-eight dollars per acre. This he 
 has tiled and further improveil, ami as a 
 
 thorough and practical farmer he is meeting 
 with well-deserved success. He possesses 
 many of the admirable characteristics of his 
 ( ierman ancestors, being industrious, ener- 
 getic and persevering, and is highly re- 
 spected by all who know him. As a Repub- 
 lican he takes (juite an active interest in po- 
 litical affairs, but has ne\er cared for office, 
 though he is ser\ing as school director in 
 his district. Religiously he is a member of 
 the Evangelical church, as is also his wife. 
 
 IIA.M.MO.M) A. l'l':.\RSO.\. 
 
 Ilamniond A, I'earsoii, a prominent 
 farmer of Nebraska township, and a worthy 
 rei)reseiitative of one of the honored pioneer 
 families oi Li\iiigston county, was born 
 here, October 5, 1857, a son (>i Abel and 
 Mary .\. { liloodworih ) I'earson, both na- 
 tives of Engiand, the former born at 'i'ydd, 
 St. Mary's. Lincolnshire, .\ugust 24. 1826, 
 the latter at Tidd, St. Ciles, January 15, 
 1823. Jt was in 1849 that the father crossed 
 the broad Atlantic, and after spending one 
 season in Rochester, New York, came to 
 Illinois, settling at Walnut Grove, now Eu- 
 reka, Woodford county, in May, 1856, he 
 located on the west half of the northeast 
 (|uarter of section 21, Nebraska township, 
 Livingston county, for which he ])aid 
 se\-ent_\--five cents per acre, and the grant for 
 which he received from President Buchanan, 
 .\pril 15, 1857. ( )n the 12th of February, 
 J870, he bought the east half of the north- 
 west (|uarter from Jo.seph H. Stitt, at thirty- 
 fi\e dollars per acre, and the west half of the 
 northwest cpiarter from Thomas Ward, Jan- 
 uary 24, 1876. There he successfully en- 
 gaged in farming until 1889, when he moved
 
 35^ 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to Flanagan and laid aside all business cares, 
 living retired until his ileatli. which occurred 
 December 31, 1S93. 
 
 On the 26th of October, 1S51, Abel Pear- 
 son married Alary A. Bloodworth, the cere- 
 mony being performed by William Martin, 
 justice of the peace, at Metamora, Illinois. 
 She came to this country in that year, and 
 died April 9, 1826. In their family were the 
 following children: Susan A., born Sep- 
 tember 18. 1852, was married December 24, 
 1872, to Thomas Bennett, of Nebraska town- 
 ship, Livingston county: Abraham W., born 
 January i, 1854, died the following Octo- 
 ber: Mahala, born March 4, 1855, was mar- 
 ried February 16. 1875. to F. H. Martin, a 
 native of Li\ingstiin countx'. but n<i\v of 
 Goldfield, Iowa; Alatilda J., born May 3, 
 1856. was married September 16, 1885, to 
 George Woodworth, of Nebraska township; 
 Hammond A., our subject, is next in order 
 of birth; Clark, born November 7, 1859. died 
 September 20, 1880; and Abel, born May 3, 
 1 86 1, died October 6, 1862. 
 
 During his boyhood and youth Ham- 
 mond A. Pearson attended the district 
 schools, and on the home f&rm acquired an 
 excellent knowledge of all the duties which 
 fall to the lot of the agriculturist. Since 
 starting out in life for himself he has devoted 
 his time and energies to farming, and has 
 met with good success in his chosen occu- 
 pation. He was married, January 18, 1883, 
 to Miss Fannie Wadsworth, a daughter of 
 William Wadsworth, of El Paso, Woodford 
 county, who was residing in McLean county 
 at the time of their marriage. They have 
 two children : Ernest B., born May 6, 1886; 
 and Myrta Maud Lucile, born August 10, 
 1892. 
 
 Mr. Pearsn is president of the Nebraska 
 Alutual Insurance Company, and has effi- 
 
 ciently serveil as school director in his dis- 
 trict fiir ten years. He and his familv are 
 all members of the Christian church, and are 
 held in high regard bv all who know them. 
 
 ELIJAH DEFENBAUGH. 
 
 Elijah Defenbaugh. deceased, was for 
 many years a well-known and honored citi- 
 zens of Reading township, Livingston coun- 
 t}', Illinois. He was Ijorn in Ross county. 
 Ohio. Alarch 9, 1828, a son of Daniel and 
 Nancy ( .\rmstrong) Defenbaugh, natives of 
 Berks county, Pennsylvania, the latter be- 
 ing of Scotch-Irish descent. The Defen- 
 baugh family is of Holland extraction, and 
 was founded in the United States at a very 
 early day. Our subject's grandfather, 
 George Defenbaugh, moved from Pennsyl- 
 vania to Ohio, when the latter state was al- 
 most an unbroken wilderness, and in the 
 midst of the forest lie made for himself a 
 home. There the father, Daniel Defenbaugh, 
 spent his entire life as a millwright. He 
 died and was buried in Ross county. In 
 his family were ten children, namely : James, 
 George, Elijah, Thomas and Caroline, all 
 now deceased ; Isaac, Allen, Martin, Mar- 
 garet, and Angeline, now living. 
 
 In the county of his nativity, Elijah Def- 
 enbaugh grew to manhood, receiving a com- 
 mon-school education, and in early life work- 
 ing as a farm laborer for eight or ten dollars 
 per month. On October 5, 1851, he married 
 his cousin. Miss Catherine Defenbaugh, a 
 daughter of Joseph and Catherine -(Good- 
 man) Defenbaugh, also natives of Penn- 
 sylvania. The father was the oldest son 
 of George Defenliaugh previously referred 
 to. He was killetl bv a fall which broke his
 
 ELIJAH DEFENBAUGH.
 
 MRS. CATHERINE DEFENBAUGH.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 357 
 
 hack. By trade lie was a tanner. Xeither 
 lu- nor liis wife ever came west to live. 
 Tlieir children were John, Daniel. F'eter. 
 Elizal)eth. Henry, Catherine. Adam. Dnma. 
 l-'sther, Joseph, .\mos and Maria, six of 
 whom are still living. Of the ten children 
 horn to our subject and his wife the oldest 
 died in infancy; .\mmon and Alfred are 
 l)oth at home with their mother; Harvev is 
 runninjj an elevator in Reading. Illinois; 
 Lucretia is the wife of Gideon Slaughter- 
 hack, of Indiana; Milton is a resident of 
 Reading tnwnship, Livingston county. Illi- 
 nois; Ei)hraim dietl at the age of eighteen 
 years; I>)ra died at the age of three years: 
 ( ieorge died at the age of one month ; and 
 I.t)na did at the age of four years. 
 
 Soon after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. 
 Defenbaugh came to Livingston county, Illi- 
 nois, and entered eighty acres of land in 
 Reading township, for which he paid one 
 dollar antl a (|uarter i)er acre. At that time 
 it was all wild prairie land, deer and wolves 
 were still to be seen in this region, and the 
 early settlers would get U]j parties to go out 
 and kill the latter to keep them from destroy-- 
 ing their stock. From time to time Mr. 
 Defenbaugh added to his landed possessions 
 until he had over twelve hundred acres of 
 land, and throughout his active business life 
 was successfully engaged in general farm- 
 ing and stock raising. On coming to this 
 state he had only three hundred dollars in 
 money, a team and wagon; but being indus- 
 trious, energetic and progressive, as well 
 as a man of good business and executive 
 ability, he prospered in his undertakings and 
 ac(iuired a handsome competence. He and 
 his wife experienced many of the hardships 
 and privations incident to frontier life. It 
 took them four weeks to drive across the 
 country to their new home in Illinois, there 
 
 being no railroads at that time, and from 
 their dotirway they could look for miles over 
 what seemed t<J be boundless prairie with 
 no habitations. Mr. Defenbaugh hel])etl to 
 haul ties for the first railroad built through 
 h.is section, and his wife spiui woo! and made 
 clothes for her family. He died December 
 19. 1886, and was laid to rest in Defenbaugh 
 cemetery, Reading township. In his polit- 
 ical views he was a Democrat, but never 
 cared for official honors, though he served 
 as school director in his district. His aid 
 was never withheld from any enterprise 
 which he beliexed calculated to pnn-e of 
 public benefit, and in his death the com- 
 munity realized that it had lost one of its 
 most valuable and useful citizens. 
 
 SIMOX JAMISOX. 
 
 Simon Jamison has been a resident of 
 Livingston county since the fall of 1868, 
 and was for many years acti\ely engaged in 
 agricultural pursuits, but is now living a 
 retired life in the village of Cornell. He 
 was born in Ross county, Ohio, May 31, 
 1837, a son of William and Sarah C. (Ad- 
 ams) Jamison, the former a native of Wash- 
 ington county, Pennsylvania, the latter of 
 Ross county, Ohio. His paternal grand- 
 father was AX'illiam Jamison, Sr., who was of 
 Irish parentage and died in Ohio in 1821. 
 The father was born about 1813, and was 
 only six years old when the family removed 
 to the Buckeye state, his early life being spent 
 in Ross county, where he and his six brothers 
 cleared and improved a farm. Later he 
 li\ed in Fayette county, Ohio, and spent 
 his last days upon a farm in Mercer countv, 
 that state, where he died in 18S2. His wife
 
 358 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 survived him a number of years, dying in 
 December, 1894. 
 
 Simon Jamison grew to manhood upon 
 a farm in Fayette county, Ohio, and at- 
 tended the pubHc schools to some extent, 
 but at the age of fourteen commenced earn- 
 ing his own HveHhood by working by the 
 month as a farm hand, and later was em- 
 ployed as engineer in a grist-mill at Jasper 
 for six years. In Fayette county he mar- 
 ried, January 6, 1859, to Miss Mary E. 
 Cline, a native of that county and a daugh- 
 ter of George Cline, who was born in Cul- 
 peper county, Virginia, in 1809, but was 
 reared in Clinton county, Ohio. In Fayette 
 county, that state, Mr. Chne married Cather- 
 ine Figins, who was born in that county 
 March 7, 1813, and belonged to one of the 
 early families of Ohio. He followed farm- 
 ing in Fayette county until his death, which 
 parted this life Janurry 29, 1894, both being 
 laid to rest in Bush cemetery, where a sub- 
 stantial monument' has been erected to their 
 memory. Mrs. Jamison's paternal grand- 
 father, Philip Cline, was also a native of Vir- 
 ginia. Our subject and his wife are the 
 parents of three children, namely : . Edward 
 A., a business man of Pontiac and Cornell, 
 married and has one son, Clarence, who lives 
 with his grandparents; Cary A., a farmer of 
 Amity township, is married and has three 
 children, Stella, Harold and Ross ; and Cath- 
 erine is the wife of Professor Clarence E. 
 De Butts, superintendent of the Fairbury 
 schools, and they have two children, Cary 
 and Dean. 
 
 Mr. Jamison engaged in farming on 
 rented land in Fayette county, Ohio, until 
 1868, and then came to Livingston county, 
 Illinois, locating on a rented farm in Amity 
 township, which he purchased afterward, 
 after living; there for four vears. It con- 
 
 sists of one hundred and sixty acres of land, 
 and to its further improvement and culti- 
 \"ation he devoted his time and attention for 
 many years. He erected a good residence, 
 barn, granary, cribs and sheds, set out an 
 orchard, and otherwise improved the place 
 until it is now a valuable farm. In 1888 
 he rented it and moved to Cornell, where he 
 has built a large, neat residence, one of the 
 nicest in the village. He was in the store 
 of his son for about six years after coming 
 to this place, but is now practically living 
 retired, though he oversees the management 
 of his place. His success in life is due en- 
 tirely to his own well-directed efforts, for he 
 came to this state empty-handed and has 
 made what he has by industry, perseverance 
 and good management. 
 
 Air. Jamison cast his first presiilential 
 vote for Stephen A. Douglas, the Little 
 Giant, and has since been an ardent Demo- 
 crat, and has been a delegate to the county 
 conventions of his part. He served fifteen 
 yeiws as highway commissioner and nine 
 as township trustee with credit to himself 
 and to the entire satisfaction of all con- 
 cerned. His estimable wife is a member of 
 the Methodist Episcopal church of Cornell, 
 and both are held in high regard by all who 
 know them. 
 
 IRA AI. KXIGHT. 
 
 Ira AI. Knight, a well-known farmer of 
 section 13, Germanville township, Living- 
 ston county, is a native of Illinofs, his birth 
 having occurred in \\'ill county, August 
 23, 1861. His father, Alarshall B. Knight, 
 was l)(irn in Susi,|uehanna county, Pennsyl- 
 \ania, April 5, 1S31, and was a son of 
 Amasa and Lovina Knight, natives of \'er-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 359 
 
 ir.(;nt, who in 1845 'jrougflit their family to 
 Illinois, locating first near Ottawa, where 
 they engaged in farming, .\masa Kniglu 
 (lied in 1S50. when well adxanced in life. 
 and his wife, who survi\ed him some years, 
 died of smallpo.x in Bureau county, this state. 
 Marsliall B. Knight grew to manhood upon 
 his fatlier's farm, and after the latter's death 
 (.operated the place for some vears. In 1851 
 he married Miss Althere C. Tillot.son and 
 they made tlieir home in La Salle cunty 
 for a time. Suhsequently he was thus en- 
 gaged in farming in Will cuuntx' fur about 
 ten years, and then nrnved X>< the northern 
 part of Kurd county, where he followed the 
 same occupation five years. Selling his 
 farm of one himdred and sixty acres, in 
 1874, he came to Livingston county, and 
 purchased three hundred and twenty acres 
 on section 13. Germanville township, to 
 the improvement and cultivation of which 
 he devoted his energies until his death. 
 which occurred December 4, 1895. He was 
 a public-spirited and enterprising man. who 
 advocated all measures tending to the ad- 
 vancement and improvement of the locality, 
 and was a stanch supporter of the Repub- 
 lican party. He served as school director two 
 of three terms, but never cared for political 
 preferment. His widow, who still survives 
 him. continues to reside on the old home- 
 stead on section 13, Germanville township. 
 To them were bom nine children, namely: 
 Mary, wife of Fred D. Pettis, of Nebraska; 
 Almeda, wife of Charles Rudd, a carj^enter 
 of Joliet. Illinois ; George, twin brother of 
 Almeda, who died at the age of one year and 
 a half; Warren, who resides i>n the home 
 place: Ira M., our .subject: Elmer, wlm mar- 
 ried Ella Xagle and lives on section 13. Gev- 
 manville township; Ellen, twin sister of 
 Elmer and wife of William Marsh, a well 
 
 driller of Buckingham, Illinois; Alice, who 
 first married M. J. Davis, and second Hil- 
 dred Cami)bell, veterinary .surgeon and post- 
 master uf Roberts. Illinois; Eva. wife of 
 Tiiadeus Hedger of the .same place. 
 
 Ira M. Knight was educated in the pub- 
 lic schools of Fonl and Livingston counties, 
 and remained under the parental roof until 
 twenty-eight years of age, when he located 
 u\K>n his ])resent farm of eighty acres on 
 section 13. Germanville township, given him 
 by his fatiier. He has since made many 
 improvements u])on the place, and it is now- 
 one of the most highly cultivated tracts of 
 l;;nd in that locality. The Knight family 
 have been prominently identified with the 
 development of the county, and have been 
 instrumental in transforming the wild prairie 
 into one of the richest agricultural districts 
 of the state. 
 
 On the 13th of X"o\ember, 1889, in 
 Brenton township. Ford county, Mr. 
 Knight was united in marriage with Miss 
 Hannah Holmes, one of a family of nine 
 children, all li\ing. whose parents are Chris- 
 tian ;ui(l Maria (Hanson) Holmes, promi- 
 nent agriculturists of that county. Our sub- 
 ject and his wife have two children: Al- 
 there C. born on the home place in Livings- 
 ton county April 4. 1890, and Gladys M., 
 born January 12. 1899. 
 
 Christian Holmes was born in Denmark 
 February 19, 1842. He was educated in his 
 native land and at the age of twenty-five 
 years emigrated to America. He was a 
 carpenter by trade, having served his ap- 
 prenticeship in the land of his birth. \\'hen 
 he came to this country he first located in 
 Xashville, Washington county, Illinois, 
 where he worked at his trade a few years, 
 when he removed to Normal, Illinois, where 
 he also wi'rked at his trade until he was ob-
 
 36o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 liged to discontinue it on account of failing 
 liealth, in 1875. At this tmie he conchuled 
 to engage in the more liealthful pursuit of 
 tilling the soil. He accordingly purchased 
 eighty acres of land in Brenton townshii), 
 Ford county, Illinois, where he immediately 
 moved with his family and still resides on 
 this farm of his first purchase. He also 
 has purchased one hundred and ninety-two 
 acres more since that time, which is under 
 a fine state of cultivation and which ranks 
 Mr. Holmes among the extensive land own- 
 ers of that prosperous community. He was 
 married, at Chicago, Illinois, in April. 1869. 
 to Miss Maria Hansen, who was also a na- 
 tive of Denmark. She came to this country 
 in 1869 and they were married upon her 
 arrival here. They reared a family of nine 
 children, seven of whom are living, viz. : 
 Hannah C. ; Mrs. I. M. Knight ; Louis, who 
 resides near Pii>er City. Illinois; George, 
 same place ; Minnie, at home : John, at home : 
 Freddie, at home ; Willie, at home. ^Ir. 
 Holmes has never aspired to political office, 
 but has served his township on several oc- 
 casions as school director. He is a stanch 
 Republican, and the family are adherents 
 to the Presbyterian faith. 
 
 HENRY M. CORNELL. 
 
 Henry ]\I. Cornell, one of the honoretl 
 pioneers of Livingston county and a veteran 
 of the Civil war, is now living a retired life 
 in the village of Cornell, quietly enjoying 
 the income which he accumulated in former 
 years. He has made his home in this coun- 
 ty since the spring of 1840 and can relate 
 mau}^ interesting incidents of the days when 
 this region was all wild and unimpmved. 
 
 He has seen towns and villages spring up 
 and all the cnmforts of civilized life intro- 
 duced, and in the work of advancement and 
 progress he has ever borne an important 
 part. 
 
 Mr. Cornell was born in Newport, 
 Rhode Island, September 4. 1836, and be- 
 longs to a family of English origin founded 
 ir. this country by three brothers, one of 
 wlmm settled in Canada, the second in New 
 Ynrk and the third in Rhode Island. All 
 were members of the Society of Friends, 
 to which faith the ancestors of our subject 
 have adhered for many generations. His 
 grandfather. Walter Cornell, was a life-long 
 resident of Rhode Island. The father. Wal- 
 ter Cornell, Jr., was born in Newport, that 
 state, April 3, 181 1, -and there married 
 Sarah C. Eldred. a native of Connecticut, 
 and a daughter of John Eldred, who be- 
 longed to an old New England family. The 
 original Eldred homestead is still in pos- 
 session of the family and adjoins the birth- 
 place of Comriiodore Perry. In early life 
 the father of our subject was interested in 
 the manufacture of cotton goods and was 
 superintendent of factories. He came west 
 in 1838 and first located in Milwaukee, 
 Wisconsin, but in the fall of the same year 
 came to Illinois to take charge of a stationary- 
 engine used in digging the canal. In 1837 
 he entered two hundred acres of government 
 land in Amity township, Livingston, which 
 he commenced to improve, and in 1840 re- 
 turned to Rhode Island and brought his fam- 
 ily ti) the home he had prepared for them, 
 the journey lieing made by way of the great 
 lakes. In connection with farming he en- 
 gaged in raising stock, fattening cattle and 
 hogs, which he drove to the Chicago mar- 
 kets. He was one of the best educated 
 and well informed men of the countv, as
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 36r 
 
 well as one of its most prominent and in- 
 fluential citizens, and was honored with im- 
 portant official ix)sitions, serving as super- 
 visor, superintendent of schools and county 
 treasurer three years. He died in 1895. 
 highly respected hy all who know him. 
 Of his family two sons are still living: 
 Henry M.. our subject, and Walter B.. a 
 resident of Great Bend. Kansas. 
 
 Henry M. Cornell was only four years 
 old when the family settled in Livingston 
 county, where he grew to manhood upon a 
 farm. His educational advantages were 
 rather limited, as the schools of this region 
 at that day were much inferior to those of 
 the present time. At the age of twenty he 
 started out in life for himself as a farmer. 
 I)Ut later renteil his farm and traveled .some. 
 In 1861, at the opening of the Civil war, he 
 enlisted in Company H, Eleventh Illinois 
 Cavalry, which was assigned to the .\rmy 
 of the Tennessee, and his first battle was that 
 of Shiloh, followed by the siege of Corinth. 
 He was in five important battles and a num- 
 ber of skirmishes, being under fire twenty- 
 eight times. He was taken prisoner by For- 
 est at Lexington, Tennessee, but was soon 
 paroled, when he came north and was put 
 in charge of paroled men until exchanged. 
 He was put on detached dutv as pro- 
 vost marshal at Grand Junction. Missis- 
 sippi, for a time, and was promoted from 
 orderly sergeant to first lieutenant. He 
 lost no time except when granted a short 
 furlough, but was at length forced to resign 
 and was mustered out on account of disabil- 
 ity, being taken home on a bed. When he 
 had sufficiently recovered he resumed farm- 
 ing, but sold his farm a few years later and 
 moved to the southern ])art uf the state. 
 In T871, however, he returned ti> Li\ingsti)n 
 county, and purchased his 1 ild place in .\mity 
 
 township, which he has since greatly im- 
 proved. 1 le laid out that i)art of the village 
 of Cornell north of Main street and which 
 was named for the family, and has since de- 
 voted considerable attention to the real es- 
 tate business, but is now living retired. 
 
 On the 1st of January. 1861. in Livings- 
 ton county. Mr. Cornell married Miss Mary 
 S. Coe, a daughter of William Coe. She 
 was born in Covington, Indiana, but was 
 principally reared in Illinois, and died in 
 this county January 3, 1890, leaving nine 
 children, two sons and seven (laughters, 
 namelv: Dick H., who has successfully 
 engaged in teaching school and served as a 
 soldier of the Spani.sh-American war, being 
 with the army in Porto Rico; Walter, who 
 is now among the Indians in northwestern 
 Minnesota: S. Lillian, who is a graduate of 
 Eureka College, and was formerly engaged 
 in teaching school, but is now a resident of 
 Great Bend, Kansas; Lora L., who taught 
 school five years, and is now the wife of C. 
 W. Hadley. of Cuba, Missouri ; Mattie E., 
 who also taught five years, and is now the 
 wife of Stephen Dunbar, of Cornell; Ber- 
 tha E.. who followed the same profession 
 five years, and is now the wife of Irwin 
 Finley. who was deputy sheriff of Livings- 
 ton county four years and is now a resident 
 of Estherville, Iowa ; Toe D.. a teacher re- 
 siding at home; Lulu, also a teacher: and 
 Ada. at home. 
 
 Politically Mr. Cornell has been a life- 
 long Republican, and has been a delegate 
 to a num1)er of county conventions, but has 
 never sought office, though he served one 
 term as supervisor. Fraternally he is a 
 member of Cornell Post. G. A. R.. and is 
 a Rnyal .\rch Mason, who served three 
 years as master of the blue lodge at Cor- 
 nell. As a liberal-minded and progressive
 
 362 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 citizen he has aided materially in the de- 
 velopment of his adopted county, has given 
 his support to all enterprises calculated to 
 prove of public benefit, and is justly entitled 
 to prominent mention among her most hon- 
 ored and useful citizens. 
 
 CHRISTOPHER C. LEONARD. 
 
 Christopher C. Leonard, an honored vet- 
 eran of the Ci\-il war, and a successful agri- 
 culturist of Newtown township, has been 
 identified with the interests of Livingston 
 county for almost half a century, having lo- 
 cated here in 1852. He was born in Brad- 
 ford county, Pennsylvania, April 26, 1836, 
 and is a son of Edmnud D. and Elizabeth 
 H. (Remington) Leonard, natives of Mas- 
 sachusotts and New York, respectively. In 
 early life the father followed different occu- 
 pations, but after coming to Illinois, in 1852, 
 he devoted his attention to farming exclu- 
 sively. He took up one hundred and sixty 
 acres of government land in Newton town- 
 ship, Livingston county, which was wild 
 ]M-airie land, entirely unimproved, and he 
 and (lur subject at once began to break it 
 and continuod to work together for some 
 time. The family enilured many hardships 
 and prix-ations incident to ])ioneer life, and 
 at first had to haul all their produce to Ot- 
 tawa, which was the nearest market place. 
 The two olde-st sons worked out at twelve 
 dollars per month and ])aid for the land, 
 while the father and our subject devoted 
 their energies towards its improvement. 
 The father died in i860, but the mother, 
 who was born January 24, 1808, is still liv- 
 ing. To them were born nine children, of 
 wlmm one died in infancv; Franklin, the 
 
 oldest son, died in the service of his country 
 during the civil war, being a member of 
 Company G, One Hundred and Twenty- 
 ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry; Mrs. 
 Harriet Jacobs died in Ford county, Illinois; 
 and Mrs. Mary Ide in Aconda, Livingston 
 county. Those living are Myra, wife of 
 Andrexv Stewart, of Kempton, Ford coun- 
 ty; Roscoe, who owns a part of the old home 
 farm in Newton township; Christopher C, 
 our subject; Sarah, wife of Andrew Hoob- 
 ler, of Streator; and Isabelle, wife of John 
 L. Cusick, of Newton township. 
 
 Christopher C. Leonard began his edu- 
 cation in the schools of his native state, 
 and after coming to Illinois, at the age of 
 ten years, attended school in Li\ingston 
 county for a time. He remained under the 
 parental roof until he was marrie-d, in 1858, 
 to Miss Mary Mason, who was born in 
 Michigan, in August, 1838, a daughter of 
 Enoch and Elizabeth Mason. Her family 
 came to Livingston county in 1852 and set- 
 tled on the farm in Newton township now 
 occupied by our subject, where her parents 
 died. She has one brother, George, a 
 farmer in Iowa. 
 
 For a year and a half after his marriage 
 ]\Ir. Leonard engaged in farming in Amity 
 township, Livingston county, and then re- 
 turned to Newton township. After the 
 civil war broke out he laid aside all per- 
 sonal interests, and enlisted, in August, 
 1862, in Company A, One Hundred and 
 Twentv-ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, 
 with which he served until the close of the 
 war. being all through the Atlanta cam- 
 paign and taking part in many battles. He 
 entered the service as a private, and when 
 discharged. June 17. 1865. held the rank of 
 corporal. After his return home Mr. Leonard 
 operated his mother's farm until the death
 
 THE LIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 363 
 
 of his wife's parents, wlieii lie purchased 
 tlie interest of tlie heirs in the farm whicli 
 he now occupies. It consists of one hun- 
 dred and forty-two acres of rich and arahle 
 land on section 34. Xewtown township, upon 
 whicli he has iiiatle all of the improvements, 
 and he also owns forty acres in Amity town- 
 ship. In 1898 he purchased a general store 
 in Manville, which he now operates in part- 
 nership with his son. This property has all 
 been accpiired through his own well-directed 
 and energetic efforts, for he started out in 
 life for himself with no capital save a pair 
 of willing hands and a determination to 
 succeed. 
 
 Of the nine chiklren burn h> .Mr. aiul 
 Mrs. Leonard, one died in infanc}'. The 
 others are as follows : ( i ) Edwin, a 
 farmer of Xewton township, married Effie 
 Hoenshell. and they liavo three children, 
 Lloyd, David C. and Lela. (2) Olivia is 
 with her parents. (3) Emily is the wife 
 of John W'eidman, a farmer of Mc Henry 
 county, Illinois, and they have six children, 
 Ervie, Arthur, Lawrence, Bertha. Mary and 
 Roy. (4) Clora is the wife of Alvin Gil- 
 man, of Xewtown township, and they have 
 three children, Mary, Alma and Lula 13. 
 (5) Ira. a resident of Amity township, 
 married Lizzie Oilman, and they have two 
 children. Alma and Ralph. (6) Andrew, 
 also of Amity township, married Ada 
 Walker, and they have one daughter, Flor- 
 ence. (7) Frank is at home with his i)ar- 
 ents, (8) Fred married Ine I. Davis, and 
 is now a partner of his father's store in 
 Manville. 
 
 Since casting his tirst presidential vote 
 for John C. Fremont. Mr. Leonard has 
 been a stanch supporter of the Republican 
 party, anrl has taken quite an active and 
 prominent part in local politics, holding 
 
 some offices for several years. He has 
 served as road commissioner six years, 
 school director, ten years; collector, three 
 years, and assessor, two years, being elected 
 to the last named office for 1901. In 1890 
 he was appointed census enumerator, and 
 has been a delegate to the county conven- 
 tions of his party. He is an honored mem- 
 ber of the Grand Army Post, Xo. 769, at 
 Cornell, in which he has held all the offices, 
 and is an active member of the Mehtodist 
 Ejiiscopal church, to which his estimable 
 wife also belongs. His useful and well- 
 spent life has gained for him not only a 
 comfortable competence, but also the re- 
 spect and confidence of all with whom he 
 has come in contact either in liusincss or 
 social life. 
 
 G. E. ROIIRKR. 
 
 G. E. Rohrer, a popular and successful 
 photographer of Flanagan, was born in 
 Rutland, La Salle county, Illinois, Septem- 
 ber 20, 1866, and is a son of Emanuel and 
 Harriet ( Koontz) Rohrer, natives of Mary- 
 land, who came to this state in 1844, 
 and first located in Chicago, which at 
 that time was a mere village. Six years 
 later they moved to Champaign, where the 
 father died X'ovember 22, 1869. Since 
 then the family have made their hcjiue in 
 Rutland. The children are as follows : 
 John, a harness-maker of Rutland; Henri- 
 etta, wife of G. B. Horner, of Lincoln, Illi- 
 nois : Aaron, a machinist of Rutland ; Will- 
 iam, a grocer of that place; Elizabeth, wife 
 of L. W. Kelly, of Rutland: Silas, foreman 
 of the Kansas City Transfer Company; 
 Charles, a l)arber of Rutland ; and G. E. 
 our subject.
 
 364 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 In his native town G. E. Rohrer grew 
 to manhood and is indelited to its pnblic 
 schools for liis edncational adventages. At 
 the age of seventeen lie commenced working 
 at the bar1)cr"s trade there, and on coming 
 to Flanagan in 1885, opened a barber simp. 
 which he snccessfnlly conducted until Alarch, 
 1899, when he sold out. In connection 
 with the barber business he had lieen en- 
 gaged in photography for ten years, and 
 since disposing of the former he has de- 
 voted his entire time and attention to the 
 latter. He is well known for the excellency 
 of his wiirk and receives a very extensixe 
 patronage. 
 
 On the 28th of May, 1880, Mr. Rohrer 
 married Miss Carrie W'illoughby, of Rut- 
 land, will I presides with gracious dignity 
 over their home. As a public-spirited and 
 progressive citizen, he takes considerable 
 interest in the welfare and progress of his 
 tow-n, and has ser\-ed several years as a 
 member of the board of trustees of Flana- 
 gan. Politically he is identified with the 
 Re.pul)lican party. 
 
 WILLIAM H. ROTH. 
 
 \\'illiam H. Roth, owner and proprietor 
 of the leading machine and repair shop of 
 Pontiac, was born in Lacon, Illinois, Sep- 
 tember 3, i860. His father, Henry Roth, 
 was born in 1822, near Cologne, Germany, 
 where he was reareil and educated, and for 
 some time he was a soldier in the German 
 army taking an active ])art in the war of 
 1848. In 1852, on the expiration of his 
 term of enlistment, he came to the United. 
 States and located in La Salle county, Illi- 
 nois, where he worked on a farm, having 
 
 become thoroughly familiar with agricultural 
 pursuits in his native land. While in La 
 Salle he was married to Elizabeth Weber, 
 w ho was also born in Cologne, Germany, in 
 1 83 1. After his marriage he settled near 
 Lacon, where he operated a rented farm two 
 years, and then, having been able to save 
 some money, he purchased eighty acres of 
 raw prairie land, which he at once com- 
 menced to impro\-e and cultivate. He has 
 since added to his farm and now has a 
 c|uarter-section of land in Bennington town- 
 ship, Marshall county, all tiled and under 
 a high state of cultivation, it being one of the 
 best kept farms in the township. There 
 the father still resides and continues to en- 
 gage in acti\"e farming. He came to this 
 countrv with no capital and the first year 
 worked for twelve dollars per month, but 
 his ability and fixed purpose have brought 
 him independence, and he is now one of the 
 successful and highly respected men of his 
 locality. He and his wife are members of 
 the Catholic church at Minonk, were among 
 the first to unite with the same, have con- 
 tributed liberally to its support and helped 
 to build the church edifice. The father also 
 h.elped l.uiild the first school house in his dis- 
 trict. In his family are se\-en children who 
 are still living. 
 
 During his boyhood William H. Roth 
 received a good practical education in the 
 common schools, and being an inveterate 
 reader he has stored up a large fund of use- 
 ful information and has acquired a fine li- 
 brary. He assisted his father in the opera- 
 tion of the farm until twenty-four years of 
 age, and after working for others one year, 
 he traveled through the west or. a sort of 
 inspection tour. On his return to Marshall 
 county, Illinois, he v/orkcd on a farm in 
 Bennington township four }-ears, and then
 
 WILLIAM H. ROTH.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 367 
 
 came to Union townsliip. Living'ston county, 
 wliere lie was .similarly employed. 
 
 On Thanksgiving day, November 27. 
 i88i,Mr. Roth married Miss Catherine Hor- 
 bach, a daughter of John Horbach, who 
 who was born nea'r Cologne Germany, and 
 they have became the parents of fuur chil- 
 dren, namely: Margaiet. William, Mary 
 and Bercha. 
 
 For four years after his marriage, Mr. 
 Roth engap'ed in farming near Emington. 
 and then came to Pontiac, where he was em- 
 ployed as engineer at the tile factory two 
 years, having previnusly become familiar 
 with the duties of that position. Liking the 
 work he decided to follow the Uiachinist's 
 trade and opened a shop of his own, buying 
 his present property at N'o. 417 West 
 Howard street. He now has the principle 
 machine shop in Pontiac antl has met with 
 marked success in this venture, being em- 
 inently fitted for that line of work. Besides 
 his business property Mr. Roth now owns a 
 good house and two lots in the west part 
 of the town. His success in life is due en- 
 tirely to his own well-directed efforts and 
 good business ability. He and his family are 
 members of St. Mary's Catholic church, and 
 he also belongs to the Modern Wcjodmen 
 of America and the Toilers FraternitN'. 
 
 THOM.XS (;. RVKkSOX. 
 
 Thomas G. Ryerson has witnessed al- 
 most the entire development of Livingston 
 county, and has contributed his full share 
 to this grand work. By concentrated effort 
 and indefatigable energy he has wrought 
 out success, and now, in his declining years, 
 is reaping the just rewards of his long years 
 
 of toil. Commencing life, a stranger in a 
 strange land, without a dollar, and, indeed, 
 in doht for the ci>st of his voyage across 
 the Atlantic, he certainly has displayed a 
 fortitude and application to business' amount- 
 ing to heroism. 
 
 The career of Mr. Ryerson po.ssesses 
 much that is worthy of emulation by his 
 posterity, and his many friends will take 
 pleasure, in tracing this record. Born in 
 Stavanger, Norway, Se])tember 8. 1834. he 
 grew to manhood there, and obtained a fair 
 education in his mother tongue. In com- 
 pany with an older brother. (_)le Rverson. 
 he oniigrated to America in 1835. and. at 
 the end of a ^'oyage that consumed si.K 
 weeks and six days, they arrived at their 
 destination — Ouebec. Coming to Chicago 
 by wa}- of the great lakes, our subject then 
 proceeded to Ottawa, where he witnessed 
 the celebrations attendant on the fourth of 
 July. He was stricken with the typhoid 
 fever, and during that summer was in very 
 poor health in consequence. As soon as 
 he was able to work tho Itrave youth ob- 
 tained a position on a farm, and for sev- 
 eral years thereafter worked for others. 
 
 On the 14th of .\ugust, 1S62. Mr. Ryer- 
 son enlisted in the defen.so of his adopted 
 country, becoming a member of Company 
 F, One Hundred and Fourth Illinois In- 
 fantry, which was placeil in the Army of 
 the Tennessee. At the first sc-vere engage- 
 ment in which our suljject was engagetl he 
 was wounded l)y a shell in the right hip, 
 and being so disabled, was sent to the hos- 
 pital at Cjallatin, Tennessee. Subsequently 
 he was transferred to the hospital in Nash- 
 ville, and thence to one in Chicago. When 
 he was convalescent he was honorably dis- 
 charged from the army and returned to La 
 Salle county in April. 1863.
 
 368 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 When lie had recovered a measure of 
 his usual health, Mr. Ryerson resumed agri- 
 cultural labors, and in 1865 came to Living- 
 ston county. Here he bought eighty acres 
 in -\mitv township, only thirty acres of 
 w liich property had been liroken and placed 
 under the plow. A small cabin served as 
 a home for a period, but in time this was 
 supplanted by a large, pleasant house, which 
 was built under the owner's supervision. 
 He also built barns, sheds and fences, and 
 planted an orchard and fine shade trees. 
 As he could afford it, he invested his surplus 
 funds in more land, and to-day is the owner 
 of four hundred and seventy acres. Most 
 of this is productive and valuable- land, 
 yielding a generous return for the labor ex- 
 pended upon it. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Ryerson and Liz- 
 zie Larson, a native of Norway, took place 
 in La Salle county in 1863. Ihe wife was 
 a child of, yorhaps, twelve years, when she 
 came to the United States, and, with her 
 husband, she has been a faithful member 
 (if the Lutheran church since youth. To 
 her helpfulness and brave spirit during the 
 years of their struggle for a home and com- 
 petence, Air. Ryerson attributes much of 
 his success in life. Tw(_) of their children 
 died in infancy, but nine survive. Louis 
 is married and is a prosperous farmer in this 
 district. Anna Belle is the wife of Rasmus 
 Aarvig. of Pontiac. Theodore is the agent 
 and telegraph operator for the Illinois Cen- 
 tral Railroad Company at Cullom, Illinois. 
 The younger children who are at home are 
 namel as follows: Oliver, Adolph. Mil- 
 dred. David, Clara and Mabel. 
 
 Mr. Ryerson is especially desirous of 
 giving his children good educations, know- 
 ing that thereby they will be fitted for the 
 battle of life. He is deeply interested in 
 
 the maintenance of schools of a high stand- 
 ard, and for three terms has officiated as a 
 member of the school board, doing all within 
 his power to increase the efficiency of our 
 educational system. In political creed he 
 is a true-blue Republican, and since casting 
 his first presidential ballot for Lincoln, in 
 1S64, he has ardently supported the party 
 of his choice. 
 
 ADAM F. MORRISON. 
 
 Lixingston county attributes its wonder- 
 ful growth and tlourishing state to the fine, 
 enterprising citizens classed among its agri- 
 culturists, and in Amity township the sub- 
 ject of this article is one of the foremost. 
 He is a native of Illinois, his birth having 
 taken place in La Salle county. May 27, 
 1858. 
 
 His father. Adam Morrison, one of the 
 honored pioneers of the county mentioned, 
 was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1827, 
 and when he was in his eighteenth year he 
 sailed for America, his future home. He 
 accompanied his father, ^ames Morrison, 
 who likewise was a native of the land of the 
 thistle and heather, and their first location 
 in this country was at Fall River. Massa- 
 chusetts. In 1844 they removed to the 
 west, and thenceforth were identified with 
 this prairie state. Adam Morrison, who 
 for the past four years has been living re- 
 tired at his home in Streator, was actively 
 engaged in farming in La Salle county for 
 manv years. He made a success of the 
 business and accumulated considerable ex- 
 cellent land, about three hundred acres being 
 comprised in two or three farms situated 
 near Streator. His wife. Fanny, a daugh- 
 ter of William Dickenson, was born in Man-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 369 
 
 cliester, Eneland. and with the ]iarental 
 family came tn tlie new world fifty-nine 
 years ago, and. like the .M<irrisiins. first set- 
 tk'l in the pretty town of Eall Ri\er. Mas- 
 sachusetts. 
 
 Adam F. Morrison, whose entire life 
 has heen spent in Illinois, became familiar 
 with the varied ditties hi a farmer when h." 
 was a mero child, and it was n<jt until he 
 had fully arrived at mature years that he 
 left home and started upon his iiulependent 
 career. The most important step in his 
 life, perhaps, was his marriage. Jul}- 23, 
 1880, to Miss Mary Welch, whose birth 
 had occurred in Marshall county, Illinois. 
 The young couple commenced keeping house 
 upon one of the farms belonging to the 
 senior Morrison, but by industry and econ- 
 omy they managed to make a good start to- 
 ward financial success within three or four 
 years. 
 
 In 1884 Mr. Morrison purchased a 
 homestead of some eighty acres, situated in 
 Livingston county. From time to time, as 
 his means afforded, he bought additional 
 land, until his farm comprises two hundred 
 and five acres. By judicious expenditiu'e 
 of money he has greatly increased the value 
 of his land, and by tiling, fencing and rota- 
 tion of crops, he has proved his enterprise 
 and wisdom. For a period the family i;sed 
 an old house and barn. biU now all is differ- 
 ent, and a commodious new house and aaiiis 
 antl granaries bespeak the thrift of the pro- 
 prietor. An orchard, in which a great va- 
 riety of fruits m.'iy be f<iund. and an abund- 
 ance of well-trimmed shade trees about the 
 farm, atld much to the beauty and desira- 
 bilitv of the i)lace. 
 
 In all of his efforts to gain a livo'.ihood 
 and pleasant home. Mr. Morrison has found 
 a true helpmeet in his wife. She is a daugh- 
 
 ter of Xoah Welch, a native of Kentuckv, 
 and from his foiuneenth year a resident of 
 Po;insvl\-ania, Missouri ;uid Illinois, his ar- 
 rival in this state occurring in the earlv part 
 of the C\y\] war. His wife, Jane, was a 
 daughter of Jareil Ely, and both were Penn- 
 sylvanians b\- birth. 'I hey were married 
 near St. Joseph, Missouri, whero the Welch 
 family were then living. The four chil- 
 dren born to oiu' suliject and wife are Will- 
 iam M.. Lee X.. Frank and Helen, all of 
 whom are iirouiising students in the l(jcal 
 school. Mr. M(_irrison is a Democrat, but 
 be ne\er has been an aspirant lo puljlic 
 honors, lie commands the respect of this 
 community, and his friends are legion 
 throughout the northern part of this county, 
 and wherever he is known. The family at- 
 tend the Methodist Episcopal cluuxdi. 
 
 DEXXIS GLIXXEX. 
 
 Dennis (ilinnen, one of the old settlers 
 and much respected citizens of .\voca town- 
 ship and a resident of Livingston county 
 for over half a century, was born in comity 
 W'estmeath, Ireland, May 9, 1833, a son 
 of Tames and Mary (Dunn) Glinnen, who 
 emigrated to America in 1838 to luake a 
 home for themselves and children. In Ire- 
 land the father worked as a laborer an<l 
 farmer, and on first coming to this coinitry 
 found emplo_\moit in an iron foundry in 
 Sussex count}'. • M;u viand, where he re- 
 maineil a number of years. In Xovember, 
 1844. he came to Illinois, and six years later 
 purchased a claim and also some govern- 
 mont land in Livingston county, owning at 
 the time of his death, in 1858, two hundred 
 and forty acres of land in Avoca township.
 
 370 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 He was a self-made man, wlio started out 
 in life as a poor laborer, and Ijy hard work 
 and good management, as well as honest 
 dealings, not only won a comfortable com- 
 petence, but also commanded the respect of 
 all with whom he came in contact. Of his 
 seven children three died young, and four 
 are still living, namely : Dennis, the sub- 
 ject of this sketch; Mary, wife of John 
 Monahan, who li\es north of Chatsworth. 
 in Charlotte township; Christopher, a resi- 
 dent of Avoca township; and Matthew, who 
 owns and occupies the old home farm. 
 
 During his boyhood Dennis Glinnen 
 received a very limited education, which 
 was mostly acquired in the home schools. 
 but schools wero scarce in those days and 
 boys had no such opportunities as are now 
 offered. After the death of his father he 
 assumed control of the farm work, being 
 the oldest son, and for a number of years 
 carried it im vory successfully. At length 
 the property was di\ided among the heirs 
 and the homestead fell to the youngest son, 
 with whom our subject lives. They have 
 made extensive improxements upon the 
 place, erecting barns and feeding sheds for 
 the accommodation of their stock, and have 
 fully tiled the land and placed it under a 
 high state of cultivation. They make a 
 specialty of the raising of cattle and hogs. 
 Our sul)ject is the owner of eleven hundreil 
 acres of land in the belt of the most fertile 
 land in the township, uptju which he super- 
 intends the raising and feeding of stock, 
 \vhich enterprise he has carried on most 
 successfully for some years. Since 1885 
 he has lived retired from active labor and 
 now rents a part of his land, though he still 
 has general supervision of the same and 
 attends to all repairs. 
 
 Religiously Mr. Glinnen is a devout 
 
 member of the Catholic church and a liberal 
 su])porter of the same. On national issues 
 he is a Democrat, but at local elections votes 
 for the men whom he considers best quali- 
 fied to fill the offices regardless of party 
 lines. He has served as school director in 
 his district for twenty years, and also filled 
 the oflice of road commissioner in a most 
 creditable and satisactory manner. Though 
 c|uiet and unassuming, he makes many 
 friends, and is held in high regard by all 
 with whom he comes in contact. 
 
 HEXRY GRIESER. 
 
 Henry Grieser, one of the industrious, 
 enterprising and successful citizens of ^^'aldo 
 township, who has done his part toward 
 making Livingston county one of the fore- 
 most agricultural counties of the state, was 
 born in German}-. May 12, 1848, a son of 
 Christian and Catherine Grieser. He lost 
 his mother when only two years old, and 
 his father died two years later. He was 
 thus left an orphan at the early age of four 
 years. He was reared and educated in his 
 native land, and e^migrated to America in 
 1868, locating in W'oodford county, Illinois, 
 where he made his home for four years. 
 In 1872 he came to Livingston county and 
 located in Waldo townhsip. with whose 
 farming interests he has since been promi- 
 nently identified. Throughout his active 
 business life he lias engaged n agricultural 
 pursuits, and his labors have met with well- 
 deserxed success. 
 
 In 1873 Mr. Grieser was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Elizabeth Smith, of Lowa, 
 a daughter of John P. Smith, who now re- 
 sides in Waldo township, and is one of the
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 371 
 
 prominent farmers of that section of Living- 
 ston county and to them have l)een born 
 four children, namel\' : julm, Henry. Au- 
 gustus and Cliristian. In his political views 
 Mr. Grieser is decidedly a Democrat, and 
 takes a commendable interest in the success 
 of his oarty. He is one of Waldo town- 
 ship's most reliable citizens, and is a man 
 highly repectetl and esteemed wherever 
 known. 
 
 FRANK R. STEWART. 
 
 One of the oldest employees in years of 
 continuous service on the lines with which 
 he is connected is Frank R. Stewart, who 
 is agent for the Wabash and the Toledo, 
 Peoria & Warsaw Railroads at Forrest. 
 Long connection with the extensive corpora- 
 tions which contr(jl the lines of transporta- 
 tion in our country indicates marked faith- 
 fulness, ability and fidelity on the part of 
 employes, and therefore Mr. Stewart's ex- 
 tended connection with railroad interests is 
 a high testimonial of his ability. He has the 
 trust and confidence of the company and is 
 a most popular agent, owing to his uniform 
 courtesy, obliging manner and his fitlelity to 
 duty. 
 
 A native of Dixon, Illinois, he was born 
 on the i6th of March, 1856, a son of Lewis 
 Henry and Sarah E. (Appier) Stewart. 
 His father was a native of Uniontown, Car- 
 roll county, Maryland, born August 28, 
 183 1. The grandfather was also born there 
 and the great-grandfather was the owner of 
 large landed property in that locality. He 
 belonged to one of the old and prominent 
 families of the state and at the time of the 
 Revolutionary war loyally aided the colonies 
 in their struggle for independence. 
 
 The father of our subject was educated 
 in the place of his nativity and was recog- 
 nized as a man of considerable influence in 
 that locality. He married Miss Ai)pler, 
 who was born in Carroll county, in May, 
 1834, a daughter of Isaac Appier, who lived 
 to be ninety years of age, dying in 1895. 
 His wife, who bore the maiden name of 
 Judith ^\'inters, is now living at the ad- 
 vanced age of ninety-four years. Both he 
 and his wife were natives of England. He 
 became one of the wealthy landholders of 
 Carroll county, Maryland, where he resided 
 luitil his removal westw^ard, in 1859. He 
 located in Hannibal, Missouri, and there re- 
 sided until called to his final rest. The fa- 
 ther of our subject left Maryland in Jan- 
 uary, 1856, cii route for Hannibal, Mis- 
 souri, and while on the way, during a tem- 
 porary residence of the family at Dixon, 
 Illinois, Frank R. Stewart was born. The 
 family soon afterward proceeded to Han- 
 nibal, where the father remained until 1859, 
 when he went with his family to Ouincy, 
 Illinois, and there engaged in merchandis- 
 ing. 
 
 During the time when much of the traffic 
 of the Mississippi valley was transported by 
 means of the river, he was one of the leading 
 representatives of commercial interests 
 there, and he carried on business until 1875. 
 He then retired to private life, and seven 
 years later, in 1882, was called to the home 
 beyond. He was a member of the Inde- 
 pendent Order of Odd Fellows, and at all 
 times he commanded the respect and es- 
 teem of his fellow men. His widow still 
 survives and is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church, taking an active part in its 
 work. In their family were f<iur children, 
 of whom our subject is the eldest son. He 
 has one brother still living, Charles A., who
 
 372 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 is a conductor on the Missouri Pacific Rail- 
 road, running between Sedalia. Missouri, 
 and Kansas City. 
 
 Mr. Stewart, whose name introduces this 
 review, obtained his education in the schools 
 of Ouincy, and received his business train- 
 ing in his father's store, where he spent the 
 months of vacation. In 1878, however, he 
 entered the employ of the Wabash Railroad 
 as brakeman on a passenger train, running 
 between Springfield and Ouincy. In 1879, 
 when the Chicago division of the Wabash 
 road was opened, he came to Forrest as 
 brakeman on a freight train, and in Feb- 
 ruary, 1880, was promoted to the position 
 of conductor on a freight train, while in 
 March, 1883, he was made a passenger con- 
 ductor. In November, 1884, he was injured 
 at Cornwell, Illinois, losing one of his legs. 
 In 1885, after his recovery, he was made 
 clerk in the agent's office, at Forrest, in 
 1886 was promoted to the position of super- 
 intendent's clerk, and on the 30th of Xo- 
 ember, 1888 he was appointed agent of both 
 the Wabash and the Toledo, Peoria iS: \\'ar- 
 saw roads. The junction of the roads is at 
 this place and the station is a very important 
 one, his dut}^' embracing a general oversight 
 of the business of Ijoth roads, passenger, 
 freight and also includes the supervision of 
 the trainmen, numbering thirty. The busi- 
 ness of these roads at this point is constant- 
 ly increasing, due in no small measure to 
 the efforts of the obliging agent at Forrest. 
 Among all the officials and employees of 
 the road there are but two his senior in 
 years of continuous service. He neglects 
 no duty or detail, no matter how slight it 
 may seem, is extremely accurate and care- 
 ful, and is at all times courteous to the 
 patrons of the road. Those qualities have 
 won him favor with the company and with 
 
 the public and he has gained the esteem of 
 all with whom he has been brought in con- 
 tact. 
 
 Mr. Stewart is a member of. Olive 
 Branch Lodge, K. P., in which he has passed 
 all the chairs. He is one of the oldest rep- 
 resentatives of the fraternity in the state, 
 his connection therewith covering a period 
 of twenty-three years. He has six times 
 represented his local lodge in the grand 
 lodge, has many times been district deputy 
 and thus has instituted new lodges and in- 
 stalled many officials. He is also a member 
 of the Order of Railway Conductors, which 
 lie joined in 1882 — one of the first to be- 
 come identified with the society. As a 
 member of the board of education he has 
 done efficient service in the interests of the 
 schools, supporting many measures which 
 have proven of value to the schools. He has 
 acted as treasurer of the board and was fill- 
 ing that office at the time the school build- 
 ing was r-emodeled, and also serving as chair- 
 man of the building committee. He has 
 likewise been treasurer of Forrest, and is 
 a citizen whose earnest support and co-op- 
 eration are gi\en to all measures for the 
 public good. 
 
 ]\Ir. Stewart was married on the j8th 
 of November, 1883, to Miss Cordelia Wil- 
 son, of Forrest, a daughter of Nicholas and 
 Nancy Wilson. She was born in this city, 
 in i860, and by her marriage has become 
 the mother of two daughters, Iva Mildred 
 and Greta Rodell. Mr. Wilson, her father, 
 was born in Sweden and became one of the 
 pioneer settlers of this part of the state, 
 being well known at an early day as a ped- 
 dler and later as a farmer. His wife was a 
 native of Ohio, and with her parents, Mr. 
 and Mrs. Thompson, came to Livingston 
 county, in 1837, the family here entering
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 373 
 
 land from the government. Mrs. Wilson 
 knew Shabbona, the noted Indian chief and 
 saw many of the red men in this section of 
 the state. Mr. Wilson passed away in 1S77. 
 and his wife, long surviving him, was called 
 to her final rest November 15. 1S98. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Stewart are members 
 of the Congregational chinch and in the 
 community where they reside they are high- 
 ly^ esteemed for their many excellencies of 
 character. They have a i)leasant home in 
 Forrest, which was erected Ijy Mr. Stewart. 
 He is also the owner of considerable farm- 
 ing land in Texas. He was one of the or- 
 ganizers of the Building & Loan Associa- 
 tion, of Forrest, whereby many of the com- 
 fortable homes of the place have been 
 erected. In his political affiliations Mr. 
 Stewart is a Republican, and is recognized 
 as one of the leading members of the party 
 in Forrest. For twelve consecutive years, 
 prior to 1898, he was a delegate to every 
 county, state, ji;dicial, congressional and 
 senatorial convention and was an alternate 
 to the national convention at St. Louis. He 
 is a recognized fact(jr in political circles and 
 is a man of influence, active and prominent 
 in the community, his labors resulting to the 
 public benefit along social, material, intel- 
 lectual and moral lines. 
 
 PAUL HEISXER. 
 
 Paul Heisner, one < >f the must prosperous 
 agriculturists of Pontiac township, whose 
 home is on section 20, has been identified 
 with the upbuilding and development of 
 this county for over a third of a century. 
 He comes from across the sea, being born 
 in Castle Dume, Prussia, Germany. June 27, 
 
 1837, and in that country grew to manhood 
 and served for three years as a soldier in 
 the German army. In the spring of 1864 
 he emigrated to America, and came direct 
 to Illinois, joining some German friends in 
 Cook county, where he worked as a farm 
 hand by the month for a short time. In 
 October, 1864. he enlisted in Company B, 
 Thirtieth Illinois \'olunteer Infantry, and 
 joined his regiment at Atlanta. Georgia, in 
 time to take part in Sherman's celebrated 
 march to the sea. He participated in the 
 engagements at Savannah, anil through to 
 Raleigh, and after the surrender of the last 
 named city marched through Richmond on 
 his way to Washington, D. C, where he 
 took part in the grand review. Returning 
 to Illinois, he was honorably discharged at 
 Springfield, in July. 1865. 
 
 In the fall of the same year Mr. Heisner 
 came to Livingston county, anil purchased 
 forty acres of raw prairie and swamp land 
 three miles south of Pontiac, upon whicli 
 he built a little shanty. For three years he 
 devoted his energies to the improvement and 
 cultivation of that place, and on selling it 
 bought eighty acres in Rock Creek town- 
 ship, of which a few acres had been broken 
 and a small house erected thereon. That 
 farm was his home for about four years, 
 at the end of which time he purchaseil an- 
 other eighty-acre tract adjoining, and lived 
 there for six years. On disposing of that 
 jilace he bought one hundred and forty acres 
 of partially improved land on the river in 
 Pontiac township, where he now resides, and 
 to its further improvement and cultivation 
 he has since devoted his energies with most 
 gratifying results. As his financial re- 
 sources have increased he has added to his 
 property from time to time until he now 
 owns four hundred and eighty acres of val-
 
 374 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 uable and productive land, wliich he has 
 tiled and placed under a high state of culti- 
 vation. Upon this land he has built four 
 good residences, barns and other outbuild- 
 ings, and was actitvely engaged in agricult- 
 ural pursuits until 1900, when he rented his 
 lantl and is now living retired. enjo3-ing a 
 well earned rest upon his farm, which is 
 pleasantly located within two miles of Pon- 
 tiac. He built a residence and lived in the 
 city for two years, but in 1898 he returned 
 to the farm. He now owns two residences 
 in the citv. 
 
 Before leaving his native land, Mr. 
 Heisner w'as married, in February, 1864, to 
 Miss Catherine Trender, also a native of 
 Prussia, and to them have been born five 
 sons, namely: Philip, a resident of Pontiac; 
 Frederick, William and Frank, who are en- 
 Paul, Jr., who travels. 
 gaged in farming on the iiome place, and 
 
 Since casting his first presidential vote 
 for General U. S. Grant, Mr. Heisner has 
 been unswerving in his allegiance to the Re- 
 publican party, and in this regard his sons 
 all follow in his footsteps. He has never 
 cared for political ofiice, preferring to de- 
 vote his undivided attention to his business 
 interests, but for six years most acceptably 
 served as school director. Fraternally he 
 is an honored member of T. Lyle Dickey 
 Post, G. A. R., at Pontiac. As a young 
 man he came to America, and with no capi- 
 tal started out in a strange land to overcome 
 the difficulties and obstacles in the path to 
 prosperity. His youthful dreams have been 
 realized and in their busy fulfillment he sees 
 the fitting reward of earnest toil. He is not 
 only one of the most successful men of his 
 community, but is also highly respected and 
 esteemed bv all who know^ him on account 
 of his sterling worth. 
 
 LIBERTY LOUDERBACK. 
 
 More than sixty-three years ago this gen- 
 tleman came to Livingston county, and dur- 
 ing this long period, which covers nearly 
 the whole span of the county's development 
 from a primitive state to its present flourish- 
 ing condition, he has been identified with its 
 interests. For over half a century he car- 
 ried on farming in Amity township, but is 
 now living retired in the village of Cornell. 
 
 Mr. Louderback was born in Brown 
 county, Ohio, July 4, 1824, and was given 
 the name of Libertv by his grandfather, 
 Uriah Springer. Michael Louderback, the 
 paternal grandfather, was a native of Ger- 
 many, who came to this country with two 
 brothers at the close of the Revolutionary 
 war. He settled in Ohio, while one brother 
 located in Virginia, the other in Pennsylva- 
 nia. Our subject's father, Thomas Louder- 
 back, was also born and reared in Brown 
 county, Ohio, and there married Sarah 
 Springer, a daughter of Uriah Springer, 
 who at an early day moved from Virginia to 
 Ohio. There Mr. Louderback followed 
 farming until 1S31, when he came to Illi- 
 nois and settled in \^ermilion county, near 
 the present city of Danville, then a cross- 
 roads village. He bought land and resided 
 there a few years, but in 1837 moved to 
 Amity townsliip, Livingston county, where 
 he entered a tract from the government and 
 opened up a farm, on which he spent the re- 
 mainder of his life, dying there March 6, 
 1854. His wife had passed away October 
 25, 1842. In their family were five sons 
 and three daughters who reached mature 
 years, and four sons and one daughter are 
 still living. 
 
 Liberty Louderback, who is the oldest of 
 this family, grew to manhood in Amity
 
 LIBERTY LOUDERBACK.
 
 1
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 m 
 
 townsliij). only attending scli<"il a few 
 months during the winter. l)ut early becom- 
 ing familiar with every department of farm 
 work. On attaining his majority he began 
 life for liimself by working as a farm hand 
 or at any occupation which he could find. 
 He took up a claim of about one hundred 
 and twenty acres of land, broke fourteen 
 acres, and commenced farming. On the 
 26th of April, 1849, in Livingston county, 
 he married Miss Mary Jane Corbin, who was 
 born in Virginia, in 1827, but was reared 
 in this county as her father, David Corbin, 
 with his family, located here in 1831. 
 
 Mr. and ]\Irs. Louderback began their 
 domestic life on his farm in a primitive log 
 cabin with furniture of his own manufacture. 
 His first land he purchased from the Illinois 
 Central Railroad Company, and to the origi- 
 nal tract he added until he had two hundred 
 and twenty-two acres of valuable land on 
 section 20, Amity township, which he placetl 
 under a high state of cultivation and im- 
 proved with good buildings. He continued 
 to actively engage in farming until 1S77, 
 when he moved to Cornell and purchased 
 the property where he has since made his 
 home. He was interested in the real estate 
 and insurance business for a time, but is 
 now living a retired life. 
 
 ]\Ir. Louderback has been calletl u[)on to 
 mourn the loss of his estimable wife, who 
 died May 11, 1900, and was laid to rest in 
 Cornell cemetery. Six children were born 
 to them, namely : John H., who is married 
 and now operates the old homestead farm; 
 George W'., who owns and operates a farm 
 adjoining the homestead ; Chester W'., who 
 is married and lives in St. Louis; Julia, 
 widow of Thomas J. Gregory, and a resident 
 of Cornell; Hersey J., wife of Harry L. 
 Manley, of Streator, Illinois; Hattie C, wife 
 
 of W. H. Graser. of Luverne. Rock county, 
 Minnesota. 
 
 In 1S54 Mr. Louderback was elected 
 justice of the peace, and most cretlitably 
 and acceptably filled that office for nearly 
 thirty-five years. He is familiarly known as 
 Squire Louderback. He also served as su- 
 pervisor five years, township treasurer, col- 
 lector and school trustee, and always per- 
 formed his duties in a faithful and satisfac- 
 tory manner. He cast his first presiden- 
 tial vote for James K. Polk, in 1844, ^nd 
 became identified with the Republican party 
 on its organization, voting for Fremont in 
 1856, but since 1878 he has been a Prohi- 
 bitionist, having always been an earnest ad- 
 vocate of temperance. He is an active mem- 
 ber of the ^lethodist Episcopal church, of 
 Cornell, and his upright coursein life com- 
 mends him to the respect and confidence of 
 all who know him. His labors as one of 
 the founders of the county justly entitle him 
 to a prominent place in its annals. 
 
 CHRISTIAN WELTE. 
 
 Christian \\elle, a prosperous and pro- 
 gressive farmer residing on section 31, Ne- 
 braska township, Livingston county, Illinois, 
 was born in \\'urtemburg, Germany, De- 
 cember 20, 1842, and is a son of Vincent 
 and Elfans (Strubb) Welte. When he was 
 five years of age the mother died leaving 
 a family of six children, namely : Marcellus, 
 now a resident of El Paso, Illinois; Bertha, 
 wife of John Rover, of Iowa; Ansileni, 
 deceased ; Joseph, who was a member of 
 Company F, Fifty-sixth Xew York \'olun- 
 tcer Infantry, and during the Civil war was 
 killed at the battle of the \Vilderne.ss; Ma-
 
 378 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tilda, wife of Christian Reust, of Kansas; 
 Christian, the subject of this biography; 
 Sebastian, of Panola, Illinois, and Peter, uf 
 Wurtemburg, Germany. Under the guar- 
 dianship of the father the family emigi-ated 
 to America in 1855 and settled near the 
 Catskill mountains, in New York, where 
 they resided two years and then came to 
 Illinois, finally locating in Woodford coun- 
 ty. The father died in 1872, in Nebraska 
 tcnvnshii). 
 
 The same year Christian W'elte came to 
 Livingston county and purchased the farm 
 where he now resides. Its neat and thrifty 
 appearance shows conclusively that he is a 
 man of good business ability and sound 
 judgment, as well as a thorough and scien- 
 tific farmer. On the 7th of Noxemlier, 
 1867, he married ^liss Margaret Ingeler, of 
 ^^'oodford county, and to them have been 
 born eight children, namely : Staffan, wife 
 of William Kalwarf, of Flanagan ; Thomas, 
 a resident of Woodford county; Joseph and 
 Christian, both of Flanagan; Effie, wife of 
 R. C. Evans, of Chalmers, Indiana; John, 
 Margaret and Clara, all at home. 
 
 \\'hen the war of secession threatened to 
 destroy the Union, Mr. ^^'elte turned from 
 the quietude of home to join the awful scenes 
 of death and carnage south of the Mason 
 and Dixon line. He enlisted at Minonk, 
 August 16, 1 86 1, in Company I, Forty- 
 seventh Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and 
 participated in the engagements of New 
 Mardid, Island No. 10, Shiloh, Farmington, 
 Corinth, Jackson, Black River, Pleasant Hill 
 and the siege of Vicksburg. In the Red 
 river expedition he took part in the engage- 
 ments at Fort Berusha, Alexander, Grand 
 de Core, Shreveport, Mansville, Lake Chi- 
 coch, Tupelo and several minor skirmishes. 
 He was wounded in the second battle of 
 
 Corinth. His term of enlistment having ex- 
 pired, Mr. Welte was discharged at Spring- 
 field, Illinois, October 11, 1864, and is now 
 an honored member of the Grand Army 
 Post at Minonk. .\lthough born on the 
 other side of the AtJantic he has become 
 a thorough American citizen in thought and 
 feeling, and is as true to his duties of citi- 
 zenship in times of peace as when he fol- 
 lowed the old flag to victory on southern 
 battle fields. 
 
 CYRUS S. ELLIS. 
 
 Cyrus S. Ellis, a well-known farmer re- 
 siding on section 22, Long Point township, 
 has been a \alued citizen of Li\ingston 
 county, since December, 1879, Coming 
 from near Magnolia, Marshall county, 
 thus state. He was born in Greene coun- 
 ty, Ohio, February 11, 1829, and is a 
 son of Isaac and Elizabeth (Venamon) 
 Ellis, natives of \'irginia, who spent the 
 greater ])art of their lives in Greene county, 
 Ohio, where the father followed farming 
 diu-ing his acti\e business career. He died 
 on the home place at the age of fifty-seven 
 subject several years. She died at the age 
 years, having survived the mother of our 
 of thirty-nine, after which he was again 
 married, his second union being with Aman- 
 da Aldridge, a widow, by whom he had three 
 children, namely: John, a member of an 
 Ohio regiment during the Civil war and 
 now a resident of that state; Jesse, who lives 
 in southern Illinois, and James, who died at 
 the age of thirty-five years. By the first 
 marriage there were ten children, of whom 
 one died in infancy. Three sons and two 
 daughters are still living: Cyrus S., our 
 subject; Milton W., a retired farmer of
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 379 
 
 Nebraska; Henry R., who served three years 
 as a member of Company H. One Hiinch-ed 
 and Fourtli lUinnis XHIunlecr Infantry, 
 <Un"ing the Civil war, and is nn\\ V\\'\ng in 
 Idwa, but was formerly a resident of Cor- 
 nell, Illinois; Hannah, the wife of John 
 Hay, who li\es in northern Oliio; and Emily, 
 wife of Thomas Brenn, of I, a Salle ooimty. 
 Illinois. 
 
 Cyrus S. Ellis was but two years old 
 when the family left Xenia, CJreene county, 
 Oliio, and moxetl to Clinton, the same comi- 
 ty, wliere he attended the connnun schools, 
 remaining with his father on the home farm 
 until the latter's death. At the age of sev- 
 enteen he started out in life for himself, and 
 in 1854 removed to Indiana, where he op- 
 erated a rentetl farm for two )ears. .\t the 
 end of that time he came to Illinois and 
 matle his home in Marshall county for twen- 
 ty-two years, his time and attention being 
 devoted to general farming. In the mean- 
 time he jnirchased land in Nebraska, and on 
 selling it bought his ])resent farm of one 
 liundreil antl sixty acres on section 22, Long 
 Point township, Livingston county, Illinois, 
 but did not locate thereon initil two years 
 later, in 1879. At tliat time is was not im- 
 proved to any extent, but he has since tiled 
 it, erected a house and other buildings, 
 planted an orchard and otherwise imi)roved 
 the place. 
 
 On the 2^d of January, i85[, .Mr. b^llis 
 married Miss Martha J. Curtis, who was 
 born in Clinton, Ohio, ]\Iay 23, 1834, a 
 daughter of Edward and Elizabeth (Lyons) 
 Curtis, who after her marriage moved to 
 Indiana, where they spent the remainder of 
 their lives. She has two brothers .still liv- 
 ing, namely: Edward, a resident of Marshall 
 county, Illinois, and James, of Savamia, 
 Ohio. Of the twelve children born to Mr. 
 
 and Mrs. Ellis three died in early childhood, 
 while Mary F.. wife of Amos Lake, of 
 Toluca. Illinois, died .\pril jS, 1900, leav- 
 ing one daughter, Blanche. 'J'hose living 
 are Luemma, who is the wife of William 
 (jill, a representative farmer of Long Point 
 township, and has one son, Frank; Laura, 
 at home ; Frank, a general farmer of Long 
 Point township, wlio married Lyda Cole- 
 man and has three children, Bessie, Ora and 
 \'era ; Albertine, who married Frank Clark, 
 of Reading township, and has oneson, Elmer ; 
 Cora, wife of Carl Stratton, of Long I'oint 
 townshij); Edwin, a barber of Managan, who 
 married .\lta iinsign and has one daughter, 
 F.lita; .\l\a C. and Ray, both at home as- 
 sisting in the farm work. The children 
 were educated in the common schools and 
 are well fitted for the positions they fdl. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Ellis are acti\e members 
 of the Methodist Epi.scopal church, of which 
 lie is now one of the trustees, and has held 
 other offices. In his jxilitical affiliations he 
 is a Republican, but has never cared for 
 public preferment, though he has efificiently 
 served as school director for a number of 
 jears. 
 
 REV. PIORACE TIFFAXA'. 
 
 For two-score years the Rev. Horace 
 TifYany has dwelt in Livingston county, and 
 few citizens of this portion of Illinois are 
 better or more favorably esteemed by the 
 inhabitants. His devotion to the people and 
 his long years of indefatigable labors for 
 their welfare, have met with a just reward 
 in one respect, at least — that his name has 
 been a household word iov goodness and 
 self-sacrifice, and to his posterity he will 
 leave a record of which they must be i)roud.
 
 380 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Tlie Tiffany family is of Englisli origin 
 and early in the history of Connecticut they 
 were numbered among her pioneers. 
 Horace Tififany, for whom our subject was 
 named, was born in Connecticut, whence he 
 remo\ed to Delaware county, New York, 
 in its infancy, and there became influential 
 and prosperous. His son. Walter, father of 
 our subject, was Ijorn on the old homestead 
 in Delaware county, and for three decades 
 or more he was actively engaged in agri- 
 culture there. In 1856 he came to Illinois 
 and for twenty-one years was successfully 
 occupied in farming near Victoria. Knox 
 county. In 1870 he removed to a home- 
 stead in the vicinity of Cambridge, Illinois, 
 and February 27, 1872. he as summoned to 
 his reward. His first wife, the mother of 
 our subject, died when the son was young, 
 and the father subsequently married again. 
 The wife of his youth bore the maiden name 
 of Jane Hammond, and her father, Jonathan 
 Hammond, was an early settler in Dela- 
 ware county. New York, in which state her 
 birth took place. He was from the old 
 Green Mountain state, and was prominently 
 connected with the founding of Delaware 
 county. 
 
 The birth of the Rev. Horace Tiffany 
 occurred upon the parental Iioniestead in 
 Delaware county, September 4, 1831. He 
 received the benefits of the public schools 
 of that period and later attended the New 
 York Conference Seminary at Charlottes- 
 ville for two years. Thus thorough!}' 
 equipped for the arduous duties of life, the 
 young man commenced his career as a 
 teacher and for sex'en consecuti\'e vears de- 
 voted Iiimself to educational work. 
 
 In 1855 Mr. Tiffany remo\-ed to \'ic- 
 toria, Illinois, and for three years subse- 
 quent to his arrival here he taught school. 
 
 In 1858 he began preaching the gospel 
 as a local preacher and in September, 
 i860, he joined the Central Illinois con- 
 ference of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 and was licensed to preach the gospel. 
 In 1862 he was ordained to the office 
 of deacon and two years later was con- 
 stituted an elder in the church. For forty 
 years he has dwelt in Livingston and other 
 counties and for a score of years he was 
 one of the regular circuit riders, five con- 
 gregations being under his charge during a 
 part of this period. In many a humble home 
 he conducted funeral services, ofiiciated at 
 weddings, participated in happy reunions 
 and gatherings of the country people and 
 old settlers, and wherever he went he found 
 the genuine, hospitable welcome, character- 
 istic of our pioneers. He is greatly loved 
 in hundreds of tliese homes and no one in 
 this section of the state is more certainly en- 
 shrined in the hearts of the young and old. 
 He has dwelt in Cornell for several years 
 and previously lived in Reading and Rooks 
 Creek townships, this county. For some 
 four years he devoted his time as county 
 missionary in Livingston county in Sunday 
 school work and was greatly blessed in the 
 noble enterprise. In accordance with his 
 con\-ictions of duty, he has given his influ- 
 ence to the Prohibition party for the past 
 quarter of this century, but in his early 
 manhood he was a Republican. 
 
 In Otsego county, New York. Air. 
 Tift'any and Lucy J. Teel, a native of that 
 county, were united in marriage. March 2"/, 
 1 85 1. She was called to the better land, 
 June 12, 1897. and her place in this com- 
 munity can never l)e filled. Seven children 
 mourn the loss of their revered mother, and 
 her lovely life and high examiile will al- 
 ways prove an inspiration to them, as to all
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 381 
 
 who knew her. O. M. and Artliur E. are 
 engaged in newspaper work, tlie latter being 
 the editor of the Cornell Journal. O. M. 
 and L. H. Tiffany are residents of Tama 
 county, Iowa; W. B. is enaged in the grain 
 business at Oneida, Illinois.; Orrin S. is a 
 carpenter of Streator, Illinois, and William 
 S., of Cornell, is one of the street commis- 
 sioners. Rosa is the wife of U. G. Connett, 
 who owns a jewelry establishment in Cor- 
 nell. 
 
 WILLIAM BIDDLE. 
 
 William Biddle, a prominent and well- 
 to-do farmerof Xewtown township, Livings- 
 ton county, is an Englishman by birth and 
 training. He was born in Staffordshire Xo- 
 vember 7, 1833. and is a son of Lionel and 
 Elizabeth (Cumberbach) Biddle, who spent 
 their entire lives in that county, where the 
 father followed the occupation of farming. 
 In the family were ten children, but two 
 died before attaining the age of twenty 
 years, and all are now deceased with the 
 exception of Jane, wife of James Sjiffer- 
 botham, of England, and William, the sub- 
 ject of this sketch. 
 
 In the schools of his native land Mr. 
 Biddle acquired his education, and when a 
 young man commenced working in the 
 mines, following that pursuit for forty years. 
 He was married, in England, in 1853, to 
 Miss Harriet Barnett, and they have be- 
 come the parents of three children, two born 
 in that country and one in Illinois. ( i ) 
 \\'illiam, the eldest, is now engage<l in min- 
 ing in Missouri. He is married and has 
 three children : Albert, who lives with our 
 subject; John and Herbert. The wife and 
 mother makes her home in Streator. (j) 
 
 John A., who is living upon a part of his 
 father's farm in Xewtown township, is mar- 
 ried and has two children, Lyle and Cecil. 
 (3) Walter, who is engaged in farming 
 near Walnut, Lee county. Illinois, is mar- 
 ried and also has two children, Bertha and 
 (iuy. 
 
 It was in 1869 that Mr. Biddle came 
 to the L'nited States and first located in 
 Pennsylvania and later in Ohio, but in the 
 spring of 1870 came to Streator, La Salle 
 county. Illinois, where he followed mining 
 for twenty years, and then came to Livings- 
 ton county. In 1889 he purchased his pres- 
 ent farm of one hundred and twenty acres 
 on section 28, Xewtown township, and has 
 since devoted his time and energies to agri- 
 cultural pursuits. .\s he was a good miner, 
 he is also a good farmer, and is meeting 
 with most excellent success in his opera- 
 tions, carrying on general farming and 
 stock raising. He has tiled, fenced and im- 
 proxed his land, making it a most desirable 
 farm. Religiously I\Ir. Biddle and his fam- 
 ily are members of the Methodist Episcopal 
 church, and politically he is identified with 
 the Democratic party, but has never been 
 prevailed upon to accept office, though he 
 takes an active and commendable interest 
 in public affairs, and does all in his power to 
 ad\ance the interests of his township and 
 countv. 
 
 JACOB GIXGRICH. 
 
 Jacob Gingrich, whi), tluring the entire 
 span of his life, nearly three-score years, has 
 been associated with the development and 
 rapidly increasing prosperity of Livingston 
 county, is honored and respected by all who 
 enjoy his acquaintance. He always has
 
 382 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 gi\-en his earnest support to scliools and 
 pulilic enterprises calculated to benefit this 
 community and the state in general, nor has 
 he been remiss in the wider duties of a 
 patriotic son of America. 
 
 The subject of this review is of German 
 ancestry, though his father. John Gingrich, 
 was born within the borders of France. For 
 a wife the latter chose Barbara Garber, a 
 German lady, and together they came to the 
 hospitable shores of the United States sixty 
 years ago. They settled in Woodford coun- 
 ty, Illinois, cleared and improved a farm 
 and extended their possessions until eight 
 hundred acres comprised their landed es- 
 tates. The father departed this life in 1845, 
 and to his widow was left the task of rear- 
 ing their nine children. All lived to matur- 
 ily and four of the number still survive. 
 
 - The birth of Jacob Gingrich took place 
 in Wcjodford county. Illinois. July 28, 1842. 
 and it was not until during the last year of 
 the Ci\'il war that he remo\-ed from his na- 
 tive county. He aided his mother and 
 brothers in the management of the home- 
 stead, and when he was a mere youth he 
 mastered the carpenter's trade and gave his 
 attention to that calling exclusively for two 
 or three years. When the president issued 
 his first call to the lovers of the Union, he 
 was one of the first in his countv to respond: 
 He enlisted in April. 1861, and served for 
 three months, in the meantime assisting in 
 taking Columbus, Kentucky, and particijjat- 
 ing in various campaigns. He was seriously 
 ill about the time that his three months' en- 
 listment was completed, and he was honor- 
 ably discharged from the service. Return- 
 ing home he took up the duties of the old 
 homestead when he had sufficiently re- 
 covered and remained there about three 
 years. 
 
 In 1864 Mr. Gingrich and Susan Far- 
 rell were joinetl in wedlock. She was born 
 ir Ohio and is of German parentage. Eleven 
 cliildren bless their union, namely : Gusta- 
 vus, who is married and is engaged in farm- 
 ing in Iowa : John : David, who is married 
 and lix'ing in Flanagan, . Illinois; Peter; 
 Eunice, wife of Leonard Harris, of this 
 county : Emma ; Lizzie and Priscilla, who 
 are successfully engaged in teaching in this 
 county ; Manuel ; Jacob, Jr. and Susie. All 
 ha\-e recei\-ed excellent educational advan- 
 tages and are well qualified for the battles 
 of life. 
 
 Ruring the first year of their married 
 life our suljject and wife lived upon a rented 
 farm near Chenoa, McLean county, Illinois. 
 Subsequently they removed to Waldo town- 
 ship, Livingston county, and for fourteen 
 years resided upon two farms in that local- 
 ity. Then, coming to Amity township, Mr. 
 Gingrich rented land for a period, and in 
 1888 invested his carefully saved funds in 
 the property where he now dwells. Here he 
 owns two hundred and ninety acres, about 
 twn-thirds of which is under the plow and 
 producing good crops each year. The land 
 was timbered, £a\'e a tract of swamp and 
 twenty-seven acres of cleared land, at the 
 time that it came into his possession, and 
 there was no improvements in the shape of 
 buildings. He built a small house and in- 
 dustriously began the great task of clearing 
 and developing the farm, and to-day the 
 place bears little resemblance to that of long 
 ago. Substantial fences and farm buildings 
 speak well for the enterprise of the owner, 
 and the numerous fruit and shade trees add 
 greatly to the beauty of the place. 
 
 In p(jlitical matters Mr. Cjingrich is a 
 Democrat, though he has no aspirations to 
 occupv public positions. He belie\'es in lo-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 383 
 
 cal i;ii]irMVL-nK'nts ami lias materially aided 
 in the inaintenance of ,i;ni)(l tvovernnient, 
 well-cared-for liridges aii<l ijmper educa- 
 tiimal facilities for tlie young. He enjoys 
 the confidence of his neighbors and all with 
 whom he has had dealings, and to his chil- 
 dren he will leave the priceless heritage of 
 an untarnished name. 
 
 CHARLES ALBERT 1)1 XOX. 
 
 Charles .Mhert Dixon, one of the repre- 
 sentative citizens of Xewtown townshii). 
 residing on section 5. is a nati\e son of Li\'- 
 ingston county. Ijorn May 18. i<^5-2. His 
 parents, Charles and Sarah (Hodges) Dix- 
 on, were born, reared and married in Eng- 
 land, and on their emigration to .America 
 first settled near Dixon, Lee county. Illinois. 
 In early life the father followed the mason's 
 trade, hut after coming to this state engaged 
 in farming and the manufacture of lirick 
 ill connection with work at his trade. From 
 Dixon he removed to Magnolia, Putnam 
 county, and in 1848 came to Livingston 
 county, where he purchased one hundred 
 and sc\'enty-five acres of land at the govern- 
 ment ])rice of one dollar and a (|uarter per 
 acre. Our subject now holds the original 
 deed for the same. .\t that time it was all 
 wild prairie, and the first hf)me of the fam- 
 ily in this ccjiinty was a rude structure built 
 of rails, the cracks l)eing stopped up with 
 mud. They endured many hardships and 
 j)rivations; all grain had to be hauled to Chi- 
 cago with ox team, the trip consuming two 
 weeks, while the driver had to camp out 
 at night by the side of the road. Chicago at 
 that time was (|uite a small place. In his 
 new home the father met with well merited 
 
 success and was able to spend his last days 
 in retirement from active labor at Streator, 
 where he died in 1879. His wife departed 
 this life in 1871. He was an ardent worker 
 in the United Brethren cluirch. helped to 
 erect many churches of that denomination 
 and contributed liberally to their support. In 
 his political views he was a Republican and 
 did all in his power to advance the interest 
 of his party. 
 
 Our subject grew to manhood u])on his 
 father's farm and was educated in the com- 
 mon schools. When quite young he took 
 up auctioneering, and has since devoted a 
 ])ortion of his time to that calling, dealing 
 in all kinds of goods and meeting with most 
 excellent success. As a general farmer he 
 has also prospered and is now the owner of 
 one hundred and thirty-five acres of land 
 of the old homestead. He has erected a 
 new house and barn, planted an orchard, 
 tiled the land and otherwise improved it, 
 transforming it into one of the most desir- 
 able places of its size in the townshi]). He 
 devotes considerable attention to stock rais- 
 ing for market and breeding i)ur])oses, mak- 
 ing a specialty of Poland China hogs and 
 Xorman horses. He has made farming a 
 study, and by perseverance, industry and 
 good management has met with nii>st grati- 
 fying success. 
 
 In 1875 ^^^- Dixon was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Annie Mason, a native (jf 
 La Salle county and a daughter of Edward 
 and Xancy Mason, who have been dead for 
 a number of years. She is one of a family 
 of three children, the others being James 
 11.. supervisor of Streator township and a 
 resident of Streator; and Celestia. wife of 
 Henry Deenis, of the same place. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Dixon have two children: Clarissa 
 Mae. who was educated at the Streator high
 
 384 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD; 
 
 school, and Arthur Calvin, a graduate of 
 the same school, and now cashier and book- 
 keeper in X. L. Arthur's store at Streator. 
 By his ballot Mr^ Dixon supports the 
 nien and measures of the Republican [larty. 
 and has held several minor offices, serving 
 at school director nine years, constable four 
 years and thistle commissioner six years. 
 Fraternally he is a meml)er of the Knights 
 of Pythias Lodge. Xo. 534, of Long Point : 
 the Dramatic Order of the Knights of 
 Khorassan. X^). 22. of Streator, and the 
 Modern \\"oo(lmen Camp, Xo. 1444, of 
 which he has been banker for two years. He 
 is widely and favorably known throughout 
 the county, and by those who know him best 
 he is held in the highest regard. 
 
 F. M. PATTERSOX. 
 
 F. M. Patterson, a prosperous and sub- 
 stantial citizen of Reading township, Liv- 
 ingston county, Illinois, was born in Greene 
 county, Pennsylvania, May i'6, 1840, and is 
 a son of J. W. and Jemima (Lovell) Patter- 
 son, also natives of Greene county, which 
 was the birthplace of his paternal grand- 
 father, Daniel Patterson. The latter's par- 
 ents were from Paterson, Xew Jersey, 
 which place was named for early representa- 
 tives of the family in this country. His 
 ancestors came originally from Scotland and 
 settled on this side of the Atlantic in early 
 Colonial days. Those bearing the name of 
 Patterson took part both in the Rex'olution- 
 ary war and the war of 18 12. 
 
 In early life the father of our subject 
 learned the brickmaker's trade, which he 
 followed for some years in Pennsylvania and 
 later engaged in farming. In 1854, in com- 
 
 pany with his wife and children, he came 
 west and located in Cook county, Illinois, 
 ten miles from the court house in Chicago, 
 which city at that time contained about forty 
 thousand inhabitants. There he was man- 
 ager of a brickyard one year, and four of 
 his sons worked in the same. At the end of 
 that time moved to Deer Park township, 
 La Salle county, where he engaged in farm- 
 ing upon rented land three years, and in 
 1858 became a resident of Sunbury town- 
 ship, Livingston county, where he also rented 
 land for a time. At the breaking out of 
 the civil war he enlisted in the Eleventh Illi- 
 nois \'olunteer Infantry, and after being 
 mustered in at Ottawa went immediately 
 into active service with his regiment. He 
 was in a number of notable engagements, 
 and was killed at the battle of Fort Donel- 
 son in 1862. In politics he was a Republi- 
 can, and always took an active part in local 
 affairs. His wife survi\-ed him about fif- 
 teen years, and died at her home in Streator. 
 
 In their family were eight children, 
 namely ; Stephen P. was for many years a 
 farmer of Readino^ township, but is now 
 living a retired life in Streator; Rachel A. 
 is the wife of J. Fowler, of DeKalb, Illinois; 
 Jesse H. has made his home with our sub- 
 ject for the past twenty-five years; Francis 
 Alarion, our subject, is next in order of 
 birth ; Hugh S. is engaged in lead and sil- 
 ver mining in Denver, Colorado; Barnett 
 \\'., deceased, was a farmer of Deer Park 
 township. La Salle county; Arthur I. is a 
 mason of Streator; and Carrie S. is the wife 
 of Dr. E. E. \\'illiams, a practicing phvsi- 
 cian of Streator. 
 
 Francis M. Patterson began his educa- 
 tion in the schools of his native county, and 
 for a time attended school in Deer Park 
 township, La Salle county, and Sunbury
 
 F. M. PATTERSON.
 
 THE -BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 387 
 
 township, Livingston county. Illinois. He 
 was fourteen years of age when he came 
 with the family to this state, and Ijegan his 
 business career as an empidve in a brickyard 
 near Chicago. Later he wurkctl at farm 
 labor during the sumjner season, while he 
 attended school through the winter months. 
 In 1867, with his mother, he moved to 
 Streator, where he learned the carpenter's 
 trade with William H. Milligan, a contrac- 
 tor and builder at that time, and later he 
 engaged in the same occupation on his own 
 account for about fifteen years, and the same 
 time operating a planing mill, which was 
 the first built in Streator. He erected the 
 first school house in that place, and did an 
 extensive business, a large portion uf the 
 city being built under his supervision. Mr. 
 Patterson also owned and conducted a lum- 
 ber yard. In 1887 he purchased his pres- 
 ent farm of one hundred and sixty acres on 
 sections 11 and 12, Reading township, from 
 the Plumb estate, and has since engaged in 
 farming and stock raising, in which he has 
 also met with marked success. He annually 
 feeds many cattle and hogs which he sells 
 to the local dealers. In 1898 he leased forty 
 acres of his land to a syndicate of Streator 
 for the purpose of sinking a coal shaft, and 
 from that source now receives a royalty of 
 fourteen cents for screen coal and ten cents 
 for mine run. He owns city property, both 
 business and dwelling houses, in Streator, 
 and has a farm of one hundred 'and sixty 
 acres of land in Fillmore count}', Nebraska. 
 In 1894 he erected upon his farm in Reading 
 township a fine residence of nine rooms, fin- 
 ished in oak, with closets and a cellar. 
 
 In politics Mr. Patterson is a stanch Re- 
 publican, and cast his first presidential vote 
 for .\l)raham Lincoln, in 1864. He has been 
 a delegate to numerous county conventions 
 
 of his party, and was chairman of his dele- 
 gation the last time. For two terms he 
 served as school director, and in the spring 
 of 1895 he was elected supervisor of Read- 
 ing township, which positions he creditably 
 filled until the spring of 1899. He was 
 chairman of the committee on swamp lands 
 two years, and at different times was a mem- 
 ber of nearly all the more important com- 
 mittees. He is pre-eminently public-spirted 
 and progressive, and gives his support to 
 any enterprise which he believes calculated 
 to advance the general welfare of his town- 
 ship or county. 
 
 PHIL.WDER MORG.VX. 
 
 Philander ^lurgan, a highly respected 
 and honored citizen of Strawn. Illinois, now 
 living a retired life, is a worthy representa- 
 tive of the early pi(meers of this section of 
 the slate, and a true type of the energetic 
 hardy men who have activel)' assisted in de- 
 veloping and improving this beautiful and 
 fertile agricultural countr}'. 
 
 Mr. Morgan was born October 11, i^t,~,- 
 in La Salle county, Illinois, on a farm north 
 of Streator. and is a son of Ress and Re- 
 becca A. (Reeder) Morgan. The family 
 was founded in .America in 1624 by three 
 brothers, natives of Wales, who first settled 
 in \'irginia, but later one went to the Caro- 
 Imas, another to Kentucky, while the great- 
 great-grandfather of our subject remained 
 in \'irginia and founded the \-illage of Mor- 
 gantown, that state. He was a soldier o' 
 the Revolutionary war. The one that lo- 
 cated in the Carolinas was the father of 
 General Morgan of Revolutionary fame. 
 Our subject's grandfather, William Morgan,
 
 3S8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 was a native of \'irginia, where lie made his 
 home for many years, and then movecl to 
 Uniontown, Pennsyh'ania, wliere he en- 
 gaged in the manufacture of nails l^y hand. 
 In 1833 he came to Illinois and settled north 
 of Streator in La Salle county, where he 
 died about a year later. 
 
 Ress Morgan, father of our subject, was 
 born in Fayette county. Pennsylvania, in 
 1808. and remained there until 1828, when 
 he came to Pekin, Illinois, and enlisted as 
 a private in the Black Hawk war. He was 
 in Stillman's defeat and remained in the 
 service until hostilities ceased, being dis- 
 charged at Ottawa in 1832. He then spent 
 one year at his old home in Pennsylvania, 
 and at the end of that time returned to Illi- 
 nois, where he soon afterward married Miss 
 Rebecca A. Reeder, a daughter of David 
 and Sarah ( Whittaker ) Reeder. Her father 
 was a nati\e of \'irginia and a planter bv oc- 
 cupation. In 17S4, during his boyhood, he 
 removed to Cincinnati, where he was later 
 engaged engaged in mercantile business un- 
 til 1829, and then came to Pekin, Illinois, 
 where he followed farming for a time. He 
 was the first county judge of Tazewell coun- 
 ty. In 1834 he settled north of Streator 
 in La .Salle county, where he died in 1852, 
 his wife in 1S60, leaving five children, of 
 whom the mother of our subject was f<jurth 
 in order of birth. The W'hittaker family, 
 from which she was descended, was also of 
 \\"elsh origin and was founded in Xew Jer- 
 sey in 1620, making their home there for 
 many generations. Her grandmother Whit- 
 taker moved to Ohio in 1782, and in 1829 
 came to Illinois. 
 
 After his marriage Ress Morgan lived in 
 Pekin for a time, and in 1833 moved to La 
 Salle county, where he was engaged in the 
 sawmill business and in farmingf. He served 
 
 as count}' treasurer and assessor from 1848 
 to 1852. In the latter year he and our sub- 
 ject crossed the plains to California with 
 o>- teams and spent three years in prospect- 
 ing and mining, returning to Illinois in 
 1855. In i860 he moved from La Salle to 
 Livingston county and located in what was 
 then Belle Phairie township, but is now Fay- 
 ette township, having been set off from the 
 former. Here he continued farming until 
 his death, which occurred in the village of 
 Strawn in 1880. His wife also died in that 
 place in 1883. and the remains of both were 
 interred at Gibson. Illinois. 
 
 This worthy couple were the parents of 
 nine children, all born in La Salle county, 
 of whom our subject is the eldest. (2) 
 Mary is the wife of Moses i\I. K. McDowell, 
 a stock raiser of Gibson, and they have two 
 children : Frank and Thomas, who are en- 
 gaged in the commission business at the 
 stock yards in Chicago. (3) Foster, a 
 farmer of Francisville, Indiana, married 
 Sarah Case, and they have one child, War- 
 ren. (4) David R., now a farmer of Lake 
 CJty. Iowa, married V;irginia McDowell, 
 of Fairbur}-, Illinois, and they have two 
 children, Paul and Geneva. (5), Courtland, 
 a nursery man of Spring \'alley, Alinnesota, 
 married Alice Taylor, of that state, and they 
 have three children : Jessie R., Estella and 
 \\'eaver. ( 6 ) Rebecca was for many years 
 engaged in teaching in the district schools 
 of Livingston count}'. Init is now li\ing in 
 Gibson, Illinois. {7) Sarah is the wife of 
 Charles Mackey. of Streator, who is in the 
 mail service, and they have two children : 
 Belle, wife of Lewis Patch, of Streator, 
 where he is engaged in operating a foundry, 
 and Bernice, wife of William Gillett, who 
 i.s engaged in niercantile business in 
 Streator. (8) Laura is the wife of F. C.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 389 
 
 McDowell, a stdck raiser of Cjibson. (9) 
 Nettie is engaged in the millinery business 
 in the same place. 
 
 Philander Morgan is indebted to the 
 common schools of La Salle county for his 
 educational advantages. At the age of six- 
 teen he went with his father to California, 
 where they engaged in prospecting and min- 
 ing for three years, and then returned home 
 by way of the Panama route. In i860 he 
 came with his family to Livingston county, 
 the father having a farm of eight hundred 
 acres in what is now Fayette township, liut 
 at that time formed a part of Belle Prairie 
 township. He assisted in the arduous task 
 of breaking the land and placing it under 
 cultivation. Since the death of his parents 
 he had looked after the property accumulated 
 by himself and father, but is now practically 
 living a retired life in the village of Strawn, 
 where he owns a home. He also lias some 
 village property in Gibson, and owns a large 
 amount of farming land in Iowa, where he 
 spends some time looking after his interests 
 in that state. 
 
 Politically Mr. Morgan is a Jeffersonian 
 Democrat and has taken (|uite an active and 
 prominent i)art in local politics, having 
 served as supervisor of Fayette township 
 one term, assessor eighteen years and high- 
 way commissioner for the same length of 
 time. He laid out all the roads in tiie town- 
 shij) and gave to it the name of Fayette, 
 after the county in which his father was 
 born, and which was also the birthplace of 
 Richard Hannah, then supervisor of the 
 township. Our subject's sister Mary was 
 the first to be married in the new township, 
 and Mary Jane McCormick, now the wife of 
 William Somers, oi Strawn, was the first 
 child born there. Mr. Morgan iias seen al- 
 most the entire development of this region. 
 
 and as a public-spirited and enterprising 
 man he has aided materially in promoting 
 its interests, assisting in transforming the 
 cultivated districts in the state. He has been 
 a nieml)er of the village l)oard a great many 
 years and president of the same ten vears. 
 
 JOllX H. BRUCE. 
 
 John H. Bruce, whose jjleasant home is 
 situated in section 34. .\mity township. Liv- 
 ingston county, is one of the substantial ag- 
 riculturists of this section of the state. He 
 has' been a witness of the major portion of 
 its development and has himself played no 
 unimportant part in the transformation of 
 the wilderness into the beautiful, productive 
 farm lands of to-day. 
 
 Mr. Bruce, who is a second cousin of 
 General John A. Logan, is a son of Thomas 
 and Ellen (Logan) Bruce. The father, a 
 native of Scotland, departed this life when 
 our subject was young. The mother was 
 a daughter of John .\. Logan, who also 
 came of the stanch old Celtic stock, and 
 whose birthplace was in the northern jiart 
 of Ireland. 
 
 Bom July 26, 1834, in Glasgow, Scot- 
 land, John H. Bruce remembers little of his 
 father, and was reared by his uncle, Robert 
 Bruce. About 1840 this wortliy man emi- 
 grated to Xova Scotia, and there the youth 
 of our subject was passed. He received a 
 fair education in the public schools, and in 
 "1856 he determined to go to the west and 
 make his fortune. For two years he resided 
 in Kansas, and. as he had previously learned 
 the l)lacksmitli's trade, he found i)lenty of 
 employment. For nearly two years he served 
 as a member of the state troops, for in those
 
 390 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 days and in that locality Kansas was the 
 scene of fierce factions, for and against 
 slavery and state's rights. 
 
 In 1858 Air. Bruce went to California 
 by the long overland route and spent about 
 a twelvemonth on that coast. He engaged 
 in mining operations to some extent, but 
 found that his trade was more certain of 
 good recompense, and for a period he was 
 employed by the Overland Stage Company 
 in shoeing mules and horses. In the fall 
 of 1861 he returned by stage through Ari- 
 zona and Texas, and then came to Li\-ings- 
 ton county. Here he. bought two liundred 
 and forty acres of unimproved land, and at 
 once commenced the great task of placing 
 it under cultivation. For several years he 
 conducted a blacksmith shop in connection 
 with his farming, and is was not until 1864 
 that he came to dwell upon his land in Amity 
 township. Within a few years he had cleared 
 away the timber and brushwood with which 
 the land was encumbered, and later he 
 further impnn-ed parts of the pro])ertv h\ 
 laying tile where needed, planting an orchard 
 and building fences, enlarging and remodel- 
 ing the house which he had originally con- 
 structed, putting up barns and granaries. 
 By his well-directed energy he has made a 
 competence and the reputation of being one 
 of the most thorough, practical farmers and 
 keen financiers of this region. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Bruce and Sarah 
 Edwards took place in this county September 
 6, 1863. She was born and reared in this 
 part of Illinois and spent her entire life here. 
 She was called to the home beyond Septem- 
 ber 14, 1875, and left two children, namely: 
 Nettie, wife of Lewis Ryerson, of Rooks 
 Creek township, Livingston county, and 
 Mary, wife of Andrew Wiggins, of Iowa. 
 Mr. Bruce wedded Mary Horrie, September 
 
 3. 1876. She is a native of New York 
 state, and is of Eng^lish descent, as her fa- 
 ther, David Horrie, was born in Englantl. 
 Elizabeth, the first-born child of J. H. and 
 Mary Bruce, married J. J. Phillips, of 
 Chenoa. Illinois. William H., the only son 
 i)f our subject and wife, is a promising 
 young man. He assists in the management 
 of the home farm and is identified with the 
 Illinois state guards. 
 
 The first presidential ballot of J. H. 
 Bruce was cast for Lincoln. Of late vears 
 he has been independent of party and votes 
 for the man or measure best entitled to his 
 support, in his opinion, regardless of party 
 lines. Fraternally he is a member of the 
 Odd Fellows order, is past grand of his lodge 
 and has represented it in the grand lodge 
 of the state. For a cjuarter of a century he 
 has served as a member of the school board, 
 and for much of this time he has been clerk 
 of this district. With his wife and daugh- 
 ters he belongs to the Baptist church, con- 
 tributing liberally to its support. 
 
 JOHN T. PHILLIPS. 
 
 John T. Phillips, whose farm of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres is pleasantly located on 
 section 10. Pike township, Livingston coun- 
 ty, six miles from Chenoa, was born in Taze- 
 well county, Illinois, September 14, 1837, 
 and is a son of Alfred and Susanna N. 
 (Cullom) Phillips, natives of North Caro- 
 lina and Kentucky, respectively. The father 
 was born in 1794, and in 1804 moved to 
 Wayne county. Kentucky, with his father, 
 Cornelius Phillips, who was also a native 
 of North Carolina. In 1830 Alfred Phillips 
 moved to Illinois in company with his 
 brothers-in-law, Richard N. Cullom and
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 391 
 
 William Brown, all bringing with them 
 their families and settling in Tazewell coun- 
 ty, where Mr. Phillips opened up a farm. 
 making it his home until his death, in 1S75. 
 His wife survived him, but died the same 
 year, at the age of seventy-one years. 
 
 The subject of this sketch was reared 
 and educated in the county of his nativity, 
 and in early life assisted in the operation of 
 the home farm. He was married, in Taze- 
 well county. February 28. 1861. to Miss 
 Elizabeth S. Monroe, a native of Scotland 
 antl a daughter of William Monroe, who 
 brought his family to this countrj- in 1853, 
 when she was fourteen years of age, and 
 located in Tazewell county, Illinois, where 
 she grew to womanhood. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Phillips have nine children living, namely : 
 Lilly is the wife oi John H. Sandmeyer. a 
 farmer of Pike township. They have a fam- 
 ily of eight children. Edith. Eugene, John, 
 Lillian. Isabel. Avis. Elizabeth and Vincent. 
 Isabel is a well educated lady and has been 
 engageil in teaching for some years. Will- 
 iam A. married Sophia Salzman. and they 
 have two children. Llewellyn and Julia A. 
 He is engaged in farming in Pike township. 
 Edward A. is married and is also engaged 
 in farming in Pike township. Lucius C. 
 married Elizabeth Crabbe. and their children 
 are Shelby and Kenneth. Their home is in 
 Pike township, where he is engaged in farm- 
 ing. Margaret is the wife of C. A. Jamison, 
 of Amity township, Livingston county. 
 They have three children, Estella, Harold 
 and Ross. Morris M. marrietl Xellie Blake 
 and they have one child. Mildred. He is 
 also engaged in farming in Pike township, 
 ^laud and Ralph W. E. are at home. Those 
 deceased were Xora. who died at the age of 
 three years, and Jane T., who died in in- 
 fancy. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Phillips engaged 
 in farming upon rented land in Tazewell 
 county until 1870. when he came to Livings- 
 ton county and purchased a farm of one 
 hundred and twenty acres in Pike township, 
 which place he sold in 1875. and now owns 
 the farm where he now resides. He is a 
 thorough and skillful farmer, and the neat 
 thrifty appearance of the place plainly in- 
 dicates his careful supervision. Since cast- 
 ing his first presidential vote for Abraham 
 Lincoln in i860, he has given his unqualified 
 support to the Republican party and its 
 principles, and has taken an active and prom- 
 inent part in local politics, serving as a dele- 
 gate to nearly all the county, state, con- 
 gressional and senatorial conventions of his 
 party. He filled the office of assessor of 
 Pike township twenty years, and has been 
 a trustee of the township for a number of 
 years. Whatever position he has been called 
 Upon to fill, its duties he has always most 
 capably and satisfactordy performed, and 
 he is numbered among the useful and valued 
 citizens of his community. His estimable 
 wife is a member of the Presbyterian church. 
 
 STEPHEN H. PATTERSON. 
 
 Stephen H. Patterson, one of the suc- 
 cessful farmers and stock raisers of Livings- 
 ton county, is ranked among our representa- 
 tive citizens. He is an honored veteran of 
 the Civil war and is deservedly popular 
 among his old comrades. At present he is 
 serving as commander of the Grand Anuy 
 Post at Cornell, and discharges his import- 
 ant duties in a highly commendable and 
 efficient manner. 
 
 Several generations of the Pattersons
 
 392 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 dwelt in Pennsylvania, and die maternal an- 
 cestors of our subject — the Helms — also 
 Avere numbered among the pioneers of the 
 Keystone state. A son of Samuel and 
 grandson of William Patterson, natives oi 
 Washington county, Pennsylvania, Stephen 
 H. was born January 26, 1840. His birth- 
 place, as well as that of his mother, Mrs. 
 Eliza (Helm) Patterson, also was in the 
 county mentioned, and there the lad grew 
 to manhood. His maternal grandfather, 
 William Helm, was of German extraction. 
 
 In 1852 the Patterson family removed 
 to Illinois, the father. Samuel Patterson, 
 buying a farm in La Salle county. Later, 
 he sold that place and came to Livingston 
 county, locating on the (piarter-section of 
 land in Amity township, now owned by our 
 subject. He had lost his first wife in 1852, 
 and is survived by the lady who afterwards 
 bore his name. He was called to the slient 
 land in 1879 and four sons were left to 
 mourn his loss. One son, Charles, had of- 
 fered his life upon the altar of his country, 
 his death having occurred while he was in 
 the Union army, at St. Louis, in 1863. An- 
 other son, John, who was married and re- 
 sided in La Salle and Livingston counties, 
 died a few years ago. William and Sam- 
 uel are agriculturists of La Salle county. 
 
 Stephen H. Patterson early learned the 
 lessons essential to the successful farmer, 
 and, under his father's wise instructions, he 
 laid the foundation for a prosperous career. 
 When he was in his nineteenth year he 
 started out to make his own way in the 
 world, and, carefully husbanding his small 
 earnings, he finally had sufficient funds to 
 embark in business on his own account. Lo- 
 cating near Streator he rented a farm for fi\e 
 years, after which he bought out the inter- 
 ests of the other heirs of his father's home- 
 
 stead and returned to the place so dear to 
 him, by old associations. To the original 
 tract of one hundred and twenty acres, he 
 subsequently added forty acres. Industrious- 
 Iv setting about the task of improving the 
 farm he soon had everything in fine running 
 order, and liy judicious expenditure greatly 
 increased the value and productiveness of 
 the place. He keeps a good grade of cattle 
 and hogs and has been successful in" stock 
 raising. 
 
 On Christmas day, 1871, 2\Ir. Patterson 
 wedded Cynthia Hathaway, in La Salle 
 county. She is a native of Washington 
 county, Pennsylvania, and is a daughter of 
 Smieon Hathaway, who removed to La 
 Salle county, Illinois, more than thirty years 
 ago. Three children bless the union of Mr. 
 and Mrs. Patterson. Charles, the eldest, is 
 an enterprising young man, now engaged 
 iii assisting to carry on the home farm. Guy 
 and Emma, twins, are yet under the shelter 
 of the home roof-tree. A little girl, Ida 
 ^lav C. Patterson, also is numbered among 
 the members of this happy household. 
 
 On the nth of August, 1862, Mr. Pat- 
 terson enlistetl in Company B, One Hundred 
 and Fourth Illinois Infantry. His regiment 
 was assigned ti> the .\rmy of the Tennessee, 
 and with Jiis comrades our su1)ject took part 
 in manv of the important campaigns of the 
 Civil war. He was actively engaged in the 
 battles of Chattanooga, Chickamauga, Mis- 
 sionar\- Ridge, Lookout Mountain and sub- 
 secpiently in the Atlanta campaign, where 
 for nearlv five months there was almost con- 
 stant fighting along the line. He aided in 
 the capture of Atlanta, marched with Sher- 
 man on his famous march to the sea, and, 
 afterwards went to Washington and parti- 
 cipated in the grand review, one of the most 
 stirring events and memorable scenes of this
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 393 
 
 republic. He was honorably discharged 
 from the service in Chicago. June 17, 1865. 
 when the terrible cmtlict had come to a 
 close. 
 
 His first presidential ballot was cast tor 
 General U. S. Grant, and with the exception 
 of a few times when he supported Prohibi- 
 tion nominees, he has given his allegiance 
 tj the Republican party, as in this. ali>ne. 
 he sees the best policy for the country. For 
 tliree years he served as commissioner of 
 highways and for several years he has otih- 
 ciatcd as a member of the school boartl and 
 as clerk of the same. Both he and his wife 
 are members of the Methodist Protestant 
 church. He is one nf the trustees i>f the 
 congregatiiin and has been a very acti\e 
 and valued worker in the Snndav school. 
 
 HKXRV .\. S.XF.MISCH. 
 
 Henry A. Saeniisch, a representative 
 farmer of Livingston county, residing on 
 section 2, Long Point township, is a native 
 of Germany, born in Prussia, October 13, 
 1844. and is a son of Andrew and Julia 
 (Rice) Saeniisch, natives of the same pro- 
 vince. In that country the father followed 
 the cooper's trade until 1852, when with his 
 family he emigrated to the new world. 
 After about a year spent in La Salle county, 
 Illinois, he came to Livingston county and 
 located in Long Point township, where he 
 worked at his trade for some time, hauling 
 the product to L'tica. In this way he se- 
 cured a start in life and was at length able 
 to purchase one hundred and sixty acres 
 of land, although he had no capital on com- 
 ing to the countv. His success was due en- 
 
 tirely to his industry, perseverance and good 
 management. He died in 1883. at alxnit 
 the age of eighty-fi\'e years, but his wife, 
 who was born in 1816. still survives him. 
 She is still living in Long Point townshi]). 
 Both were members of the Cierman Lutheran 
 church, and in ])i)litics the father was a 
 Democrat. Of the ten children born to 
 them the following are still li\ing: Louisa, 
 wife of Jacob Schoenleber, of Ransom, La 
 Salle county ; Fritz, a farmer of Cass coun- 
 to. Iowa: Henry A., our subject: Mary, 
 wife of Charles Kaiser. Pottawattomie coun- 
 t}', Iowa: Robert J., a resident nf Long 
 Point ttnvnship, Livingston county; Julia, 
 widow of Theodore Girard and a rcside;it 
 of the same township, and Andrew, also of 
 Long Point township. Julia and .\ndrew 
 were born in Illinois, the others in i'russia, 
 Germany. 
 
 The subject of this sketch was (|u!tc 
 small on the emigration of the family to 
 America, and his education was obtained in 
 the common schools of Long Point town- 
 shi]). He remained at home until about 
 lhirly-fi\e \-ears of age, managing the farm 
 lor his father, and ac(|uiring an e.xcellent 
 knowledge of all the duties which fall to the 
 lot of the agriculturist. In iSSi he was 
 united in marriage witii Miss .\inelia 
 Stiethman. who was also burn in I'russia. 
 in 1855. '^"'^1 when about se\enteen years 
 of age came to this country with her sister, 
 Augusta, now deceased. They were the 
 only members of the family in .America. 
 Five children were born to our subject and 
 his wife, but two died in early childhood. 
 Those living are Frank IL. Luella and 
 Bertha A., all at home. They attendeil the 
 district schools, and I-rank was also a 
 student at a German school in Streator for 
 one term.
 
 394 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 After his marriage ]Mr. Saemisch lo- 
 cated on the farm on one liundred acres in 
 Long Point township, wliich he liad pur- 
 chased in 1870. At that time it was all 
 wild prairie and swamp land, but he has 
 tiled and drained it, erected good and sub- 
 stantial buildings, planted an orchard and 
 otherwise improved the place, so that it is 
 now ijne of the nuist ilesirable farms of its 
 size in the township. He carries on general 
 farming and has met with good success. 
 
 Religiously Mr. Saemisch is a member 
 of the Lutheran cinnxh, and, politically, is 
 independent, voting for the man whom he 
 believes best qualified to fill the position 
 regardless of party lines. He has served 
 as school director in his district for a num- 
 ber of terms, and has always faithfully dis- 
 charged any duty devolving upon him, 
 whether public or private. 
 
 XATHAX SPRINGER. 
 
 In tracing the history of the Springer 
 family, of which the subject of this review 
 is a worthy representative, it is learned that 
 the founder of the branch in the United 
 States was one Christopher Springer, who 
 was a native of Germany. He had resided 
 in Sweden jJrevious to his coming to these 
 hospitable shores, and there had occupied 
 a responsible position. When a little colony 
 of Swedish people decided to come to this 
 country he joined their ranks, and with 
 them located on lands near Wilmington, 
 Delaware, and from that point his descend- 
 ants have emigrated to all sections of this 
 continent. 
 
 The paternal grandfather of our subject, 
 Uriah Springer, was born .and reared in 
 Virginia, and at an early day removed to 
 
 the wilds of Brown count3\ Ohio. His son, 
 Nathan Springer, Sr., was born on the old 
 h.omestead. wliich had been cleared in the 
 forest. When he arrived at maturity he 
 chose Lydia Lucas as a wife, and about 1832 
 they removed to \'ermilion county, Illinois, 
 accompanied by their respective parents and 
 families. Mrs. Springer was a native of 
 Brown county, Ohio, and was a daughter 
 of John Lucas. After tilling the soil in 
 Vermilion county for a score of years, Na- 
 than Springer, Sr., came to Livingston 
 county, where his father had taken up a 
 large tract of land and had become wealthy 
 and influential. He had served in various 
 local positions and was looked up to with 
 respect by all who knew him. When the 
 death summons came to him he was placed 
 to rest in Short Point cemetery, which he 
 liad laid out on his own land, in Amity 
 township. From 1853 to 1872, the year of 
 his death, Nathan Springer, Sr., was active- 
 ly and successfully engaged in farming in 
 Long Point township. He had located on 
 a quarter-section of prairie land, and dili- 
 geutly improved the place, building a sub- 
 stantial house and barn. His devoted wife 
 sur\'ived him nineteen years and for much 
 of this period she was a member of her son, 
 Nathan's household. The father attained 
 the age of three-score and ten, while the 
 mother was in her eighty-fifth year when 
 she was called to her reward. Both are 
 sleeping their last sleep in Earp cemetery, in 
 Amit}' township. 
 
 The birth of Nathan Springer, Jr., took 
 place in Vermilion county, Illinois, June 9, 
 1845, 'ii'^i liis boyhood was spent in the usual 
 pursuits of country lads. He learned to love 
 his native land with the devotion of a true 
 patriot, and when her stability was threat- 
 ened, he eagerly responded to the call of the
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 395 
 
 jiresident fur luyal srnis. ready to lay their 
 li\es down for their principles. He was only 
 seventeen years old when he enlisted in the 
 One Hundred anil Twenty-ninth Illinois 
 Vohinteer Infantry, in 1862, and he faith- 
 fully served in the ranks of Company C until 
 the close of the war, his honorable discharge 
 from the army occurring June 19, 1865. 
 He participated in some of the most import- 
 ant campaigns of the great war, at first being 
 assigned to the Army of the Cumberland. 
 Among the numerous battles in which he 
 took part, Buzzards' Roost, Resaca, Dallas, 
 Kennesaw Mountain, Peach Tree Creek and 
 Bentonville may be mentioned. His last 
 service was untler the leadership of Sher- 
 man in the Atlanta campaign, where 
 battles and skirmishes were of almost daily 
 occurrence. The last serious conflict in 
 which he was engaged was that of Benton- 
 ville, North Carolina, and after marching 
 from Richmond to Washington, he was one 
 ci the blue-coated veterans who were in the 
 Grand Review. During his long and ardu- 
 ous service, the young man was slightly 
 wounded three times and three or four times 
 was in the hospital for short periods. 
 
 For two or more 3'ears subsequent to his 
 return home, j\lr. Springer aided in the man- 
 agement of the parental farm. After his 
 marriage, in 1867, he rented a farm and a 
 few years later purchased a tract of wild 
 land in Long Point township. When he 
 had materially improved the property he sold 
 it and removed to Allen county, Kansas. 
 For about one year he engaged in farming 
 there and then, in 1884, returned to Illinois 
 and rented land for another year. About 
 fifteen years ago he located upon his pres- 
 ent homestead in section 19, Amity town- 
 ship, and at once instituted a series of 
 changes in its management. He has built 
 
 a comfortable house and barns, and by tiling 
 and fencing has materially increased the 
 \ alue of the farni. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Springer and Mary 
 Catherine Carpenter took place September 
 12, i8C)~. Mrs. Si)ringer is a 'native of 
 Ohio antl since 1854 has been a resident of 
 Illinois, as in the year mentionetl her father, 
 Robert Carpenter, became a pioneer of Liv- 
 ingston county. Robert I\I., the eldest child 
 of our sul)ject and his wife, is married and 
 is a successful farmer of this county. Dur- 
 ing the Spanish-American war he enlisted 
 and was sent to Porto Rico for a period. 
 Charles Walter is married and is numbered 
 among the farmers of this township. Na- 
 than, Martha anil Francis are at home. 
 -Monza, who is the head of the h<.)usehold 
 in this township, is engaged in tilling the 
 soil. Otto C, a promising young man in 
 his nineteenth year, was accidentally killed, 
 ^larch 12, 1898. Sarah Elizabeth died at 
 the age of four years. 
 
 For two years Mr. Springer otificiated 
 as assessor, and after serving for two terms 
 — some five years — as highway commis- 
 sioner, he resigned, in order to give his 
 whole attention to his business affairs. A 
 lirm friend to education, he acted as a mem- 
 ber of the school board for a score of years 
 or more, and also was clerk of the district. 
 Fraternally, he belongs to the Masonic fra- 
 ternity, and, politically, he is a Democrat. 
 He enjoys the esteem of all of his neighbors 
 and associates, as he justly deserves, for his 
 course of life has been upright and honnrable. 
 
 HENRY BELDEN WATSON. 
 Henry Belden Watson, a thrifty and en- 
 terprising farmer residing on section 15, 
 Forrest township, Livingston countv, Illi-
 
 396 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 nois, was born in Litchfield county, Con- 
 necticut, February 5, 1837, a son of George 
 and Jane (Belden) Watsoji. On the ma- 
 ternal side he is of the tenth generation in 
 direct descent from Richard Belden, a na- 
 tive of England, who settled in Wethers- 
 field, Connecticut, in 1640, and died in 1655. 
 His son, John Belden, was born in England, 
 in 1633, was married, April 24, 1657, and 
 died in 1677, in Wethersfield, Connecticut, 
 lea\ing se\en children. One of these, Jona- 
 than Belden, was born in Wethersfield, Jan- 
 uary' 21, 1660, was married, October 10, 
 1685, to Mary ^Vrig•ht, and died July 6, 
 1734. Of their five children, Silas was born 
 in Wethersfield, July 2},, 1691, was married, 
 NoAcmber 30, 1716, to Abigail Rubens, and 
 died in 1742, leaving seven children. His 
 son, Silas Belden, Jr., was born in Wethers- 
 field, November 30, 171 7, and moved to 
 Caanan, Connecticut, where he died in 1773. 
 Jonathan Belden, son of Silas, Jr., was born 
 in 1738, and married his second cousin, 
 Sarah Belden, who was born in 1744, and 
 died October 26, 1777, while he died Jan- 
 uary 9, 1774. Their son, Jonathan Belden, 
 Jr., was born June 17, 1773, and married 
 Love Dean, who was born October 10, 1783, 
 and died September 8, 1832, while he died 
 September 24, 1831. They lived near 
 Falls Village, Connecticut, and were the 
 maternal grandparents of our subject. 
 
 The paternal grandfather, Thomas Wat- 
 son, was born in New Hartford, Connecti- 
 cut, October 15, 1763, and throughout life 
 followed farming. On the ist of January, 
 1797, he married Millicent Wetmore, who 
 was born January 10, 1772, a daughter of 
 Joel and Sarah (Yyman) Wetmore. The 
 grandfather was a member of Colonel Zebu- 
 Ion Butler's regiment in the Continental 
 armv during the Revolutionarv \\ar, and 
 
 for his service he was receix'ing a pension at 
 the time of his death, which occurred Jan- 
 uary 23, 1850, on the old homestead farm in 
 the same house where our subject was born. 
 He was a man of independent mind and con- 
 servative in his views, was a Henry Clay 
 Whig, and a member of the Congregational 
 church. Industrious and frugal in his habits, 
 he became a successful farmer and at the 
 time of his death left an estate which in- 
 ventoried, free from incumbrance, fifteen 
 thousand (Mie hundred and fifty-eight dol- 
 lars. George Watson, father of our sub- 
 ject, was born in New Hartford, Connecti- 
 cut, March 12, 181 2, and followed the occu- 
 pation of farming in that state until 1843, 
 when he and his family came to Illinois, lo- 
 cating in Warren count}-, where he pur- 
 chased a tract of go\ernment lantl at one 
 dollar and a quarter per acre. This he 
 broke and improved, making it his home 
 throughout the remainder of his life. He 
 died at Roseville, Illinois, November 26, 
 1886. He was an extensive farmer and 
 stock raiser and a prosperous and success- 
 ful business man. In New Hartford, Con- 
 necticut, he \vas married, September 10, 
 1833, to Jane Belden, who was born at Falls 
 Village, that state, March 4, 181 1, and died, 
 April 22, 1867. 
 
 There were three children by this union, 
 of whom our subject is the eldest. (2) 
 Emma V., the second, is the wife of Charles 
 Hotchkiss, a farmer of Cheshire, Connecti- 
 cut, and they had three children : Minnie, 
 born January 2, 1869; Clarence H., who 
 w-as born September 24, 1870, and died May 
 24. 1877, and Harriet T., born January 27, 
 '^''^77'- (3) Irene Jane, born November 3, 
 1840, is the wife of Harry Wooding, also 
 a farmer of Cheshire, Connecticut, and they 
 have two children : Ida Estella, born Sep-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 397 
 
 temher 8. 1868, married Benjainin Hatheld, 
 July 12. 1S90, resides in Xew Haven. Con- 
 necticut ; and Waldo, born February 23, 
 1874. unmarried, resides in Chesliire witli 
 his parents. 
 
 In 1844, at the age of seven years. Hemy 
 E. Watson, of this review, was l)rouglit to 
 Warren county. llHnois. by his uncle. Roman 
 Watson, where he lived until he attained his 
 majority, herding sheep on the prairie about 
 eight years and later doing other farm work. 
 He then engaged in farming on his own ac- 
 cttunt until after the Civil war broke out, 
 when he enlisted at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 
 November 3, 1863, in Company A, First 
 Wisconsin Artillery. He was promoted to 
 second lieutenant in the Eleventh United 
 States Artillery, February 2, 1865, and hon- 
 orably discharged at Providence, Rhode Is- 
 land, October 25, 1865. The hardest fought 
 battle in which he took part was that of Fort 
 Stevens, near Washington, July 11, and 12, 
 1864, and it was here that he received his 
 promotion and commission of second lieuten- 
 ant. After his discharge he returned to 
 Illinois, and bought eighty acres of his pres- 
 ent farm in Forrest township, Livingston 
 county, for which he paid fifteen dollars per 
 acre. In 1S82 he purchased another eighty 
 acres, paying for the same forty-five dollars 
 per acre, and now has a fine farm of one hun- 
 dred and sixty acres, which is well tiled and 
 under excellent cultivation. His home is 
 one of the best in the township. 
 
 Mr. Watson was married, November 1 1 , 
 1868, at Forrest, to Miss Emma J. Francis, 
 who was born August 15. 1850. a daughter 
 of John and Margaret (Ross) Francis. 
 They have three children, of whom Flora 
 Adelaide, born January 16, 1870. is the 
 oldest. Thomas F., born September i. 1871. 
 is engaged in farming on section 19. Char- 
 
 lotte township. He married .Mice Owen, 
 and they have three daughters : Mary, Bessie 
 and Florence. George Edward, born Jan- 
 uary 21. 1885. is attending school and assists 
 his father on the farm. 
 
 Religiously Mr. Watson is a member of 
 the Congregational church, and. socially, is 
 a nieniljer of I'orrest Post. Xo. 114. G. A. 
 R., of which he has been commander sev- 
 eral times. He always affiliates with the 
 Republican party, but has never sought of- 
 fice. He is entirely a self-made man. who 
 by hard work, perseverance and good man- 
 jigement has become quite well-to-do and 
 highly respected. 
 
 THOMAS WllALEX. 
 
 Thomas \\ lialen. wiin is wel and favora- 
 bly known in Roks Creek tt)wnship. Liv- 
 ingston county, is a native of Ireland, his 
 birth having occurred February 8, 1845. 
 He is a son of Michael and Mary ( Doran) 
 Whalen, of counties Wexford and Carlo, 
 respectively. The father, who was born in 
 1787, departed this life when in his sixty- 
 si.xth year, and the mother lived until Feb- 
 ruary, 1 886. 
 
 Thomas Whalen was al)out four years 
 of age when he accompanied the parental 
 family to the L'nitetl States. Sailing from 
 the Emerald Isle to Xew Orleans and thence 
 proceeding up the Mississippi and Illinois 
 rivers to Ottawa, Illinois, they located on 
 a farm on the 17th of March, 1849. Some- 
 three years sul)sequently the father was sum- 
 moned to the silent land, and to the mother 
 fell the task of rearing their six sons and 
 four daughters, and of tho number only one 
 is decea.sed at the time of this writing.
 
 398 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 In 1856 Thomas Whalen, his mother 
 and brothers and sisters, came to Living- 
 ston county, and for forty-four years he 
 has been associated with its upbuilding. 
 His educational privileges were extremely 
 meager, but by obser\-ation and reading he 
 lias become well informed on general topics 
 since he reached manhood. He possesses 
 the ready wit and keenness of perception so 
 characteristic of liis race. Ofttimes he has 
 been called upon to make addresses at pub- 
 lic meetings and on the Fourth of July. 
 His first address was at Flanagan, July 4, 
 1885. With the exception of two years he 
 has delivered addresses at different points 
 each year since. 
 
 Loyally did Thomas Whalen aid his 
 mother in the maintenance of the family 
 when he was a young man, and it was not 
 until October 22, 1871. that he embarked 
 on an independent career, his marriage to 
 Miss Mary Whosler being solemnized on 
 that date. A native of La Salle county, Il- 
 linois, she came to this locality when six 
 years of age, and after uniting her fortunes 
 with Mr. Whalen she faithfully shared his 
 joys and sorrows during the early years 
 of his struggling for a competonce. She 
 was called to her reward December 20, 
 18S5. her youngest child, Fannie, being Imt 
 three weeks old. Ivatie, the first Ijorn, re- 
 ceived an excellent education in the puljlic 
 schools at Morris, Illinois, and in St. Alary"s 
 College, South Bend, Indiana, and is now 
 employed as a teacher in that institution of 
 learning". Mary, the next child, is num- 
 be-red among the teachers of this county. 
 Fannie resides with her maternal grand- 
 parents, and Josejjhine is at Morris, Illinois, 
 in school. John W., the only son, now an 
 enterprising young man, is helping to carry 
 on the old homestead. On the 8th of Feb- 
 
 ruary, 1893. oiu" suliject married ]\Iiss Kate 
 McGreham. who was born and reared to 
 womanhood in Ireland. 
 
 For two-score years Thomas Whalen 
 has been engaged in tilling the soil in this 
 county. In 1866 he purchased his farm on 
 section 7, Rooks Creek township, and here 
 has made wonderful changes for the bet- 
 ter. He planted fruit and shade trees, built 
 fences, a substantial house and barns, and 
 otherwise improved the projierty. In 1875 
 he bought forty acres, thus increasing the 
 boundaries of his farm until it comprised 
 one hundred and twenty acres, and in 1892 
 he invested in an additional eighty acres. 
 Success has attended his efforts, as he justly 
 deserves, and sterling rectitude of word and 
 deed has won him the high regard of friends 
 and neighbors. 
 
 Politically, Mr. ^^'halen is independent, 
 voting for the nominee or measure which, 
 in his opinion, is best qualified to benefit 
 the county, permanently. In 1888 he was 
 ekcted to the office of justice of the peace, 
 and by consecutive re-elections has been the 
 incumbent of this responsible position for 
 the past twelve years. He has also served 
 on the local school board, and for some time 
 has been the district clerk, as well. He was 
 the first president of the county Fanners' 
 Alliance on its organization. With his 
 family, he belongs to the Catholic church at 
 Flanagan. 
 
 FREDERICK RISS. 
 
 Frederick Riss, one of the leading Ger- 
 man-American citizens of Livingston coun- 
 ty, and a successful farmer of Newton town- 
 ship, was born in Mecklenburg, Germany, 
 February 2, 1851, and was brought to this
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 399 
 
 country in iS;6 by liis parents. Christian 
 and Helena (W'ingleman) Riss, who were 
 I)(irn in the same province as tlieir son. The 
 family first located in La Salle county. Illi- 
 nois, which at that time was wild and unim- 
 proved and but sparsely settled, their nearest 
 neighbors living about ten miles away. 
 There the father rented land for sevo:i years 
 and successfully engaged in general farm- 
 ing. He then came to Livingston county, 
 and i)rosi)ering in his farming operations 
 here he became the owner of two hundred 
 antl seventy-four acres of valuable land. 
 which he divided among his children. His 
 success was due entirely to his own well- 
 directed labors, as he had to borrow the 
 money with which to cnnio to America. 
 13 V trade he was a mason and followed that 
 occupation in Germany and also in this 
 country in connection with farming. Po- 
 litically he always affiliated with the Re- 
 publican party, but took no active part in 
 politics. He was a member of the Evan- 
 gelical church, a strong supporter of the 
 same, and one of its trustees for many 
 ^■ears. He died Xo\-ember 21, iSgtj. his 
 wife January jo, icSijo, honored and re- 
 spected liy all who knew thoni. Of the six 
 children born to them one died in infancy 
 before the emigration of the family to Amer- 
 ica; Charles is a farmer of Nebraska; 
 Sophia is the widow of Ernest Pappenburg, 
 a farmer of Livingston county, and she 
 still reside on the home place; Frederick 
 is next in the order of birth ; George is en- 
 gaged in the implement business in Streator, 
 Illinois; and Mary is the wife of Frederick 
 W'elge. who owns and operates a ([uarter- 
 section of land in Newton township. 
 
 The subject of this sketch was only five 
 3'ears old when he crossed the Atlantic and 
 became a resident <_>f La Salle countv. Illi- 
 
 nois, and in the common schools of this state 
 he acejuired his education. He grew to 
 manhood upon the home farm, assisting in 
 its operation until twenty-four ye:u-s of age. 
 After his marriage he settled upon his pres- 
 ent farm, which was given him by his father, 
 and to its further imjirovement and culti- 
 vation he has since doNnted his energies. 
 In i8()3 his residence was destroyed by fire 
 at a loss of over one thousand dollars, and 
 he has since erectetl a nice, commodious 
 house, supplied with modern improvements. 
 He has added to his landed possesions at 
 time, but has since disi)osed of some of his 
 pro])erty, and now owns one hundred and 
 twelve acres, which he has tileil and placed 
 imder a high stale of cultivation. 
 
 On the 25th of December. 1874, Mr. 
 Riss married Miss Carrie Bruner, who was 
 born in La Salle county, June 26, 1854. 
 Her parents, John M. and Amiie (Henney) 
 Bruner, were both natives of Germany, but 
 were married after their emigration to this 
 country. The mother is now deceasetl, and 
 the father makes his home near Hastings, 
 Nebraska, at the age of eighty years. Of 
 their thirteen children only two are living in 
 Livingston county, Jcjhn and Mrs. Ri.ss. 
 Our subject :uid his wife ha\'e a famil_\' of 
 eight children, namely: Edward, who is 
 (|uite successfuly engaged in dairy farming 
 in Norwood Park, Illinois, ami who was a 
 member of Company A. Ihird Regiment, 
 United States Army, and served during the 
 Spanish-American war both in Cuba and 
 the Pilippines as a musician, and is now 
 confined at home with rheumatism from the 
 effects of his service; Levi, who is working 
 as a farm hand in La Salle county; Albert, 
 who assists his father with the farm work ; 
 Mary. Frank, Jesse, Otto and Annie, all at 
 home. The children have been given good
 
 400 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 common-school educations and Albert took 
 an elective course at the Xorthern Illinois 
 Normal School at Dixon. 
 
 In his political affiliations J\Ir. Riss is a 
 Republican, and has held the office of road 
 master and school director for several years. 
 He and his family are prominent members 
 of the Evangelical church of Alissel, of 
 which he has been trustee for a quarter of 
 a century and superintendent of the Sab- 
 bath-school. He has always taken an active 
 and influential part in all church work, and 
 contributed liberally to its support. 
 
 EDWIX R. LUCUS. 
 
 For forty-four years Edwin R. Lucus 
 has been closely associated with the de-vel- 
 opment of Livingston county, and within 
 his recollection marvelous changes for the 
 better have been made by the industrious, 
 tlirifty population. In his boyhood herds 
 of deer and great varieties of wild game 
 roamed over these prairies, and to-day this 
 same territory supports a large number of 
 happv. useful citizens, who are playing an 
 important part in the economv of this com- 
 monwealth. Edwin R. Lucus is justly en- 
 titled to an honored place in the annals of 
 his state, for he has been a loyal, worthy 
 citizen, in peace and war alike. 
 
 John B. Lucus, grandfather of the above, 
 was born in \'irginia, thence remoxed to 
 Kentucky and later to Brown county, Ohio, 
 where he was one of the early settlers. In 
 1 8.^; he removed with his family to Yer- 
 milion county, Illinois, where, also, he was 
 one of the first white settlers. His son, 
 John H., father of Edwin R. Lucus. was 
 born in Brown county. Ohio, Januarv 4, 
 
 1820. and from his fourteenth year his life 
 has been spent in Illinois, with the exception 
 of one year. He grew to manhood in \''er- 
 milion county, and there welded Sally 
 Smith, a nati\'e of Pennsvlvania, and of 
 German descent. She died when her son, 
 Edwin R., was an infant, and the father 
 subse(|uently married again, and is survived 
 by this wife. In 1855 he went to Grundy 
 county. MissoiuM. but at the end of a year he 
 returned to this state and settled in Amity 
 township. Livingston county. Here he 
 bought eighty acres in section ig, erected a 
 log cabin, and soon cleared much of the 
 land. Later he sold the place and bought 
 another oi like size in the same section, and. 
 after developing the property, disposed of 
 it and in\-ested the proceeds in one hundred 
 and eighteen acres, situated on the \'ermil- 
 ion river, in Amity township. This home- 
 stead, also, was improved by him and sub- 
 stantial buildings erected. His home was 
 here for many years, and until his death, 
 December 20. 1898. 
 
 The birth of Edwin R. Lucus occurred 
 February 2j. 1844. in \'ermilion ciiunty, 
 and his youth was passed in the quiet 
 routine of countrv life. A p'reat crisis, 
 however, in his own life, as well as in that 
 of his country, was approaching, and as 
 soon as his age entitled him to a place in 
 the ranks of soldier-heroes, he enlisted in 
 the defense of the Union. It was in July, 
 1862. that he became a private of Company 
 A. One Hundred and Twenty-ninth Regi- 
 ment of Illinois Infantry, which was assigned 
 to the Army of the Cumberland. His 
 brother, John B., died at Bowling Green, 
 Kentuclcy, in the foIK)wir.g January, from 
 illn.css due to army service. Before going 
 to the front our subject received a sun- 
 stroke at Kankakee, IlliiKiis, and while he
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 401 
 
 was in the ser\ice lie liad sieves with tlio 
 measles an<l the sniall-pox. lie was de- 
 tailed as a scitut for eight months wlrle in 
 Tennessee, and one of the most notable 
 military maneiuers in which he tuok part 
 was tlie charge at the tort near Resaca, 
 Georgia. Then followed the battles of Cass- 
 ville, Bnrnt Hickory and Lost Mountain, 
 and at tlio last named place his regiment 
 was in a charge and went within one hun- 
 dred and twenty paces of the masked bat- 
 teries I if the enemy, at which pnim thoy 
 remained twenty-four himrs. luilil the 
 enemy retreated. On the joth of July. 
 
 1864, he was a participant in the hard- 
 fought battle of Peach Tree Creek, where 
 thore were many desperate hand-to-hand 
 contests. During the Atlanta campaign he 
 was in innumerable skirmishes and battles, 
 being under fire almost constantly for four 
 months. The battles of Averysburg and 
 Bentonvillo (North Carolina) were the last 
 ones in the southeastern stales, and then 
 the brave boys in blue were nmstered oul. 
 The One Hundred and Twonty-ninth was 
 honorably discharged in Chicago. June 18. 
 
 1865. after having marched to Washington 
 and participated in the grand re\iew. 
 
 For four or five years afterward .Mr. 
 Lucus industriously worked at agricultural 
 pursuits, and subsequent to his marriage, in 
 1870. he commenced keeping house in .1 
 small cabin, ^■ear by year he accumula- 
 ted more of this world's goods and bv care- 
 ful investments and improvements trebled or 
 quadrupled the value of his farm. The place, 
 comprising eighty acres, is located in section 
 19, Amity township. and a comfortable house, 
 commodious barns and well-ke]jt fences 
 speak well for the enterprise of the i)ro- 
 prietor. 
 
 In all h\< life w^rk f^r the past thirty 
 
 years. Mr. Lucus has foun^l a true helpmeet 
 in his wife, furmerly Martha .\. Cnnwell. 
 She was liorn in Licking county. Ohio, a 
 daughter of John H. Conwell, who died in 
 that state. The mother later married Elijah 
 Dean, and tho family removed to McLean 
 county. Illinois, at an early day. The mar- 
 riage of our subject and wife occurred in 
 Waldo township, Livingston countv. April 
 10, 1870. Their olde.st child, Anna .\.. is 
 the wife of T. X. Bennington, of this coun- 
 ty. \'iota married William r)ennett. of 
 Long Point. Illinois. \'iola J. is the wife 
 of Warren Winter, and Lillie L. wedded A. 
 G. Wider, of this county. Edwin Harper 
 and Jesse Ross are at home, assisting in the 
 work of the farm, and Millie L. completes 
 the family circle. Three children are de- 
 ceased. 
 
 Though he was reared in the Demo- 
 cratic faith, Mr. Lucus. after making a 
 thorough stud)- of the party principles, cast 
 in his lot -with the Republicans, and is one 
 of its stanchest adherents. He has acted as 
 a commissioner of highways for six years 
 and for three years served on the local school 
 btjard, but has never been desirous of office. 
 Fraternally he is affiliated with the Grand 
 .\nny of the Reiniblic. and his wife is an 
 honored memlier of the Woman's Relief 
 Corps. 
 
 RICHARD M. HOLT. 
 
 Richard M. Hnlt. an honored veteran of 
 the civil war and one of the representative 
 farmers of Livingston county, residing on 
 section 6, Walilo township, was born in 
 Peoria. Illinois,, June 27, 1843. and is a son 
 of James W. and Ellen (Ingham) Holt, 
 nati\es ui Lancastershire, England. Thev
 
 402 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 emigrated to America and settled in Illimiis, 
 in 1840, spending the- remainder of their 
 li\'es as farming people in Peoria county, 
 where the father died in 1895, the mother in 
 1894. They liad a family of seven children, 
 namely : Thomas, a resident of Peoria 
 county; Richard AI., our suhject; Eliza, wife 
 of Henry Morris, of Peoria count}- ; INlartha, 
 wife- of James ]\Iorris. of Peoria; Elizaheth. 
 wife of John Yetter, of Peoria; and John 
 and Frederick, hoth residents (.)f the same 
 place. 
 
 Reared on a farm in his native county, 
 Richard M. Holt attended the pulilic schools 
 of the neighborhood and early acquired an 
 excellent knowledge of agricultural pursuits. 
 On starting out in life for himself he com- 
 menced farming in Peoria county, where he 
 was living when the civil war broke out. 
 On th& 8th of August. 1862, he enlisted in 
 Company K, Seventy-seventh Illinois \'ol- 
 unteer Infantry, his company being organ- 
 ized in Rosefield township, Peoria county. 
 They were first sent to Cincinnati, and from 
 there weat to Louisville, Kentucky, where 
 they were assigned to the Thirteenth .\rmy 
 Corps. They were in a number of skir- 
 mishes up the Yazoo river, antl took part in 
 the battle of Arkansas Post. They went 
 into camp at Young's Point, Louisiana, and 
 later took part in the seige of Vicksburg, 
 being placed in the rear of the Confederate 
 army during that siege. The}' were in 
 the engagement at Yazoo ri\er and in 
 the other charges against Vicksburg. After 
 the fall of that city they were gi\en a 
 furlough whicli they spent at home, and 
 then rejoinetl the ami}- at Decrase Pount, 
 Texas, where Mr. Holt was discharged on 
 account of disabilitv. 
 
 Returning to Illinois, he remained at 
 home one }'car. and then engaged in farming 
 
 in Peoria county two }'ears. In the spring 
 of 1867 he came to Livingston count}-, and 
 settled on section 6, \\'aldo township, where 
 he has since successfully oiigaged in general 
 farming. On the nth of January, 1868, 
 Mr. Holt was united in marriage with Miss 
 Charlotte ]\Iorris. a daughter of Henry and 
 Ann ( Riglev) Morris, who were natives of 
 England and early settlers of Peoria county. 
 By this union have been born the following 
 children: Mattie, wife of John Roth of 
 \\'oodfor(l C(.)unty; Anna, wife of Robert 
 Boyd, of the same county ; James, of Living- 
 ston county; Harvey, Harry, Elmer, Ella 
 and Richard, all at home. 
 
 By his ballot Air. Holt supports the men 
 and measures of the Republican party, and 
 for twelve years he has acceptably ser\-ed as 
 school director of his district. He is one of 
 the progressive and enterprising farmers of 
 Li\'ingston county, and is a man of whom 
 an}- community might lie justl}' proud. 
 
 CHARLES S. EARP. 
 
 Charles S. Earp is a worthy representa- 
 tive of a family whose name has lieen closolv 
 identified with the history of Livingston 
 county since the days of its infancy, some 
 seventy }-ears. His valuable homestead is 
 one of the landmarks of Amity township, as 
 it has been under steady cultivation for more 
 than half a century. 
 
 Here the birth of Charles S. Earp oc- 
 curred July 26, 1849, and here, with his 
 seven brothers and sisters ho passed his 
 early years, laying the foundations of health 
 and strength, upright principles and indus- 
 trious hal)its. Two of the number and their 
 devoted parents. Charles and Hest&r Anna
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 403 
 
 (Molledge) Harp, have lieen called to tlie 
 better land, and the surviving members of 
 the family occupy ln)nt)ro:l places in the com- 
 munites where they dwell. The Earps 
 originate'! in England, and our subject's fa- 
 ther was reared in the British Ise. When 
 he had come to the United States and set- 
 tled in Ohio he there made the acciuaintanco 
 of his future wife, herself a native of Eng- 
 lantl, but from childhood 'a resident of the 
 Buckeye state. 
 
 About 1830 Charles Earp. with his wife- 
 and their two children, removed to Illinois. 
 The father took up four hundred acres of 
 land in Amity township, and with charac- 
 teristic energy set about the great task of 
 clearing and improving the place. In the 
 course of time, the first humble dwelling and 
 barn were replaced by large, well built struc- 
 tures, and fences, orchards and other im- 
 provements trebled the original value of the 
 farm. The father, who was loved and re- 
 vered by his neighbors and associates, passed 
 to his reward in 1873, and the mother, who 
 survived him many years, at last followed 
 him to the silent land. 
 
 During his entire life, fifty-one years, 
 Charles S. Earp, of this sketch, has resided 
 upon the homestead which he still cultivates 
 and manages. His educational advantages 
 were limited, as the little district schools of 
 his boyhood in this locality were few and 
 poorly conducted, bearing small resemblance 
 to those of the present day. He remained 
 with his father until the death of that sterling 
 pioneer, and subsec|uently the young man 
 purchased the interests of the other heirs 
 and succeeded in the ownership of the old 
 home. It comprises a quarter of section 29. 
 and is considered one of the most desirable 
 pieces of farm property in this regi(jn. Mr. 
 Earp has drained some of the low lands 
 
 with ditches and tiling, and hv otlier e.Kpe- 
 dients has iricreased the tillable acreage. 
 
 Xe\er having been a politician in any 
 sense, Mr. Ear]) has resisted all propositions 
 to the effect that he should officiate in pub- 
 lic positions, and when he has cast his ballot 
 for Democratic principles and nominees, ac- 
 rording to his belief, he feels that he has per- 
 formed his whole duty as a citizen. Soci- 
 ally, he is identified with the Modern Wood- 
 men of America, belonging to the lodge at 
 Cornell, lie is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church, and strives conscien- 
 tiously to meet all of the obligations resting 
 upi.n him, in all of the relations of life. 
 
 About twenty years ago the destinies of 
 Mr. Earp and Miss .Anna Furgus were uni- 
 ted by a marriage ceremony, performed in 
 this county. She was a native of Shelby 
 county, Ohio, and was reared to womanhood 
 there, later becoming a resident of Illinois. 
 She was summonetl to her eternal rest. May 
 II, iSy8, and, turning from her quiet grave 
 in the Earp family cemetery, her innumera- 
 ble friends and dear ones sorrowfully re- 
 turned to the duties awaiting them, feeling 
 that her place in the communit" can never 
 be filled. Five children are left to mourn 
 the loss of a loving, tender mother, namely: 
 Elmer, Cora, Ernest, Reuben and Clyde. 
 They are receiving good educational advan- 
 tages and arc surrounded with all of the 
 comforts and privileges which their wise 
 father can furnish them, or cMiisiders to be 
 for their permanent benefit. 
 
 WlLl.l.XM McKIXXEV. 
 
 William McKinney, a i)n)minent re- 
 tired farmer living on section 29. Reading 
 township, Livingston c(.iunt\\ Illinois, was
 
 404 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 born September 20, 1833, near Lancaster, 
 the county seat of Fairfield county, Ohio, 
 and is a son of Patrick and Mary A. ( Gil- 
 lick ) McKinnev, the former a native of 
 Scotland, the latter of London, England. 
 The father, who was a stone mason liy trade, 
 came to this country at an early day and 
 settled in Ohio, where he was employed as 
 superintendent in charge of the construction 
 of the locks of the Ohio canal. He was an 
 expert at his trade and the locks are as good 
 to-day as when built. He died suddenly of 
 heart failure when our subject was only 
 eight years olil, and the mother died of con- 
 sumption four years later. Their children 
 were William, our subject ; Annie, deceased ; 
 Patrick, a retired business man of Newark, 
 Licking county, Ohio ; and Alary, who died 
 in childhood. 
 
 After the death of his parents William 
 McKinney made his home with Samuel 
 Coulter, a farmer of Licking county, Ohio, 
 until he attained his majority. He was only 
 aljle to attend scho(jl about one month dur- 
 ing the winter. The school house was a 
 primitive structure built of logs, with 
 puncheon floor, slab benches and one log 
 cut out to make a window. The greater 
 part of his education has been acquired by 
 reading and observation since reaching man- 
 hood. In the fall of 1853, at the age of 
 twenty-one years, he came to Illinois in 
 company with his future father-in-law, Will- 
 iam F. Hunt, the journey, which was made 
 by team, consuming three weeks. They 
 located near Bloomington, where he rented 
 land for six years. 
 
 Soon after reaching Bloomington Mr. 
 McKinney was married, October 18, 1853, 
 to Miss Albina Jane Hunt, a daughter of 
 William F. and [Mary L. (Barnes) Hunt, 
 natives of \'ermont and the former oi Rev- 
 
 olutionary stock, yiv. Hunt was a strong 
 abolitionist, and in Ohio kept a station on 
 the famous underground railroad, thus aid- 
 ing many a poor slave on his way to Canada 
 and freedom. To one of his sons he gave 
 the name of Lovejoy. His children were 
 Albina Jane, wife of our subject: Fidelia, 
 wife of Seymour Chambers, of Ohio ; E. 
 P. Lovejoy, of Orange county, California; 
 AVilliam L. G., who was a member of Cush- 
 man's brigade in the Civil war and was 
 starved to death in Libby prison at the age 
 of seventeen years ; Cornelia, wife of George 
 Olmstead, a wholesale jeweler of Kansas 
 City; Myron H., who died in California; 
 Lenora, widow of Egbert Pratt and a resi- 
 dent of Ohio: and Virgil, state evangelist 
 for the Second Adventist church, living in 
 Santa Cruz, California. After coming to 
 Illinois the father of this family engaged 
 in farming in Livingston county until 1872, 
 when he sold out to our subject and moved 
 to Sumner county, Kansas, locating near 
 Wellington, where he died December 3, 
 1875. ^i* \y'\ie survived him some time, 
 dying in California. All the trees upon our 
 subject's farm were set out by ]\Ir. Hunt 
 and his wife. On receiving the news of 
 President Lincoln's assassination he set out 
 a hard maple, to which be gave the name of 
 Old .Abe, and wliich is now a magnificent 
 tree. 
 
 To Mr. and ]\Irs. McKinney were born 
 ten children, namely : Samuel G. died at 
 the age of thirty-two years, leaving a widow 
 and one child, both now deceased; Clarence 
 I', died at the age of eighteen months; 
 Clara E. died at the age of seven years; 
 Mary E. died at the age of eighteen months; 
 William Lincoln also died at the same age; 
 Annie L. died at the age of fourteen years; 
 Nettie J., a resident of Pontiac, is the widow
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 405 
 
 of Daniel Muqiliy and has tliree children. 
 Harold. Zeta M. and Francis: Jennie is the 
 wife of Dr. Peri.sho, a practicinsj physician 
 of Ancona. Illinois; one son died in infancy; 
 and Cornelia .\. is a g^raduate of the I'ontiac 
 higli school and is now at hnnie with her 
 parents. 
 
 .\fter his marriage Mr. McKinney rented 
 land in McLean county for six years and 
 then purchased a small tract fnmi his father- 
 in-law. in Reading; township, Livingston 
 county, hut continued to operate rented 
 land until 1872. when he bought one hun- 
 dred and si.xty acres of Mr. Hunt and lo- 
 cated thereon, making it his home ever since. 
 He has successfully engaged in general farm- 
 ing, and besides his farm jjroperty he now" 
 owns building Ints in ]\)ntiac. Strcator and 
 Chicago, lie and his wife were formerly 
 members nf the L'nited Brethren church, 
 and in [jolitics be is independent. Noting 
 for whom he considers the best man, re- 
 gardless of party lines. For twenty years 
 he most efHciently served as road commis- 
 sioner in Reading township, and all its iron 
 bridges were built under his su])er\ision. 
 He was a school director for a number of 
 years, and built the I'rairie Creek school 
 house. In \H(jt) he and his wife traxelcd all 
 through the west and s])ent several months 
 in Californi;i. They are widely and favor- 
 ably known and have a host of warm 
 friends in the community where tbev have 
 sc long made their boiue. 
 
 MVROX \V. T.VMDLLXC;. 
 
 Myron W. Tambling, the present effi- 
 cient supervisor of Round Grove townshii) 
 and one of its leading citizens, was born 
 
 in La Salle county, Illinois, January _'0, 
 1850, and is a son of \'illeroy .\. and Har- 
 riet S. ( Morgan) Tambling, natives of New 
 York and Connecticut, respectively. The 
 progenitor of the Morgan family in .\merica 
 was James Morgan, who was lx)rn in Wales 
 in 1607, and removed with his family from 
 that country to Bristol, England, prior to 
 1636. In ^larch of the latter year he and 
 two lirothers, John and M'les, sailed for 
 America and landed in Boston during the 
 month of April. John became one of the 
 earliest colonists of X'irginia. and Miles was 
 one of a colony from Roxbin-y. Massachu- 
 setts, to found the city of Springfield, that 
 state. James Morgan, from whom our sub- 
 ject is descended, located in Roxbury, and 
 there be was married, .\ugust 6, i(')40. to 
 Margery Hill. Their son. Captain John 
 Morgan, married Rachel Dymond. and 
 among their children was William .Morgan, 
 who wedded :Mary .\vcry. Their son. Cap- 
 tain William Morgan, married Temperance 
 .\very, and they became the parents of Cap- 
 tain .Vvery ^Morgan, who served as sergeant 
 in the battle of Bunker Hill during the Rev- 
 olutionary war. He married Lydia Smith. 
 Our subject"s maternal grandparents were 
 William and Ora ( I'ellct ) Morgan. 
 
 \'illerov .\. Tamliling. our subject's fa- 
 ther, was born Feliruary 25, i8jo, and when 
 a young man removed from New ^ 1 >rk to 
 Chester, Ohio, where he was married. May 
 17. 1843, to Harriet Smith Morgan, who 
 was born .April 13, 18 14, and died Septem- 
 ber 13, 1856, leaving five chidren, namely: 
 Catherine E.. now a resident of Lakewood, 
 Chautauqua county. New York: Mary L., 
 who fir.st married a Mr. Kellogg, and second 
 E. L. Kenvon. of Ratavia. and is now de- 
 ceased: Ora .\., wife of W. II. Kyle, of 
 Terre Haute, Indiana: Mvron W., our sub-
 
 4o6 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ject; and Robert S.. a farmer of Buchanan, 
 Michigan. Soon after his marriage the fa- 
 ther of these children moved to La Salle 
 county. Illinois, where he entered govern- 
 n'.ent land, but soon disposed of it and about 
 185 1 returned to Ohio, where his wife died. 
 He then came back to Ottawa, La Salle coun- 
 t}', Illinois, where he remained until the 
 breaking out of the Civil war, when he en- 
 listed at the first call for troops, becoming 
 a member of the Eleventh Illinois \'olunteer 
 Infantry, under command of Colonel Wal-, 
 lace. Later he re-enlisted in Company C, 
 Fifty-third Regiment and participated in 
 the battles of Hatchie's Run and Holly 
 Springs, where Colonel Earl was killed. 
 After serving three years he veteranized and 
 was commissioned lieutenant of the Thir- 
 teenth L'nited States Colored Troops. After 
 the war Lieutenant Tambling located in Ot- 
 tawa, where he worked at the carpenter's 
 trade, but for some time he has been living 
 at the \'eterans Home in Napa county. Cali- 
 fornia. 
 
 Myron \\'. Tambling was an infant when 
 his parents returned to Ohio, and was only 
 six years old when his mother died, after 
 which he came to Illinois with his father. 
 He was eleven years old when his father 
 entered the army and from that time has 
 made his own wa}" in the \\(jrld. During 
 the school years, when eight, nine and ten 
 years old, he attended school in Ottawa. 
 When his father went to the front, in 1861, 
 he went to work on a farm, attending 
 school winters. In November. 1870. lie 
 came to Dwight to accept a position as 
 clerk with Or. son Potter, a hardware and 
 implement dealer, with whom he had 
 previously lived on a farm in La Salle 
 county. After clerking for him three years 
 he entered the Grand Prairie Seminarv at 
 
 Onarga, Illinois, where he pursued a scien- 
 tific course, with the intention of teaching. 
 He spent one summer in the employ of Par- 
 sons & Hetzel, successors of Mr. Potter, 
 traveling in the interests of the firm, and 
 then returned to the seminary. Later he 
 taught school in Iroquois county, and dur- 
 ing the winter of 1875-76 taught in district 
 No. 3. Round Grove township, this county. 
 On the 8th of March, 1876, Mr. Tamb- 
 ling married ]Miss Emma E. Slyder, who 
 was born in La Salle county December 27, 
 1853. Her father, Jesse Slyder. was born in 
 Adams county, Pennsylvania, and at the age 
 of fifteen engaged in teaming from Cham- 
 bersburg, that state, to Pittsburg and Balti- 
 more. In 1837 he married Hannah L. 
 Lininger, of Franklin county, Pennsylvania, 
 and to them were born eight children, 
 namely: William H., born Auguist 25. 
 1839, died on the home farm February 3, 
 1866, unmarried: Susan C, liorn August 
 10, 1841, is the wife of Z. Simonson, of 
 Dennison, Te.xas : Samuel L., born May 31, 
 1843. '^^"'^^ ^ soldier of the Civil war; Jesse 
 L.. also a soldier, born March 14, 1845. '^ 
 an auctioneer living in Dwight; Harriet L., 
 born January 12, 1847, ^'^'^'^^ ^^'^s married at 
 the same time as her sister, Emma, to James 
 H. Foster, who is master mechanic in a 
 stamp mill at Colorado Springs, Colorado ; 
 David M., born February 2, 1849, 's a 
 resident of Dwight; Daniel ].. born Sep- 
 tember 6. 185 1, is employed in the stamp 
 mill at Colorado Springs: and Emma E., 
 wife of our subject, completed the family. 
 In the spring of 1853 this family removed to 
 Peru, La Salle county, Illinois, and in 1856 
 came to Roimd Grove township, Living- 
 ston comity where the father bought school 
 land — three-quarters of section 16 — but let 
 his brother-in-law, Henrv Jones, and a
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 407 
 
 friend from Pennsylvania, Cyrus Thomas, 
 have two quarter-sections. He made liis 
 Iiome in tlie nortlieast quarter and owned 
 and oi)eratetl a good farm of two liundred 
 acres. In 1868 lie moved to Dwiglit. wliere 
 he lived retired throughout the remainder 
 of his life. .\t the time of his death, which 
 occurred October 15, 1898, he also owned 
 the southwest quarter of section 16, which 
 is now a part of the estate. He was a cele- 
 brated auctioneer, and for some time made 
 that his business. He took an active in- 
 terest in public affairs, was a sui)i)i)rter of 
 the Republican party and held several town- 
 ship offices, including those of su])ervisor 
 and .school trustee. 1 le was reared in the 
 Lutheran faith. Imt after his removal to 
 Dwight united with the Methodist Epi.scopal 
 church, and fraternally was a member cjf 
 the Independent Order of ( )(ld I'eJlows. J lis 
 estimal)le wife died October 9, 1890. 
 
 The children born to Mr. and Mrs. 
 Tambling are Albertus .M., who married 
 Harriet Beatty, daughter of J. H. Beatty, 
 and resides in Round Grove township; Jesse 
 A., at home; Harriet L., a popular teacher 
 of Round (irove township; Robert R., 
 Myron E., Emily .Mice. \'illeroy G. and 
 Lila B., all at home. 
 
 Since his marriage Mr. Taml)ling has 
 made his home in Round Grove township 
 and has successfully engaged in farming 
 and school teaching. He taught five winter 
 terms in district Xo. 3, one in district Xo. 
 5 and one in district Xo. 9. In connection 
 with general farming lie has given consider- 
 able attention to stock raising, and always 
 keeps a good grade of stock. He owns and 
 operates a good farm of one hundred and 
 twenty acres on section 9. 
 
 Mr. Tambling is one of the most prom- 
 inent and influential men in his community 
 
 and a recognized leader of the Republican 
 party in Round Grove township. He has 
 always taken an active part in public affairs, 
 was a member of the school board when the 
 school house was built in his district, was 
 elected collector in 1880 and re-elected for 
 the succeeding term. He served as school 
 trustee one year, township treasurer two 
 years, and in 1895 was first elected super- 
 visor, which office he has now tilled six con- 
 secutive years with credit to himself and to 
 the entire satisfaction of his constituents. 
 During his first term the town house was 
 Iniilt. He is an active member and trustee 
 of the Methodist Episcopal church of Cam- 
 pus, to which his wife also belongs, and 
 served as superintendent of the Sunday 
 school for some years. Fraternally he is a 
 charter member of Dwight Lodge, Xo. 513, 
 I ( ). O. [•., and is also a member of Campus 
 Camp. Xo. 2619, M. W. A., and Dwight 
 Lodge, Xo. :iS- i- (^- ^f- A. 
 
 CH.VRLES H. GREGORY. 
 
 Four and a half decades cover the periotl 
 of the Gregory family's residence in Liv- 
 ingston county, and few of its pioneers 
 and founders have been more highly es- 
 teemed and honored. That beloved and 
 revered minister of the gospel. Rev. T. J. 
 Gregory, father of the subject of this article, 
 did a great and noble work in this region, 
 and his name was lovingly and familiarly 
 spoken in hundreds of households whose 
 atmosphere had been brightened and made 
 happier by his presence and timely aid. 
 Both he and his estimable wife were natives 
 of Lancashire, England, whence they emi- 
 grated to the United States in 1855, at once
 
 4o8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 settling in this country. The wife, whose 
 maiden name was Ellen Hokltsworth. was 
 also a licensed minister, and frequently iic- 
 cupied the pulpit and assisted her husband in 
 revival meetings. She was born August 
 31, 1820. and died August 16. 1900. He 
 died in 1886. 
 
 The birth of Charles H. Gregory oc- 
 curred here, in section 29, Amity township, 
 June 2-. i860. His avantages education- 
 ally were not of the best, but he made the 
 most of his opportunities, and by private 
 study and reading has made himself a well- 
 informed man. He remained with his fa- 
 ther until he was twenty-two* years old, 
 sharing his labors and caring for him with 
 filial love. After the fathers death, the 
 young man bought out the interests of the 
 other heirs, and thus became the sole owner 
 of the old homestead — a place of one hun- 
 dred and sity acres. He has been especially 
 successful as a stock raiser, and prosperity 
 has attended most of his business ventures. 
 By tiling and fencing, the planting of fruit 
 and shade trees and building a pleasant, mod- 
 ern house and keeping the barns, and keep- 
 ing the barns and everything about the place 
 in excellent repair, he has won a reputa- 
 tion for thrift and neatness, and at the same 
 time has rendered his farm one of the desira- 
 ble country in)mes of the neighborhood. 
 
 On the 27th of January, 1887, the mar- 
 riage of I\Ir. Gregory and Miss Olive \\'iddi- 
 field took place at Dana, Illinois. Mrs. 
 Gregory was a native of La Salle county, 
 and was the only daughter of Mark and 
 Sarah Widdifield. Wilbur, the first born 
 child of our subject and wife, died at the age 
 of five years. Two children are left to 
 them, namely, Lela M. and Adrian Donald. 
 I\Jark Widdifield was born in New York, 
 and has been a well-known citizen, resid- 
 
 ing near Dana for forty years. He is now 
 living retired at Dana. The mother was 
 Sarah Dowdall, who was born in Peoria 
 county, Illinois, and was a daughter of Alex- 
 ander Dowdall, a pioneer. 
 
 In national affairs Mr. Gregory is a 
 true l)lue Republican. Personally he never 
 has sought or desired office, but, owing to 
 the special interest he takes in the cause of 
 education, he has served as a member of the 
 district school board for fully ten years. 
 I'Vaternally he is identified with the Modern 
 Woodmen of America, his membership being 
 with the Cornell Lodge. Mrs. Gregory is 
 a member of the Methodist Protestant 
 church, and both contribute liberally of their 
 means to the support of worthy enterprises. 
 
 Mrs. J. Gregory died August 16, 1900; 
 hirthdav August 31, 1S20. 
 
 WILLIAM LUXIXG. 
 
 William Luning. who resides on section 
 31, Long Point township, has been a resi- 
 dent of Livingston county since 1871, com- 
 ing to the county from Marshall county. 
 He was l)orn in Prussia, Germany, Octo- 
 ber 22. 1835. and is a son of Bernard and 
 Mary Luning, both of wliom were natives 
 of Germany, where their entire lives were 
 spent. They were the parents of eight 
 children, all of whom are yet living in their 
 native country save our subject. 
 
 William Luning spent his boyhood and 
 vouth in his native land and was educated 
 in the common schools. In his youth he 
 learned the cabinet-maker's trade, which he 
 followed for a short time after coming to 
 the United States. When twenty years of 
 age he came to this countrv, landing at X^ew
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 409 
 
 York city, where he spent one year work- 
 ing at his trade. On liis arrival he knew 
 nothing of the EngHsh language, but his 
 youth was in liis favor, and he soon actjuired 
 a knowledge of the hmguage of the coun- 
 try, as well as of its metiiods of doing busi- 
 ness. 
 
 In 1856 Mr. Luning concluded to try 
 country life, and for the next three years he 
 worked on farms near the city, commencing 
 on six dollars per month, together with his 
 hoard. Being of a frugal and saving nature, 
 he laid by enough in that time to bring him 
 to Illinois. Locating in Marshall county, 
 he worked as a farm hand for the succeed- 
 ing live years, and then, renting a small 
 farm, he commenced life in earnest. As a 
 bachelor he worked and managed his farm 
 for two years. Realizing then the need of 
 a "better half," he was united in marriage 
 with Miss Mary Anthony, who was born 
 in Wayne county, Pennsyhania. and daugh- 
 ter of Charles and Susan .\niliiin\. both 
 of whom were also natives of l'cnns\l- 
 \'ania, but who remo\ed to Wisconsin and 
 later to Illinois, locating in Marshall coun- 
 ty. Her father was by occupation a farmer, 
 and after following that calling for a time 
 in Marshall county, he located in Wenona, 
 Illinois, where he is now living a retired life. 
 His wife, the mother of Mrs. Luning, died 
 about 1862, having been the UKjther of six 
 children, all of whom are living but widely 
 scattered, Mrs. Luning being the only one 
 living in Livingston county. Mr. Anthony 
 later married again, and by his second union 
 were born to him live children, of whom 
 four are li\-ing, all making their homes in 
 Marshall county. 
 
 .After his marriage Mr. Luning continued 
 to farm rented land in Marshall county for 
 two years, and then moved to La Salle coun- 
 
 ty. Illinois, where he purchased a farm of 
 raw prairie land and continued farming for 
 three years. Later he sold and purchased 
 eighty acres of his present farm, and where 
 he has since continued to reside. The last 
 tract he improved by building fences, tiling 
 the place, setting out fruit and ornamental 
 trees, and putting it in Hrst-class condition. 
 Success crowned his efforts, and to the home 
 farm he later added eighty acres, in addi- 
 tion to which he owns an improved farm of 
 one hundred and sixty acres in section 30, 
 Amity township. For many years he gave 
 his time princiiially to stock raising, making 
 a specialty of bogs. He now operates a 
 general farm and is doing well. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Luning twelve chil- 
 dren haVe been born, nine of whom are vet 
 living. Two died in childhood. Hattie 
 grew to womanhood, married Henry Drum- 
 met, by wIkjui she had three children, Eva, 
 Tern and Arthur. She died July 5, 1898. 
 Those living are as follows: Melissa is 
 now the wife of George Drummet, and they 
 ha\e f<iur children. Ldlie, Effie, Orpha and 
 John. The family reside in Long Point 
 township, where Mr. Drummet owns and 
 operates a farm of two hundred and forty 
 acres. Minnie is the wife of Hans Klend- 
 worth, and with their four children, Goldie, 
 Flossie, Lee and Dewey, they reside in Long 
 Point township, where he owns a farm of 
 one hundred and sixty acres. Dessa, Clif- 
 ford and Ira are their children. Emma 
 married Albert Miller, and they have one 
 daughter, Leona. Their home is in Dane, 
 La Salle county, where he is engaged in gen- 
 eral merchandizing. Xellie is the wife of 
 Archie Winters, and they have two children, 
 Mournie and Birdie. They reside in Amity 
 township, where Mr. Winters is engaged in 
 farming. Laura is the wife of Charles
 
 4IO 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Earp, and their cliildren are Hazel and Alta. 
 Their home is in Amity township, wliere 
 Mr. Earp lias a farm of eighty acres. Will- 
 iam C. lives at home, assisting his father in 
 operating the home farm. Pearl and Jo- 
 seph Fifer are also living at home. 
 
 In politics Mr. Liming is a Republican, 
 and while he manifests an interest in political 
 affairs, he would never accept any township 
 office, although often urged to accept some 
 position. He is a firm belie\er in Spiritual- 
 ism. As a citizen he is highlv esteemed. 
 
 RUDOLPH G. S^HTH. 
 
 Rudolph G. Smith, pulice magistrate of 
 Flanagan and one of the popular young 
 business men of that place, is a native of 
 Livingston county, born in Nebraska town- 
 ship. May 20, 1870, and is a son of Charles 
 A. and Elizabeth (Hess) Smith, both na- 
 tives of Germany. The father came to 
 America in 1846, and after a brief residence 
 in New York came to Illinois, locating in 
 Nebraska township, Livingston county, 
 where he has since been extensively engaged 
 in farming. He has been prominently iden- 
 tified with tlie Democratic party in his lo- 
 cality, and in 1892 was its candidate for the 
 office of sheriff of Livingston county, but 
 owing to the permanently established po- 
 litical complexion of the county was de- 
 feated. He has held several township offices 
 with credit to himself to the entire satisfac- 
 tion of his constituents. His wife, who 
 came to this country with her parents at the 
 age of four years, died in 1899. They 
 reared a family of eight children, namely: 
 Anna M., now the wife of Frank Edwards, 
 of Geneseo, Illinois; May E., wife of John 
 
 Smith, of the same place ; Charles P. Henry 
 W. and George F., all residents of Nebraska 
 township; Rudolph G., our subject; Jennie, 
 wife of Frank Earl, and Perry L., all of Ne- 
 braska township. 
 
 On the home farm Rudolph G. Smith 
 grew to manhood and was educated in the 
 district school and Dixon College, Dixon, 
 Illinois. In 1893 ^^^ located in Flanagan, 
 \vhere he was engaged in the mercantile bus- 
 iness two years, and since that time has car- 
 ried on operations as an insurance, real es- 
 tate and collecting agent, in which he has 
 met with well deserved success. 
 
 On the 6th of August, 1894, ]\Ir. Smith 
 was united in marriage with j\Iiss Hulda 
 ]^Iette, of Flanagan, and they now have one 
 child, Valda Eveline, born June 9, 1896. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Smith are both members of the 
 Christian church, and he is also connected 
 with the Knights of Pythias. In 1896 he 
 was elected police magistrate of Flanagan to 
 fill an unexpired term of three years, and so 
 acceptably did he fill the office that in 1899 
 he was re-elected for a full term of four years. 
 The Democratic party finds in him a stanch 
 supporter of its principles, and he is usually 
 an active member of its conventions. In 
 1900 he was an alternate delegate to the na- 
 tional convention at Kansas City, where 
 William J. Bryan was nominated for presi- 
 dent. 
 
 THOMAS H. THOMSON. 
 
 Thomas H. Thomson is one of the hon- 
 ored pioneers of Illinois, and within his 
 recollection remarkable changes have been 
 wrought on these western prairies. AVhere 
 herds of deer and other \\ild game wandered 
 when he first saw this region, flourishing
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 411 
 
 towns and villages have sprung up, railroads 
 liave been constructed, and fertile, produc- 
 tive farms have been developed. In this 
 grand work of civilization he has lorne nt) 
 unimportant part, and no one, therefore, is 
 better entitled to a place on the roll of honor 
 of his state and county. 
 
 When it is considered that 2\Ir. Thom- 
 son commenced his career in America with- 
 out any financial means and has made his 
 competence by the hardest larljor and inde- 
 fatigable energy, his example is one which 
 should be followed by the younger genera- 
 tion, most of whom possess advantages 
 which were not his portion. His father, 
 Thomas T. Iverson, was born in Norway, 
 in 1777, and passed his entire life in his 
 native land. His wife bore the maiden name 
 of Malinda Thomson, and their three sons 
 were: Iver H. Thomson, now a resident of 
 La Salle county. Illinois; Thomas H., of this 
 sketch, and Richard H., of Humboldt coun- 
 ty, Iowa. 
 
 The birth of T. H. Thomson occurred 
 upon his father's farm, near Stavanger, Nor- 
 way, ^lay 3, 1826. He early learned the vari- 
 ous duties ijertaining to a farm, but had no 
 educational advantages in his boyhood. Com- 
 ing to the conclusion that America was the 
 "land of jjromise," he made his plans ac- 
 cordingly, and, bidding farewell to his 
 relatives and friends, sailed from the sea- 
 port of Stavanger, May 17, 1S49. The 
 voyage consumed about six weeks, and 
 thence he went to Buffalo, and by way of 
 the great lakes to Chicago. Going direct 
 to Ottawa, Illinois, where two of his ac- 
 quaintances were residents, he soon obtained 
 a position with a farmer, receiving seven 
 dollars a month, in addition to his board. 
 For two years he industriously worked and 
 
 economized, later investing his little capital 
 22 
 
 in an ox-team, with which he commenced 
 the arduous task of breaking prairie. After 
 spending several seasons at that business, he 
 bought forty acres of land in La Salle coun- 
 ty, and for ten years toiled bravely, im- 
 proving the place, which he finally sold at a 
 fair price. This was in 1865, since which 
 year he has been numbered among the citi- 
 zens of Livingston county, for he then pur- 
 chased one hundred acres of land in section 
 4, Rooks Creek township, and has since 
 looked upon this as his permanent home. 
 Twenty acres of this property was covered 
 with timber, and about the same amount had 
 been broken for cultivation. This prepared 
 ground and a little cabin, constitutted the 
 sum total of improvements, but the years 
 which have since rolled by have seen great 
 changes, and today the farm is a monument 
 to the skill and ambition of the owner. Af- 
 ter reducing the land to cultivation, and 
 when he had built a substantial house and 
 barn and fences, he realized good returns 
 from each year's work, and, from time to 
 time invested the proceeds in more land. 
 To-day he owns three farms in this county, 
 aggregating six hundred and twenty-five 
 acres, and in addition to these, he has a 
 good homestead of two hundred and forty 
 acres, situated in Hardin county, Iowa. 
 
 The marriage of ^Ir. Thomson and Isa- 
 belle Johnson, likewise a nati\e of Norway, 
 was celebrated in La Salle county forty- 
 five years ago. Of the ten children who 
 blessed their union two have been called to 
 the better land, Eveta M. dying when young, 
 and Maria passing away in 1884. The 
 sons, six in number, are successful and up- 
 right citizens, all engaged in agriculture. 
 Thomas M., Ole .\.. T. E., E. J. am! A. S. 
 are residents of this county, while ^I. J., 
 the second son, is a farmer of Clay county.
 
 412 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Minnesota. Anna M. is the wife of E. P. 
 Friest, of Hardin county, Iowa, and Chris- 
 tina S. is the wife of J. C. Munson, of Amity 
 township, Livingston county. The two 
 younger sons are at home, aiding in the 
 work of the farm. 
 
 Since he received the right of francliise 
 Mr. Thompson lias been a loyal friend to 
 the Republican party. He has Iieen averse to 
 holding public officCj personally, but has not 
 neglected any of his duties as a citizen, and 
 has evinced his interest in the cause of edu- 
 cation in material ways. With his estima- 
 ble wife, who was reared in Norway, he has 
 been a member of the Lutheran church since 
 youth. 
 
 JOSEPH M. BRADLEY. 
 
 Joseph M. Bradley, residing in a com- 
 fortable, modern farm house, beautifully sit- 
 uated on an eminence of the western bank 
 of the Vermilion river, is one of the honored 
 pioneers of Livingston county, and, as such, 
 deserves a prominent place in the chronicles 
 of her development. 
 
 The family of which Mr. Bradley is a 
 sterling representative has been noted for 
 the spirit of enterprise and venturesomeness 
 which has ever animated the explorer and 
 pioneer — the van of civilization. His 
 grandfather. Esquire Bradley, as he was 
 called, owing to the high offices held by 
 him in his rural community, was one of 
 the earliest settlers in Brown county, Ohio. 
 In that wilderness our subject's father, 
 James, was born in 1808. When twenty 
 years of age the ambitious young man de- 
 termined to further explore the then far 
 west, and thus, in 1828, he became a resi- 
 dent of Illinois. Later he went to Mc- 
 Lean county, and there married Nancy Bar- 
 
 tholomew, whose father. General Joseph 
 Bartholomew, was a hero of the Revolution- 
 ary war. He also had been noted as an 
 Indian fighter, and many a time had partici- 
 pated in the early warfare with the red- 
 skins. One of the ver}- first to locate in I\Ic- 
 Lean county, he built a fort near the present 
 town of Clarksville, and was well known, far 
 and wide. After living in ^IcLean and 
 Hancock counties for a few years subse- 
 quent to his marriage, James Bradley took 
 up his permanent residence in Livingston 
 county, and improved a farm in Amity town- 
 ship. His death took place at his old home 
 here in 1862. His widow, who attained 
 the ripe age of eighty-five years, passed her 
 last years at the home of her daughter, Mrs. 
 Coe, in Pontiac, Illinois, her death occurring 
 in January, 1899. 
 
 Joseph M. Bradley was born at Clarks- 
 ville, Illinois, September 28, 1840, and 
 though, in his boyhood he had few advan- 
 tages, in an educational way, he early mas- 
 tered the elementary and essential brandies 
 of knowledge. He is practically a self- 
 made and self-educated man, for he has been 
 dependent upon his own resources since he 
 was a mere youth. For several years he 
 rented farms and in 1874 he had acquired 
 sufficient capital to purchase land of his own. 
 Though the homestead where he dwells to- 
 day has been in his possession for twenty- 
 six years, he did not take up his residence 
 here until 1885. In the meantime he con- 
 tinued making improvements upon the place, 
 which, by long years of well applied industry 
 and investments, he succeeded in bring- 
 ing to its present high state of excellence. 
 He cleared away much of the timber with 
 which the land was encumbered, planted 
 fruit trees and constructed fences and farm 
 buildings. Success has attended his efforts
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 413 
 
 as an agriculturist and stock-raiser, and most 
 of his financial ventures have prospered. 
 
 During his entire mature life Mr. Brad- 
 ley has had the welfare of the people deeply 
 at heart, and in his own community has 
 borne his share of the duties devolving upon 
 him as a patriotic citizen. Since the time 
 when he cast his first presidential vote, in 
 1864, he has been a stanch supporter of the 
 Republican parly. When just arrived at his 
 majority he was elected to the office of con- 
 stable, and later he was honored with the 
 position of highway commissioner, in which 
 capacity he served efficiently for nine years. 
 He als(j held the post of township collector 
 for one term, and was clerk of the township 
 five consecutive terms. During the past 
 three years he has been a justice of the peace, 
 and frequently he has been sent as a dele- 
 gate to dift'erent con\entions of a political 
 nature. Few of our citizens have been more 
 influential in promoting the cause of educa- 
 tion than he, and to his earnest efforts must 
 be attributed much of the prosperty of the 
 '"little red school houses" of this locality. 
 
 In 1878 ]\Ir. Bradley married Florence, 
 daughter of Samuel and Julia A. Patterson, 
 and sister of S. H. Patterson, whose sketch 
 appears elsewhere in this volume. Mrs. 
 Bradley was born in Washington county, 
 Pennsylvania, and came to Illinois in child- 
 hood. She was reared in La Salle county, 
 and received a good education in the schools 
 of Ottawa. Mabel E., eldest child of our 
 subject and wife, and now one of the suc- 
 cessful teachers of this county, pursued her 
 higher studies in the Pontiac high school and 
 in Dixon (Illinois) College. Samuel M. is 
 employed in a mercantile establishment at 
 Pontiac, and Daisy M., Julia and Joseph 
 Ross are still living at home with their par- 
 ents, who are giving them good advantages. 
 
 HOX. JAMES A. SMITH. 
 
 Hon. James A. Smith, of Chatsworth, 
 has been closely identified with the history 
 and growth of Livingston county for a third 
 of a century. Like many of our prominent 
 citizens he is a native of Ohio, born in \'er- 
 million, August 6, 1845. His father, Aaron 
 B. Smith, was a native of Xevv Jersey, and a 
 lawyer by profession. He came to Illinois 
 in 1846, and located in Ottawa, where he en- 
 gaged in the practice of his profession with 
 fine success. He is distinguished in a histor- 
 ical way as having drawn uji the first bill 
 introduced in the legislature nf this state 
 for the establishment of a free school, that 
 of a school in his adopted city of Ottawa. 
 During his boyhood days James A. 
 Smith attended the public schools of Ottawa 
 and read law in the office of his father until 
 he was seventeen years old. He then ac- 
 cepted a position as bookkeeper and cashier 
 for a prominent firm in that city, which posi- 
 tion he held until 1867. when he came to 
 Chatsworth and engaged in the grain busi- 
 ness. He continued in that business for 
 money on real estate. In 1880 ho purchased 
 the Chatsworth Plaindealer and has since 
 been engaged in its publication, making it 
 one of the most substantial and newsy 
 papers in Central Illinois. 'J'his business 
 he has carried on in connection with other 
 private interests that has re(-|uirc(l much uf 
 his time and attention. 
 
 Mr. Smith has held a number of import- 
 ant public positions, chief among which has 
 been the Democratic representative from the 
 Eighteenth district, of which Livingston 
 county forms a part, for three terms, serv- 
 ing in the thirty-sixth, thirty-seventh and 
 thirty-eighth general assembly. His record 
 there is a most ccimniendaVjle one. He at
 
 414 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 once took a prominent part in the councils 
 of his party and was placed on various im- 
 portant commiittees. In the tl-^irty-sixth. 
 general assembly he was on the educational 
 committee which codified the school laws 
 of the state. In the thirty-seventh assembly 
 he was chairman of the committee on muni- 
 cipal corporations, and in the thirty-eighth 
 assembly he was chairman i:)f the cmnmittee 
 /in congressinal apprtionment, and his com- 
 mittee frametl the congressional apportion- 
 iiient bill which is the law at the present time. 
 During his three terras he was on the steer- 
 ing committee of his party, and in the last 
 two terms he was the disciplinarian of this 
 committee. Ho was one of the one hundred 
 and one members oi the legislature that voted 
 for General Palmer in his memorable con- 
 test for tho United States senate in 1891. 
 His associates had in him the utmost confi- 
 dence and he was regardetl by them as a 
 worthy leader. 
 
 Mr. Smith was president of the village 
 l)oard of Chatsworth for thirteen }-ears, 
 ele\-en of which were consecutive. When he 
 was first elected president of the board tlie 
 village was heavily in debt, but during his 
 adnninistration ni_)t only were substantial 
 impro\-ements made, but the debt was entiro- 
 Iv wiped out and mone}- left in the treas- 
 urv. During his term of oitice, and through 
 his efforts, a good system of water works 
 was installed and paid for, electric lights 
 were secured for the village, and four miles 
 of brick walk were laid. His last term ex- 
 pired in 1895, and tlie \illage owes him a debt 
 of gratitude which will be hard to repay. 
 
 For twent}--two consecutive years Mr. 
 Smith was a member and secretary of the 
 Chatsworth schmil Ijoard, and during all 
 that time he was tho guiding spirit of the 
 board. Few men not actually engaged in 
 
 school work have been more closely in touch 
 with the public schools, and he has e\er had 
 the intercuts of the schools at heart, and 
 was willing to give of liis time to make them 
 more efficient. 
 
 As a delegate to county conventions f'-.r 
 twenty-fi\e years, and as a delegate to con- 
 gressional and state conventions, and ti) the 
 national Democratic convention at St. Louis 
 in 1888, he has done valiant service for the 
 success of his party, but like many other pa- 
 triotic Democrats, he was not in sympathy 
 with the views expressed in the platform 
 adopted by the Democratic national conven- 
 tion which assembled in Chicago in 1896. 
 He is a Democrat from ])rinciple and not for 
 the spods of office. 
 
 Air. Smith is one of the largest real estate 
 owners in central Illinois, and has large 
 property interests in the village which has 
 been his home for thirty-three years. He is 
 the owner of sevoral fine buddings in the 
 \illage, including the one occupied by Bush- 
 way & Co., of which he is the company. 
 He and his family enjoy the confidence and 
 esteem of a large circle of friends, and judg- 
 ing from the record of his life he is worthy 
 of all the honors bestowed upon him. 
 
 ISAAC O. TAXQUARV. 
 
 Isaac O. Tanquary, deceased, was iden- 
 tified with the agricultural interests of Liv- 
 ingston county for twenty years, and was 
 accounted one of the most highly respected 
 citizens of Fayette township, his home being 
 on section 8. .\ natix'e of Ohio, he was 
 born in I'ickaway county, in 181 5, and his 
 early life was passed at his birthplace, where 
 he received a common school education. In
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 415 
 
 1840 he came to Illinois and first located in 
 Marshall county, where he engaged in farm- 
 ing upon rented land for a number of years. 
 In 1S75 he moved with his family to Liv- 
 ingston county and purchased a farm on sec- 
 tion 8, Fayette township, consisting of one 
 hundred and si.xty acres of land, which he 
 broke and placed under a high state of culti- 
 vation. He erected thereon a goctl. sub- 
 stantial farm house, a barn and other build- 
 ings, and soon made the farm (jne of the 
 best in that section of the county. 
 
 In Marshall county Mr. Tanquary was 
 married, in 1842, to Miss Mary Jane Wat- 
 kins, a native of Athens county, Ohin, and a 
 daughter of Isaiah and Mary (Douglass) 
 W'atkins. The father was born in Wales, 
 and when a young man came to the United 
 States, locating in Athens county, Ohio. He 
 died in 1830 at the age of forty years, his 
 wife in Marshall county, Illinois, in 1865, 
 at the age nf seventy years. To Mr. and 
 Mrs. Tanquary were born the following chil- 
 dren : ( I ) Angeline married Ethan Drake, 
 of Marshall county, and died in Kansas, 
 where they moved in 1873, leaving seven 
 children, Robert, .\lvin. Joseph, (jeorge, Ly- 
 man, Carrie and Nellie. (2) Caroline died 
 in Fayette township, Livingston county, in 
 l^/^- (3) Nancy is the wife of John Cus- 
 sard, village marshal of Strawn, and they 
 had si.K children : Charles, Angeline, Ida, 
 Henry and Grover, all living; and I'earl, 
 deceased. (4) Lucinda married J. S. Mar- 
 shall, a carpenter of Strawn, and died in that 
 place at the age of twenty-seven years, leav- 
 ing three children : Le Roy, Grace and Lilly. 
 (5) Elizabeth is the wife of Lewis Xighson- 
 ger, a farmer of Marshall county, and their 
 children are: Lulie, Lillie. Solomon, Bay- 
 ard, William, David, Elvirah. Edith, Evan- 
 gel, .\lta and Rav. Of these Luke and P.avard 
 
 are deceased. (6) David died in Fayette 
 township, Li\ingston county, in 1S79. at 
 the age of twenty-seven years. (7) Will- 
 iam J., liorn in Marshall county, December 
 -3' 1857, was educated in the comnn)n schools 
 of that county, and resides on the home farm 
 with his mother. He is an industrious, en- 
 ergetic man, indepemlent in politics, who 
 votes for the man who in his judgment is 
 best c|ualified to hll the (jftice. (8) Jaliial 
 died in infancy. 
 
 Mr. Tanquary was a self-made man, 
 whose success in life was due to his inchis- 
 tr}-. perseverance and good management, 
 and at his death he left his family in com- 
 fortable circumstances. His widow still 
 resides on the farm on section 8, Fayette 
 townshrip. lie died there September 18, 
 1895, honored and respected by all who 
 knew him. Politically he was identified 
 with the Rcptiblican party, but never took 
 a very active part in ])olitics, caring nothing 
 for official honors, although he was a public- 
 spirited man and an advocate of all meas- 
 ures that tended toward the improvement 
 and advancement of the community in which 
 he lived. He was a devmit member of the 
 Methodist church, and his life was ever in 
 harmony with his professions. 
 
 XKW i:i.L P. C.I^ORGE. 
 
 Xewell P. George, one of the most suc- 
 cessful and enterprising farmers of Brongh- 
 ton township, Living.ston county, whose 
 home is on section i, was born in Sunapee, 
 .\ew 1 lamiishire, July -'3. 183J. ;uid is a son 
 of Worthen and Kache! ( lunerson I George, 
 both of whom l)e]onged to old Xcw luiglancl 
 families and traced thc.r ancestry back to 
 Scotland. Fi r generations the George fam-
 
 4i6 
 
 THE BICGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ily ha\-e flourislied in New Hampshire, and 
 at one election twenty-three votes wore cast 
 by those bearing tlie name in one town. 
 Elijah George, our subject's paternal grand- 
 father, was a soldier in the war of 1812. 
 The father followed farming throughout life 
 and died in 1881. The mother had died 
 when our subject was only ten years old. 
 They were consistent and faithful me-mbers 
 •of the Baptist chtuxh. and the father was a 
 Democrat in politics. Of the si.x children 
 born to them one daughter died in infancy. 
 The others are Clifton and James, both res- 
 idents of Newport, New Hampshire; Mary, 
 wife of Rufus Baker; Abbie, widow of 
 Oliver Buell, who was a resident of Prince- 
 ton, Illinois, for many years, where she now 
 resides ; and Newell P. 
 
 Our subject obtained a good high school 
 education in his native state, and commenced 
 teaching school at the age of twenty-one, 
 making his home with his father up to this 
 time. Later he worked for a Mr. Buell 
 in the mercantile business for five years and 
 has profited much by that experience. While 
 thus employed he was maiTied, in 1855, to 
 Miss 1 hucy A. \\'eeks. who was born in 
 Vermont, in 1837, '^'•'t ^vas living with her 
 parents in Massachusetts at the time of her 
 marriage. By this union six children were 
 born, of whom Charles H. died in 1892, at 
 the age of thirty-five years, leaving a wife 
 and two sons. Newell J. and Frank. Those 
 hving are as follows: (i) Eugene IL. a 
 farmer of Broughton township. Livingston 
 county, is married and has three children ; 
 Oliver and Olive, twins, and }]arr\-. (j) 
 Frank S.. who lives on the old Clapp farm 
 in Broughton township, is married and has 
 three children, Cora, Mabel and Hazell. (3 > 
 Bert is engaged in farming east of Emhig- 
 ton. (4) Dell is married and also lives in 
 
 Briiughton township. (5) Edward is mar- 
 ried and lives on the old home place. The 
 sons have receixed good common school 
 educations and are now prosperous farmers 
 and men of good habits. 
 
 On first coming to Illinois, Mr. George 
 settled in Kendall county, where he rented 
 land and successfully engaged in farming 
 until i86g, when he removed to Livingston 
 county and purchased forty acres of partially 
 improx-ed land in Broughton township. 
 Here he steadily prospered and at one time 
 owned two hundred and forty acres of land 
 and still retains one hundred and si.xty acres, 
 which he has placed under a high state of cul- 
 tixation and nnpro\'ed liy the erection of 
 good and substantial buddings, including a 
 comfortable modern residence. He taught 
 school for two years after comins^ to this 
 state, but has principally engaged in general 
 farming and stock raising. Although he 
 came to Illinois a poor man. he has by hard 
 work and gootl manageme-it become tiuite 
 well-to-do, and is now assessed higher than 
 any other man in the township. 
 
 Politically Mr. George is an ardent Dem- 
 ocrat and has most creditalily and acceptably 
 filled the offices of road commissioner twelve 
 }'ears and school director twenty-five years 
 in his district, having always taken an active 
 interest in maintaining good schools. His 
 support is always given any enterprise which 
 he believes calculated to advance the moral, 
 intellectual anil material welfare of his 
 adopted countw and l)oth he and his wife 
 are widelv and fax'orablv known. 
 
 ALFRED ERICKSON. 
 
 Lix'ingston county has no truer patriot 
 or more industrious, upright citizen than he 
 of whom the following sketch is penned
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 417 
 
 His course in life has l)een jiursued in a 
 slraiglittorward manner, eminently wnrthy 
 of commendation, and the young man of 
 this period can find no example better fitted 
 for his emulation and inspiration. 
 
 One of the five children of Erick antl 
 Anna M. Xelson, the birth of our subject 
 took place near Stockholm. Sweden. Septem- 
 ber I. 1835. ^^ grew to manhood on a 
 farm and received fair educational advan- 
 tages, and. as the years passed, he be- 
 came more antl more determined to seek 
 his fortune in the United States. In i860 
 he took passage in a sailing vessel, bound 
 for Xew York city, and for seven weeks and 
 four days was tossed to and fro upon the 
 broad Atlantic, one severe storm lasting four 
 clays, when all of the ship's sails were furled 
 and she seemed entirely at the mercy of the 
 waves. From Xew York. Mr. Erickson pro- 
 ceeded to Galesburg, where some of his 
 friends were then residing, and ere long he 
 obtained a ])osition on a farm, and during the 
 ensuing year acquired a fair knowledge of 
 the language and custom of this country. 
 
 That the young man had indeed become 
 a devoted son of the land of his adoption 
 was proved when, in August. 1861, he vol- 
 unteered Iiis services in the defense of the 
 Union, and from that day to this he has 
 faithfully performed every duty devolving 
 upon him as a citizen. As a private of 
 Company C, Forty-second Illinois Infantry, 
 he served in the army of the Cumberland, 
 and ])articipated in the battles of Island X<1. 
 10. Corinth and Murfreesboro. At the last 
 named place he received a tiesh wound in the 
 left leg, and was sent to the local hospital, 
 and later transferred to one at Xashville, 
 thence to Louisville and Chicago. W'iien 
 he had sufficiently recovered he was assigned 
 to the veteran reserve corps, and thus filled 
 
 out the term of his enlistment, which expired 
 in September, 1S64, when he was hiMiorably 
 discharged at Chicago. 
 
 Returning to Knox county, Mr. Erickson 
 worked in a factory until he had entirely re- 
 gained his health, and then he went to Mon- 
 tana, where he engaged in freighting for 
 some time. The ensuing year he turned 
 his attention again to agriculture, and in 
 the sjjring of 1867 bought an eighty-acre 
 tract of land in Livingston county. Only 
 fifteen acres had been broken and a small 
 cabin constituted the chief improvement on 
 the place. At the end of a few years he had 
 reduced the entire farm to cultivation, and 
 by means of fences, ditches and tiling made 
 a model homestead. Buying another tract 
 of forty acres, in section 4, Rt)oks Creek 
 township, and later one hundred and twenty 
 acres more, he thus increased the home farm 
 to two hundred and forty acres. Subse- 
 quently, when a favorable opportunity 
 offered, he purchased another quarter-section 
 of land, and now has a farm of one hun- 
 dred and twenty acres in Amity township. 
 By strict attention to business, economy anrl 
 judicious investments, he gradually amassed 
 a snug f(jrtune, and few in this community 
 who commenced making their own way in 
 the world without means ha\'e l)een more 
 successful. 
 
 From the time of his settlement here, 
 Mr. Erickson has used his inllucnce in be- 
 half of good roads, schools and churches 
 and everything of lasting benefit to the 
 county and state. Since 1S64, when he 
 cast his first presidential ballot for Lincoln, 
 he has been a loyal adherent of the Repub- 
 hcan party. With the exception of a period 
 when he acted in the capacity of a school 
 director, he has never held public ofifice, as 
 lit prefers to keep to the ([uiet walk-; of life,
 
 4i8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and finds his time well occupied in looking 
 after his varied business interests. \\'itl; 
 his estimable wife, he luilds membership in 
 the Lutheran church, and is a liberal con- 
 tributor to religious and benexolent organ- 
 izations. 
 
 In 1 8/ I, Mr. Erickson and Helen E\-en- 
 son were united in wedlock in this county. 
 She is a native of Norway and was a child 
 of five years when she accompanied her par- 
 ents to the United States. They located in 
 Amity township, this county, and there the 
 parents dwelt until they were claimed bv 
 death. Fi\e children blessed the union of 
 Mr. and Airs. Erickson, but only one of 
 the number survives, Caroline.wifeof Charles 
 Carlson, who is engaged in carrying on a por- 
 tion of our subject's home farm. They are the 
 parents of three children : Alfred. Emer\- and 
 Florence. Emily, who wedded Frank Carl- 
 son, died and left two little ones to mourn 
 her loss, namely; Arthur and Clara. The 
 angel of death indeed left our subject and 
 wife desolate, when, within two short weeks, 
 three of their dear ones were \-ictims of diph- 
 theria. Ida was in her tenth year ; Edward, 
 the only son, was a promising little fellow. 
 five years old, and Tilda was only two years 
 old. The many sincere friends of the family 
 truly share their sorrow, and in many ways 
 have manifested a deep esteem in which 
 they hokl these worthy pioneers. 
 
 THEODORE McCORMICK. 
 
 This well-known and popular citizen of 
 Oclell township, Livingston county, Illinois, 
 was born in Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, 
 October 26, 1837, and is a son of Seth and 
 Mary (Hill) McCormick, also natives of 
 
 that state and representatix'es of one of the 
 oldest familios. When a young man the 
 father learned the trade of a wagonmaker, 
 which he followed during his residence in 
 Pennsx'hania. InU on first coming to Illinois 
 in 1857. he turned his attention to .agricul- 
 tural pursuits, operating a re-.ited farm in 
 Stephenson county three years. He then 
 came to Livingston county and purchased a 
 tract of unimproved land in Odell township, 
 which he converted into a good farm sup- 
 plied with all necossary improvements for 
 successful farming. Later he rented his 
 place and purchased a home in Oilell, where 
 he also oijened a wagon shop and w 1 irked at 
 his trade. He died there January 8. 1882, 
 at the age of sixty-five years, and his wife,, 
 who was always strong and health}-, died 
 at the home of her youngest daughter, in Ne- 
 braska, in 1892, at the age of seventy-three. 
 Both were earnest and consistent members of 
 the Methodist Episcopal church, and in pol- 
 itics the father was a Republican for many 
 years but later joined the Deiuocratic party. 
 To this worth}' couple were biirn eleven chil- 
 dren, of whom three died in childhood. The 
 others are as fijllows : Theodore, our subject, 
 is the only one now residing in Li\-ingston 
 county ; John is a stock raiser of Start'ord 
 county, Kansas; Henrietta is the w.fe of 
 Orville Inman, of Benton county, Iowa ; 
 Oliver was a member of an Illinois regiment 
 in the Civil war and died of disease at Chat- 
 tanooga; Margaret is the wife of David M. 
 Brown, of St. Louis; Robert is a farmer 
 and stock raiser of Gage county, Nebraska ; 
 Nancy is the wife of Frank Lee, a city offi- 
 cial of Beatrice, Nebraska; and Daniel P. 
 is a mechanic living in Colorado. The two 
 youngest were born in Illinois, the others in 
 Pennsylvania. 
 
 Theodore McCormick was educated in
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 419 
 
 the district schools of liis native state, and 
 commenced work as a lahorer. In 1856 lie 
 came to Illinois, and while at Freeport cast 
 his first vote for Buchanan. After working 
 as a farm hand for one year, he was joined 
 by his father and the other members of the 
 family, and they worked together three 
 years in Stephenson county before coming 
 to Livingston county. Here our subject re- 
 mained with his father one year, and then 
 commenced farming for himself upon rented 
 land. 
 
 On the 19th of December, 1861, Mr. Mc- 
 Cormick married Miss Martha J. Snyder, 
 who was born in Pennsyhania, November 
 16, 1S4J, and died September 30, 1899. 
 Her parents, Daniel and Mary (\\'illiams) 
 Snyder, were also natives of Pennsylvania, 
 where the mother died when Martha was 
 young. The father afterward married 
 again, and by the second union had one son, 
 Frank P., an attorney of Chicago. His 
 last days were spent in Mendota, Illinois. 
 By the first marriage there were four chil- 
 dren: Albert, a resident of Mendota; Mar- 
 tha J., deceased wife of our subject: Kate, 
 widow of Isaac Eckert and a resident of 
 Mendota ; Tulietta, wife of Henrj^ Bockoven, 
 of Clark county, South Dakota. To Mr. 
 and Mrs. McCormick were born four chil- 
 dren, namely: Seth, born January 4, 1863, 
 is a farmer of Pontiac. He married Louisa 
 Drake, and has two children, Mattie and 
 Elmer. (2) Xettie, born .\ugust 16, 1865, 
 is the wife of J. \V. Ferguson, of Topeka, 
 Kansas, and they have two children, Irma 
 and Harry. (3) .Mbert. born Septemljer 
 30, 1871, lives at home and manages the 
 farm. (4) Mattie, born March 24, 1876, is 
 keeping house for her father. 
 
 Mr. McCormick engaged in farming 
 upon rented land until 1868, when he pur- 
 
 chased eighty acres of partially improved 
 land in Odell townshi]), which he operated 
 three years, and then had charge of his fa- 
 ther's farm for the same lengtli of time. At 
 the end of that time he purchased another 
 eighty-acre tract in the northern part of the 
 township, and, meeting with success here, he 
 subsequently bought one hundred and si.xty 
 acres on section 25, where he now resides, 
 liaving sold his two eighty-acre tracts. In 
 earlier days he handled stock quite extensive- 
 ly, but now gives his entire time and atten- 
 tiiin to general farming. Although he has 
 met with many rever.ses, through sickness, 
 l)ank failures and hog cholera, he has stead- 
 ily prospered, overcoming all the obstacles in 
 the path to success, and is today one of the 
 substantial citizens of his community. He 
 has made all the improvements upon his 
 father's farm, including the erection of a 
 beautiful home in 1893, at a cost of about 
 two thousand dollars. His land is thor- 
 oughly tiled an<l under a high state of cul- 
 tivation. 
 
 In the death of his wife Mr. McCormick 
 lost a devoted companion and faithful help- 
 meet. She was a most estimable lady, well 
 liked by all who knew her, and always took 
 an active interest in everything which would 
 advanced the welfare of her family. She was 
 never ill. but passed quietly away eight min- 
 utes after suffering a stroke of paralysis. 
 She and her husband traveled fjuite exten- 
 sively i)\cr the east and west, and spent 
 many pleasant days in this way. 
 
 Mr. McCormick has always attiliated 
 with the Democratic party, has efficiently 
 served as road commissioner for twelve 
 years, being again re-elected in 1900, and 
 has also filled the office of school director. 
 Fraternally he is a member of the .Mutual 
 Aid of Odell.
 
 420 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 WHAT IS LIFE ? 
 
 Life IS a narrow vale between the new 
 
 and the old, 
 A narrow path betw-een two mountains 
 
 bold, 
 In vain we try to look beyond those 
 
 peaks so high, 
 Still we see nothing but the varied blue 
 
 in the sky; 
 Tho' we weep aloud with anguish 
 
 and care. 
 Our voice is lost on the empty air. 
 And the only answer we receive as 
 
 the years roll by. 
 Is the resounding echo of our wailing 
 
 cry; 
 But love and hope see a star, and list- 
 ening can hear 
 The rustle of angel's wings as their 
 
 shadowy forms draw near. 
 We are humble mortals born of hopes 
 
 and fears, 
 And our path through life is strewn 
 
 with smiles and tears. 
 Of all there is in life of sad griefs and 
 
 joys bright, 
 There is not much between the happy 
 
 morn of birth and death's sad night. 
 We march on through life ever veiled 
 
 in mystery and dread, 
 For there comes no answer from the 
 
 voiceless lips of the dead. 
 Tho' the stars may look down upon us 
 
 with compassion and love, 
 From their far away places in the blue 
 
 heavens above, 
 Tho' learned in art and science as 
 
 taught here below, 
 We can never tell in what channels 
 
 our lives wdl flow. 
 Tho' we cry aloud in our vain efforts 
 
 the future to learn, 
 No answer will ever — no never — return; 
 Tho' the heavens for information we 
 
 eagerly scan. 
 We never can tell the true destiny of 
 
 man. 
 
 — REVILO. 
 
 FRAXKLIX OLIVER. 
 
 Franklin Oliver, deceased, was nunibered 
 among the pioneer settlers of Livingston 
 county, locating in ^^■hat is now known as 
 Oliver's Grox'c, about five miles south of 
 Chatsworth. He was born in Bordentown, 
 X'^ew Jersey, April 8, 1786, and b}- profession 
 was a civil engineer and surveyor, and was 
 following that occupation at the breaking out 
 of the war of 181 2. He enlisted in the 
 service almost as soon as war was proclaimed 
 and served through it with distinction. He 
 was at one time employed as general man- 
 ager for Joseph Bonaparte, ex-king of Spain, 
 a brother of the great Napoleon the First. 
 He was married three times, his first wife 
 being Hannah L. Ruckle, a native of New 
 Jersey, whom he married in 18 19. She 
 bore him five children, as follows : Ed- 
 ward R., who served as a private soldier in 
 the Mexican war, and was also a captain in 
 the Confederate service during the civil war. 
 He now resides in Corpus Christi, Texas, 
 where he owns Montreal ranch, consisting of 
 twenty thousand acres, and is one of the 
 wealthy men of that region; Elias B., who 
 is a survevor residing near Topeka, Kan- 
 sas; Helen and Franklin C, who are both 
 deceased, and James, who is a civil engineer, 
 and is engaged in engineering and mining at 
 Ophir, California. 
 
 In 1833 Franklin Oliver came with his 
 family to Livingston county, Illinois, set- 
 tling, as already stated, in Oliver's Grove, 
 which continued to be his home until his 
 death. He was one of the first county sur- 
 veyors of Livingston county, and selected 
 and surveved all the swamp land in the 
 county. He also became the owner of four 
 thousand acres of choice land in Livingston 
 and adjoining counties, but never actively
 
 REVILO OLIVER.
 
 MISS GERTIE ROSS. 
 
 The Authors Little Niece.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 421 
 
 engaged in farming, tlie land beint;- unly 
 used for pasturing during his lifetime. 
 
 John Oliver, the father of Franklin Oli- 
 ver, was born and educated in Dublin. Ire- 
 land. He emigrated to this country some- 
 time prior to the Revolutionary war, in 
 which he served as quartermaster-general. 
 He was a warm friend of Benjamin Frank- 
 lin, who at one time gave him a portrait of 
 himself, being one of only three that were 
 ever made. It was painted by Francis Hop- 
 kins, one of the signers of the Declaration 
 of Independence. The family yet have that 
 portrait in their possession, and it goes with- 
 out cpiestion to say that it is highly prized. 
 John 01i\er was the pioneer of the Oliver 
 family who settled in Bordentmvn. Xew 
 Jersey. 
 
 For l:is second wife Franklin Oliver mar- 
 ried Sarah Wert, in 1846, who was born in 
 Illinois, and bv this union there was one 
 daughter, Caroline, now the wife of Theo- 
 dore Dorr, residing in Livingston county. 
 For his third wife he married Amaretta 
 Smith, in 1850, who was born in Oswego 
 county, New York, March 6, 1833. Her 
 father, Luther L. Smith, was born in West- 
 minster, Vermont, and married Amaretta 
 Fellows, who was a daughter of Captain 
 Fellows, of war fame. His father, Luther 
 Smith, was also born in Vermont, where he 
 married Love Leavitt, of Vermont, whose 
 mother was Love Howard, and whose grand- 
 parents achieved fame by coming over in the 
 Mayflower. 
 
 Luther L. Smith came to Livingston 
 county when Mrs. Oliver was a small child. 
 He settleil on what is known as Smith's 
 Mound, north of Pontiac, and which is the 
 highest elevation in the county. The ma- 
 ternal grandfather of Mrs. Oliver, Captain 
 F"ellows, who served in the Revolutionary 
 
 war. went into the service as a teamster 
 when very young, and was promoted to a 
 captaincy during the war. His father was 
 Colonel Fellows, who held that title during 
 the Revolutionary war. Captain Fellows 
 married Miss Anna Grant, of Old Hartford, 
 Ctjnnecticut, relative of General Grant. 
 Adelia Smith, a sister of Mrs. Oliver, was 
 the first lady teacher in Pontiac. teaching 
 school in the nld court lnuise. She was a 
 very talented lady, and the belle of Living- 
 -ston county. She is now the wife of Hor- 
 ace Scripture, df t)swego, Xew York. Ada- 
 line .Smith, who died yoiuig. was also a 
 school teacher and a minister in the Meth- 
 odist church. She was a fine public speaker. 
 Jerome B. Smith lives on the old homesteatl 
 on Smith's Mound, where he owns about 
 six hundred acres of well improved lantl. 
 Solomon J. Smith is now living retired near 
 Chicago. Xiles was a soldier in the civil 
 war, and served until the end. He later 
 went to Oklahoma where he died in 1895. 
 To Franklin and Amaretta Oliver were 
 born three children: Revilo, John L. and 
 Florence. Revilo, e.x-iuayor of Chatsworth, 
 the famous song composer, author of "Sol- 
 diers of the Maine." the great Spanish- 
 American war song; "The Hero of Manila," 
 the famous Dewey song; "Xineteen Hun- 
 dred Years Ago," a Christmas song and 
 chorus relating to the Savior of the world; 
 "The V'olunteers," a war song and chorus, 
 representing the largest army in ilic world, 
 and other beautiful songs and poems. He 
 has the distinction of being both an author 
 and inventor, a characteristic seldom found 
 in one per.son. He inherits his Christian 
 and ])oetic nature from his mother, who is 
 a noble. Christian woman, and a great finan- 
 cier. His family consists of his mother 
 and his little niece. Miss Gertie Ross, whose
 
 42: 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 pliotograph appears in this work. She is 
 a bright little girl of considerable oratorical 
 al)ility, to whom the poet is very much at- 
 tached. He also has the distinction of being 
 the first and only person in the world who 
 bears the name of Revilo, which is consid- 
 ered by many to be the sweetest and pret- 
 tiest name kno\\n to the English language, 
 being a new name originating with his fa- 
 ther, from whom he inherits his mechanical 
 ingenuity. One thing that makes him lo- 
 cally famous is the peculiarity of his name. 
 Revilo, when read backwards spells Oliver, 
 and Oliver when read backwards spells Re- 
 vilo. He is a natural orator and a good 
 judge of law and equity, and. like most all 
 poets, he is endowed with a genial, kind- 
 hearted and sympathetic nature, but when 
 thoroughly aroused by injustice he is un- 
 yielding and of a warlike disposition. He 
 is styled Revilo, the Christian poet, because 
 there is something about his compositions 
 that reminds one of the other world. His 
 songs and poems are sad, but beautiful. 
 They have a sublimity of thought and a 
 tenderness of feeling that touches the heart 
 of everyone. 
 
 John L., who is residing on part of the 
 home farm, is a successful agriculturist and 
 raiser of blooded stock, is married, and has 
 five children — Ralph, Daisy, Arthur, Orvile 
 and Oma. Florence is the wife of Thomas 
 Ross, and they now reside in Lake Village, 
 Indiana. He is a farmer, and also a horse 
 trainer and track driver. They have four 
 children — Gertie, Charles, Joseph R. and 
 Murrell D. The first named makes her 
 home with her uncle. Revilo and her grand- 
 mother Oliver, and is a bright and talented 
 young elocutionist. 
 
 Ann Oliver, a sister of Franklin Oliver, 
 was a natural artist, and some of her work 
 
 is in possession of the family at the present 
 time. She is buried at Pontiac, where she 
 distinguished herself during the cholera epi- 
 demic of 1848 by taking care of a number of 
 afflicted ones, who all recovered, but she her- 
 self was taken with the dread disease and 
 her life was thus ofifered a sacrifice to others. 
 Franklin Oliver, after a long and useful 
 life, died September 19, 1881. His widow. 
 Mrs. Amaretta Oliver, survives him, and 
 now makes her home in the city of Chats- 
 worth, where she owns a fine residence. 
 She is also the owner of over eleven hun- 
 dred acres of choice farm land in Living- 
 ston county, from which she derives a hand- 
 some income. 
 
 WILLIAM WILLARD SHEDD. 
 
 William Willard Shedd, formerly a 
 prominent farmer of Yates townsh'p, Mc- 
 Lean county, who is now living a reLred 
 life in Fairbury. was born in Alstead. Xew 
 Hampshire. July 14. 1835 and is a smi of 
 William and Abigail ( Wallace) Shedd, also 
 natives of that state, the former hovn in 
 Mason, in 1801, the latter in Greenfield, in 
 1 8 10. Both belonged to old Xew England 
 families, and the paternal ancestry was of 
 French descent, the maternal of Scotch. 
 In their family were nine children, namely : 
 ]\Iary E., now the widow of John G. Graves 
 and a resident of Evanston, Illinois; Silas 
 L., a resident of Corvallis. Oregon: William 
 W., our subject: Herman, who served as a 
 pri\-ate in the Ci\-il war and was killed at 
 the battle of Fair Oaks, in 1862; Jonas W., 
 a resident of Rensselaer, Indiana; Spalding 
 S.. also a resident of that place; Edwin, of 
 Lewiston, California ; John G., a member of 
 the firm of Marshall Field & Company, of
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 423 
 
 Cliicagc) : and one wlio died in infancy. The 
 lather was a prosi)erous farmer of Xe.v 
 Hampshire, but after his children were al' 
 ^nnvn and Iiad left the parental rnof, he 
 M.ld the old home and came to Illinois to 
 live with them. He died at the home of his 
 dauj^hter in Knox county, Illinois, in De- 
 cember, 1875 ; and his wife died at the home 
 of our subject in F"airbury, in December. 
 1894. Both were faithful members of the 
 Congregational church and active workers 
 m the same. 
 
 Our subject received his education in the 
 common schools of his native state and aided 
 in the work of the home farm until eighteen 
 years of age, when he found employment 
 as a clerk in a general store for two years. 
 He was then appointed as an attendant in 
 the asylum for insane at Taunton. Massa- 
 chusetts, a position he held one year. De- 
 ciding to go to the far west, on the 12th of 
 April, i860, in company with \\ . \\ . Iviger 
 and family. John Hardenburg and William 
 Phillips, he started to cross the plains with 
 ox teams. Thc\- crossed the Mississip])i 
 river atOcjuawkaand the Missouri at Council 
 Bluffs. .\t that time there was not a house 
 standing on the present site of Omaha. They 
 continued their slow journey to Salt Lake 
 and Honey Lake X'allcy, and arrived in Ore- 
 gon September i, taking fi\e months to 
 complete their trij). They met many Indians 
 on the plains, but they were nearly all friend- 
 ly, doing considerable trading with the emi- 
 grant trains that were continuously crossing 
 to the gold regions. l.Ir. Shedd remained 
 in Oregon some time and found employment 
 at good wages. In the snring of 1863 he 
 conducted a second pack train into the wilds 
 of Idaho, and spent six years in the west, 
 mostly in California and Oregon. 
 
 In 1866 he came to Illinois and pur- 
 
 chased eighty acres of land in Yates town- 
 ship, McLean county, which at that time was 
 wild prairie anil swamp land, but by industry 
 and perseverance he soon placed it under 
 cultivation, .\ftcr erecting thereon a rude 
 house, he returned to his boyhod home in 
 1867 for a wife, and was there united in 
 marriage with Miss Rhoila M. Graves. He 
 brought his bride to his newly acquired home 
 in Illinois, and for many years successfullv 
 followed general farming and stock raising 
 in McLean county. He added another one- 
 hundred-and-sixty-acre tract to his posses- 
 sions, and built a pleasant residence. By 
 good management and hard work he placed 
 the land under cultivation and made manv 
 improvements thereon. He sold eighty acres 
 at a good profit, but still retains one hundred 
 and sixty acres, which he now rents while 
 living retired in Fairbury, enjoying a well- 
 e.irned rest. Mr. and Mrs. Shedd are the 
 [jarents of three children, namely : Herman, 
 who is successfully engaged in farming on 
 the old homestead, is married and has two 
 children. Mary R. and Florence M. ; John 
 W. is a leading dentist of Chicago : and D(jra 
 G. is at home. 
 
 Politically Mr. Shedd has always been 
 identifietl with the Republican party, and has 
 held office almost t(Mitinuously sinceattaining 
 his majority, being one of the leading and 
 influential citizens oi his community. He 
 served as assessor for twelve consecutive 
 years, supervisor two terms, and township 
 school trustee twenty years, having always 
 taken a firm stand for good schools. He 
 has served his fellow citizens most faithfully 
 and to the best of his ability. Reaching 
 the age when he felt farm work too arduous, 
 he purchased a lot in Fairbury in 1894 and 
 erected a modern residence, fitted with all 
 conveniences obtainaljle and there he is li\-
 
 424 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ing a quiet, retired life with his wife and 
 daughter. He lias been elected justice of the 
 peace and is now filling that office. He is 
 a man of jovial disposition, who makes 
 many friends and is held in high regard by 
 all with whom he comes in contact either in 
 business or social life. 
 
 W. H. BARICKMAN. 
 
 W. H. Barickman, a prominent musician 
 and a successful farmer, residing on section 
 30, Newtown township, Livingston county, 
 Illinois, was born upon his present farm, 
 May II, 1865, a son of Benjamin and Mary 
 Augusta Barickman, represented elsewhere 
 in this volume. He began his education in 
 the district schools of Reading township, 
 the same county, and later attended college 
 iit Dixon, Illinois, where he gave special at- 
 tention to the study of music. Since his 
 return home in 1889 he has had charge of the 
 farm, and now successfully operates two 
 hundred and seventy-five acres of land in 
 Newtown township. He also owns one 
 hundred and three acres on section 19, the 
 same township, which he rents. 
 
 On the loth of July, 1889, Mr. Barick- 
 man was united in marriage with Miss Eliza 
 Semans, a native of Livingston county, and 
 a daughter of Henry and Rebecca Semans, 
 whose sketch appears on another page of 
 this volume. By this union have been born 
 five children, namely : Earl Wade, Ray W., 
 Winifred, Charles'Max and Edwin K. 
 
 In his social relations Mr. Barickman is 
 a charter member of Ancona Camp, No. 
 1835, M. W. A.; in politics is identified 
 with the Republican party. For the past 
 ,se\cn vears he has served as school director 
 
 in district number ten, and takes an active 
 interest in all enterprises calculated to ad- 
 vance the moral, social and material wel- 
 fare of his community. He has always been 
 an ardent lover of music, and has devoted 
 considerable attention to the study of that 
 art, as he possesses much talent in that di- 
 rection. He has a good voice, and is able 
 to play on several different instruments. For 
 the past ten years he has been a musical di- 
 rector, and at present is instructing two 
 brass bands of eighteen pieces each, and an 
 orchestra of eight pieces, principally string 
 instruments. He also has many private 
 scholars, and was formerly a cornet player 
 in the Fourth Regiment Band located at 
 Streator. He is cjuite popular, both in mu- 
 sical and social circles, and justly merits the 
 hioh regard in which he is held. 
 
 AMMON DEFENBAUGH. 
 
 Amnion Defenbaugli, one of the most 
 successful farmers and stock raisers of 
 Reading township, Livingston county, as 
 well as one of its most enterprising and pub- 
 lic-spirited citizens, was born in Xewtown 
 township, that same county, May 27, 1854, 
 and is a son of Elijah and Catherine (Defen- 
 baugli) Defenbaugh, a sketch of whom ap- 
 pears on another page of this volume. He 
 was only able to attend school about three 
 months during the year, but continued his 
 studies in the district schools, as he found 
 opportunity, until he attained his majority. 
 He aided his father in the work of the home 
 farm until the latter's death in 1S86, and 
 then commenced farming on his own ac- 
 count. He now operates se\-en hundred and 
 seventy acres of land in Reading township.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 425 
 
 tour hundred acres of wliicli belongs to 
 him. Having become tliorouglily familiar 
 with all the duties which fall to the lot of 
 the agriculturist, he met with marked suc- 
 cess at the beginning nf his career, and todax' 
 is one of the most prosperous farmers of the 
 township. He feeds annuall}- about one 
 hundred head of cattle and two hundred 
 b-ogs, in this way using all the grain raised 
 upon his land. .\s a business man he is re- 
 liable, energetic and progressive, and has 
 the entire confidence and respect of those 
 with whom he comes in contact. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Defenbaugh alKiliates 
 with Ancona Camp, Xo. 1S35, M. W. A., 
 and politically is identified with the Demo- 
 cratic party. He has always taken an ac- 
 tive interest in anything pertaining to the 
 good of his party; for the past twenty years 
 has been committeeman of Reading town- 
 ship; and for many years has been a dele- 
 gate to county, congressional and state con- 
 ventions. He takes a prominent and in- 
 fluential part in local affairs; was assessor 
 of his township one year, and supervisor 
 three years, during which time he was a 
 member of several of the most important 
 committees, including the one on jail and 
 jail accounts. Fie has also ser\'ed as school 
 director and is now school trustee. 
 
 GEORGE E. BENNETT. 
 
 George E. Bennett, a highly esteemed 
 farmer of Rooks Creek township, Living- 
 ston county, is a citizen of whom it may be 
 truly said wherever he has resided the com- 
 munity has been the better and more pros- 
 perous for his presence. He has firmly 
 stood for public improvements, schools and 
 
 churches, and progress in all lines, and by 
 voice and means has used his influence for 
 the good and right. .\s he justly deserves, 
 success has attended his industrious, well a])- 
 ]ilied efforts in business, ami his innumer- 
 able friends in this portion of the state re- 
 joice in his good fortune. 
 
 In tracing the ancestral history of our 
 subject, it is found that he is of French de- 
 scent, on both sides of the family. His 
 paternal grandfather. Colonel Green Ben- 
 nett, won his title during some of the early 
 wars of this country. He resided in Che- 
 mung CDUiity. New \ iirk. in the early part of 
 this century, and there his .sun, Thomas S., 
 lather of our subject, was born and reared 
 to manhood. He married Mary Brown, 
 likewise a native of Chemung county, and in 
 1850 they removeil to Kendall county, Illi- 
 nois. Later the family located in Kane 
 county, and in 1867 they removed to this 
 county, with which their name has since 
 l)een closely associated. Mr. Bennett was 
 summoned to the silent land in 1869, and 
 was survived a score of years by his widow, 
 who made her home with her son George 
 until her death, in February, 1899. This 
 beloved couple, whose lives have much of 
 inspiration to the younger generation, are 
 now sleeping their last sleep in Johnson 
 cemetery. 
 
 George E. Bennett was born on the old 
 family estate in Chemung county, New 
 York, November 9, 1848, and, as he was 
 young when he was brought to Illinois, he 
 knows no other home. Here he received a 
 common school education, and laid the foun- 
 dations for his future success by practical 
 application to his chosen calling. When 
 he was less than twenty years of age he came 
 to this county and purchased eighty acres of 
 land in section 10, Rooks Creek township
 
 426 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his present homestead. True, this was a 
 wild trict of land, and ahoiit its only im- 
 provement was a small cabin, but the young 
 man, with true foresight, believed that a 
 fine farm could be developed here. W'ithin 
 a few years he had developed the land and 
 reaped good harvests each year. Besides this, 
 he rented additional land, which yielded 
 large crops annually, and later he increased 
 the boundaries of his farm to two hundred 
 and eight acres. 
 
 With characteristic enterprise, Mr. Ben- 
 nett was the first one in this township to 
 purchase and lay tiling, the experiment 
 being made in 1883, when he laid thirteen 
 hundred rods of tile, at a cost of eleven hun- 
 dred dollars. This venture proving a suc- 
 cess, as some land that otherwise had not 
 been of much value was thereby made highly 
 productive, he invested more capital in til- 
 ing, and his example was followed by many 
 of his neighbors. Today a pleasant modern 
 farm house, well built barns, a thrifty or- 
 chard and beautiful fields of grain and hay 
 proclaim the judicious care and industry of 
 the owner. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Bennett and Martha 
 E. Douglas was solemnized in this county, 
 February i, 1881. Her father. Reason N. 
 Dotiglas, was one of the early settlers of 
 Livingston county, coming here from Ohio. 
 Mrs. Bennett was born in this pioneer home, 
 and was reared to maturity here, enjoying 
 the benefits of the common schools and com- 
 pleting her education in Eureka (Illinois) 
 College, after which she engaged in teach- 
 ing. Four children bless the union of our 
 subject and wife, namely: Myron E., 
 Ivlary E., Thomas R. and Mabel. Leroy, 
 the first born, died at the age nf three and 
 one-half years. 
 
 Upon receiving the right of franchise, 
 
 \h-. Bennett voted for General U. S. Grant, 
 Ijut of late years he has kept free from party 
 obligations, and uses his ballot for the plat- 
 form and nominee which he deems best 
 suited for the emergency and times. For 
 many years he served as a member of the 
 board of education, as township clerk and 
 trustee, and ga\-e entire satisfaction to the 
 people in his discharge of his duties of 
 citizenship. Air. and ]Mrs. Bennett are 
 members of the Baptist church in Gray- 
 mont, and, besides being one of the ofticial 
 board, he is a great worker in the Sunday 
 school, and is president of the Sunday School 
 Association of this township. 
 
 F. K. HACK. 
 
 F. K. Hack, a well-known citizen and 
 leading agriculturist of Sullivan township, 
 Livingston county, Illinois, residing on sec- 
 tion 14, was born Februar}' 4, 1862, in that 
 township, just two miles south of his present 
 home, and is a son of Frederick and Martha 
 iKnorr) Hack, natives of Baxaria, Ger- 
 many. The father x\as born [March 6, 1828, 
 and in the spring of 1852 emigrated to the 
 L'nited States. From New York city he 
 went to Pittsburg, and found employment 
 as a farm hand in Butler county, Pennsylva- 
 nia, where he remained four years. He 
 then came to Grundy county, Illinois, and 
 two years later to Livingston county, where 
 he has since made his home. In 1857 he 
 purchased one hundred and sixty acres of 
 government land in Sulliwan township, 
 which at that time was vevy swampy and all 
 wild and unimpri:>\-ed, Init he soon trans- 
 formed it into a good farm. He added to his 
 landed possessions from time to time as his
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 427 
 
 financial resources increased \intil lie hail 
 over six hundred acres o£ well improved and 
 valuable land, some of which he sold for 
 ninety-two dollars and a half per acre. His 
 success in life was due entirely to his own 
 unaided efforts for he started out empty- 
 handetl. He engaged in farming until the 
 village of Cullom sprang into existence, when 
 he embarked in the lumber and hardware 
 business at that place and later he also dealt 
 in grain. For many years he was promi- 
 nently identified with public affairs, repre- 
 senting Sullivan township on the county 
 board of supervisors three years, and serv- 
 ing as road commissioner eighteen years, 
 school director sixteen years, and president 
 of the village board several years. He was 
 formerly a Republican in politics, but now 
 votes independently, and is an acti\e and 
 faithful member of the Lutheran church. 
 On the 1st of June, 1852, he married Miss 
 Martha Knorr. who died July 4. 1898, and 
 Ik. is now living retired among his children 
 in Sullivan township. In his family are 
 the following: Elizabeth, wife of Ezra 
 Grush. of Dwight township, Livingston 
 county; Lena, wife of Ernest Opperman, of 
 Sullivan township; Caroline, wife of An- 
 drew H. Haag. supervisor of Sullivan town- 
 ship; Katie, who married Leonard Haag and 
 died at the age of twenty-six years; Ezra, 
 who is living on the old home farm in Sulli- 
 van township; and Frederick K., our sul)ject. 
 During his boyhood Frederick K. Hack 
 attended the district schools of Sullivan 
 township, and remained under the parental 
 roof until he attained his majority, when 
 •he commenced farming upon land rented 
 from his father. On the 8th of October, 
 1884, he was united in marriage with Miss 
 Lizzie Keck, of the same township, a daugh- 
 ter of .\ndrew and Catlierine Keck, who 
 
 came fnmi IV-nnsyhania to Livingston 
 county, Illinois, at an early day, and are now 
 living retired in Cullom at the ages of 
 seventy-six and seventy-two years, respect- 
 ively. In their family of eight children 
 Mrs. Hack is the seventh in order of birth. 
 Our subject and his wife have five children, 
 namely: Albert, Ernest, Willie, Roy and 
 Gertie, all attending the home school with 
 exception of the youngest. 
 
 In 1889 Mr. Hack purchased eighty acres 
 of land on section 14. Sullivan town.ship, of 
 Edward Cook, a part of which was improved 
 and under cultivation, and which he has 
 since tiled and converted into an excellent 
 farm. In 1895 he bought an adjoining 
 eighty acres of Linden Bute, and the same 
 year erected a barn, crib and wind-mill. He 
 lias no specialty, but is successfully engaged 
 in general farming. For three years, from 
 1892 to 1895, ^i^ '^^*i charge of his father's 
 general store in Cullom, but since then has 
 devoted his energies to agricultural pursuits 
 alone. 
 
 Mr. and ^Irs. Hack are both active mem- 
 bers of the Lutheran church, of Cullom, of 
 which he has been a trustee for the past two 
 years. On national issues he votes the 
 Democratic ticket, but at local elections sup- 
 ports the men whom he believes best qualified 
 for office regardless of party lines. In the 
 spring of 1900 he was elected road commis- 
 sioner, and is now most creditalily filling 
 that office. 
 
 .\LBERT M.WtlSER. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, who is now 
 successfully engaged in farming in Nebras- 
 ka township. Livingston county. Illinois, was 
 born in Germanv. on the 4th of Xo\ember,
 
 42t 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 1852. and is a son of Manert and Fannie 
 (Strunk) Manhser, also natives of that 
 country. In 1873 the family emigrated to 
 America and on landing proceeded at once 
 to Illinois. They first located in Mason 
 county, where they remained two years, and 
 then removed to Tazewell county. Shortly 
 afterward the parents settled in Amden, Illi- 
 nois, where they now reside. After a long 
 and useful career the father is spending his 
 declining years in the quietude of a retired 
 life. He is now eighty years of age, while 
 his wife is eighty-six, but they still enjoy 
 good health. In 1897 this venerable couple 
 celebrated their golden wedding. They are 
 widely and favorably known and are held 
 ill the highest regard in the community in 
 which they reside. In their family are six 
 children, namely : John, a resident of Am- 
 den; Maggie, wife of Lambert Helman. of 
 San Jose, Illinois; Barney, of Pekin, Illi- 
 nois; Albert, our subject; Maynard, of Dela- 
 \an, Illinois; and Lena, wife of Albert W'ei- 
 mer, of San Jose. 
 
 Albert Manhser was reareil and edu- 
 cated in his native land, and during his 
 youth served in the German army. At the 
 age of twenty-one he came with the family to 
 the Lnited States, and worked as a farm 
 hand in Mason and Tazewell counties until 
 1 89 1, when he mo\'ed to Livingston county, 
 and was engaged in tile-making in Flana- 
 gan for eight years. In 1899 he commenced 
 farming upon his present place in Nebraska 
 township, and has since de\'oted his ener- 
 gies to that occupation, meeting with good 
 success in his labors. 
 
 In 1880 Mr. Manhser was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Kate Sleeter, also a nati\e 
 (^f Germany, and to them ha\e been born 
 five children: Timothy, (irace. I'annie, 
 Jennie and Maggie. Politically Mr. Manh- 
 
 ser affiliates with the Democratic partv, and 
 religiously is a member of the German Re- 
 formed church. L'pright and honorable in 
 a 1.1 things, he commands the respect and con- 
 fidence of those with whom he comes in con- 
 tact, either in business or social life. 
 
 FRED REIXEKE. 
 
 Fred Reineke, one of the most energetic 
 and progressive agriculturists of \\'aldo 
 township, Livingston county, was born in 
 Germany, October 28, 1862, and is a son of 
 Ludwig and Geshe (Theesfield) Reineke, 
 natives of Germany, and now residents of 
 Cissna Park, Illinois. He is the oldest of 
 their seven children, the others being as fol- 
 lows : Maggie, born April 2. 1866, mar- 
 ried John Toelstede, of Nebraska township, 
 and she died April 30, 1892; Ulrich, born 
 January i, 1868, resides in Iroquois, Illinois; 
 Henry, born January 5, 1871, lives in Indian 
 Territory; Charles, born February 9, 1877, 
 resides in Iroquois, Illinois ; Christian, born 
 May 10, 1879, is also a resident of Indian 
 Territory; and John, born January 13. 1887, 
 lives with his parents. 
 
 Our subject came to .\merica with his 
 parents when eleven years old, was reared 
 on the home farm in Livingston county, and 
 educated in the common schools of the neigh- 
 borhood. Since starting out in life for him- 
 self he has devoted his time and energies to 
 agricultural pursuits, and in his labors has 
 met with well deserved success. That he 
 thoroughly understands his chosen occupa- 
 tion is shown by the neat and thrifty ap- 
 l)earance of his farm in Waldo townsh'p. 
 
 On the 17th of November, 1887, Mr. 
 Reineke was united in marriage with Miss
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 429 
 
 Adelliaid Jeiisoii. of Rooks Creek township, 
 Livingston county, vvlio died December i. 
 1896, leaving tliree cliiklren, namely : Tena, 
 horn December 19, 1889; Ludwig, born Sep- 
 tember 7, 1891 :-and Maggie, born June lO, 
 1893. For his second wife Mr. Reineke 
 married Miss Grace Sprague, an adopted 
 daughter of Nicholas Randall Sprague, of 
 Wot 1(1 ciiuntv, Ohio. 
 
 GEORGE W. BEXTLEV. 
 
 George W. Bentley, who is now success- 
 fully engaged in agricultural pursuits on 
 section 20, .\\-oca township, has l)een a resi- 
 dent of Livingston C(nmty since 1866, and 
 since reaching manhood has been actively 
 identified with its business interests. He is 
 a native of Illinois, born in Peoria county, 
 December 21, 1857, and is a son of John 
 W. and Diana M. (Myers) Bentley, the 
 former a native of England, the latter of 
 I'ennsyhania. They are now living in 
 Pontiac a quiet, retired life, after many years 
 of hard work, during which they acquired a 
 competence sufficient to keep them the re- 
 mainder of their days. The father followed 
 farming quite successfully until 1891, when 
 lie moved to the city, after selling his farm. 
 He also owned a farm in Kansas which he 
 tlisposed of a few years ago. He has al- 
 ways affiliated with the Republican party, 
 and is an active member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church, as well as one of its lib- 
 eral supporters. Ten children were born to 
 John \V. Bentley and wife, of whom two 
 died in early childhood. Those living are 
 -Vlbert M., a farmer living near Rochelle, 
 Ogle county, Illinois: William H.. a resident 
 of Pontiac; Roger P., a farmer of .\voca 
 
 township: George W.. our subject: Edward 
 .v., a ])rosperiius farmer of E])pards Point 
 townshi]): lohn E.. who lives in the north- 
 ern i)art of Pontiac township: Gilbert 11., 
 an employe in a lumber yard at Pontiac : and 
 Benjamin F., a farmer of Esmen township. 
 George W. Bentley attended the common 
 schools of Livingston county, and remained 
 at home with his father on the farm until 
 1878. In 1885 he married Miss Dora Bod- 
 ley, a native of Avoca township, and a 
 daughter of John Bodley, one of the old set- 
 tlers still living in that township. She died 
 in 1888, leaving one daughter, Daisv, who 
 is with her father. After the death of his 
 wife Mr. Bentley sold his stock and imple- 
 ments and moved to Pontiac, where he en- 
 gaged in the coal business and later dealt in 
 lumber for two years. He was identified 
 with the representative men of Pontiac, and 
 served as assistant postmaster of that city 
 lor three years. By good business ability 
 he succeeded in saving some money, and in 
 1895 1'^ purchased one hundred and fiftv- 
 (jue acres of improved land on section 20, 
 Avoca township, paying eighty-seven and a 
 half dollars for the same. He located upon 
 his farm three }ears later, and there he has 
 since successfully engaged in general farm- 
 ing and stock raising. He has erected new- 
 outbuildings and made other improvements, 
 and the farm n(jw yields hiiu g(jod returns. 
 
 In 1893 Mr. Bentlev was again married, 
 his second union being with Miss Martha 
 .Augustine, who was born in l'enns\l\ani;i, 
 and came to this state with her parents w hen 
 ((uite young. In his political \iews Mr. 
 Bentley is a Reiniblican, and while a resi- 
 dent of Pontiac served as city trea.surer two 
 years, as well as assistant pf)stmaster. He 
 has always taken an active part in political 
 affairs, and was appointed census enumer-
 
 430 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ator in Avoca township in 1900. He is a 
 member of Pontiac Lodge, No. 294, F. & A. 
 ]\I., and Pontiac Lodge, No. 262, I. O. O. 
 F., and in social as well as business circles 
 lie is higlilv respected and esteemed. 
 
 GEORGE W. HORTON. 
 
 George W. Horton, superintendent of the 
 city schools of Dwight, Illinois, was born in 
 Channahon, Will county, near Joliet, this 
 state, June 17, 185S. a sun of William H. 
 and Charlotte (Lish) Hortun, both natives 
 cf Sussex county. New Jerse}-, the former 
 born in 1825, the latter in 1835. The fam- 
 ily was foundeil nn Long Island at an early 
 da_\', antl was represented in the Revolutiijn- 
 ary war and the war of 1812. The Pro- 
 fessor's paternal great-grandparents -were 
 Caleb (or Caleph) and Phebe (Terry) Hor- 
 ton, while his grandparents were Terry and 
 Rosanna ( Stine ) Horton, natives of Sus- 
 sex and \\ arren counties. New Jersey, re- 
 spectiveh'. 
 
 In the early '30s William H. Hurton, our 
 subiect's father, came west, and first located 
 in Wisciinsin, but remained there onl}- a 
 short time befure removing to Juliet, Illinnis. 
 where he engaged in wagon-making, carry- 
 ing on the business quite extensively there 
 and elsewhere until that class of manufactur- 
 ing was monopolized by the large factories. 
 In i860 he moved his business to Lincoln, 
 Illinois, where he conducted it until 1874, 
 and then w eiit to Fresno, California, at which 
 place he ctjntinued to engage in the manu- 
 facture of wagons and carriages until 1899, 
 when he returned to Illinois, and has since 
 made his iK.mie with our subject in Dwight, 
 
 living a retired life at the age of seventy-five 
 } ears. He is a man of sterling character and 
 strict integrity, who has won the respect of 
 a wide circle of friends and ac(|uaintances, 
 and whose word has always been consideretl 
 as good as his bond. In jjolitical affairs he 
 lias never been an aspirant for oifice, though 
 a stanch Whig and Republican. The 
 mother of our subject tlied in February, 
 1863, when he was only four years old, 
 leaving three children. The oldest, Henry 
 Lish Horton, is a resident of Joliet, Will 
 count}', Illinois; and the youngest, h.ihn 
 Curry Horton, is a resident of El Paso, 
 i exas. 
 
 At the age of twelve years Mr. Horton 
 began learning the painter's trade with G. 
 ^1. Seick, a painter and decorator of Lincoln, 
 Illinois. After four years' apprenticeshii:) he 
 removed to Joliet, Illinois, and to that busi- 
 ness gave his attention until 1881. His 
 preliminary education was recei\"ed in the 
 ct)mmon schools, from private teachers, and 
 from the \Vest Chicago Commercial Col- 
 lege, which he attended at intervals while at 
 work. In iSSi he entered Doane College, 
 Crete. Nebraska, from which he was gradu- 
 ated a bachelor of arts in 1886. .\fter his 
 graduation he entered the law office of Judge 
 John K. Cra\'ens, of Kansas Cit}', ^^lissouri, 
 and devoted a year and a half to the stud\- 
 Lif law, but on account of failing health he 
 was forced to give up study, and then turned 
 his attention to teaching in Lyon county, 
 Kansas. Altogether he spent five years 
 leaching in the district and city schools of 
 that state, his last position being as princi- 
 \>n\ of the high school of Beloit, which he 
 ga\e up to take the chair of languages at 
 Salisbury .\cademy, Salisbury, Missouri. In 
 Septemlier, 1895, he came to Dwight, Illi- 
 nois, to accept the pi.isitioii of superintendent
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 431 
 
 of schools, whicli under liis management 
 have been greatly improved. The present 
 high scliool building has also been erected 
 during his administration and other improve- 
 ments made. Dwight now has two school 
 buildings, the other being known as the West 
 Side school ; thirteen teachers are emploved 
 and five hundred pupils enrolled. The 
 high school curriculum comprises a Complete 
 prejiarati )ry course of four years which fits 
 the student for entering the State Univer- 
 sity, and many of the graduates of this school 
 are now attending various colleges and state 
 universities, including those of Illinois and 
 Missouri, and Brown University, of Rhode 
 Island. 
 
 On the 31st of December, 1890. at Gay- 
 lord. Kansas, Professor Horton married 
 Miss Cora A. Blake, who was born in Mus- 
 catine, Iowa, a daughter of Jacob and Emily 
 (Berkshire) Blake, natives of Pennsylvania 
 and Indiana, respectively. She is one of a 
 family of nine children, two of whom died 
 in infancy, the others being as follows : Ella, 
 wiio resides with her mother in Sargent, 
 Missouri ; Philip, a merchant at Sargent, 
 Missouri; Emma, a resident of Willow 
 Springs, Missouri : Edward, an attorney' of 
 Gaylord, Kansas; Charles, a merchant at 
 Dawson, Iowa; and Martha, a teacher in the 
 schools of Mazon, Illinois. 
 
 In politics Mr. Horton is a Republican, 
 supporting the men and measures which in 
 his estimation serve the best interests of the 
 public. Fraternally he is a Master Mason, 
 and has filled most of the offices in his lodge. 
 He is a leading member of the Congrega- 
 tional church, of Dwight, and as a teacher 
 takes an active interest in Sunday school 
 work. He is recognized as one of the able 
 and progressive educators of the state, whose 
 influence and personality are demonstrated 
 
 in the high standard and satisfactory condi- 
 tion of the Dwight city schools at the pres- 
 ent time. 
 
 ALEX.KXDER S. PIPER. 
 
 Alexander S. Piper, a well-known citi- 
 zen of Amity township, is classed among the 
 influential and successful agriculturists of 
 Livingston county. He has been a stanch 
 friend- to education and public improve- 
 ments and has loyally given his aid and voice 
 to progress along all lines. 
 
 The paternal grandfather of our subject 
 was Samuel Piper, of Revolutionary fame, 
 for he fought for the indei)endence of this 
 land, with whose destiny he had cast his own 
 some years before. He was a native of Ire- 
 land, and prior to his emigrat on from the 
 Emerald Isle he married Jane Alden. After 
 his arrival in the new world he located in 
 Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, and con- 
 ducted a large flouring mill there for sev- 
 eral years. He owned considerable prop- 
 erty, carried on a large farm, and was looked 
 upon with respect as a man of means and en- 
 terprise. He died when eighty-four years 
 old, and- his wife at the age of ninety-three 
 years. His son, John Piper, father of our 
 subject, was born on the old home place in 
 Cumberland county, in 1788. and when he 
 arrived at maturity he married Maria Ran- 
 dolph. Four children were born to them, 
 and after the death of the wife, Mr. Piper 
 wedded Ann Quigler. the mother of .\lex- 
 ander S., of this .sketch. He spent his en- 
 tire life in his native county, and died at the 
 ripe age of seventy-five years. 
 
 The birth of .\le.xander S. Piper oc- 
 curred July ri, 1835, in Cumberland county, 
 I'emisylvania. His youth was spent in the
 
 432 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 labors ol tlie farm and in the common 
 schools, where he obtained a good educa- 
 tion. In 1858 he came to Illinois, and in or- 
 der to make a financial start he worked by 
 the month for farmers in Woodford county. 
 He was still industriously employed in this 
 manner, and was about to embark in inde- 
 pendent business for himself, when the great 
 crisis of the past half century occurred. As 
 soon as he was able to enlist in the defense 
 of the Union, the young man became a mem- 
 ber of Company I. Eleventh Illinois In- 
 fantry, and was sent to the front immedi- 
 ately. His first important battle was at 
 Fort Donelson. and in the charge he was 
 wounded in the knee and calf of his leg. 
 Thus seriously disabled, he was necessarily 
 sent to the hospital, and when able to travel 
 he was given a furlough and returned home. 
 In the following May he joined his regi- 
 ment at Jackson, Tennessee, and soon after- 
 wards took part in the battle of Holly 
 Springs, and later in the siege of \'icks- 
 burg. \Mien that city had surrendered his 
 regiment was sent to Yazoo City, and there 
 a severe fight occurred, and, later, it partici- 
 pated in the battle of Morganza. Louisiana. 
 Many minor engageiuents and se\eral dis- 
 astrous battles were waged by the Eleventh 
 Illinois against the Confederates, as the rec- 
 ords of the war department show, and from 
 first to last of the term of their enlistment 
 these brave boys in blue won commendation 
 and high praise from their superior ofiicers. 
 They were honorably discharged Septem- 
 ber 25. 1864. at Springfield, Illinois. 
 
 On the 28th of December. 1865. Mr. Pi- 
 per married Delaney F. Rice, whose birth 
 had occurred in Cazenovia, Xew York, and 
 wdio had removed to Woodford county with 
 her father, Elisha Rice, when she was a 
 child. A son and two daughters were born 
 
 of this union : Rebecca Ann is living in 
 Woodford county, Illinois. Charles is liv- 
 ing on part of the home farm. Ada is the 
 wife of Frank Swords, who was born and 
 reared in this county, and is now engaged 
 in cultivating a portion of our subject's 
 farm. 
 
 For some time after his marriage Mr. 
 Piper was employed by a brother-in-law on 
 bis farm. In the spring of 1867 he pur- 
 chased a quarter of section 31, Amity town- 
 ship, and ever since has made his home here. 
 The old house and stable was supplanted 
 by commodious, modern buildings in the 
 course of time, a good orchard was set out 
 and many other improvements were institu- 
 ted Iw the energetic owner. Beginning life 
 a poor man. he has steadily pressed forward 
 to the goal of success which he always has 
 had in view, and long ago prosperity 
 crowned his efforts. 
 
 In 1856 Mr. Piper cast his first presi- 
 dential vote for Fillmore, but in i860 he 
 voted for Lincoln, and since that time has 
 been a stalwart supporter of the Republican 
 party. He has been axerse to holding pub- 
 lic oftices, but his interest in our schools led 
 to his acceptance of a portion of the respon- 
 sibility of acting on the local board of trus- 
 tees. In religious faith he was reared as a 
 Presbyterian, but now holds his membership 
 with the Methodist Protestant church. 
 
 MICHAEL SOMERS. 
 
 Michael Somers, a prominent farmer, 
 who owns and operates a valuable and well- 
 impro\ed farm of two- hundred and eighty 
 acres of land on section 31, Forrest town- 
 ship, was l)orn in Cambria county, Pennsyl-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 433 
 
 vania. March 21, 1846, and is a son of Peter 
 and Mary Ann (McAteer) Somers. The 
 father was born in county Westmeath. Ire- 
 land, June 23, 181 5, and his early life was 
 spent with his grandparents in his native 
 land. In 1835 he emigrated to .\nierica. 
 and on landing in this country found him- 
 self in a strange land with only half a dollar 
 in his pocket. When he sailed he had a 
 little money, most of which he loaned to his 
 fellow passengers ami never received again. 
 Immediately after his arrival he set to work 
 as a laborer to supply his daily wants. In 
 1836 he settled in Cambria county. Penn- 
 sylvania, where he engaged in farming until 
 coming to Livingston county. Illinois, in 
 March, 1867. Renting an acre and a half 
 1. 1 land on section 20, Forrest townshij), he 
 located thereon and made it his home until 
 the latter part of the following year, when 
 he removed to his own farm on section ^2. 
 the same township, having purchased a half- 
 section of land on coming to the county. 
 In the meantime he began its improvement, 
 and soon converted the raw land into a well- 
 improved and highly cultivated farm, tiling 
 and draining it, and erecting thereon good 
 and substantial buildings. He was a very 
 progressive man, and in connectii)n w ith 
 general farming engaged in stock raising to 
 some extent. In July, 1842, he married 
 Mary .\. Mc.\teer, of Pennsj'lvania. who 
 died in that state in August, 1859. By that 
 union were born se\en children : Michael, 
 our subject; Peter F., a retired farmer and 
 grain dealer of Fairbury; Mary A., wife of 
 Joseph Mangan. a retired farmer of Gales- 
 burg, Illinois, formerly of Forrest township, 
 Livingston county: and four who died c|uite 
 young of diphtheria. The father was again 
 married, Se])tember 18, i860, his second 
 union being with Elizabeth Kearns, also a 
 
 native of Pennsylvania, by whom he had two 
 children : William A., who is mentioned 
 IjcIow: and I'rank P., a resident of Kanka- 
 kee. Illinois. The family hold membership 
 in the Roman Catholic church, and the fa- 
 ther always atirtliated with the Democratic 
 party. He died at his home in Forrest 
 township, in February, 1892, at the age of 
 seventy-six years, and was laid to rest in 
 Strawn, Livingston countv. He was a i)ub- 
 lic-spirited citizen, and was highly resjiected 
 and esteemed by all wlm knew him. 
 
 The early education of Michael Somers 
 was obtained in the public schools of his na- 
 tive state. He came to Illinois, in August, 
 1866. and purchased the home place for his 
 father in Forrest township, Livingston coun- 
 ty. He aided in its operation until twenty- 
 se\en years of age, when he bought a part 
 of his present farm on section 31, the same 
 township, to which he has added from time 
 to time as his financial resources have in- 
 creased until he now owns two hundred and 
 eightv acres of land. He has built a com- 
 modious and pleasant residence, a large 
 barn and granary, has tiled the land, and 
 placed it under a high stale of culti\ation. 
 A thorough and systematic farmer, his la- 
 bors have ever been crowned with success, 
 and he well deserves the prosperity that has 
 come to him. By his ballot he supports the 
 men and measures of the Democratic party, 
 and he has efficiently served as school direc- 
 tor twenty-eight years, during which time 
 he has been instrumental in getting better 
 schools and teachers. Religiously he is a 
 member of the Roman Catholic church. 
 
 In January. 1873, at I'airbury, Illinois, 
 Michael Somers married Bridget Cami)I)ell, 
 who was also born in Pennsyhania, but 
 came to Illinois with her jiarents when only 
 three years old, locating in La Salle county.
 
 434 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Her father, Philiu Campbell, a farmer by 
 occupation, died at the age of sevemy-three 
 years. Mr. and ]Mrs. Somers have a family 
 of six children, all born in Forrest township, 
 and all still at home. They are: Alary A., 
 born in September, 1875; Peter M., in Sep- 
 tember, 1877; Philip A., in October, 1879; 
 Marcella, in December, 1881 ; Bridget, in 
 August, 1885; and Michael, in Augu.st, 
 1S89, 
 
 W'lLLi.vM .\. Somers, a brother of Mi- 
 chael, was l)orn at W'ilmore, Cambria coun- 
 ty, Pennsylvania, June 11, 1861, but was 
 onlv five years old when the family came 
 to Forrest township, Livingston cnunty, 
 Illinois. He remained at home until he was 
 married, .Vugust 2. 1883, to Miss Minnie J, 
 McCormick, a daughter of James McCor- 
 mick, whose sketch appears on another page 
 of this volume. To them were born nine 
 children, but only six are now living, name- 
 ly : Frank, Lizzie, Peter, Cora, Marie and 
 William, all born in Livingston county, and 
 educated in its pul)lic schools. Those de- 
 ceased are : William, who died in Kansas 
 City at the age of one year : Geneva, who 
 died in Streator, Illinois, at the age of three 
 years: and Katherine, who died in Strawn, 
 at the age of ten years. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Somers contin- 
 ued on his father's farm until. 1886, when he 
 went to Kansas City and worked in the shops 
 of the Missouri Pacific Railroad one year. 
 The following two years were spent in 
 Kangley, La Salle county, Illinois, where 
 he was in the employ of the Star Coal Com- 
 pany, and from there he came to Strawn, 
 Livingston county, where he has purchased 
 a residence and still makes his home. As a 
 Democrat he has taken quite an active and 
 prominent part in public afTairs, has ser\'ed 
 as marshal of the village se\-en vears, and 
 
 clerk of Fayette township four years. He 
 and his family hold membership in the Cath- 
 olic church, of Strawn, and are highly es- 
 teemed bv all who know them. 
 
 WILLIAM S. BRUXSKILL. 
 
 William S, Brunskill, a prosperous and 
 successful farmer and stock raiser on sec- 
 tion 5, Esmen township, is one of Living- 
 ston county's native sons, for he was born 
 in that township August 8, 1867. His fa- 
 ther, William Brunskill, was born and reared 
 in England, and in 1S54, when a young man, 
 emigrated to the new world and became one 
 of the early settlers of this county. Here 
 he married Susan Ross, who was Ijorn in 
 Ohio of English parentage, and came to 
 Livingston county with her parents, Moses 
 and Elizabeth Ross, during childhood. For 
 many years the father of our subject was 
 actively engaged in farming in Esmen town- 
 ship, where he still owns a valuable farm of 
 two hundred and forty acres, but is now liv- 
 ing a retired life in Cayuga. 
 
 On the home farm William S. Brunskill 
 grew to manhood, and was educated in the 
 common schools of the neighborhood. He 
 remained under the parental roof, assisting 
 in the operation of the place until he at- 
 tained his majority, and then bought eighty 
 acres of his present farm, which he at once 
 commenced to improve and cultivate. He 
 has added to the original purchase from 
 time to time until he now has a valualile 
 f;;rm of one hundred and sixty acres of rich 
 and arable land, which he has placed inider 
 ;; high state of cultivation, and has a half- 
 interest in a large stock farm of se\en bun-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 435 
 
 dred and sixty acres in La Porte county, In- 
 diana. His wife is also the owner of an 
 eighty-acre tract. Since 1889 he has devoted 
 considerable attention to buying, feeding 
 and shipping stock, and now ships on an 
 average of fortj^-five car loads of cattle and 
 hogs annually, and has a herd of seventy 
 steers fattening for market. He is a most 
 progressive and energetic business man, and 
 is meeting with marked success in his un- 
 dertakings. 
 
 On the 1 6th of September. 1891, in Es- 
 men townshij), Mr. Brunskill was united in 
 marriage with Miss Olive Rhodes, a native 
 of Wisconsin. Her parents, Leland M. and 
 Caroline (Clark) Rhodes, were born, reared 
 and married in Xew York, and from that 
 state removed to Walworth county, \\'iscon- 
 sin. where he improved a farm, making it 
 his home until 1878, when he came to Liv- 
 ingston county, Illinois, and purchased the 
 farm of three hundred and twenty acres on 
 which oor subject now resides. Here Mrs. 
 Brunskill was reared and educated. She 
 presides with gracious dignitj- over her 
 liome, and holds membership in the Baptist 
 church. Politically Mr. Brunskill is an in- 
 dependent, and by the people he was elected 
 and filled the office of township clerk for 
 three years, but he has never cared for po- 
 litical preferment, his time being fully occu- 
 jiied by his extensive business interests. 
 While independent in politics, his choice for 
 president in 1900 is William J. Bryan. 
 
 HARRY WRY WAGEXSELLER. 
 
 Harry Wry Wagenseller, one of the 
 rising young farmers of Avoca townshiv, 
 Livingston county, is a native of Pennsvh a- 
 
 nia. born in Perry county, October 26, 1870, 
 and is a son of Thomas and Mary (Rice) 
 Wagenseller, also natives of that state, and 
 of German descent. His ancestors settled 
 in Pennsylvania in the early part of the nine- 
 teenth century. By trade the fatiier of our 
 subject was a carriage maker, but for some 
 time was engaged in mercantile business, 
 and after coming to Illinois, in 1871, con- 
 ducted an eating house in Chenoa, McLean 
 county, until iiis death, in 1873. He had 
 four children, of whom William and John 
 died in childhood. Juniata W., the only 
 daughter, is now the wife of John Green, a 
 promising young farmer living near Pon- 
 tiac, and to them were born two children, 
 but one died in infancy, and Mabel M. is 
 living. Harry W., our subject, completes 
 the family. After the death of her husl^and 
 the mother conducted an eating house at 
 Weston for a time. In 1876 she married 
 Richard Stratton, a prosperous farmer of 
 Livingston county, and they took up their 
 residence upon his farm, but are now living 
 in Fairbury, where Mr. Stratton purchased 
 .'t comf()rtal)le home on retiring from farm 
 life. 
 
 Our subject received the greater part of 
 his education in the common schools of Liv- 
 ingston county, and also took a six months' 
 course at Baker's Business College at Bloom- 
 ington, fitting himself to carry on any voca- 
 tion on business principles. In 1888 he 
 v.ent to Nebraska and oi»ened the first school 
 near North Platte, since which time a school 
 has has been conducted in that district each 
 year regularly. At the end of a three 
 in.onths' term he returned to Illinois. He 
 lived with his mother until he attaine<I his 
 majority and superintended Mr. Stratton's 
 farm, carrying on a successful business for 
 him until 1895, when Mr. Stratton moved
 
 436 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 to Fairbury, and Mr. Wagenseller pur- 
 cliased eighty acres of land on section 19, 
 Avoca township, paying for the same ninety 
 dollars per acre. He continues to operate 
 Mr. Stratton's farm, consisting of a half- 
 section of land, and his own eighty acres, 
 and is successfully engaged in generaf farm- 
 ing and stock raising. He is not only a 
 thorough and systematic farmer, but is a 
 man of good business and executive ability. 
 
 In 1895 Mr. Wagenseller married Miss 
 B'anny Goold, who was born in Illinois, in 
 1872, a daughter of Marvin and Jennie 
 Goold, now residents of Eppards Point 
 township, where the father carries on gen- 
 eral farming. In the Goold family were 
 eight children, of whom four died when 
 young. Those living are Helen, Jay, Roy 
 and Fanny. Mr. and Mrs. Wagenseller 
 have two children : John Richard and Ruth 
 Mae, who are the joy of the household. 
 
 Politically Mr. Wagenseller has always 
 adhered to the principles of the Republican 
 party, but has never sought office. He 
 favors good schools and gives his support to 
 all enterprises calculated to advance the 
 moral, intellectual or social welfare of the 
 community in which he lives. Religiously 
 he is an active member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church, of Lodemia, and is now 
 a member of the board of trustees. 
 
 C. V. ELLINGWOOD, M. D. 
 
 C. V. Ellingwood, M. D.. of Chats- 
 worth, Illinois, is a well known physician of 
 established reputation, both in medicine and 
 surgery, having a very extensive practice 
 in Livingston and adjoining counties. He 
 was born in Eastport, Washington county, 
 
 Maine, October 12, 1858. His father. Cap- 
 tain M. A. Ellingwood, was born on Grand 
 Menan island, an English isle off the coast 
 of Maine, and who for many years followed 
 the seas. When nineteen years of age he 
 took charge of a vessel as its captain, and 
 continued to hold that position until he left 
 the ocean and settled down to the life of a 
 farmer. He married Matilda Pendleton, a 
 native of Deere island, also an English isle 
 off the coast of Maine. They became the 
 parents of two sons, Clarence A. and C. V. 
 The former is a resident of Whitewater, 
 Wisconsin. In 1870 Captain Ellingwood 
 came with his family west and located in 
 Whitewater, W'isconsin, and there his death 
 occurred in 1898. His widow is yet living 
 in that city. 
 
 The subject of this sketch spent much of 
 his early life on the ocean with his father, 
 and with him visited nearly all the foreign 
 countries. He was twelve years of age 
 when the family mo\-ed to Whitewater, 
 Wisconsin, and in the high school and the 
 Normal school at that place he received his 
 literary education. Leaving school, he en- 
 gaged in telegraphy, and continued in the 
 same capacity until 1885, when he entered 
 Bennett Medical College, Chicago, having 
 in the meantime, as the opportunity was 
 afforded him, read medicine. Pursuing the 
 regular course he was graduated from that 
 institution in March, 1887. In the follow- 
 ing summer he came to Chatsworth for the 
 practice of his profession, arriving here i-)n 
 the 9th of August, the day before the terri- 
 ble wreck on the Toledo, Peoria & Western 
 Railroad, in which a large number were 
 killed and many were severely injured. For 
 an entire week following he secured little or 
 no sleep, his attendance, with other local 
 physicians, lieing required to give relief t')
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 437 
 
 tlie suffering. The e.xperience and skill 
 sliown by tlie Doctor on that occasion has 
 lieen beneficial to Iiim in the years fo]k)\\- 
 ing. He has always kept up with the prog- 
 ress made in his profession, and in 1895 
 took a post-graduate course in the Cliicagi) 
 Polyclinic Hospital. 
 
 In 1883 Dr. Ellingwood was united in 
 marriage with Miss Fannie .\. Bentley. a na- 
 tive of Michigan, and daughter of H. J. 
 Bentley. who settle<l in that state at an early 
 (lay, coming west from Xew York, of which 
 state he was a native. During his active 
 life he followed farming, but he is now liv- 
 ing retired, making his lionie with our sub- 
 ject in Chats worth. Mrs. Ellingwood was 
 one of two children. Hall, her brother, 
 v»as drowned when but se\en years of age. 
 To our subject antl wife two children have 
 also been born. Lulu A. is now attending 
 Si. Mary's .\cademy, Notre Dame, huliana, 
 a noted seminary for young ladies. Jennie 
 is attending the academy at Chatsworth. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Ellingwood is a memljer 
 of Chatsworth Lodge, Xo. 539. A. F. & 
 A. M.: r)f Fairbury Chapter. Xo. 99. R. .\. 
 M. ; St. Paul's Commandery, Xo. 34, of Fair- 
 bury; and of the Mystic Shrine. Peoria, and 
 of the Peoria Consistory. In politics he is 
 a Republican, and a firm believer in the prin- 
 ciples of the party. He has been trustee of 
 the village two years: a member of the board 
 of education nine years, three years of which 
 time serving as its president. He has served 
 as pensicju examiner, and secretary of the 
 Livingston county board of pensioners. He 
 is now examining physician for his locality 
 for nearly all the leading life insurance com- 
 panies, including the \\'ashington Xational, 
 the Ecjuitable, Home, Phcenix, Mutual Life 
 of Xew York, Xew York Life. John Han- 
 cock, Iowa Life. Manhattan. American, 
 
 Union. Connecticut. Mutual, Penn Mutual 
 and Security Trust and Life. He is local 
 surgeon for the Illinois Central Railroail, 
 and is a member of the International Ass(3- 
 ciation of Railroad Surgeons. As a physi- 
 cian and surgeon he ranks among the best, 
 as a citizen he is enterprising and ready at 
 all times to assist any worthy enter])rise. 
 His friends are many throughout Livingston 
 and adjoining counties, where he is so well 
 known. 
 
 JOHX B. SCTTOX. 
 
 John B. Sutton, the well-known pcjst- 
 niaster at Wing, and one of the earlv edu- 
 cators of Livingston county, was burn near 
 Zanesville. Ohio. January 31. 1831. His 
 father. Samuel Sutton, was born near Egg 
 Harbor. Xew Jersey, where he grew to 
 manhood and engaged in farming for a 
 time, but later he was interested in the 
 produce business in Philadelphia. From that 
 city he mo\ed to Ohio, locating on a farm 
 near Zanesville. There he married lili/a- 
 beth Slack, a natixe of lUicks count\'. Penn- 
 syKania. and a daughter of John Slack, who 
 on leaving Pennsylvania went to Loudoun 
 county. Virginia, and later moved by wagons 
 l(» Ohio, also settling near Zanesville. The 
 Slack family is of Pennsylvania Dutch de- 
 scent, while the Suttons are of English ex- 
 traction. During the childhood of our sub- 
 ject his parents located in .Adamsville. Ohio, 
 where they made their home until death. 
 The father served as justice of the peace 
 frjr some years, and was a man of consider- 
 able prominence in his community. 
 
 John B. Sutton was reared in Musking- 
 um county. Ohio, and obtained his education 
 in the country schools and those of Zanes-
 
 438 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 \ille. He remained on his father's farm 
 imtil reaching manhood, and then engaged 
 in teaching school during the winter months 
 and in farming during the summer season, 
 his time being spent in this way from the 
 age of eighteen to fifty years, missing only 
 a few winter terms. In Muskingum coun- 
 ty, he was married, February 12, 1852. to 
 Miss Johanna Hanks, a nati\'e of that coun- 
 ty. Her father, Jeremiah Hanks, was from 
 \ irginia, and was a second cousin of AIira- 
 ham Lincoln. 
 
 In 186; Mr. Sutton sold his farm in 
 Ohio and moved to Wayne county, Ljwa, 
 where he purchased one tract of two hun- 
 dred and forty acres of land, another of two 
 hundred acres. He made a number of im- 
 provemen.ts upon these and engaged in their 
 cultivation until 1868, when the doctors ad- 
 vised a change of climate in the hopes of 
 benefiting his wife's health, and he came to 
 Livingston county, Illinois. He first lo- 
 cated in Indian Grove township and pur- 
 chased a farm near Fairbury. which he im- 
 proved, and in connection with its cultixa- 
 tion he engaged in school teaching. On 
 selling that place, in 1880, he bought a farm 
 in Charlotte township, upon which he maile 
 most of the improvements. The first house 
 he erected thereon was destr(wed bv fire, 
 but was soon replaced by another, and he 
 also built good barns, cribs and other build- 
 ings. He tiled the land, planted an orchard 
 and set out shade trees, making his farm 
 one of the best in the township. This place 
 he still owns, but has made his home in 
 Wing since June, 1897, and has erected a 
 comfortable residence there. 
 
 Mrs. Sutton died October 20, 1898, leav- 
 ing four children, namely : ( i ) Charles, 
 ^vhose wife is dead, has two children. I\-v 
 and Effie, and now li\-es in Wing. (2) 
 
 Albert, who lives on his father's farm, mar- 
 ried Almina W'illiams. and they have fi\e 
 children, Edna, Lois, John, Clifford and 
 Homer. (3) Howard and (4) Elmore are 
 with their father. One daughter, Clara 
 -Ann, married William Large, and died July 
 3, 1894, leaving four children : Maude E., 
 Dwight. Marion and Ethel l\Iay. 
 
 ^^'hile a resident of Ohio, Mr. Sutton 
 served as clerk of his township, and in Char- 
 lotte township, Livingston county, was two 
 or three times elected justice of the peace, 
 but refused to qualify. Since casting his 
 first presidential vote for John C. Fremont 
 he has been a stanch Republican, and a dele- 
 gate to the different conventions of his party. 
 I'"or a number of years he had been a patron 
 of the \\'ing postoffice, and in September, 
 1897, '^'^''^^ appointed postmaster, which office 
 he has since most creditably filled. Besi les 
 his residence he has erected a postoffice bu Id- 
 ing in that place. Mr. Sutton is one of the 
 five charter members of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal church of Wing, which was organized 
 in a school house, and ^vas chairman of 
 the building committee when the church 
 edifice was erected. He has always taken 
 an active and prominent part in church work 
 and has served as class leader and steward. 
 
 willia:\i ^^■. Zollinger. 
 
 ^^'illiam W. Zollinger, who is success- 
 fully engaged in agricultural pursuits on sec- 
 tion 13. Sullivan township. Li\-ingston 
 ciiunty, Illinois, \\-as born on the 30th of 
 June. 1852, in Franklin county, Pennsyl- 
 \'ania, of which his parents, George K. and 
 Mary (Britton) Zollinger, are also nati\es. 
 The father followed farming for manv
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 439 
 
 vears. but is now living' retired in (ireen vil- 
 lage, that ctiunty. Both he and his wife are 
 seventy-tiiree years of age. In politics he is 
 a Democrat, and has been active in advanc- 
 ing the interests of his party. His father, 
 Frederick Zollinger, was of German extrac- 
 tion and a life-long resident of Pennsyl- 
 vania. Oin- subject is the oldest in a family 
 of three children, the others being Lucy, 
 wife of J. D. Ludwig. of Chambersburg. 
 Pennsylvania: and Maggie L.. wife of El- 
 mer Bollinger, of Cireen. that state. 
 
 In the couhty of his nativity William W. 
 Zollinger was reared and educated. .\t the 
 age of twenty-two years he came to Liging- 
 ston county. Illinois, and found employment 
 in Sullivan township at twenty-two dollars 
 per month. Here he workeil for live years. 
 (Jn the 20th of February, 1880. he wedded 
 Miss Mary ^lartin, a native of Bureau 
 cuimty, Illinois. Her father. James Martin, 
 was one of the early settlers of that county, 
 and a large land owner, having four hun- 
 dred and eighty acres there and nine hun- 
 dred acres in Livingston county. For some 
 time he made his home in Sullivan town- 
 ship, the latter county, and in 1890 moved 
 to Oklahoma territory, where he died six 
 years later. In his family were seven chil- 
 dren: Sarah, Emma, Jane, Sanford, ^lary, 
 William and Ella, all yet living. Sarah, the 
 v.ife of (1. W. Boeman, of Cullom. and Mrs. 
 Zollinger are the only ones living in Li\- 
 ingston county. Our subject and his wife 
 have two children: George W. and Lee W'.. 
 both attending the district school. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Zollinger i)ur- 
 chased eighty acres of land in Ford county, 
 just across the line from Livingston coun- 
 ty, and after living there for thirteen years 
 bougiit his ])resent farm of two hundred 
 acres on section 13, Sulli\an township, 
 
 Livingston county. He is engaged princi- 
 pally in general farming, but devotes con- 
 siderable attention to the raising of Xorman 
 draft horses. Success has attended his well- 
 directed efforts and to-day he is one of the 
 well-to-do citizens of his community as well 
 as one of its most highly respected men. For- 
 merly he aiiiliated with the Independent Or- 
 derof Odd Fellows and was a supporter of the 
 Democratic party until 1896, when he \-oted 
 lor William iMcKinley and sound money, 
 lie has scr\cd as road commissioner three 
 years and sc1i(J(j1 director nine years, and 
 has always taken an active and commend- 
 able interest in educational affairs. 
 
 WILL L. T.M.BOTT. 
 
 Will L. Talbott. the present wcll-knciwn 
 and popular sheriff of Livingston county, 
 was born in Iowa City, Iowa, Septemljer 23, 
 1862. and is a son of Lewis William and 
 Lorena (Ottwell) Talbott. His paternal 
 grandfather was William Talbott. at one 
 time chief of police in Indianapolis and a 
 soldier of the Revolutionary war from New 
 Jersey. He was a pioneer of Indiana, lo- 
 cating first at Bloomington, near Indianapo- 
 lis, and later removing to that city, where 
 lie died. The mother of our subject was a 
 native of Kentucky and a daughter of 
 Thomas Ottwell, who belonged to a promi- 
 nent family of that state, but was a strong 
 anti-slavery man and Abolitionist. He .was 
 also an early settler and made his home in 
 a village near Indianapolis until after the 
 marriage of his daughter. 
 
 Lewis W. Talbott, our subject's father, 
 was Ixjrn and reared on a farm in Indiana 
 and later followed farming. In c(jvered
 
 44° 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 wagons drawn by ox-teams lie and his wife 
 crossed Indiana and Illinois: were ferried 
 across the Mississippi river at Davenport, 
 and proceeded to Iowa City, in 1846, lo- 
 cating there before the town was established. 
 There he engaged in merchandising for 
 many years, and also served as city marshal 
 at an early day when the locality was con- 
 sidered the frontier. Later he served as 
 alderman of the city, and for three years 
 was a member of Company I. Twenty-sec- 
 ond Iowa \'olunteer Infantry, during the 
 Civil war. and for one hundred days as 
 first lieutenant in the Thirty-third Regiment. 
 Among the many engagements in which he 
 took part was the siege of Vicksburg. He 
 was never wounded, but contracted disease, 
 which ultimately caused his death. He con- 
 tinued ti) engage in merchandising after the 
 war until failing health caused his retire- 
 ment. He was a good musician in early 
 davs and was a prominent and active mem- 
 ber of the Methodist Episcopal church, his 
 home being the stopping place for circuit 
 riders. He served as class leader, steward, 
 trustee and superintendent of the Sunday 
 school, in fact was one of the pillars of the 
 church to which he belonged. He was al- 
 ways an active Republican and held differ- 
 ent local offices. He died in 1888, honored 
 and respected by all who knew him. His 
 estimable wife and eight children survive 
 him. 
 
 Our sul^ject. who is the fifth child and 
 youngest son in this family, began his edu- 
 cation in the common schools of Iowa City 
 and completed the high school course. Hav- 
 ing considerable oratorical ability ' and de- 
 siring to become an actor, he went upon 
 the stage at the age of eighteen years and 
 spent ten years before the footlights, meet- 
 ing with marked success. He played in all 
 
 of the principal cities of the L'nited States 
 and Canada. 
 
 On the 30th of December. 1890. Mr. 
 Talbott married Miss Grace E. Munger, of 
 Iowa City, a daughter of Don A. Munger, 
 who was for some years proprietor of the 
 Phoenix hotel of Pontiac, and one of the 
 Munger Brothers, who had hotels all through 
 this section of the United States. Later he 
 moved to Iowa City, where he was proprietor 
 of the St. James, the leading hotel of the 
 place, for some years. By this union has 
 been born a daughter. Helen Lorraine. 
 
 On leaving the stage, Mr. Talbott was 
 engaged in the hotel business in Sandwich 
 for one year, and on selling out came to Pon- 
 tiac, after which he was a commercial trav- 
 eler for a Chicago house five years. He was 
 then appointed deputy sheriff and filled that 
 position two vears. As a Republican he has 
 taken an active and prominent part in local 
 politics, and in 1898, out of five candidates, 
 receiveil the nomination of his party for 
 sheriff. He was elected by a majority of 
 fourteen hundred and thirteen, though the 
 usual majority was less than ten hundred, 
 it being the largest majority ever given a 
 candidate in this county. He assumed the 
 duties of the office December 5. 1898, and 
 up to the present time has had charge of 
 over two hundred criminals and has proved 
 a most efficient and capable officer. He 
 worked up the case of the Cornell Bank rob- 
 ber\-. the Rightsell murder case, and a great 
 manv others, such as horse stealing, liigh- 
 wav n)l)l)ery. etc. As a detective he has 
 been remarkably successful, and he has also 
 performed a large amount of civil business 
 in a most satisfactory manner. The duties 
 of the office have never been more ably or 
 satisfactorilv discharged than under his ad- 
 ministration, and he is certainly the right
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 441 
 
 man in the riglit place. Sucially Mr. Tal- 
 bott is an Iiunored nieiiiber of tlie Masonic 
 fraternity, the Knights of Pythias and the 
 Modern Woodmen of America and lie lias 
 been a member of the board of managers 
 of the last named i^-ganization for a number 
 of vears. He also belongs to the Toilers 
 and Pioneer Reserves. 
 
 JL'D(]E THOM.\S KEXXEDY. 
 
 Hon. Thomas Kennedy, the present 
 county judge of Woodford county, is recog- 
 nized as one of the leading members of the 
 legal profession in the county. He was born 
 on a farm in Minonk township. December 
 6, 1858, and is a son of Thomas and Cath- 
 erine (Flynn) Kennedy, the father a native 
 of Ireland and the mother of New Hamp- 
 shire. She died in 1S63. at the age of 
 thirt\'-t\vo years, leaving a family uf live 
 children, of whom Thomas is the subject of 
 this sketch. Mary and Charles reside u])on 
 the lujme farm in Minonk tciwnshi]i. Wood- 
 ford county. Emmeline li\es in San b'ran- 
 cisco. California. Elizabeth Rose taught 
 school for awhile in Woodford and La Salle 
 counties. .She is now employed as a stenog- 
 rapher and bookkeeper in the office of the 
 Chicagci & Minonk Cual and Tile Com])any. 
 
 Thomas Kennedy, sr.. li\ed in Ireland 
 until he was about eighteen years nf age 
 when he went to Jersey island, off the coast 
 of I'rance, where he lived about four years. 
 He came to the United States about 1831, 
 landing- at Pioston. About 1854 he came 
 west with Mr. Fisher, a jjork packer of 
 Lacon. Marshall county, Illinois, and en- 
 tered the emjiloy of that gentleman, with 
 whom he cimtiiuied fnr two or three vears. 
 
 He then came to Minonk. Woodford countv. 
 in 185'). and went on a farm on .section 2, 
 belonging to .Mr. Fisher, and there contin- 
 ued to reside for eleven or twelve years. 
 The farm is now owned by Michael Mc- 
 Xamara. .Afterwards he rented the farm 
 now owned by Joseph E. Hindret. in the 
 same township, where he remained for ten 
 years. In 1875 he bought the farm now 
 known as the Kenned\- farm on secjion 4. 
 Minonk township, to which he removed in 
 1878. and there continued to reside the re- 
 mainder of his life. He died November i. 
 1878, when about fifty years of age. leaving 
 an unimpeachable reputation for honesty and 
 faithful i)erformance of life's duties. 
 
 On those farms in Alinonk tuwnshi]) the 
 subject (if this sketch grew to manhood, 
 and by reading such books as were obtain- 
 able and attending the common .schools of 
 the neighborhood during the winter months, 
 olitained his education, .\fter attaining his 
 majority he taught school for about three 
 years, and in 1884 commenced reading law 
 with M. 1.. Xewell of Minonk. and in June. 
 1886. was admitted to ])ractice in the courts 
 ot the state, .\fter his admission he worked 
 tor his ])receplor for one year. In Se])teni- 
 ber. 1887, Mr. Kennedy moved to Meta- 
 n.ora. then the county seat of Woodford 
 county, where he engaged in general practice 
 for a year and a half, during which time he 
 served as master in chancery of Woodford 
 county. In 1888 he was elected state's at- 
 torney of the county, and served in that office 
 eight years. From 1889 to 1893 'le was in 
 partnership with .M. 1., Xewell at Minonk. 
 Illinois, under the tirni name of Xewell & 
 Kennedy. Mr. .Xewell moved to Spring- 
 field. Illinois, in 1893 '"i^I ^^^- Kennedy suc- 
 ceeded to the business of the firm. In 189S 
 he was elected county judge for a term of
 
 442 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 four \-ears and is iidw tilling that responsible 
 position, with credit tn himself and ti> the 
 satisfaction of the people. 
 
 On July 12. 1894, Judge Kennedy was 
 married to Miss Clara E. Hart, of Blc^om- 
 ington. Illinois, daughter of Allen Hart, 
 one of the early settlers of Palestine town- 
 ship, in ^^'oodford countv. For several 
 years prior to her marriage. Airs. Kennedy 
 was a teacher in the public schools of Ali- 
 nonk, where she won an enviable reputation 
 as a teacher. One child has come to bless 
 their union. Ka}'win Kennedy, liorn Decem- 
 ])er J4. 1895. T^K family reside in a jjleas- 
 ant home in the city of Minonk. The Judge 
 spends onh' part of his time at his office in 
 Minonk, his duties as county judge requu'- 
 ing his presence at the court house in Eureka. 
 the first week of each month and every 
 Thursday. 
 
 Since his admission to the bar, the Judge 
 lias been in active practice and has met with 
 gratifying success. He is well read in law 
 and is a thorough student. He has the 
 confidence of his colleagues in the jirofession. 
 and the people trust him implicitly. A life- 
 long resident of the county, he has made 
 many friends and is held in the highest 
 esteem. 
 
 GEORGE W. HEMSTREET. 
 
 (ieorge W. Hemstreet, one of the patriots 
 wh(.i ga\-e up their li\-es for the preser\-ation 
 of the Uniun and the cause of freedom, was 
 horn in Syracuse. New York. November 20, 
 1835. His father. William Hemstreet. was 
 born in Holland, November 15. 1807. and 
 when a small boy came to this country with 
 his parents. He was married in Lafayette, 
 Onondaga countv. New York, March 10. 
 
 I S3 1, to Miss Sophia Parker, and from 
 there removed to Syracuse, where as a black- 
 smith and carriage maker he was engaged in 
 business for many years. Aliout 1883 he 
 came to La Salle, Illinois, where he carried 
 on the same business, being one of the pio- 
 neer carriage makers of that place, but in 
 1 860 he sold his property there and moved to 
 his farm in Blue Mound township, AIcLean 
 county, not far from Bloomington. To the 
 improvement and culti\ation of that place 
 he devoted his energies for some years, but 
 finally disposed of it and made his home 
 with a son in Delawan. W'iscnnsin, where he 
 died about 1893. His wife died at the home 
 of a daughter in Chicago, five years later. 
 Both were earnest and consistent members 
 of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
 
 George \\'. Hemstreet received his edu- 
 cation in the schools of his native city, and 
 there he was engaged in l>usiness with his 
 father for a short time, but later learned the 
 trade of a mason, to which he e\er after- 
 ward de\'oted his attention. He came to 
 Ivintiac, Illinois, in 1855, and engaged in 
 building, working on the most prominent 
 Iniildings erected at that time, including the 
 first brick court house at this place. Here 
 he continued to follow his chosen occupa- 
 tion until the outbreak of the civil war. He 
 was married. May 14. 1858, to Aliss Nancy 
 j\I. Rollins, of Pontiac. He enlisted in the 
 Fifty-third Illinois \'olunteer Infantry, and 
 participated in all of the engagements in 
 which his legiment took part up to the battle 
 of Jackson, ^Mississippi, where he was killed 
 July 12. 1863. He entered the service as 
 orderly, and at the time of his death had 
 risen to the rank of lieutenant, being pro- 
 moted for gallant and meritorious .service on 
 the field of battle. Besides his widnw. he 
 left one daughter. Alinnie M.. now a resi-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 443 
 
 dent of Cliicago. He was liighly respected 
 and esteemed by all who knew iiini. and in 
 his death the community realized that it iiatl 
 lost a valued citizen. 
 
 Mrs. Hemstreet is a native of Cicero. In- 
 diana, and a daughter of Philip and Martha 
 ( De Moss) Rollins. The father was horn 
 in Coshocton county, Ohio, and as a youth 
 removed to. Indiana, where he met his fu- 
 ture wife, then a witlow — Mrs. Hannaman. 
 There he engaged in farming until October, 
 1842. when he came to Livingston county, 
 and located two miles east of Pontiac, where 
 he built a log cabin on his two-hundred-acre 
 tract of wild land. To the further improve- 
 ment and cultivation of his farm he gave 
 his entire time and attention, and prosi}er- 
 ing in his undertakings, he added to it until 
 he had a valuable land of three hundred acres 
 under excellent cultivation. L'pon that 
 place he continued to make his home until 
 his death, which occurred January 9, 1897, 
 and his wife passed away July 22. 1896. 
 She was long an earnest and faithful mem- 
 ber of the Presbyterian church, and Mr. Rol- 
 lins was baptized into the same ciiurch late 
 in life. He served as justice of the peace 
 and school director, and filled other local 
 offices in a most creditable manner. At tiie 
 corner of Plum and Howard streets he built 
 the first brick house ever erected in Pontiac, 
 and lived there for five years that lie might 
 give his children better educational advan- 
 tages than the country schools afforded, af- 
 ter which he returned to his farm. He 
 had much to do in selling and conveyancing 
 land, and was a business man of much more 
 than ordinary business ability. In his fam- 
 ily were two sons and three daughters, be- 
 sides a step-son. Peter Hannaman. who re- 
 sided in Pontiac until recently, but is now 
 
 living in Los Angeles, California. His 
 24 
 
 own children were: Charles \\'., wlm lived 
 on a farm adjoining the old homesteatl and 
 died recently at the age of sixty years : Nan- 
 cy M.. now Mrs. Hemstreet: Martha M., 
 wife of Mr. Lidell. of Chicago: Emeline, 
 widow of Harry Hill: and William H.. who 
 lives on the old home farm. 
 
 Mrs. Hemstreet well remembers when 
 with her parents she came to Livingston 
 CDunty. driving through Pontiac when not 
 a tree or a house marked the site of that 
 present thriving city, and she has watched 
 with interest its entire growth and de\elop- 
 ment. For tliirty years she has been an act- 
 i\e member of the Presbyterian church, has 
 served as president of the Ladies' Aid So- 
 ciety of the church, and has taken a promi- 
 nent part in all its work. She has also been 
 a leading member of the Ladies' Relief 
 Corps, an auxiliary of the Grand Army of 
 the Republic, and often meets with them at 
 their encampments, \\here\er known she 
 is held in higli regard and her friends are 
 many in the city which has so long been her 
 home. 
 
 REV. M. P. O'BRIEX. 
 
 Father O'Brien, pastor of St. Patrick's 
 church, of Dwight, Illinois, was born in 
 county Waterford. Ireland, in 1846. and 
 when a boy of five years moved to England 
 with his parents. John and Anastasia (Fo- 
 ley) O'Brien, also natives of county Water- 
 ford. The family located in county Dur- 
 ham. England, where the father followed 
 his chosen occupation of farming uj) to 
 within a year of his death, when he returned 
 to Ireland and there died. In his father's 
 family were four children, three of whom 
 are still living, namelv: Peter. James and 
 M. P.
 
 444 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 During his boyhood and youth Father 
 O'1'.rien attended St. Augustine's CathoHc 
 schiMil at Arlington, and after completing 
 his studies at that institution lie taught 
 school in London and Liverpool at the 
 French Christian Brothers school for two 
 years. He was then advised by his spiritual 
 director to the study of Paul and enter the 
 ranks of the priesthood, which he decided 
 to do. With this purpose in view he went to 
 Italy at the age of eighteen years, stopping- 
 first at Turin and later at Montori. After 
 his ordination he was attached to the diocese 
 in northern England, in charge of churches 
 in Hexham and Newcastle, where he re- 
 mained as priest for a number of years. 
 
 On coming to America Father O'Brien 
 entered the Peoria diocese, and for six years 
 was pastor of St. Mary's church at Carthage, 
 Illinois, during which time he made many 
 improvements in the church property. He 
 conducted services in Carthage two Sundays 
 out of the month; while one Sunday was 
 spent in La Harpe, the other in West Point 
 and Giddings Mount, as he was in charge 
 of the congregations at all four places. In 
 July, 1896, Father O'Brien came to Dwight 
 as pastor of St» Patrick's churcli, and has 
 since erected their new house of worship at 
 a cost of eleven thousand dollars. The fur- 
 nishings were all put in by the Springfield 
 Manufacturing Company at a cost of forty- 
 five thousand dollars, and the heating appa- 
 ratus — a hilt air system — cost one thousand 
 dollars. Father O'Brien also built St. Ber- 
 nard's church at Sunbury, Livingston coun- 
 tv, in August, 1898, at a cost of eight thou- 
 sand dollars. It is also well heated and fur- 
 nished in the same manner as the Dwight 
 church. Through his indefatigable energy 
 and perseverance both churches have been 
 freed from debt and now have a surplus. 
 
 He holds services at each church two Sun- 
 days in the month. 
 
 The parish of Dwight is one of the oldest 
 in the diocese of Peoria, and has had as out- 
 missions at different times the parishes of 
 Odell, Pontiac, Kinsman, Flanagan, Ran- 
 som and Campus. It has had a resident 
 priest since 1867, its first pastor being Rev. 
 L. Dunne, who served from 1867 to 1870; 
 followed by Rev. L. Hanley, froin 1871 to 
 1877; and Rev. J. Halpin, from 1878 to 
 1882. The last named was succeeded by 
 Rev. J. Recouvreur, who remained until 
 1885. Then came Father Belanger for a 
 year, who was succeeded by Rev. S. B. 
 Hedges, who remained until 1889. Rev. F. 
 B. Moore succeeded him and remained until 
 1897. He began the new church, which 
 was completed by his successor, the present 
 pastor, Rev. M. P. O'Brien, who has labored 
 untirino-lv for the church and its interests. 
 
 THOMAS A. DANIELS. 
 
 This well-known citizen of F"lanagan, 
 Illinois, an honored veteran of the civil war, 
 was born in St. Louis, Missouri, April 19, 
 1847, ^"d is of English and Scotch descent. 
 His paternal grandfather, John Daniels, was 
 for many years a prominent marble mer- 
 chant of Liverpool, England, and when last 
 heard from was still doing an extensive busi- 
 ness at that place. The father, John Dan- 
 iels, Jr., was born in Liverpool, and came 
 to America with his twin brother, Henry, in 
 1845, when quite young, locating first in 
 St. Louis. There he married Margaret 
 I'urnbull, a native of Edinburg, Scotland, 
 who came to this country with her parents 
 when only eleven years old. For se\^eral
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 445 
 
 vears lier fatlier was engaged in business as 
 a merchant tailor at St. Louis, and tliere 
 reared his family, numbering the following 
 named children : Georgiana, wife of Sam- 
 uel J. Richards, of St. Louis; Kate, wife of 
 Ale.xander Yale, of the same place ; Bessie, 
 wife of James Graham, of Nashville, Ten- 
 nessee; Margaret, mother of our subject; 
 John, who died while serving as an ofificer 
 in the Confederate army during the Civil 
 v.ar; William, who is operating a flouring 
 mill near St. Louis; and Frank, a resident 
 of that city. The children born to John 
 and Margaret (Turnbull) Daniels were as 
 follows: Thomas A., of this revSew; 
 Frank, who dietl in Ferndale, California, 
 Xoveml)er 2. 1894; William, a harness deal- 
 er, of San l-rancisco, California; and Ella, 
 who is the widow of Edward Grogan, a 
 shoe merchant of San Francisco, and is now 
 engaged in missionary work in Japan and 
 China. The father of this family died in 
 1854, at the age of twenty-six 3ears, and 
 for her second husband the mother married 
 his twin brother, Henry Daniels, who died 
 shortly after their marriage. She now 
 makes her home at 1625 Church street, San 
 Francisco, California. 
 
 Thomas A. Daniels was only a month 
 old when his parents moved to Nashville, 
 Tennessee, but after the death of his step- 
 father, in 1859, the family returned to St. 
 Louis. Later they lived in Independence 
 and St. Joseph, Missouri, and from the lat- 
 ter place again returned to St. Louis, where 
 the mother made her home until going to 
 California. Thomas A. was educated by 
 private tutors. He was quite young when 
 the Civil war broke out, but on the 8th of 
 August, 1862, at the age of fifteen years, 
 he enlisted at Benton Barracks, St. Louis, 
 ir. Company C, Thirty-third Missouri Vol- 
 
 unteer Infantry, as a musician, in which ca- 
 pacity he served all through the war. In 
 the fall of 1862 he was in the southwestern 
 Missouri campaign against General Price, 
 and returning to St. Louis in a very danger- 
 ous condition, he was sent to the Fifth street 
 hospital. On his recovery he went south, 
 up the Yazoo river, and participated in the 
 storming of Fort Pemberton. and in the 
 operations in the rear of Vicksburg. He 
 next went to Helena, Arkansas, and was in 
 battle at that place, July 4, against General 
 Price. He was in the Black river and Mer- 
 idian campaigns against General Johnston, 
 and took part in the Red river expedition, 
 being in several engagements on the Louis- 
 iana side. With his command he next went 
 up the Mississippi to ]Memphis, Tennessee, 
 and was in battle at Tupela against General 
 Forrest. After the defeat of Sturgess. Mr. 
 Daniels was sent to the Overton Hospital in 
 Memphis, dangerously ill. \Mtile con\-a- 
 lescing he was sent to Fort Pickens, and 
 there volunteered to act as guard over new. 
 recruits, bounty jumjiers and deserters. 
 While returning to Memphis, he took part 
 in the engagement at Grand Prairie, where 
 he was slightly wounded. After the battle of 
 Nashville he was sent to Fort Pickens, later 
 to Schopafield Barracks, St. Louis, and from 
 there to Camp Douglas. Chicago. In Jan- 
 uary, 1865. he was transferred to Company 
 A, I-'ifteenth Regiment Veteran Reserve 
 Corps, and was ordered to Cairo, where he 
 was mustered out July 13, that year, by gen- 
 eral order of the war department. 
 
 At the close of the waV Mr. Daniels 
 served an apprenticeship at carriage making 
 in Johet, Illinois. In 1868 he removed to 
 Odell, where he worked at his trade until 
 1887. and later followed the same occupa- 
 tion at Washington. Since 1889 he has
 
 446 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 made his home in Flanagan and is numbered 
 among its honored and highly respected citi- 
 zens. Fraternally he is a member of the 
 Grand Army Post of Pontiac. 
 
 On the _'4th of December, 1870, Mr. 
 Daniels was united in marriage with Miss 
 Mary A. Halm, daughter of Jacob and Helen 
 ( Muller ) Halm, of Odell, and by this union 
 have been born eight children, namely : Lil- 
 lian Eglantine, born October 9, 1871, is the 
 wife of J. J- Miles, of Flanagan; Margaret 
 Elizal)€th, born December 26, 1873, is the 
 wife of C. B. Howe, of the same place ; 
 Viola Elsie, born October _'5, 1875, is the 
 wife of R. G. Murphy, of Flanagan; Bessie 
 Rosa Lola, born October 25, 1878, is the 
 wife of Dr. J. K. Means, of Pontiac; Elsie 
 May Alferetta, born January 20, 1881, is 
 clerking in the postoffice at Flanagan ; Cleve- 
 land Francis, born December 11, 1883, died 
 August 21, 1895 ; Grover Clifford, born May 
 4, 1885, and George \'alentine, born Feb- 
 ruary 14, 1888, are both at home. 
 
 MARSHALL DeFOREST WILDER. 
 
 Among the leading agriculturists of 
 Waldo township, Livingston county, is the 
 subject of this review, who was bcirn in 
 'Washingtonville, Oswego county. New 
 York, May 17, 1836, a .son of Edson and 
 Susan ( Titus ) Wilder. The former died 
 March 4, i8(;6. The mother is yet li\-ing 
 and makes her home in Pontiac. Our sul)- 
 ject attended school almost uninterruptedly 
 until sixteen years of age, and then entered 
 the emplo}- of Le\'i ^Matthews, of ^lexico- 
 ville, with whom be remained four nionths. 
 Returning home at the end of that time he 
 accepted a clerkship in the store of E. \'. 
 
 Robbins, but on the first of the following 
 December he entered the seminary at Fort 
 Plain in Montgomery county, Xew York, 
 where he studied until spring, when he re- 
 sumed wiirk in the store, remaining" with 
 Mr. Rolibins" successors, Pruyn & Alton, 
 until Januar}-. He then attended school 
 until spring, when he procured employment 
 as clerk for I. C. & A. N. Harding, re- 
 maining with them two years. In 1855, at 
 the age of twenty years, he remo\'ed to 
 Peoria county, Illinois, where his father 
 rented land, and in connection with his two 
 brothers be engaged in farming. Two 
 years later they bought i>ne Inuulred and 
 twenty acres of land, but in 1864 sold that 
 place and came to Livingston county, where 
 they jointly purchased a farm of two hun- 
 dred antl fifty-six acres. In partnership they 
 engaged in its operation until 1880, when 
 the connection was dissolved by mutual con- 
 sent. Our subject now owns a well-im- 
 proved and highly cultivated farm in \\'aldo 
 township, and is successfullv engaged in its 
 operation. 
 
 On the 25th of :May, 1873, Mr. Wilder 
 was united in marriage with I\Iiss Fran- 
 ces Adelaide Dingman, daughter of Henry 
 and Lavinia (Ferguson) Dingman, of 
 Oswego county, Xew York. Her fa- 
 ther, who was of German flescent, 
 was born in 1797, and died Jul\- 12, 
 1876, while her mother, who was of 
 Scotch origin, was born in 181 1, and died 
 Julv 12, 1864. Their other children were 
 as follows : Johanna, deceased wife of 
 Thomas Tripp; Margaret, deceaseil wife of 
 Jonathan Salisbury, of Iowa; James, of 
 Oswego county. New ^'ork, who married 
 Olive Sheldon; Hannah, the second wife of 
 John Cain, his first wife being her )-ounger 
 sister, Marv Jane; Hem-v, who married
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 447 
 
 Mary Smith niul li\es in Jeffersdii county. 
 Xt'w \'(irk; La\inia, wife of Martin H. 
 Tiiomas. of Oswego county. Xew York; 
 Samantlia. wife of James Kelly, of Read- 
 ing, Michigan: Al\ira. wlio first married 
 Xewti>n Ames, wlio (hed in tlie army. 
 ar.d second married Julm Raymond, of 
 Canada: and Annetta, wife of Delos 
 \\'atkins. of Oswego county. Xew ^'ork. 
 Mrs. \\'iider was born in Orwell, Oswego 
 county, A])ril 14. 1840. and is the tenth in 
 order of birth in this family of eleven 
 children . 
 
 Our subject and his wife have four chil- 
 dren: Xetta !).. born January J4, 1874. 
 was married February 10, 1897. to Gilbert 
 Blaine Farman. of Gridley. Illinois, and has 
 one child, Marshall Howard, born Julv ^r. 
 1898: .Mary ].. born September <>. 1875. 
 v>as married October 15. 1895. to Charles 
 Shanebrook, of Gridley, and has one child, 
 Clarence Chester, born August 14, 1896. 
 Henry H.. born December 6, 1876, and Cleo 
 I'earl, born Sejitember 8. 1885, 'T'c both at 
 home. 
 
 During the Civil war .Mr. Wilder en- 
 listed in [-"ebruary, 1863. in Cunipanv 15. 
 Seventh Illinois Ca\alry, and was commis- 
 sioned second lieutenant. His command was 
 assigned to (leneral Sherman's arm\' and 
 from Springfield, Illinois, went to Xew 
 York, thence down the coast to Morehead 
 City, Xorth Carolina. P'rom there they 
 inarched to Raleigh, where they joined the 
 regiment, and remained with it until the 
 surrender of Johnston. They participated 
 in the grand review at Washington, D. C, 
 and while there received orders to jjroceed 
 to Texas, but these orders were afterward 
 countermanded and they then went to 
 Louisville, Kentucky, where they were mus- 
 tered out of service. Mr. Wilder was hoii- 
 
 (■rably discharged July 9, 1865. .Among 
 biis most highly treasured jx^ssessions is a 
 sword presented him by his company at 
 Springfield, Illinois. 
 
 In his political views Mr. Wilder is a 
 Democrat and cast his first presidential \ote 
 for Stephen A. Douglas. In .April, 1877, 
 he was elected township clerk, which office 
 he held continuously until 1882, when 
 elected supervisor, and re-elected the follow- 
 ing year, after which he refu.sed longer 
 to accept the ofifice. In December, 1878, 
 he was appointed townshi]) collector to fill a 
 vacancy and when he retired from the 
 ofifice of super\-isor was re-elected townshij) 
 clerk, which position he filled for many 
 years. He was census enumerator in i8()o. 
 and has held the office oi justice of the 
 l)eace since 1896. In Sei)tember, 1899, he 
 was appointed .supervisor at a meeting of the 
 board of auditors to fill a \acancy, and on 
 the expiration of that term in the spring of 
 1900 he was elected to that position, which 
 he is now so creditably and acccptalily filling. 
 Fraternally he is a member of Alart'n Post, 
 .\o. 291. (i. .\, R., of Gridley, and he is 
 liighly res])ccted and esteemed by all who 
 know him. 
 
 n^:xR^■ sf.m,\xs. 
 
 On the 5tli <if .\oveniber. 1878. there 
 passed away at his home in Reading town- 
 shi]), l.i\ingston county, Henry Semans. 
 who for se\eral years was prominently iden- 
 tified with the agricultural interests of that 
 section. .\ native of Illinois, he was liorn 
 ii'i LaSalle county. Mav 11. 1835, and was 
 the son of Fzra and Mar\- ( Macky) Semans, 
 natives of Pennsylvania, and early settlers of 
 LaSalle cmmty, where tlie father took 
 a farm, mak'ug his home there throughout
 
 448 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the remainder of liis life. He died at the 
 iige of sixtv-four rears, his wife at tlie age 
 of se\'entv-eig"ht. In their famil}- were six 
 children, namel}- : Amanda, blacky and 
 Henry, all deceased : Cirena. wife of David 
 Besore, of Ottawa; ]\Iary .\.. widow of 
 Ephraim Boserman and a resident of Ot- 
 tawa: and Almira. also a resident of that 
 place. 
 
 In the common schools of his native 
 connty Henry Semans acquired his educa- 
 tion, and he remained at Imme until he at- 
 tained his majority. On the 17th of De- 
 cemher. i860, he was united in marriage 
 with Rebecca Wade, a native of Massachu- 
 setts, and to them were l)orn six children, 
 as follows: Robert H., who is engaged in 
 the creamery business in Streator, Illinois. 
 married Eva Harris, and they have two chil- 
 dren, Lloyd H. and Virgil R. Arthur is 
 connected with the Illinois Central Railroad 
 at Chicago. Hugh D., a resident of New- 
 ton township, who is engaged in farming 
 on the home place, married Xellie Defen- 
 l)augh. and thev have three children, Gladys, 
 Selma and Zola. Eliza is the wife of W. H. 
 Barickman. whose sketch appears on another 
 page of tills volume. Xora is at home with 
 her mother. Mehin, who manages the 
 home place, married Emma I'.arickman, and 
 they have one child, Lester. 
 
 Robert Wnde. the father ni :\Irs. 
 Semans, was born in Leeds, England, and in 
 that country folknved mining until nineteen 
 3'ears of age, when he came to .America 
 and located at h'all Ri\'er, Massachusetts, 
 where he secured employment in a cntton 
 mill, as a muslin bleacher. There he mar- 
 ried Eliza Wilson, also a native of England, 
 born in Manchester. In 1840 they came 
 west liy way of the Great Lakes to Chicago, 
 and thence by stage to Ottawa, which was 
 
 then a small village of two or three houses 
 and one store. Mr. Wade purchased a tract 
 of land near the present site of Streator. and 
 there successfully engaged in farming" tuitil 
 within a few vears of his death, when he 
 retired from acti\e life. He died on the 
 27th of (\-t(il)er, 1882, at the age of seventy- 
 six years, and his wife departed this life 
 at the age of fifty-nine. Mrs. Semans was 
 the older of their two children, the other 
 being Elizabeth, deceased wife of James 
 Sexton, who is now li\'ing in Streator. Thev 
 h.ad two children. 
 
 After their marriage in i860. Mr. and 
 I\[rs. Semans came to Livingston county 
 and he purchased a partially improved farm 
 of one hundred and sixty acres in Reading 
 township, to the improvement and cultiva- 
 tion of which he devoted his energies 
 throughout the remainder of his life. .\s his 
 financial resources increased, he added to 
 his landed possessions from time to time, 
 until at his death he had three hundred and 
 sixty acres. His remains \\'ere interred in 
 Wolf Creek cemetery, in Otter Creek town- 
 ship. La Salle count}-. By his ballot he 
 supijorted the men and measures of the 
 Democratic party, but never cared for pub- 
 lic office. He not only gained a comforta- 
 lile competence, but also won the respect 
 and confidence of all with wIkjiii he came in 
 Contact either in business or social life. 
 
 A. C. SCHLOSSER. 
 
 This enterprising and progressive young 
 business man of Panola, was born in Bloom- 
 ington, McLean county. Illinois, September 
 9, i86fi. an<l is a son of George and Eliza- 
 beth ( Huffman) Schlosser, natives of Ger- 
 many, who came with their respective par-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 449 
 
 cuts to America when young and settled in 
 Ohio, being among the first settlers of that 
 state. There their marriage was celebrated. 
 On coming west they located in Blooming- 
 ton, McLean county, Illinois, where they 
 reared their family of ten children. The 
 father, who followed farming throughout 
 the greater part of his life, died October 5, 
 1899, at the age of si.xty-four years and nine 
 months, but the motlier is still living, and 
 now resides in Merna, McLean county. 
 
 The subject of this sketch remained at 
 home until he attained the age of twenty- 
 two years, and then engaged in farming for 
 two years. In March, 1892, he embarked 
 in the grain business at Hudson, Illinois, 
 but remained at that place only four months 
 before coining to Panola, where he anti a 
 partner. James A. Esler, rented the north 
 elevator on the Illinois Central Railroad, and 
 where they engaged in the grain business for 
 about twtj years and a half, since which time 
 Mr. Schlosser has been alone in business. 
 In 1896 he purchased the south elevator, 
 which lie still conducts, and in tiie summer 
 of 1900 erected another large elevator on 
 the Toledo. Peoria & Warsaw Railroad at 
 Euright, a small station about two and a 
 half miles east of El Paso, where he is also" 
 engaged in buying grain. He has been han- 
 dling between three and four hundred thou- 
 sand bushels of grain annually, and with the 
 added capacity of his new elevator at Eu- 
 right the volume of his business will be 
 largely increased. He also conducts a coal 
 and lumber yard, and carries on an e.xtensive 
 live stock business at Panola; also a coal 
 yard at Euright in connection with his ele- 
 vator there. He is one of the most energetic 
 and progressive business men in liis section 
 of the count}-, and is meeting witli excellent 
 success in his undertakiuijs. 
 
 In April, 1899, Mr. Schlosser was elected 
 supervisor of Panola township, which office 
 he is now most creditably filling, discharg- 
 ing its duties with his characteristic business 
 ability and fairness. In his ix)litical views 
 he is a stanch Democrat, and one of the act- 
 ive sujjporters of that party in Woodford 
 county. Eraternally Mr. Schlosser is a mem- 
 ber of the Knights of Pythias and the Mod- 
 ern \\ oodmen of America. 
 
 THE FARMERS BA.XK OF ROA.XOKE. 
 
 .Vmong the banks of \\'oodford county 
 none have met with better success than the 
 I'armers Bank of Roanoke, which was or- 
 ganized in 1894, soon after the fire of 1893, 
 which burned out the block which it now 
 occupies, it being opened for lousiness Octo- 
 ber 10, 1894. It is connected with the bank 
 of Henry Denhart & Company, of Wash- 
 ington, Illinois, and does a general banking, 
 real estate and loan business. When opened 
 for business its deposits amounted to ten 
 thousand six hundred and eighty-eight dol- 
 lars, which was increased to seventeen dol- 
 lars the .second ; sixty-two thousand dol- 
 lars the third ; over ninety thousand dollars 
 the fifth; and one hundred and forty thou- 
 sand dollars at present ; thus showing a .grad- 
 ual and healthy increase. By its safe, con- 
 servative methods the bank has gained the 
 confidence of the people in its vicinity, and 
 has a rich country to draw from. Its officers 
 are Henry Denhart, of Washington, presi- 
 dent : Henry D. Harms, of the same place, 
 vice-president; and Louis W. Harms, of 
 Roanoke, cashier; all upright, reliable men, 
 of good business and e.xecutive ability.
 
 450 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 COL. BAZEL D. MEEK. 
 
 Col. Bazel D. IMeek. an old and pmmi- 
 nent attorney of Eureka, and at present 
 chairman of the board of super\-isors for 
 A\'oodtnr(l county, Illinois, was liorn near 
 \ ernon. the count}' seat of Jennings countw 
 Indiana. December 6, i8j8, and is a son of 
 Henry B. and Partlienia A. (Perry) Meek, 
 tlie former a native of Kentucky, born near 
 Somerset. Pulaski county, in 1804. 
 
 Jacol) Meek, the great-grandfather of our 
 subject, was born in Lincolnshire, England. 
 He came to this countr_\' in ifxjo, when a boy. 
 in conipau}' \vith a Ijrother. and settled on the 
 James ri\er. in \'irginia. He married and 
 moved to Xorth Carolina, but later moved to 
 Hagerstow n, Maryland, where his death oc- 
 curred. In his family were thirteen sons and 
 three daughters, one of his daughters, Xancy, 
 marrying Paul Hulse, who fought so bravely 
 through the Revolutionarv war. Jacob 
 Meek, with his sons, was in many of the bat- 
 tles with the Indians in the earlv part cd" the 
 seventeenth centur\'. 
 
 Lewis. Xathan and Da\'id, his sons, 
 fought through the Revolutionary war. 
 Bazel. the grandfather of our subject, being 
 tor> young to participate. Lewis, the first 
 liorn of the family, was supposed to have 
 been killed at Braddock's defeat, and a 
 younger half brother was named Lewis. It 
 was the latter who serxed tliroughout the 
 war. Later the first born Lewis appeared, 
 and thus it was that there were two sons bv 
 the name of Lewis in the faniilv. 
 
 Bazel Meek, the grandfather, who was 
 bom near Hagerstown. jNIaryland. in 1763, 
 \\as a member of the Home Guards during 
 the Rex'olutionary war. and was in a number 
 of fights with the Indians. He moved to 
 Kentucky in 1790. and there married Miss 
 
 R.oberts. who. with her parents, moved to 
 Kentucky with Daniel Boone. Bv occupa- 
 tion he was a farmer. He was prominent 
 in politics, and for eiglit years was sheriff of 
 Pulaski county. Tall of stature, he was a 
 man of line physique and manly in his bear- 
 ing and one in wdiom the people would in- 
 stinctix'elv trust. From Kentucky he moved 
 to Jennings county. Indiana, and there also 
 serxed as sheriff for a period of eight years. 
 In 1S33 he came to \\'oodford county. Illi- 
 nois, and while he never here engaged in 
 actix'e lalior. he purchased a tract of land in 
 (ireene township, but died in a house near the 
 father of our subject about i84(>. . Politi- 
 calh- he was a Jacksonian Democrat. For 
 many years he was a member of the Baptist 
 church, but was one of those who united to 
 form the First Christian church in Walnut 
 Grove, near Eureka. He was very active in 
 the church up h > the time of his death, and 
 was a hrm believer in the gospel of Christ. 
 
 Henry B. Meek, the father of our sub- 
 iect. grew to manhood in Kentucky, and 
 when a x'oung man moxed to Jennings 
 county. Indiana, where he was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Partlienia A. Perry, who 
 was I)orn near Kn'oxville, Tennessee, and a 
 daughter of Ransom Perry, who moved from 
 Tennessee to that cotmtry in an early day. 
 The family was originally from Xorth Caro- 
 lina. \\ hile residing in Tennessee. Ran- 
 som Perry took an actixe part in pul)lic af- 
 fairs, serving as probate judge, and also in 
 other official positions. Loyal to his cotni- 
 trv, he serxed as a soldier in the xxar of 1812. 
 From Indiana he later moved to Missouri, 
 locating near Carthage. Jasper county, where 
 he died aliout 1857. 
 
 On the I2th of April. 1830. Henry B. 
 Meek, with his family, landed at Walnut 
 Grove, Woodford countv, but which was
 
 COL. BAZIL D. MEEK.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 453 
 
 tlien a part of Tazewell county, ami there 
 made a jjernianent settlement. He first pur- 
 cliased a small tract of land, which he im- 
 proved, and to wliicli lie added from time to 
 time until he had ahout thirteen hundred 
 acres, a part of which he later deeded to his 
 children, leaving him ahout eight hundred 
 acres at the time of liis death. He was a 
 thoroughly practical farmer, and was more 
 than usually successful. He was not an as- 
 l)irant for office and would accept none, save 
 that I if ctmimissioner of highways, taking 
 the ])osition that he might use the office to se- 
 cure better roads. One of the pioneers of the 
 county, lie did his duty faithfully and well 
 and those now living are recei\Mng the bene- 
 fit of his lab. >rs. together with tlmse of his 
 associates. He was a mcniber uf the Chris- 
 tian church, a faithful disciple of Christ, 
 and one of the solid, substantial men of the 
 conr.minit}'. He died in September. 1883. 
 and his wife in December, 1888. She was 
 also a member of the Christian church and 
 loyal to the lowly Xazareiie. They left a 
 family of five children, three sons and two 
 tlaughters. 
 
 The subject of this sketch came to Wood- 
 ford County when about sixteen months old, 
 his mother riding on horseback and carry- 
 ing him in her arms from the Indiana home. 
 On the home farm in Walnut (jrove, his 
 boyhood and youth were spent, in the winter 
 attending school in the old log school house 
 near his father's place, while his summers 
 were spent in assisting in the farm work. 
 I'or a time he attended school in Cherry 
 Grove Academy, in Knox county, and later 
 was a student in Knox College at (ialesburg. 
 After leaving college he was engaged in 
 teaching for two winters. 
 
 In his youth Col. Meek had a strong de- 
 sire to take up the study of medicine, but 
 
 circumstances prc\ented it. In 1849-30 the 
 gold fe\er was raging throughout the coun- 
 try, fabulous stories being told of the dis- 
 covery of gold in California, and the great 
 wealth in waiting for the adventurous ones. 
 With several others, he started across the 
 plains to the Xew Elorado, with a mule 
 train, crossing the Missouri river at St. Jos- 
 e])h. MissoiuM, April 28, of the same year, 
 which w;is the quickest trip, with teams, 
 that had been made across the mountains up 
 to that time. They were the first that year 
 to cross, with wagons, the snow of the 
 Sierra Nevada mountains. 
 
 On his arrival in California Mr. Meek 
 went into the Trinidad mines, but was soon 
 taken sick and for the sake of his health he 
 went north to Oregon, going first to I'ort- 
 land. and then on to the Tenoletin iilains. 
 There he was connected with lumber mills 
 and was in that line of business for two 
 years. Having had experience enough, he 
 returned home in 1853, by Central .\merica 
 and Xew York. 
 
 It was the intention of Mr. Meek, on 
 coming home, to engage in farming, but he 
 was soon afterwards nominated for county 
 treasurer and assessor of the county on tlie 
 Democratic ticket and was duly elected. 
 \\ bile ser\ing his term of two years he read 
 law. and was then nominated and electetl 
 county judge, filling that position one term. 
 
 On the breaking out of the Civil war, in 
 1861, he receivetl permission from the gov- 
 ernment to raise a regiment, and on the 20th 
 of December, 1861, it was mustered into the 
 service as the Eleventh Illinois Cavalry, Mr. 
 Meeks receiving a commission as lieutenant- 
 colonel, while Robert G. Ingersoll was made 
 colonel. The regiment went into camp at 
 Peoria, where it remained until early in Feb- 
 ruar\-, 1862, when it was sent to Benton
 
 454 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Barracks, near St. Louis, Missouri, and early 
 in March it was ordered south into Tennes- 
 see, where it a few weeks later took part in 
 the battle of Shiloh. It was next in the 
 march to Corinth, during which time Col. 
 ]\Ieek had charge of the picket lines of the 
 Sixth Division. He was then taken sick and 
 was away from his regiment about four 
 weeks. Returning he took part in. the bat- 
 tles at luka, Hudson, Lexington, Tennessee, 
 Parker's Cross Roads, and other minor en- 
 gagements, and was also on many guerrilla 
 skirmishes with the enemy. During the 
 greater part of his term of service he com- 
 manded the regiment. Colonel IngersoU be- 
 ing away on detached service. For a short 
 time he was also in command of his brigade. 
 In consequence of the great loss in his regi- 
 ment and its reduction in numbers, he re- 
 signed his commission in the fall of 1863 
 and returned home. 
 
 Shortl_v after his return from the service 
 Colonel Meek was examined for admission 
 to the bar, and was licensed to practice in all 
 the courts of the state. Locating in Eureka 
 he engaged in practice, and from that time 
 to the present he has been associated in most 
 of the important cases in Woodford county 
 and \ery often the special cases in adjoining 
 counties. His success has been gratifying, 
 indeed, and his record has been a clean one 
 and always satisfying to his clients. 
 
 Colonel Meek has always been prominent 
 in local afifairs, and he has done much for 
 the upbuilding and general welfare of his 
 county. In 1868 he was for the second time 
 elected county judge and filled the office ac- 
 ceptably for a term of four years. He has 
 served as supervisor of his tuwnship a num- 
 ber of terms, and each time was elected and 
 served as chairman of the board. He has 
 served as a member of the school board about 
 
 twenty }ears, and was a member when the 
 large school house in Eureka was erected. 
 His interest in the cause of education is 
 shown by his long service in a thankless 
 office. Before the war he also served as 
 county superintendent of schools, during 
 which time he did much to place the schools 
 in the front rank, and in the adoption of 
 progressive methods. In politics he has al- 
 ways been a Democrat, and has taken an 
 active part in the county and state conven- 
 tions of his party. In 1896 he was an al- 
 ternate to the national Democratic conven- 
 tion which assembled at Chicago. 
 
 Colonel Meek was made a Alason in 
 Ta_\'lor Lodge, \\"ashington, Illinois, in 1854, 
 and later was a charter member of W. C. 
 Hobbs Lodge, No. 306, of Eureka, and was 
 one to suggest its name. He was the third 
 one to hold the office of worshipful master 
 in the lodge. He was also a charter member 
 of Dan Miles Post, No. 270, G. A. R.. of 
 Eureka, which was named in honor of one 
 of his old friends, and was its first com- 
 mander, a position which he is filling in 
 1900. 
 
 On the 22(1 of October. 1S56, Colonel 
 Meek was united in marriage with Aliss 
 Elizabeth Ward, of Canton, Illinois, but a 
 nati\-e of Ohio, and a daughter of J. F. 
 Ward, who moved from that state at an 
 early day, locating in Eureka. By this 
 union four children have been born, as fol- 
 lows : Parthenia, now Mrs. W. C. Mitchell, 
 of Chicago; William D.. of Chicago; Frank 
 L., an attorney of Peoria, Illinois: and Hen- 
 r}- B., who is in the internal revenue service 
 at Peoria. 
 
 Colonel and Mrs. ^leek are members of 
 the Christian church and take quite an act- 
 i\e interest in its work. Their home has 
 been in Eureka since 1858, and none are
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 55 
 
 more higlily respected or have inore friends. 
 Tlie Colonel has owned and traded a great 
 deal in land, and in business life has met 
 ■svith marked success. For seventy years he 
 has been a citizen of the county, and the 
 greater part of the time since reaching man- 
 hood has been in public life, and it can safely 
 be said that no service required of him but 
 has been faithfully discharged for the best 
 interests of all. His life record is worthy of 
 eniulatii)n. 
 
 HEXRY C. BAIRD. 
 
 For almost half a century this gentleman 
 has lieen prominently identified with the 
 business and social interests of Eureka, and 
 is numbered among its most honored and 
 highly respected citizens. He was born in 
 Hunterdon county, Xew Jersey, August 4, 
 1830, a son of Nicholas D. and Susan 
 (Creed) Baird, also natives of that state, 
 the former born in Xew Brunswick, the lat- 
 ter in Trenton. His paternal grandfather, 
 Abram Baird. familiarly known as old IMajor 
 Baird. having served with that rank in the 
 militia, was of Scotch extraction and a di- 
 rect descendant of the old Huguenots, from 
 whom the family seem to have inherited their 
 religious tendencies. Our subject's mater- 
 nal grandfather, Rev. John D. Creed, was a 
 Presbyterian minister of Trenton, Xew Jer- 
 sey, but soon after the birth of Mrs. Baird 
 the family moved to Xew Brunswick. He 
 was also of Scotch descent. Nicholas D. 
 Baird, the father of our subject, was princi- 
 pally engaged in business as a miller and 
 grain dealer throughout his active business 
 life. At one time he owned most of Bools 
 Island in tlie Delaware river, Hunterdon 
 countv, X"ew Jersev. and was one of the most 
 
 prominent men oi Xew Brunswick for many 
 years in early life. Meeting with failure in 
 some of his undertakings he taught school 
 for some time to recuperate his fortune. He 
 was known as Captain Baird, being com- 
 mander of vessels, three of which he loaded 
 and started for the West Indies with the in- 
 tention of founding a colony, but the vessels 
 were wrecked and he lost everything with 
 the exception of the money he had in his 
 pocket when picked up. He remained in 
 West Indies for some time. Later in life 
 he lived with our subject in Woodford coun- 
 ty, Illinois, but finally returned to New Jer- 
 sey, where he died in 1890. He was of a so- 
 cial, genial nature until becoming deaf, when 
 he seemed to shun others. Religiously he 
 was a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 church, while the mother of our subject was 
 a Presbyterian. She died in New Jersey 
 when dur subject was only a few weeks old. 
 Being left motherless, Henry C. Baird 
 was reared by his maternal grandmother, 
 who at that time was the wife of Joiui Stry- 
 ker. of Neshanic, X'ew Jersey. After the 
 death of her second husband she moved to 
 Bound Brook, the same state, where she 
 made her home with her son, John Creed. 
 She was a wonderfully intelligent woman 
 and well educated. From the age of ten 
 years until reaching manhood Mr. Baird 
 lived ill i>uun(l Brook and was educated at 
 the old high school of that place. In early 
 life he learned the harnessmaker's trade, 
 and Oldened a shop of his own in Hunterdon 
 county before he reached the age of twenty 
 years. \\'hen he sold that he embarked in 
 the Daguerrean business, being among the 
 first to turn his attention to that art. He 
 traveled quite extensively over New Jersey, 
 meeting with remarkable success, and for a 
 number of years conducted a gallery in Rah-
 
 456 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 \vay, that state, but his health failed and he 
 was obliged to retire from the business. In 
 the spring of 1855 he came to Illinois and 
 spent one year in recuperating. He then re- 
 turned to New Jersey, but the following year 
 took up his residence in Concord (now Dan- 
 xevs), Illinois, where he purchased a harness 
 shop and cniiducted the same until coming to 
 Eureka July 15. 1857. Hearing this was a 
 temperance town and going to grow up as 
 such, he determineil to make it his home. 
 He br)ught property and opened a harness 
 shop, manufacturing the first harness made 
 in this section of the state. He did a good 
 business and furnished employment to two 
 hands. He is now the only man li\ing 
 who was in Inisiness here at that tim;e. 
 Until 1865 he continued to work at his trade, 
 and in the meantime became interested in 
 the real estate and insurance business, to 
 which he has since de\-oted his entire time 
 and attention. He has been the leading in- 
 surance agent of the place since 1859, rep- 
 resenting lioth fire and life insurance com- 
 panies. 
 
 On the -th of October, 1858, Mr. Baird 
 was united in marriage with Miss Caroline 
 E. Townley, of W'estfield. Xew Jerse}-, a 
 daughter of Dax'id Townley, a representa- 
 tixe of one of the old families of that place. 
 They had been engaged for seven years. 
 Their chililren are. Lillian, at home: I\Iaggie, 
 wife of James A. Roberts, of Chicago: and 
 Susan, wife of Lewis Hodgson, of Iowa. 
 
 For many years Mr. Baird has been an 
 active and faithful member of the Christian 
 church and served as superintendent of the 
 Sunday school for eighteen years, a longer 
 period than any other has filled the same 
 office. During his entire residence in Eureka 
 he has taken an active part in promoting 
 the interests of the college: was one of its 
 
 trustees for a number of years, and f(.)r se\'- 
 eral years served as treasurer of the same. 
 He was also a trustee of the town during his 
 early residence here and for years has filled 
 the office of police magistrate. Politically 
 he has been identified with the Republican 
 j)arty since its inception, and has Ijeen a dele- 
 gate to different conventions of his party, 
 IVl r. Baird is a worthy representative of that 
 class of citizens who lead cjuiet, industrious, 
 honest and useful lives, and constitute the 
 best portion of a community. \\diere\'er 
 known he is held in high regard, and as an 
 honored pioneer and highly respected citizen 
 he is certainly deserving of honorable men- 
 tion in the history of his adopted country. 
 
 BELA M. STODDARD. 
 
 r>ela M. Stoddard enjoys the honor of 
 being the pioneer business man of Minonk, 
 as for thirtv-five years he has conducted a 
 profitable trade here. Probal^h- no one in 
 tlie count}' is better known, and wherever he 
 is known his praise is frecptiently on the 
 lips of the people. Though his financial 
 \entures have been extensive, his methods 
 of transacting business have been so upright 
 and just, so true to every contract and prom- 
 ise, that no one envies his success and no one 
 criticises liis career. His name is a guarantee 
 of good faith, and his neighbors and business 
 associates have the utmost confidence in his 
 integrit}- and sound judgment. 
 
 It is no surprise to learn that our sub- 
 ject comes of the sterling old Puritan ances- 
 try, his father, S. A. Stoddard, having been 
 a native of Connecticut, while the mother, 
 Nancy M. (Merrill) Stoddard, was born in 
 Maine. At an early day the father removed
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 457 
 
 to Xew ^'iirk state, wlicre he was inarried. 
 and in 1N57 he remmed witli his taniily tn 
 McLean county. Illinois. There he pur- 
 chased a (luarter-section of land and for 
 eigliteen years was (Occupied in its culti\a- 
 tion. The first election held in his town- 
 shij) was at his house, and a sugar-howj. in 
 v.liich sixteen or seventeen ballots were de- 
 posited. ser\ed as a hallot-ljo.x. in 1S73 
 he took up his residence in Chatsworth. 
 \\ here his devoted wife died seven years later 
 \v her eighty-.sec<ind year. He survived her 
 eleven vears. dving at the \eneral)le age of 
 uinet\-one. Both were almost life-long 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 and ])ossessed tlie grand traits of character, 
 innate an<l acipiired. which mark the true 
 Christian. Kindlv and symi)athetic by na- 
 ture, they ever souglit to lend a helping haml 
 to the poor and afflicted, and thus won the 
 undying l(i\e and esteem nf all who knew 
 them. .\s miglit be expecteil of such a man. 
 the father was strongly opposed to slaver\-. 
 and was a stanch friend of the L'nion. When 
 the l\c])ublican ])arty was organized he 
 joined the ranks of the party which had 
 espoused the cause of the down trodden, and 
 thenceforth cast liis intluence in that direc- 
 tion. 
 
 Of the eie\en children born to tliis wor- 
 thy couple three died in infancy. Xalhaniel. 
 who has been twice married, is a farmer in 
 the vicinity of Rockville. Missouri, t'liar- 
 lotte. widow of Doctor Hrigham. resides in 
 Chicago, and George, whose wife. Laura 
 I'oyington, has pa.ssed away, lives in Seattle. 
 Washington. Julia, who wedded E. S. 
 Thomas, has entered the silent land. 
 Mahala married .\lonzo Straight, and their 
 four children. Judd A., Dora. Ora B. and 
 Frank K.. are resi)ected citizens of the several 
 communities in which thev dwell. T. A. 
 
 lives in Chatsworth, Illinois; O. 11.. in Iklle 
 I'lower. Illinois, and F. K.. in Omaha. .\'e- 
 l)raska. while IJora, formerly a teacher in 
 the Minonk high school, is now a citizen of 
 Chicago. The father died in 1862, when 
 the children were young, and the mother 
 reared them with great wisdom and tender- 
 ness. .She was called to her reward in 1897, 
 when in her sixty-fourth year. I'or fortv- 
 six years she had been a faithful member of 
 the Methodist Episcopal church, and ])os- 
 •sessed the sincere love of all who knew her. 
 Simon .\bery. the youngest Itrotlier of our 
 subject, was one of the brave boys who wore 
 the blue in the Civil war. and after .serving 
 faithfully at the jjost of duty for about a 
 ) tar, he was instantly killed during the bat- 
 tle of Peach Tree Creek, Tennes.see. He 
 had enlisted as a private soldier in the .sec- 
 ond year of tlije war. in the One Hundred 
 and Twenty-ninth Regiment of Illinois In- 
 fantry, and was only about twentv-one vears 
 old at the time of his sad death. Xancv. the 
 youngest member of the family, is the wife 
 o'.' John W'ickersham, of Kansas City. 
 
 I). M. Stoddard was born in Chautaucpia 
 county. .\ew York, September 10, 1840. 
 antJ accompanied his parents to Illinois when 
 he was seventeen years of age. He received 
 tliorough training in agricultural methods 
 and in the schools of the district obtained a 
 liberal education. After the Civil war was 
 declared he enlisted for three months, in the 
 Seventy-first Illinois Infantry, and was sta- 
 tioned at Mound City, Illinois, on garrison 
 duty, most of this period. Returning home 
 he engaged in farming until the close of the 
 war, when he came to Minonk. 
 
 I-"or a year or more Mr. Stoddard was a 
 jjartner of D. S. Thomas, conducting a gen- 
 eral merchandising business, and then the 
 firm of Stoddard & Xewton was organized.
 
 458 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Gradually they Ijecame more and more ex- 
 tensively engaged in buying and selling 
 grain, and at length, in 1876, they dissolved 
 their business connection, Mr. Newton 
 taking the store and its trade as his share, 
 and Mr. Stoddard assuming the management 
 of the grain business. He owns two eleva- 
 tors in Minonk and one at what is called 
 Stoddard's Siding, near Chatsworth. This 
 fertile country has contributed in grain a 
 large proportion of the state's revenue, and 
 our subject long ago had the foresight to 
 predict this, and thus won a reputation for 
 sagacity. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Stoddard and Sarah 
 E., daughter of Reuben P. and Lydia A. 
 (Edwards) Bell, was solemnized March 10, 
 1868. The father, who died in Minonk, 
 August 4, 1893, was born in Kentucky, 
 Ivlarch 3, 1810, and was a pioneer farmer 
 of Marshall county, Illinois. His grand- 
 father, Joseph Bell, a native of Pennsylvania, 
 was a hero of the Revolution. He settled 
 in the wilds of Kentucky in 1788, and lived 
 to attain the great age of ninety-five years. 
 Mrs. Stoddard has one sister living, Ade- 
 laide, wife of William S. Marquis, of Rock 
 Island, Illinois. 
 
 The eldest child of our subject and wife 
 is Reuben B., who is associated in business 
 with his father in Minonk, and is a member 
 of the firm of B. M. Stoddard, of Minonk, 
 Illinois. Bertel M. is connected with the 
 Toluca firm of B. M. Stoddard & Son. He 
 married Minnie Simiter, and their son is 
 named Bela M. Zadel M. and Malita E. 
 were graduated in Lake Forest Seminary 
 with the first honors of their respective 
 classes, the first named being in that of 1895 
 and the latter in the class of 1896. Dorothy 
 T. and Donald A. are at home and are stu- 
 dents in the local school. 
 
 Religiously, Mr. and Mrs. Stoddard are 
 Presbyterians, and he is a trustee in the 
 Minonk church. In political faith, he is a 
 Republican, taking great interest in the issues 
 of the day. Public-spirited, he has con- 
 tributed materially to the prosperity of the 
 community in which his lot has been cast, 
 and his extensive financial operations have 
 accrued to the benefit of the people of this 
 localit}' in many ways. 
 
 COLUMBUS A. ROBESON. 
 
 Among the pioneers and representative 
 citizens of Woodford county probably none 
 is better known than Columbus A. Robe- 
 son, of Eureka. He is a native of the county, 
 his birth occurring in the village of Bowling 
 Green, November 2, 1841. His father, 
 James Robeson, was born in South Carolina, 
 May 21, 1797, and was a son of Andrew 
 Robeson, a native of Ireland, who on coming 
 to this country located in South Carolina, 
 and during the boyhood of James moved 
 to Kentucky, locating near Hopkinsville, 
 where he followed farming. In 1832 he 
 came to this state and made his home with 
 the father of our subject until his death. 
 On reaching manhood James Robeson mar- 
 ried Jane Earle, who was born in Christian 
 county, Kentucky, about 1807, a daughter of 
 Baliss Earle, one of the pioneers of that 
 state. Soon after their marriage they came 
 tc Illinois and settled in the little village of 
 Washington. Tazewell county, but shortly 
 afterward became residents of Bowling 
 Green, Woodford count}', where the father 
 opened a store, hauling his goods mostly 
 from Peoria, but also from Chicago. He 
 was one of the very first merchants of the
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 459 
 
 couiitv, and did a successful business until 
 our subject was two years old. when he sold 
 out and moved to a large farm, which at 
 that time was all wild land and which he 
 improved in a most creditable manner. His 
 fnst home was an old log cabin. In his 
 farming operations he also met with suc- 
 cess and at one time owr.ed a half-section 
 of valuable land. When well advanced in 
 \-ears he retired frnni acli\'e labor and 
 moved to Secor, where he died Janiiary 19, 
 1888. As one of the prominent and in- 
 fluential men of his community he was called 
 upon to fill several important official posi- 
 tions, including a number of county offices, 
 and also represented his district in the state 
 legislature, lie was ratlier independciU in 
 politics but usually supported the Democratic 
 party. At an early day in Kentucky he 
 united with the Christian church, and served 
 as a minister of that denomination for sev- 
 eral years, being one of the first in Woodford 
 county. In that capacity he traveled all over 
 the county by private conveyance; held ser- 
 vices in houses, barns and groves, and organ- 
 ized a great many churches. He was also 
 an elder of the church for many years, and 
 when not engaged in farming devoted his 
 time to church work. His estimable wife 
 died in 1878. They had ten children who 
 reached years of maturity, our subject be- 
 ing one of the younger. 
 
 During his boyhood Columbus A. Robe- 
 -son attended the country schools near his 
 boyhood home, and in 1S61 entered Eureka 
 College, but in February of the following 
 year he left school and enlisted in Company 
 E, Eleventh Illinois Cavalry, commanded by 
 Colonel Robert G. Ingersoll. They did 
 duty most of the time in western Tennessee 
 and Mississippi, participating in the battles 
 of Shiloh and Corinth besides manv raids 
 
 and skirmishes, .\fter three years of ardu- 
 ous and faithful service Mr. Robeson was 
 discharged at Memphis, February 2. 1865. 
 He had spent two weeks at home in the 
 summer of 1S62. but with that exception 
 was never off duty. On his return home 
 be engaged in farming in Palestine township, 
 making his Immc with his parents until his 
 marriage. 
 
 On the 2(1 of January. 1S68, Mr. 
 Robeson led to the marriage altar Miss 
 Susan F. Haynes, of Secor. Her father. R. 
 F. Haynes, was born May 8, 1820, near 
 Rochester, New \'ork, where he grew to 
 manhood, and after attaining his majority 
 went to Hancock county, Illinois, where he 
 married Theresa Bobbitt, a native of Ken- 
 tuck}-, and a daughter of Isam Bobl)itt, one 
 of the i)ioneers of that county. Later Mr. 
 Ha}-nes moA-ed to Pekin, this state, and 
 from there went to California in 1849J 
 spending three years on the Pacific slope. 
 On his return to this state he settled in 
 Marshall county, and in 1865 became a res- 
 ident of Secor, \\'oodford county, but he is 
 now living retired at Oak Hill, Peoria 
 county. In early life he was a minister of 
 the Predestinarian Baptist church, and still 
 adheres to that faith. WJiile a resident of 
 Marshall county he tilled the office of asses- 
 sor and scr\"ed as justice of the peace at 
 Secor. His wife died in iSfiS. Mr. and 
 Mrs. Robeson have three children : Jennie 
 M., wife of A. M. Duncan, of Eureka, by 
 whom she has two ciiildren. Ivan and Stella 
 May; Edwin E., who was graduated from 
 the law department of the Wesleyan Univer- 
 sity with the degree of LL. B. ; and Elbert, 
 a graduate of the high school of Eureka. 
 
 • After bis marriage Mr. Robeson con- 
 tinued to follow farming until 1886, five 
 years of the time being sixMit in Marshall
 
 460 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 county. The Democratic party lias always 
 found in liim a standi .supporter of its prin- 
 ciples, and in Woodford county he has been 
 called upon to fill a number of different town- 
 ship offices. In Xox'ember. 1894. be was 
 elected county sheriff' for a term of fnur 
 years, and entered npim the duties of the 
 office in December. During- his incnmbenc\- 
 the office was transferred fmni Aletamora to 
 the new court house at luireka, and he be- 
 came its first occupant. He had charge of 
 several murder cases, took a number of pris- 
 oners to the penitentiary, and had good suc- 
 cess in running down the criminal element. 
 Since his retirement from office he has con- 
 tinued to make his home in Eureka, and in 
 the spring of iqoo was elected assessor of 
 Olio township, which includes the city of 
 Eureka. His official duties have always been 
 most conscientious!}- and faithfully per- 
 formed, and have g-i\-en the utmost satis- 
 faction to all concerned. Fraternally ]\lr. 
 Robeson is a member of the Odd Fellows 
 Lodge, No. 794, of Palestine, and he attends 
 and supports the Christian church, of wbicli 
 his wife is a member. 
 
 J. H. HUXTABLE. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, one of Ben- 
 son's most esteemed citizens, was for many 
 years prominently identified with the agri- 
 cultural interests of Woodford county, but 
 at present is not actively engaged in any 
 business, but a good judge of human nature 
 will observe under his habitual quiet and 
 unassuming manner the reserve force which 
 indicates both ability and energy. 
 
 Mr. Huxtable was born in Peoria coun- 
 ty, Illinois, March 22, 1856, a son of James 
 
 and Frances (Ridge) Huxtable, natives of 
 England, who with their family of six chil- 
 dren crossed the Atlantic in 1852, landing 
 in New York. They located in Peoria 
 count\-, Illinois, where the father followed 
 farming, tbough in his native land he had 
 worked at the miller's trade. After coming 
 to Woodford county in 1880 he continued to 
 engage in agricultural pursuits for some time 
 in Greene township. l)ut his last days were 
 spent in retirement from active labor in the 
 xillage of Benson, where he died September 
 II, 1894. His widow- is still living- and 
 now makes her home -with her children. 
 Fifteen children were born to them, namely: 
 \\'illiam. a farmer, died at Flanagan, Illi- 
 nois, in August, 1899; Richard is a farmer 
 of Oklahoma: Grace, wife of Thomas Lee, 
 died in Hoopeston, Illinois: Charity is the 
 wife of John Bock, a jiainter of the same 
 place: Elizabeth is a resident of Gilman, 
 Illinois: Sarah is the wife of Simon Peter- 
 son, and they reside in Benson, Illinois: he 
 is engaged in the brick and tile business, and 
 alsc-i o])erates seven threshing machines : 
 Phielie is the wife of Peter Antlerson, a 
 farmer of Indiana; James is a grain l)uyer 
 of Benson: J. H., our subject, is next in 
 order of l)irth : Ida is the wife of A. S. Bru- 
 baker : Martha is the wife of ]\Iayor Frank 
 E. Learned, a prominent druggist of Ben- 
 son: Xora is the wife of Andrew Younger, 
 of Roseburg, Oregon : Thomas, who died at 
 the age of thirty-three years, was a school 
 teacher, and has sel^ved as county clerk and 
 assessor : Morris is a farmer of Greene town- 
 ship, and Flora is the wife of U. B. Mem- 
 men, a grain dealer of Minonk, Illinois. 
 
 For several years J. H. Huxtable was 
 successfully engaged in farming in Greene 
 township, \\'oodford county, where he still 
 owns a fine farm of one hundred and thirty-
 
 J. H. HUXTABLE.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 463 
 
 five acres, wliicli he rents to G. Jeter, and has 
 a farm of one huntlretl and sixty acres in 
 Dawson county, Nebraska, wliich he rents 
 to J. G. Bock. He is also a stockholder in 
 the Benson State Bank. He is enterpris- 
 ing and progressive, and lias met with suc- 
 cess in all his undertakings. 
 
 Mr. Huxtable has been twice married, 
 his first wife being Miss Ida Menter, who 
 died September 16, 1896, leaving two chil- 
 dren : Theresa, a highly educated young 
 lady, is a graduate of \\'esleyan University 
 at Bloomington. She is now doing mis- 
 sionary work in Brockton. ^Massachusetts, 
 helping bring those into the church who 
 have not been attending; and Lester, who is 
 now attending the Benson schools. In 1897 
 Mr. Huxtable married Mrs. Maria Miller, a 
 daughter of Jacob Ressler, of Berks county, 
 Pennsylvania. Her father died in 1865, 
 her mother in 1894. She has one sister still 
 living, Mrs. Elizabeth Kline, of Berks coun- 
 ty, Pennsylvania. Mrs. Huxtable's first 
 husband was Jacob ^Miller, a successful 
 farmer, who settled in Greene township, 
 Woodford county, in 1856, and died in 
 1889, leaving considerable land and money 
 to his widow. They had no children. She 
 owns a fine residence on Front street. Ben- 
 son, where she and her husband now re- 
 side. 
 
 As one of the most prominent and infiu- 
 ential citizens of Greene township. Mr. Hux- 
 table was called upon to fill several official 
 positions, including that of collector, the du- 
 ties of which he most faithfully and satis- 
 factorily performed. He and his wife are 
 among the leading members of the Meth- 
 odist Episcopal church, of Benson, in which 
 he has served as steward seven years, and 
 as superintendent of the Sunday school 
 seven years. Mrs. Huxtable is also an act- 
 
 ive church worker, and has served as stew- 
 ardess. P<,)litically our subject is a stanch 
 Republican, as was also his father, and he 
 gives his support to any enterprise which 
 he believes will advance the moral, social 
 or material welfare of his town and countv. 
 
 A. W. HUFF^LVX. 
 
 Among the leading and representative 
 Inisiness men of the thriving little village of 
 Panola must be numbered A. \V. Huffman, 
 of the firm of Schweizer & Huft'man, who 
 are successfully engaged in general mer- 
 chandising at that place. He was born at 
 West Salem, Edwards county. Illinois, Au- 
 gust 21, 1867, and is a son of Andrew and 
 Mary (Ground) Huffman, the former a 
 native of West Virginia, the latter of Ken- 
 tucky. The mother died in Decemljer. 
 1891, but the father is still living. He was 
 born in 1S21, and came west with his par- 
 ents in 1 83 1, but his father died when he 
 was young. In early life he was engaged 
 in building flatboats, and also ran them 
 down the Mississippi ri\er, carrying grain 
 to New Orleans, but later in life devoted 
 his energies to farming. At present, how- 
 ever, he is living a retired life in West Sa- 
 lem. Edwards county, Illinois. He served 
 as county commissioner of that county for 
 sixteen years, and has always taken a promi- 
 nent and influential part in public affairs. 
 The children born to himself and wife were: 
 Francis, now a resident of Leeds, Kansas ; 
 Eliza and Martha A., both deceased; Ma- 
 rion, of Eaton Rapids, Michigan ; Milton, 
 deceased ; Grant, of West Salem, Illinois, 
 and A. W., our subject. 
 
 A. W. Huffman was reared in West Sa-
 
 464 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lem, and attended the public schools there 
 for some time. Subsequently he was a stu- 
 dent at ^^'estfield College, Illinois, and the 
 Valparaiso Normal School, Indiana, and 
 when his education was completed he suc- 
 cessfully engaged in teaching school in his 
 native county for five years, frorn 1886 to 
 1 89 1, and served as assistant postmaster at 
 West Salem in 1892 and 1893. He next 
 learned telegraphy, and was employed as 
 operator and agent by the Illinois Central 
 Railroad Company for six years, being sta- 
 tioned at Panola one year of this time. On 
 leaving the employ of the road he embarked 
 in his present business with Joseph V>. 
 Schweizer, and under the firm name of 
 Schweizer & Huffman they are now doing 
 a large and profitable business as general 
 merchants of Panola. Mr. Huffman holds 
 membership in the Modern Woodmen of 
 America, and is a stanch supporter of the Re- 
 publican party. He was married to Miss 
 Olga Voigt, of West Salem, and to them 
 have been born two children, Myrtle and 
 Ruth. 
 
 WILLIAM M. MEEK. 
 
 Prominent among the business men of 
 Eureka is William M. Meek, who for over 
 forty years has been closely identified with 
 the interests of the city, while his name is 
 inseparably connected with its financial rec- 
 ords. The banking interests are w'ell rep- 
 resented in him, for he has served as vice- 
 president of the State Bank since its estab- 
 lishment in 1895. He is a man of keen 
 discrimination and sound judgment, and as 
 a financier ranks among the ablest. 
 
 Mr. Meek is a native of Woodford coun- 
 ty, born in Cruger township, August 12, 
 
 1832, and is a representative of one of its 
 m.ost prominent pioneer families, his par- 
 ents being Joseph and Euraney (Suther- 
 land) Meek. The father was born in Ken- 
 tucky, June 6, 1797, a son of Bazel Meek, 
 who is mentioned more fully in the sketch 
 of B. D. Meek on another page of this vol- 
 ume. There he was reared, and when a 
 young man moved to Indiana, locating near 
 Lawrenceburg, where he married Euraney 
 Sutherland, who was born in North Carolina 
 in 1800, a daughter of Berry Sutherland, 
 from North Carolina. Mr. Meek followed 
 farming in Indiana until the fall of 1830, 
 when he came to Woodford county, Illi- 
 nois, l)y wagon and purchased one hundred 
 and sixty acres of land in Cruger township, 
 a few acres of which had been broken and a 
 log cabin erected theron. To the further 
 improvement and cultivation of his place he 
 at once turned his attention, and later added 
 to it an eighty-acre tract, making a fine farm 
 of two hundred and forty acres. Success 
 attended his well-directed efforts, and he 
 became one of the largest land owners of 
 the county, having one thousand acres of 
 valuable land near Eureka. At the time of 
 the wildcat currency he kept out of all bank- 
 ing schemes and so lost nothing. He was 
 one of the county commissioners when the 
 first court house was built at Metamore, and 
 with two others had charge of the work. 
 He was also connected with the laying out 
 of roads, building of bridges, etc., and took 
 a very prominent part in the improvement 
 of the county outside of the development of 
 his own latid. Politically he was always 
 identified with the Democratic party, and re- 
 ligiously was in early life a Baptist, but 
 there being but few of that denomination in 
 his locality, he united with the Christian 
 church on its organization, and did a large
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 465 
 
 part of the work in building the first church 
 in addition to contributing hberaliy to the 
 expense. lie got out all the old style heavy 
 timbers, and was noted for his fine and 
 smooth hewing. In early days he took a 
 lead of wheat to Chicago, driving over poor 
 roads and fording streams, and would bring 
 back groceries and other household necessi- 
 ties. The Indians were still here, and one 
 family in the neighborhood had to leave 
 home until after the Black Hawk war, when 
 the red men took up their abode on the other 
 side of the Mississippi. The father of our 
 subject died upon his farm June i, 1890, 
 lacking only five days of being ninety-three 
 years of age. The mother died in 1848, 
 kaxing seven children who reached man 
 and womaniidnd, our subject being the fifth 
 in order of birth. 
 
 During his boyhood William M. Meek 
 pursued his studies in an old log schoolhouse 
 each winter for a short time, but as soon as 
 the ground was fit to work in the spring 
 would do his share of the plowing. By sub- 
 sequent reading, however, he gained a good 
 practical education and a broad knowledge 
 of the present and ])ast. He assisted his 
 father on the home farm until twenty-one, 
 and then started in life for himself as a 
 farmer. After a serious illness, he came to 
 Eureka in 1858, and in partnership with 
 Colonel B. D. Meek, under the firm name of 
 B. D. Meek & Company, engaged in the 
 hardware and grocery business, having the 
 entire management of the store for some 
 years, and gaining a good practical knowl- 
 edge of business affairs, which has been of 
 great benefit to him in later years. Selling 
 out in 1868, he returned to his father's farm, 
 where he remained four years, and then fol- 
 lowed the broker's business in Eureka for 
 a time. He next bought a farm in Cruger 
 
 township, which he greatly improved by 
 the erection of good buildings, and which he 
 successfully operated for twenty two years. 
 He still owns the place, but in 1893 '''^ ^^'^^ 
 seriously injured and again moved to the 
 city. 
 
 While on the farm Mr. Meek had served 
 as county treasurer. The previous officer 
 had defaulted for forty thousand dollars, 
 and the board of supervisors sent a commit- 
 tee to see if Mr. Meek would not accept the 
 position. He at first refused, but at the fol- 
 lowing convention at Metamora, which he 
 did not attend, he was nominated without 
 his knowledge. He then accepted the office, 
 though not wanting it on account of the high 
 bond then required. There were three can- 
 didates in the field, and although the Green- 
 back party carried off seven hundred of the 
 votes, he was elected, and filled the office in 
 a most creditable and satisfactory manner 
 for three years, during which time he put 
 the finances of the county in shape again. 
 He refused a renomination and retired to 
 private life. In 1895, when the State Bank 
 v.as founded, he as one of the incorpora- 
 tors, a member of the first board of direc- 
 tors and the first vice-president. He held 
 that office until January, 1900, when he was 
 elected president, but not liking the posi- 
 tion, he was again made vice-president, in 
 which capacity he is now serving. The 
 bank has a capital stock of thirty thousand 
 dollars, and is doing a very successful busi- 
 ness. Besides his farm and his interest in 
 the bank, Mr. Meek has owned a home in tlio 
 city for some years. 
 
 Mr. Meek was married, April 25, 1861, 
 to Miss Julia Jones, a daughter of Richaril 
 Jones, who came here from England. Thej' 
 have one child, Mary Delia, at home. Tlic 
 family hold membership in the Christian
 
 466 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 church, and Mr. Meek is also connected with 
 W^ C. Hobbs Lodge, F. & A. M. Pohti- 
 cally he is a sound-money Democrat, and 
 as a citizen takes an active and commendable 
 interest in all enterprises tending to public 
 development. 
 
 RE\\ TSADORE VEERKA:\IP. 
 
 In com]jiling the history of Minonk and 
 Livingston county due mention should be 
 made of the honored subject of this sketch, 
 and of the flourishing work over which he 
 presides. He has won a place in the hearts 
 of his people, by his self-sacrificing labors 
 on their behalf, and at the same time he en- 
 joys the friendship of multitudes of the citi- 
 zens of Minonk who are not identified with 
 his flock. 
 
 His parents, George and Agnes (Linne- 
 man) Veerkamp, are natives of Hanover, 
 Germany, and have been residents of Cin- 
 cinnati, Ohio, for more than two-score years. 
 The father came to this country, in 1857, 
 and at once took up his residence in the city 
 mentioned, where he pursued his trade as a 
 carriage manufacturer. During the civil 
 war he faithfully fought for the preserva- 
 tion of the Union, and served in the ranks 
 for nearly four years. He was born in 
 1835, and was married in Cincinnati in 
 March, i860, to Miss Linneman, who is 
 three years his junior. Both are members 
 of the Catholic church, and are highly re- 
 spected by a large circle of acquaintances. 
 
 One of nine children of his parents, and 
 all of whom survive, the Rev. Isadore Veer- 
 kamp was born September 11, 1862, in Cin- 
 cinnati, Ohio. He received a good educa- 
 tion in St. Francis parochial school of that 
 city, and in 1879 entered upon his theolog- 
 
 ical studies at Oldenburg, Indiana. Thence 
 he went to Louisville, Kentucky, and in 
 1887 finished his prescribed course of prepa- 
 ration for the ministry at St. Francis' Col- 
 lege. In lulv of the vear mentioned he was 
 ordained to the priesthood in tlie Cincin- 
 nati Cathedral. l)y Archbishop likler. and 
 was assigned to the post of assistant pastor 
 to Father Da\id, in the Sacred Heart church 
 in Detroit, Michigan. At the end of three 
 vears he became Father Raphael's assistant, 
 in Hamilton. Ohio, and served faithfully for 
 two vears. Stricken with a severe attack of 
 illness, which rendered an operation neces- 
 sary, he then was sent to a hospital in Cin- 
 cinnati, and, as he became convalescent, a 
 change of climate was considered best for 
 him. Therefore he was assigned to a pas- 
 torate in Sacred Heart church, in Emporia, 
 Kansas, and labored there for two years. 
 
 Six years ago Father Veerkamp as- 
 sumed the position he now holds, that of 
 the spiritual head of St. Patrick's church, 
 of Minonk, and, needless to say, his work 
 here has been marked by gratif3'ing success. 
 A large and handsome church edifice had 
 been crjnstructed about a year prior to his 
 arrival here, but it was encumbered with a 
 debt, and thus, one of his first endeavors 
 was to have this obligation discharged. 
 With characteristic energy he took up the 
 burden of labor resting upon his young 
 shoulders, and though he has accomplished 
 great things, it may be briefly summed up. 
 U^nder the charge of the Sisters a pan^chial 
 school was being conducted on the lower 
 floor of the residence occupied by them, and 
 thus both the pupils and their teachers were 
 in crowded quarters. Father Veerkamp 
 carried out a plan which he wisely formu- 
 lated — the repairing and placing in good 
 condition the old frame building formerly
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 467 
 
 used as the church, transtorniing it into well 
 arrangetl and well lighted school rooms, and 
 ai the same time the Sisters" house was im- 
 proved and repaired. At present the suc- 
 cess of the school is beyond doubt, as nearly 
 two hundred students are attending- it. and 
 are under the charge of tiuxe teaciiers. A 
 fine pipe organ was purcha.sed for the churcli 
 at a cost of fifteen hundred dollars, and 
 about nine hundred dollars was expended 
 for statuary for the edifice, while fifteen hun- 
 dred dollars were i)aid for the altars and 
 electric lighting. Inchuling the gallery, there 
 are accommodations for upwards of fifteen 
 hundred people in the church, and thus pro- 
 visions have been made for an indefinite pe- 
 riod. The children of the congregation 
 ha\e paid for a beautiful ]iiece of statuary — • 
 "The (iuardian .\ngel"^ — which stands in 
 their play ground, adjoining the school. 
 The projierty on which stands the church 
 and other buildings comprises two acres, sit- 
 uated on an eminence in the town, and un- 
 der the able supervision of Brother Ray- 
 der. who has charge of the gardens and 
 management of leather \'ecrkam])'s house, 
 the lawns, flower beds and walks :ux' kept in 
 fine conilition. 
 
 .\s a large percentage of the ciingrega- 
 tion of St. Patrick's church was Polish, it 
 was deemed l)est that those desiring to have 
 services in their native tongue should with- 
 draw and have a separate church, and in 
 January, 1900, this plan was put into effect. 
 Having purchased the old Methodist church 
 building, these Polish members had it moved 
 to land which they had purchased, and they 
 now have a priest, a school and are doing 
 well. About fifty of the Polish families re- 
 mained with the mother church, for the mat- 
 ter was entirely optional. The ])eo])le have 
 been worthy of praise, for they have them- 
 
 selves raised the bulk of the money invested 
 in the church property here, and the general 
 public has not been called ui)on to contrib- 
 ute even by patronizing a bazaar. 
 
 Undoubtedly Father Veerkamp deserves 
 imstinted commendation for his disinterested 
 work in this parish, antl few. indeed, are 
 better loved and revered. He possesses an 
 excellent education and is qualified to meet 
 the needs of all his flock, wheher of high 
 or low degree, whether scholarly or unlet- 
 tered. His assistant priest is Father Ber- 
 trand. a native of Bohemia, and educated 
 in Cincinnati, Ohio. 
 
 JAINIES X. FISHI-.R. 
 
 Prominent among the leading and ener- 
 getic business men of Roanoke is the sub- 
 ject of this review, a well-known lumber 
 dealer, who has been actively identified with 
 the business interests of the village for 
 twenty years. .\ native of \ irginia. he was 
 liorn in Rockingham countv, June i i, T847, 
 and is a son of John and .Mary ( Long) 
 [•"isher, who spent their entire li\es in the 
 (Jld Dominion. The father, who was a 
 cabinet-maker liy trade, died at his old Imme 
 in \'iginia, in 1896, at the age of eighty 
 years, the mother in 1898, at the age of 
 seventy-eight. They were the ]3arents of 
 eleven children, four of whom died in child- 
 hood. Those who reached niaturit\- were: 
 Carrie, wife of Hiram Beard, of X'irginia; 
 James N., our subject; Jacob, a resident of 
 A'irginia: Retta, deceased wife of James Hi- 
 ner, of the same state: Lucian, also a resi- 
 dent of \'irginia ; Lucy, wife of Calvin Hen- 
 ton, of that state: Dora, wife of Thomas 
 Messic, of Rockingham county, \'irginia. 
 Lucian and Jacol) both came to Illincjis, but
 
 468 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 after spending a few years in this state re- 
 turned to Virginia. The parents were mem- 
 bers and active workers in the Presbyterian 
 cliurch, and were most estimable people. The 
 first of the family to come to America was 
 our subject's great-great-grandfather, Abra- 
 ham Fisher, a native of Germany, who 
 crossed the Atlantic at the age of eighteen 
 years and settled in Virginia, wdiere the fam- 
 ily have since flourished. He aided the cul- 
 onies in achieving their independence in the 
 Revolutionary war, and his son John was a 
 soldier of the war of 1812, while our sub- 
 ject's father served in the Confederate army 
 during the civil war. 
 
 James N. Fisher was educated in the 
 common schools of his native state. A Vir- 
 ginian by birtli and training, he entered the 
 Confederate army at the age of seventeen 
 years, enlisting Jime 11, 1864, in the Au- 
 gusta Reserves. He remained in the ser- 
 vice until hostilities ceased, and participated 
 in the battles of Piedmont and Waynesboro. 
 He also did guard duty at Libby prison for 
 a time. 
 
 At the clnse of the war ]\Ir. Fisher re- 
 turned to Virginia and learned the cabinet- 
 maker's trade, at wliich he worked for six 
 years, and then took up carpentering, which 
 he continued to follow during his residence 
 in his nati\-e state, and also after coming to 
 Illinois. He was married No\-ember 8, 
 1871, to Miss Signora Reynolds, who was 
 born in 1846, in Virginia, where her parents, 
 new well advanced in years, are still living. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Fisher have three children: 
 Orin N., aged twenty-two years, is a gradu- 
 ate of the Roanoke schools, and is now as- 
 sisting his father in business; Gertrude G., 
 aged nineteen, is also a graduate of the home 
 school; and Frank R., aged thirteen, is still 
 in school. 
 
 In 1874 Mr. Fisher first came to Roan- 
 oke, Illinois, where he was engaged in con- 
 tracting and building for five years, and then 
 went farther west, but not finding a more 
 suitable location, he returned lo Roanoke 
 in i88t. and has since made this ])lace Iv.r, 
 home. He continued business as a con- 
 tractor and builder until 1897, when he 
 turned his attention to the lumber trade, 
 erecting sheds upon his property and putting 
 in a large stock of lumber and building ma- 
 terial. He is still .successfully engaged in 
 contracting, and as a lumber dealer has built 
 up an excellent trade. In his building op- 
 erations he formed a partnership with E. 
 M. De Piruler in 18S5. and that connection 
 continued until 1894, sine? which time ATr. 
 Fisher has been alone in business. 
 
 He is public-spirited and thoroughly in- 
 terested in whate^'er tends to promote the 
 moral, intellectual and material welfare of 
 his adopted county, and though not a mem- 
 ber of anv religious denomination, he gives 
 to the suDport of all. His wife holds mem- 
 bership in the IMethodist Episcopal church 
 As one of the leading and influential citi- 
 zens of the town, he has taken a prominent 
 part in public aft'airs : served as \-illage 
 treasiu'er two years, and in 1900 was elected 
 tiiwnship collector, which office he is now 
 acceptably filling. 
 
 FRED S. HORXEMAX. 
 
 Fred S. Horneman, formerly numbered 
 among the nrogressive and successful mer- 
 chants of Minonk, of which city his son, 
 bred \\'. Horneman, is the present popular 
 luavor, is eminently worthy of an honored 
 place in its histor}', as for three decades he
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 469 
 
 has been identified with its development. 
 He was known far and wide as one of tlie 
 fonnders of Minonk's prosperity, for his in- 
 fluence ever was cast on tlie side of prog- 
 ress, the good and the true. 
 
 Born in Wnrtemberg. Germany, Octol)er 
 I, 1836, F. S. Horneman was deprived of a 
 father's love and care when he was about a 
 year old, as the senior's career was untimely 
 ended by death. The mother sur\i\-ed until 
 1862, when she was in her sixty-eighth vear. 
 Botli were members of the Lutheran church 
 and were highly esteemed in tiieir commu- 
 nity. Their son John departed this life 
 ir Germany three years ago, when he was 
 sixty-three years of age. Sophia, the eld- 
 est survi\-ing member of the family, now 
 seventy-two years old, resides in Wurtem- 
 berg, and for fifteen years has been a widow. 
 Mrs. Minnie Sahaas, another sister, died in 
 Germany, and her husband also has passed 
 away. 
 
 In his youtli Fred S. Horneman re- 
 ceived a E^ood education in the government 
 schools of his native land, and there formed 
 the excellent habits of industry and per,se- 
 verance for which he was unted. He al.so 
 was trained to have onlv high ])rinci])les of 
 conduct, and throughout his life lu- was hon- 
 orable, just and exemplary in every particu- 
 lar. One of the most important events in 
 his career was his marriage, in 1863, to Dor- 
 othy Spohn, daughter of Frederick and Eliz- 
 abeth (Weada) Spohn. The father had 
 died about a twelfthmonth before, when 
 sixty-two years of age, and the mother, who 
 attained lier .seventy-fourth year, came to 
 the United States, to be near lier only child. 
 Mrs. Horneman, and was called to the si- 
 lent land in 1878. 
 
 With his family the suljject of this arti- 
 cle emigrated to America in 1869, arriving 
 
 on these hospitable shores on the 14th of 
 June. They came immediately to Minonk, 
 where they dwelt from that day until the 
 present time. For some fourteen years the 
 father was employed by the grain merchant, 
 George Warren, who then sold out and re- 
 moved to Nebraska. Mr. Horneman, who 
 had carefully husbanded his resources, 
 awaiting a favorable opportunity for invest- 
 ment, then became the purchaser of the ele- 
 vator, and for the ensuing sixteen years car- 
 ried on the business successfully. Then, 
 owing to poor health and his yeais, he con- 
 cluded to dispose of the elevator, and in 
 July, 1899, the property was sold. 
 
 The death of Mr. Horneman occurred 
 January 6, 1900, and this entire community 
 have deeply mourned his loss, feeling that 
 his place cannot be filled. To his children 
 •he leaves an unblemished name and record 
 of which they have reason to be proud. His 
 friends were legion, and everj' one who had 
 business dealings with him had naught but 
 words of praise for this sterling citizen. He 
 was not a politician in any sense of the word, 
 but kept thoroughly posted on national is- 
 sues, and in accordance with his sincere 
 views rs to the best policy for the land of 
 his adoption, he cast his influence on the side 
 of the Republican party. With his estima- 
 ble wife he held membership in the Evangel- 
 ical Lutheran church, and contributeil lib- 
 erally to religious and i)hilanthropic enter- 
 prises. 
 
 Of the nine children born to ;\lr. and 
 Mrs. Horneman two died in German)-, name- 
 ly : Mary J., at the age of seven months, 
 and Charlie A., when eight days old. Fred, 
 the oldest surviving member of the family, 
 and the present efficient mayor ol Minonk, 
 was two and a half years old when he was 
 brought to America. He chose Anna
 
 470 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Durre for a wife, and tlieir children arc 
 three in number, namely : Laura, Dora and 
 Fred. Annie, wife of Ed Slemmer, and 
 mother of one child, Francis, is the fourth 
 in order of birth in our subject's family. 
 John, who died in 1898. was in his twenty- 
 fifth vear. He was a great favorite with 
 the young and old, and was a promising- 
 business man. His untimely death cast 
 great ■ gloom throughout this community. 
 where he was so well known and unuer- 
 sallv liked. Wilhelmina is the next in order 
 of birth, and the younger children are Char- 
 lie (the second of the name), Elizabeth, 
 who is attending college at Dixon. Illinois, 
 and Robert, wiio is a memlier of the Minonk 
 class of 1900. 
 
 NAPOLEON B. CRAWFORD. M. D. 
 
 Napoleon B. Crawford, M. D.. of Eu- 
 reka, Illinois, with two exceptions, has been 
 in active practice for a longer period of time 
 than any physician in Woodford county. 
 He is a native of the state and was born 
 on Crawford's Prairie. Franklin county. 
 September i, 1839. and is a son of John and 
 Elizabeth (Randolph) Crawford, the for- 
 mer a native of Virginia, born about 1787, 
 and the latter of Murfreesboro. Tennessee, 
 born in 1 808. She was a daughter of John 
 Randolph, of Virginia, and a descendant of 
 Peyton Randolph, a well-known historical 
 character of Virginia. 
 
 The paternal grandfather of Dr. Craw- 
 ford was born in the north of Ireland, of 
 Scotch ancestry. When a young man he 
 came to this country and settled in A'irginia. 
 where he married Miss Smith, an English 
 lady who came over in the same vessel with 
 him, and they made their home in Virginia 
 during tlie remainder of their lives. 
 
 John Crawford grew to manhood in his 
 native county, and there engaged in teach- 
 ing, while probably assisting in farm work. 
 Ii. 181 1 he came to the territory of Illinois, 
 and secured a large tract of land in Frank- 
 lin county, the prairie on which it was lo- 
 cated being named in his honor, from the 
 fact of his being the first white settler in 
 that locality. The tract was improved by 
 him, and for some years he engaged in farm- 
 ing in connection with teaching. He was 
 one of the very first teachers, and it is sup- 
 posed that he taught the very first school in 
 Franklin county. His marriage was sol- 
 emnized at the home of the bride in Mur- 
 freesboro, Tennessee. On the organization 
 of Franklin county he was elected its first 
 sheriff, and filled the office acceptably to the 
 people. He also served in various offices, 
 and was a well-known, popular and influen- 
 tial citizen. During the Indian war, in 
 1832. known as the Black Hawk war, he 
 was among' those who volunteered to drive 
 back that wily chief and his warriors. In 
 politics he was a Democrat. His wife was 
 a consistent member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal church. 
 
 The bovho(id and youth of mir subject 
 were spent in his native county. Left an 
 orphan at the tender age of se\en years, he 
 was bound out to serve until twenty years 
 of age. The man to whom he was hound 
 was by occupation a farmer, and he con- 
 tinued with him, working on the farm, un- 
 til the expiration of the time named, in the 
 meantime securing what education was pos- 
 sible in the schools of the county. After 
 reaching his twentieth year he determined 
 to secure a better education, and for a time 
 attended school and engaged in teaching al- 
 ternately. 
 
 Having decided upon medicine as his
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 475 
 
 profession, our subject read with Dr. M. M. 
 Goodman, of Jonesboro, Illinois, and later 
 attended lectures in the Bellevue ]\Iedical 
 College, from which he was graduated in 
 the spring of 1864. He then located for 
 practice in Eureka. \\(«jdford county, where 
 he has since continued to reside. While Eu- 
 reka at that time was a very small place, it 
 was not long before his skill ;is a physician 
 and surgeon became known throughout 
 Woodford and adjoining counties, and pro- 
 fessional calls were made by him in McLean. 
 Livingston. Marshall and Tazewell coun- 
 ties, as well as in his adopted county. His 
 practice soon became very extensive, and has 
 been retained in the years following. In 
 more recent years he has had a large practice 
 in consultation with other physicians, and 
 also in the more delicate cases of surgery. 
 He was one of the organizers of the W'ood- 
 ford County Medical Society, and was its 
 president for two years. He is now a mem- 
 ber of the American Medical Association, 
 the State Medical Society, and the Missis- 
 sippi \'alley Medical Society, in each of 
 which he has read valuable papers and has 
 exerted a good influence. 
 
 The Doctor has always taken special in- 
 terest in educational matters, and for about 
 thirty years has been one of the trustees of 
 Eureka College, and for the past three years 
 was president of its board, which office he 
 still holds. During the time in which he 
 has served all the buildings of the college 
 have been erected, with the exception of the 
 original building. Much of his time and 
 thought have been given to the college, in 
 order to enhance its usefulness, and he has 
 been a liberal contributor to the support of 
 the institution. 
 
 On the I ith of Oct()l>er, 1864. Dr. Craw- 
 ford was united in marriage with Miss Sa- 
 
 rah J. Davidson, of Eureka, and daughter 
 of Caleb Davidson, one of the earliest set- 
 tlers of Walnut Grove, by which name the 
 city of Eureka was originally known. He 
 located tliere in 1833, coming with his fam- 
 ily from Kentucky. By occupation he was 
 a farmer and stock raiser, and for years he 
 was one of the most prominent men in the 
 community. 
 
 Mrs. Crawford is a well-educated lady 
 and is a graduate of Eureka College. F"or 
 manv years she has been very active in 
 church, Sunday school and college work., 
 and devotes much of her time, thought and 
 best energies to their advancement. She 
 is president of the Ladies' College Aid Asso- 
 ciation, organized for the purpose of render- 
 ing aid to the various college enterprises of 
 the Christian church in Illinois, and which 
 is giving special attention to Eureka Col- 
 lege, in order to place it on a firm financial 
 footing. For fifteen years she has been 
 treasurer of the Illinois Christian Women's 
 Board of Missions, and has been exceeding- 
 ly helpful in that organization. Few 
 women are better known throughout the 
 state, especially among the members of the 
 Christian church. 
 
 I'^raternally Dr. Crawford is a Ma.son 
 in high standing, holding membership with 
 the William C. Hobbs Lodge, Xo. 306, A. 
 F. & .A. M., of Eureka, serving as worship- 
 ful master a period of seven years: of Wash- 
 ington Chapter. Washington. Illinois; and 
 Peoria Commandery, of Peoria, Illinois. He 
 is also a member of Mahomet Temple, Mys- 
 tic Shrine, of Peoria. He has often repre- 
 sented his lodge in the Grand Lodge of the 
 state, and has a wide acc|uaintance in Ma- 
 sonic circles throughout the state. Relig- 
 iously he is identified with the Christian 
 church, having been a member of the Eureka
 
 476 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 church for many years, and serving as one 
 of its elders. 
 
 No man in Woodford county is better 
 known or has more stanch friends than 
 Dr. Crawford. For thirty-six years he has 
 ministered to the physical wants of the peo- 
 ple, and there are comparatively few homes 
 in Eureka and vicinity in which he has not 
 been called in a professional way. Finan- 
 cially he has been prosperous, and he is now 
 one of the most ixominent real estate own- 
 ers in the county. Socially he is held in the 
 highest esteem, and the same can be said of 
 Mrs. Crawford. Their friends are numer- 
 ous throughout the state, and their interest 
 in education, in morals, and in Christian 
 work has been demonstrated over and over 
 again. Surely the life of such should be an 
 incentive to others, and their good deeds are 
 certainly worthy of emulation. 
 
 J. E. ECKHART. 
 
 The subject of this sketch is a worthy 
 representative of the business interests of 
 Benson, Illinois, being at the head of the 
 hardware and lumber trade of that village. 
 He is a wide-awake, progressive business 
 man, and although comparatively young, 
 has already met with good success in his 
 undertakings. 
 
 A nati-\-e of Woodford county, Air. Eck- 
 hart was b<jrn in Clayton township, Alay 5, 
 1868, and is a son of Adam and Anna 
 (Roth) Eckhart. The father was born in 
 Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1840, the latter in 
 Woodford county, Illinois, in 1849. They 
 are the parents of ten children, of whom 
 the eldest, a daughter, died in infancy; our 
 subject is next in order of birth; Henry is 
 now engaged in business in partnership with 
 our subject; Alarv is the wife of X. O. Tal- 
 
 lyn, a farmer of Clayton townsiiip; Eliza- 
 beth died at the age of one year ; Emma and 
 Amelia are at home with their parents ; Clara 
 and Carrie were twins, the former of whom 
 is at home, the latter deceased ; and Edward 
 is at home. 
 
 Our subject's paternal grandfather, 
 Adam Eckhart, Sr., came to this country 
 from Germany in 1832, and located in Cin- 
 cinnati, Ohio, where he followed blacksmith- 
 ing for a time, but in 1841 sailed down the 
 Ohio and up the Mississippi and Illinois 
 rivers to Tazewell county, Illinois, where he 
 settled, purchasing land in Fond du Lac 
 township. At that time he could have 
 bought land just as cheap in Peoria, where 
 the court house now stands. He continued 
 to make his home in Tazewell county 
 throughout life. There our subject's fa- 
 ther was reared and educated, and after 
 reaching manhood followed farming there 
 until 1863, when he came to Woodford coun- 
 ty and bought eighty acres of land in Clay- 
 ton township, to which he subsequently 
 added. He is now living a retired life in 
 Benson, enjoying a well earned rest. 
 
 The early education of J. E. Eckhart 
 was acquired in the district schools of Clay- 
 ton townsiiip. and he later attended Dixon 
 College. After leaving school he assisted 
 in the work of the home farm until twenty- 
 three years of age, when he came to Benson 
 antl purchased a half-interest in the hard- 
 ware and implement business of A. M. 
 Smith. A year later he became sole owner, 
 and was alone in business for six years, but 
 in 1899 he admitted his brother, Henry A., 
 to a partnership. The same year they 
 bought the lumber yaril of Memman Hux- 
 tr.ble, and have since carried it on in connec- 
 tion with their other business. By fair and 
 honorable dealing they have gained the pub-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 477 
 
 lie confidence and have secured an excellent 
 trade, which is constantly increasing. 
 
 Mr. lilckhart was married. January 5. 
 i8()3. to Miss Emma Bruhaker. who was 
 horn in Woodford county, in iSjj. and is 
 one of a family of six children, i ler father. 
 A. H. Bruhaker. is a native of Pennsylva- 
 nia and a representative of an old colonial 
 family. (See sketch of A. II. Bruhaker.) 
 From the age of twenty-one he was engaged 
 in the lumher and stock husiness, and also 
 conducted a general store for some time, hut 
 is now living retired in Benson. He has al- 
 ways taken an active interest in puhlic af- 
 fairs, and represented his district in the state 
 legislature one term. Mr. and Mrs. Eck- 
 hart have three children: 11a ^I.. horn 
 May I, 1894; Eldon M.. horn .\ugust 9, 
 1896; and (iladys O., horn January 25. 
 1899. 
 
 ]Mr. Eckhart is a memher i^f Columhia 
 Camp, Xo. 1836, 'M. W. A., of which he is 
 advisor, and his wife holds memhership in 
 th.e Methodist Episcopal church of Benson. 
 In his political views he is a stanch Repub- 
 lican, and since attaining his majority has 
 been a <lelegate to several county conven- 
 tions of his party, hut at local elections he 
 votes for the man whom he believes best 
 qualified tc; fill the office, regardless of party 
 hues. He served as town clerk from 1893 
 to 1898, and proved a most efficient officer. 
 As a Inisiness man and citizen he is always 
 ready to discharge any duty that devohes 
 upon him. 
 
 D.WID GRAFFT. 
 
 This well-known retired farmer and hon- 
 ored veteran (jf the civil war, now residing 
 in Eureka, was born in Eaton, Preble coun- 
 
 ty, Ohio, August 6, 1829, and is a son of 
 David and Nancy (Grove) Graff t, who were 
 natives of I'ennsylvania and \'irginia re- 
 spectively and were married in the former 
 state. The father was born in Lancaster 
 count}' of German ancestry, and soon after 
 his marriage moved to Preble county, Ohio, 
 where in the midst of the forest he cleared 
 and improved a farm of over four hundred 
 acres. There he died at the age of sixty- 
 five }ears, his wife at the age of fifty-two 
 years. They were peojjle of ]5rominence in 
 their community, and were held in high re- 
 gard wherever known. 
 
 In early life our subject attended school 
 for only a short time during the winter 
 months, but by subsequent reading and ob- 
 servation he has gained a good practical edu- 
 cation. On leaving home at the age of 
 twenty-two years, he came to Woodford 
 county, Illinois, in 1850, and first located at 
 Walnut Gro\e, where he worked as a farm 
 hand one year for eleven dollars per I'nonth. 
 During his second year he operated rented 
 land, and then. ha\ing saved his monev, he 
 bought two hundred and eighty acres of 
 land in El Paso township. September 30, 
 1852, he married Miss Diana (irove, of 
 Woodford county, a native of Virginia, and 
 a daughter of .\braham Grove, who came 
 here at a \ery early day and engaged in 
 farming just south of Eureka, in Olio town- 
 ship. He was a member of the Presbyterian 
 church, and a highly respected man. Mr. 
 and ]\Irs. Graft't are the parents of three li\-- 
 ing children, namely: William, a resident 
 of McLean county, Illinois, married Louisa 
 Ulrich and has three children, Bessie. Edna 
 and Mamie. John Joseph, now on the home 
 farm, married Lena Fitchhorn and has three 
 children, Daniel Guy, Mary Pearl- and 
 Joseph. David E. resides in El Paso. Mary
 
 478 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Ellen married Peter A. Ulrich, of Bloom- 
 ington, where she died in 1894. leaving two 
 children, Gracie, now lix'ing with our sub- 
 ject, and Ira D., who li\-es with his uncle. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Grafft rented his 
 father-in-law's farm for a year, and then 
 sold his first purchase of two hundred and 
 eighty acres of land and moved to Li\- 
 ingston county, buying a farm of four hun- 
 dred acres in Nebraska township, which he 
 broke and improved with good buildings. 
 \\"hile residing there he entered the Union 
 army, leaving his wife and three children to 
 carry on the farm. In 1862 he enlisted in 
 Company A, One Hundred and Twenty- 
 ninth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, 
 which was assigned to the Army of the Cum- 
 berland, and with his command participated 
 the battle of Resaca, the Atlanta campaign 
 and the march to the sea. They next 
 marched through the Carolinas and Virginia 
 to Washington, D. C, where they took part 
 in the grand review, and by rail proceeded 
 to Chicago in cattle cars, which to them was 
 much better than walking. 'Mr. Grafift was 
 never off duty during his entire three years, 
 and was finally mustered out at Chicago 
 with the rank of sergeant. Returning to his 
 home in June, 1865, he resumed farming, 
 and continued the cultivation of his farm in 
 Livingston county for several years. He 
 finally sold that place and bought a farm 
 of two hundred and twenty acres in Olio 
 township. Woodford county, which he tiled 
 and greatly improved, making it one of the 
 best farms of the locality. In his life work 
 he met with most excellent success, and hav- 
 ing acquired a comfortable competence he 
 moved to Eureka, in 1899, and is now living 
 retired, enjoving the fruits of former toil. 
 
 In his political views Mr. Grafft is a 
 stanch Republican, but has never been an 
 
 aspirant, though he has taken an active inter- 
 est in public affairs. He is one of the old and 
 in the battle of Resaca, the Atlanta campaign 
 honored members of Dan Miles Post, G. A. 
 R., of Eureka, and is held in the highest re- 
 spect and esteem b)' all who know him. Mrs. 
 Grafft is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
 copal church. 
 
 F. J. TUCKER. 
 
 F. T- Tucker, though his residence in 
 the United States dates back only to July, 
 1889, has won a place of honor and respect 
 in the business and social world of Minonk. 
 His success is due no less to his sterling in- 
 tegrity of wortl and deed than to his strict 
 attention to Inisiness and desire to satisfy 
 his customers. 
 
 Mr. Tucker doubtless inherited his 
 strength of character and loyalt^- to dut}- 
 from his worthy parents, \\'illiam and Har- 
 riet (Thomas) Tucker, who trained their 
 children in the love of God and their fellow 
 men. They dwelt in England, their native 
 land, until August, 1892. when they came 
 to Minonk. The father was employed as 
 manager or overseer of a number of la- 
 borers on a large farm in England. About 
 five vears subsequent to his arri\-al in Illi- 
 nois he was summoned to his eternal rest, 
 his death occurring May 3, 1897, when be 
 was in his sixty-fourth year. He is sur- 
 vived by his wife, who is sixty-five years old 
 and is still numbered among the citizens of 
 Minonk. The father was a member of the 
 Plymouth Brethren church, and several of 
 their children also have been identified with 
 the congregation. 
 
 F. J. Tucker, born in Devonshire, Eng- 
 land, ]\Iay I, 1864, is the fourth in order of
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 479 
 
 Irirth of eleven children. Until he was fit- 
 teen years okl he remained on a farm in 
 Devonsliire, and tlien lie commenced learn- 
 ing the trade of a carpenter, receiving only 
 his board for three years. Ever since that 
 time he has industriously devoted his time 
 to his chosen line of employment and has 
 justly earned his reputation as a man of 
 marked ability. In July, uSSq, lie came to 
 Minonk. where he sj^eedily obtained plenty 
 of work, and year by year he has increased 
 his popularity as a builder and contractor. 
 
 He has taken contracts throughout this 
 locality and specimens of his handiwork may 
 be seen all over this county within a railius 
 of twenty miles or more, and in addition to 
 this he has been employed on contracts in 
 northwestern Iowa. His specialty has been 
 large public buildings and fine residences, 
 and thus many structures which he ha- 
 erected stand as monuments to his enterprise. 
 
 Tiie marriage of our subject and Miss 
 Eva Perrvman was solemnized in England 
 May I, 1886. Of the seven children born 
 to them only three survi\e : \\'illie, Eva 
 Eunice and Lois A. The first-born, Lucy, 
 and George and John died in infancy. The 
 wife and mother was summoned to the silent 
 land in 1897, when she was in her thirty- 
 eighth year. On the 9th of February, 1898, 
 Mr. Tucker wedded Dora Ruestman. of this 
 county, a lady of good education and social 
 attainments. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Tucker is a member of 
 Minonk Lodge, Xo. 247, F. & A. Jil., and at 
 present is serving as chaplain. He also has 
 taken the Royal Arch degree and is identi- 
 fied with Rutland Chapter, Xo. 212. Like 
 so many of his parental family, he is a 
 member of the Plymouth Brethren church, 
 and is liberal in the support of worthy re- 
 ligious and benevolent enterprises. Mr. and 
 
 Mrs. Tucker are also active memljers of the 
 order of the Eastern Star, of which she holds 
 the office of assistant conductress, while Mr. 
 Tucker is chaplain. 
 
 HARLKV A. Z1XSI-:K, M. D. 
 
 Dr. Harley A. Zinser, a prominent and 
 successful physician of Roanoke, was born 
 in Washington, Illinois, August 6. 1871, 
 and is a son of Israel and Martha (Tobias) 
 Zinser. natives of Ohio, who came to this 
 state in early life and were married in Plain- 
 field. The father was one of the first busi- 
 ness men of Washington, where he has con- 
 ducted a store siiVe 1865, carrying a line 
 of drugs, jewelry and sundries. He has 
 built up a large trade and is doing a success- 
 ful business. In jjolitics he is a Republican 
 and for some years has been an official mem- 
 ber of the town board. Both he and his wife 
 are prominent workers in the Methodist 
 F-piscopal church and are highl}- respected 
 and esteemed by all who know them. Their 
 children are as follows: Elmer F., aged 
 tliirty-one, is a traveling salesman for a Chi- 
 cago drug house; Harley A. is ne.xt in order 
 of birth; Roy K., aged twenty-one, is ])re- 
 l)aring to enter the legal profession ; .\da 
 M.. aged nineteen, is the wife of Elmer 
 Kern, a coal merchant of Washington ; antl 
 Rolla T., aged twelve, and Steele L., aged 
 eight, are both at home. The older chil- 
 dren are all graduates of the ^\'ashington 
 high school. 
 
 After comi)leting the course in that in- 
 stitution Dr. Zinser took up the study of 
 medicine, and in the fall of 1892 entered 
 Rush Medical College, Chicago, where he 
 was a student for three years and was grad-
 
 48o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 uated in the class of 1895. The following 
 summer he spent in Washington, and in 
 September opened an office at Buckley, Illi- 
 nois, but in May, 1896, moved to Roanoke, 
 where he purchased property and has since 
 engaged in general practice. He began at 
 the very bottem of the ladder and has built 
 up a large practice, which extends through- 
 out the surrounding country for eight miles 
 in every direction. This necessitates much 
 driving and in the winter time he keeps four 
 horses that he may always respond to his 
 country calls. He has a well equipped of- 
 fice and also owns a pleasant home in the 
 village. 
 
 In November, 1896, Dr. Zinser was 
 imited in marriage with Miss Harriet E. 
 Heiple, who was born in Washington, Illi- 
 nois, in 1875. She is a member of the 
 English Lutheran church of that place. In 
 his political views the Doctor is a pro- 
 nounced Republican. He is a Master Mason 
 and a member of the Modern Woodmen 
 Camp, No. 1206, of Roanoke, and the 
 Ancient Order of United Workmen. He is 
 medical examiner for the last two fraterni- 
 ties, abo for the Equitable Insurance Com- 
 pany, of New York, and other old line com- 
 panies. He is a member of the North Cen- 
 tral Medical Association of Illinois, and is 
 a progressive member of his profession, who 
 keeps abreast of the latest discoveries and 
 theories made in the science of medicine and 
 surgery. His ability is attested by the lib- 
 eral patronage he enjoys, and he ranks as 
 one of the leading physicians of the county. 
 
 WILLIAM FERRYMAN. 
 
 ^^'il]iam Perryman, a prominent and suc- 
 cessful contractor and builder of Minonk, 
 possesses the esteem and confidence of its 
 
 citizens. He sprang from the sturdy, indus- 
 trious agricultural class of Devonshire, 
 England, and has wrought out his own 
 prosperity by attention to the stern demands 
 of the business world. The merits of all 
 work which he has undertaken is his chief 
 advertising medium, and his customers, al- 
 Viays satisfied, have strongly recommended 
 him to others, and thus his name has be- 
 cciine known far and wide. 
 
 A son of George and Elizabeth (Wool- 
 way) Perryman, natives of Devonshire, our 
 subject was born on a farm. May 20, i860. 
 He was but ten years of age when death de- 
 IH'ived him of his loving father, who was then 
 in the prime of life forty-one years of age. 
 He was a devout member of the Brethren 
 church and to his children he left an untar- 
 nished name and record. His widow is yet 
 living and is in her seventy-seventh year. 
 She still makes her home in England, and is 
 actively interested in the welfare of the de- 
 nomination to which her husband had be- 
 longed. A woman of sterling qualities, be- 
 loved by all who know her, she nobly did her 
 full duty by her family, and her children, in- 
 deed, "rise up and call her blessed." Emma, 
 the eldest, is the wife of George Davy, who 
 is engaged in the manufacture of pianos, in 
 England. Thomas, the second child, also 
 living in his native land, is an auctioneer, 
 real estate and insurance man. George is a 
 contractor and builder in England. Mary 
 became the wife of William Labbett, for- 
 merly a blacksmith and manufacturer of im- 
 plements, and now engaged in farming in 
 England. Agnes is the wife of Frederick 
 Lane, a sign painter, general contractor and 
 decorator of the same country. Lucy 
 wedded Thomas Avery, an Englishman, em- 
 ployed as a coachman. Eva, who married 
 F. J. Tucker, is deceased. John is engaged
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 481 
 
 in farming, and Henry is a butcher in tlieir 
 native land. Elizabetli died in infancy, and 
 Philip when in his fifth year. Philip, the 
 second of tiie name, was accidentally killed 
 by the discharge of a revolver which he was 
 handling. This sad event occurred in 1878, 
 when the lad, then in his fourteenth year, 
 had just passed a preliminary examination, 
 and was soon to enter the office of an attor- 
 ney. Anna, the youngest of this large fam- 
 ily, is the wife of Charles Russell, a builder 
 and 'undertaker in England. 
 
 As previously stated, William Perryman 
 was ten years old when he was left father- 
 less, but he continued to live on a farm 
 until he was in his seventeenth year. He 
 then commenced a three-years apprenticeship 
 to the carpenter's trade, receiving only his 
 board during that period. Then, for two 
 years, when he was perfecting himself in all 
 of the finer details of the business, in Lon- 
 don, he was paid twelve cents an hour. In 
 March, 1890, he crossed the Atlantic with 
 the intention of casting his lot with the peo- 
 ple of this republic. He came direct to 
 Minonk, where he was employed for a 
 twelvemonth by A. B. Kipp, and then he 
 embarked in business for himself. For nine 
 year he had been engaged in contracting and 
 building, and for part of this time he was in 
 partnership with F. J. Tucker, of this place. 
 He now conducts all departments of his busi- 
 ness, being his own architect, and drawing up 
 plans and specifications. Many of the 
 handsome residences and fine business blocks 
 in the city and locality have been built under 
 his supervision, and without exception his 
 patrons express themselves as perfectly sat- 
 isfied. He now finds his time fully occu- 
 pied in executing the numerous structures 
 which his contracts call for, and his outlook 
 is one of promise. 
 
 On the 2d of April, 1888. Mr. Perry- 
 man was united in marriage to Ann Hi!!, 
 daughter of John and Elizabeth Hill. Mrs. 
 Perryman was born in England, and there 
 obtained a good education. Six children 
 have been born to this worthy couple, name- 
 ly: George A., Lois Anna, Elmer \\'., Law- 
 rence A., Bertha \'. and Delbert \\illiam. 
 Lois A., the elder daughter, died January, 
 1891. when but eleven days old. 
 
 Both ;Mr. and iNIrs. Perryman have nu- 
 merous and sincere friends in Minonk, and 
 they are members of the Brethren church. 
 He is not a politician in any sense, but 
 strives to keep abreast of the times, and 
 manifests his interest in the welfare of his 
 adopted land. 
 
 K. L. FlXCliA.M, D. D. S. 
 
 Roanoke's popular and successful dentist 
 was born in Towanda, ^McLean county, Illi- 
 nois, September 20, 1873. His father, Matt- 
 hew Fincham, was born in Culpeper county, 
 Virginia, in 1844, and when only four years 
 old was brought to this state by his father, 
 Robert Fincham, who was also a native of 
 Virginia, while the former was of Scotch- 
 Irish descent and the latter of Pennsylvania 
 Dutch extraction. They had a family of 
 sixteen children. Robert Fincham was born 
 in 1804 and is still living at the age of 
 ninety-six years, his home being in Towanda. 
 During his active business life he was a stock 
 man. At first he owned and operated a 
 ranch, but later gave his attention to buying 
 and selling stock. 
 
 Matthew Fincham, the Doctor's father, 
 was reared and educated in ^McLean county, 
 Illinois, and was also engaged in stock rais- 
 ing and dealing during his business career.
 
 482 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 but is now living a retired life in Towanda. 
 He married Eliza Heller, a native of Penn- 
 sylvania, and a daughter of Elias and Eliza 
 (Brandsteter) Heller. By this union were 
 born eight children: Albert, a resident of 
 Streator. Illinois; Everett, of Towanda; E. 
 L., our subject; Lewis, of Streator; INIrud, 
 wife of a Mr. Gilbert, of Colfax, Illinois; 
 Myrtle and Howard, both at home svilb 
 their parents. 
 
 Dr. Fincham spent his boyhood and 
 youth in his native town and was graduated 
 from the public schools of that place in 
 1887. Later he attended Brown's Business 
 College of Bloomington, and the Streator 
 high school, and then entered the Chicago 
 College of Dental Surgery, where he was 
 graduated in 1899. Immediately after his 
 graduation he opened an office in Roanoke, 
 where his skill and ability have already won 
 for him an extensive practice. He has 
 gained the confidence and respect of his many 
 patrons, and has made many friends since 
 locating here. He is now the only dentist 
 in the village. Socially he is (juite prominent 
 and is a member of the ^Modern Woodmen 
 of America. The Doctor was married, 
 April 16, 1896, to Miss Sadie Smith, of 
 Streator, and to them has been Iiorn one 
 child, Zelda. 
 
 HON. E. A. WILCOX, M. D. 
 
 Hon. E. A. Wilcox, M. D., the pioneer 
 physician and surgeon of Minonk, and with 
 one exception the first .regularly established 
 in practice in Woodford county, ranks high 
 in his profession, and stands equally well in 
 the councils of the Republican party. One 
 having so deeply at heart the permanent wel- 
 
 fare and prosperity of the county and state 
 as he, and one who has so faithfully met 
 exerv obligation resting upon him, deserves 
 a place of honor in their archives. 
 
 Dr. Wilcox comes of old Xew England 
 families, of English-Irish extraction, and 
 for se\'eral generations they have been num- 
 bered among the prosperous, progressive, 
 patriotic citizens of this great Republic, The 
 paternal grandfather, Le\i Wilcox, was a 
 Connecticut farmer, and on his homestead, 
 in the first year of the present century, his 
 son and namesake was born. This child, as 
 Ik matured, developed a decided taste for 
 knowledge, and by his own study and ap- 
 plication he qualified himself as a physician. 
 Believing that the west offered a broader 
 field for his talents, he went to Ohio at an 
 early day, and for several years was one of 
 the pioneer physicians of Tuscarawas coun- 
 tv. About 1837 he came to Illinois, and 
 thenceforth was a citizen of Lacon, becom- 
 ing" prominent in his chosen field of labor, 
 and also winning distinction as a public offi- 
 cial. He amassed a fortune of about ten 
 thousand dollars — the result of his energy 
 and sagacity in business and investments. 
 ^\'hen the dreaded scourge, cholera, swept 
 I )\'er the countrv, be was one whc > fell a vic- 
 tim to the disease, his death occurring June 
 4, 1 85 1. Politically he was a ^^'hig. an<l 
 was so popular with the people that they 
 elected him to the responsible office of treas- 
 urer of Marshall county. He was faithful 
 to every dutv, and exemplified in his life 
 the high principles of the Christian faith and 
 the teachings of the IMethodist church, of 
 which he was a member. 
 
 Dr. Levi \\'ilcox chose for his wife Nan- 
 cy Rogers, a nati\e of Columbiana county, 
 Ohio. She was a daughter of Alexander 
 Rosers, and four of her seven brothers were
 
 E. A. WILCOX.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 4S5 
 
 physicians, namely : Dr. Thomas P., of 
 Bloomington, Illinois; Dr. R. B.. of Lacon. 
 Illinois: Dr. David, of Missouri, and Dr. 
 Alexander, of Ohio. John and Samuel 
 were farmers of Marshall and Woodford 
 counties, and George became a resident of 
 Oregon. Mrs. Wilcox spent her last years 
 at the home of her son, E. A., and departetl 
 this life, in March, 1888, when in her eighty- 
 sixth year. She had given one of her brave 
 sons to her country, and had reared all of her 
 children in liigh principles of honor and pa- 
 triotism. Alfred R., who held the rank of 
 firsl lieutenant of Company D, Eleventh 
 Regiment of Illinois Infantry, was mortally 
 wounded at the battle of Fort Donelson, and 
 being sent to the home of our subject, died 
 a few weeks later, surrounded by his loved 
 ones. Another son. Dr. Levi S., formerly 
 interna! revenue collector and one of the 
 Illinois central committee, and resident of 
 Champaign. Illinois, was appointed by the 
 president to the United States consulship at 
 Hankow. China, and as this place is .in the 
 heart of that empire, of late grave fears have 
 been entertained for him and his wife, who 
 accompanied him. His sisters, Sophronia 
 and Cynthia, are deceased, while Elizabeth, 
 widow of Henry C. Dent, is the postmistress 
 of Marietta, Indian Territory. Sophronia 
 was the wife of Ezra Warren, and died in 
 Tiskihva, Illinois, and Cynthia, wife of 
 James D. Varna, died in Lacon, Illinois. 
 
 Born in Erie county, Pennsylvania, Seji- 
 teniber 8, 1830, Dr. E. A. Wilcox spent 
 eighteen months of his life there, and then 
 came to Ohio, where he resided until eight 
 )'ears of age, when he came with his parents 
 to Lacon. Illinois. It is not strange that he 
 evinced a strong liking for the medical pro- 
 fession, in view of the fact that so many of 
 his near relatives were associated with that 
 
 class of workers, and, under the tutorship 
 of his father and uncle, R. B. Rogers, the 
 young man laid the foundations of his medi- 
 cal knowledge. In 1857 he was graduated 
 in Rush Medical College, in Chicago, and. 
 after practicing for a year in Lacon. Illi- 
 nois, came to Minonk, where he steadily rose 
 in his chosen calling. Not less has he suc- 
 ceeded as a financier and investor, for he has 
 displayed rare sagacity in the disposal of his 
 means. Toda}' he owns one tliousand acres 
 of fine land in Illinois, and fourteen hun- 
 dred acres situated in Nebraska and Texas. 
 He is- a member of the State Medical As- 
 sociation, and of the ^^''oodford County 
 Medical Society. 
 
 Called by the people of Minoi.k to the 
 office of mayor, the Doctor served efficiently 
 for three years in that capacity. For more 
 than two-score years he has been one of the 
 leading representatives of the Republican 
 party in this county, and for twelve years was 
 a member of the state central committee, and 
 for about the same length of time served as 
 chairman of the county central committee. 
 Though this congressional district was 
 strongly Democratic, he was elected to the 
 senate in 1872, receiving an overwhelming 
 majority — a fact which well attested to his 
 popularity. He made an enviable record as- 
 a statesman, and for the four years of his. 
 term he labored earnestly for the welfare of 
 his people. He was the author of the bil! 
 which relates to the regulation of our public 
 institutions. 
 
 The first marriage of the Doctor was sol- 
 emnized June 23. 1857, when Carrie, daugh- 
 ter of Caleb Mathis, became his bride. She 
 was a native of L'rbana, Ohio, and when 
 she was in her forty-sixth year, on the nth 
 of March. 1877, she was summoned to the 
 silent land. She was a member of the Meth-
 
 486 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 odist church, and exemphfied in her daily life 
 the high principles by which she was actu- 
 ated. On the 17th of July, 1878, Dr. Wil- 
 cox wedded Victoria Boyle, born in Putnam 
 county, Illinois, April 29, 1853, and a daugh- 
 ter of David Boyle. 
 
 Seven children blessed the Doctor's first 
 marriage: Elcie S., wife of William Hag- 
 gard, a business man of La Porte, Indiana, 
 has three children, Elcie, who is a musician 
 of considerable ability; Ethel and Howard. 
 Carrie E., wife of H. C. Forney, of Minonk, 
 has two children, Samuel and Ellen. Al- 
 fred R., a graduate of the Chicago Dental 
 College, has been the postmaster of IMinonk 
 for the past three years. His wife bore the 
 maiden name of Nellie Hogan. Dr. Fred 
 W., a graduate of Rush JMedical College, 
 and now a practitioner of this place, married 
 Minnie Davidson, and their children are 
 George and Rachel. He was an alternate to 
 the Republican national convention in 1900. 
 Dr. Franklin T., who was graduated in 
 Rush Medical College, is located in La 
 Porte, Indiana. He chose for a wife Helen 
 Byers, and two little sons bless their home, 
 namely : Byers and Robert F. Hattie 
 and Mattie, twins, after completing their ed- 
 ucation in Bloomington, Illinois, were em- 
 ployed in the Minonk postoffice for four 
 years, and then went to Europe where they 
 spent four months. Hattie later became the 
 wife of LHysses Grant Rithmiller, and her 
 sister has been a successful teacher in the 
 La Porte high school for the past five years. 
 Five children were born to the second 
 marriage of Dr. Wilcox, of wlwm Jessie 
 Bernidine, born June 20, 1880, died April 
 16, 1 88 1. Edna C. is attending the North- 
 western L'niversity at Evanston. Brainard 
 A. is attending the Minonk high school, as 
 are Logan D. and Lottie B., twins. 
 
 HENRY A. :\IYERS. 
 
 Henry A. Myers, a retired farmer and 
 for many years a minister of the gospel in 
 the Methodist Protestant and L'nited 
 Brethren churches, now residing in Eureka, 
 Illinois, was born in Union township, Lick- 
 ing county, Ohio, August 23, 1827. He is 
 a son of Henry and Rebecca (Stone) 
 Myers, the latter being a daughter of George 
 Washington Stone, from Lost River, Vir- 
 ginia, where he was for many years an en- 
 terprising and prosperous farmer. He was 
 a cousin of George Washington and his 
 ])iirtrait bears a striking resemblance to him. 
 Rebecca Stone was born and reared in Vir- 
 ginia, but in 1 810 removed to Ohio, after 
 the death of her father. 
 
 The Myers family are of German origin, 
 the great-great-grandfather of our subject 
 coming from Germany and settling in Little 
 York, from which point the family widely 
 scattered, descendants of which are found 
 in many of the states of the Union. Theo- 
 dore r\I}'ers. the grandfather of our subject, 
 was born in Winchester, Virginia, and there 
 spent his entire life. He served for three 
 years in the Indian wars that followed the 
 Revolutionary war. He became quite 
 wealthy and sold his large farm near Little 
 York, taking Continental money in payment. 
 This so depreciated that he lost nearly all 
 his fortune. He had pmxhased a tract of 
 land where Pittsburg now stands, but the 
 owner was killed before writings were 
 drawn and so he held the money. His son, 
 Henry Myers, was born near Winchester, 
 Virginia, which was his home until his re- 
 moval with his family, consisting of wife 
 anil three children, to Licking county, Ohio, 
 in 1810. The country at that time was yet 
 a wilderness, there being but six families of
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 487 
 
 white and mixed whites in the vicinity where 
 he made settlement. Those next nearest 
 were eighteen miles distant. While still en- 
 gaged in clearing his farm cit the heaw tim- 
 ber the second war with (ireat l>ritain was 
 declared. With others, he formed a com- 
 pany. l)ut it was not called into service until 
 about the time peace was declaretl. When 
 he landed in Licking county he had but two 
 dollars and fifty cents, but he had strong 
 arms and a fixed determination to succeed. 
 His lirst ])urchase was of one hundred and 
 sixty acres, but he was prospered, and later 
 he bought one hundred and sixty acres for 
 each of his four suns. To each of his six 
 daughters he ga\e a sum of money. He was 
 a man of great infiuence in the community 
 in which he lived and filled nearly all the 
 different t(jwnship offices, but would accept 
 nuthing higher from the fact that he did not 
 care to leave his family. In politics he was 
 a Democrat until the party in its platform 
 recognized the fugitive sla\e law, when he 
 left it for good. He was a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church rmd for forty 
 years was class leader antl leader of the 
 music in the congregation. His home was 
 always the abiding place of the ministers of 
 his church, and the first conference of his 
 church held west of the Ohio river was in 
 his house. He got oui the logs and hewed 
 them for the first church erected in his 
 neighborhood, and later assisted in the erec- 
 tion of a larger and handsomer church edi- 
 fice. The church with him was a joyful 
 ])lace, as it was God's house. He died when 
 l)ast eighty-four years of age of tyi)hoid 
 fever. 
 
 The subject of this sketch was the young- 
 est of a family of ten children and reared 
 on the farm he recei\ed his primary educa- 
 
 tion in the pioneer log school house, with 
 its open fire place stretching across the entire 
 side of the room, and provided with slab 
 benches. In this school house he was priv- 
 ileged to attend about three months in the 
 winter. But he was never satisfied with the 
 meager education there obtained, and as the 
 opportunity was afforded him he purchased 
 or borrowed books to read, especially those 
 of a scientific nature. Later, at the age of 
 thirty-five years, and having a family, he 
 left his business and entered Granville Col- 
 lege, that he might the better prepare him- 
 self for his life work. He there secured a 
 good ])ractical education and he has cause 
 to be thankful for the time there spent. 
 
 Until eighteen years old Mr. Myers as- 
 sisted his father in the cultivation of the 
 home farm. His father then gave him its 
 entire management, and although but a 
 boy he showed good business ability and the 
 farm had the best of care. On the :35th of 
 December, 1849, he was united in marriage 
 with Miss Lavina Schechter, of Union coun- 
 ty, Ohio, daughter of Samuel Schechter. a 
 native of Alaryland of German ancestry, liut 
 an early settler of Ohio, where he engaged 
 in farming. His wife was a native of Knox 
 county, Ohio. By this union were born ten 
 children, as follows: Theodosia. now Mrs. 
 George Downs, of McLean county, Illinois; 
 Sanford, of Milan. Illinois; Margaret, wife 
 of Rev. W. S. Johnson, of Iowa; J. F.. a 
 ])racticing physician of Rock Island, Illinois; 
 Otto, wlio died in childhood; Rose, nOw 
 Mrs. J. W. Kershaw, of I'axton. Illinois; 
 William, who died when two years old ; 
 Minnie, who died when twenty years old; 
 Jennie, now Mrs. C. U. Fisher, her liusband 
 being a prominent cattle man of central 
 Iowa; and Stanlev, of Clinton, Illinois.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Myers continued 
 to manage the farm of his father, whicli 
 had Ijeen increased to four hundred acres b}- 
 subsequent purchase prior to i860. In his 
 farming operations he was very successful, 
 giving special attention to the raising of 
 sheep. Realizing in his own life the need 
 of a good education, he took great interest 
 in educational matters, and for some years 
 was school trustee for the township in which 
 he lived, one of the most important offices 
 in the township. By his influence he se- 
 cured many important changes in school 
 government and had erected a fine school 
 house in his neighborhood. \\'ith another 
 wealthy farmer, he secured the services of a 
 good teacher of vocal music, without cost to 
 others, and the children of the district were 
 taught to sing. This was recognized as a 
 great benefit to the community. He organ- 
 ized the first Sunday school in the town of 
 Luray and was its superintendent until his 
 removal to Illinois. Church services were 
 also introduced, Mr. Myers securing the aid 
 of a Baptist minister for the purpose. Fmrn 
 one of tlie worst neighborhoods in the county 
 it soon became one of the best. 
 
 Believing that he could better his con- 
 dition and be of greater service to the cause 
 of his Master elsewhere, Mr. Myers decided 
 to come to Illinois, and in 1864 he located 
 near Bloomington, in Bloomington town- 
 ship, McLean county, where he purchased 
 four hundred acres of land. As already 
 stated, in his native state he was greatly in- 
 terested in the sheep industry, and brought 
 into his neighborhood some of the finest 
 sheep to be had. In coming to Illinois he 
 proposed to continue in that line and brought 
 with him fourteen hundred and sixty head 
 of fine sheep, starting into the wool and 
 
 sheep business in an extensive way. In 1865 
 he traded his first purchase of land for a 
 farm of five hundred and sixty acres in Old- 
 town townsliip, in the same county, on which 
 had lieen erected some fine buildings. He 
 then took in a partner in the business, but 
 the iiartner did n(it long survive, and after 
 his death Mv. jMj-ers sold oi¥ fifteen hun- 
 dred head of sheep, retaining only three hun- 
 dred head of the choicest of the lot. He 
 now gave special attention to the raising of 
 corn and wheat, and for its greater pro- 
 ductiveness he tiled the farm and put it into 
 excellent shape. Trading this farm, he next 
 bought one in Randolph Grove, McLean 
 county, which he proceeded to tile, and on 
 which he erected a fine residence and which 
 remained his home for manv vears. 
 
 ^^'hile residing in Ohio Mr. Myers united 
 with the Baptist church and by that church 
 was licensed to preach the gospel. On com- 
 ing to Illinois, there being no Baptist church 
 in the neighborhood of his residence, he 
 united with the Methodist Protestant church, 
 and by that body was ordained a nfinister of 
 the gospel, and for some years was engaged 
 in evangelical work during the winter months 
 and for one year tra\-eled in tlie interest of 
 the church. On his removal to Randolph 
 township he found no Methodist Protestant 
 church, but secured the use of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church. South, an edifice that had 
 been erected during the war. He got out 
 fuel, emplo}'ed a sexton, and commenced to 
 preach to the people. He soon organized 
 a Methodist Protestant church and a Sunday 
 school and built a house of worship. Later 
 the Free INIethodist and the Methodist 
 Protestant churches were merged into one, 
 causing some dissatisfaction. Tliere being 
 a L^nited Brethren church near bv, with his
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 489 
 
 family he united witli it and preached for 
 that body. Soon after, at Holder, he held 
 a nieetinyf. resulting' in fi^rty additions to 
 the church, and a house of worship was pur- 
 chased of the Methodist Episcopals. 
 
 As a member of the central Illinois con- 
 ference of the United Brethren church, Mr. 
 • Myers introduced a resolution in that body 
 for the admission of lay delegates. He was 
 one of a committee of three who went to the 
 national conference of his church held at 
 Urbana, Ohio, that he mis^ht urge change in 
 discipline, that members of the church might 
 be permitted to become members of secret 
 societies, a change that has since been made. 
 .\t the national conference he was elected one 
 of the vice-presidents of that body. For 
 some twehe or fifteen years ]\[r. Myers was 
 active in church affairs in the Methodist 
 Protestant denomination, and was instru- 
 mental in bringing many into the church. 
 
 In temporal affairs Mr. Myers has been 
 very successful. To his home farm in Mc- 
 Lean county he added many acres and yet 
 owns land in that county. Before coming to 
 Eureka he went to the state of Washington 
 for the benefit of his health, and was so 
 delighted with the country that he thought 
 seriously of making it his home, and de- 
 cided to use his influence to secure the or^ 
 ganization of a new county. He secured the 
 co-operation of others and petitioned the 
 legislature to lay out a new county, and it 
 was so ordered, the new county taking the 
 name of Douglas. The governor appointed 
 three trustees, of which he was the chairman, 
 to select a county seat and apix)int the first 
 officers of the county. This they jjroceeded 
 to do and for tiie purpose visited all the 
 available sites. His mileage on this work 
 amounted to over six hundred dollars. The 
 county seat is \\'aterville, built on Silver 
 
 lake, a name given the body of water by Mr. 
 Myers. There he took up a claim and built 
 several houses. He also built some houses 
 in S[)okane Falls, but later sold his interests 
 there. 
 
 In 1890 Mr. Myers moved to Eureka, 
 Illinois, which has since been his home. 
 After moving there, however, he visited 
 Texas, and liking a location on the east shore 
 of Trinity Bay he bought land and fitted up 
 a farm for Iiis youngest son. It is a beauti- 
 ful ]3lace and he remained there for a lime 
 with his son. He also owns a farm on the 
 west sill ire of the bay. In addition to the 
 property already mentioned he owns some 
 valuable property in Rock Island, Illinois, 
 where he has a son living. 
 
 Mr. ]\Iyers has been a Master Mason for 
 fifty years, being raised to that degree in 
 Hebron Lodge. No. 63. in Ohio. He was 
 dimitted from that lodge. He has always 
 been more or less acti\c in ])olitical affairs, 
 as well as in exervthing that tends to the 
 general welfare of humanity. As a farmer 
 he has always been interested in that which 
 has a tendency to enoble the life of the agri- 
 culturist. While in McLean county he was 
 vice-president of the I'armers' Club and 
 chaplain of the McLean Cnunty firange. and 
 was a grange lecturer. In puliiics he was 
 first a Republican and Ijy that party was 
 once nominated for the office of sheriff of 
 McLean county. Of late years he has been 
 identified with the Prohibition ])arty, be- 
 lieving as he does that the rum power is 
 the worst foe of the people of this country. 
 By that ])arty he was nominated as a candi- 
 date for the state board of e(|ualization and 
 also for county judge of McLean county. 
 He was elected president of the Eureka vil- 
 lage board by unanimous vote, the only per- 
 son that was ever so elected. During the
 
 490 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sumnier lie was ser\-ing as president of the 
 board he was solicited liy the Prohibitionists 
 of the district to make the race for congress, 
 but on account of his age he declined the 
 honor. He was a delegate to the national 
 Prohibition convention in 1900. which as- 
 sembled at Chicago, and assisted in the nom- 
 ination of John G. Wooley for president. 
 Since coming to Eureka he has united with 
 the Christian church and is now serving as 
 one of the elders of the Eureka church. He 
 yet occasionally preaches the gospel, and 
 wiiile in Texas preached every Sunday. His 
 heart is in the work and he is alwa^'s willing 
 to do all he can to adxance the interests of 
 the Master. 
 
 HOMER E. DARST. 
 
 Homer E. Darst, the efficient and popu- 
 lar postmaster of Eureka, Illinois, was born 
 in Cedarville. Missouri. April 9. 1871. His 
 father, Henry R. Darst. is a native of Ohio, 
 born near Dayton, February 4, 1849. '"'"^1 '^ 
 a son of Jiihn Darst. with whom he came to 
 Wootlford county. Illinois, during his bov- 
 hood. Here he grew to manhood on a farm 
 and married Sue M. Payne, a native of 
 Louisville, Kentucky, and daughter of Wes- 
 ley Payne, who was one of the pioneers of 
 this section and a farmer liv occupation. The 
 father of our subject ser\ed for three years 
 as a member of the Eighty-sixth Illinois 
 A'olnnteer Infantry, during the civil war. 
 being one of the yoiuigest to enter the ser\-ice 
 from this locality. After bis marriage he 
 spent one year in farmine in Missouri, but 
 at the end of that time returned to Illinois, 
 and has since engaged in farming in \\'oo(l- 
 ford count}-, though be makes his home in 
 Eureka. For a time he was interested in 
 
 the butcher business, ^\hich be bad pre- 
 viously followed in his earlier years. The 
 Republican party has always found in him 
 a stanch supporter of its principles, and both 
 be and his \\ife are acti\e members of the 
 Christian church. In their family are five 
 children, name!}- : Ora. Homer E., Myrtle, 
 Pete and Irma. 
 
 Homer E. Darst received a good practi- 
 cal education in the ])ublic schools of Eure- 
 ka, and also took a course in the bookkeep- 
 ing department of Eureka College, where he 
 spent one year. He was then employed as a 
 bookkeeper and clerk bv difl:'erent firms in 
 the city until appointed postmaster. He en- 
 tered upon th.e duties of the ofifice July i, 
 1898, and has since filled the position with 
 credit to himself and to the entire satisfac- 
 tion of the public. The business of the 
 office has increased considerably during the 
 time of his occupancw Mr. Darst has al- 
 ways afifiliated with the Repulilican party, 
 has taken an acti\e part in its work, and 
 has served as a member ni the township Re- 
 jniblican committee. The year be attained 
 bis majorit}- he was elected township col- 
 lector, and held that ofifice two terms. He 
 is a member of the Knights of Pythias fra- 
 ternity and quite popular in social circles. 
 
 LOUIS W. HARMS. 
 
 The \illage of Roanoke has a number of 
 enterprising antl progressive citizens who 
 have met with markeil success in their busi- 
 ness undertakings, and ha\e become leading 
 men in the community. Among the ninn- 
 ber is Louis \\'. Harms, the well-known and 
 popular cashier of the Farmers' Bank 
 
 He was born in Washington, Tazewell
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 491 
 
 ccunty. Illinois, June 18. 1859, and is a son 
 ot Henry Harms, who was l)orn in Aus 
 Frieseland. Germany, in i8ji. and on com- 
 ing to this country, aliout 1848, took uj) his 
 residence in Tazewell comity. Illinois. The 
 father was one of a faniil}- of tliree children 
 His sister died in Germany. His hrother, 
 Eilert Harms, is a well-known and prosper- 
 ous farmer and stock raiser of Linn town- 
 ship, Woodford county. Henry Harms was 
 a hutcher by trade, and on first coming to 
 America worked for Joseph Kelso, of Wash- 
 ington, Illinois, and after his marriage 
 opened a shop of his own, successfully car- 
 rying on business there throughout the re- 
 mainder of his life. He died in 1880, at 
 the age of fifty-nine years. In 1858 he 
 married Miss Catherine Denhart. a native 
 of Hesse-Castle, Germany, and the fourth 
 in order of birth in a family of seven chil- 
 ilren, the others being Lizzie, who was niar- 
 riefl in Illinois, and then returned to Ger- 
 many to reside ; Frederick and Conrad, both 
 farmers living near Coft'eyxille, Kansas : .Au- 
 gusta, widow of William Witle and a resi- 
 dent of Washington, Illinois: Henrv. who 
 is connected with the bank at Washington 
 conducted under the name of Henry Denhart 
 &■ Company, and also with the bank at 
 Roanoke: and Helen, wife of Adam Keihl. 
 of Washington. To Mr. and Mrs. Harms 
 were horn four children, of whom Louis \\ . 
 is the oldest: Lizzie is the wife of Charles 
 Strathman. a druggist of I'coria. and the\' 
 ha\e one son, Charles D. ; Catherine is a 
 graduate of the normal school at X'alparaiso. 
 Indiana, and a teacher in the public schools 
 of Washington, Illinois, where she lives with 
 her mcuher ; and Henry D. is now connected 
 with our subject in the bank at Roanoke, 
 but makes bis home in Washington, and was 
 formerly employed in the bank at that place 
 
 for ten years. They have all received good 
 common .school educations. The mother is 
 still living in Washington, and is an earnest 
 member of the German Lutheran church, to 
 which the father also belonged. 
 
 Louis \\'. Harms attended the public 
 schools of his natixe ])lace. and later was 
 associated with his father in the butcher 
 business until the latter's death, when the 
 business was disposed of. and our subject 
 embarked in the grocery trade, under the 
 firm name of Rapp & Harms. This ])art- 
 nership continued until 1894. when he came 
 ti> Roanoke and organized a bank, known as 
 the Farmers Bank, of which he has been 
 ca.shier e\'er since, lie owns the lot and 
 building where the bank is located, and in 
 Connection with his banking business is in- 
 itrested in real estate, handling Iowa and 
 Indiana lands ])rincipally. He is a wide- 
 awake and energetic business men, of keen 
 discrimination and sound judgment, and in 
 his undertakings has been remarkably suc- 
 cessful. 
 
 On the J^d of December. 1879. Mr. 
 Harms was united in marrige with Miss 
 I'.lla l\a])p. who was born in ( )ctober. 1839, 
 mid is the youngest cbil<l of Ernest and 
 Christina (Schmidt) Rap]), residents of 
 Washington. Her brother Charles, who is 
 engaged in the grocery business in that city, 
 i.- married and has foiu' daughters — Pearl, 
 Mary, Bessie and Ruby. The other two 
 children of the Rapp family died in infancy. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Harms have been born two 
 children — Carrie M. and Ella I""., both grad- 
 uates of the Washington high school. The 
 younger is now ])ursuing a four-\ears' 
 course at the Ohio \\'esleyan L'nixersity, 
 ha\ing won the scholarship at that institu- 
 tion, standing highest in a class of fourteen. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Harms are members
 
 492 
 
 THE BICGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of the Presbyterian church, and the family 
 occupies a position of prominence in social 
 circles. In politics he is a Democrat and 
 a supporter of sound money issues. W' hile a 
 resident of Washington he was a member of 
 the township central committee a number of 
 years, and was treasurer of the city one 
 term. Init he has never cared for political 
 preferment, desiring rather to devote his en- 
 tire time and attention to liis business in- 
 terests. 
 
 HON. ROBERT S. HESTER. 
 
 Only those lives are Wcirthy of record 
 that have been potential factors in the public 
 progress in promoting the general welfare 
 or advancing the educational or moral in- 
 terests of the community. Robert S. Hes- 
 ter was ever faithful to his duties of citizen- 
 ship, and by the successful conduct of his 
 business interests not only promoted his in- 
 dividual success but also advanced the gen- 
 eral prosperity. In his life span of seventy- 
 five years he accomplished much, and left 
 behind an honorable reci.ird well worthv of 
 perpetuation. 
 
 ^Ir. Hester «as born in Boone county, 
 Kentucky, Xovemlier 19, 1825, but when a 
 bo\- moved to Ohio with his parents, John 
 and Mary (Bennington) Hester. His fa- 
 ther followed farming in Brown county, that 
 state, where he died when his son was quite 
 young. The mother was an active member 
 of the Christian church and carefully reared 
 her children. Robert received a good com- 
 mon school education. In 1847 '^^ '^'t his 
 old home in Brown county, Ohio, and on 
 horse-back rode to Marshall county, Illinois, 
 where he bought land antl successfully en- 
 gaged in agricultural i)ursuits, becoming the 
 
 owner of nine hndred acres of valuable land 
 in Belle Plaine township, Marshall county, 
 and in \\'oodford county. In connection 
 \\ ith general farming he was largely interest- 
 ed in stock raising, and in all his undertak- 
 ings met with marked success. 
 
 In 1857 Mr. Hester married Miss Lydia 
 A. Davison, a nati\'e of Xew York, and 
 daughter of John I'. Davison, one of the 
 early settlers of Woodford county, who died 
 May 15, 1863, leaving one daughter, Affie 
 Z,, who makes her home in Los Angeles, 
 California. He was again married. May 
 19, 1864, his second union being with Miss 
 Nancy M. McKeever, a nati\'e of Perry 
 county. Ohio, and a daughter of William 
 and Susanna (Hollenbeck) AIcKoever, who 
 moved from that count}' to Morgan county, 
 the same state, and later came to ]\Iarsh:dl 
 count}-, Illinois, where the father engaged 
 in farming for some years, but they spent 
 their last x'ears in Minonk, Woodford coun- 
 ty, where both died. They, too. were earnest 
 members of the Christian church and most 
 estimable people. By his second marriage 
 Mr. Hester had two children : Lincoln L., 
 now living on the old home place, married 
 Florence Griswold, and they have three 
 children : Alvaretta jNIaurine, Edna Lela and 
 Irma Dell. Cora V. is the wife of James 
 X. Lester, pastor of the Christian church, 
 at Belle Plaine, and they have two children : 
 Hester Geraldine and Helen Valeria. 
 
 For some years prior to his death Mr. 
 Hester retired from active business life 
 and in 1894 built a beautiful residence in 
 Eureka, where he made his home until his 
 death. He died, however., very suddenly 
 in San Antonio, Texas, February 5, 1900, 
 He had gone to that city in company with 
 his wife to spend the winter, and had .been 
 there Init a few da}"s when he yielded up
 
 R. S. HESTER.
 
 MRS. R. S. HESTER.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 497 
 
 his life without any warning to tliose near 
 and dear to him. His mortal remains were 
 brought back to his old home and buried in 
 the Davison cemetery, soutli of Belle Plaine, 
 Illinois. 
 
 After reaching manhood he took an 
 active and prominent part in public affairs, 
 antl was elected to several official positions of 
 honor and trust, the duties of which he most 
 capably and satisfactorily performed. He 
 served as road commissioner, justice of the 
 peace and supe>rvisor, and in i860 was elected 
 on the ticket with Lincoln to the ofilice of 
 sheriff' of .Marshall county, which he filled for 
 one term. In 1882 he represented his dis- 
 trict in the state le-gislalure, and he was 
 always found true to any trust reposed in 
 him, either ]iublic or -private. He was one 
 of the leading members of the Belle Plaine 
 Christian church, in which ho served as elder 
 for more than twenty years, and for many 
 years was a trustee of Eureka College. 
 I'aithful to his church, to his country and 
 to his friends, he was highly respected and 
 esteemed by all who knew him. He was 
 ever a friend to the poor and needy, choosing 
 rather to make the gifts without letting the 
 right hand know what the left did, and it was 
 only to those nearest to him who knew to 
 what extent he gave of his means. 
 
 J. A. SLMPSOX. 
 
 J. A. Simpson, a worthy representative 
 of one of the pioneer families of Illinois, 
 and in virtue of the prominent part which he 
 has personally taken in public affairs, in days 
 of peace as well as in time of war, is doubly 
 entitled to honorable mention in the annals 
 of this commonwealth. During the thirty- 
 
 six years of his residence in Minonk he has 
 been closely connected with the development 
 and prosperity of the place, and in the capac- 
 ity of mayor and councilman did much to 
 ])ro\e his interest in tiie well-being of his 
 fellow-citizens ruid the permanent welfare 
 of the town. 
 
 In the early settlement of Ohio our sub- 
 ject's paternal grandfather became one of 
 the frontiersmen who reclaimed that state 
 from the wilderness. He was a native of 
 Scotland, and his wife, a Pennsylvanian, 
 was of German parentage. Their son, Har- 
 rison, father of J. A. Simpson, was born on 
 the old homestead, and when he reached ma- 
 turity he chose Maria Combs for a wife. 
 She was born in \^irginia, October 19, 1813, 
 and now makes Iier home with her daughter, 
 Mrs. Anna C. Hopwood, of Livingston 
 county, Illinois. Though so atlvanced in 
 years, she retains her faculties and her 
 mind is clear and active. She accompanied 
 her husband to Illinois fifty-lwu years ago, 
 and. after li\-ing in I'ulton count_\- for two 
 years, removed to Woodford county. 
 There Mr. Simpson won the esteem and love 
 i>f all who were associated with him. and for 
 many years he served as supervisor, assessor 
 or in other local offices of more or less re- 
 sponsibility. For more than three decades 
 he was a deacon in the Baptist church, and 
 was looked up to and regarded as one of the 
 most exemplary citizens of his comnumity. 
 He died in Kaufman county, Te.Kas. May 
 5. 1885. when in his sixty-third year. His 
 eldest son, \V. H. H., resides on a farm 
 near Packwood, Iowa, with his wife, Caro- 
 line, (ieorge M.. a grain merchant, is rep- 
 resented elsewhere in this work. Benjamin 
 F., who was a leading lawyer of Mariette, 
 W'isccjnsin, for years, is now engaged in 
 practice in Chicago. Charles T. is engaged
 
 498 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in farming near Minonk. W'olsey C, who 
 achieved distinction in tliis county as a 
 lawyer and as a prosecuting attorney, died in 
 Emporia, Kansas, in 1898, when fifty years 
 of age. He was state's attorney in this 
 county and in Lyons county, Kansas, for sev- 
 eral terms, and wcm the ])raise of the legal 
 l^rofession and the general public for his 
 efficiency and fidelity to his duties. His 
 wife was .\nnetta L.. daughter of Doctor 
 Reed. i)asti)r in the Baptist denomination, 
 and at one time president of Shurtleff Col- 
 lege. Anna C. Simpson wedded John Hop- 
 wood, a farmer of Livingston countv, and 
 Laura J. is the wife of E. A. Kipp, wliu is 
 a lumber merchant, with his hcjme in E\ans- 
 ton, Illinois. 
 
 J. A. Simpson was lioru in Pickaway 
 count)', Ohio, March 7, 1843, ^^^^^ resided 
 upon a farm until he was about eighteen 
 years of age. The youth then enlisted in the 
 defense of the Union, becoming a private of 
 Company I, Forty-seventh Illinois V^olunteer 
 Infantry, and during the three years and two 
 months of his service participated in the nu- 
 merous engagements and campaigns in which 
 his regiment won honors. .Vmong the more 
 notable battles were Island No. 10, Farming- 
 ton, Mississippi, Xew Madrid, siege of 
 Vicksburg and Jackson, Mississippi, Corinth, 
 Holly Springs and Saline Cross-road. Until 
 the fall of Vicksburg he was luuler the 
 leadership of General (irant, and later, he 
 accompanied General Banks on the Red 
 River expedition. Considering his youth 
 and arduous service in these hard-fouglit 
 campaigns he made an excellent record and 
 stood his hardships well. He was honora- 
 bly discharged and mustereil out at Spring- 
 field, in October, 1864. 
 
 For aliout a year sul)sec|uently he at- 
 tended school, and then l.iid the foundations 
 
 of business knowledge in a commercial col- 
 lege in Chicago. Returning home he then 
 engaged in the grocery and dry goods busi- 
 ness, at first being a member of the firm of 
 W'hitaker, Simpson & Son, and later of the 
 firms of Simpson, Kidder & Company, and 
 Simpson & Kidder. The Inisiness was sold 
 at the death of Mr. Kidder, and July i, 1887, 
 our subject embarked on his own account 
 in the buying and selling of grain at Minonk. 
 From iSyo to 1896, when his partner died, 
 lie \\as a member of the firm of Simpson & 
 Fehring, of Washburn, Illinois, and then 
 for about four years he was asociated with 
 Mr. Moschel, to whom he sold out the busi- 
 ness in May, 1900. Five years before he 
 joined F. N. Rood, of LaRose, Illinois, and 
 since that time has been extensively engaged 
 in lianking at LaRose, also the grain, lumber, 
 coal and building material business, and they 
 own two elevators, situated on the Alton 
 Railroatl, and one on the Santa Fe Railroad 
 at LaRose. In June. 1900, INIr. Simpson 
 also entered into partnership with 11. E. 
 Mammen, at IMason, Illinois, at a point 
 where the Santa Fe and Big Four Railroads 
 cross, where they have an elevator. In all 
 of these varied financial ventures, he has met 
 with marked jjrosperity. and his aliility and 
 foresight are unquestioned. 
 
 Though his commercial alliances have 
 lieen numerous and ofttimes with outside 
 jiarties, Mr. Simpson has retained his own 
 in Minonk. where lie owns three elevators 
 located on the Illinois Central, and carries 
 on an extensive grain Inisiness. He also 
 deals in seed and hard coal, and has been a 
 leading factor in its onward march. For a 
 score of years he has served on the board of 
 education, and as an earnest member of the 
 Presl>yterian churcii, has especially had the 
 interests of the Sundav schools at heart, and
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 499 
 
 lias officiated as superintendent of his nwn 
 clmrcli scliool. He takes an active interest 
 in politics, and for four years was a \alued 
 worker in the Repnlilican C(iunt\' central 
 committee, witli which party he has always 
 aBiliated. 
 
 The wife <>( Mr. .Simpsdn's earh' man- 
 hood was .Mary !•"... daui^hter ni J. K. T. 
 Hell, and a native ni Illinnis. Siie departed 
 this life in h'ehi-n.'irv. I S7 1 . and of her tvvn 
 children, jnhn il. died at the aye nf seven 
 years and seven months. Lena !'>.. the 
 daughter, is the wife of W. ( ). W'hitnev. a 
 lumber merchant of Cherrvvale. Kansas, and 
 Helen and James Oscar. On the ist of 
 April. 1S73. occurred the marri.'ige (if our 
 subject and Alary V>. lludsdii. dau.ghter of 
 John and T. A. Iludsun, of Whiteside coun- 
 ty, Illinois. The first child born tn J. .\. 
 Simpson and wife is Mary Elizabeth, who 
 wedded V. X. RdikI and resides at La Rose. 
 Illinois. The sons. J. .\.. Jr.. and Harry H.. 
 graduates of the Minonk high schudl. are 
 )iiuths of great ])romise. and this luitumn 
 they matriculate in college, where thev will 
 qualifv themselves fur useful careers. 
 
 j.XMh'.S T. WA'ATT, M. I). 
 
 The subject nf this sketch, imw a ]ir(inii- 
 nenl physician of h'.nreka. vv.as burn in I )eL 
 phi. Carroll cnuuty. Indiana, .\u.gust J^. 
 1868, and is a son of Isaac C. and Matilda 
 ( Cocjk ) W'yatt. also natives of that countv. 
 His paternal ancestors were from .Scdlland. 
 and were among the earliest settlers of \'ir- 
 ginia. Llis paternal grandfather. Isaac 
 Newton W'vatt, was born in Pennsylvania, 
 \\hile the maternal grandfather, John W. 
 Cook, was a native of New Ham])shire. 
 For many years the father was connected 
 
 with the Million mute, as assistant superin- 
 tendent (if the bridge department. He died 
 in Del])hi. Indiana, November 22, 1899, 'it 
 the age of sitv years, his wife in 1874, at 
 the age of about thirty years. 
 
 During his biiyh(io(l and ydutii Dr. 
 \\ Vatt ;ittended the comnmn .and high 
 schools of his native ))lace, and when his 
 education was completed accejited a i)f)si- 
 tidu as traveling" salestnan for a i'eoria firm, 
 his territfiry covering Illinois. Iowa. Indiana 
 and KeiUucky. He met with excellent suc- 
 cess in that \'enture. and was Cdiniccted with 
 the same firm for eight years. In the mean- 
 time he tdok uj) the sttidv of medicine and 
 attended lectures two terms at the .Marion 
 .Sims Medical College, St. Lduis. ( )n leav- 
 ing the road permanently, in 181)4 he 
 again attended lectures at Mariim .Sims 
 College of Medicine, and during the 
 latter part of his stay there was as- 
 sistant td the chair df (i])thalmology, 
 wliich was held by Professor Carl 
 I'.ark. He was graduated in 180C). and l.iy 
 a CdUipetitive e.xaminatidn received an ap- 
 ])dintment in Rebecca Hospital, at St. Louis, 
 but seeing a giKid. o]>euing at Ein-eka, he 
 came at once to this place and (i])cned an 
 dffice. He met with success frdin the start, 
 and has .succeeded in building uj) a large 
 and lucrative practice, besides winning an 
 enviable reinUatidU in his chdsen calling. 
 .\lthough engaged in gener.al jiractice. he 
 gives special attention td the diseases nf the 
 eye and ear; is a member of the Illinois Op- 
 tii-al Siicietv. the Lenri.-i .Medical Society, 
 and the Xdrth CeiUral llliudis Medical 
 Sdcietv. 
 
 On the I3tli of Augu.st. 1895, Dr. Wvatt 
 was united in marriage with Miss Pearl 
 Long, of Eureka, a daughter of Hardin 
 Long. She was born in Cruger township,
 
 Soo 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Woodford county, and after graduating 
 from tlie A\'ashington, Illinois, high school, 
 entered Eureka College, from which she was 
 graduated in the class of '95. She is also a 
 graduate of the musical department of the 
 same collesic. Dr. and Mrs. W'yatt are 
 members of the Christian church. He is 
 alsc) connected with the Knights of Pythias, 
 in which he has ser\'ed as chancellor ; the In- 
 dependent Order of Odd Fellows and Re- 
 bekah Lodge; The Dramatic Order Knights 
 of Khorassan; the Modern Woodmen of 
 America, and the Court of Honor. He is a 
 charter member of the last named order, 
 and also county chancellor for it. ■ He is 
 medical examiner for all the fraternal orders 
 mentioned above and also for several old- 
 line insurance companies. He has that love 
 for and devotion to his profession which has 
 brought to him success and won him a place 
 among the ablest representatives of the med- 
 ical fraternity in the county. He owns a 
 good piece of property in the central part of 
 the town, where he makes his home. 
 
 JOSEPH A. McGUIRE. 
 
 Gifts of money, if judiciouslv expended, 
 may add to the beauty and attractive ap- 
 pearance of a town but the real benefactors 
 of a city are the men who add to its prog- 
 ress and prosperity through the establish- 
 ment of enterprises wdiich furnish employ- 
 ment to others and thus promote commercial 
 activity. In Joseph A. McGuire we find one 
 of the most prominent business men of Eu- 
 reka, and his connection with the various 
 business enterprises and industries has been 
 of decided advantage to the community, pro- 
 moting its material welfare in no uncertain 
 manner. 
 
 .\ native of Illinois, Mr. McGuire was 
 born near Belleville, St. Clair county, Au- 
 gust 19, 1852, and is a son of Joseph D. and 
 Catherine (Halbert) McGuire. The father 
 was born in Lancaster count}', Pennsylvania, 
 about 1817, and when a small boy moved 
 with his family to St. Clair county, Illinois, 
 where his parents died shortly afterward. 
 There he grew to manhood and successfully 
 engaged in farming, becoming owner of 
 about four hundred acres of land, which he 
 sold in 1855, on his removal to Macon coun- 
 t)'. Near Harristow'u he bought a tract of 
 prairie land, and to its improvement and 
 cultivation he devoted his energies until 
 called from this life in April, 1893. Dur- 
 ing his later years he affiliated with the Re- 
 publican party. He was one of the early 
 members of the Christian church; toi)k an 
 active part in building the first church in 
 Harristown, and served as deacon of the 
 same for many years. He was upright and 
 honorable in all things and his interest 
 seemed centered in his church. His es- 
 timable wife, w ho was a member of the same 
 church, died in 1896. She was born near 
 Richmond, A'irginia, and was quite young 
 w hen her family came to St. Clair county, 
 Illini.iis. 
 
 At the age of three years our subject 
 accompanied his parents on their removal to 
 Macon county, and he w'as educated in the 
 common schools of Llarristown and Eureka 
 College. Lie assisted his father in the work 
 of the home farm until twenty-three years 
 of age, and then engaged in farming on his 
 own accoimt for two or three years. At the 
 end of that time be bought a general store 
 in Harristown, which he conducted for h\e 
 years with good success, and then sold. De- 
 siring a broader field of action, he came to 
 Eureka in the fall of 1880, and embarked
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 501 
 
 in tlie grocer\- business, carrying' it on very 
 successfully up to the present time. About 
 live years after locating here he purchased 
 the store building he now occupies, it being 
 a two-story-brick structure, j,V->^75 feet, 
 on College street oppt)sitc the court house, 
 'i'he main floor and basement are used by 
 Mr. McCiuire in his grocery business. Xo 
 other grocerv now doing business was here 
 when he opened his store. He was alone 
 for some years, but in i88f) admitted one of 
 his former clerks, .\. J. Mourer. as a partner. 
 ;nid the firm name became McGuire dv 
 Mourer. under which style business is still 
 carried on. .Mr. Mc(iuire is also interested 
 in the meat business, having estal)lished his 
 b.rother in a market. He is cnnnccted with 
 the Farmers' Bank, and has an interest in the 
 firm of F. B. Stumpf & Company, the lead- 
 ing drug house in the city, he being the com- 
 pany. In connection with Lyon Karr and 
 I". B. Stumpf he incorporated and organized 
 the Eureka Telephone Exchange Company. 
 \' hich has put up many miles of wire, has 
 sixty-six city sul)scriliers, ;uul about twenty 
 country subscribers. It is the lirst and (inly 
 telejihonc line in the city and has proven a 
 successful venture. I'.esides the propcrt\- 
 already mentioned Mr. McCuirc owns a line 
 residence in Eureka, and a place just outside 
 the corporation limits. 
 
 'On the 29th of December, 1882, Mr. Mc- 
 Guire married Miss Ada Hoshal, of Berlin, 
 Sangamon county. Illinois, and to them liave 
 ))een born two children, Nellie and Joseph. 
 The parents are active and ]>rominent mem- 
 bers of the Christian church, in which Mr. 
 McGuire is serving as deacon. He has also 
 been prominently identified with the affairs 
 of Eureka College, having been a trustee of 
 that institution f(_ii- fourteen years, during 
 which time Burgess Hall was erected. Po- 
 
 litically he is a stanch Re])ublican. and so- 
 cially is a member of the Modern Woodmen 
 of America; William C. llnbb Lodge. V. & 
 A. M. ; Tazewell Chapter, Xo. lyo, R. .\. M. ! 
 Couer de Leon Conimandery, 1\. T., at b.l 
 Paso, and Mobamet Temple of the Mystic 
 Shrine at Peoria. The record of Mr. McGuire 
 is that of a man, wIk.i, by his own unaiiled ef- 
 forts has worked his way upw.ard to a posi- 
 tion of alfluence. His life has been one of 
 industry' and i)erseverance. and the sys- 
 tematic and honorable business methods he 
 has followed have won him the confidence 
 and respect of all. Without the aid of in- 
 fluence or wealth, he has risen to a position 
 among the prominent business men of Eu- 
 rek.'i, and his native genius and acipiired 
 abilit\- are step])ing stones on which he 
 mounted. 
 
 SAAIUEL WYLIE. 
 
 Samuel ^^'ylie, one of the early settlers 
 of Illinois, has been a witness of remarkable 
 changes for the better in what was a prairie 
 or wilderness when he first beheld the coun- 
 try. He came here a young man. full of 
 ambition and vigor, and with the character- 
 istic energy of the New England "Yankees" 
 Soon acquired a fortune and nobly j)!ayed 
 the part of a patriotic citizen of his adopted 
 state. No one, therefore, is more justly en- 
 titled to an honored place in the records of 
 Illinois, and the many friends to whom he 
 has endeared himself by a thousand acts of 
 kindness, integrity and justice will take 
 pleasure in perusing the story of his life. 
 
 He comes of good old Revolutionary 
 stock, his paternal grandfather, Peter Wylie, 
 having served for all of the seven long years 
 of the terrible conflict between the colonies 
 and the mother country. He was a sergeant
 
 502 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 for some time, and often saw the great leader 
 of the heroic forces, Washington. Two of 
 Peter Wyhe's sons, Peter, Jr.. and Samuel, 
 were soldiers in the war of 1812. A third 
 son, Ephraim, the father of our subject, was 
 a man of peace, utterly averse to warfare, in 
 accordance with the principles of the Society 
 of Friends, with which he was identified for 
 years. He was a hard-working, just and 
 highly respected farmer, and reared his chil- 
 dren to take places of trust and esteem in the 
 busy world. From New York, his native 
 state, he removed to Vermont at the close of 
 the eighteenth century, and there passed iiis 
 remaining years. He was one of seven chil- 
 dren — David, Peter, Samuel, Ephraim, Mrs. 
 Polly Page, Mrs. Sarah W. Adam and Mrs. 
 Hannah rioodrich. Beloved and mourned 
 in the community where he had dwelt for 
 more than two-score years, Ephraim W'ylie 
 passed away, in 1842, when he was in his 
 fifty-fifth year. His wife, formerly Lucy 
 Mason, a native of Massachusetts, survived 
 him many years, her death occurring in 
 1867, when she was in her seventy-seventh 
 year. Their eldest child, Wyram, lived to 
 attain his seventy-fifth year, dying in 1896, 
 and John departed this life in 1873. when 
 fifty years of age. Angeline and James, 
 twins, and Raymond died when young. 
 
 Samuel Wylie was born on the old Ver- 
 mont homestead, in Orleans county, Novem- 
 ber 9, 1 82 1, and for over twenty- four years 
 he lived with his parents, becoming thor- 
 oughly conversant with agriculture, in all 
 its departments. The desire to come to the 
 west, to "grow up with the country," finally 
 became his daily thought, and at the close of 
 one of the long, severe New England win- 
 ters he started toward the setting sun. 
 Making his way to Buffalo, he there em- 
 barked on a ship bound for Chicago. The 
 
 trip was made in eight days, but the accom- 
 modations of the vessel for passengers were 
 so meager that he and some companions had 
 to sleep on the heads of the salt barrels with 
 which the boat was laden. Reaching the 
 Chicago river dock, the young man walked 
 to a block-house inn, where he obtained 
 lodging for a day or two, while he explored 
 the future city, then little better than a "mud- 
 hole." With several young men, he started 
 in a wagon on one of the old trails, whicli 
 pro\-ed so muddy that it required their 
 united efforts to lift the wagon out of the 
 ruts, now and then. At Downer's Grove 
 they passed the night on a hay-mow, the 
 only available place, and then continued 
 their journev towards La Salle. One of the 
 party, a jolly doctor, remarked, as they 
 passed a graveyard, "Boys, I guess I'll hang 
 up my shingle here. I see, by the slabs, that 
 some other doctor has been here before me." 
 From La Salle to Peoria J\Ir. Wylie pro- 
 ceeded on a steamer, and finally, locating in 
 Metamora, spent fifteen years in that place, 
 engaged in carpentering work. 
 
 In 1854 our subject entered half a sec- 
 tion of land adjoining Minonk, and this 
 property, then entirely unimproved, has been 
 in his possession ever since. He was the 
 first person to break the prairie in the vi- 
 cinity of the village, and he holds the palm 
 of having been the first man that made any 
 improvements in this township. His indus- 
 try and good business ability brought golden 
 returns to him, in the course of time, and 
 tcdav he is the owner of one thousand acres 
 of splendid farm land, two hundred acres 
 of this being situated in Lee county, and 
 the balance of it in this county. The rais- 
 ing of cattle, hogs and horses added not a 
 little to his income for years, and he found 
 it profitable t<j feed live stock for the market.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 503 
 
 For some time Mr. \\ ylie has leased his 
 farms, receiving grain in payment, and thus 
 he became connected with the business of 
 dealing in corn, wheat and oats, with his 
 home in the thriving town of Minonk, just 
 a mile from his former residence on the farm 
 which he purchased about half a century 
 ago. He has not been an office-seeker, but 
 served as assessor of his township, as he was 
 called to do so, by his hosts of friends and 
 neighbors. From the organization of the 
 Republican party he has been an ardent ad- 
 herent to its policy, and prior to the war he 
 was one of the devoted friends of abolition- 
 ism and the "underground railway" sys- 
 tem. In fact, he always has been the friend 
 of the poor and down-trodden, and has found 
 great happiness in lending a helping hand to 
 his brother men, thus fulfilling one of the 
 most sacred obligations of humanity. 
 
 For thirty-two years Mr. W'ylie was 
 blessed with the companionship of a devoted 
 wife, whose maiden name was Catherine 
 Davidson. Her parents, Emory and Nancy 
 Davidson, were natives of the Green Mount- 
 ain state, and Mrs. W'ylie was born in 
 Croftsbury, in 181 8. She came to Illinois 
 with her brother, Solomon, who gave his 
 life for his country during the dark days of 
 the ci\il war. Mrs. Wylie departed this life 
 September i, 1894. and is mourned by a 
 multitude of sincere friends. 
 
 A. \'OX X-ORDfiFIM. 
 
 This popular young business man of 
 Minonk is not ashamed of the fact that he 
 has risen from the working class, and by his 
 own varied e.\perience and the vicissitudes 
 of life which befell his parents and an- 
 
 cestors, he undoubtedly is the better able to 
 enter into the hearts of the people, and has 
 deeper insight and sympathy with them in 
 their struggle for a livelihood. 
 
 One of the youngest journalists in 
 Woodford county, and certainly one of the 
 youngest proprietors of a flourishing news- 
 paper, our subject's history is of especial in- 
 terest. He possesses the well known ster- 
 ling qualities of the Germans and both of his 
 parents are natives of the I-'atherland. The 
 father, EdwartI H. \'on Xordheim. left Ger- 
 many when he was a youth of si.xteen. and, 
 arriving in the United States poor and un- 
 familiar with the language and customs of 
 the peoi)]c. he was glad to procure almost 
 any work whereby he might earn an honest 
 dollar. .\t first he worked for farmers, but 
 soon the mercantile instinct latent in him 
 came to the surface and he was engaged in 
 clerking for several years. In the mean- 
 time he thoroughly mastered the principles 
 of business, and when a favorable oppor- 
 tunity presented itself he bought a stock of 
 groceries and dry goods and einbarked in 
 the enterprise of managing a general store. 
 When a number of years had rolled by he 
 disposed of the business, from which he had 
 made a goodly fortune, and with this capital 
 he commenced dealing in real estate, also 
 carrying on an insurance business in connec- 
 tion. He stands well in the estimation of 
 the public and has frequently been honored 
 with local positions of responsibility and 
 trust. He has Ijeen city clerk and an active 
 member of the board of education for several 
 years. His marriage to Beka Schmidt took 
 place in the United States, she having ac- 
 companied her parents to the new worlil a 
 few years previously. 
 
 A. Von Xordheim, whose birth occurred 
 in Minonk, October 11, 1877, is the next to
 
 504 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tlie young-est of five brotiiers and sisters. 
 The eldest, John, who is a fanner of Clayton 
 townsliip. Livingston county, married Louise 
 Meieriiofer, and has one child. Flora, wife 
 of John Grampp, manager of the ]\linonk 
 electric plant, has one child, Ahina. Sena 
 is the wife of Albert Meierhofer. a clothier. 
 Anna is still attending school. 
 
 As his entire life has been spent in this 
 city, our subject is thoroughly identified 
 with its progress and no one is more con- 
 cerned in its impro\-ement and high stand- 
 ing. His educatiiin was obtained in the 
 public schools, and when he had finished his 
 studies he started upon his life work by ob- 
 taining a position in a printing oftice. 
 Gradually he mastered the different depart- 
 ments of the business and thus thoroughly 
 fiualified himself for future responsibilities. 
 In January, 1889, he dates his first experi- 
 ence in a printing office, and when, eleven 
 3'ears later, in February, 1898, he bought 
 the "Register"' and started on what has been 
 termed the "thorny path of journalism" he 
 \vas only a little more than twenty years of 
 age. He possessed enthusiasm and ambi- 
 tion, however, and, better still, a knowledge 
 of the practical part of the business that 
 few young men of his age have as working 
 capital. The paper is ably edited, is devoted 
 chiefly to the interests of this immediate lo- 
 cality, and presents the news of the day and 
 current events in a brief, breez}- manner. 
 The circulation is about one thousand at 
 present, and everything promises that it has 
 a greater future in store. The editor spares 
 neither time, effort nor expense in making 
 this a model paper. It is independent in 
 politics, fearless in censuring wherever cen- 
 sure is needed, and equally ready to praise 
 where pi^aise is due. Thus it reflects in its 
 columns the real opinions of its editor, in 
 
 most instances, for he strives to present the 
 truth, unbiased by obligations of any kind, 
 save an innate love for justice. 
 
 On St. \'alentine's day, 1900. ]SIr. \'on 
 Xordheim was united in marriage to ]\Iiss 
 ]\Iabel Kenyon, daughter of one of the highly 
 honored citizens of this county — Ed Kenyon. 
 She is the eldest of the four surviving chil- 
 dren of that worthy gentleman, the others 
 being named, respectively : Grace, Florence 
 and Elmer. Airs. \'on Xordheim is a mem- 
 lier of the Alethodist Episcopal church, and 
 her culture and social attainments make her 
 a general favorite. Fraternally, our sub- 
 ject is connected with the Knights of Pythics, 
 the Modern Woodmen of America and the 
 Court of Honor. 
 
 LYOX KARR. 
 
 Lyon Karr, the well-known and popular 
 county treasurer of Woodford county, and 
 also cashier of the State Bank at Eureka, is 
 a native of Illinois, born at Fleyworth, i\Ic- 
 Lean county, December 29, 1861, and is a 
 son of Henry A. and Martha (Storey) Karr, 
 still prominent residents of that place. The 
 father was born near Cincinnati, Hamilton 
 county, Ohio, August 5, 1830, and traces his 
 ancostr}- back td Sir Walter Kerr (as the 
 name was then spelled), a nati\-e of Scot- 
 land and the founder of the family in Amer- 
 ica. He vvas one of the pioneers of X'ew 
 Jersey and the family became quite promi- 
 nent in Sussex county, that state. There 
 our subject's great-great-grandfather, Cap- 
 tain John Karr, an officer of the Revolu- 
 tionary war, spent his entire life. The great- 
 grandfather, Ihomas Karr, was also a native 
 of Sussex county, X'ow Jerse}', where the 
 grandfather, Walter Karr, was born July 7,
 
 LYON KARR.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 507 
 
 \J'-)J. Alxmt 1817. tlie latter niosed to 
 llaniiltnn county. Oliio. wlicre he niarrieil a 
 second cousin, I-^liza Karr. also a native 
 of Xew jersex. In 1834 they came to Mc- 
 J,ean county. Illinois, and spent the re- 
 mainder of their lives at Heywortii. where 
 the ^grandfather died in Marcli. 1879. his 
 w ife in 1 S^S- 
 
 ileni"v A. Karr, our subject's father, 
 j^rew to manhood in McLean county, and 
 was married in i le\\\(irtli. January 10. iSdi, 
 \'> -Martha V.. .Storey, a native of ll;uniltou 
 count V, Illinois, and a daughter of Htjnry 
 ;md Mar\- (Allen) Storey. Her father was 
 from Georgia. To Mr. and Mrs. Karr were 
 horn four children: Lyon, our subject: 
 (irant. who is now principal training teacher 
 in the Oswego. Xew York. Normal School: 
 Mary, a successful teacher of Chicago: and 
 J''rauk, now a student ^it Lelar.d Stanford 
 Lniversity, Throughout life the father has 
 devoted con.-^iderable attention to agricul- 
 tural ])in-suits, and still owns a tine farm near 
 lleywoith. lie is a jackst^nian Democrat, 
 and has tak(...i a very active and prominent 
 part in local politics. Eraternally he and his 
 sons are members of the Masonic order, and 
 I'eligiouslv his wife is a member of the I'res- 
 1) terian church. 
 
 In 1S7X Lyon Karr was a member of the 
 first class that graduated from tho llewvortb 
 I'ublic scliools and then attended the normal 
 school for two years, after which he success- 
 fully engaged in teaching in McLean county 
 for three years, having charge first of tho 
 ilickory school near Leroy, and later the 
 Pleasant Hill school in Lexington township. 
 The following two years he again attended 
 normal and was graduated in 1883. Lor 
 three years he taught school at Loda, Iro- 
 i|Uois county, and one year at Minonk, 
 
 \\'(X)dford county. In 1889. wiiile at the 
 27 
 
 latter place, he was appi>inted 1)\- the board 
 of supervisors to fill a vacancy in the ottice 
 of county superintendent of schools, and the 
 following year was elected to that position 
 01, the Democratic ticket for a term of four 
 years. He filled the otihce in a most credi- 
 table and satisfactory manner, and during 
 biis term a uniform course of study for coun- 
 try schools was ado])te<l, which was the 
 greatest step in advancement that had been 
 made for a number of \ears. In 1894 he 
 was rc-uoniinated, but was defo;iled on ac- 
 count of the county seat contest. 
 
 In 1895 Mr. Karr assisted in organizing 
 the State Hank of Eureka, with .a capital 
 stockof thirty thousand dollais, and after 
 serving as assistant cashier four years was 
 made cashier, which office ho now holds. 
 The bank is doing a succcs>ful and con- 
 stantly increasing business, ami its deposits 
 now amount to eighty thou.sand dollars. 
 Mr. Karr has !)een prominently identihetl 
 with the I'.m-eka J'.uilding & Loan .\ssocia- 
 lion, which he organized, and inuler bis- 
 nianagement has become a very successful 
 institution. He also owns a third interest 
 in the Eureka Telephone Exchange, and is 
 a stockhi>lder in the Farmers' State Bank of 
 .Mason Citv, Illinois. As a business man he 
 possesses untiring energy, is ([uick of percep- 
 tion and forms his plans readily and is de- 
 termined in their execution : and his closo ap- 
 ])licati<in to business and his excellent man- 
 agement have brought to him a well-deser\ed 
 success. 
 
 On the Jf)th of jimo. 1890. Mr. Karr \jas 
 imitcd in marriage with Miss Emma Dillon, 
 of X'ormal, illin(jis, who was educated at the 
 Xormal and W'esleyan Universities and the 
 i^.loomington Conservatory of Music, and 
 is a member of the Christian church. They 
 have one dauglitor, Helena.
 
 5oS 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Ellis Dillon, Mrs. Karr's father, was 
 born in Clinton county, Ohio, March 25, 
 1816, a son of Jesse and Hannah (Pugh) 
 Dillon, also natives of that state, and a 
 grandson of Daniel and Anna Dillon. In 
 1823 he removed with his parents to Taze- 
 well county, Illinois, where he grew to man- 
 hood. He. married Alartha Fisher, who was 
 born in Clinton county, Ohio, July 10, 1827, 
 a daughter of James and Amy (Bennett) 
 Fisher, natives of the same state-. Her 
 family moved to Tazewell county, Illinois, 
 in 1828, and there the father died October 
 22, 1844, the mother September 11, 1861. 
 In early life Mr. Dillon became intere-.ted 
 in the stock business, making a .specialty of 
 tine horses, which he imported from Europe. 
 In 1865 he moved to Bloomington and three 
 years later to Normal, where he made his 
 home throughout his life, dying there April 
 13, 1899'. For over sixty years he was an 
 earnest and active member of the Christian 
 church, to which his wife also belongs, and 
 in politics was a Republican. 
 
 .Mr. Karr was made a Mason in Abra- 
 ham Jonas Lodge, o. 254, of Loda, and de- 
 mitted to William C. Hobbs Lodge, No. 
 30(3, F. & A. M., of Eureka, of which he has 
 been senior warden one year; worshipful 
 master two years; and a representative to 
 the grand lodge in 1892 and in 1896. He is 
 also a member of Mackey Chapter, R. A. M., 
 of El Paso; Couer de Leon Commandery, 
 K. T., of the same place; and Mohamet Tem- 
 ple of the ^Mystic Shrine at Peoria. He be- 
 longs to \\'alnut Grove Lodge, No. 394, K. 
 P., in which he is serving as master of ex- 
 chequer; and Republic Court of Honor of 
 Eureka. In 1898 he was elected county 
 treasurer of Woodford county on the Dem- 
 ocratic ticket, and is now filling that office 
 in a most creditable and acceptable manner. 
 
 In 1892 he had the honor to represent the 
 ninth congressional district in the national 
 Democratic convention at Chicago, at which 
 time there was quite a struggle in the elec- 
 tion of a delegate. Mr. Karr is a pleasant, 
 genial and polished gentleman of high social 
 qualities and is very popular, having a most 
 extensive circle of friends and acquaintances 
 who esteem him highly for his genuine 
 worth. 
 
 JOHN ADAMS. 
 
 Among I-'anola township's honored 
 and highly respected citizens must be 
 numbered John Adams, who has been 
 a resident of Woodford county since 
 August, 1866, and has been actively iden- 
 tified with its industrial and agricultural in- 
 terests. He was born in Bavaria, Ger- 
 many, June II, 1827, and is a son of John 
 'and Mary Margaretta (Rottmah) Adams, 
 who spent their entire lives in that country. 
 By occupation the father was a wagon- 
 maker. 
 
 Reared in his native land, our subject 
 received about the average common-school 
 education, and learned the wagon-maker's 
 trade with his father. In 1854, at the age 
 of twenty-seven years, he came to the United 
 States and first located in Albany county. 
 New York. He worked at his trade for 
 three years and a half in the city of Albany, 
 and then opened a shop of his own at Bethle- 
 hem, the same county, where he carried on 
 business until 1866, which year witnessed 
 his' arrival in Illinois. From April until 
 August of that year he had charge of the 
 wagon shop of Mr. Steinhauer, at Vandalia, 
 and on the 6th of August moved to El Paso, 
 where, in partnership with Adam Henning,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 509 
 
 he engaged in business fur tluee years. In 
 August, 1869, he came to Panola and bouglit 
 a shop of Jolin Ward, where lie followed 
 biacksmithing and wagon-making with good 
 success until 1890, when on account of fail- 
 ing health he retired from the I)usiness and 
 has since rented his shop. He still assists 
 in the work of his farm, however. 
 
 In Albany, Xew York, Mr. ^Vdams was 
 married, in 1859, to Miss Mary Margaret 
 Hugelshafer, also a native of Bavaria, Ger- 
 many, and to them have been born eight 
 children, as follows: (i) George Albert, 
 born in Albany, August 8, i860, died in St. 
 Louis, Mis.souri, December 9, 1891. He was 
 a painter and a temporary resident of St. 
 Louis at the time of his death. For a time 
 he lived in Bloomington, Illinois, where he 
 served as mail carrier from 1884 to 1888. 
 He traveled considerably and in 1882 visited 
 Europe with his mother. (2) Mary Mar- 
 garet, born in Albany, March 12, 1862, is 
 now the wife of Lewis Senf, of I'ort Dodge, 
 Iowa. (3) Carl John, born April 11, 1863, 
 was reared and educated in Woodford coun- 
 ty, and has made farming his principal oc- 
 cupation in life. He aids his father in car- 
 rying on the home farm, where he has lived 
 continuously with the exception of one year 
 spent in Kansas, where he pre-empted a 
 claim of one liundred and sixty acres of land 
 ill Deerhead township. Barber county, Kan- 
 sas, which place he still owns. He is one 
 of the progressive young men of Panola 
 township, is a stanch supporter of the 
 Democracy, and is now serving as tax col- 
 lector. (4) William Henry, born May 14, 
 1865, died August 13, 1866. (5) Fred- 
 erick Wilhelm, born July 14, 1867, became a 
 minister of the Lutheran church. He was 
 exceedingly well educated, being a gradu- 
 ate of several colleges, and studied theology 
 
 at .St. Louis, being ordained in iS8t;. He 
 began his ministerial work in the Lutheran 
 mission of that city, and later erected a 
 church on the southeast corner of Garrison 
 and St. Louis avenue, St. Louis, where he 
 died December 17, 1891. This was the 
 first English Lutheran church of the Mis- 
 souri synod in St. Louis. .\ltli<>ugh his 
 career was short, he accomplished much and 
 was a faithful worker in the Master's vine- 
 yard. (6) Amelia Louise, born April 14, 
 1869, is at home. (7) John Henry, born 
 July 29, 1 87 1, is engaged in farming on the 
 home place in Panola township. (8) Henry 
 Harmon, born December 5, 1875, died April 
 3. 1878. The family is one of which any 
 parents might be justly proud. 
 
 The Democratic party has always found 
 in Mr. Adams a stanch supijurter of its 
 principles, and he has labored earnestly for 
 its success. He served as tax collector for 
 two terms, and as a public-spirited and en- 
 terprising citizen his best wishes are for 
 the welfare of his neighbors and his adopted 
 country. Religiously he is a faithful mem- 
 ber of the Lutheran church, and he is high- 
 ly respected and esteemed by all who know 
 him. 
 
 JAMES KERRICK. 
 
 James Kerrick. who is one of the sub- 
 stantial and highly respected citizens of 
 Minonk, and whose elder brother is the 
 present representative of this district in the 
 state legislature (.see sketch of Hon. Josiah 
 Kerrick) is a worthy scion of one of the 
 long-established families of Illinois. 
 
 Born in Woodford county, February 15, 
 1858, James Kerrick has been a life-long 
 resident of this immediate locality, and is 
 closely identified with its upbuilding and
 
 5IO 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 progress. His parents, Armstead and Sarah 
 (Sloan) Kerrick. natives of Virginia and 
 New Jersey, respectix'ely, were pioneers nf 
 Indiana and Illinois, and to their posterity 
 thev left an inheritance far better than wealth 
 — the record of noble, well spent lives. The 
 father was a local minister <if the Methodist 
 Episcopal cluirch, and with lofty, self-sac- 
 rificing spirit he labored for the good of his 
 fellow men. Few of the pioneers of cen- 
 tral Illinois were better known or more 
 thoroughly beloved, and their children were 
 reared to a high standard of integrity and 
 dutv. Eleven in number, they were named 
 as follows; Joanna. Mary, Steven, Josiah, 
 Jacob. Thomas, Harrison, Henry, James, 
 Benjamin and Phiebe. The mother depart- 
 ed this life in 1870, in her fiftieth year. 
 By a second marriage of Mr. Kerrick three 
 children were born. Orpha( deceased ), John 
 B. and Richard L., residents of Fairfield, 
 Iowa, where the mother also makes her 
 h.ome. The huslian.d ami father was sum- 
 moned to the better land in 1873, when he 
 v.as about seventy-three years old. ( See 
 sketch of Hon. Josiah Kerrick, elsewhere in 
 this work, for further family history). 
 
 The birthplace of James Kerrick was 
 upon the ])arental homestead in this count}", 
 not far distant from the village of Low 
 I'oint. and much of his Ijoyhood was passed 
 on a fine stock farm near Belle Plain, Illi- 
 nois. He mastered the various details of 
 agriculture and slock raising, and when he 
 was twent}'-two years old he entered into 
 an agreement with his father and leasing a 
 part of the farm, coiunienced its cultivation, 
 ai<led b\- the team and inii)lements which his 
 senior fiu'uished him. At the end of three 
 years he remmed to ]\linonk. and for the 
 past seventeen years has made his home here. 
 He has been engaged in the buying, selling 
 
 and shipping of horses, frequently sending 
 away a car-load every two w-eeks and in less 
 in his chosen (jccupation. Since his early 
 busy seasons he ships' according to the de- 
 mand. He owns and conducts a large feed and 
 sale stable and has met with deserved success 
 his chosen occupation. Since his early 
 years he has been a lover of good horses, and 
 developed great ability in managing them. 
 He is considered an authority on the good 
 points of a horse, and rarely makes a mis- 
 take in his judgment. 
 
 Fully appreciated as a citizen, Mr. Ker- 
 rick was selected by the pnljlic for the jio- 
 sition of assessor of this township, his term 
 if otfice extending from January, 1898, until 
 January, iqoi. In his political standing he 
 ii an uncompromising Repulilican, as to the 
 policy of that party he believes the prosperity 
 of the nation since the "reconstruction" 
 period should be largely attributed. Strictly 
 lionorable and worthy of confidence, he 
 possesses a host of friends. 
 
 The marriage of Mr. Kerrick and Mar- 
 tha Emma Hollenback was solemnized Au- 
 gust 5. 1883, near Belle Plaine. Four chil- 
 dren have been born to them, namely ; Orpha 
 A., Edna L.. Ruth H. and Walter A. The 
 eldest daughters, Orpha and Edna L.. now 
 attending the high school, possess consider- 
 able artistic ability, as is plainly shown by 
 some cle\erlv executed paintings the}- hax'e 
 made. 
 
 The parents of Airs. Kerrick are (jeorge 
 and Malinda Hollenback, honored pioneers 
 of \\'oodfortl count}-, and among the first 
 settlers in central lllini;)is. The father \\as 
 born in Perry count}-. Ohio, December 31. 
 1819. a son of Daniel and a grandson of 
 Jacob Hollenback. Daniel Hollenback was 
 as farmer, and for some years was engaged 
 in freighting supplies across the mountains,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 511 
 
 from Haltiniorc t(i Perry i.-ounty. Ohii), and dt" being- inscril)eil on its roll i>\ honnr. By 
 
 du cine trip carried nearly three lingsheads diligence and sonntl hnsiness sense he ac- 
 
 ^<i tiihaccd til the seaixirt. retnrning witli a (|uired a com]3etence. and reared his large 
 
 wagon-load of provisions anil necessaries, in t'aniilv to occiipv respected positions in the 
 
 the autumn of icS^s he came to the west and husx' world. 
 
 found very few inhabitants of Marshall and The wife of Mr. HoUenhack's youth was 
 Woodford counties. He settled near the di- jane Patton, a daughter of Nathan and Jane 
 \-ision line between these counties and was Patton. William, the eldest born of Mr. and 
 (Mie of the first to locate a cabin on Crow Mrs. 1 lollenback, resides in .Xebraska. He 
 creek. .\ true frontiersman, he was an wedded .\daline (iilchrist, and their only 
 e.\[)ert marksman and fond of hunting, son. Rnfns, is a nn'nister in the Methodist 
 and his sons inheritecl his skill. His TC])iscopa] church. J'dla is the wife of I*"r;mk 
 wife was Martha, the daughter of S,'un- Lavton, and the Nounger daughter, I'ertha, 
 iiel and Martha Thralls, the latter an luigiish is unmarried. John L'.. second son of Mr. 
 lady, who came to this country with her i lollenback. is the proprietor of a fruit farm 
 parents when she was young. Daniel and in letTerson county. Illinois. His wife was 
 IMartha Hollenback became the i)arents of lormerh- Miss Lydia (Miller) (Irahrnn. and 
 eight children, of whom (ieorge is the eld- their onl\' son. lulgar, died at the age of 
 est. Julia is the widow of Rex. .Samuel twenty-twn years, while Minnie, the daugh- 
 CJgle. an earlv settler of .Marshall county, ter. is at home, (ieorge 11.. third son. died 
 and well known as a minister of the .Method- at the age id' seven. Xathan P.. of Xe- 
 ist Episcojjal church, lie died about twenty braska, married -Mary (lilchrist, and of their 
 years ago. and is sur\ived by bis three children. I-Tsie. (ieorge and Leslie are de- 
 daughters. Susan, wife of C'barles Dobson, ceased, while those living are tarl, I'red, 
 and Mar\- .\nn. wife of William Perry, are 1 )aisy and a bab_\-. Elizabeth J., elder dangh- 
 deceased. Sophia T.. wife of ],ewis Wine- ter of the Hollenback family, is the widow- 
 leer, resides in tliis county. Jacob married of Ira l)a\-idson. and mother of .\rthm- W'il- 
 Margaret .McCune. She is now deceased, mer. Mabel. Emory and (ieorge ( George and 
 Daniel, who served three years in the Sev- .\rthur, deceased). Sarah E.. the y.mnger 
 enty-se\enth Regiment of Illinois Infantr}- daughter, is the wife of John ( irubb. of K:m- 
 (UuHng the war of the Rebellion, is at the sas. and their nine children are: (ieorge. 
 Soldiers' I lonie in (Juincy. Illinois. Martha Rosa (decea.sed). Pearl. .Myrtle. Willam, 
 Ellen married William Mann, but died se\-- Hattie. ['"rank. I''.;n-1 ;md Paul. .Mrs. Jane 
 eral years ago. ( Patton) Hollenback departed this life De- 
 George Hollenback sutt'ered all of the cember 2. 1857. after having been a faithful 
 vicissitudes of frontier life, as he i)assed Christian and member of the Methotlist 
 his boyhood in a ])ortion of the lUickeye church for several years. The union of Mr. 
 state, which was but sparsely settled, and in Hollenback and Malinda Warden Davis was 
 1835 became a pioneer of Woodford county celebrated May 1. \^^i). Her father, David 
 — then an undevelo]jed wilderness. Xol^ly did Da\is. was born in X'erniont. September 
 he i)la\- the i)art of a founder of its present jo, 1809. and died Xo\ ember j 1 , 1858, 
 ])rosperity antl his name is entireh- worthy se\-enteen years after his settlement in
 
 Si2 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Illinois. His wife, Mary A. (Stattler) 
 Davis, was ])orn October 5, 1812, and 
 died February 2, 1896. Both were de- 
 vout members of the Methodist church for 
 many years. Their eldest child, Clarissa 
 Ann, died in infancy and the third child, 
 Mary J., also died when young. Albert 
 lives in Forrest, Illinois; Eliza Ann ]\Iann 
 is a resident of Kansas, and Amanda J-. 
 v,(idow of the Hon. Andrew J. Bell, lives in 
 Peoria, Illinois. Charlotte. Mrs. Sylvester 
 Coan, died in Xdvember, 1897. at the age of 
 fifty-two years. John A., the youngest 
 brother of Mrs. Hollenback. was one of the 
 brave boys who wore the blue in the Civil 
 war and was one of the unfortunate victims 
 of Liby Prison. For six months he suf- 
 fered the untold horrors of that dismal pen, 
 and when, at last, he was exchanged, it was 
 too late, for he was so weakened by illness 
 and starvation, that he died just as the train 
 conveying him to Annapolis reached the sta- 
 tion in that city. To George and ^lalinda 
 Hollenback two daughters were born, name- 
 ly : Mrs. Kerrick and Cora Luella, who is 
 Mrs. John Cheeseman, and has three sons, 
 (jeorge T., Harry Leroy and Lester \'. 
 Mrs. Hollenback was Imru December 10, 
 1833, and when eight years of age came to 
 the prairies of Illinois. Here she grew to 
 womanhood, literally "growing up with the 
 country," for within her recollection nearly 
 ah of the development of the central portion 
 of the state has been accomplished. 
 
 JONATHAN D. W ATKINS. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, a prosperous 
 farmer residing on section i, Be'.le Prairie 
 township, Livingston duuity, Illinois, was 
 born near Lniontown. the count}- seat of 
 
 Fayette county, Pennsylvania, October 22, 
 1825. and is a son of Joseph and Sarah 
 (Da\'id) ^\'atkins. The father was also a 
 nati\-e of Pennsvlvania, where he .spent the 
 greater part of his life, engaged in farming 
 and operating a saw-mill. Aljout 1837 he 
 rcmox'ed to Union county, Ohio, where he" 
 was engaged principally in farming for 
 some time, and then went to Shelby county, 
 the same state, wdiere he died at the age of 
 sixty-six years. His wife, wIk) survived 
 him, died in the same county at the ripe old 
 age of eighty-two years, and was laid to rest 
 by his side. Thev were the parents of nine 
 children, six sons and three daughters, of 
 \\hom Jonathan D. is the oldest. The others 
 were as follows: Thomas J., a prosperous 
 farmer, died in Shelliy county, Ohio, in 
 1863, leaving a widow and two children; 
 Isaac, a school teacher of that county, died 
 in Alabama; Joseph is a veteran of the Civil 
 war and a farmer of Ohio; Benjamin, also 
 an agriculturist, died in Shelby county; 
 Enoch is still engaged in farming in that 
 C(.'unt}'; Phtebe J. is the wife of B. F. 
 Howell, a farmer of Shelby county: Marga- 
 ret is the wife of John Kohler. a \-eteran of 
 the Civil war, and a farmer of Cass county, 
 Missouri: Rebecca A. is the wife of Elias 
 H(_)wel!. a pn.isperous farmer of Shelby 
 county, ( )hio. 
 
 The boyhood antl youth of Jonathan 
 D. W'atkins were passed upon the home 
 farm in Shelby count)-, which at that time 
 was almost an unbn.iken wilderness, there 
 being but few settlers, while deer and other 
 ^\•ild game were plentiful in the forest. At 
 the age of twenty years he started out in life 
 for himself as a school teacher and taught 
 for a short time in Shelby county, and later 
 followeil farming there. In 1866 he came 
 to Livingston county, Illinois, and purchased
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 5'3 
 
 forty acres of land on section 2, Belle Prai- 
 rie township, but sold that place a few years 
 later and bought his present farm of eight}- 
 acres on section i, the same township, to tlie 
 cultivation and improvement of whicli lie 
 has since devoted his energies with marked 
 success. This farm was entered by Judge 
 David Davis, of Bloomington, from whom 
 our suliject purchased it. He has made near- 
 ly all of the improvements upon the place. 
 
 In March, 1853, I\Ir. Watkins was united 
 in marriage with ]Miss Rachel M. Howell, 
 a daughter of Jonathan and Elizabeth (Ma.x- 
 im) Howell, natives of Pennsylvania, who 
 lived to a ripe old age and died in Shelby 
 county, Ohio, where they located at an early 
 day. By occui)ation her father was a farm- 
 er. Mr. and Mrs. ^^'atkins have a family 
 of four children, three .sons and one daugh- 
 ter, namely: Franklin S., born in Ohio, in 
 1849, is engaged in farming on tlie home 
 place; Joseph is married and also engaged 
 in farming in Livingston county; William E. 
 is married and is a jeweler and watchmaker 
 of Cropsey, Illinois; and Laura is the wife 
 of George W. Howell, a retired farmer of 
 Strawn, Illinois. Other children of the fam- 
 ily died when young. 
 
 Politically Mr. Watkins has always affil- 
 iated with the Democracy, but has never 
 sought nor desired public office, although he 
 is a public-spirited citizen, who gives his 
 support to all that tends to impnne or ad- 
 vance the interests of the connnunity in 
 which he lives. 
 
 ANDREW J. MOURER. 
 
 Among Eureka's most enterjjrising an<l 
 successful business men none stand higher 
 than the gentleman whose name introduces 
 
 this sketch. He became connected with the 
 business interests of the city as a clerk in 
 December, 1869, and is now a member of 
 the well-known firm of McGuire & Mourer, 
 the leading grocers of the place. 
 
 Mr. !Mourer was born April 16, 1851, 
 in Alsace-Lorain, then a part of France, but 
 now a province of Germany, and was only 
 four years old when brought to this country 
 by his parents, Joseph and Kalherine 
 (Schweitzer) Mourer. In the spring of 
 1856 they came to Woodford county, Illi- 
 nois, and located on a farm in Worth town- 
 ship. The father was one of the fust min- 
 isters of the old Ornish or Mennonite church 
 in this section of the state, and one of its 
 leading men for many years. He died en 
 route to New Orleans in the fall of 1867, and 
 his wife died in February of the same year. 
 . Our subject attended the common schools 
 of Worth township during the winter 
 months, jjut as soon as the season opened 
 he commenced work on the farm. He was 
 taught some at home by his father, who was 
 a good German scholar, and supplementet! 
 the knowledge thus acquired by reading and 
 contact with the world in later years. He 
 worked on the farm until the fall of 1869, 
 and then came to Eureka and accepted a 
 position as clerk in the grocery store of 
 loerger Brothers. For some time he was 
 with different proprietors of the same store, 
 and then went to Metamora, where he was 
 employed in a general store for thirteen 
 months. Returning to Eureka, he entered 
 the store of which he is now a proprietor 
 as clerk July i. 1878. and in 1886 bought 
 an interest in the business, the firm becom- 
 ing McGuire & Mourer. He devotes his 
 entire time and attention to the business, 
 which is mostly under his management, and 
 is meeting with marked success. They
 
 su 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 carry a largfe and well selected stock of gro- 
 ceries and queensware, and enjoy a larger 
 trade than any firm of the kind in the city, 
 giving empldvment to three men hesides 
 themseKes. 
 
 Mr. Mourer was marriefl, Fehruary 5, 
 1S75, to Miss Hattie Jackson, a daughter 
 of Samnel Jackson, one of the old residents 
 of Eureka. Mr. Ahjnrer "wns a ])leasant 
 home hesides other pro])ert\' in the citx'. 
 Both he and his wife are crmsistent mem- 
 bers of the Christian church, and he is now 
 filling the office of deacon. He is (|uite a 
 prominent memlier of Olici Lo<lge. Xn. 31 i, 
 I. O. O. v.. of which he is past grand; is 
 also past chief patriarch of the encampment, 
 ])ast grand marshal of the grand encani])- 
 ment of Illinois, and official instructor and 
 examiner of the unwritten work. He is a 
 nieml)er of Canton Wildey, Xn. 4, at Peoria, 
 and is major chaplain of the second brigade. 
 As a Republican he takes quite an active in- 
 terest in local politics, and has been a mem- 
 ber of the executive committee. Al)out ten 
 years ago he was elected Aillage trustee on 
 the temperance ticket, and filled that oftice 
 for two terms, during \vhicli time the water 
 works were put in operation and the first 
 lirick sidewalks in the \-illage were laid. 
 In the spring of 1900 he was elected alder- 
 man from the first ward. Eureka having been 
 incorporated as a city. By the citizens of 
 Olio township he was ajipointed a member 
 of the county seat committee to make the 
 struggle for the county seat at Eureka, antl 
 their work was satisfactorily accomplished, 
 getting first a petition, later the xote of the 
 county, and finally a clecision of the courts 
 in favor of Eureka, the final a])peal being to 
 the supreme court of the state. This re- 
 ciuired a great deal of work and also the ex- 
 penditure of considerable money. Mr. Mour- 
 
 er was a member of the finance committee, 
 and took a vevv acti\e part in the strug- 
 .gle. 
 
 WILLIAM J CRY. 
 
 Prominent among the early settlers of 
 W'liodford county, Illinois, who have wit- 
 nessed the marvelous development of this 
 section of the state in the last half centur}^ 
 and wli(] ha\e, by honest toil and industry, 
 succeeded in ac(|uiring a handsome compe- 
 tence, and are now able to sjjend the sun- 
 set of life in quiet and retirement, is the 
 gentleman whose name introduces this re- 
 \-iew. For many years he was successfully 
 engaged in farming, but is now li\ing a re- 
 tired life in Washburn. 
 
 Mr. Jury was born in Devonshire. Eng- 
 land, December 26, i8j8, and is a son of 
 Thomas and Elizabeth ( Tanton ) Jury, also 
 nati\es of Dexonshire. who in 1S30 emigrat- 
 ed to the new world and took up their resi- 
 dence in Woodford C(.)unty, Illinois, .\fter 
 s])ending two years in Cazeno\ia town- 
 ship, the)- removed to Linn townshi]), where 
 the father took u|) a tract of goxernmcnt 
 land, to the improvement and cultixation of 
 which he at once turned his attention, mak- 
 ing it his home throughout the remainder of 
 his life. He died on that place in 1872. and 
 his wife passed away in Metamora town- 
 shi]). in 1879. honored and respected hy all 
 who knew them. Their children were Will- 
 iam, om- subject: Elizabeth, who died in 
 Cazenovia township, in 1850: Thomas, a 
 resident of Washliurn: and Mrs. i\Iary Ful- 
 ton, of Ford count)', Illinois. 
 
 The first fourteen years of his life Will- 
 iam Jury passed in his native land, l)ut in
 
 MRS. WILLIAM JURY. 
 
 V. 
 
 i
 
 WILLIAM JURY.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 S17 
 
 184J he set sail from I'idefonl. luigland, .uid 
 after a loiia: and tedimis voyage of ele\eii 
 weeks and tliree days landed at New ^'oI•k. 
 He iinniediately came west, liy tlie (ireat 
 Lakes. ti> C'hicagn. and liy wagon to Wood- 
 ford county. Illinois, where lie lived with an 
 inicle for six years. He then returned to 
 England, and came again to this country 
 with the family in 1850. Since that time he 
 has made his home uninterrn|)ted]y in \\'ood- 
 ford county. The year of his arrival he 
 hought land in Linn township and also took 
 uj) a tract of government land, hecoming 
 owner of three hundred and twenl\- acres in 
 that township, which he converteil into a 
 fine farm. There he niaile his liome until 
 his remoxal to WashlnuMi in 1896. Being a 
 skillful agriculturist and a man of excellent 
 business and e.xecutive ahility. he met with 
 marked success in his farming operations, 
 and besides his valuable jiroperty in Linn 
 townshi]). he owns over four hundred acres 
 of well imprii\e<I land in Cazenovia town- 
 ship. 
 
 In 1837 .Mr. jury was married in I'eoria 
 county. Illinois, to Miss Maria Radley. also 
 Ji native of De\onshire, England, and to 
 them were born six children, namely : Mary : 
 Clara: William, decea.sed : Belle: Cora, de- 
 ceased: and Clarence. 
 
 Politically Mr. Jury is identified with the 
 Republican party, and was the first assessor 
 of what is now Linn and Clayton townshii)s. 
 He also .served as commissioner and school 
 trustee of Linn -townshi]). and in early life 
 took quite a prominent and influential part 
 in public affairs. He was prominentlv iden- 
 tified with the organization of the coimtv 
 and of the townships of Linn and Cazenovia. 
 and has ever borne his part in the work of 
 progress and advancement. His career has 
 been such as to gain for him the confidence 
 
 and respect of all with whom he has come 
 in contact, and he justly merits the high re- 
 gard in which he is hel<l. 
 
 J.\CKSOX PARKER. 
 
 Jackson Parker, honored as one of the 
 founders of Woodford county and for sev- 
 eral decades numbered among the citizens 
 of Minonk, is certainly entitled to a promi- 
 nent place in the history of this section and 
 state. Long and earnestly he labored in the 
 grand work of bringing the prairie wilder- 
 ness into its present condition — the abode of 
 thousands of happy, prosperous people, and 
 with the fortitude of the true frontiersman, 
 the pioneer of ci\'ilization. he endured hard- 
 ships and trials of which this generation can 
 form little idea. .Ml honor to such heroic 
 souls, the bulwark and mainstay of this great 
 nation I 
 
 In tracing the ancestral history of Mr. 
 Parker it is learned that he is of Cerman 
 extraction, though as long ago as the Rc\'o- 
 lutionary war in the United States, his pa- 
 ternal grandfather, James Parker, was in 
 the service of the patriots and was a tlrum- 
 mer boy. helping to inspire his comrades to 
 their devoted duty. He was one Inmdred 
 and one years old when he died, about 1830, 
 and in his last years received a pension from 
 the goveriunent which he had thus helped 
 to establish. The maternal grandfather of 
 our subject was .\bner Settle, whose wife 
 li\ed to the age of ninety-nine. 
 
 James Parker, Jr.. father of oiu" subject, 
 was born and reared in \'irginia. becoming 
 a thorough millwright and carpenter. \\'hen 
 he had passed his sixtieth anniversary he 
 conceived the idea of settling in Illinois. 
 where he belie\ed better opportunities for
 
 5i8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his large family would be afforded. In 1838, 
 therefore, they made the long journey in 
 wagons. o\-er the mountains, valleys and 
 plains of what seemed almost impenetrable 
 wildernesses, and at the end of six weeks ar- 
 rived at their land of promise. They located 
 at a point near the Illinois river, where 
 for fifty miles in some directions there was 
 not a habitation. The two eldest sons, Jack- 
 son and James, bought eighty acres of land 
 in Cazenovia township, Woodford county, 
 and here the parents dwelt for several years. 
 Then they went to Minonk to reside and 
 spent their last years there, the revered fa- 
 ther dying at ninety-one (lacking twelve 
 davs ) . and the mother at eighty-four. She 
 was Frances Settle in her girlhood, and. like 
 her husband was a native of Virginia. Their 
 eldest born, udge, was killed when in his 
 fifteenth year, and of the others, James, Jack- 
 son, Joseph, Martin, Lewis, Mary Ann and 
 Mildred, only three survive. James, who 
 sold out his possessions near Dana, Illinois, 
 about twenty-six years ago and went to 
 Washington, is still living in that state. J^Iar- 
 tin is a prosperous citizen of Elburn, Illinois. 
 The parents were devout members of the 
 Christian church and possessed the affection 
 and high esteem of a large circle of friends. 
 The father had been married prior to his 
 union with Frances Settle and the wife died, 
 leaving nine children, namely: Thornton, 
 Shelton. Jane, Louisa, :Matilda, Alcinda. 
 Emily, Sarah and one who died in infancy. 
 The birth of Jackson Parker took place 
 in Rappahannock county, Virginia, Novem- 
 ber 2, 1819. He attended the old-style sub- 
 scription schools, when ten dollars a year 
 was the payment rerpiired for each child's 
 tuition. Perhaps his own youthful enthusi- 
 asm was an important factor in his father's 
 decision to remove to the broad western 
 
 prairies, and certain it is that he has not seen 
 reason to regret his choice of a location. 
 After farming in partnership with his 
 brother for three 3-ears he sold out his in- 
 terest and then rented land for a period. In 
 1847 li^ purchased some wild prairie land in 
 Bennington township and from his liouse. 
 situated in the border of ^Marshall county, 
 not a furrow had been turned as far as the 
 Vermilion river, nor on his side of Sandy 
 creek on the north. Panther creek on the 
 south and for twenty miles to the eastward. 
 He still owns two hundred acres of finely im- 
 proved land and retains forty acres of tim- 
 ber land, situated at the head of Crows 
 creek. He rents his farm. recei\'ing grain in 
 payment. 
 
 In partnership with Charles Dobsnn, ]\Ir. 
 Parker built the first store erected in 
 ^Minonk and for two vears, from 1S54 to 
 1856, \\as engaged in selling dry goods 
 there. Subsequently he conducted a hard- 
 ware establishment for a short time, but the 
 town, at that period, comprised only six or 
 seven houses. He has dwelt here contin- 
 uously since its infancy, and few have been 
 more thoroughly interested in its upbuilding. 
 He purchased some of the first grain ever 
 sold in the place, and for many decades has 
 dealt to some extent in this product of the 
 fertile country around. Strict attention to 
 business and unusual sagacity in his invest- 
 ments have been factors in his financial suc- 
 cess. 
 
 On the nth of March, 1847. ^^^'- P^irker 
 married Harriet Dobson, daughter of 
 Thomas and Mary Dobson. Born in Eng- 
 land. November 17, 1825, she emigrated to 
 the United States when in her fifth year 
 and passed her early girlhood in Pennsyl- 
 vania, where her father owned and carried 
 on a farm. Later the family remo\'ed to
 
 THE EIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 5'9 
 
 ^farsliall ci unity. Illinois, and thns Mrs. Par- 
 ker also is one of the earlv si'ttlers of central 
 Illinois. Six children were horn to our suh- 
 ject and wife, namely: Mary Frances, who 
 is tlie wife of Samuel Richardson, of 
 iMinonk. and has one child, Frances; Alice 
 Jane, who is li\ing with her parents; Ida 
 May, wife of Mehalon Camphell. of Minonk. 
 and the mother of Grace, Fred, Harr\'. Alic ■ 
 Edna and John (deceased); Xora A., wife 
 of Charles Stonier, a farmer of the \icinily 
 of Patten.sburg, Illinois, and mother of fi\e 
 children. Elsie, Flora. Josephine. Floyd and 
 Esther; and Harriet Ellen, wlio became the 
 wife of briar Richardson, a farmer of Li\- 
 ingston county, and lias one son, Roy. 
 
 Mr. Parker is not a politician, nor has 
 he been an aspirant to public oftice. though 
 he has filled some positions when called upon 
 to do so by bis neighbors and friends. He 
 votes for Democratic nominees and prin- 
 ciples in national elections. Fraternally he 
 is identified with the Masonic order and 
 carries a son\'enir of the good will and es- 
 teem of that brotherhood — ;i beautiful gold- 
 beaded ebony cane, presented to him as a 
 worthy exponent of Masonic principles and 
 as one of the most venerable and most 
 revered early settlers of Woodford county. 
 Mr. Parker was one of the charter memljers 
 of Rub Morris Lodge. No. 247. A. F. & 
 A. M., and is the onlv one now livino-. 
 
 b:R.\EST ZLMMEKM.WX. 
 
 As a successful druggist and prominent 
 business man Ernst Zimmerman has made 
 his home in Roanoke, Woodford count v 
 since Xoveniber, 1891. He was born in 
 Peoria, Illinois, February 24, 1857, and is 
 a son of Christian and Catherine (Ziegler) 
 
 Zimmermann, both natives ot Germany, the 
 ti inner born in .Muenchweiler. Rheinisch, 
 liavaria. .March _• r . 1828, and the latter in 
 Schoenenberg, Rheini.scb, Bavaria. August 
 10, ii^,i4. They were married in Ba- 
 varia, and two children were born to 
 them before Ihcir emigration to America, 
 but the daughter Louisa died in infancy. 
 The other. Charles, born June 1. 1851, is a 
 retired retail druggist of Peoria. Six chil- 
 dren were added to the family after com- 
 ing to this country, one of whom. (/)tto. died 
 in I'eoria during infancy; Herman was a 
 jeweler before entering the United States 
 .service at \\"ashington. District of Colum- 
 bia, but is now living retired, being an in- 
 valid; luMist is the next of the family; Eu- 
 gene was at one time a druggist of Peoria, 
 nut is now selling phonographs and sup- 
 plies in that city; Robert purchased a store 
 of his brother Charles and is in the drug- 
 business in Peoria ; and .\lberi is also a drug- 
 gist of that city, has been an active mem- 
 ber of the state board of pharmac)- I'ni: vears, 
 and its president a ye;ir and a half. With 
 erne exception all of the sons were grad- 
 uates of the School of Pharmacy of Chi- 
 cago, and are now successful druggists, 
 Charles completing the course in 1873 • J-''"st 
 and Eugene in 1882; Robert in 1884; and 
 Albert in 1887. For twenty-five years the 
 father taught in a (jerman free school in 
 Peoria, and also gave private instructions 
 in ( ierman and music for several years, lie 
 was selected as assistant to James Walsh, 
 then circuit clerk of Peoria county, but was 
 taken ill and never had an opportunity to 
 serve. He held cjuite a prominent position 
 in social circles in Peoria. His mother 
 came to this country and died at the age of 
 eighty years, being laid to rest in Peoria. 
 Our subject's mother was killed in the rail-
 
 520 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 road wreck at Chats\V(jrth, Illinois, in 1887, 
 on the fifty-third anniversary of her birth. 
 Her brother, Jacob Zeigler, was for many 
 years a well-known business man of I'enria, 
 and ha\'ing" become (juite wealtln' is now 
 li\ing retired in that city. 
 
 Ernst Zimmermann. of this rex'iew, was 
 educated in the German and English public 
 schools of Peoria, and at the age of four- 
 teen began his business career as an appren- 
 tice in a drug store, where he remained until 
 in a drug' stnre, where he remained until 
 1877, when he was placed in charge oi a 
 branch store belonging to Charles Zimmer- 
 mann & Company, at Morton, Illinois. A 
 year later the business was sold and inn- 
 subject went Xo Chicago, where he worked 
 as a clerk while attendini; the Chicago 
 School of Pharmacy, from which he was 
 graduated in 1882. He remained in that 
 city until some time during the following 
 year, when he returned to Morton and pur- 
 chased the store of which he had formerly 
 had charge. He was engaged in Inisiness 
 there until Xo\eml)er, 1891, when he came 
 to Roanoke and embarked in business at 
 his present location. In 1893 he had the 
 misfortun to lose e\'erything. a fire de- 
 stro_\-ing his store and stock, but with char- 
 acteristic energy he at once rebuilt, put- 
 ting up a UKxlern jjrickk building. He now 
 carries a well-selected stock of drugs, school 
 books, paints, musical merchandise and gen- 
 eral notions, valued at thirty-five hundred 
 dollars, and has built up an excellent trade. 
 
 While a resident of ^b)rton, Mr. Zim- 
 mermann was married, March 13, 1884, to 
 Miss Louisa R. Hay, who was born in 
 Pekin, Illinois, January 29, 1861, and died 
 in Roanoke. January 20, 1892, leaving three 
 children: Ernest, born May 3, 1885; Dora 
 M., born September 2. 1886; and Ralph E., 
 
 born May 20, 1891. Two children, X'ellie 
 1. and Charles A., died in early childhood. 
 On the 4th of .\.ugust, 1892, Mr. Zimmer- 
 mann was united in marriage with Miss 
 Barbara Rush, who was born in Switzer- 
 land, Jidy 14, 1862, and came to the United 
 States with her parents when only a }ear 
 old. Mr. Zimmermann has prospered in 
 business and besides his store, he owns good 
 residence property in Roanoke and a farm 
 of one hundred and si.xty acres in northern 
 Kansas. He represents three insurance 
 ci.impanies, the Aetna, Manchester, and Ger- 
 man of Peoria, and does ([uite a Imsiness 
 along that line. In his political affiliations 
 he is a Republican, and has been appointed 
 one of the judges of election. While a resi- 
 dent of Morton he was a member of the 
 town board, and also a director of the vil- 
 lage school several terms. Socially he is 
 a member of William C. Hobbs Lodge, Xo. 
 306, F. iS: A. M.: Tazewell Chapter, No. 
 199, R. A. M.: Couer de Leon Command- 
 ery. No. 47, K. T., of El Paso; was a char- 
 ter member of Morton Camp, No. 768, M. 
 W. A.. Init now belongs to Roanoke Camp, 
 No. 1206. 
 
 WILLIAM H. DAVENPORT. 
 
 Woodford county has been the home 
 and scene of labor of many men who have 
 not only led lives that should serve as an 
 example to those who come after them, but 
 ha\'e also lieen of important service to their 
 county and state thn}Ugh \-arious avenues of 
 usefulness. Among them must be named 
 William H. Daxenport, who passed away at 
 his home in Eureka January 17, 1863. after 
 a life of industry and rich in those posses- 
 sions which only a high character can give.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 He was horn in Cliristian county. Ken- 
 tucky. June 7, 1823. a son of William and 
 Eliza (Tribue) Davenport. The father, 
 who was also a native of tliat state, l)ronfjht 
 his family tn illinnis in iS:;; and settled at 
 \\'alnut (iro\e. Woodford county, lie was 
 a minister of the Christian church ami 
 preached thrriuijhiiut different parts nf this 
 state. He took a \or\- iimmincnl part in L;et 
 ting the charter forEurtka College and in so- 
 liciting means f'lr its sup])ort. He was also 
 one of the first trustees of the college and 
 gave as liberally towards its supjiort as his 
 means would permit, having later in life 
 been vmfortunate financially. He hel])ed tn 
 build the firsl church in Mureka and took an 
 acti\c interest in politics, but his life was 
 mainly dexoted to cluu'ch and college work. 
 He was a strong anti-sla\ery man. 
 
 William H. Davenport, of this re\ie\\. 
 was educated in Knox College, and at the 
 age of nineteiMi years took charge of his 
 father's farm with the liojje of redeeming 
 the property, his father having lost heavily 
 by going security for friends in Mississippi. 
 ]->y his own exertinns and good business 
 abilit}- he recmered most uf the large es- 
 tate and also |)rovided fur the family. He 
 cniuinued tn fullow farming ^uccessfulU- im- 
 til twi) years jjrior to his death, and became 
 the owner of six hundred acres of \alnable 
 land in Ohio and El Paso townships. He 
 also dealt in stock and found that branch of 
 his business (juite profitable. 
 
 On the 15th of June. 1S51. Mr. Daven- 
 port married .Miss Mary J. Willis. Her fa- 
 ther. Prank M. Willis, w;is l>i>rn in West- 
 moreland CMunty. \'irgitn'a, nnd when a 
 young man niovetl to Cla.sgow, Kentucky, 
 where he married Hespatia David.son, a na- 
 tive of Christian county, that state. To 
 them were born three daughters, of whom 
 
 Mrs. Davenport is second in order of birth. 
 In 1829 the family came to Walnut Grove. 
 Illinois, and were among the earliest settlers 
 <if Woodford county. The father being a 
 millwright b\- trade, built a mill mi Panther 
 creek, which was the lirst in this section, 
 and tci which men came from lilonniington 
 :md other jjlaces equally distant to have their 
 grain grianid. He did a big business for 
 many years, but hually other mills were 
 started. He bought land in El Paso town- 
 ship and impro\e(l a farm of one lumdred 
 and si.xty acres, but spent his last days in re- 
 tirement from active labor. He died June 
 g. 1875. and his wife departed this life 
 -March jj, 189J. They were among the 
 first members of the Christian church or- 
 ganized at Walnut Grove and were well 
 known and highly respected. L'pright and 
 honorable in all things Mr. Willis was known 
 as the "honest miller." He served as town- 
 shi]) collector of El Paso for many vears. 
 
 On leaving the farm Mr. Daven])ort re- 
 mused to Eiu-eka and ])in-chased nearlv all 
 of block 3, on which he built the beautiful 
 residence now owned and occupied bv his 
 widow. He left two .sons, but b'.dgar .\., 
 the older, who was for many years railmad 
 agent at lun-eka. died May 3. 1893. In 
 187') he married Emma Slielby. wh.o sur- 
 vives him. with four children : Prank W., 
 a graduate of the dental department (jf the 
 Xorthwestern University of Chicago: John 
 Ernest, who is attending lunx'ka College; 
 and William H. and Amy, both in school. 
 hVank W., the younger son of our subject, 
 w as graduated at the University of Michigan 
 in 1 88 J, with the degree of A. B.. and then 
 connnenced the study of law in Blooming- 
 ton, but died on the 7th of October, 1883. 
 
 By his ballot Mr. Davenport sup|)orted 
 lust the Whig and later the Republican
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 parties. From his boyhood up he was a 
 consistent member of the Christian church 
 and filled the office of deacon for some time. 
 He was also a trustee of the college and a 
 member of the financial committee, and as- 
 sisted in building the first chapel, being a 
 memlier of the building committee. He 
 was untiring in his labors for both college 
 and church. In speaking of Mr. Daven- 
 port we cannot do better than to quote the 
 following from one who was intimately ac- 
 cpiainted with him : 
 
 "William H. Davenport was a noble 
 man. He was phenomenally energetic and 
 industrious, accumulating a substantial com- 
 petency while a young man in the midst of 
 many discouragements. Yet he did not be- 
 come stingy, nor lose interest in public af- 
 fairs. He was the constant and liberal friend 
 of the church and college. Although he was 
 engaged in several kinds of business, he made 
 very few, if any, enemies. He was so just 
 and genial, so transparently honest and 
 friendly that he was almost universally be- 
 loved. His father was a man of exceptional 
 oratorical power, being one of the mighty 
 pioneer preachers of Illinois. William H. 
 did not inherit his oratorical gifts, but was 
 gifted in song, and led the young people in 
 their praise services, and at one time, in the 
 early clay, organized them into a bible-study 
 class, which met from house to house of 
 evenings."' 
 
 Mrs. Davenport was reared and edu- 
 cated in Woodford county and in early life 
 became thoroughly familiar with the hard- 
 ships and privations incident to pioneer life. 
 She, too. is a faithful and earnest member 
 of the Christian church, has been actively 
 identified with the College Aid Society and 
 a member of the advisory board, and is also 
 ■connected with the Woman's Christian Tem- 
 
 perance Union and different church so- 
 cieties. She is an estimable lady of many 
 sterling qualities and has a large circle of 
 friends in the communitv. 
 
 JOSEPH R. CLANDIN. 
 
 Joseph R. Clandin, one of the most pop- 
 ular young business men of Roanoke, is a 
 native of Woodford county, his birth hav- 
 ing occurred at Metamora, January 5, 1870. 
 His grandfather. Eugene Clandin, one of 
 the pioneer merchants of Roanoke, was born 
 in France and came to the new world about 
 1853. For several years he was engaged 
 in farming in McLean county. Illinois, but 
 in 1880 purchased the store and business of 
 Johft Frantz at Roanoke and turned his at- 
 tention to general merchandising. He en- 
 larged the building, increased the stock and 
 built up a flourishing trade. The father of 
 our subject was associated with him in busi- 
 ness under the firm name of E. Clandin & 
 Son until 1882, when he sold his interest to 
 the son, though he continued in the clothing 
 and grocery business. He is still living in 
 Roanoke at the age of seventy years, but 
 his W'ife, Marian, died in 1892. To them 
 were born only two children and the daugh- 
 ter died at the age of two years. 
 
 John E. Clandin. the only son and fa- 
 ther of our subject, was born in 1844. After 
 he and his father dissolved partnership he 
 was alone in business for some time and 
 then became associated with Eli Gudeman, 
 under the firm name of Clandin & Gude- 
 man. They carry a well selected stock of 
 general merchandise, valued at twelve 
 thousand dollars, including' everything with 
 the exception of hardware, and recei\-e a
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 523 
 
 lilieral sliare of tlie pul)lic patronage. In 
 his bnsiness career Mr. Clandni lias met with 
 excellent success and nnw nwns considerahlL- 
 real estate in tlie town. Me was marrieil, in 
 Wooilfonl (.•i>nnty. in 1868, to Miss Madeline 
 EI)ersoll. a native of France, and to them 
 Iiave been hi)rn twelve children, of whom 
 Joseph R.. i>ur subject, is the eldest; Peter 
 J. is wnrkins.^ at the carpenter's trade for 
 a coal company in Pontiac; Mary is the wife 
 of J. B. Snyder, a carpenter of Roanoke ; 
 Martha is the wife of Eli Gndeman, who is 
 associated with her father in business ; Chris- 
 tian, a carpenter of Roanoke; Benjamin, a 
 teamster of that ])lace; Amelia, at luime ; 
 Dax'id. who is in the emplny "i his father; 
 l:"mma. John, Jac<ib and Nettie, all at home. 
 All the children have been educated in the 
 graded schools of Roanoke. The father casts 
 his ballot witii the Democratic party, but has 
 never taken an active part in politics. He is 
 a member of tlie German Apostolic church 
 of Roanoke and gives liberally to its sup- 
 port. 
 
 As soon as Joseph R. Clandin was grad- 
 uated at the public school of Roanoke he 
 began his business career as an employe in 
 his father's store, and later in company with 
 his brother-in-law, Mr. Gu.leman, embarked 
 in the dry goods business, which they carried 
 ori together for three years. He then sold 
 out to the firm of Clandin & Gudeman and 
 accepted the position of manager of the dry 
 goods and gents' furnishing department, 
 which he has filled since 1891. He has also 
 been writing fire insurance since 1894, rep- 
 resenting five of the best companies : The 
 North American, Phoenix of Brooklyn, the 
 Hartford, the Niagara and the Fire -\ssocia- 
 tion of Philadelphia. He has met with suc- 
 cess in this undertaking and has built up a 
 fine business. For the past nine years he 
 
 has been manager for the Central Union 
 Tele])lione Company, with office at Roanoke, 
 and has lieen instrumental in establishing 
 thirty-five 'phones. He is a very energetic 
 and progressi\-e young Inisiness man and un- 
 doubtedly a successful future awaits him. 
 
 In .\pril, 1893. ^f"'- Clandin was united 
 in marriage with Miss Nettie L. McCord, 
 wild was born in Greene township, Wood- 
 ford oiunty, in 1872, and is a daughter of 
 William and Mary McCord, now living in 
 Roanoke. She is the oldest of three chil- 
 dren, the others being Willis, a teamster of 
 Roanoke, and Alma, at home. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Clandin have one child. Neali Kathleen, born 
 December, 1899. The family have a very 
 ]jlcasant home. Mr. Clandin having pur- 
 chased a lot and erected thereon ;i good 
 modern residence. 
 
 As a Democrat he has always taken an 
 active part in political aftairs and has filled 
 local offices of honor and trust, serving as a 
 member of the town board two years, town- 
 ship collector the same length of time, and 
 postmaster of Roanoke. He was appointed 
 to the last named position during President 
 Cleveland's administration and most ably 
 managed the affairs of the office, though he 
 had an assistant ti 1 <1( > most of the work. So- 
 cially he is a member of Roanoke Camp, No. 
 1206, M. W. A., and religiously his wife is 
 a member of the Methodist Iipiscopal church. 
 
 FREDERICK N. TALLYN. 
 
 This well-known and popular cashier of 
 the Benson State Bank, is a native of Wood- 
 ford county, born in Clayton township, Jan- 
 uary 30, 1864, and is a son of Anthony and
 
 524 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Susanna Tallyn : the father died wlien nur 
 subject was only three years i_)ld, l)ut the 
 mother is still living and makes her home 
 with a S(.)n. Charles A. Tallyn, a hardware 
 merchant of Benson. The other children (.f 
 the famih- were .\nna. deceased, who was the 
 wife cif yose])h Pickard, of Minonk, IllinMis; 
 Carrie S., wife of .\lfred E. Farney, of Cla_\- 
 ton township, Woodford county; and Mary 
 N., deceased wife of Daniel Davis. ])ost- 
 master of Benson. 
 
 Frederick X. Tallyn was educated at 
 Eureka and Galesburg and began his busi- 
 ness career with his brother in the hard- 
 ware trade. Later he engaged in the cloth- 
 ing business and afterward was in the em- 
 ploy of Martin Kingman & Company, an im- 
 })lement firm of Peoria. He was ne.xt of- 
 fered the position of assistant cashier in the 
 Benson Bank, then owned liy B. F. Zinser, 
 and served in that capacity for four or fi\'e 
 years. \\'hen the bank was renrganized as 
 a state bank. February i. 1900. he x^as made 
 cashier; B. F. Zinser, jiresident, and P. H. 
 Davison, vice-president ; while the directors 
 were Joseph Pickard, B. E. Backer. J. Peters, 
 Sr., S. L. Peterson and F. N. Tallyn. When 
 IMr. Zinser resignieil the presidencv ^Ir. Pet- 
 erson was chosen to that position, which 
 he now fills, and |. Pickard was made as- 
 sistant cashier. The bank has a cajjital stock 
 of twenty-five thousand dollars and is now 
 doing an e.xcellent Inisiness. Its thri\-ing 
 condition is due to the capable management 
 of its officials, w bo are all good reliable busi- 
 ness men, conservative, yet progressi\e. 
 
 On September 27, i8go. Mr. Tallyn mar- 
 ried Emilic L. Fry. and to them have been 
 born three children, namely: Alpha 'S\.. 
 Gordon C. and Beth J. In his political af- 
 filiations Mr. Tallyn is a strong Republican, 
 and as a public spirited and progressive citi- 
 
 zen takes an active interest in promoting 
 those enterprises tending to public develop- 
 ment. 
 
 DA\'ID EVANS. 
 
 Da\id Exans. deceased, through the years 
 of his identification with Woodford comity, 
 enjovecl the highest respect of his fellow 
 townsmen by reason of his strict integrity 
 and true manhood. He was liorn in Mont- 
 gomery county, Pennsylvania, October 11, 
 1829, a son of Evan and Amelia (Morris) 
 Evans, also natives of that state. He is a 
 descendant of Jenkin Evans, who with his 
 brother David came from Wales to America 
 in 1694. His grandparents, Walter and 
 Mary (Smith) Evans, spent their entire 
 lives in Pennsylvania. There the father con- 
 tinued to make his hcime until 1840. when he 
 renio\-ed to Peoria count}', Illinois. By oc- 
 cupation he was a farmer and miller. He 
 was twice married and by each union had 
 three children, those of the first marriage 
 being Walter, Elizabeth and David. His 
 scconil wife was 2\Iary A. Hill. 
 
 The subject of this sketch began his edu- 
 cation in the schools of Pennsylvania, and 
 after the remo\-al of the family to this state 
 attended school in Peoria county for a time. 
 After attaining his majority he engaged in 
 the gn)cery antl milling business successfully 
 for a time, and then returned to his fath.er's 
 home, where be was needed. Later he con- 
 ductetl a mill anil farm on the Kickapoo 
 river, fifteen miles from Peoria, until 1871. 
 when he came to El Paso. Here he formed 
 a partnership with William 'S\. Jenkins, and 
 together they engaged in the grain business 
 for twelve years, at the end of which time
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 527 
 
 Mr. Evans purchased his partner's interest 
 and carried in the business alone, 'Mv. Jen- 
 kins removing to San Bernardino, CaHfor- 
 nia. He had one large elevator destroyed by 
 fire, but soon erected another much larger 
 and one of the best on the Toledo, Peoria & 
 Western Railroad. He was one of the i^'r- 
 ganizers of the First National Bank of Ri 
 Paso, and served as its vice- president for 
 several years, till the time of his death. As 
 a business man he was energetic, progress- 
 ive and thoroughly reliable, and carried for- 
 ward to successful completion whatever he 
 undertook. 
 
 At Blue Rapids, Kansas, October 10, 
 1876, Mr. Evans married Mrs. Eunice C. 
 Ryder, of Cleveland. Ohio, a daughter of 
 Jliram and Lucy Ann (Bowler) Brewster. 
 The ceremony was performed by Rev. W. 
 A. Briggs, a nephew of the noted Governor 
 George N. Briggs, of Massachusetts, and 
 who was for sixteen years pastor of the 
 Oaklawn Baptist church of Providence, 
 Rhode Island, and died November 12, 1897. 
 In speaking of the happy married life of 
 Mr. and Mrs. Evans their pastor said : "To- 
 gether they have lived more than twenty-one 
 years. They had begun to speak of a silver 
 anniversary, but the call to the Golden City 
 brought to him a higher and holier joy, while 
 she is left to comfort her heart with the 
 thought that 
 
 " Though the circling years of time may find us 
 Far apart and sundered more and more, 
 Still the farewell always lies behind us 
 And the welcome always is before " 
 
 Mrs. Evans is the ninth generation from 
 Sir W'illiam Brewster, who came over in the 
 Mayflower, and on the mother's side is the 
 ninth generation from John Alden and 
 Priscilla Mullen. Her grandfather, George 
 
 I. Bowler, was a captain in the war of 
 1812. 
 
 By his ballot Mr. Evans always sup- 
 ported the Republican party and its prin- 
 ciples, but he was never an office seeker. He 
 served, however, as alderman of El Paso for 
 four years and as school director nearly 
 twenty-one-thousand-dollar mortgage, at ten 
 part of the time. While serving as director 
 he was mainly instrumental in lifting a 
 twenty-one thousand dollar mortgage at ten 
 per cent interest, from the school, which it 
 was hard for the community to meet, and 
 w ith the other directors he bonded the dis- 
 trict at si.x per cent. At the end of nine 
 years the debt was paid. 
 
 Mr. Evans died October 28, 1897, after 
 two weeks illness from paralysis. He was 
 one of nature's noblemen and the world is 
 better for his having lived. He was an act- 
 ive and prominent member of the Baptist 
 church of El Paso, of which he was a deacon 
 for almost twenty years, and treasurer for 
 siteen years. Those who knew him best 
 speak in unqualified terms of his sterling in- 
 tegrity, his honor in business, and his fidelity 
 to all the duties of public and private life. 
 At his death Mrs. Evans received the fol- 
 lowing testimonial in regard to the appre- 
 ciation of Mr. Evans as a member of the 
 Board of Baptist State Missions of Illinois : 
 
 "Acknowledging the hand of God in tak- 
 ing to himself our brother, Deacon David 
 Evans, we desire to place upon record our 
 high appreciation of his character and inter- 
 est in our work. For many years he sus- 
 tained a sympathetic and generous relation 
 to state missions. His prayers and alms 
 alwas went together. 
 
 "Resolved that we extend to the widow 
 oiu" sincere sympathy. 
 
 "That a copy of this action be sent to his
 
 525 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 bereaved family, and -copied into our min- 
 utes. 
 
 "E. J. Thomas, 
 "E. C. Hewitt, 
 "A. R. Newton, 
 "J- F. Howard, Com. 
 "The above report was adopted by the 
 board of the Baptist General Association of 
 Illinois at Bloomington, April 12, 1898. 
 "S. F. Gleason, Rec. Sec." 
 Rev. Howard in the Standard said : 
 "The church has met with a deep loss in the 
 death of Deacon David Evans, the son of a 
 deacon, himself a deacon over twenty-five 
 years. He magnified his office. He did not 
 think himself great or good, but he was both. 
 He was the young man's example, the poor 
 man's friend, the church's pillar, the pastor's 
 comfort, the Lord's dear servant. His death- 
 bed was triumphant; his entrance into glory 
 abundant.'' 
 
 [ HERMAN LEFFERS. 
 
 Herman Leffers, who is serving the peo- 
 ple of the third ward of Minonk as their re" 
 resentative in the city council, is a worthy 
 type of the German-American citizen. He 
 was born June 7, i860, in the land of the 
 Teutonic race and there grew to maturity, 
 receiving an excellent education. His par- 
 ents, Gerhard and Jennie Von Hovel) Lef- 
 fers, are residents of Minonk, and for fifteen 
 years have looked upon this city as their per- 
 manent home. Of their six children, one is 
 deceased, little Wilhelm having died in Ger- 
 many when two years old. The others live 
 in the United States, Henrietta, wife of 
 George DeFries, being employed in Stod- 
 dard's elevator, and Mary, wife of George 
 Miels, being connected with the office de- 
 
 partment of Wylie's elevator business. 
 Henry married Heiney Bonk, and Hannah, 
 Mrs. John Radamacher, resides upon a farm 
 near this city. All are respected citizens of 
 the land of their adoption and are a credit to 
 their upright, estimable parents. 
 
 Herman Leffers is the eldest of the six 
 children, and, according to the commendable 
 custom of progressive European nations, he 
 was apprenticed to a trade when he was of 
 a suitable age and served for three years. 
 He then was employed by the government 
 in the navy 3'ards as a ship carpenter, as- 
 sisting in the construction of some war ves- 
 sels, and being associated in this work with 
 five or six thousand men. After spending 
 six years in this service, one year of the 
 period sailing the high seas on a German 
 steamship, still as a ship carpenter, he con- 
 cluded to cast his fortunes in America. His 
 uncle, whose home was in the vicinity of 
 Benson, Illinois, had repeatedly written to 
 the young man, urging him to come to the 
 new \\orld, where he believed his oppor- 
 tunities for financial success would be better. 
 
 With his eldest sister, Henrietta, Her- 
 man Leffers embarked at Bremen on a steam- 
 ship bound for America, April 18, 1883. 
 After he had obtained a start as a carpenter 
 in this his chosen place of abode, his par- 
 ents also came to Minonk. As a contractor 
 and builder our subject has won an enviable 
 place in the esteem of the business world 
 and year by year his success has been grow- 
 ing. At points within twenty-five miles of 
 Minonk he has erected buildings of different 
 kinds and each one is his best advertisement, 
 for thereby is shown his skill and thorough 
 knowledge of his business and the fidelity 
 with which he executes every contract. 
 
 In the domestic circle no less than in the 
 commercial world Mr. Leffers is happily sit-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 529 
 
 uated. His marriage to Mary Bunger, 
 daughter of John and Hannah (Bense) 
 Bunger, was solemnized Octoljer 15, 1886. 
 She is a native of Germany, whence she 
 came to tlie United States with her parents 
 in 1881, settling in Minonk. Her eldest 
 sister, Christina, is the wife of George John- 
 ston, of the state of ^\'ashington. Anna, 
 the next sister, with her husband, H. Free- 
 ling, formerly of Washington, is deceased. 
 Lizzie, wife of Henry Sathofif, resides in 
 Peoria. John, who wedded a Miss Monk, 
 lives in ^\'ashington, and Hannah died in 
 her fourteenth year. To our subject and 
 wife three children have been born, namely : 
 Jennie G., Minnie H. and John, all living. 
 Politically Mr. Leffers is affiliated with 
 the Democratic party. In 1899 he was 
 elected for a term of two years to the city 
 council and is ably standing for the rights 
 and interests of the people to the best of 
 his knowledge. He is popular with the rich 
 and poor and merits the high regard in 
 which he is held, for he possesses admirable 
 qualities of head and heart. Religiously he 
 is identified with the German Lutheran 
 church and puts into daily practice the high 
 standards of conduct which were inculcated 
 in him when he was voung. 
 
 MICHAEL PIPER. 
 
 This well-known retired merchant of 
 Eureka. Illinois, was born in Salem town- 
 ship, Columbiana county, Ohio, October 8, 
 1816, and on the paternal side is of German 
 descent. His father, Peter Pifer, was born 
 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, October 22, 
 1786, and was a son of Peter Pifer, Sr., a 
 native of Germany, who came to the new 
 
 world about 1784 and lived for a time in 
 Philadelphia. Later he made his home in 
 ^^'estmoreland county, Pennsyl\-ania, where 
 he purchased land and improved a farm. 
 There the father of our subject grew to 
 manhood, early becoming familiar with all 
 the duties which fall to the lot of the agri- 
 culturist. He also learned the carpenter's 
 trade and worked at shoemaking during the 
 winter months. On the 23d of February, 
 1809, he married Susannah Shi])e, who was 
 born May 17, 1794, and in 18 12 they moved 
 to Columbiana county, Ohio, and in 1832 
 to Portage county in the same state. Later 
 he returned to Pennsylvania to care for his 
 aeed parents. He remained there three 
 years and after their death he returned to 
 Portage county in 1840. which was his home 
 until about 1859, when he and his wife came 
 to Woodford county, Illinois, where they 
 spent their last days with our subject, both 
 dying in 1862. They were among the early 
 members of the Christian church in Ohio 
 and took a prominent part in its work. 
 
 In the county of his nativity Michael 
 Pifer was reared and educated and there 
 learned t'..i tinner's trade. In 1840 he 
 opened a shop of his own in Garretsville, 
 Portage county, Ohio, where he engaged in 
 business for fourteen years. While there 
 he filled different township offices, such as 
 supervisor of roads and member of the school 
 board, and was also deacon of the Christian 
 church for seven years. 
 
 On the nth of November, 1841, Mr. 
 Pifer was united in marriage with Miss 
 Hannah J. \Villcutt, of Charleston, Portage 
 county, Ohio, a daughter of Jesse Willcutt. 
 By this union were born eleven children, 
 seven of whom are still living, namely : 
 Frank C, a resident of Kansas; Ellen, wife 
 of Rev. G. M. Wiemer, of lola, Kansas;
 
 S30 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Harriet C, widow of Bariga and a resident 
 ot Peoria, Illinois; William, a hardware 
 merchant of Deer Creek, Illinois; Mary, 
 wife of J. H. Frame, of Eureka; Edward, 
 a business man of the same city; and Ida, 
 wife of J. H. Morris, of Eureka. The wife 
 and mother died November 30, 1894. 
 
 In 1854 Mr. Pifer moved to Braceville, 
 Illinois, where he opened up a farm, but soon 
 rented it and engaged in the tinning busi- 
 ness at Gardner Station until coming to 
 Eureka in September, 1858. Here he kept 
 a college boarding hall for two years and 
 also opened a hardware store on the west 
 side of the square, where he built a good 
 two-story frame store, and carried complete 
 stocks of stoves, tinware, etc., doing the 
 leading hardware business of the place for 
 thirty-two years. In connection with his 
 son he also owned a grocery store and was 
 prominently identified with the early business 
 of the city. He erected a good residence 
 north of the railroad, and in 1867 built the 
 house which he now occupies. Beside this 
 he owns two other houses on the same block 
 and has other real estate in the city. He 
 continued in active business until 1892, when 
 he sold out and has since lived a retired life, 
 enjoying a well earned rest, free from the 
 cares and responsibilities of business life. 
 
 Mr. Pifer was reared a Democrat, but be- 
 came a strong anti-slavery man and a sup- 
 porter of the Republican party. He served 
 as township treasurer twenty-two years and 
 was also road commissioner for some time, 
 school director five or six years and school 
 trustee for some years, having always taken 
 a great interest in promoting educational af- 
 fairs and working hard for the betterment of 
 the schools. He was a member of the Union 
 League during the Civil war, and has long 
 been connected with the Christian church 
 
 of Eureka. He is widelv and favorably 
 known and is held in high regard by his fel- 
 low citizens. 
 
 LOTT SULLIVAN. 
 
 Lott Sullivan, a respected citizen of 
 Minonk, bears the Christian name which has 
 appeared in his family for many generations, 
 and, indeed, it can be traced backward for 
 four hundred years, to the time of the Con- 
 fiscation act. His paternal grandfather, Lott 
 Sullivan, held the position of agent of the 
 estates of Simon Purdin in Ireland at the 
 time of the battle of Waterloo. Calling in 
 his tenants, the proprietor demanded that 
 they renew their leases, and as they refused 
 to do so he promptly turned them out of 
 their homes as soon as their leases expired. 
 He is a son of Lott and Margaret (O'Con- 
 nor) Sullivan, natives of county Clare, Ire- 
 land. The father, who was a quiet, unos- 
 tentatious man, came to the United States 
 with two sons, James and Dennie, hoping to 
 found a new home in a land where better 
 opportunities for making a livelihood were 
 afforded. After passing four years in New- 
 York and Pennsylvania, he went to Illinois, 
 and thenceforth, until his death, at the age of 
 sixty-eight, he dwelt upon a farm in La 
 Salle county. His wife, who died when 
 about fifty years of age in the Emerald Isle, 
 possessed an exceptionally fine education, 
 for she was an Irish and English scholar, 
 having been a diligent student under the in- 
 struction of her father, John O'Connor, who 
 had been trained for ihe priesthood and had 
 been given unusually superior advantages. 
 He was an only son, bearing his father's en- 
 tire name, and his wife was a Miss Sallie 
 McGraw in her girlhood. Bridget, their
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 531 
 
 first-born, became the wife af Patrick Cuf- 
 fee, and Elizabeth was the wife of Jolm 
 Diicv, while William, the only son, died un- 
 married. 
 
 r>orn November jo. 1S35, on llie parental 
 homestead on the banks of the Shannon river 
 in county Clare. Ireland, Lott Sullivan, of 
 this sketch, spent his boyhood in the beauti- 
 ful isle which was destined to suffer terribly 
 from the ravages of famine. Some pitiable 
 cases of need came within his observation 
 and he even saw one man who had died 
 from starvation. Three of the brothers, 
 Michael, Dennis and William, are farmers 
 of La Salle county, Illinois, and two brothers 
 are deceased, namely : James and John. 
 The five sisters, Maggie, Nora, Elizabeth, 
 Bridget and Nora (the second of the name) 
 died, and were placed to rest at the side of 
 th.eir mother in their native land. 
 
 After mastering the rudiments of educa- 
 tion and ao^riculture Lott Sullivan concluded 
 to join his father and brothers in the United 
 States, and in 1852 made the voyage across 
 the broad .\tlantic. lie went to Chester 
 county. I'ennsyhania, where they were em- 
 ployed and soon found work on a farm, 
 where he remained about two 3'ears. He 
 then became a citizen of Peoria county. Illi- 
 nois, and by energetic labors and economy 
 managed to olitain a financial start. At 
 length he bought two hundred and twenty 
 acres in Woodford county, improved the 
 farm and still owns it. He made his home 
 there until 1870, when he came to Minonk. 
 Later he purchased a quarter-section of land 
 in Marshall county, and during the years of 
 his repidence there greatly incre:ised the 
 value of the place. In the first year of the 
 Civil war he found that he could not sell a 
 load of corn and hauled it home. Later he 
 took upwards of six hundred bushels to 
 
 I.acon and sold it for fifteen cents a bushel. 
 That same corn was later disposed of at an 
 increase of a dollar a bushel, and at one time 
 Mr. Sulli\an sold corn at the same price, 
 line dollar and fifteen cents per bushel. 
 
 A fact which speaks well for his popu- 
 largely through his own unaided efforts. He 
 this, that Mr. Sullivan, though an Irishman, 
 living in a community largely made up of 
 German-.Americans and of dift'erent religious 
 faith, was so good a citizen and kindly a 
 neighbor that he was elected to numerous 
 t( wnship offices, and for nine years served 
 in the capacity of justice of the peace. He 
 thoroughlv justified the confidence placed in 
 him and proved himself a true son of his 
 adoi)ted country. In his political i)references 
 he is a Democrat, and religiously he is a 
 Catholic, as his ancestors were before him. 
 
 In 1856 Mr. Sullivan married Bridget 
 Tuohy, daughter uf Jnhn Tmihy and a native 
 of the same part of Ireland as our subject. 
 She came tn this country in i(S48 and dwelt 
 here, happily, until her death December 13, 
 1890, when she was in her seventy-second 
 year. Of her si.x children two. Mary and 
 Michael, are deceased. William resides in 
 Toluca, Marshall county, Illinois, and John, 
 who married Katie Martin, lives on his fa- 
 ther's old homestead in this county. Lott, 
 Jr., married .\nna Burns and has three chil- 
 dren, I^arl, Leo and Lauretta. Maggie, the 
 only living daughter, is living at Imme with 
 our subjec*'. 
 
 PETER BELSLEV. 
 
 At the time of his death, Peter Belsley 
 was one of the prosperous farmers antl busi- 
 ness men of Roanoke township, Woodford 
 county, and his possessions had been acquired
 
 532 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 largely thrugh hi own unaided efforts. He 
 had also won, by an honorable, upright life, 
 an untarnished name, and the record which 
 he left behind him is one well worthy of 
 perpetuation. He was a native of Wood- 
 ford county, born in Spring Bay township, 
 December 7, 1841, and was a son of Joseph 
 and Barbara Belsley, in whose family were 
 eleven children. Those living are Christian, 
 Joseph, John, David, Solomon and Benja- 
 min. 
 
 In his native township Peter Belsley was 
 reared and educated in much the usual man- 
 ner of farmer boys of his day, and he re- 
 mained on the home farm until his mar- 
 riage. It was in 1866 that he wedded Miss 
 Catherine Schertz, who was born in \\'orth 
 township, Woodford county, September 15, 
 1846. Her parents, John and Magdalena 
 Schertz, were natives of Alsace Lorraine, 
 France, now a part of German)^, and were 
 married after their emigration to America. 
 After spending one year in New Orleans 
 they came to Illinois and took up their resi- 
 dence in \\'i.:iodfortl county, where thev con- 
 tinued to make their home throughout life, 
 the father dying in Linn tDWuship, the 
 mother in \Vorth township. They were 
 farming people and were highly respected 
 and esteemed. Six of their children are still 
 living, namely: Christian, a resident of 
 Metamora township, Woodford county; 
 Catherine, now Mrs. Belsley; Annie, wife 
 of Joseph Livingston, of Hamilton cnuntv, 
 Nebraska; John, a resident of Aurora, Ham- 
 ilton county, Nebraska; Peter, (^f I'anola 
 township, Woodford county, Illinois; and 
 Joseph, of Waldo township, Livingston 
 county. One daughter, Magdalena. is de- 
 ceased. The father was married a second 
 time, and by that union had one son, Jacob, 
 a resident of California. Mr. and Mrs. Bel- 
 
 sley became the parents of nine children, 
 whose names and dates of birth are as fol- 
 lows : Anna H., January, 1868; John J., 
 September, 1869; David C, July, 1871 ; 
 Alichael E., September, 1873; Alattie E., 
 August, 1876; Amos A., August, 1878; Bar- 
 bara M., September, 1880; Kathryn A., De- 
 cember, 1883; and Benjamin R., December, 
 1886. They ha\-e all received good com- 
 mon school educations and one son took a 
 collegiate course. All are at home with ex- 
 ception of John J., who is engaged in farm- 
 ing for himself in Roanoke township. He 
 married Mattie Riscer, and they have one 
 child, \'era Fern. 
 
 In early life Mr. Belsley followed thresh- 
 ing and corn shelling, of which he made a 
 success, and after his marriage operated a 
 rented farm for a time. He had some land 
 deeded him by his father. In 1866 he came 
 to Roanoke township and located on the 
 place now owned by Solomon Belsley, it 
 belonging to their father at that time. In 
 1875 our subject purchased the farm now 
 occupied liy his ^vid(lw. and througlK)Ut the 
 remainder of his life successfully engaged 
 in general farming and sti.ick raising here. 
 He had twenty-nine acres of timlier land be- 
 sides three-quarters of a section, which he 
 tiled, broke and improved, converting it into 
 one of the most desirable farms of its size 
 in the county. He erected thereon a com- 
 fortable residence and commodious barns, 
 and made other impr(i\-emeiUs which added 
 greatly to the \alue and attractive appear- 
 ance of the place. Progressive antl enter- 
 prising, he was among the men who sunk 
 the coal shaft at Roanoke, and was president 
 of the coal company until his death, which 
 occurred October 24, 1899. He was one 
 of the best known men of his township, 
 and always gave his support to any enterprise
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 533 
 
 calculated to benefit the community. He 
 always took an active interest in maintain- 
 ing good schools and et^ciently served as 
 director for many years. He held other 
 township offices and affiliated with the Demo- 
 cratic part}-. He was a member of the 
 Mennonite church, though he gave liberally 
 to the support of all religious denominations, 
 and never withheld his aid from any object 
 which he believed would promote the moral, 
 social or material welfare of his township 
 or county. He had a large circle of friends 
 and acquaintances and was held in high re- 
 eard bv all who knew him. 
 
 JOHX E. REED. 
 
 For the i)ast nine years the subject of 
 this sketch has successfully engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits upon his preent farm on 
 section 1 1. Linn township, having come here 
 from Belle Plaine township. Marshall county, 
 in 1891. He was born in Perry county, 
 Ohio. March 17, 1851, and is a son of John 
 W. and Evaline (Holcomb) Reed, also na- 
 tives of the Buckeye state. For some years 
 the father owned and operated a farm in 
 \\'isconsin. and from that state came tf) Illi- 
 nois, in the fall of 1865, locating in Marshall 
 county, where he continued to follow farm- 
 ing for some time. For three years he 
 conducted a hotel in La Rose, and since 
 18S0 has been proprietor of the Reed House 
 at X'arna. Marshall cnunty. Politically he 
 is a stanch Republican, and religiouslv is a 
 faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 church, having always taken an active part 
 in its wiirk. Of the eleven children torn to 
 himself and wife, one daughter died in Wis- 
 consin at the age of four years, and one 
 
 son, Grant, died in La Rose, Illinois, at the 
 age of twelve. The others are as follows: 
 Clark E., a plumber of Davenport, Iowa, 
 and formerly superintendent of the water 
 works of that city: Caroline, wife of Rob- 
 ert Whitten, of Marshall county. Illinois; 
 John K.. our subject; Almeda, wife of Mark 
 Wilson, a farmer of Colorado; bittn. wife of 
 August Sangbush, of Washburn, Illinois; 
 Charles and Ephraim, who died in Colorado ; 
 Julia, wife of James B. Foster, of Marshall 
 county, Illinois, and Belle, wife of Samuel 
 Myers, of Galesburg. Ihe children all re- 
 ceived good common-school educations. The 
 father is now seventy-six years of age, the 
 mother sex'enty. 
 
 John E. Reed attended the public schools 
 of Wisconsin, and remained at home, aiding 
 in the work of the farm until reaching man- 
 liood. In 1S73 he was united in marriage 
 with Miss Sophia J. Perry, who was born 
 in Marshall county, Illinois, September 7, 
 1851, a daughter of Elijah and Xancy (^Hat- 
 ton) Perry, natives of Kentucky and early 
 settlers of Marshall county. They had a 
 family of eleven children, of whom live sons 
 and three daughters are still living, namely : 
 John, a resident of Marshall county: Sophia 
 J., wife of our subject: Zachariab. at home; 
 Forsyth, a resident of Iowa; Maggie, wife 
 of A. H. Davidson, of Linn township, Wood- 
 ford county; Frank E., a teacher of La 
 Rose; ICUa A., at home; and Cora \'., wife 
 of Andrew Snow, of Marshall county. The 
 father is now deceased, but the mother is 
 still li\ing and makes her home with two 
 sons in Marshall county. Mr. and Mrs. 
 Reed have four children: Carrie F., wife 
 of Frank ^^'rythmiller, a farmer of Marshall 
 county; Ellson L., who is taking a commer- 
 cial and teacher's course at Dixon College, 
 Illinois; Rose P. and Jay E., both at home.
 
 534 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 The children have all attended the public 
 schools and have had advantage of a college 
 course. 
 
 Since his marriage Air. Reed has always 
 followed general farming and stock raising 
 and has successfully operated his present 
 farm mi section ii, Linn township, W'ood- 
 foi'd county, for the past nine years. The 
 Republican party has always found in him a 
 stanch supporter of its principles, and since 
 1896 he has been a member of the county 
 central committee. He takes an active part 
 in campaign work, and has most creditably 
 filled a number of township offices. Fra- 
 ternallv he is a member of the Modern 
 Woodmen Camp. Xo. 1821, at Washburn, 
 and religiously is a member of the Christian 
 church, in which he is serving as deacon. 
 
 HON. JOHN L. AIcGLTRE. 
 
 Ireland has furnished to the United 
 States many bright and enterprising young 
 men, who have become prominent in busi- 
 ness and public life. Though born across 
 the water, they are thoroughly American in 
 thought and feeling, and are patriotic and 
 sincere in their love for the Stars and 
 Stripes. Among their number is Air. AIc- 
 Guire, one of the leading citizens of Aleta- 
 mora, Illinois, who is now practically living 
 a retired life. 
 
 He was born in count}- Tipperary, Ire- 
 land, August J/, 1844, a son of John and 
 Bridget (Ouinn) McGuire, also natives of 
 that country, where the mother died soon 
 after the birth of our subject. In 1853 the 
 father came to America and located in Cin- 
 cinnati. Ohio, where he died two years later. 
 In their family were three sons and three 
 daughters, who reached vears of maturity. 
 
 but only Airs. Catherine Murray, of Louis- 
 \ille, Kentucky, and our subject are now 
 li\ing. 
 
 Ah". AIcGuire was reared on a farm and 
 inured to many hardships, receiving a very 
 limited education. He is therefore almost 
 wholly a self-educated as well as a self-made 
 man. He crossed the Atlantic with his fa- 
 ther, and in Alarch, 1858, at the age of thir- 
 teen years, came to Woodford county, Illi- 
 p.ois. where he has since made his home. Here 
 he began life empty-handed among strang- 
 ers, but he steadily overcame the obstacles 
 and dif^culties in his path, and is now en- 
 abled to lay aside all business cares and en- 
 joy the fruits of former toil. 
 
 In January, 1862, Air. AIcGuire enlisted 
 as a private in Company D, Fifty-first Illi- 
 nois Volunteer Infantry, which was assigned 
 to the Army of the Cumberland. The first 
 engagement in which he participated was 
 the battle of Xew Aladrid, followed by the 
 battles of Island Xo. 10, Stone River and 
 Chickamauga. During the last named en- 
 gagement he received a gunshot through the 
 body, and was taken prisoner the same night, 
 being sent to the Richmond hospital, where 
 he remained for seven months, and was then 
 paroled and sent to Baltimore, where he was 
 granted a furlough, ^^llile at home he re- 
 ceived word of his exchange, and then re- 
 ioined his regiment in time tn take part in 
 the battle of Kenesaw Alrmntain and the .\t- 
 lanta campaign. Later his command was 
 sent back to Tennessee and ji^ned General 
 Thomas' army at Xashville. They took part 
 in the battle at that place and at Franklin, 
 and assisted in driving Hood from the state. 
 .Vt the close of the war Air. AIcGuire was 
 b.onorably discharged at Huntsville. Ala- 
 bama, in Alarch, 1865. and returned to his 
 home in Woodford count v.
 
 JOHN L. McGUIRE. 
 
 k
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 537 
 
 After working by the month as a farm 
 liand for two or three years lie engaged in 
 operating rented land for several years, and 
 then purchased a tract of eighty acres in 
 Metaniora township, which he improved. 
 Later he rented that farm and bought a par- 
 tially improved place of eighty-five acres, 
 on which he made his home for several 
 years. He has bought and sold other lands, 
 and still owns a valuable tract of three hun- 
 dred acres, known as the old Page place, ad- 
 joining Metamora, to the improvement and 
 cultivation of which he devoted his energies 
 for some years. 
 
 In Woodford county, Xovembcr 24, 
 1870. Mr. ^IcGuire married Miss Adelia 
 Page, a native of Gilmanton, Xew Hamp- 
 shire, and a daughter of Adino and Arvilla 
 (Page) Page, one of the pioneers of W'ood- 
 ford county, where she was reared and edu- 
 cated. Prior to her marriage she successful- 
 ly engaged in teaching for a time. By this 
 union three children have been born : May, 
 who died at the age of twenty years; Myra, 
 a graduate of the School of Oratory of the 
 \\'esleyan University at Bloomington, Illi- 
 nois; and John A., at home. 
 
 In 1868 Mr. McGuire cast his first vote 
 for U. S. Grant, but since that time has been 
 identified with the Democratic party, and 
 has taken an active and prominent part in 
 k'cal politics. He has been a delegate to 
 numerous county, congressional and state 
 conventions of his party, and has been elected 
 to important ofticial positions, serving nine 
 consecutive years as supervisor and repre- 
 senting the county in the thirty-ninth and 
 fortieth general assemblies. Among his as- 
 sociates in the house was Mr. Alschuler, the 
 present Democratic candidate for governor 
 of Illinois. He was a member of five impor- 
 tant committees during his first term and 
 
 eight the last, and took a very active part in 
 the work of that august body. He was a 
 member of the school board for nine con- 
 secutive years, president of the village board 
 for five years, and is now one of the justices 
 of the peace of the township, having held 
 lliC office for thirteen years. During; his 
 service as mayor of the city the water works 
 were put in. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. McGuire are members of 
 the Baptist church, but now attend the Union 
 Protestant church of Metamora, and give 
 liberally of their means to its support. He 
 is also a member of the Grand Army post at 
 t.ureka, the ^Modern Woodmen camp at Met- 
 amora; Eureka Lodge, F. & A. M. ; Wash- 
 ington Chapter, R. A. M. ; El Paso Com- 
 mandery, K. T. ; and Mohamet Temple of 
 the Mystic Shrine at Peoria. During his 
 long residence in Woodford county he has 
 championed every movement designed to 
 promote the general welfare, has supported 
 e\ery enterprise for the public good, and has 
 materially aided in the advancement of all 
 social and moral interests. After a useful 
 and honorable career he can well afford to 
 lay aside all business cares and live in ease 
 and retirement. 
 
 J. B. GOODWIX. 
 
 The well known and highly respected 
 citizen of Roanoke, Illinois, was born in 
 Salem, Roanoke county, Virginia, Septem- 
 ber 22, 1865, and is a wrthy representative 
 of old and honored families of that state. 
 The Goodwins were among the very earliest 
 settlers of the Old Dominion, the family be- 
 ing founded in Augusta county at a very 
 early day in the history of the colony. Our 
 subject's grandfather, Joseph Goodwin, was
 
 538 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 a native of that county, and his wife who 
 bore the maiden name of Polly Jenkins, was 
 also of Virginian stock. He died during 
 the childhood of John Goodwin, father of 
 our subject. The latter was born in 1830, 
 and spent his entire life in Roanoke county, 
 his occupation being that of farming. He 
 married Elizabeth Gaines, also a native of 
 Roanoke county, and a daughter of Major 
 Kemper Gaines, who served with distinction 
 as an officer in the war of 181 2. Her 
 brother, Thomas Gaines, was a soldier of 
 the ]\lexican war and a commissioned offi- 
 cer in the Ci\il war. He died in Clarks- 
 ville, Texas. Mrs. Goodwin's grandfather, 
 Colonel Gaines, was one of the heroes of 
 the Revolutionary war. It will thus be seen 
 that her family has been well represented in 
 the wars of his county. Her grandfather 
 was a native of Scotland and located in Vir- 
 ginia at a very early day. 
 
 Our subject was the fifth in order of 
 birth in a family of seven children, the others 
 being as follows: Thomas P., and C. E., 
 both residents of Salem, Virginia; Anna, 
 wife of George Kern; Laura V., wife of E. 
 M. (hoss; Zelia, wife of Robert Sears; and 
 Kemper. With exception of our subject all 
 make their home in Salem, Virginia. 
 
 In the cmmty of his nativity J. B. Good- 
 win grew to manhodd, his education being 
 obtained in its public schools. In early life 
 he learned the carpenter's trade. Init later 
 gave his attention to carpentering an engin- 
 eering, continuing to follow those occupa- 
 tions in Virginia until 1885, when he came 
 west and settled in Roanoke. Illinois. Here 
 he was employed as engineer at the tile fac- 
 tory for two years, and then returned to 
 carpenter \\'ork, which he followed in Roan- 
 oke and vicinity until the spring of 1897, 
 when he took charge of the Roanoke electric 
 
 light plant for Isaac Snyder and has since 
 run it. He has also had the management of 
 a gristmill for Mr. Snyder. 
 
 On the 3rd of March, 1892, 'Sir. Good- 
 win was united in marriage with Miss 
 Mayme L. Hollenback, a daughter of Sam- 
 uel Hollenback, who 'lives near Belle Plaine, 
 Woodford county. Politically Mr. Good- 
 win is a stanch supporter of the Democratic 
 party, and socially is a member of the Mod- 
 ern Woodmen of America. He is widely 
 and favorably known and during his resi- 
 dence in Roanoke has made many warm 
 friends. 
 
 ALEXANDER HAWK. 
 
 Among the leading and influential farm- 
 ers and stock raisers of Linn township, 
 \\^oodford county, who thoroughly under- 
 stand their business, and pursue the \oca- 
 tioft of their chosen calling in a methodical 
 and workmanlike manner, is the subject of 
 this biography. He resides on section 11, 
 and owns a well improved and highly culti- 
 vated farm of one hundred and twenty 
 acres. 
 
 A native of Illinois, Mr. Hawk was born 
 in Tazewell county, September 5, 1845, and 
 is a son of Philip and Sarah (Kerr) Hawk, 
 both natives of Brown county, Ohio, the 
 former born in 181(1. the latter in 1815. 
 His paternal grandfather, John Hawk, a 
 soldier of the war of 181 2, died about 1825, 
 when Philip was only nine years old, and 
 
 the maternal grandfather, Kerr, died 
 
 in 181 8, when the mother of our subject 
 was but three. The parents were reared 
 and educated in their native county, and 
 there they were united in marriage. In 
 1844 thev came to Illinois and first settled in
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 539 
 
 Tazewell county, where the fatlier purchased 
 land anil fnllowcd farming for ten years. 
 At the end of that time he came to Wood- 
 ford county, and from the unhroken prairie 
 de\elo])ed a tine farm, owning at the time 
 of his death two hundred and forty acres. 
 During the '70s he speculated in land and 
 was quite successful. He tlied at his home 
 in Linn township, in i8y8, after a residence 
 there of forty-one years. In politics he was a 
 Democrat, hut took no active part in polit- 
 ical ati'airs. though he alwaj's gave his sup- 
 \)oTt to any enterprise calculated to pro\-e 
 of puhlic heneht. 
 
 Our suhject is the second in order of 
 hirth in a family of eight children, all of 
 whom reached years of maturity. The 
 others were as follows : J(jhn, horn in Ohio, 
 served four years as a soldier of the Civil 
 war, an died on the old homestead in Linn 
 township, in 1871'). Mincr\a is li\ing on 
 the home farm. Mary wedded William 
 Hopwood, and died at the age of twenty- 
 two years, leaving one daughter, Lillie, now 
 the wife of Isaac Black. Sarah married 
 Samuel W'hitmore, of Roanoke townshi)), 
 Wootlford county, and died at the age of 
 twenty-five years, leaving one son, John, now 
 a resident of California. James is living 
 in Linn ti i\\ nshij). Maria L. lives on the old 
 homestead. I'lora is the wife of Samuel 
 Rohinson, of Cazeni i\ia township, \\'o( idfi <vi\ 
 county. The children were all educated in 
 the district school near their early home. 
 
 Alexander Hawk attended school hoth 
 in Tazewell and Woodford counties, and 
 under the direction of his father acfjuired 
 an excellent knowledge of every department 
 of farm work. He remained under the 
 parental roof until he was married, in Oc- 
 toher, 1866, to IMiss Hatie \'an Bu.skirk, 
 a native of Marshall countv, Illinois, hv 
 
 whom he had three children, hut all died 
 in childhood. The wife and mother tlied 
 in May, i87[. They lived for a time in 
 Clayton townshi]), \\'oodford county, and 
 then returned to Linn township, where her 
 death occurred. After the death of his wife 
 Mr. Hawk lived r>ith his parents for three 
 years. In 1874 he was married again, his 
 second union being with Miss Mary Whiten, 
 who was horn in Tazewell county, Decemlier 
 T,i. T850, and is the fourth in order of 
 hirth in a familv of six children, two sons 
 and four daughters. Her ])arents are both 
 deceasetl. Of the four children horn to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hawk, Charles died in 1887, 
 at the age of ten years, and William died 
 in 1888, at the age of nine. I'liilip, the eld- 
 est of the family, married Daisy I'erry, and 
 have one daughter, Marian. He lives with 
 his father and assists in the operation of the 
 farm, lie attended college in Bloomington 
 an Juneka, taking a lousiness and commer- 
 cial course, (irace, the only daughter, re- 
 ceived a good high-school education, and is 
 row successfully leaching in the district 
 schools. 
 
 In 1874 Mr. Hawk made his hrsl jiur- 
 chase of land, consisting of eighty acres in 
 Linn townshi]), to which lie has since added 
 a forty-acre tract, all of which has been im- 
 ])roved by him. He has tiled and fenced 
 llie land and erected thereon good modern 
 buildings. He operates two hundred acres 
 of land in connection with general farming 
 and engages in stock raising, to which he 
 formerly devoted most of his time and at- 
 tention. In political sentiment he is a Demo- 
 crat, but at local elections votes for the man 
 and not the party. He has. filled the offices 
 of collector and assessor, and at present is 
 serving as school treasurer of his township. 
 As a public-spirited and progressive citizen
 
 540 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 he takes a commendable interest in any en- 
 terprise tending to advance the moral, social 
 or material welfare of his community. Re- 
 ligiously both he and his wife are members 
 of the ^Methodist Episcopal church. 
 
 TJARK EILTS. 
 
 Tjark Eilts, agent for the Kenning 
 Brewing Company, of INIendota, Illinois, for 
 the city of Minonk, is a native of Hanover, 
 Germany, his birth having occurred July 
 9, 1843. He accompanied his parents, L. 
 E. and E. K. Eilts, to the United States in 
 1856, and for sixty- four daj'S was tossed 
 to and fro upon the broad Atlantic. Com- 
 ing direct to Illinois, the family located in 
 Peoria, where the father worked at vari- 
 ous pursuits. Our subject had attended the 
 public schools in his native land prior to his 
 emigration, and after becoming a resident 
 of this republic it was not his privilege to 
 devote much time to his education while he 
 was young. The father is still living, and 
 on the 1 2th of March, 1900, passed the 
 eighty-third anni^'ersary of his birth. The 
 mother died in August, 1899, when about 
 eighty-two years old. They have been iden- 
 tified with the German Lutheran church for 
 many years, and their lives have been noble 
 and worthy of praise, in every respect. To 
 their children they leave the priceless herit- 
 age of an untarnished name and record. 
 Margaret, the eldest daughter, is the wife of 
 Peter Wuebbens, and resides near Flannigan, 
 Illinois, and John J. and Tjamde are unmar- 
 ried and living with their father. 
 
 Tjark Eilts, as the eldest son and main- 
 stay of his parents, remained with them an.d 
 assisted in the support of the family until 
 
 he was nearly thirty years of age. For six 
 years thereafter he was actively engaged in 
 farming, and eighteen years ago he embarked 
 in his present line of business. For a score 
 of years he has been a citizen of Minonk, 
 which has grown rapidly, and, though he 
 is not a politician, he does his duty as a 
 patriot, and performs his full share of the 
 obligations devolving upon him, as a \()ter 
 and inhabitant of a prosperous republic. 
 His business ability is beyond ciuestion, and 
 that his firm appreciates his services on its 
 behalf is shown by the long period of his 
 connection with the one house. 
 
 On the 1 2th of July, 1873, Mr. Eilts mar- 
 ried JNIiss Imke Cordsen, daughter of Jacob 
 and Renc^ldt Cordsen, both of whom died 
 when she was a }-oung child. E. Catherina, 
 the first-born of our subject and wife, became 
 the wife of Otto Klatt, and their only child 
 bears the name of Otillie. Jacob E., the 
 eldest son of Tjark Eilts, married Mary 
 Vosberg. He resides at IMinonk and is now 
 in his father's employ. The younger mem- 
 bers of the paternal fanfily include Irena 
 A. and A'illamena E. ; John J., who died 
 at the age of twenty-eight nuinths ; .Vnnic 
 T., who attends school; Matilda, who died 
 when twenty-se\en months old, one who 
 died uiuiamed, and Jiihn J., now eight years 
 of ase. 
 
 G. M. SIMPSON. 
 
 In the activities of the present age, we, 
 the heirs of generations of brave, hardy 
 pioneers who led the way for ci\'i]ization, 
 by going forth into the untrodden western 
 wildernesses and there ■"enduring all things, 
 suffering all things," are too apt to think 
 lightly or seldom of the debt of gratitude
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 54« 
 
 which we owe to tliose strong, noble souls 
 who "builded better than they knew." It 
 is fitting that the names and annals of all of 
 the worthy founders of each county and state 
 should be handed down in the records of 
 progress, for in biographies of active workers 
 on the world's stage are to be found the 
 truest histories of a nation's development. 
 
 G. M. Simpson is a son of Harrison and 
 Maria (Combs) Simpson, who indefatigably 
 labored in making a home and provision for 
 their large family on the prairies of this state. 
 The father was born in Ohio in the early 
 part of this century, and was of Scotch de- 
 scent. His father, who was one of llie 
 early settlers in the Buckeye state, was a 
 native of the land of the thistle and heather, 
 but for a wife he chose a lady, who, though 
 a native of Pennsylvania, was of German 
 extraction. Mrs. Harrison Simpson, born 
 in Virginia. October 19, 1S13, resides at the 
 home of her daughter, Mrs. .\nna C. Hop- 
 wood, of Livingston county, and has sur- 
 vived her husband nearly sixteen years. He 
 came to Illinois in 1848 and tiiree years sub- 
 sequently became a farmer of this county. 
 In the course of time he became well to do 
 and prominent, owning and cultivating more 
 than a section of fine land. In all the varied 
 relations of life he proved himself true, just 
 and competent to meet every responsibility. 
 He occupied numerous minor local offices and 
 for many years was a deacon in the Baptist 
 church. 
 
 G. M. Simpson, the fifth of eight chil- 
 ihen, was born in Canton, Illinois, October 
 27, 1849. His older brothers were William 
 Henry, J- A. and W. C. The last named, 
 vvho was an able and successful lawyer, 
 served as state's attorney and occupied nu- 
 merous public positions in this count)-, and 
 after going to Emporia, Kansas, where he 
 
 also held a iwsition as prosecuting attorney, 
 and was retained as legal advisor of the 
 Santa Fe Railroad, he died, in the midst of 
 his activities. Benjamin F., who also has 
 been an attorney and commanded an ex- 
 tensive practice until he removed to Chicago, 
 is now engaged in the real estate business. 
 Charles T., the youngest brother, married 
 Lillie Humphrey and carries on a farm in 
 this county. Catherine, wife of John Hop- 
 wood, is numbered among the agricultural 
 class of Livingston county, and Laura 
 wedded E. B. Kipp, who is a lumber mer- 
 chant of Evanston, Illinois. 
 
 The birthplace of our subject is in Can- 
 ion, Illinois, and his early years were passed 
 on a farm. When he was a mere lad a taste 
 for commercial life was developed in him, 
 after completing a public school course he 
 attended Illinois State University at Cham- 
 paign, Illinois, and thoroughly mastered the 
 business branches taught there. In 1882 he 
 located in Woodford, and since that time 
 has been connected with the grain trade of 
 tins section of the state. As this region 
 is exceptionally fertile and productive of 
 grain, a large and flourishing business is 
 carried on, and Mr. Simpson attends to the 
 management of three elevators here. He 
 possesses marked ability and foresight, and 
 to his efforts much of the financial activity 
 of this place is due. He is considered one 
 of the substantial men of the local business 
 world, and in every respect is a progressive 
 and public-spirited citizen. 
 
 On the 9th of January, 1880, Mr. Simp- 
 son married Miss Sophronia H. Colean, 
 daughter of Edward and Nancy Colean, for- 
 merly of Jerseyville, Illinois. The father 
 is deceased and is survived by his wife, 
 Mrs. Simpson is a native of this state, and 
 for several years prior to her marriage was
 
 542 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 numbered among its successful teachers. 
 Slie enjoyed the advantages of an excellent 
 education, and is a graduate of Mt. Carroll 
 Seminary. Four children bless the union 
 of this worthy couple, namely : Colean, Cora, 
 Stella and Lorena. 
 
 In his political faith Mr. Simpson is a 
 Republican, taking marked interest in the 
 success of his party. Fraternally he is a 
 member of the Modern Woodmen of Ameri- 
 ca and the Court of Honor. In the home 
 circle he finds his deepest happiness, and as 
 a husband and father, son and neighbor, his 
 life has been above reproach. He delights in 
 surrounding his dear ones with advantages 
 and everything which contributes to an at- 
 tractive home of culture. At the same time 
 he is every ready to extend a helping hand 
 to the poor and afflicted, and all who know 
 him speak of him in terms of praise and ap- 
 preciation. 
 
 PROFESSOR I. G. LIXVILLE. 
 
 Among Roanoke's best known and most 
 popular citizens is Professor Linville, prin- 
 cipal of the public schools of that place. He 
 was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, on 
 the nth of February, 1864, and is a son of 
 D. J. and Rachel (Rosetta) Linville, also 
 natives of Lancaster county. The Linville 
 family was founded in this country by three 
 brothers, who came to America with Will- 
 iam Penn and settled in Pennsylvania. One 
 of the number later went to Ohio and found- 
 ed a branch of the family there, another went 
 south and was never afterward heard from. 
 The other one remained in Pennsylvania and 
 he was the great-great-grandfather of our 
 subject. 
 
 B. J. Linville, the Professor's father, was 
 
 a farmer by occupation. In 1870 he left his 
 native state and witli his family removed to 
 Russell county, Kansas, where they spent one 
 summer, and then moved to Mason City, 
 Illinois, making that place their home for 
 five years. Subsequently they lived for a 
 short time on a farm near that city, and in 
 1883 removed to La Platte, Adair county, 
 ^Missouri, where Mrs. Linville died in 1895. 
 The father is now a resident of New Hol- 
 land, Logan county, Illinois. In the family 
 vvere sev.en children, namely: H. F., a resi- 
 dent of New Holland ; Mary, wife of David 
 Berrier, of Kirksville, Missouri; B, J., of 
 New Holland; George, who died in infancy; 
 I. G., the subject of this sketch; Rose, wife 
 of John Brown, of Vinton, Iowa ; and Robert 
 N., a minister of the Christian church at 
 Canton, Missouri. 
 
 Professor Linville received his prelim- 
 inary education in the public schools of Ma- 
 son City, Illinois, and in 1883 entered the 
 Brashear Academy at Brashear, Missouri, 
 where he continued his studies until 1886, 
 and while a student there he was also em- 
 ployed as instructor in that institution. 
 He next attended the State Normal School 
 at Kirksville, Missouri, for one year. For 
 one vear he taught at the Brashear public 
 schools, and for the same length of time at 
 Bee Grove, Illinois. He was then elected 
 principal of the Brashear public schools, in 
 which capacity he served two years, and at 
 the end of that time entered the normal 
 school at Valparaiso, Indiana, where he was 
 a student during the school year of 1893- 
 1894. In the fall of the latter year he ac- 
 cepted the principalship of the schools at 
 Broadwell, Illinois, and served in that ca- 
 pacity for five years. In 1899 he accepted 
 liis present position as principal of the 
 schools at Roanoke, which he has since filled
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 543 
 
 in a most creditable and satisfactory man- 
 ner. He is progressive in his methods and 
 has never ceased to be a student, but while 
 teaching has attended the summer schools 
 at Valparaiso, Indiana, i-'entnii, Michigan, 
 and at Hoopeston, Illinois. He has been 
 granted the degrees of Bachelor of Science, 
 Bachelor of I'liilosophy and Bachelor of 
 Fed agog}-. 
 
 On the 24th of June, 1896, Professor 
 Linville was united in marriage with Miss 
 Katherine Ginther, of New Holland, Illinois. 
 Iraternally he is a member of the Masonic 
 order, the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
 lows and the Court of Honor. He is an 
 earnest and successful educator, who is out- 
 I. -inked by few in thoroughness of prepara- 
 tion and scope of experience. 
 
 HERBERT D. LEWIS. 
 
 Herbert D. Lewis, the well-known editor 
 and proprietor of the Benson Bee, is a nati\e 
 of Woodford county, born in Eureka, in 
 1867, and is a son of G. W. and Helen M. 
 (Bidwell) Lewis, natives of New York, and 
 representatives of old families of that state. 
 The father is a contractor and builder, and 
 with his partner has probably built nearly 
 one-third the houses of Eureka. For over 
 fifty years he and his wife have traveled life's 
 journey together, sharing its joys and sor- 
 rows, its adversity and prosperity, and on the 
 14th of August, 1900, celebrated their golden 
 wedding. Our subject is the youngest of their 
 children. Of those still living, Mrs. Lillie 
 Krater resides with her parents; Crayton is a 
 farmer of Worth township, Woodford coun- 
 ty; and Emma is the wife of I. G. Leach, 
 
 a farmer of Paxton, Illinois. One son, 
 Fred, died at the age of two years, and a 
 daughter, ]\Iinnie, married James Snead. 
 She died in Peoria at the age of twenty- 
 three years. 
 
 The subject of this sketch was educated 
 in the Eureka schools, and at the age of nine- 
 teen completed the course of study at the 
 high school, after which he was chosen sec- 
 ond assistant in tliat institution and filled 
 that position one year. Later he taught in 
 various district schools for nine years, and 
 during vacations studied the printer's trade. 
 After giving up teaching he entered the 
 office of the "Woodford Courier" as com- 
 l^ositor, and worked three years. In 1896 
 he worked for D. Davis, the editor of the 
 Benson paper, and afterwards connected 
 with the "Journal" office. On the 8th of De- 
 cember, 1899, he established the "Benson 
 Bee," a bright, newsy sheet, which he pub- 
 lishes wholly as a local newspaper, making no 
 effort to write politics, but running it solely 
 as an independent paper. Mr. Lewis also has 
 a fine job printing department, which has 
 proved quite profitable. With his work as 
 reporter and other duties connected with the 
 office, he is a very busy man, and is meeting 
 with well deserved success. 
 
 In 1894 Mr. Lewis was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Maude C. Fisher, of Eureka 
 a daughter of J. L. Fisher, a retired farmer 
 of that place, and to them have been born one 
 child, Harold. In 1898 Mr. Lewis served as 
 city clerk of Eureka. He is a member of 
 Walnut Grove Lodge, No. 344, K. of P., 
 of that city, of which he is past chancellor, 
 and also belongs to the LTniform Rank of the 
 same order. Religiously he is a member of 
 the Presbyterian church of Eureka, as is also 
 his wife, who was an active worker in the 
 church during her residence there. They
 
 544 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 liave made many fi-ieiids since cuniing to 
 Benson, and wherever known are held in 
 high resard. 
 
 JOSEPH A. HOLMAN. 
 
 This gentleman, who is one of Wash- 
 burn's highly esteemed citizens and an hon- 
 ored veteran of the Civil war, claims Indi- 
 ana as his native state. He was born on the 
 20th of July, 1828, and is a son of Tanda 
 and Laura (Parker) Holman, the former 
 a native of Kentucky, the latter of Xew 
 ^'ork. The father grew to manhood in 
 Kentucky and there learned the cabinet- 
 maker's trade, which he made his life work. 
 At an early day he moved to Indiana, and 
 in 1855 came to Pattonsburg, \\'oodford 
 county, Illinois, but his last days were spent 
 in Missouri. His wife survived him some 
 years and died near Columbia, that state. In 
 their family w^ere eleven children, several of 
 whom were soldiers of the Civil war, while 
 the father aided in the defense of his coun- 
 try in the war of 18 12. Of the children 
 Emaline and Elizabeth both died in ;\Iis- 
 souri; Joseph is the next of the family; 
 Gideon entered the Union service from 
 Woodford county, Illinois, and later died in 
 that county; Samuel is a resident of Wash- 
 burn; John enlisted in Woodford county, 
 and is now living in the state of Washing- 
 ton; William was captain in an Indiana 
 regiment and died in that state; Frank en- 
 listed at Springfield, Illinois, served two 
 years, and is now a resident of Petersburg 
 Junction, Indiana. 
 
 In 1852 Joseph Holman first came to 
 Woodford county, Illinois, where he en- 
 gaged in farming for a time, but prior to 
 the Rebellion moved to Kentucky. In Can- 
 
 ton. Trigg county, that state, he enlisted, in 
 1863, in Company M, Third Kentucky Cav- 
 alry, under Colonel Murray and Captain 
 vShaw. He was mustered in at that place, 
 his regiment being assigned to the Army 
 cf the Cumberland. He did garrison duty 
 most of the time, and went on a scouting 
 expedition along the Cumberland river. 
 The war having ended he was honorably 
 discharged at Catis, Trigg county, Kentucky, 
 in 1S63. 
 
 ^^ hile li\ing in Kentuckv ^Ir. Holman 
 \\as married, in Trigg county, to Miss 
 Penina El ridge, of that state, who died leav- 
 ing one child, Joe; now a resident of Colo- 
 rado. Mr. Holman was again married, in 
 U'oodford county, Illinois, his second union 
 l-.eing with Rebecca Pickins, who also died 
 leaving one child, Amanda. In 1875 ^''^ ^'^' 
 turned to Woodford county, and now makes 
 liis home in Washburn, where he is well 
 known and highly respected. In his political 
 affiliations he is a Republican. 
 
 PERRY W. HOSHOR. 
 
 The subject of this review was for many 
 vears one of the most prosperous and 
 wealthy citizens of Spring Bay township, 
 Woodford county, Illinois, and was promi- 
 nently identified with the agricultural inter- 
 ests. He met death by accident November 
 21, 1892, and his loss w.s mourned by a 
 large circle of friends and acquaintances. 
 
 A native of Woodford county, Mr. 
 Hoshor was born on the old homestead in 
 Spring Bay township. November 5, 1841, 
 and was a worthy representative of one of 
 its prominent pioneer families. His father, 
 William Hoshor, was born in Pennsylvania,
 
 PERRY W. KOSHOR.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 547 
 
 and in an early day came to tliis state, being 
 one of tlie first to locate in what is now 
 Spring Bay township, \\'oodford county, 
 where he erected a grist and saw-mill, and 
 also opened up a farm, becoming one of 
 the ])rominent and successful business men 
 of that section. 
 
 Upon the home farm Perry \\'. Hoshor 
 grew to manhood, and his primary educa- 
 tion, obtained in the local schools, was sup- 
 plemented by a course at Marion. Ohio. He 
 thus obtained a good practical education, and 
 by subsequent reading and observation be- 
 came a well-informed man. He succeeded 
 to the home farm, and to it added more land 
 until he had over six hundred acres in one 
 tract, while his landed possessions here and 
 elsewhere amounted to nearly two thousand 
 acres of choice farming land under a high 
 state of cultixation and well improved. He 
 was a thorough and systematic farmer, and 
 a reliable and energetic business man, who 
 carried forward to successful completion 
 whatever he undertook. 
 
 In Spring Bay township, June i8. 1865, 
 Mr. Hosher was united in marriage with 
 Miss Catherine Dwyer, who was born in 
 Ireland, but was reared in Woodford coun- 
 ty from her tenth year. On first coming to 
 America, her father, Dennis Dwyer, now de- 
 ceased, located in Indiana, and from there 
 moved to Woodford county, Illinois. Of the 
 eleven children born to Mr. and Mrs. Hosh- 
 or two are deceased, Ira having died at the 
 age of two months, and George at the age 
 of five years. Those living are as follows : 
 Mary, wife of Solomon Belsley, of Roan- 
 oke; Cordelia, wife of William Frederick, 
 whose sketch appears on another page of this 
 volume; William D. ; Alfred, who is mar- 
 ried and carries on the home farm ; Ellen ; 
 John; Dora; Talbert and Christian, all at 
 
 home with their mother. Since her hus- 
 band's death Mrs. Hosher has built a com- 
 modious and pleasant residence in Spring 
 Bay, where she now resides, while her sons 
 operate the farm. She is a most estimable 
 lady and the family are widely and favora- 
 l)ly known. 
 
 Politically Mr. Hoshor was a stanch 
 Democrat, but never a.spired to ofllice. His 
 career was ever such as to win for him the 
 confidence and respect of those with whom 
 he came in contact, either in business or so- 
 cial life, and he well deserved the high re- 
 gard in which he was uniformly held. 
 
 JACOB J. FAW. 
 
 As an energetic and progressive farmer 
 Jacob J. Faw has been actively identified 
 with the development and upbuilding of 
 \\'oodford county for over a third of a cen- 
 tury, his home being on section 9, Linn town- 
 ship, since 1862. He was born in Monroe 
 county, Indiana, August 22, 1832, a son of 
 Jacob and Mary (Callaway) Faw, who were 
 born, reared and married in North Carolina. 
 On the paternal side he was of German de- 
 scent. He has one uncle, John Faw, who 
 was a soldier in the war of 1812. His ma- 
 ternal ancestors came to this country from 
 England prior to the Revolutionary war and 
 settled in Ashe county. North Carolina. 
 After their marriage the parents of our sub- 
 ject continued to reside in their native state 
 for a time, and then moved to Indiana, where 
 Jacob J. was born, but in 1834 returned to 
 North Carolina and located on the farm 
 which they had previously occupied, making 
 it their home throughout the remainder of 
 their lives. The father was a farmer and
 
 54S 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 stock dealer and was a very successful man 
 for those days. In religious belief both he 
 and his wife were Baptists, and his father, 
 Jacob Faw, was a minister of the Dunkard, 
 or German Baptist church, at an early day. 
 Our subject's maternal grandfather, Elijah 
 Callaway, took a very active and prominent 
 part in public affairs and represented his 
 district in the state legislature many years. 
 
 Of the twelve children born to Jacob and 
 ]\Iary (Callaway) Faw, two died in infancy. 
 The others were Martin, a Confederate sol- 
 dier, who died from disease contracted in 
 camp; Eli, who died near Jacksonville, Illi- 
 nois, while moving to Missouri; Noah, who 
 died at about the age of twenty-six years; 
 Reuben, who lives at home in Ashe county. 
 North Carolina, at the age of seventy-four ; 
 Matilda, deceased wife of Alfred Graypeel, 
 of North Carolina; Caroline, deceased wife 
 of Harvey Johnson; Jacob J., our subject; 
 Mary A., wife of Winston Hartzog, of 
 North Carolina; Amos, wlto died in Mis- 
 souri ; and Franklin, a resident of North 
 Carolina. Farming has been the principal 
 occupation of the family and all have been 
 quite successful. 
 
 On the old homestead in North Carolina 
 Jacob J. Faw grew to manhood and he ac- 
 quired h-s education in the common schools 
 of the neighborhood. In 1853 he came to 
 Illinois and first located in Fulton county, 
 where he found employment as a farm hand. 
 Whil there he was married, in 1856, to Miss 
 Drusilla Barker, who was born in that coun- 
 ty, August 19, 1835, and they have become 
 the parents of five children : Caroline is the 
 wife of Pence Coble, of Newton, Kansas, 
 and they now have one child, Ina. Marvin, 
 a farmer and ex-assessor of Linn township, 
 Woodford coun<:y, Illinois, is married and 
 has seven children. Reuben, now serving 
 
 as assessor of Linn townshiiD, is married and 
 has four children. Mary is the wife of 
 Columbus Raines, of Iowa. Franklin is at 
 home assisting his father in the farm work. 
 Mr. Faw operated rented land in Fulton 
 county for eight years, and in 1862 came to 
 Woodford county and purchased his present 
 place, for which he paid ten dollars per acre, 
 although there were no improvements upon 
 the place at that time. He erected buildings 
 and immediately began to break and culti- 
 vate the land, converting it into a most de- 
 sirable land. Having succeeded in his new 
 home he has added to the original purchase 
 and now owns one hundred and twenty acres 
 of land on section 9, Linn township. He 
 also operates another tract of one hundred 
 and sixty acres, and carries on general farm- 
 ing and stock raising in a most profitable 
 manner. He has given his children good 
 common school educations and has always 
 taken an active interest in promoting edu- 
 cational affairs. Politically Mr. Faw is a 
 Republican, but has never been prevailed upon 
 to accept or hold public office. In early life 
 he and his wife united with the Baptist 
 church and formerly took an active part in 
 religious work. 
 
 PROF. BENJAMIN J. RADFORD. 
 
 Professor Benjamin J. Radford, dean of 
 the Bible department of Eureka College and 
 filling the chair of history and political sci- 
 ence in the College of Arts, was born near 
 the present city of Eureka, December 23, 
 1838. His parents, Benjamin and Frances 
 (Lawrence) Radford, were both natives of 
 Virginia and of English descent, the former 
 boi-n in Buckingham county, in 1797, the
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 549 
 
 hitter in Louisa county, in 1804. W'itli their 
 respective parents they moved to Kentucky 
 in tlie beginning of tiie nineteenth century, 
 anti were married in Christian count}-, in 
 1825. The grandfathers, Benjamin J. Rad- 
 ford and James Lawrence, were also natives 
 of Virginia and farmers by occupation. In 
 1834 our subject's parents came to IlHnois, 
 and located near Eureka, in what was then a 
 part of Tazewell county, but is now Wood- 
 ford county. Here the father purchased a 
 tract of government land, the deed for which, 
 signed by President Van Buren, is now 
 possession of our subject. The family un- 
 derwent many hardships and privations in- 
 cident U) pioneer life, having to go a long 
 distance to market, either to Peoria or Pekin. 
 Meeting with success in his new home the 
 father became the owner of several hundred 
 acres of land and was quite extensively en- 
 gaged in farming. He was one of the 
 earliest members and officers of the Christian 
 church, of Eureka, and gave liberally to its 
 support and to the building of both the 
 church and college. He was one of the first 
 to become interested in the latter and was one 
 of the charter members of the board of trus- 
 tees, which erected the first building. He re- 
 mained a member of the board until his 
 death, which occurred in September, 1857, 
 and at that time was also serving as deacon 
 and treasurer of the church. Politically 
 he was originally a Whig, and joined the 
 Republican party on its organization. He 
 was an anti-slavery man, but not an aboli- 
 tionist, and left Kentucky on account of the 
 baneful effect of slavery. His wife, who 
 was a quiet member of the church, but a 
 true Christian, died in October, 1864. 
 
 Professor Radford began his education 
 in the common schools of Woodford county, 
 and later attended Eureka College, from 
 
 which he was graduated in 1866, but in the 
 meantime he taught two district schools and 
 also served his county for three years as a 
 soldier of the Civil war. In May, 1861, at 
 the President's first call for seventy-five 
 thousand men, he enlisted in Compan}' G, 
 Seventeenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, 
 which was first sent to St. Louis and later 
 to St. Charles, Sulphur Springs and Cape 
 Girardeau, being on the march the most of 
 the first year. In the spring of 1862 they 
 participated in the battle of Fort Donelson, 
 followed by the battles of Shiloh and Cor- 
 inth and the siege of Vicksburg, where they 
 remained during the winter of 1863-4. In 
 June of the latter year Professor Radford 
 returned to Springfield, Illinois, where he 
 was mustered out with the rank of corporal. 
 He then re-entered college and was gradu- 
 ated in 1866. 
 
 Having prepared for the ministry, he 
 engaged in preaching until the fall of 1870, 
 one year as pastor of the Christian church 
 at Niantic, Macon county, Illinois, where 
 he dedicated a new church, and then became 
 connected with the faculty of Eureka Col- 
 lege, holding the chair of Latin and history. 
 In 1 88 1 he was called to the pastorate of 
 a (christian church in Des Moines, Iowa, 
 and was also made first president of Drake 
 LTniversity, that city, filling that position 
 until the fall of- 1883, when he returned to 
 Eureka College to take charge of the Bible 
 department. He was also pastor of the 
 Christian church in Eureka until 1885, when 
 he was called to the Richmond Street Chris- 
 tian church at Cincinnati, Ohio, and became 
 associate editor of the Christian Standard, 
 which position he still holds. In 1890 he 
 was made pastor of the Central Christian 
 church at Denver, Colorado, but two years 
 later returned to Eureka College and has
 
 550 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 since been connected with the Bible depart- 
 ment. He was elected dean in 1898, and 
 also fills the chair of histor}' and political 
 science. For the past eight years he has 
 been the owner of the "Eureka Journal," and 
 is quite prominently identified with public 
 affairs. He is a man of thoughtful, earnest 
 purpose, of strong intellectual endowments, 
 of broad charity and kindly nature, and by 
 all denominations, as well as his own peo- 
 ple, is held in the highest regard. 
 
 On the 15th of November, 1864, Pro- 
 fessor Radford was united in marriage with 
 Miss Rosa Alagarity, a daughter of Will- 
 iam S. Alagarity, the first sheriff of ^^■ood- 
 ford county and captain of Company A, 
 Eighty-sixth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, 
 during the Civil war. They have a family 
 of eight children, namely : Sadie, now Mrs. 
 A\'ilson, of Cincinnati ; William M., mana- 
 ger of the "Eureka Journal ;" Charles T., pas- 
 tor of the Christian church at Blackwell, 
 Oklahoma; Nora, at home; Florence, now 
 Mrs. Grifiith, of Eureka; Benjamin ]., Jr., 
 Theta and Lawrence, all at home. 
 
 GEORGE HERMAN ^^'ILLEAIS. 
 
 ^^'hile some men's lives are quietly and 
 peacefully spent within the inflences of a 
 home, others meet with adventures in the 
 course of their lives which read almost like 
 a romance. Bold and adventurous, they 
 penetrate into unknown lands, and meet un- 
 known dangers. Among the latter class is 
 the gentleman whose name introduces this 
 sketch. For several years he traveled ex- 
 tensively over the world, but is now living a 
 more quiet life in Roanoke, Illinois, where 
 he is succesfully engaged in the manufacture 
 of tile and brick. 
 
 Mr. ^^'illems was burn in Greetsiel. near 
 Emden, Germany, July, 12, 1866, and was 
 educated in the schools of his native land. 
 At the age of fourteen he went to \\'itten- 
 berg, where he ser\"ed an apprenticeship to 
 the machinist's trade for nearly three years, 
 Init on account of ill health was forced to 
 abandon the shop before his time expired. 
 He then returned home and remained there 
 until his health was restored. He next 
 went to sea as steward on the North German 
 Lloyd line, sailing from Bremen to Antwerp, 
 and from there to Lisbon, Portugal; the La 
 I'alnias Islands, St. Vincent Island, Rio 
 Janeiro, Brazil and Santos, returning thence 
 to Bremen the same way. He next went 
 to Argentine Republic, and made fourteen 
 trips on the Elbe, which was subsequently 
 sunk in a collision.. On the last trip with 
 the North German Lloyd line he visited all 
 the countries on the east coast of South 
 America. He was next employed as fire- 
 man on the railroad for a short time in Ar- 
 gentine Republic. Later he went to Pata- 
 gonia, from there to the Bahama Islands, 
 then Buenas Ayres to Valparaiso, Chili, over 
 the Los Andens. For a time he worked in 
 a saltpeter mine at the Pampas, and from 
 there went to Peru, where he boarded an 
 American vessel for the first time, remaining 
 on her for two years. She stopped at Port 
 Townsend and IMelbourne, Australia, then 
 went to New Castle, Sidney, Port Piere, 
 Australia, and from there to San Francisco. 
 He has also been in Japan and China. For 
 a time Mr. Willems was connected with the 
 coast trade between San Francisco and Ore- 
 gon, and then worked in Logan Camp, near 
 Seattle, W'ashington, for a few months, 
 after which he returned to sea. His last 
 trip was on a five-mast schooner, the Gov- 
 ernor Ames, which carried over one million
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 551 
 
 I 
 
 feet of lumber from Seattle around the Horn 
 to Liverpool, England. 
 
 Alter visiting- his old home in Germany, 
 Mr. W'illenis then came to America, landing 
 in New York. August 2^, 1894. He first wenr 
 to Baltimore, Maryland, where he remained 
 a short time, but later in the same year came 
 to Secor, Woodford county, Illinois, where 
 he was employed in a tile factory for about 
 two years. In 1898 he began the manu- 
 facture of brick and tile in Eureka on his 
 own account, and in 1899 moved his machin- 
 ery from that place to Roanoke, where he 
 has since successfully carried on business, 
 furnishing employment to from six to eleven 
 hands. He uses the refuse shale and fire 
 clay from the mines at this place, and manu- 
 factures all kinds of paving and building 
 brick, roof and drain tile. He is a wide- 
 awake, energtic business man, and has al- 
 ready met with substantial success in his 
 new undertaking. 
 
 In 1899 Mr. W'illenis was united in 
 marriage with Miss Ida Feen, a daughter of 
 John Eeen, of Roanoke. Mr. Willems is a 
 very intelligent, well-informed man, and is 
 able to speak several languages, including 
 English. Norwegian. Spanish, low and high 
 German. As a business man he is upright 
 and honorable in all his dealings, and is held 
 in high regard by tiie people of his com- 
 niunitw 
 
 (;akmer kleex. 
 
 (iarnier Kleen. nnw living retired from 
 the arduinis labors to which he has been ac- 
 customed throughout life, is a worthy e.x- 
 ample of the patriotic German-. \nierican 
 citizen. His career in this country, where 
 he arrived a poor youth, unfriended and with 
 little means, a stranger to the language and 
 
 customs of our people, possesses much of in- 
 terest and ins))iration to the younger gen- 
 erations. 
 
 The birth of Gamier Kleen, one nf the 
 prominent farmers of Woodford county, 
 occurred in Ciermany, December 3, 1838. 
 His father, II. Kleen, born in 1789, de- 
 parted this life in 1852, and the mother, 
 whose maiden name was Jane Struck, died 
 in Germany when in her seventy-third year, 
 in 1872. They reared seven children, and 
 oi these our sul)ject alone left the Father- 
 land. Henry died, unmarried, \\hen about 
 forty years old; Luban died at the age of 
 sixty and left a wife and one child: Elliott 
 departed this life wlien in his thirty-ninth 
 year, and Ihulj, who died at sixty-three, 
 left a family to mourn his loss : Rinste is 
 the wife oi George UphofY, a (ierman farm- 
 er, and Etie, wife of Henry Schultz, also re- 
 ^ides in Germany. 
 
 From his boyhood, Gariner Kleen has 
 been devoted to agricultural pursuits. In 
 1856 he embarked on a sailing vessel bound 
 for the United States, and at the end of a 
 four-weeks voyage arrived in Xew York 
 city. Thence he proceeded to Peoria, and 
 later went to Pekin, where he found em- 
 pk)yment in a brickyard. At the end of a 
 year or more he rented some land and in 
 dustriously set about its cultivation. W'lien 
 he had made a good beginning, he bought 
 eighty acres of land in Woodford county, 
 and from time to time, as his means per- 
 mitted, made additional investments in 
 farmlands. Xow, in his declining years, he 
 (.wns upwards of thirteen hundred acres of 
 v. ell improved property, about seven hundred 
 acres being located in Clay county and the 
 remainder in Woodford and Henry counties. 
 "Diligence in business" has been the prime 
 factor in his unusual success, and his indus-
 
 552 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 try has been no more marked than his in- 
 tegrity and sterling justice. Thus those wlio 
 are life-long acquaintances of his rejoice in 
 the prosperity which crowned his toil, and no 
 one envies his good fortune. 
 
 In 1868 Mr. Kleen married Dora Kalk- 
 warf, who died within two years, as also did 
 their little one. In 1872 our subject chose 
 Trinche Johnson, a native of Germany, for 
 2. wife, and after twelve years of happy wed- 
 ded life she was summoned to the home 
 beyond. She was about forty years of age, 
 and for a long time had been a faithful 
 member of the Lutheran church. Harmon, 
 their eldest child, is unmarried, and is a 
 farmer of Henry county, Illinois, and Jane 
 keeps house for him. Reka, who became the 
 wife of Harmon Kelm, has two sons. Otto 
 and Garmer. The younger children are 
 Gretje, Henry, Dorothea and Jettie. In 1885 
 Mr. Kleen married Teelka, daughter of 
 Klaas Frederichs, and three children bless 
 this union, namely : Klaas, Garmer and 
 Freadrig. 
 
 In his home Mr. Kleen is kind and af- 
 fectionate, and it is a great pleasure to him 
 to provide his dear ones with all the essen- 
 tials to their comfort and happiness. With 
 his wife he is identified with the Lutheran 
 church, and contributes liberally to religious 
 work. Quietly he has pursued the pathway 
 of right, as far as he knew it, and undoubt- 
 edly his influence has ever been salutary and 
 wholesome in his community . 
 
 WILLIAM H. BOCOCK. 
 
 There is probably no man in Washburn 
 wider or more favorably known than Will- 
 iam H. Bocock, who has made his home in 
 Woodford county since 1852, and is rec- 
 
 ognized as one of the important factors in 
 its progress and development. For many 
 }ears he was actively identified with its ag- 
 ricultural and business interests, but has now 
 laid aside 'all business cares and is enjoying 
 the fruits of former toil. 
 
 Mr. Bocock was born in Highland coun- 
 ty, Ohio, March 12, 1835, and is a son of 
 George W. and Martha (Adams) Bocock, 
 natives of Virginia and Ohio, respectively. 
 In 1836 they brought their family to Illi- 
 nois and first located in Fulton county, where 
 the father took up land and engaged in farm- 
 ing until 1852, when he removed to Wood- 
 ford county, settling on a tract of govern- 
 ment land in Linn township, which he im- 
 proved and transformed into a good farm. 
 There he died in 1875, his wife in 1863, 
 honored and respected liy all who knew 
 them. To this worthy couple were born 
 ten children, as follows : Mrs. Ellen John- 
 son, of Canton, Illinois ; Hannah, who died 
 in Benson, ^^'oodford county; Mrs. Sarah 
 Spencer, of Fairljury, Illinois ; Melissa, who 
 died in Fulton county ; John, who served one 
 year as a member of Companj' H, Eleventh 
 Illinois Volunteer Infantry, during the 
 Civil war, and died in Linn township, 
 \\'oodford county, in 1874; jNIrs. JNIartha 
 Rann, of Fairfield, Iowa; ]\Irs. Melissa 
 Fisher, of Nebraska; Joseph, who enlisted 
 at Minonk in the Forty-seventh Illinois Reg- 
 iment and died in the service, at Jefferson 
 City, Missouri, in 1862; Maria, who died in 
 Fulton count}^ Illinois; and William H., of 
 this re\'iew. 
 
 William H. Bocock was reared and edu- 
 cated in Fulton county, and in 1852 came to 
 Woodford county. He was successfully en- 
 gaged in farming in Linn township until 
 1885, when he moved to Washburn and em- 
 barked in the agricultural implement busi-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 553 
 
 ness, wliich lie carried on for six years, but 
 since that time has lived a retired life. 
 
 At Canton, Fulton county, Mr. Bocock 
 was married, November 30, 1865, to Miss 
 Julia Johnson, a daughter of Richard and 
 Katie (Fouts) Johnson, the former a native 
 of Norath Carolina, the later of Virginia. 
 They were among the pioneers of Fulton 
 county, having located there when the In- 
 dians were far more numerous in that locality 
 than the white settlers, and there the father 
 developed and improved a farm. Both parents 
 died in that county. Mr. and Mrs. Bocock 
 have three children : Mrs. Ida Bird, a res- 
 ident of Aspen, Colorado; Stephen, who is 
 married and lives in Washburn, Illinois; and 
 Mrs. Cora Streeper, of Fairbury, this state. 
 
 Mr. Bocock joined the boys in blue dur- 
 ing the Civil war, enlisting at Minonk, in 
 September, 1861, serving for three }'ears or 
 during the w-ar, as a member of Company 
 H, Seventy-seventh Illinois Volunteer In- 
 fantry. He was mustered into the United 
 States service at Peoria, where the regiment 
 was assigned to the Army of the West, and 
 participated in many engagements, includ- 
 ing si.xteen regular battles, the siege of 
 Vicksburg, Mobile, Fort Morgan and 
 ' Blakesly, and the Red river expedition. At 
 Vicksburg he received a gunshot wound 
 and was also injured by the e.xplosion of a 
 shell. The war having ended and his serv- 
 ices being no longer needed, he was honor- 
 ably discharged at Mobile, July 10. 186^, 
 and returned to his home in \\'oodford coun- 
 ty, rie is ni)w an Ik mured member of 
 Woodruff Post, No. 321, G. .\. R., and by 
 his ballot he supports the men and measures 
 of the Republican party. He also belongs 
 to Washburn Lodge, No. 421, F. & A. M., 
 and is a member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 church. In all of life's relations he has 
 
 been fiiund true to every trust reposctl in 
 him, and his patriotism and loyalty tn coun- 
 try has never been doubted. 
 
 FR.\NK !•:. LEARNED. 
 
 This well known and poi)ular druggist 
 and the present mayor of Benson, Illinois, 
 is a native of Woodford county, burn in 
 Clayton township, June 8, 1862, and is a son 
 oi Frank D. and Rosa (Fisher) Learned, 
 natives of New Hampshire and \'ermont, 
 respectively. Our sul)ject's paternal grand- 
 parents, Harvey and Elvira (Derby) Lear- 
 ned, were also natives of New Hami)shire, 
 and the former was a farmer by occui)ation 
 and a man of considerable influence in his 
 community. He was a delegate to the na- 
 tional convention that nominated General 
 William H. Harrison for president, and cast 
 his last vote for that gentleman's grandson, 
 Benjamin Harrison. He lived to the ad- 
 \anced age of ninety-three years. 
 
 In 1855 our subject's father, Frank D. 
 Learned, came to Illinois, having previously 
 taught school in New Hampshire and Mas- 
 srchusetts and for two years in Delaware. 
 In this state he workcil as a farm hand at 
 Lee Center," Lee county, for three years, and 
 for the same length of time was similarly 
 employed in Woodford county. He then 
 purchased eighty acres of railroad land on 
 section 18, Clayton township, where he made 
 his home until 1873, when he moved to Ben- 
 son, becoming one of the first settlers of the 
 village, and serving as the first postmaster, 
 which office he held for nine years. He es- 
 tablished a drug store and carried it on un- 
 til 1888. when he sold out to our subject, 
 and for a time engaged in the b"tcl and
 
 554 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 livery business, but for the past four years 
 lias lived a retired life in Los Angeles, Cal- 
 ifornia. As a Republican he has always taken 
 an actix-e interest in political affairs; has 
 l.)een a delegate to count}', tlistrict and state 
 con\'entions, and in 1888 was an alternate 
 delegate to the national convention of his 
 party. He has filled many local offices, for 
 thirty-fix'e _\'ears, such as justice of the peace 
 and notary public, and was one of the suc- 
 cessful and progressi\-e men of Benson. Re- 
 ligiously he is a member of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church. On the loth of October, 
 1 86 1, he married Rosa Fisher, and to them 
 were born three children : Frank E., our 
 subject; Grant S., who married Arvilla Cole- 
 man and is engaged in farming in Marshall 
 county, Illinois; and Lydia C. who died at 
 the age of six years in Delaware, October 
 I, 1876. 
 
 Frank E. Learned began his education in 
 the home schools, and later attended Eureka 
 College, at Eureka, and Wesleyan College, at 
 Bloomington, Illinois, taking a classical 
 course. After one year spent at the latter in- 
 stitution he returned home and entered his 
 father's drug store, where he took up the 
 study (^f pharmacy. In 1888 he purchased 
 the store, and has since carried it on with 
 marked success. He carries a full line of 
 drugs, paints, wall paper, books, stationery 
 and no\-elties, and is enjoving a good trade. 
 
 On the 8th of .May, 1888, Mr, Learned 
 was united in marriage with Miss Mattie 
 Hu.xtable, also a nati\-e of Woodford county. 
 His father, James Huxtable, who was born 
 in England, took up his residence here in 
 1854, and was successfully engaged in farm- 
 ing in Greene township until 1886, when he 
 remo\-ed to Benson and li\'ed retired until 
 his death, which occurred in September, 
 1894. He was a large land owner and left 
 
 his family in comfortable circumstances. His 
 widow is still living in Benson. Of their 
 fifteen -children, Mrs. Learned is the eleventh 
 in order of birth. Our subject and his wife 
 ha\e two children : Dana H. and Elsie T., 
 both attending the home schools. The par- 
 ents are both active members of the Aleth- 
 odist Episcopal church and teachers in the 
 Sunday school, and I\Ir. Learned is also 
 a trustee of the church. 
 
 He cast his first presidential vote for 
 James G. Blaine in 1884, and has always af- 
 filiated with the Republican party. He is a 
 member of the township central committee 
 and has been a delegate to numerous conven- 
 tions. Since attaining his majority he has 
 taken an active interest in local aft'airs and 
 has filled various offices, serving as li.iwn 
 clerk three years; postmaster of Bensor. five 
 vears from 1889; village trustee six years; 
 and in 1900 was elected mayor, which office 
 he is now filling in a most creditable and sat- 
 isfactorv manner. 
 
 JAMES CASTXER IR\TXG. 
 
 There are few men in ]\Ietamora in the 
 past decade who have dmie more for its com- 
 mercial interests and its growth and devel- 
 opment than the gentleman whose name in- 
 troduces this sketch. He has cheerfully 
 given his support to those enterprises that 
 tend to public advancement and, with 
 hardl}- an exception, he has been connected 
 with e\ery interest that has promoted gen- 
 eral welfare. 
 
 A native of Woodford county, Mr. Ir- 
 \ing was liorn in Metamora, December 10, 
 1850, and by his many friends in this vi- 
 cinitx' he is familiarlv known as "Cass,"
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 555 
 
 His father. David Irving', was born 
 ill Somerset county, Xew Jersey, in 
 1820, and was a son of James Irving, a 
 native of the same count}', and grandson of 
 Daniel Irving, who was born in Scotland 
 and came to the new world in ciilonial days, 
 lieing one of the early settlers of Somerset 
 county. Xew Jersey, where in the midst of 
 the wilderness lie made for his family a 
 home. He was a commissioned oflicer in a 
 Xew Jersey regiment in the colonial wars, 
 and lived to the advanced age of one hun- 
 tlred years. Our suliject's grandfather. 
 James Irving, a carpenter, joiner and farmer 
 of Somerset county, died at the age of 
 ninety. 
 
 In his native state David Irving grew 
 to manhiind and learned the brickmason's 
 trade, which he followed there for several 
 years. In 1839 he came to Illinois and first 
 Iccateil at Jacksonville, where he worked at 
 his trade, assisting in the erection of a nuni- 
 lier of business houses and public buildings, 
 including the deaf and dumb asylum. In 
 1844 he contracted to build the court house 
 at ^letamora and so came to Woodford 
 county, where he started a brickyard, manu- 
 facturing the brick used in its construction. 
 This building was used as a court house for 
 over half a century, or until the county seat 
 was moved to Eureka, and is now the Met- 
 aiiiora opera house. As a contractor and 
 builder David Irving' was one of the lead- 
 ing Inisiness men of the place for some years, 
 and did much toward improving and devel- 
 oping Woodford county. He was called 
 upon to serve his fellow citizens in numer- 
 ous positions of trust and responsibility, in- 
 cluding the office of sheriff. Politically he 
 was a stanch supporter of the men and meas- 
 ures of the Democratic ])arty. He died in 
 ^letamora, June 6, 1898, honored and re- 
 
 spected by all who knew him. He married 
 iliss Esther E. Perry, a native of Chester 
 county, Pennsylvania, and a daughter of 
 Benjamin F. Perry. By this union were 
 born three children who reached years of 
 maturity! namely: Percival, who died at his 
 home in Metamora ; Eugene Douglas, a 
 farmer of \\'ortli township. Woodford coun- 
 ty; and James Castner, our subject. 
 
 James C. Irving received his primary ed- 
 ucation in the common schools of Metamora 
 and at the age of thirteen began his busi- 
 ness career as a clerk in the g-rocery store 
 of James F. Earl, where he was employed for 
 several years. Later he attended the pre- 
 paratory department of Eureka College dur- 
 irig the fall and winter terms for two years, 
 struggling to support himself and pay his 
 way by wijrking at anything which he could 
 find to do, sawing wood after night to pay 
 for a set of bookkeeping books. In the sum- 
 mer of 1869 he returned to Metamora and 
 for two years was employed as clerk in the 
 grocery store of C. Rohman. In October, 
 1871, he commenced work for Fisher & Gib- 
 son, under the direction of John F. Fuller, 
 an exjjert abstractor of titles, to prepare a 
 complete set of abstract books of Woodford 
 county, but the firm soon failed, and in Feb- 
 ruary, 1872, he entered the office of the 
 "Woodford Sentinel," where he began at the 
 bottom, learned the jirinter's trade and 
 worked his way upward until he became 
 foreman of the office, having full charge of 
 the local department until i88o. when he ac- 
 cepted the position of deputy circuit clerk, 
 serving as such eight years and becoming 
 thoroughly familiar with the duties of the 
 ofiice. He was then elected circuit clerk by 
 the largest majority ever given a county 
 officer in Woodford county, and filled that 
 position in a most creditable and satisfac-
 
 556 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tory manner for four years. At the end of 
 that time he refused to become a candidate 
 for re-election though urged to do so. He 
 was then appointed master in chancery, a po- 
 sition he held for the same length of time, 
 and could have been holding yet so far as his 
 ability to perform the work was concerned 
 and the endorsement of the bar could have 
 prevailed, never having been overruled in 
 any of his decisions and having been fully 
 sustained by the supreme court in every im- 
 portant case after most desperate strug- 
 gles on the part of eminent attorneys. In 
 1892 Mr. Irving embarked in the real estate 
 and loan business, in which he has met with 
 remarkable success, and to which he now 
 gives his entire time and attention. 
 
 On the nth of January, 1877, Mr. Irv- 
 ing was united in marriage with Mrs. Carrie 
 S. Kern, a daughter of F. F. and Caroline 
 (Starrett) Hirsch, of Metamora. She was 
 born in Suncook, New Hampshire, but was 
 reared and educated in Woodford county, 
 Illinois. 
 
 Politically Mr. Irving is a stanch Demo- 
 crat, and an active worker for his party's 
 interests. During the fight for the removal of 
 the county seat to Eureka he stood firmly by 
 his native township, and in the territory as- 
 signed to him did effective work, as the vote 
 still shows. On its removal he said to a few 
 friends who met him after the final decision 
 had been made : "Well, boys, there is no 
 use ti.1 crv ; it has gone; now let us put our 
 shoulders to the wheel and give old Meta- 
 mora a boom and we can have a good town 
 yet." Mr. Irving is accredited as father of 
 the water works of Metamora, having been 
 the original agitator of the system for fire 
 protection and drawing the plans for the 
 same, which he furnished free of cost to 
 the town. For four successive terms he 
 
 served as mayor and never were the reins of 
 city government in more capable hands, for 
 he is pre-eminently public-spirited and pro- 
 gressive, and gives his support to all meas- 
 ures for the public good. In July, 1900, he 
 was unanimously appointed supervisor of 
 his township to succeed D. M. Owen, de- 
 ceased, and is now acceptably filling that of- 
 fice. He is one of the best posted men of 
 the town, and as a genial, pleasant gentle- 
 man, he has become one of its most popu- 
 lar citizens. He has a large collection of 
 minerals, petrifications, Indian relics and va- 
 rious other curiosities in his office, and this 
 museum of interest is open and free to all. 
 
 S. H. WORTHINGTON. 
 
 Among the prominent business men of 
 El Paso is numbered S. H. Worthington, a 
 leading dry goods merchant of tat place. 
 He was born in Brooke county, ^\'est Vir- 
 ginia. August 23, 1842, and is a son of Rev. 
 S. G. J. and Mary (Hedges) Worthington, 
 natives of Maryland and ^'irginia, respect- 
 ivelv. His paternal grandfather, Nicholas 
 Worthington, was also a native of Mary- 
 land and a planter by occupation. He moved 
 to West Virginia when his son was about 
 ten years old and located in Brooke coun- 
 tv, where the latter grew to manhood. He 
 received a good collegiate education and at 
 an early day entered the ministrty of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church, to which he de- 
 voted fifty years of his life. He was pastor 
 of churches in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, and 
 \\'heeling, ^^'est A^irginia, and was presiding 
 elder of a district in the former state, his 
 residence being at Clarksburg. In 1857 he 
 came west and first located in Tazewell coun-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 557 
 
 ty. Illinois. He was the pastor of the First 
 Methodist church of Rock Island two years, 
 and later of the First church in Peoria, after 
 which he preached in Geneseo. Oniarg^a and 
 other places in the state. He was a presid- 
 ing elder for eight years in the Central Illi- 
 nois conference, and as a su]>eranuated 
 preacher lived retired the last two years of 
 his life at El Paso, where he died Septem- 
 ber 29. 1883, at the age of seventy-five 
 years. His wife survived him some time, 
 dying December 22, 1895. at the age of 
 eighty-nine years. In politics he was a Re- 
 publican. 
 
 To this worthy couple were born seven 
 children, and all but one reached years of 
 maturity. N. E., a resident of Peoria, has 
 served as judge of the circuit court and a 
 member of congress two terms, and is one of 
 the best known men of Illinois. He mar- 
 ried Elizal>eth Fouchs and they have fi\e 
 children. Jennie married J. W. Coates, and 
 died in Clearwater, Minnesota, at the age of 
 thirty years, leaving four children. S. II.. 
 our subject, is next in order of birth. Hilary 
 E. is the wife of George E. Hubbel, a lead- 
 ing attorney of Davenport, Iowa. Emma 
 L. is the wife of George Cunningham, of 
 Mannington, ^\'est Virginia. Ella died in 
 Genesee, Illinois, at the age of nineteen years. 
 
 Our subject was educated in the high 
 schools of Peoria. The Civil war having 
 broken out, he entered the army at the age of 
 nineteen years, enlisting in Company C. For- 
 ty-seventh Illinois Volunteer Infantry, under 
 Captain J. D. McClure and Colonel John 
 Bryner. The regiment was mustered into 
 the United States service at Springfield, in 
 September, 1862, and assigned to the Army 
 of the Mississippi. They went first to St. 
 Louis, and from there to Jefferson City, 
 where they remained until the spring of 
 
 1863, \\hen the}- went to Ottcrville and from 
 there to St. Charles, Mis.souri. Taking the 
 boat they proceeded to Pittsburg Landing, 
 and took part in the battle of Corinth, where 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Miles was killed. The 
 summer was spent in Mississippi, during 
 which time they participated in the second 
 battle of Corinth and the siege of Vicks- 
 burg. They were with Banks in his expe- 
 dition up the Red river, and took part in 
 the battle of luka. On transports they went 
 to Xachez. and in the spring of 1864 took 
 part in the engagements at Big Black river 
 and Jackson, Mississippi. During the siege 
 of \^icksburg Mr. Worthington's brigade 
 dug a canal around that city. His term of 
 enlistment having e.xpired, he returned to 
 Memphis, where he was mustered out, and 
 was discharged at Springfield, Ililnois, in 
 September, 1865. During his last year he 
 scrxx'd as quartermaster's clerk under Bri- 
 gade Quartermaster Thomas Pickerell, of 
 General J. A. Mower's brigade. 
 
 ;\fter his return to civil life Mr. Worth- 
 ingttin tausrht the Deer Creek school. Taze- 
 well county, and the Mossville school, Peoria 
 county. In the fall of 1867 he moved to a 
 farm in I"-l Paso township, Woodford coun- 
 ty, belonging to his father, and operated the 
 place one year. He entered the emjjloy of J. 
 P. Ferrell, at El Paso, and worked for him 
 three years, at the end of which lime lie went 
 to Fort Worth, Texas, where he was en- 
 gaged in tiie hotel business one year. On his 
 return north he engaged in farming near 
 Onarga. Illinois, one year and from there 
 went to Wichita, Kansas, where he fol- 
 lowed the same pursuit one year. Dis- 
 posing of his property there he returned to 
 El Paso, where he was engaged in the notion 
 business for eight years in partnership with 
 R. C. Springgate, under the firm name of
 
 558 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 S. H. W'orthington & Company. On account 
 of ill health he sold his interest in the busi- 
 ness to S. M. Ferrell and went to Colorado, 
 where he carried on the real estate business 
 one year. Since then he has made his home 
 uninterruptedly in El Paso, and has engaged 
 in the dry goods business alone, occupying 
 a double store room and carr^-ing a large and 
 well-selected stock of merchandise. lie is a 
 wide-awake, progressive business man, and 
 is meeting with excellent success. 
 
 January 20, 1869. Mr. Worthington was 
 united in marriage with Miss Sadie M. Fer- 
 rell. who died eighteen months later. Their 
 only child. George, died in infancy. For his 
 second wife Mr. Worthington married Miss 
 Jennie Carleton, a native o'^ Connecticut, and 
 a daughter of F. W. Carleton, who died in 
 El Paso. By this union were born two chil- 
 dren, Helen and Major Henry, both grad- 
 uates of the El Paso high school. The 
 daughter is now a trained nurse and was 
 with the army at Chickamauga, but is now 
 at home. The son completed a four years' 
 course at the Xorthwestern ■Medical Col- 
 lege, in Chicago, in igoo. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Worthington are both act- 
 ive members of the T\Iethodist Episcopal 
 church, iif which he has been a trustee for 
 many years, and he is also connected with S. 
 T. Rogers Post, No. 531. G. A. R., of which 
 he is senior past commander. Since casting 
 his first presidential vote for Abraham Lin- 
 coln, he has affiliated witli the Republican 
 party, but has never cared for political hon- 
 ors. 
 
 CHARLES H. GISH. 
 
 The subject of this personal narration 
 is one of the most enterprising and public- 
 spirited citizens of Roanoke, of which thriv- 
 
 ing village he is now efficiently serving as 
 mayor and also as a member of the school 
 board. He is a native of Woodford county, 
 born in Roanoke township, south of the vil- 
 lage, .\pril 27, 1867, and is a son of George 
 W. and Sarah Jane (Ruddell) (iish. lj(}th 
 natives of Roanoke, Virginia. In 1850 they 
 came to Illinois and took up their residence 
 alxuit one mile south of the present town of 
 Roanoke, where the father pre-empted a tract 
 of government land on the southwest quarter 
 of section 21,, Roanoke township, for which 
 he paid a dollar and a quarter per acre. He 
 was one of the early settlers from Roanoke, 
 Virginia, who gave to the township its name. 
 Here he followed farming for many years, 
 but in i8go sold his place and moved to 
 ( ireene township, where he made his hume 
 until called from this life, October, 1894. For 
 forty jrears he served as a minister of the 
 United Brethren church, and by his upright, 
 honorable life gained the confidence and re- 
 spect of all who knew him. After his death 
 his widow made her home with her children 
 until she departed this life. November 7, 
 1896. 
 
 This worthv couple had twelve children, 
 namely: T. \\'., now sheriiY of Wiiodford 
 county: L}-dia. wife of J. L. l'.r(iwn. of 
 Boise Cit^', Idaho; ^^'. B., a resident of (Ok- 
 lahoma; Bessie, wife of J. D. Kendig. nf 
 Gilman, Illinois; Addie and Emma, twins, 
 the former of whom is the wife of T. A. 
 Kobin.son, of Mansfield, Illinois ; the latter 
 the wife of C. L. IMoore. of North Dakota; 
 James L., who died in 1893 ; Maggie, wife of 
 Ross Polhemus, of Secor, Illinois; Charles, 
 our subject; Ed G. and Oscar J., twins, the 
 former a resident of Roanoke, the latter of 
 Greene township; and Calvin, deputy slieriff 
 of the county and a resident of Roanoke. 
 
 The boyhood and vouth of Charles H.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 559 
 
 Gisli were passed in liis native townsiiip, and 
 at the as>e ot twenty years lie commenced 
 work at tlie carpenter's trade, at wliich lie 
 worked uninterruptedly for nine years, and 
 then entered the employ of the Roanoke Coal 
 & Mining;' Company in that capacity. On 
 the 1st of December. 1898, he was appointed 
 toj) foreman and is now tilling that responsi- 
 lije position with credit to himself and to tlie 
 entire satisfaction of the company. He was 
 married August 4, 1896, to Miss Maggie 
 Wilson, of Roanoke, a daughter of the late 
 John G. Wilson, and to them has been born 
 one child, George W. Politically Mr. Gish 
 is an ardent Democrat, and since attaining 
 liis niajiirily has taken a very acti\c and 
 prominent part in public affairs. He has 
 served as village clerk two terms, and in the 
 spring of 1900 was elected mayor, which 
 oftice he is now filling in a most accejJtable 
 n;aiuier. He is also a member of the board 
 of schi.Mil directors. 
 
 R. E.VRL GORDON, .M. D. 
 
 One of the most e.xacting of all the higher 
 lines of occupation to which a man may lend 
 his energies is that of the physician. A most 
 scrupulous preliminary training is de- 
 manded, a nicety of judgment but little un- 
 derstood by the laity. Dr. Gordon, of EI 
 Paso, is well fitted for the profession which 
 he has cho.sen as a life work, and his skill 
 and ability have won him a large and lucra- 
 ti\e practice. 
 
 A native of Illinois, he was born in Car- 
 lyle, Clinton county, September 5, 1872, and 
 lielongs to a family which has had many 
 prominent representatives in the medical pro- 
 fession. His paternal great-grandfather 
 was a native of Edinburg, Scotland, and the 
 founder of the family in America. The 
 
 grandfather. James Gordon, was a i)hysician 
 and had two brothers, one of whom was a 
 prominent attorney, the t)ther a physician iif 
 Texas. He had seven sons who engaged in 
 the practice of medicine, and two daughters 
 who married physicians. At one time mcni- 
 l)ers of the family to the numljcr of fifteen 
 formed a medical society of their own. The 
 grandfather was engaged in practice for si.x- 
 ty-five years, a part of this time being spent 
 at Little Rock, Arkansas. In 1865 he re- 
 moved to Bond county, Illinois, where he 
 made his home until his death in 1896. 
 
 Dr. J. T. Gordon, our subject's father, 
 was born in Jackson, Mississippi, Septem- 
 ber 5, 1848. and was the sixth son in his 
 father's family. He was a graduate of the 
 Missouri Medical College at St. Louis, and 
 also of the St. Louis Medical College. .Vs 
 a general practitioner and surgeon, he was 
 engaged in j^ractice at Carlyle, Illinois, for 
 eighteen years prior to his death, which oc- 
 curred June 19, 1887, when he was thirty- 
 eight years of age. Both he and his father 
 were prominent Masons, and he was a sup- 
 porter of the Republican party. While living 
 in the South during the Civil war three of 
 his brothers were forced to serve in the Con- 
 federate army, though their .sympathies were 
 with the North. Through the assistance of 
 his mother he managed to escape and come 
 north. In their church relations the family 
 have been prominent Methodists. Dr. J. T. 
 Gordon first married Miss M. A. Ellegood, 
 who was born in Pocahontas, Illinois, and 
 was of Scotch and English descent. She 
 tiied in 1876, and of the three children born 
 of this union two died in early childhood, 
 leaving our subject the only survivor. In 
 1878 the father married Miss S. F. Challis, 
 also of Pocahontas, by whom he had four 
 children, who grew to maturity : Lula, Ed-
 
 56o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 win, William and Harry, who are living 
 Nvith their mother in Carlyle. 
 
 In the public schools of his native city 
 Dr. R. E. Gordon acquired his early educa- 
 tion, and took the teacher's examination for 
 first and second g^rade certificates, receiving 
 ninety-eight per cent in both. At the age of 
 sixteen he entered the McKendree Universi- 
 ty at Lebanon, Illinois, which was founded 
 by Bishop McKendree in 1826, and there 
 lie took a preparatory course for the study of 
 medicine. He was next a student at the Mis- 
 souri Medical College in St. Louis, where he 
 pursued a three-years course and was grad- 
 uated in 1893. He also spent two and a 
 half years in hospital and clinical work in 
 that city, and was thus well fitted for his 
 profession before he entered upon private 
 practice. He spent one year in Benson, and 
 in the fall of 1894 came to El Paso, where 
 he has built up an excellent practice, amount- 
 ing to about six thousand dollars per year. 
 He is a general practitioner, but makes a 
 specialty of surgery and the diseases of the 
 eye. The Doctor has purchased property in 
 El Paso, and in 1898 erected a beautiful resi- 
 dence with all modern improvements, cost- 
 ing 'about four thousand dollars. It is one 
 of the finest homes in the place. 
 
 On the 8th of July, 1894, Dr. Gordon 
 was united in marriage with Miss Delia C. 
 Chappelle, who was born in Rollo, Missouri, 
 in 1872, and they have become the parents 
 of one son, Virgil C, born January 27, 1890. 
 In his political views the Doctor is a Re- 
 publican, and in religious belief a Methodist, 
 though he gives to the support of all 
 churches. Fraternally he is a Royal Arch 
 Mason, and a member of the Uniform 
 Rank, Knights of Pythias. For five years 
 he has held the office of consul in the Modern 
 ^Voodmen Camp, No. 168, and has also 
 
 served as examining physician and a delegate 
 to the head camp. He is a member and ex- 
 amining physician for the Royal Neighbors 
 and the Court of Honor, and is also examin- 
 ing physician for several old line insurance 
 companies. He is ever ready to do his part 
 in everything that will tend to the advance- 
 ment of his city and county, and therefore 
 lias many friends who esteem him for his 
 worth as a man as well as a physician. 
 Among his professional brethren he has 
 gained an enviable reputation. 
 
 JUDGE A. M. CAVAN. 
 
 Judge A. M. Cavan, ex-county judge of 
 Woodford county, and one of the most prom- 
 inent attorneys of this section of the state, 
 was born in Franklin county, Pennsylvania, 
 May 13, 1838, and is a son of Thomas B. and 
 Mary E. (Wertz) Cavan, also natives of 
 Pennsylvania, and the former of Irish, the 
 latter of German descent. Our subject's pa- 
 ternal grandfather was a native of Ireland, 
 his ancestors being the founders of County 
 Cavan and large land owners there. At an 
 early day he came to America and settled in 
 Pennsylvania. The Judge's father was born 
 there in 1801, and in early life learned the 
 spinner's trade in woolen mills of his native 
 state, where he continued to work until 1845, 
 when he removed with his family to Madi- 
 son, Indiana, residing there until the fall of 
 185 1. The following two years were passed 
 in Springfield, Illinois, and from there he 
 went to Canton, this state, to take charge of 
 the woolen mills of John G. Piper, remain- 
 ing there until i860. For three years he en- 
 gaged in farming upon rented land in Ful- 
 ton county, and then came to Woodford 
 county and purchased a farm in Greene
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 561 
 
 townsliip, upon whicli he niaile liis lionie uii- 
 ti] called from this life February 16, 1886, 
 at the age of eiglity-five years. His wife 
 died February 9, 1876, at the age of sixty- 
 eight years. In politics he was a Rejuibli- 
 can, and in religious belief a Dunkard, tak- 
 ing an active part in church affairs. Of his 
 thirteen children, only si.x reached maturity, 
 namely: Maria, wife of A. J. Waugh, of 
 Chatsworth, Illinois; Barbara, wife of Philip 
 R. Wertz, of Florida; Allinson j\I., our sub- 
 ject; William H.. a successful grocer of Ell- 
 wood, Indiana; Oliver A., general agent for 
 the Hall Safe Company, who died in March, 
 1891, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he 
 made his home; and Nelvin, R., who is en- 
 gaged in the grocery business with his broth- 
 er in Ellwood, Indiana. 
 
 During his boyhood and youth Judge 
 Cavan accompanied his parents on their vari- 
 ous removals, and was educated in the pub- 
 lic schools of Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, in 
 Paris, Jefferson county, Indiana, and of this 
 state. He assisted his father on the home 
 farm until he attained his majority, when he 
 entered Lombard College, at Galesburg, and 
 pursued the law course one year. He was 
 then a student in the law office of Harper, 
 Cassell & Ingersoll at El Paso, Colonel In- 
 gersoll being actively engaged in practice 
 there at that time. Our subject was reading 
 law when the firm when the Colonel lost the 
 nomination for governor in 1868, and took 
 the stump for Palmer who received the nom- 
 ination. In 1867 Judge Cavan was admitted 
 to the bar at Metamora, and immediately 
 opened an office at El Paso. He was ap- 
 pointed deputy revenue assessor for the sixth 
 division of the eighth district, in 1869, and 
 filled that position until the fall of 1870, 
 when he was elected to the twenty-seventh 
 general assembly from the district, then 
 
 comprising Alarshall. Putnam. 15nre;iu and 
 \\'oodford counties. After serving one term 
 he was tendered the nomination for state 
 senator, but refused to accept the nomina- 
 tion. While a member of the house he was 
 (Ml the committee on the Illinois river and 
 canal and took an active part in legislation 
 pertaining to the canal. He was also on the 
 committees on federal relations and state li- 
 brary and it was during this time that a re- 
 vision of all the state laws was made. The 
 Judge was the man who proposed to change 
 the state capitol and put the resolution before 
 the house. This brought on one of the great- 
 est fights in that body. 
 
 After serving one term Judge Cavan re- 
 turned to El Paso and resumed practice. In 
 the fall of 1883 he was elected city attorney 
 and held that office until April, 1887, when 
 he resigned, having been appoined postmas- 
 ter by President Cleveland. He served as 
 such until the fall of 1890, when he resigned 
 to accept the more important position of 
 county judge, and after filling the latter of- 
 fice most acceptably for four years, he was 
 re-elected by an increased majority, his last 
 term expiring in December, 1898. In 1898 
 he declined the offer of nomination of both 
 the Republican and Democratic parties. Only 
 one of the many cases tried by him was ap- 
 pealed and his decision in this was aftirmed 
 in the appellate court, the case involving the 
 power of foreign corporations in the state 
 of Illinois. He is thoroughly versed in the 
 law, and never at a loss for a precedent. He 
 is eminently gifted with the capabilities of 
 mind which are indispensable at the bar, and 
 is a man of deep research and careful investi- 
 gation, whose skill and ability has won him 
 a liberal patronage. 
 
 On the 17th of March, 1863, Judge Cav- 
 an was united in marriage with ]\Iiss Anna
 
 562 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Rule, also a native of Pennsj'lvania, ami the 
 young'est in a family of seven children. Her 
 father, \\'illiani Rule, was born in Pennsyl- 
 vania, ami at an early clay nidved to Ogle 
 county, Illinois. The Judge and his wife 
 have six children, namely: ^lay. wife of Lee 
 Lambert, who is engaged in farming near 
 Earlville, Illinois; Josephine, a professional 
 nurse residing at home; William T., who is 
 engaged in the loan and real estate business 
 in ^linneapolis; John A., at home; Hattie, 
 wife of Lewis Robeson, of El Paso; and 
 Ida, who is cashier in a ladies' emporium in 
 Minneapolis, and makes her home with her 
 brother. ]Mrs. Cavan and the children are 
 members of the Christian church. 
 
 Fraternally the Judge is a member of 
 the Odd Fellows Lodge, No. 819, and the 
 Modern AVoodmen Camp, Xo. 168, both of 
 El Paso; and was on the committee of laws 
 and ritual of the head camp of the latter or- 
 der for a number of years. He is also con- 
 nected ^ ,-ith Hugh De Payne Lodge, No. 
 241, K. P., of which he is past chancellor, 
 and which he has represented in the grand 
 lodge. He has served a number of times as 
 a delegate to the various conventions of the 
 Democratic party, and is regarded as one 
 of the most prominent and influential citizens 
 of his community. 
 
 BENJAMIN GROVE. 
 
 Benjamin Grove, a well-known retired 
 farmer residing on section 25, Worth town- 
 ship, has been a resident of Woodford coun- 
 ty for over sixty-five years, and is therefore 
 numbered among its honored pioneers. The 
 difference between the past and the present 
 can scarcely be realized, even by those who 
 
 have been active participants in the develop- 
 ment of the county. The present generation 
 can have no conception of what was re- 
 quired bv the early settlers in transforming 
 the wilderness into a well settled and highly 
 cultivated county. 
 
 ]\Ir. Grove was born in Augusta county, 
 \'irginia, March 28, 181 6, a son of Simon 
 and Elizabeth (Rinehart) Grove, both na- 
 tives of Pennsylvania, the former born in 
 Lancaster county. In 18 16, during the in- 
 fancy of our subject they removed to Har- 
 rison county, Indiana, where the father 
 cleared and improved a good farm. He be- 
 came quite prosperous, but by going security 
 for others, he lost everything and was forced 
 to begin life anew. In 1835 he came to 
 Woodford county, Illinois, making the trip 
 with an ox team. Industrious, persevering 
 and enterprising, he succeeded in accumulat- 
 ing a nice property here, and was accounted 
 a successful farmer, as well as one of the 
 highly esteemed men of the community. Both 
 he and his wife died in W'oodford county, 
 though the latter survived him several 
 years. 
 
 Benjamin Grove was a young man of 
 nineteen years when he came to Woodford 
 county with his parents in 1835, and he en- 
 tered a forty-acre tract of government land, 
 to which he later added forty acres pur- 
 chased from his father, and still later tracts 
 of eighty and twenty acres adjoining, mak- 
 ing the fine farm of one hundred and eighty 
 acres which he now owns. For a half cen- 
 tury he actively engaged in the cultivation of 
 his farm, but is now living a retired life, 
 enjoying the fruits of former toil. 
 
 On the 5th of October, 1843, "^ Wood- 
 ford county, was celebrated the marriage 
 of Mr. Grove and Miss Hannah Rinehart, 
 who was also born in Augusta county. Vir-
 
 BENJAMIN GROVE.
 
 MRS. HANNAH GROVE.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 567 
 
 ginia, of German ancestry, and was reared 
 there. She died May 5, 1886. Of the six 
 children born of this nnion, four are still liv- 
 ing, namely : Washington is now a resident 
 of Rice county, Kansas, and is married and 
 has five children : Ella, Lizzie, William, 
 Jacob and Nellie. Ella and Lizzie are both 
 married and have children. Bertha and Nera, 
 respectively, making Mr. Grove a great- 
 grandfather. \\'illiam H., who operates a 
 part of the home farm, married Ann Lind- 
 enfelser, and to them were h.irn four chil- 
 dren, Anna, Benjamin and Bessie, all living, 
 and Dessie, who died in infancy. Sarah Eliz- 
 beth is now her father's housekeeper. Elias 
 A., living on the home farm, was married 
 December 15, 1887, to Magdaline Linden- 
 felser. a nati\e of Tazewell county, Illinois, 
 and a daughter of Francis Lindenfelser, who 
 was born in Germany. They have two chil- 
 dren, Philip and Orville, both in school. 
 Nancy Jane, daughter of our subject, mar- 
 ried John Woodcock, and is now deceased. 
 Politically Mr. Grove was first a Whig 
 and cast his first vote for "Tippecanoe and 
 Tyler, too," in 1840. Since the dissolution 
 of that party he has been identified with the 
 Republicans, but has never cared for politi- 
 cal preferment. In early life he united with 
 the Christian church at Washington, Illinois, 
 and later transferred his membership to the 
 church at Matamora. The children were 
 reared in that church, but since it was aban- 
 doned the family have attended the union 
 services at IMetamora. Mr. Grove has wit- 
 nessed almost the entire growth and develop- 
 ment of Woodford county. When he lo- 
 cated here wolves, wild deer, wild geese and 
 turkeys were plentiful, but all have now dis- 
 appeared ; the swamps have been drained and 
 converted into well cultivated fields ; and the 
 
 countv has become one of the richest agri- 
 30 
 
 cultural districts in the state. In the work 
 of progress and advancement Mr. Grove has 
 borne his part, and is justly entitled to prom- 
 inent mention among the honored pioneers 
 and representative citizens of the commu- 
 nitv. 
 
 FRANCIS F. BRIGGS. 
 
 This well known undertaker has lor al- 
 most half a century been identified with the 
 business interests of Metamora, Illinois, and 
 is numbered among its leading and repre- 
 sentative citizens. He is a native of the old 
 Bay state, his birth having occurred in Berk- 
 shire county, Massachusetts, February 21, 
 1825. His father, Francis Briggs, was also 
 born in Massachusetts, in 1794, and there 
 married Betsy Hakes, a daughter of James 
 Hakes, who belonged to one of the oldest 
 families of that state. For many years the 
 father of our subject followed farming in 
 Berkshire county, and then removed to 
 New York. After spending seven years in 
 Cayuga county, that state, he moved to 
 Chautauqua county, New York, where' he 
 made his home upon a farm throughout the 
 remainder of his life, though he died while 
 on a visit in Ohio in 1844. His wife sur- 
 \ived him nearly thirty years, dying on the 
 old homestead in Chautauqua county, in 
 1874. 
 
 Frank Briggs, as our subject is famil- 
 iarly known, grew to manhood on the home 
 farm in New York, and received but limited 
 school advantages during his youth. When 
 a young man lie went to Georgetown, Brown 
 county, Ohio, where he served a four-years 
 apprenticeship to the cabinetmaker's trade, 
 and also gained an excellent knowledge of 
 the undertking business, to which he devotetl
 
 568 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 his time of evenings and Sundays. Later he 
 worked as a journeyman for three years, and 
 then conducted a shop of his own at George- 
 town for two years. Selhng out in 185 1 he 
 came to Metamora, Ilhnois, and engaged in 
 the manufacture of furniture, opening a shop 
 of liis own in 1854. 
 
 During the Civil war Mr. Briggs laid 
 aside all personal interests to enter the ser- 
 vice of his country. In August, 1862, he 
 enlisted in Company E, One Hundred and 
 Eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, which 
 was assigned to the Army of the Tennessee. 
 He entered the service as a private, but at 
 the second election on the organization of 
 the regiment at Peoria, was elected first lieu- 
 tenant and served in that capacity until taken 
 ill, when on the advice of the army surgeon 
 he resigned early in the year 1863. His first 
 engagement was at Chickasaw Bayou, Mis- 
 sissippi, and he also took part in the battle 
 of Arkansas Post. On receiving his dis- 
 charge Mr. Briggs returned home and re- 
 sumed the furniture and undertaking busi- 
 ness, which he carried on until 1875. He 
 has since given his exclusive attention to 
 undertaking and embalming, being a prac- 
 tical embalmer, and he receives a liberal 
 share of the public patronage. On first com- 
 ing to Metamora he bought a lot and erected 
 a residence and shop, where he has now car- 
 ried on business for over forty years. 
 
 In December, 1847, "^ Brown county, 
 Ohio, Mr. Briggs married Miss Clarissa 
 Stitt, who was born and reared in George- 
 town, a daughter of Joseph K. Stitt, a na- 
 tive of Kentucky. She died of smallpox 
 April 13, 1872, and was laid to rest in Oak- 
 ^vood cemetery. Mr. Briggs was again mar- 
 ried, July 30, 1874, his second union being 
 with Elizabeth A. Compton, a native of 
 Kentucky, w-ho came to Woodford county, 
 
 Illinois, at the age of thirteen years, and was 
 reaerd near Eureka. This wife died in 1898. 
 By the first union Mr. Briggs had five chil- 
 dren : Hattie E., wife of William Alitchell, 
 of Ashville, North Carolina; Alicj E., who 
 is now her father's housekeeper; J. F., a 
 farmer of Ford county, Illinois; William K., 
 a carpenter and joiner, who is now assisting 
 his father in the undertaking business; and 
 Ed C, also a carpenter and joiner of Wood- 
 ford county. By the last marriage there is 
 one daughter, Nellie A., who is successfully 
 engaged in teaching music and resides at 
 home. 
 
 From youth up j\lr. Briggs has been a 
 strong temperance man, never using intoxi- 
 cants in any form, and for years he has been 
 a stanch suporter of the Prohibition party. 
 He cast his first presidential vote for John 
 C. Fremont in 1856, and was identified with 
 the Republican party some 3'ears. He effi- 
 ciently served as village trustee several years, 
 being always elected on the temperance tick- 
 et. He has been a life-long INIethodist and 
 now supports the union service at Metamora, 
 while both daughters are active workers in 
 the Christian Endeavor Society and Sunday 
 school. A man of most exemplary habits 
 and strict integrity, he has the confidence and 
 esteem of all, and is well worthy of repre- 
 sentation in a work of this kind. 
 
 JOHN A. IVINS. 
 
 This well known retired farmer of Caze- 
 novia, Illinois, and honored veteran of the 
 Civil war, was born in Tyler county, Ohio, 
 in April, 1837, a son of Samuel and Phoebe 
 Ivins. The father, who was a native of Penn- 
 sylvania and a pioneer of Ohio, moved to
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 569 
 
 Indiana in 1844, and tliere sjient the re- 
 mainder of his life, dvins: in tliat state in 
 1865. 'I'lie motlier died in Indiana hefore 
 the family left that state. They had seven 
 children, namely: Margaret, deceased; De- 
 lilah, of Arkansas; David, of Low Point, 
 Woodford county, Illinois; John A., our 
 subject; Henry, of .\rkansas; George, who 
 served through the war in the same company 
 and regiment as our subject and is now a 
 resident of Wabash, Indiana ; and Abbie, also 
 of Indiana. 
 
 John A. Ivins accompanied the family 
 on their removal to Intliana, where he was 
 reared and educated. When the war of the 
 Rebellion broke out he offered his services 
 to his country, enlisting at Indianapolis, 
 July 13, 1861, for three years, in Company 
 D. Eighteenth Indiana Volunteer Infantry, 
 which was mustered into the United States 
 service at that place and assigned to the 
 Western army. He participated in the bat- 
 tles of Pea Ridge, Arkansas, and Springfield, 
 Missouri, the siege of Vicksburg, and the 
 engagement at Jackson, Mississippi. He was 
 also on a scouting expedition in Texas, and 
 took part in the Red river campaign. Dur- 
 ing the siege of Vicksburg he was wounded 
 three times, being shot through the shoulder 
 and wrist, and receiving another gunshot 
 wound in the back. He was confined in the 
 hospital at Jefferson City, Missouri, for some 
 time. In 1864 he re-enlisted for three years 
 or during the war, in the same company and 
 regiment, which this time was assigned to 
 the Eastern army, and he took part in the 
 battle of Petersburg and the mine explosion, 
 and then joined Genera! Sherman in time 
 for the Carolina campaign. Hostilities hav- 
 ing ceased, he was honorably discharged at 
 Savannah, Georgia, on the -'8th of August, 
 
 1865, and was paid oft' at Indianapolis, In- 
 diana. 
 
 In Jennings county, Indiana, Mr. Ivins 
 was married, in 1867, to Miss Xancy Anna 
 Ball, a native of that county, and a daughter 
 of Samuel and Minerva (McFarland) Ball, 
 who came to Woodford county, Illinois, in 
 1878, and settled in Cazenovia township. 
 They died in the township of Cazenovia. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Ivins have six children, namely: 
 Mrs. Elizabeth Barnes, a resident of Part- 
 ridge township, Woodford county; Mrs. 
 Martha McFarland, of Iroquois county, Il- 
 linois ; George, who is married and lives at 
 Low Point, Woodford county; Mrs. Emma 
 Ivins, of Cazenovia; and Robert and Ora, 
 both at home. 
 
 In 1874 Mr. Ivins left his old home in In- 
 diana and came to Woodford county, Illinois. 
 He was successfully engaged in farming in 
 Cazenovia township until his retirement 
 from active labor. He now owns a fine resi- 
 dence and sixteen lots in the village of Caze- 
 novia, where he makes his home. He is a 
 supporter of the men and measures of the 
 Republican party, and takes an active inter- 
 est in promoting the welfare of his town and 
 county, encouraging and aiding all enter- 
 prises tending to benefit the public. He en- 
 joys in a high degree the confidence and es- 
 teem of his fellow citizens, and well merits 
 their respect. 
 
 EDWIX A. CHILDS. 
 
 Since 1856 Edwin A. Chikls has been 
 prominently identifietl with the interests of 
 Woodford county, and is now efficiently 
 serving as supervisor of El Paso township. 
 He was born in Jennings county, Indiana,
 
 570 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 May 6, 1840. a son of Henry and Polly 
 (Howard) Childs, natives of Massachusetts 
 and New York respectively. On the pater- 
 nal side he is of English and rench descent, 
 and on the maternal of English and Scotch 
 extraction. His parents were married in 
 New York, and in 1838 moved to Indiana 
 among its pioneers, but four years later re- 
 turned to New York. In 1856 they came 
 to Illinois and took up their residence in 
 Woodford county, where the mother died in 
 1884. The father then returned to his old 
 home in the Empire state, where he died in 
 1888, but his remains were brought back to 
 Illinois and buried by the side of his wife. 
 He was a very well educated man, and suc- 
 cessfully engaged in school teaching and 
 farming. In politics he was a stanch Re- 
 publican. His children were Edwin A., our 
 subject; Albert, who died in 1871 ; Oscar, an 
 attorney of Boston, Massachusetts; and 
 Mary, wife of Edwin Stowell, a farmer of 
 New York state. Our subject's paternal 
 grandfather was a soldier of the Revolution- 
 ary war, and participated in the battles of 
 Bunker Hill and Lexington. 
 
 Edwin A. Childs was principally reared 
 and educated in New York, being sixteen 
 years of age when the family came to Wood- 
 ford county, Illinois, where he grew to man- 
 hood and early acquired an excellent knowl- 
 edge of farm work. He continued to assist 
 his father in the operation of the home farm 
 until he started in life for himself. At the 
 breaking out of the Civil war he was en- 
 gaged in teaching, but in 1862 he laid aside 
 all personal interests and joined the boys in 
 blue, becoming a member of Company A, 
 Eighty-sixth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He 
 took part in the battles of Perryville, Chick- 
 amauga, Missionary Ridge, Resaca, Rome 
 
 and Kenesaw Mountain, besides many 
 skirmishes and other battles. He was in act- 
 ive service with his regiment until captured 
 at Kenesaw Mountain, June 27, 1864. He 
 was held a prisoner at Andersonville, Flor- 
 ence and Charleston until the war ended, and 
 was then paroled and taken to Wilmington, 
 ■where he was released. Returning to his 
 home, he engaged in farming, and in 1870 
 made his first purchase of land, consisting of 
 eighty acres in El Paso township, which he 
 converted into one of the model farms of 
 that locality. In connection with general 
 farming he gave considerable attention to 
 slock, shipping principally hogs and cattle, 
 and meeting with good success in that branch 
 of his business. In November, 1899, he sold 
 his farm and purchased his present home in 
 El Paso. 
 
 In 1868 Air. Childs was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Mary A. Mann, who was 
 born in Massachusetts, December 11, 1847, 
 and when quite young came west with her 
 parents. They first located in Wisconsin, 
 and came to Illinois in 1858. Mrs. Childs 
 died on the farm February -22, 1899, leaving 
 one daughter, Lillian E., who is with her 
 f other. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Childs is an honored 
 member of S. T. Rogers Post, No. 531, G. 
 A. R., of El Paso, and has filled all the of- 
 fices in the same. As a Republican he has 
 taken an active part in local politics, and is 
 now a member of the county central commit- 
 tee. He has served his fellow citizens faith- 
 fully and well as supervisor since 1897, and 
 is now chairman of the fees and salary com- 
 mittee and a member of the finance commit- 
 tee, with which he has been connected since 
 first elected to the office. He has been presi- 
 dent of the El Paso district agricultural
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 571 
 
 board for five years, and lias ever taken an 
 active and commendable interest in those 
 enterprises calculated to advance the inter- 
 ests of his town and county or promote the 
 general welfare. He is pre-eminently pub- 
 lic-spirited and progressive, and has most 
 <nbly discharged his ofiicial duties. 
 
 JOSEPH THEEXA. 
 
 This gentleman, who is one of Meta- 
 niora's substantial business men, was born in 
 Prussia, Germany, January 17, 1840, and 
 at the age of six years came to the new 
 world with his parents. Mathias and Anna 
 Margaretta (Peffenhontz) Theena, also na- 
 tives of Prussia. For two years the family 
 made their home in Chicago, which was then 
 a small place, and in 1848 moved to Peoria, 
 where the father worked at his trade as a 
 mason, and where the children were reared. 
 In his native land Mathias Theena Had servcrl 
 in the German army, and when the Civil war 
 broke out in his country he enlisted in the 
 One Hundred and Eighth Illinois Volunteer 
 Infantry. He died in Peoria, in 1863, when 
 home on a furlough. His wife survived him 
 a number of years, and passed away in 1885. 
 Of their four children Joseph is the oldest; 
 Anna is the wife of Robert Cretter, of Pe- 
 oria: Margaret is the wife of John Goddard, 
 of Kansas; and Michael is a resident of 
 Chillicothe, Illinois. 
 
 During his boyhood and youth Joseph 
 Theena attended school in Peoria and at the 
 age of eleven years commenced learning the 
 butcher's trade with John C. Calhoun, with 
 whom he remained four years. At the end 
 of that period in 1869, he came to Metamora 
 and opened a shop of his own, having since 
 
 been successfully engaged in the Ijutcher 
 business at this place, with the exception of 
 two years along in the '70s. Besides his 
 business property he owns about two hun- 
 dred acres of land in and near the city, 
 which he operates in connection with his 
 butchering business. He also deals in live 
 stock. On starting out in life for himself 
 he had no capital, and his success in life is 
 due entirely to his industry, perseverance 
 and good management. 
 
 On the 19th of April, 1869, Mr. Theena 
 was married, at Peoria, to Miss Catherine 
 Kallister, who was born in Bohemia, but was 
 reared in Peoria. Ten children were born 
 to them, five sons and five daughters, name- 
 ly : Joseph W., a business man of Peoria; 
 Michael P., Cecelia, Carrie, Lillian and Ella 
 (twins), Leo, Emma, George and Edwanl, 
 all at home. The family are all communi- 
 cants of the Catholic church and Mr. Theena 
 has been one of the official members for 
 some years. In his political views he is an 
 ardent Democrat, but at local elections, 
 where no issue is involved, he supports the 
 men whom he believes best qualified for the 
 office regardless of party lines. He has al- 
 ways taken an active and commendable in- 
 terest in public affairs, and has served as 
 one of the trustees on the village board for 
 some time. He is widely and favorably 
 known throughout his adopted county, and 
 has many warm friends in the city where he 
 makes his home. 
 
 H. COXRARD. 
 
 In America lalmr is king anil the 
 sovereignty that her liberty-loving peo- 
 ple acknowledge is that of business.
 
 572 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 The men of most influence in a large com- 
 munity in this enlightened age are its 
 enterprising, progressive representatiA-es of 
 commercial interests, and to this class be - 
 longs Mr. Conrard, a prominent merchant of 
 Metamora, Illinois. He was born in the 
 province of Alsace Lorraine, France, Sep- 
 tember 19, 1835, ^'■^d is a son of Louis and 
 Mar}' (Rousselle) Conrard, also natives of 
 France, and representatives of old French 
 families. The father spent his entire life 
 as a business man in Alsace Lorraine. Our 
 subject is the third in order of birth in the 
 family of five children, the others being Mrs. 
 Mary Ann Gomien, a widow residing in 
 Hamilton county, Ohio; Mrs. Mary Gasper, 
 a widow of Alsace Lorraine; and Louis and 
 Emil, both business men of that place. 
 
 In his native province Mr. Conrard grew 
 to manhood and for eight years attended the 
 common schools, acquiring a good practical 
 education in the French language. He 
 served an apprenticeship of two years to 
 the shoemaker's trade, and then worked at 
 his trade for the same parties until his emi- 
 gration to the L^nited States in 1853. He 
 took passage on a sailing vessel at Havre, 
 and after a voyage of thirty-five days, dui- 
 ing which they experienced some se\ere 
 weather, he landed in this country. He pro- 
 ceeded at once to Cincinnati, where he 
 worked at his trade two years, and later 
 was similarly employed at St. Louis. We 
 next find him among the Indians on the 
 plains in the employ of fur trading com- 
 panies in what is now North Dakota, where 
 he spent one year, and then returned to St. 
 Louis for a short time. 
 
 In 1857 Mr. Conrard came to Illinois, 
 and after working for about a year at his 
 trade in Tremont, Tazewell county, went to 
 Eureka, where he had his first experience 
 
 at farming, being thus employed two years. 
 He came to Metamora in 1861 and opened 
 a shoe shop. At first he engaged in business 
 only in a small way but as his trade increased 
 hf put in a stock of ready-made boots and 
 shoes, and later added a stock of general 
 merchandise. He erected a store building 
 and successfully engaged in business until 
 1866, when his store was destroyed by fire. 
 He then built a good brick block, but in 
 1889 this was also burned. \\'ith character- 
 istic energy, however, he at once rebuilt a 
 double store, and now carries a large and 
 well-selected stock of dry goods, clothing, 
 shoes and groceries, in fact everything found 
 in a first-class establishment of the kind. 
 He has gained an enviable reputation for 
 good goods and fair dealing, and has ac- 
 cordingly built up an excellent trade. Be- 
 sides his pleasant residence and store, he no\\r 
 owns two farms in Jasper county, Indi:ina. 
 
 In \\'ashington, Illinois, May 5, 1858, 
 Mr. Conrard was united in marriage with 
 Miss Mary This, also a native of France, 
 who came to America when a young lady. 
 They have a family of six children, namely : 
 Charles and Joseph D., who are both in the 
 store with their father; Mary, wife of J. L. 
 Finch, of Chicago; Eulalie, \^ictoria and 
 Blanche, all at home. Two others died in 
 infancy. 
 
 Since casting his first presidential vote 
 for General U. S. Grant in 1868, Mr. Con- 
 raril has been unswerving in his allegiance 
 to the Republican party, but has never sought 
 nor desired public office, preferring to devote 
 his undivided attention to his extensive busi- 
 ness interests. However he has been elected 
 and served several terms as a memlier of the 
 village board. Mr. Conrard has made two 
 trips to his natiN'C land to \-isit the friends 
 and scenes of his \'outh, but has ne\'er vet
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 573 
 
 liad occasion to regret his emigration to 
 America for here he has steadily prospered, 
 and is to-day one of the substantial citizens 
 of Metaniora, as well as one of its most 
 prominent men. 
 
 JOHN B. MICHELS. 
 
 Among the leading and successful busi- 
 ness men of El Paso is the popular druggist, 
 John B. Michels, who has been prominently 
 identified with the interests of the city since 
 1890. He was born in Hermann, Missouri, 
 January 8, 1865, and is a son of Peter and 
 Mary (Straub) Michels, both natives of 
 Germany, the former born in Prussia, the 
 latter in Baden. They came to the United 
 States in early life and were married in Her- 
 mann, Missouri, where they still continue 
 to make their home. The father has fol- 
 lowed various occupations, and though he 
 came to this country empty-handed is now 
 in comfortable circumstances. He owns a 
 pleasant home in Hermann, and receives a 
 pension in recognition of his services in the 
 Civil war. He is now seventy-three years 
 of age, his wife sixty-seven. In religious 
 belief they are Catholics, and in politics the 
 father is a Democrat. Of the nine children 
 born to them two died in early childhood. 
 Those. living are Arnold B., a merchant of 
 Germantown, Illinois; Katrina, wife of 
 Thomas Behrens, a wine grower of Her- 
 mann, Missouri; John B., our subject; Lena, 
 wife of John Epple, a farmer of Morrison, 
 Missouri; Mary, wife of Joseph Haas, a 
 farmer of El Paso township, Woodford 
 county, Illinois; Annie, wife of Leo Stein, 
 of St. Louis, Missouri ; and Eliza, at home 
 ^vith her parents. 
 
 In the public schools of his native place 
 John B. Michels acquired his education. 
 At the age of fourteen years he left home 
 and started out in life for himself, working 
 first in a general store at Morrison, Missouri. 
 Subsequently he was employed as clerk in 
 a drug store at Carlyle, Illinois, and for three 
 years was with a Mr. Winheim, a clieniist 
 from Germany. While with him he became 
 a licensed pharmacist, passing the recjuired 
 examination at Springfield, and being one 
 of six who passed in a class of thirty-eight. 
 He was then nineteen years of age. Later 
 he was employed as prescription clerk by 
 Charles A. Strathman. a druggist nf El 
 Paso for four years, and in 1889 entered into 
 partnership with that gentleman. A year 
 later this partnership was dissolved, and Mr. 
 Michels emljarked in business for himself 
 with a capital of only nine hundred dollars. 
 He purchased a stock valued at about fifteen 
 hundred, but it has since been increased from 
 time to time to meet the growing demands 
 of his trade, and n< )w amounts to eight thou- 
 sand dollars. In the meantime Mr. Michels 
 inirchased his i)resent store building and the 
 one adjoining for fourteen thousand dollars, 
 and has bought other property in the town. 
 For his own home he has erected a modern 
 Oueen .Ann cottage at a cost of four thou- 
 sand dollars. All of this property has been 
 acquired through the industry, perseverance 
 and good management of the owner, who is 
 to-day numbered among El Paso's most pro- 
 gressive, energetic and successful business 
 men, and the prosperity that has come to him 
 is certainly well deserved. 
 
 June 26, 1889, Mr. Michels married Miss 
 Sophia Wetzel, who was born in St. Louis, 
 Missouri, in 1867, a daughter of Frederick 
 and Rosina (Seitz) Wetzel, who are still 
 living in that city. There she was reared
 
 574 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and educated and was employed as a teacher 
 in the city schocjls for a time. Three chil- 
 dren were born to our subject and his wife, 
 but one died in infancy. Those living are 
 Arnold, aged ten years, and Josephine, aged 
 four years. The family are communicants 
 of the Catholic church, and Mr. Michels is 
 also a member of the Modern Woodmen of 
 America. He affiliates with the Democratic 
 party : served as alderman of the second ward 
 one term, and was town clerk in 1890. 
 
 GEORGE ANDREWS. 
 
 Among the representative citizens of El 
 Paso there are none whose success has been 
 more worthily achieved than that of the sub- 
 ject of this sketch. Through his own well- 
 directed efforts and good management he 
 has gained a comfortable competence and is 
 now able to lay aside all business cares and 
 \We a retired life. 
 
 Mr. Andrews was born on the 31st of 
 May, 1848, in Stamford, Lincolnshire, Eng- 
 land, of which place his parents, James and 
 Elizabeth (Plowright) Andrew^s, were also 
 natives, the former born April 5. 1821, the 
 latter February jj. 1826. The father was 
 a natural mechanic, being able to turn his 
 hand to almost anything in the mechanical 
 line, and for years was overseer of a stone 
 quarry in his nati\-e land, but after coming 
 to this country turned his attention to farm- 
 ing. It was in 1855 that he brought his 
 family to America, and he first settled near 
 Tonica, La Salle county, Illinois, where he 
 engaged in farming for three years. Sub- 
 secjuently he made his home in Knox countv 
 for a time and then returned to La Salle 
 
 county, but afterward went to Putnam coun- 
 ty, and in 1862 took up his home in Living- 
 ston county, looking in each county for a 
 home giving the best advantages. He made 
 his first purchase in Livingston county of 
 one hundred and sixty acres of wild prairie 
 land, which he improved with the aid of 
 his sons, and to which he added from time 
 to time until he had a half section of land in 
 Waldo township. Coming to this country 
 with no capital and a large family to sup- 
 port, he met with success in his undertak- 
 ings and continued to actively engage in 
 farm work until his death, August 5, 1883. 
 His farm is one of the best improved places 
 in Waldo township, Livingston county. As 
 a Republican he took an active interest in 
 political affairs, and was a patriotic and loyal 
 citizen during the Civil war, giving his sup- 
 port to the assistance of soldiers and their 
 families at home. He served as road com- 
 missioner and in other minor offices, and took 
 a commendable interest in educational affairs 
 aiul the maintaining of good schools. He 
 h.elped to organize the schools in his town- 
 ship, having them located every two miles. 
 In all enterprises for the advancement of 
 the county, he took an active part. He was 
 an active worker and supporter of the Con- 
 gregational church, and was highly respected 
 by all wliL) knew him. Shortly after his 
 death his widow mo\'ed to Gridley, McLean 
 county, where she made her home until called 
 trom this life, October 30, 1899. 
 
 To this worthy couple were born four- 
 teen children, four of whom died in infancy, 
 and nine reached years of maturity, namely : 
 Thomas, of Pontiac, who is represented on 
 another page of this volume; James, a re- 
 tired citizen of Minonk; George, our subject; 
 Mary A., wife of James Greenhalgh, a farm- 
 er of Oregon ; Robert, who is connected with
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 575 
 
 the custom house at Portland, Oregon ; 
 Betsy, wife of George Murray, of Waldo 
 townsiiip, Livingston county; Henry G., who 
 lives on the old home farm in that township ; 
 Rebecca J., wife of C. L. Wilcox, of the same 
 township; and Everett E., also a resident of 
 Waldo township, I.i\ingston county. 
 
 George Andrews received his education 
 in the common schools near his boyhood 
 home and assisted his father in the opera- 
 tion of the farm until he attained his ma- 
 jority, after which he worked as a farm hand 
 for one year. He then rented land and com- 
 menced farming on his nwn acomnt, and as 
 soon as he had actpiircil enough capital in- 
 vested it in land, his first purchase consist- 
 ing I if eighty acres of partially improved 
 laud in Waldo township, Livingston county, 
 to which he subsequently added. He now 
 owns two hundred and forty acres of land 
 in that township; one hundred and sixty 
 acres in Iroquois county, and eighty acres 
 in McLean county, besides his home prop- 
 erty in El Paso. He successfully engaged 
 in general farming until 1888, when he and 
 his family spent six months in Oregon and 
 California, sight seeing, and has since made 
 his home in El Paso. In i8g8 he erected 
 his present beautiful residence, costing when 
 comi)lete about thirty-five hundred dollars. 
 During his residence here he has engaged 
 in buying and shipping stock to some extent, 
 and has also dealt in real estate, meeting 
 with good success in both undertakings. 
 
 December 14, 1876, Mr. Andrews wed- 
 ded Miss Mary J. Kingdon, who was born in 
 Peoria county, Illinois, August 20, 1856. 
 Her parents, Henry and Mary A. Kingdon, 
 are both natives of England and when 
 young came to this country, being married 
 in Illinois. Thev are among the oldest set- 
 
 tlers of Woodford county, and are now liv- 
 ing in El Paso. They have seven children, 
 namely: Mar)- J., William, Annie, Louis, 
 Percy, Fanny and George, all of whom live 
 in the vicinity of the old home in Wood- 
 ford county. Of the four children Iiorn to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Aiulrews two died in early 
 childhood. Those living are Lillie Mable, 
 and Percy H., aged thirteen. 
 
 Politically Mr. Andrews is a stanch 
 Democrat, and has always taken an active 
 part in local politics. He has held many 
 township offices, including that of sui^ervisor 
 lit EI Paso township, for two years, during 
 which time the county was changed from 
 Metamora to Eureka and the court house 
 was built, he letting the contract for its erec- 
 tion. Twice he served on the board of equal- 
 ization, and has most efficiently discharged 
 every duty devolving upon him. whether pub- 
 lic or private. In Waldo township he served 
 as collector three successive years, and was 
 road commissioner two terms. Pie is now 
 serving as trustee of the cemetery. 
 
 Mr. Andrews is a liberal supporter and 
 earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal 
 church, in which he has served as steward 
 for twenty-four years, and was a member 
 of the building committee when the new 
 brick church was erected in El Paso. He 
 has filled all the chairs and is now noble 
 grand in the Odd Fellows lodge at that 
 l)lace, and for six years has been a member 
 ui the lioanl nf managers of the Modern 
 \\ (Kidmen C ami), '^"- ''''^■ 
 
 Mr. .Andrews can relate many interest- 
 ing incidents of pioneer life in this state. 
 Many times while herding cattle on the piai- 
 ries deer would come up and graze with them, 
 while wolves, badgers and other wild animals 
 were numerous. The \ear he was thirteen
 
 576 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 years of age he killed about two hundred 
 rattle snakes, and saved about one hundred 
 and fifty rattles. He was once bitten by 
 one of these reptiles. 
 
 DAVID BRADLE. 
 
 Among the most prominent and influen- 
 tial citizens of Olio township, Woodford 
 county, Illinois, is the gentleman whose 
 name introduces this biography. He was born 
 in Stark county, Ohio, in 1850, a son of 
 Leonard and Catharine (Heximer) Bradle, 
 who were born, reared and married in Ger- 
 many, and came to the new world in 1849 
 on a sailing vessel, which made the voyage 
 in sixty-three days and landed them safely 
 in New York. In his native land the father 
 had followed veterinary surgery and black- 
 smithing for eight years, and he continued 
 to work at his trade during his residence in 
 Ohio, where the family first located. In 
 1853 they came to Illinois and took up their 
 residence in Palestine township, Woodford 
 county, but later moA-ed to Cruger township, 
 where he operated rented land and worked 
 for Mr. Meeks twenty-two years. He died 
 in that township in 1875, while his wife died 
 in Olio township, Woodford county, in 1886. 
 They were among the honored and highly 
 resj^ected citizens of their community. In 
 their family were six children, namely : 
 Phcebe, who married Michael Fry, of Olio 
 township; Mrs. Kate Shuler, of Montgomery 
 township, Woodford county; Frederick, of 
 Palestine township : Mrs. Lizzie Baker, of 
 the same township ; John, of Cruger town- 
 ship; David, our subject. 
 
 David Bradle was only three years old 
 
 when brought by his parents to Woodford 
 county, and he was principally reared and 
 educated in Cruger township. Throughout 
 his active business life he has engaged in 
 farming and the horse business, handling 
 imported English draft horses for the past 
 fourteen years. In 1881 he first came to 
 Olio township and purchased a farm in the 
 eastern part of it. but soon sold that place 
 and returned to Cruger township, where he 
 remained fourteen years. Since then he has 
 made his home in Olio township and has im- 
 proved a fine farm. 
 
 In Cruger township Air. Bradle was mar- 
 ried, in 1874, to Miss Eliza Jane Wright, a 
 native of Olio township and a daughter of 
 James and Sarah (Grove) Wright, who 
 were natives of Ohio and Virginia, re- 
 spectively, and came to Woodford county in 
 early life, their marriage being celebrated in 
 Olio township, where they continue to re- 
 side. Our subject and his wife have four 
 children, namely : Frank, who is married 
 and lives in Olio township ; James. Eliza and 
 Maggie. 
 
 As an ardent Democrat Mr. Bradle has 
 taken an active interest in political affairs, 
 and has been called upon to fill several of- 
 ficial positions of honor and trust, the duties 
 of which he most capably discharged. In 
 1895 he was elected commissioner of Olio 
 township and filled that office for three years. 
 Here he has served on the school board three 
 years, and while a resident of Cruger town- 
 ship was president of the board nine years, 
 constable four years and pathmaster seven 
 years. He is an active member of the Lu- 
 theran church and never withholds his sup- 
 port from any enterprise calculated to prove 
 of public benefit, taking a deep interest in all 
 that pertains to the welfare of his township
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 577 
 
 and county. His genial, pleasant manner 
 has made him finite popnlar hoth in hnsiness 
 and social circles, and his circle i>t friends 
 and acqnaintances is extensive. 
 
 SYLV-AXUS S. ROBIXSOX. 
 
 Among the inflnential memhers of the 
 farming community of Woodford county 
 and one of its most prosperous and wealthy 
 citizens is the gentleman wliose name heads 
 this sketch. He has heen a resident of the 
 county since 1853 and makes his home on 
 section 1 1 , Metamora township, where lie 
 owns and ojjerates a valuahle farm of six 
 hundred and forty acres. 
 
 Mr. Rohinson was horn in Champaign 
 county, Ohio, Novemher i. 1846, and traces 
 his ancestry back to Rev. John Robinson, one 
 of the Puritan fathers, who went from Eng- 
 land to Holland about 1608, and was pastor 
 of one of the early churches of that country. 
 His great-great-grandfather was Experience 
 Robinson, whose son. Elias Robinson, Sr., 
 was a native of Connecticut and a soldier of 
 the Revolutionary war. In the family of the 
 latter was Elias Robinson, Jr., the grand- 
 father of our subject. He was also born in 
 Connecticut and was one of the defenders 
 of his country in the war of 1812. As early 
 as 1817 he moved to Union county. Ohio, 
 becoming one of its pioneers. There our 
 .subject's father, George Robinson, was horn 
 in 1818, and on reaching manhood married 
 Lorana E. Smith, a native of Chami)aign 
 county, Ohio, and a daughter of Sylvanus 
 Smith, also an early settler of Union county, 
 having located there in 18 16. George Roh- 
 inson followed farming in Union and Cham- 
 paign counties, Ohio, for some years, and 
 
 there all of his children were horn. Tn 1853 
 lit came west to Illinois and located in Met- 
 amora townshiji. Woodford county, where 
 he owned and operated a farm of eighty 
 acres. He was a successful agriculturist 
 and had other lands besides the home farm, 
 including two hundred and forty acres, on 
 which our subject now resides. He died 
 March 11. 1883, honored and respected by 
 all who knew him. His first wife and the 
 mother of our subject departed this life 
 March 11, 1850, but his last wife is still liv- 
 ing and continues to reside on the home 
 place. 
 
 Sylvanus S. Robinson was only seven 
 years of age when the family came to Wood- 
 ford county, and on the old homestead his 
 boyhood and youth were passed, his edu- 
 cation being acquired in the local schools 
 and the high school at Woodstock. Ohio. 
 On attaining his majoritv he commenced 
 farming for himself upon a ])art of his fa- 
 ther's land, and at the hitter's death pur- 
 chased his stepmother's interest in the two- 
 hundred-and-forty-acre tract on which he 
 makes his home. From time to time he has 
 bought more land, and now has si.x hundred 
 and forty acres in his farm. This place he 
 has improved by the erection of a com- 
 modious and pleasant residence, good and 
 substantial barns and outbuildings. He has 
 set out an evergreen hedge around his lawn 
 and has jilanted fruit and forest trees, mak- 
 ing his place one of the most attractive as 
 well as one of the best improved and most 
 valuable farms in the township. Besides this 
 property Mr. Robinson owns a farm of one 
 hundred and sixty acres of land in Panola 
 township and a well improved place of two 
 hundred and eighty acres in Franklin county, 
 Iowa. He raises, feeds and ships stock quite 
 extensively, and since 1885 has made a spe-
 
 578. 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cialty of the breeding of pure blooded Gallo- 
 way cattle, of which he has a fine herd of 
 about one hundred head. 
 
 On the 1 2th of February, 1878. in Meta- 
 mora township, Mr. Robinson was united in 
 marriage with Miss Emma E. Wilson, a 
 native of Woodford county, and a daughter 
 of M. W. Wilson, whose sketch appears on 
 another page of this volume. They have 
 eight children living, five sons and three 
 daughters, namely: George W., Francis 
 M.. Lewis S., Robert E., Arthur L.. Agie 
 L., Elsie P. and Emily May. One son, 
 Harry, died August 5, 1895, at the age of 
 four and a half years. 
 
 In his political affiliations Mr. Robinson 
 is a stalwart Republican, having always sup- 
 ported that party since casting his first pres- 
 idential ballot for General U. S. Grant in 
 1868. He has never cared for political pre- 
 ferment, however, desiring rather to devote 
 his entire time and attention to his extensive 
 business interests. A man of keen perception 
 and unljounded enterprise his success has 
 been worthily achieved, and he deserves 
 prominent mention among the leading and 
 representative business men of the county. 
 His genial, pleasant manner has made him 
 quite popular in both business and social 
 circles, and as a public spirited and enter- 
 prising man he is recognized as a \'alued 
 citizen of the communitv. 
 
 REV. NATHANIEL S. HAYNES 
 
 One of the best known ministers of the 
 Christian church in Illinois is the subject of 
 this sketch, who is now serving as pastor of 
 the Christian church in Eureka, Illinois. He 
 was born in Washington, IMason county, 
 
 Kentucky, March 7, 1844, and is the son of 
 James and Amanda (Hampton) Haynes, 
 the former a native of England, born in 
 Sussex, near Surry, Fel^ruary i, 1810, 
 where he grew to manhood and in his 
 youth learned the shoemaker's trade. He 
 came to this country in 1832. locating in 
 Washington, Kentucky, and there continuixl 
 working at his trade in connection with mer- 
 chandising. He became a well known and 
 highly respected citizen of that place, au'l 
 there married Miss Amanda Hampton, one 
 of the well known family of that name, 
 which has been very prominent in southern 
 history. She was a daughter of James 
 Hampton. 
 
 In 1852 James Haynes came with his 
 family to \\'oodford county, Illinois, and 
 purchased a farm adjoining the corporate 
 limits of Eureka, where he made a home and 
 operated an extensive farm. When he left 
 Kentucky he bought a herd of shiirt-horn 
 cattle to bring with him to his new home, 
 but sold the greater part of them before he 
 arrived. He was an industrious and con- 
 servative man, of the highest type of integ- 
 rity and honor. For many years he "was a 
 member of the Christian church, and like 
 many others residing in or near Eureka, he 
 contributed liberally in support of the col- 
 lege. His death occurred December 12, 1894"'. 
 His widow yet lives on the farm which was 
 so long their home and yet gives personal 
 attention to its management. They were the 
 parents of nine children, all of whom are l\v- 
 ing, save one. 
 
 Nathaniel S. Haynes grew to manhood 
 in Woodford county, and was but eight years 
 old when the family settled here. In the 
 public schools of Eureka he received his pri- 
 mary education, after which he entered 
 Eureka College, with a view of taking the
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 579 
 
 regular course. While a student there the 
 Civil war commenced, and in common with 
 thousands of other young men he put aside 
 his text books and enlisted in Company A, 
 Eighty-sixth Illinois \'olunteer Infantry, and 
 with his regiment went south, arriving in 
 time to participate in the battle of Perry- 
 ville, Kentucky. After that battle he par- 
 ticipated in several skirmishes with the ene- 
 my until early in i86.^, when he was taken 
 sick with typhoid fever. His recovery was 
 very slow, and he was discharged from 
 the service and sent home. Recovering his 
 health, in the spring of 1864 he again enlist- 
 ed, becoming a member of Company A, One 
 Hundred and Thirty-ninth Illinois Volunteer 
 Infantry, and continued to serve until his 
 regiment was mustered out of service, the 
 greater i)art of the time being on detached 
 service in the United States government 
 telegraph office in Cairo, Illinois. 
 
 After receiving his discharge Mr. Haynes 
 returned home and resumed his studies in 
 the college, from which he was graduated in 
 1867, with the degree of A. B. He then 
 went to Kansas, Illinois, and was there prin- 
 cipal of the public schools for one year. In 
 June, 1868, he received the degree of A. M., 
 and at the same time was ordained to the 
 ministry, having for a time previous been 
 engaged in preaching the gospel. His first 
 pastorate was for the Christian church at 
 Kansas, Illinois, where he had been engaged 
 in teaching. While in that place he did 
 much evangelistic work in the surrounding 
 country and was instrumental in bringing 
 many into the church of Christ. 
 
 Wishing to further qualify himself for his 
 life work he entered Kentucky University 
 and spent the school year of 1869-70. 
 In 1872, the year of the Peace Jubilee, he 
 went to Prince Edwards Island and spent 
 
 three months and a half in evangelistic work. 
 In August, 1873, he received a call from the 
 Christian church at Decatur, Illinois, to be- 
 come its pastor, and at once entered upon the 
 work. The Decatur church was small at 
 that time, but while he remained there it 
 grew in numbers and in spiritual strength, 
 and a new house of worship was built and 
 paid for. He remained with the church as 
 pastor until 1880, leaving it in a prosperous 
 condition. He resigned that he might accept 
 the position of corresponding secretary of 
 the Illinois Christian Missionary Society, and 
 served in that office in a most acceptable 
 manner until 1886, in the meantime making 
 his home in Decatur. While serving in that 
 oftice he traveled in all parts of the state and 
 ga\e his undivided time to the subject of 
 missions and preaching of the gospel of 
 Christ. Those acquainted with his work 
 give him the credit of putting more enthu- 
 siasm into the missionary work of the state 
 than had heretofore been accomplished by 
 any other man. In that work he showed re- 
 markable executive ability and accomplished 
 nnich for the cause of the Master. On the 
 1st of September, 1886, he resigned the of- 
 fice that he might accept the call to the pas- 
 torate of the Christian church of Peoria, Il- 
 linois, where he labored until March i, 1892. 
 That was a time for development for the 
 ch.urch at that place, and under the pastorate 
 of Mr. Haynes the congregation grew in 
 numbers and in grace, bought a lot, built and 
 paid for a missionary chapel in the lower 
 part of the city, organized a mission Sun- 
 day school, and raised several thousand dol- 
 hirs for a building fund. 
 
 In March, 1892, Mr. Haynes removed to 
 Englewood and became pastor of the church 
 at that place, the house of worship being 
 near the corner of Sixty-fourth street and
 
 S8o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Eggleston avenue. He remained witli that 
 church until October i, 1898, during whicli 
 time an addition to tlie church was built and 
 the congregation grew in numbers, becom- 
 ing one of the best Christian churches in 
 Chicago. The field in which he labored was 
 a hard one to cultivate, but he toiled on with 
 faith in the general outcome, and left the 
 church in a flourishing condition. Novem- 
 ber I, i8g8, he came to Eureka as pastor 
 of his old home church, in which he entered 
 upon the Christian race. He has now been 
 with it for about two years, and it can 
 truthfully be said that notwithstanding the 
 church has been ministered unto by some of 
 the ablest men in the brotherhood, none have 
 been more acceptable to the members and 
 friends than N. S. Haynes. 
 
 On the 20th of November, 1874, Mr. 
 Haynes was united in marriage with Miss 
 Rose Frazier, of Paris, Illinois, daughter of 
 John Frazier, one of the pioneer settlers of 
 Edgar county, Illinois. By this union have 
 been born two daughters, Rose and Ethel. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Haynes is a member of 
 Dan Miles Post, G. A. R., of Eureka. He 
 was also a member of Bryner Post, No. 67, 
 of Peoria, and served as its commander for 
 one year and chaplain for four years. 
 AMiile in Chicago he was a member of 
 the George G. Meade Post, No. 444, and 
 served as chaplain for three years. For 
 thirty years he has served as one of the 
 trustees of Eureka College, and in that time 
 has done much to advance its interests. He 
 has been a frequent contributor to the 
 periodical literature of the Christian church 
 for many years, and his contributions are 
 read with interest and profit by all. He is 
 logical and clear cut in all his utterances 
 and no hearer or reader but understands 
 what he is aiming at in his speech. Few 
 
 men have a more terse way of stating a 
 proposition. Strong in the faith, he labors 
 for the good of humanity and the upbuilding 
 of the cause of Christ. 
 
 SNYDER BROTHERS. 
 
 The firm of Snyder Brothers, grain, coal 
 and lumber dealers of Metamora, is but a 
 recent accpiisition to the goodly array of 
 progressive business men in that thriving 
 town, but their ability, enterprise and up- 
 right methods have already established for 
 them an enviable reputation. Although the 
 brothers are still young men, their popularity 
 is established on a firm basis — that of their 
 own well-tested merit. 
 
 John Snyder, father of our subject, was 
 born in Germany in October, 1819, and was 
 a son of Nicholas Snyder, also a native of 
 Germany and of German ancestry. The 
 latter followed the miller's trade in his na- 
 tive land until 1828, when he emigrated to 
 America with his wife and children, and 
 first located in Pennsylvania, where he re- 
 sided for some years. In 1855 he came west 
 to Illinois and took up a claim in Woodford 
 county near the present village of Spring 
 Bay. Later he purchased more land and 
 became one of the prosperous farmers of the 
 county. 
 
 John Snyder was only six years of age 
 when he came with the family to the United 
 States and in Pennsjdvania he grew to man- 
 hood. At the age of sixteen he commenced 
 earning his own livelihood, and, saving his 
 money, he was at length able to purchase a 
 tract of land in Partridge township, Wood- 
 ford county, upon which he erected a log 
 house, making it his home while he broke 
 and improved his land. After residing there
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 581 
 
 for a number of years he bought a well im- 
 proved farm in Metaniora township in 1874, 
 and continued to successfully engage in agri- 
 cultural jnirsuits throughout life, becoming 
 one of the substantial farmers of his com- 
 munity. He died September 4. 1894, hon- 
 ored and respected by all who knew him. 
 He was twice married, his first wife being 
 Susan Caldwell, a native of Ohio, by whom 
 he had one daughter, Ellen. His second 
 wife was Lovina Baker, a native of Luzerne 
 county, Pennsylvania, and a daughter of 
 Chauncey Baker, who was also born in that 
 state and was one of the first settlers of 
 \\'oodford county, Illinois. By this union 
 were born three children: Susan, wife of 
 Orrin Kern, a business man of Washington, 
 Illinois; and John C. and Simeon, who con- 
 stitute the firm of Snyder Brothers. The 
 mother is still living and now makes Iier 
 home with Simeon in Metamora. 
 
 John C. Snyder, the senior member of the 
 firm of Snyder Brothers, was born in Part- 
 ridge township, Woodford county, August 
 -3' 18/3' ^"(i received his education in the 
 home schools. He assisted his father in the 
 labors of the farm until the latter's death, 
 when he and his brother took charge of that 
 place and carried it on until coming to Meta- 
 mora in April, 1899. Here they embarked 
 in the grain, lumber and coal business under 
 the firm name of Snyder Brothers, and have 
 already built up an excellent trade. They 
 own a good elevator for the storage of their 
 grain and carry a good stock of lumber and 
 all kinds of building material. They are 
 enterprising, wide-awake young business 
 men and by fair and honorable dealing have 
 gained a liberal share of the public patron- 
 age. On the 1st of March, 1898, John C. 
 Snyder was married, in Metamora, to Miss 
 Myrtle Owen, who was born, reared and ed- 
 
 ucated in Cazenovia township, Woodford 
 county, successfully engaged in teaching 
 for a time and served as postmistress of 
 Metamora for four years, being appointed 
 to that office during President Cleveland's 
 second term. Her father, D. M. Owen, was 
 a substantial farmer and business man of 
 Woodford county and served one term as 
 sheriff and later as deputy sheriff. His 
 last days were spent in Metamora, where he 
 died July 23, 1900. Mr. and Mrs. Snyder 
 have a jjleasant home in IMetamora, which 
 he erected. 
 
 Simeon Snyder, the junior member of 
 the firm, was born on the old homestead in 
 Metamora townshi]) June 27, 1877, ^"^ be- 
 gan his education in the district schools of 
 that locality, later attending the Metamora 
 high sc1k)o1 and the State University at 
 Champaign, where he finished his studies 
 in the spring of 1898. For a year he de- 
 voted his attention to farming and then em- 
 barked in his present business at Metamora. 
 In that city he was married, June 27, 1900, 
 to Miss Bertha Isch, a daughter of John A. 
 Isch, of Metamora. She is a native of 
 Switzerland, but was principally reared and 
 educated in this country. The home of the 
 young couple is a modern structure and one 
 of the best in the town. Politically the 
 brothers are identified with the Democratic 
 party, but have never taken an active part in 
 public affairs. 
 
 E. K. DAVIDSON. 
 
 This prominent and well-known citizen 
 of Cruger township, whose home is on sec- 
 tion 14, was born in that township, January 
 5, 1858, and belongs to one of Woodford 
 county's most honored pioneers, being a son 
 of Calvin G. and Eliza (Kinnear) Davidson.
 
 582 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 The father was 1iorn in Kentucky, OctolDer 
 13, 1826, and in 183 1 came to Woodford 
 county, Illinois, with his parents, Caleb and 
 Martha (Glazebrook) Davidson, natives of 
 South Carolina, who removed to Kentucky 
 at an early day. The family settled in what 
 is now Cruger township before the county 
 was organized and took up government land, 
 at the same time buying other tracts, which 
 the grandfather of our suliject improved. 
 He died in that township in 1870, and his 
 wife died in Eureka in 1882. Their children 
 were Mrs. Letitia Oatman, of Kansas City: 
 Marshall E., of Nevada, Missouri; Mrs. 
 Susan Eckles, of Washington, Illiois; Cal- 
 vin G., father of our subject; Mrs. Martha 
 Lindsay, of Brooklyn, New York; Mrs. Eliza 
 Jones, of Missouri; William A., of Eureka, 
 who is represented on another page of this 
 volume; Frank, of Hannibal, Missouri; 
 Sarah, wife of Dr. Crawford, of Eureka; 
 and Mrs. Mary Reynolds, of Peoria. 
 
 Calvin G. Davidson, our subject's father, 
 grew to manhood on the old homestead in 
 Cruger township, and there he was married, 
 March 8, 1855, to Eliza Kinnear, who was 
 born near Kingston, Ohio, September i, 
 1833, a daughter of Charles and Ellen 
 (Ritchey) Kinnear, also pioneer settlers of 
 Woodford county. On first coming to this 
 state they located in Bloomington, and then 
 removed to Cruger township, Woodford 
 county, where Mr. Kinnear opened up a 
 farm on section 14, making it his home 
 throughout the remainder of his life. He 
 died in 1892, his wife in 1884. They had 
 five children: Eliza, mother of our subject; 
 George, a resident of Seattle, Washington; 
 Rachel, wife of E. F. Earl, of Paxton, Illi- 
 nois; John R. and Lockwood A., both of 
 Seattle. After his marriage the father of 
 our subject settled near the village of 
 
 Cruger, ])ut later moved to the Kinnear 
 liomestead, where he was engaged in farm- 
 ing for several years. He took an active 
 part in organizing the county and served as 
 politics he is a Democrat. He and his wife 
 are now living in Watseka, IlHnois. They 
 liave a family of five children : W. O., now 
 serving as supervisor of Cruger township; 
 E. K., our subject; and I\Irs. Capitola Hirshi, 
 Mrs. Caddie Kern and Mrs. Anna Martin, 
 all residents of Watseka. 
 
 Our subject was reared on the old Kin- 
 near homestead, where he now resides, and 
 was educated in the district schools of 
 Cruger townsliip. Throughout his active 
 business life he has followed the occupation 
 of farming with marked success, and is just- 
 ly numbered among the most thorough and 
 skillful agriculturists of his township. He 
 was married in Vernon county, Missouri, in 
 1894, to Miss Cornelia A. McDaniel, a native 
 of Alabama and a daughter of Lowry and 
 .Anna Amanda (Coats) McDaniel, who died 
 in Alabama. By this union has been born 
 one child, Calvin Lowry. 
 
 As a Democrat Mr. Davidson has taken 
 a leading and influential part in local politics,^ 
 and served as supervisor of his township in 
 1894 and 1895. Socially he is a member 
 ct the Knights of Pythias lodge of Eureka; 
 AVilliam C. Hobbs Lodge, No. 306, F. & 
 A. M. ; Tazewell Chapter, No. 199, R. A. 
 M. ; Couer de Leon Commandery, No. 49, of 
 El Paso, and Mohamet Temple of the Mystic 
 Shrine, of Peoria. He is eminently public 
 spirited and progressive and identifies him- 
 self with those interests whose object it is to 
 advance the welfare of the township and 
 cciunty. Mr. Davidson is widely and fa- 
 vorably known, and those who know him 
 best are numbered among his warmest 
 friends.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 583 
 
 CHRISTIAN SCHAFEK. 
 
 Tliis well-known resident of Ml Paso is 
 one of our leading Cerman-l)orn citizens and 
 in his snccessfnl business career he has siiown 
 the characteristic thrift and enterprise of 
 his race. Beginning with no capital except 
 that ac(|uired hy his own industry, he has 
 steadily prospered in his business \entures 
 and is to-day one of the wealthiest citizens 
 of his adopted county. 
 
 Mr. Schafer was born in Bavaria. Cier- 
 many. September 21, 1834. and is a son of 
 Frederick and Elizabeth (Wagner) Schafer. 
 who spent their entire lives in that country. 
 The father was extensively engaged in the 
 grain business, having fourteen teams on 
 the road all of the time, and was a large land 
 owner. He was manager of the King's salt 
 magazine for thirty-two years, and also 
 served as mayor of Waltmur for twenty- 
 seven years, being one of the most influential 
 citizens as well as one of the wealthiest men 
 of his locality. His father had held those 
 offices before him and in Germany belonged 
 to what corres])onds to the English nobility. 
 
 Our subject is the seventh in order of 
 birth in a family of eight children, all of 
 whom grew to maturity and four are now 
 living, namely: Charlotte, now seventy- 
 eight years of age, is the widow of Nicholas 
 Freese and a resident of Washington, Illi- 
 nois : Henry, aged seventy-six, is living re- 
 tired in Wheeling, West Virginia; Margaret 
 is the wife of Frederick Bashar, of Bcllaire. 
 Ohio; our subject completes the family. By 
 a former marriage the father had five chil- 
 dren, all now deceased. 
 
 C. Schafer attended school in his native 
 land until thirteen years of age and then 
 learned the shoemaker's trade, serving a one- 
 year apprenticeship, after which he traveled 
 
 twi> \ears through Bavaria and Prussia, 
 working at liis trade in the large towns. .\t 
 the age of sixteen he determined to come to 
 .\merica and finally succeeded in getting 
 enough money from the administrators of 
 his father's estate to pay his passage. He 
 sailed from Havre on the Christian Henry 
 and after a voyage of twenty-two days 
 landed in New York. There he found that 
 he only had twelve and a half cents in his 
 pockets and this he spent for a meal. He 
 finally found work at his trade in a basement 
 shoe shop and also found a friend who had 
 known his father in the old country, .\fter 
 working eight days he had enough money to 
 pay his fare to Wheeling, West Virginia, 
 where a brother had made his home for 
 about twenty-five years, .\fter visiting his 
 lirother and sister for a time he commenced 
 work at his trade in that city, where he was 
 employed for three years, and then deter- 
 mined to try his fortune in the west. He 
 took passage on the first stem-wheel steamer 
 ever in America and by w'ay of the Ohio, 
 Mississip])i and Illinois river proceeded to 
 Peoria, where he arrived January 26. 1854. 
 There he was married, on the i8th of July, 
 the same year, to Miss Phebe Bashar, also 
 a native of Bavaria, Germany, who, when 
 a child of seven years, came to America with 
 her parents and located in Bellaire, Ohio. 
 Her father was Nicholas Bashar, of Ba- 
 \aria. 
 
 In October. 1854, Mr. and Mrs. Schafer 
 removed to Kappa, Woodford county, where 
 he successfully engaged in the shoe business 
 for several years, and also bought and sold 
 iiogs, cattle and sheep. In 1861 he became 
 a resident of El Paso, where he erected a 
 store building and opened a stock of shoes, 
 carrying on business as a dealer in connec- 
 tion with his manufacturing department. .\t
 
 584 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the end of eleven months he added groceries 
 to liis stock and a Httle later put in dry 
 goods, and subsequently hats, caps, clothing 
 and gents' furnishing goods, carrying every- 
 thing needed by the farmers. From time to 
 time he increased his stock until he had a 
 first-class general store. As his financial 
 resources increased he invested in land and 
 now has about fifteen hundred acres around 
 El Paso and also six hundred and forty 
 acres of fine cotton land in Clay county, Mis- 
 sissippi. Mr. Schafer is a stockholder in 
 the First National Bank of Port Arthur, 
 Texas, and also owns five store buildings, 
 four dwelling houses and a number of vacant 
 lots in that city. On the 14th of July, 1884, 
 he assisted in organizing the First National 
 Bank of El Paso, in connection with A. S. 
 McKinney, Al Johnson, J. Quincy Adams 
 and S. T. Rogers, and is serving as vice 
 president and director of the same. The 
 tank has a capital stock of over eighty thou- 
 sand dollars and is in a prosperous and thriv- 
 ing condition. In 1892 Mr. Schafer made a 
 present of his store to his son-in-law, H. J. 
 Tegmver, who has since carried on the 
 business, while our subject practically lives 
 retired, looking after his investments. Be- 
 sides the property already mentioned he owns 
 two residences and three store buildings in 
 El Paso. 
 
 Of the eleven children born to Air. and' 
 Mrs. Schafer, Jennie, the eldest, married 
 Robert Harseim and died in Indianapolis, 
 Indiana, April 10, 1892, at the age of thirty- 
 six years, leaving three children, Edna, 
 Jeanette and Roberta. Fred W. died at the 
 age of two years and Charles at the age of 
 one year. Ida is the wife of Henry Tegt- 
 myer. of El Paso, and they have one daugh- 
 ter. Ethel. Nellie died at the age of nine 
 months. Harr}' C, who is with the Empor- 
 
 ium Company, of Chicago, married Emma 
 Evans and thev have one child, Laurine. 
 Clara died at the age of seven months. Ed- 
 ward George is a graduate of Eureka College 
 and the Northwestern University and is now 
 in El Paso. Millie is at home. Walter 
 Robert was a law student at the Chicago Uni- 
 versity at the time of his death. May 20, 
 1899. Frank B. is attendmg the law school 
 of the Chicago University. 
 
 Each year Mr. and Mrs. Schafer spend 
 some time in traveling and have been over 
 the greater part of the United States. They 
 are prominent members of the Presbyterian 
 church of El Paso, in which he has serx'ed 
 twenty-three years as trustee and treasurer 
 in this and other churches. For three years 
 he most efficiently served as president of the 
 school board, having eleven districts under 
 his supervision, and he has also served as 
 alderman of the city, although he has never 
 cared for official honors. Since casting his 
 first presidential vote for Abraham Lincoln 
 he has affiliated with the Republican party, 
 and has attended many county and state 
 conventions of his party. He was one of 
 the organizers of the El Paso Fair Asso- 
 ciation and has always given his support to 
 those enterprises which he believed calculated 
 to prove of public benefit. He is widely 
 and favorably known and justly merits the 
 high regard in which he is held. 
 
 BENJAMIN K. ORE. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, who is now 
 living a retired life in El Paso, Illinois, was 
 born in Swedesboro, Gloucester county, New 
 Jersey, December 29, 1826, and is a son of 
 Isaac and Mila (Wodes) Ore. The father 
 was a native of England and was only three
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 585 
 
 years old wlien, with his parents, lie came to 
 the United States and settled in Gloncester 
 conntv. Xew Jersey, where he ^i)ent the re- 
 mainder of his life. He was a hrick and 
 stone mason hy trade and followed contract- 
 ing and building. He died in October, 1828, 
 when our subject was only two years old. 
 His wife was born and reared in Swedes- 
 boro, New Jersey, and was a descendant of 
 some of the very earliest settlers of that 
 state. She lived to the ripe old age of 
 eightv-eight years and departed this life in 
 1X88. In their family were seven children, 
 namely: Elizabeth, wife of George Black, 
 of Swedesboro, both now deceased ; John and 
 Charles, also deceased; Mila, wife of Will- 
 iam Zanes, living near Swedesboro; Ran- 
 som, a resident of Sea View, New Jersey; 
 Lydia, deceased; Benjamin K., our subject; 
 and Isaac J., a resident of Swedesboro. 
 
 In his native town Benjamin K. Ore was 
 reader and educated and in early life fol- 
 lowed farming. In 1849 he found employ- 
 ment in a hotel in Swedesboro, where he re- 
 mained for six years, and in 1855 came west, 
 locating at Farmington, Fulton county, Illi- 
 nois, where he made his home until coming 
 to Woodford county in 1858. He was en- 
 gaged in farming in Palestine township until 
 after the Civil war broke out, when he en- 
 listed, August 7, 1862, in CcMnpany A, 
 Eighty-sixth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He 
 participated in the battle of Perryville and in 
 a skirmish near Stone river, where he re- 
 ceived injuries which inca])acitated him for 
 service at the front. He was then assigned 
 to detached duty in the Invalid Corps and 
 thus served out his term of enlistment, being 
 stationed at various times in Syracuse, 
 Rochester and Elmira. New York, and Chi- 
 cago, Illinois. In the last named city he was 
 honorably discharged July 2, 1865, and then 
 
 returned to his home in Woodford county. 
 Mr. Ore followed farming near Kappa, El 
 Paso township, until 1889, when he moved 
 to Springfield, Illinois, and spent two years 
 in that city, after which he returned to .\in- 
 boy, remaining there until 1899, when he 
 came to El Paso, where he is now living a 
 retired life. 
 
 On the 4th of September, 1851, Mr. Ore 
 was united in marriage with Miss Esther 
 Cline, a native of Morristown, Burlington 
 county. New Jersey, and they became the 
 parents of seven children, as follows : Henry 
 P., born August 17, 1852, was killed by the 
 Indians at Camp Robinson, Nebraska. Jan- 
 uary 12, 1879, while serving in Company 
 A, Third Regiment United States Army; 
 John, born June 9, 1855, died in infancy; 
 Mila, born August 27, 1856, is also deceased ; 
 Joseph, born October 15, 1861, resides in 
 Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Thomas, born May 
 I, 1866, is living in Tacoma, Washington; 
 Eva, born May 11, 1869, is the wife of Jacob 
 J. Dole, of Olathe, Kansas ; and Blanch, born 
 March 31, 187 1, is the wife of Frederick 
 Wohnke, of El Paso. The family are mem- 
 bers of the Methodist Episcopal church and 
 are people of prominence in the communities 
 where they reside. Mr. Ore has always sup- 
 ported the Republican party and is a charter 
 member of the Grand ^Vrmy [Xist at El Paso. 
 By all who know him he is held in high re- 
 gard and he has many friends throughout 
 Woodford countv. 
 
 W. O. DAVIDSON. 
 
 The natural advantages of this section 
 attracted at an early day a superior class of 
 settlers, thrifty, industrious, progressive and 
 law-abiding, whose influence gave permanent
 
 586 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 direction to the development of the locaHty. 
 Among the worthy pioneers of Woodford 
 county the Davidson family hold prominent 
 place. They always bore their part in the 
 work of advancement and progress and gave 
 their support to all enterprises for the pub- 
 lic good. 
 
 The present supervisor of Cruger town- 
 ship is a worthy representative of this fam- 
 ily. There he was born March 8, 1856, a son 
 of Calvin G. and Eliza (Kinnear) Davidson. 
 The father was born in Kentucky October 
 13, 1826, and in 1832 came to Woodford 
 county, Illinois, with his parents, Caleb and 
 Martha (Glazebrook) Davidson, natives of 
 South Carolina, who had removed to Ken- 
 tucky at an early day. The family settled 
 in what is now Cruger township before the 
 county was organized and took up govern- 
 ment land, at the same time buying other 
 tracts, which the grandfather of our subject 
 improved. He died in that township in 1870 
 and his wife died in Eureka in 1882. Their 
 children were Mrs. Letitia Oatman, of Kan- 
 sas City; Marshall E., of Nevada, Missouri; 
 Mrs. Susan Eckles, of Washington, Illinois ; 
 Calvin G., father of our subject; Mrs. 
 Martha Lindsay, of Brooklyn. New York; 
 Mrs. Eliza Jones, of Missouri ; William A., 
 of Eureka, who is represented on another 
 page of this volume; Frank, of Hannibal, 
 Missouri; Sarah, wife of Dr. Crawford, of 
 Eureka; and Mrs. Mary Reynolds, of Peoria. 
 
 Calvin G. Davidson, our subject's father, 
 grew to manhood on the old homestead in 
 Cruger township and there he was married, 
 March 8, 1855, to Eliza Kinnear, who was 
 born near Kingston, Ohio. September i, 
 1833. a daughter of Charles and Ellen 
 (Ritchey) Kinnear, also pioneer settlers of 
 Woodford county. On first coming to this 
 state they settled at Bloomington. and then 
 
 removed to Cruger township, Woodford 
 county, where Mr. Kinnear opened up a farm 
 on section 14, making it his home through- 
 out the remainder of his life. He died De- 
 cember 16, 1892, his wife in December, 
 1884. They had five children: Eliza, 
 mother of our subject ; George, a resident of 
 Seattle. Washington ; Rachel, wife of E. F. 
 Earl, of Paxton. Illinois; John R. and Lock- 
 wood A., both of Seattle. After his mar- 
 riage the father of our subject settled near 
 the village of Cruger. but later moved to 
 the Kinnear homestead, where he was en- 
 gaged in farming for several years. He 
 took an active part in organizing the county 
 and served as commissioner of highways for 
 a time. In politics he is a Democrat. He 
 and his wife are now living in Watseka, 
 Illinois. Of their five children W. O. is the 
 oldest. E. K. lives on the old homestead, 
 and Mrs. Capitola Hirshi. Mrs. Caddie Kern 
 and Mrs. Anna Martin are all residents of 
 Watseka. 
 
 The boyhood and youth of W. O. David- 
 son was passed amid rural scenes and he 
 was educated in the district schools of Cruger 
 township and later attended Knox College, 
 of Galesburg, where he took a scientific 
 course. In 1881 he purchased his present 
 farm in that township and the following 
 year took up his residence thereon, his time 
 and energies being since devoted to its 
 further improvement and cultivation. He 
 carries on general farming and stock raising 
 and is meeting with well deserved success 
 in his labors. In 1883, October 18, he was 
 married, in Cruger township, to Miss Eliza 
 Ellis, a native of Pennsylvania, where her 
 parents, Thomas and Elizabeth (Fleming) 
 Ellis, were also born. (See sketch of Thomas 
 Ellis elsewhere in this volume.) To our 
 subject and his wife have been born six chil-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 587 
 
 dren : Cliarles. Bessie. Xora, Thomas, 
 Geiieveive and W'ildon Crawford. 
 
 Socially Mr. Davidson is a nieml)er of 
 the Modern Woodmen of .\merica and Will- 
 iam C. Hobbs Lodge, Xo. 306. F. & A. M., 
 of Eureka, and Tazewell Chapter. Xo. 199, 
 R. .-\. M.. of Wasliington. In his political 
 afifiliations he is a Democrat and as one of 
 the leading citizens of his township he has 
 taken a very prominent and influential part 
 in public affairs. In the spring of 1899 he 
 was elected sujiervisor of Cruger township 
 and is now filling that office with credit to 
 himself and to the satisfaction of his con- 
 stituents. 
 
 PETER F.\GOT. 
 
 Since 1847 this gentleman has made iiis 
 home in Woodford county and has been 
 prominently identified with its growth and 
 (ievelopment. Like many of our best and 
 nnist enterprising citizens, he comes from 
 across the sea, his birth having occurred 
 January 16, 1839, in Alsace Lorraine, 
 Prance, now a province of Germany. His 
 parents, Joseph and Barbara ( Tunna ) Fagot, 
 were natives of the same province, where 
 tliey continued to make their home until 
 1847. when, with their family, they emi- 
 grated to America. They came at once to 
 Woodfortl county, Illinois, locating here 
 when the country was but sparsely settled 
 and much of the land was still in its primi- 
 tive condition. During his youth the father 
 learned the trade of a weaver, which he con- 
 tinued to follow until old age compelled liis 
 retirement from active labor. He died in 
 1880, his wife in 1887. In the family of 
 these worthy pioneers were six children, all 
 Ijorn in France, with the exception of the 
 
 youngest daughter. They were as follows : 
 Pn)sper G.. born December 20, 1S36, died 
 at his home in Linn township, in 1898: 
 Peter, our subject, is the next in order of 
 liirth : Mary is the widow of Frank Lozier 
 and a resident of Minonk township, Wood- 
 ford county ; Frank died on his farm in 
 Spring Bay township, in .\ugnst, 1900; 
 Christina married .Andrew Conkle, of Mar- 
 shall county. Illinois, where she died ; and 
 Felicity, born in Partridge township. Wood- 
 ford county, married Martin Voltz and died 
 in Worth township. 
 
 During his boyhood Peter Fagot re- 
 ceived but a very limited education. Until 
 the age of twenty-three he assisted his fa- 
 ther in tlie improvement and cultivation of 
 the home farm, it being all wild prairie and 
 timber land when they located there. They 
 commenced farming on a small scale, but 
 were able to carry on business more ex- 
 tensively as years passed and they prospered 
 in their undertakings. .After his marriage, 
 in 1863. our subject lived in Worth town- 
 ship. Woodford county, for two years, and 
 then spent a short time in Spring Bay town- 
 ship, after which he returned to the former 
 township, making his home there for twenty 
 years. He bought one hundred and eight- 
 een acres, which he cleared, tiled and im- 
 proved, and he continued to successfully en- 
 gage in farming and stock raising there until 
 1892, when he sold the place and bought 
 his ])resent farm of one hundred and sixty 
 acres on section 17, Linn township. This 
 he now oi)erates with the assistance of his 
 son. 
 
 In 1863 Mr. Fagot married Miss Ma- 
 likla X'oltz. a native of Worth township, 
 and to them were born five children, of 
 whom one died in infancy. The others are 
 a3 follows: ( I ) Frank, born in 1864. is now
 
 588 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 engaged in farming on rented land in Linn 
 township. He is married and has three chil- 
 dren. Pearl, Ray and Stella. (2) Felicity 
 J., born in 1867, is the wife of Peter Zeiger, 
 of Palestine township, Woodford county, 
 and they have five children, Viola, Le Roy, 
 Randolph, Otmor and Matilda. (3) Mary, 
 born in 1869, first married Alexander Spitz- 
 nagel, who died leaving one child. Elmer, 
 and she then married his brother, Edwin C. 
 Spitznagel, by whom she has one daughter, 
 Henrietta E. (4) Lena, born in 1872, is 
 the wife of L. H. Stephenson, of Cazenovia 
 township, Woodford county. The wife and 
 mother died in Worth township, in 1874, 
 and the following year Mr. Fagot married 
 Mary A. Kerker, who was born in 1838, and 
 was then the widow of M. Schwenk. She 
 had seven children In' her first marriage, 
 those living being Leo, Alary, William, 
 Mathias, Carrie and George. John died at 
 the age of nineteen years. Mr. Fagot has 
 three children by his second wife: Matilda, 
 born in 1876, is now the wife of A. Lapp, 
 a dairyman of Peoria, and they have one 
 daughter, Anna; Peter, born in 1878, and 
 Pauleana, born in 1882, are both at home. 
 All of the children have received gnod com- 
 mon school educations. 
 
 AMiile a resident of Worth township Mr. 
 Fagot served as supervisor two years and 
 held school offices for ten years. In politics 
 he is a Democrat and in religious belief is a 
 Catholic. He has always taken an active 
 interest in church work, and has given his 
 support to all enterprises tending to advance 
 the interests of his community. As one of 
 the pioneers of the county he has witnessed 
 almost its entire development. At the age 
 of eighteen, while crossing the prairie in 
 Linn township, he stopped at a point about 
 cue mile east of his present home, and from 
 
 there could be seen but three houses in any 
 direction. At that time only about a third 
 of the land was under cultivation. He bore 
 his part in the pioneer work, and is justly 
 deserving of promijient mention among the 
 early settlers and honored citizens of his 
 adopted county. 
 
 A. SMITH IMcKIXXEY. 
 
 More than thirty vears have passed since 
 this gentleman arrived in El Paso, and he is 
 justly numbered among her leading and in- 
 fluential citizens. He has been prominent- 
 ly identified with her business interests as a 
 lumber dealer and president of the First 
 National Bank. 
 
 Mr. McKinney was born in Cumberland 
 county, Pennsylvania, October 12, 1834, and 
 is a son of A. Smith and Margaret (Rey- 
 nolds) McKinne}', also natives of Pennsyl- 
 vania and of Scotch-Irish descent. His an- 
 cestors came to America at a very early day 
 and were pioneers of the Keystone state. The 
 lather was for some time a soldier of the 
 war of 1812 and was present at the battle of 
 01 Baltimore. In the spring of 1834 he rode 
 from his home in Cumberland countv, Penn- 
 syhania. to Peoria, Illinois, and ])urchased 
 land at Fort Clark, a part of which is still 
 in possession of the family, but he did not 
 li'cate there until the spring of 1856. In 
 connection with farming he ran a large tan- 
 yard for a number of years, but was living 
 a retired life at the time of his death, which 
 dccurred in Peoria, in 1872. He t<i(ik a 
 prominent jiart in public aft'airs and for five 
 vears represented his district in the state 
 legislature. His wife departed this life in 
 1886. To them were born nine children, all
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 589 
 
 ol whom readied years of maturity, except 
 one, and six are still living. 
 
 Of this family our subject is fourth in 
 order of birth. His early education was re- 
 ceived in the schools of his native county, 
 but later he attended the Milnwood Academy 
 rt Shade Gap, Hunting^ton county, Pennsyl- 
 vania, for three years, and then entered Jef- 
 ferson College, where he jnu'sued a classical 
 course, and was graduated in 1855, with 
 the degree of A. B. After his graduation 
 he taught school at Lake Providence, Louisi- 
 ana, in the winter of 1855-1856. He was 
 then engaged in the lumber business at 
 Elmwood, Peoria county. Illinois, for eight 
 years, in partnership with a brother and 
 Mr. Bushnell, under the firm name of Bush- 
 nell, McKinney & Company, and in 1866 
 moved to Yazoo county, Mississippi, locating 
 near Yazoo Cit}-. where he conducted a cot- 
 ton plantation for two years. Selling out, 
 he came north in the spring of 1868 and 
 took up his residence in El Paso. Illinois, 
 where he purchased the lumber yard of Gib- 
 son Brothers, and has since carried on the 
 same. At different times he has bought out 
 half a dozen lumber yards. His first partner 
 in this business was James M. Hotchkiss, of 
 Peoria, and second Jose])h Elder, both now 
 deceased. The last partnership terminated 
 about eight years ago and since that time 
 he has conducted business alone under tlie 
 firm name of McKinney & Company. 
 
 In 1883 S. T. Rogers, C. Shafer, Dr. F. 
 Cole, Dr. J. Q. Adams. A. Smith McKinney 
 and others organized the First National Bank 
 of El Paso, with a capital stock of fifty thou- 
 sand dollars, and Mr. McKinney was elected 
 president, which office he has held continu- 
 ously since. S. T. Rogers was the first 
 cashier and Dr. J. Q. Adams, vice-president, 
 but at the present time C. Shafer is vice- 
 
 president and F. B. Stitt, who was formerly 
 a bookkeeper, is cashier, while Louis K. 
 Evans is assistant cashier. The bank now 
 has a surplus of twenty-five thousand dol- 
 lars; its deposits amount to over three hun- 
 dred and fifty thousand dollars, and it is 
 numbered among the most reliable financial 
 institutions of centra] Illinois. Mr. McKin- 
 ney is a man of keen sagacity and sound 
 judgment and his executive aliility and ex- 
 cellent management have brought to the bank 
 a high degree of success. The safe, con- 
 servative policy which he inaugurated com- 
 mends itself to the judgtnent of all. and has 
 secured a patronage which makes the \olume 
 of business transacted over its counters of 
 great importance and magnitude. The suc- 
 cess of the bank is certainly due in a large 
 measure to him, and through it and his 
 other business he has largely promoted the 
 welfare of El Paso. 
 
 On the i8th of Jinie. 1861. Mr. McKin- 
 ney was united in marriage with Miss Ade- 
 laide F. Abbott, a native of Connecticut, and 
 a daughter of Bela Abbott, who was also born 
 in that state and on coming west settled in 
 Elmwood, Peoria county, Illinois, where he 
 conducted a general mercantile establishment 
 for many years. Mrs. McKinney is the 
 only child of her parents. To our subject 
 and his wife have been born eight children, 
 namely: Anna F., who is the widow of 
 Robert A. Kirjspatrick, of Braddock, Penn- 
 sylvania, and is now living with her father 
 in El Paso; Margaret R.. wife of Charles 
 F. Husted, of Peoria : Abbott, who is chief 
 estimator for the True & True Company, 
 manufacturers of sash and doors in Chicago; 
 William Smith, who was graduated at 
 Princeton College in 1894, and is now con- 
 nected with the Missouri Lumber & Mining 
 Comjjany at Grandin, Missouri ; .Adelaide
 
 590 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 A., at home; Jolm Reynolds, wlio is engaged 
 i:i the lumber business with his father; 
 Jeanette Elizabeth, at home; and Gertrude 
 Hunt, who is attending Lake Forrest Sem- 
 inary. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. McKinney are mem- 
 bers of the Presbyterian church, in which 
 he has served as elder for about thirty years. 
 He has twice been a delegate to the general 
 assembly from the Bloomington presbytery; 
 has taught in the Sunday school since at- 
 taining his majority, and was superintend- 
 ent of the same for about fifteen years. He 
 has always taken a very active and promi- 
 nent part in all church work. He cast his 
 first presidential \t)te for Stephen A. Doug- 
 las, and was present at the Charleston con- 
 vention in i860, but since then has supported 
 the Republican party. For two years he 
 served as alderman of El Paso, and as school 
 director for about sixteen years, being re- 
 elected in the spring of 1900 for another 
 three-years term. Whether in public or pri- 
 vate his integrity is above question, his honor 
 abo\e reproach, and El Paso may well num- 
 ber him among her valued citizens. 
 
 MARCELLUS W. WILSOX. 
 
 This well-known citizen and honored pio- 
 neer of Woodford county, dates his residence 
 here from May, 1844. For many years he 
 was actively identified with the agricultural 
 interests of this county, but is now living a 
 retired life on his fine farm of one hundred 
 and si.xty acres, which is pleasantly situated 
 on section 10, Metamora township, within 
 four miles of the city of Metamora. 
 
 A native of New Hampshire. Mr. Wilson 
 
 was born in what is now Gilmanton, Belknap 
 county, but at that time Stafford county, 
 January 12, 1830, and is a son of Samuel 
 T. and Lorana (Robinson) Wilson, also na- 
 tives of that state, and the latter a daughter 
 of Joseph Robinson, who was a soldier in 
 the war of 181 2 and probably in some of the 
 Indian wars. Our subject's paternal grand- 
 father, Nathaniel Wilson, was also born in 
 New Hampshire, and belonged to an old 
 colonial family of English origin, which 
 first settled in Massachusetts and at an early 
 day moved to New Hampshire. In 1844 
 Samuel T. Wilson, in company with his wife 
 and children, came to Woodford county, 
 Illinois, and located on section 16, Metamora 
 township, adjoining the village, where he 
 opened up and improved a good farm. There 
 he died about 1877. His wife survived him 
 a number of years and spent her last days 
 with our subject, dying at his home in 1892. 
 Marcellus W. Wilson was a lad of four- 
 teen years when the family came to Wood- 
 ford county, and he assisted in the arduous 
 task of breaking the land and improving the 
 old homestead. His educational advantages 
 were therefore limited. On leaving the par- 
 ental roof at the age of seventeen, he com- 
 nienced learning th ecarpenter's and joiner's 
 trade, which he followed for eight years, 
 and then bought a tract of eighty acres of 
 land where he now resides and turned his 
 attention to agricultural pursuits. He pur- 
 chased an old school house which he moved 
 to his land, and in that liveil while opening 
 up his farm. Meeting with success in his 
 farming operations he was at length able to 
 purchase an adjoining eighty-acre tract, and 
 has converted the whole into a fine farm, 
 which he has tiled, fenced and improved by 
 the planting of an orchard and the erection 
 of a pleasant residence, good barns and other
 
 M. W. WILSON.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 593 
 
 t>iitl)iiil(lings. In connection with general 
 farming lie lias engaged in stock raising, 
 making a specialty of fattening hogs for 
 market. His well directed lal)ors have been 
 crowned with success, for he is an indus- 
 trious man, enterprising and persevering. 
 
 In Metamora township. January 6. 1854, 
 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Wilson 
 and Miss Patience H. FairchiUl. who was 
 reared and educated in Champaign county, 
 Ohio, and when a young lady came to Wood- 
 ford county, where she successfully engaged 
 in teaching school prior to their marriage. 
 They have one daugiiter. Emma, wife of 
 S. S. Robinson, a sul)stantial farmer residing 
 on a place adjoining Mr. Wilson's farm. In 
 the Robinson family are seven children. 
 
 Mr. Wilson cast his hrst presidential 
 vote for Franklin Pierce, and in 1856 sup- 
 ixjrted JoJin C. Fremont, since which time 
 he has been an ardent Republican. He takes 
 an active interest in local politics, has served 
 as a delegate to county and state conven- 
 tions, and as chairman of the delegation from 
 his county to the state convention in 1900. 
 In 1896 he was one of the presidential elect- 
 ors and cast his ballot for William McKin- 
 ley. For years he has efficiently served as 
 a member of the school board and has done 
 all in his power to secure better schools and 
 competent teachers. He has witnessed the 
 worthy growth and development of the coun- 
 ty in the last fifty-si.x years, has seen the 
 swamps drained and the wild land converted 
 into productive farms, has seen towns and 
 villages spring up. and the railroads, tele- 
 graph and telephones introduced. In the 
 work of progress he has ever borne his part, 
 and is justly entitled to honorable mention 
 among the prominent pioneers and repre- 
 sentative citizens of his adopted county. 
 
 .\t the September meeting of the Old Set- 
 tlers' Association of Woodford County, Mr. 
 Wilson was elected president. 
 
 C. G. SCHROEDER. 
 
 C. (i. Scliroeder. a prominent lawyer of 
 El Paso and one of the leading members of 
 the Woodford county bar. is a native of 
 Canada, born in Huron county, Ontario, 
 January 13, 1862. His parents, Jacob and 
 Catherine (Tousainte) Schroeder, were na- 
 tives of Alsace Lorraine, (jermany, the 
 former born December 18. 1812, the latter 
 January 15, i8j_'. They emigrated to 
 .\merica, the father in 1854, the mother two 
 years later, and settled in Huron county, 
 Ontaricj. where they spent the remainder of 
 their lives, the father dying in 1887, the 
 mother in 1880. In their family were five 
 children, namelv: Christiana: Jacob D., 
 who resides on the old homestead in Huron 
 county. Ontario; C. G., the subject of this 
 biography: Elizabeth, wife of Louis Pock- 
 rantl, of Nebraska; and Mary. 
 
 The carlv education of C. G. Schroeder 
 was ac(|uire(l in the public schools near his 
 boyhood home in Canada, and he later at- 
 tended the gymnasium at Fort Wayne, In- 
 diana, and the theological seminary of the 
 Lutheran church at Springfield. Illinois, 
 graduating at the latter institution October 
 17, 1883, with a select class. For some 
 tune he was engaged in ministerial work in 
 western Nebraska, and from 1890 to 1898 
 was pastor of the German Lutheran church 
 at El Paso, with which he still holds mem- 
 l)ership. Having only a small charge dur- 
 ing his residence here, Mr. Schroeder de-
 
 594 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ^•ote(l his spare time to tlie study of philoso- 
 phy and law. the latter under the direction 
 of Judge A. M. Cavan. He received the 
 degree of Bachelor of Law from a Chicago 
 law school in 1896 and was licensed to prac- 
 tice in June, 1897. The following 3-ear he 
 entered into partnership with his preceptor, 
 judge Cavan, but this connection was vlis- 
 solved in 1899 and he has since been alone 
 in practice. He has one of the best ec|uipped 
 law offices in the county and is meeting with 
 excellent success in his chosen profession. 
 
 On the 25th day of :SIay, 1884, .Mr. 
 Schroeder was united in marriage with Aliss 
 M. K. Whitehouse, of Litchfield, Illinois, 
 and to them have been born four children, 
 namely: Justina K., Theodore William S., 
 I.ydia Emma and Alma Almeda. The fam- 
 ily have a pleasant home in El Paso, south 
 of the east side park. At the Republican 
 county convention held at Roanoke, June 27, 
 1900, Mr. Schroeder was nominated for 
 state's attorney for Woodford county and is 
 making a strong canvass through the county 
 and meeting with much encouragement. 
 
 ERNEST FREDERICK. 
 
 Much of the civilization of the world 
 has come from the Teutonic race. Contin- 
 ually moving westward they have taken with 
 them the enterprise and advancement of their 
 eastern homes and have become valued and 
 useful citizens of ^■arious localities. In this 
 country, especially, they have demonstrated 
 their power to adapt themselves to new cir- 
 cumstances, retaining at the same time their 
 progressiveness and energy, and have be- 
 come loyal and devoted citizens, true to the 
 interests of their adopted country. Am.ong 
 
 this class is Ernest Frederick, one of Wood- 
 ford count\-'s most successful agriculturists. 
 
 He was born in Prussia, Germany, Sep- 
 tember 28. 1834. and for eight years attend- 
 eii the public schools of his native land, after 
 which he learned the millwright's trade. 
 In 1853, at the age of eighteen years, he re- 
 solved to try his fortune in America, and 
 accordingly crossed the Atlantic and took 
 up his residence in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, 
 where he worked at the carpenter's and 
 joiner's trade. He also spent some time in 
 the Lake Superior region of northern Michi- 
 gan. In 1858 he removed to Peoria, Illi- 
 nois, where he engaged in business as a 
 contractor and builder until 1867, when he 
 came to Spring Bay, W'oodford county, and 
 purchased a mill, being successfully engaged 
 in the manufacturing of flour until 1896. 
 In the meantime he also bought land and 
 devoted a portion of his time to agricultural 
 pursuits, and now has a large and well im- 
 proved farm just above Spring Bay. 
 
 In November, 1856, in Sheboygan, Wis- 
 consin, Mr. Frederick married Miss Louisa 
 Lingel. also a native of Germany, who came 
 to the new world wdien sixteen years of age. 
 By this union four children were born, name- 
 ly : Frances, at home ; William H., men- 
 tioned below : Emma, wife of A\'illiam 
 Greiner, of McDowell, Illinois ; and Louisa, 
 wife of Alfred Hoshor, a substantial farmer 
 of Spring Bay township. 
 
 Since casting his first presidential vote 
 for James Buchanan, in 1856, Mr. Frederick 
 lias been identified with the Democratic 
 party, and has taken an active and promi- 
 nent part in local politics, being a delegate 
 to numerous conventions. He has been 
 called upon to fill a number of political po- 
 sitions of honor and trust, having served 
 as supervisor two years ; a memlier 1 if the
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 595 
 
 boaril of highway commissioners fifteen 
 years and as treasurer of the hoard: town- 
 sliip clerk; town clerk; assessor; collector; 
 village treasurer and a member of the vil- 
 lage bi)ard. 1 le is ni>w serving iiis sixth 
 year as townshii) treasurer, and has alwavs 
 discharged his official duties in ;i most 
 capable and satisfactory manner. liotli 
 he and liis wife were reared in the Lu- 
 theran faith, and are widely and faxur- 
 ably known, having made many warm 
 friends during their residence in Wood- 
 ford county. On coming to this coun- 
 stances. but being industrious, ambitious and 
 enterprising he has steadily worked his way 
 upward tn a position of aflluence, and is 
 to-dav one of the most substantial men uf liis 
 communitv. 
 
 HERMAN G. EICHHORX. M. I). 
 
 Among the younger members of the pro- 
 fession in Woodford county is Dr. Eichhorn, 
 a prominent and successful physician and 
 surgeon of Spring Bay. He was bi>rn in 
 that village, April 20. 1872, a son of Peter 
 and Catherine (Wenckler) Eichhorn. The 
 father was born in Germany, in 1820, and 
 there was reared and educated. Coming to 
 America, in 1844, he first located in Peoria, 
 Illinois, but later moved to Spring Bay, 
 where he successfully engaged in the brewery 
 business until his death, which occurred Au- 
 gust 25, 1885. At one time he owned the 
 property now occupied by the "Peoria Trans- 
 cript," and became quite well-to-do. The 
 Doctor's mother was reared and educated 
 in \\'oodford county, her father. Christian 
 Wenckler, being one of the pioneers of the 
 county, locating here about 1830 or 1832. 
 
 She is now the wife of Christian Guenther, 
 of Spring Bay. whose sketch appears in this 
 volume. By her first marriage she had four 
 sons, namely: Herman G.. our subject; Will- 
 iam, who is married and engaged in farming; 
 Charles, who is also doing for himself; and 
 Algernon, at home with his mother. 
 
 The primary education of Dr. l-jchhorn 
 was obtained in the public schools of Spring 
 Bay, and later he entered the Xorthwestern 
 L'niversity at Evanston, where he pursued 
 a four years' course. He then took up the 
 study of medicine, attending lectures at the 
 Xorthwestern Medical College, where he was 
 graduated in 1896. For a short time he 
 engaged in ])ractice in Peoria, but in the 
 spring of 1897 he returned to .Spring liay 
 and opened an oftice. His skill and ability 
 in his chosen calling were soon recognized 
 and he has already built up an excellent 
 l^ractice, which is constantly increasing, and 
 in fact he now has more practice than one 
 man can well attend to, in justice to himself. 
 
 Dr. Eichhorn has been twice married, 
 first in Chicago, in the spring of 1896, to 
 Miss Olga Horwitz, of that city, who was 
 reared and educated in Milwaukee, Wiscon- 
 sin, and died Decemlier 28, 1898. At Lacon, 
 Illinois, he was again married June 28, 1900, 
 his second union being with Miss Louise 
 Ehringer, one of the belles of that ])lace, and 
 the only daughter of Albert Ehringer, one 
 of its l)usiness men. She was bf)rn in W'ash- 
 bm-n, Woodford county, but was reared in 
 Lacon. She is a most estimal>le young lady, 
 highly accomplished and a splendid house- 
 keeper, a general favorite, and has a host of 
 friends. The Doctor is independent in poli- 
 tics, voting for the men whom he believes 
 best qualified to fill the ofifices regardless 
 of party affiliations. He is a prominent citi- 
 zen of Spring Bay and surrounding country
 
 596 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 and is popular botli in social and professional 
 circles, and is a cultured and agreeal)le gen- 
 tleman in every way. 
 
 JOHN H. WATSON. 
 
 Numbered among the honored veterans 
 of the Civil war residing in Woodford 
 county is John H. Watson, a well-known 
 fruit grower of Cruger township, who for 
 three years was one of the gallant defenders 
 of the Union. He was born near Winches- 
 ter. Frederick county, Virginia, in 1834, but 
 was only three years old when he moved to 
 Fairfield county, Ohio, with bis parents, 
 Thomas B. and Nancy (Franklin) Watson. 
 The father was also a native of Virginia, 
 but the mother was born in England and 
 reared at Carlisle, Pennsylvania. By occu- 
 pation Thomas B. Watson was a farmer and 
 shoemaker. In 1854 he removed to Clark 
 county, Illinois, where he died in 1873, and 
 where his wife departed this time some years 
 later. She was a distant relative of Ben- 
 jamin Franklin. To them were born the fol- 
 lowing children : William is still a resident 
 of Fairfield county, Ohio. Benjamin makes 
 his home in Clark county, Illinois. John H., 
 our subject, is next in order of birth. James 
 is also a resident of Clark county. Aaron, 
 a resident of Douglas county, Illinois, en- 
 listed in Coles county, in April, 1861. at the 
 first call for three-months troops, and later 
 re-enlisting at expiration of his term as a 
 Illinois Volunteer Infantry, with which he 
 served throughout the remainder of the war 
 re-enlisting at expiration of his term as a 
 veteran volunteer. Samuel enhsted at 
 Siiringfield in the One Hundred and Fifty- 
 si.xth Illinois Volunteer Infantrv, and is now 
 
 li\-ing in Cloud county. Kansas. Wesleyan 
 is also li\ing in that county. George makes 
 bis home in Oklahoma. Scott is a resident 
 of Parsons, Kansas. Isaac was accidentally 
 killed in Clark county, Illinois. In the fani- 
 il}- were also four daughters : Mary, wife of 
 George Lamb, of Kansas, w^ho was a member 
 of the Old Hundred and Twenty-third Illi- 
 nois Regiment during the war; Lucinda and 
 Eliza, both deceased; and Nellie, wife of 
 Scott Reed, of Douglas county. Illinois. 
 
 In September. 1855, John H. Watson 
 came to Woodford coimt\'. and has since 
 made his home in Cruger townshii). I*"or 
 a time be engaged in general farming, but 
 now gives his entire time and attention to 
 fruit growing. On the 7th of August, 
 1862, he joined the boys in blue of Com- 
 jiany A, Eighty-sixth Illinois Volunteer In- 
 fantry, and was mustered into the United 
 States service at Peoria, the regiment being 
 assigned to the Army of the Cumberland. 
 They participated in the battle of Perryville. 
 Kentucky, October 8, 1862; the engagement 
 at Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Resaca, 
 Tunnel Hill, Buzzard's Roost and Kenesaw 
 Mountain, and were under constant fire at 
 Dalton, Georgia, from May 7 to June 27, 
 1864. At Kenesaw Mountain Mr. Watson 
 was shot through the right leg and also in 
 the back, and was confined in the hospital at 
 Chattanooga for a time, then sent to Nash- 
 \ille, from there to Louisville, and later to 
 Chicago. He was honorably discharged at 
 Camp Douglas, in the last named city, June 
 9, 1865, and then returned to his home in 
 Woodford county. 
 
 Prior to entering the service, Mr. Wat- 
 son was married in Metamora township, in 
 February, 1862, to Miss Sarah Ann Thomp- 
 son, a native of Mercer county, Pennsylva- 
 nia, and a daughter of fohn A. and Ruth 
 
 I
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 597 
 
 (Peterson) Tliompsdii, wiio were also born 
 in that state and at an early day moved to 
 Ohio. The mother died in Schuyler county, 
 Illinois in 1840. the father in Kentucky, in 
 1880. I'liey had nine children, namely: 
 Mrs. Mary Dunlap, who died in Cruger 
 township. Woodford county, Illinois; J. A., 
 who died in Kentucky ; Mrs. Elizabeth Groes- 
 beck, who <lied in Salt Lake City. Utah; 
 Sarah Ann. wife of our subject; William, 
 who was a member of the Seventeenth Indi- 
 ana Regiment during the Civil war and died 
 from injuries received in the battle of Shiloh ; 
 Amos, a well-known farmer who died near 
 Piper City. Illinois; James, a resident of 
 Ohio; and Ralph, who died in Schuyler 
 county. Illinois; and Mrs. Ruth Fritz, of 
 Ripley, Ohio. 
 
 Mr. Watson is a stanch supporter of the 
 Republican party and its principles, and is an 
 honored member of the Grand Army Post, 
 No. 270, at Eureka. He is highly respected 
 and esteemed by all who know him. and well 
 merits the high regard in which he is held. 
 
 On the 6th of January. 1896, in Wood- 
 f(;rd county, he was united in marriage with 
 Miss Cordelia Hoshor. a native of the coun- 
 ty and a daughter of Perry W. Hoshor. who 
 was also born here, but is now deceased. 
 To them have been bcjrn three children : 
 Florence. Edna and Ernest. In his political 
 affiliations Mr. Frederick is a stanch Demo- 
 crat and cast his first presidential ballot for 
 Grover Cleveland. Being one of the lead- 
 ing and mfluential citizens of his comnnmity, 
 he has become prominently identified with 
 public affairs, and has filled a number of local 
 offices such as township clerk, collector and 
 trustee, and in 1892 he was elected super- 
 \ isor. which position he filled so acceptably 
 that he has been continuously re-elected and 
 i> now serving his eighth year. He was a 
 member of a number of important commit- 
 tees, including the building committee when 
 the court house was erected at Eureka. 
 While a resident of the village of Spring 
 Bay he served as clerk and a member of the 
 village board a number of years, being presi- 
 dent of the board one term. Fraternally he 
 i? a member of the Masonic lodge at Chili- 
 cothe. 
 
 WILLIAM H. I'REDERICK. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, a son of Ernest 
 Frederick, is one of the most prosperous and 
 I>rogressive farmers of Spring Bay township. 
 He has made his present field of industry an 
 eminent success and is now operating eight 
 hundred acres of land. .V native of Illi- 
 nois, he was born in the city of Peoria. July 
 J, I, 1 86 1, and was educated in Spring Bay. 
 He worked for his father for a number of 
 years, and associated in opening up and de- 
 veloping the farm. In 1896 he located upon 
 I-.is present place, and has since successfully 
 engaged in its management. 
 
 OSCAR J. LEMON. 
 
 For over a third of a century this gentle- 
 man has made his home in El Paso, and since 
 reaching manhood had been actively identi- 
 fied with its business interests. He is a 
 native oi Illinois, his birth having occurred 
 near Farmer City, Piatt county, May 12, 
 1853. His father. John I. Lemon, was born 
 in Kentucky of Irish ancestry, and was there 
 reared and educated. Alx)ut 1835 he came 
 to Illinois, and the following year was mar- 
 ried in Berlin to Miss Ann M. White, also
 
 598 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 a native of Kentucky, and a representative 
 of one of its pioneer families. They began 
 their domestic hfe on a farm in Piatt coun- 
 ty, the father having purchased a tract of 
 government land for one dollar and a quarter 
 per acre. He added to the original pur- 
 chase from time to time until he owned about 
 a section of land, which he improved and 
 placed under a high state of cultivation. On 
 leaving the farm in 1866 he came to El 
 Paso, where he lived a retired life until 
 called to his final rest in 1882, at the age of 
 eighty-five years. His wife died in 1884, 
 at the age of seventy-eight. He came to 
 El Paso for the benefit of his health, which 
 improved. While following farming he de- 
 voted considerable attention to the raising 
 of stock, and in that industry met with fair 
 success. In politics he was a strong Re- 
 publican and gave three of his sons to the 
 service of his country. He was an active 
 and influential member of the Christian 
 church, and assisted in building the church 
 in his neighborhood, always taking con- 
 siderable pride in his work along that line. 
 He was charitable and benevolent, and the 
 poor and needy always found in him a friend. 
 While living on the farm he entertained the 
 widows of soldiers for weeks at a time, and 
 the ministers of the church made his home 
 their stopping place. 
 
 To John I. and Ann M. (White) Lemon 
 were born the following children : James 
 D. served four years in the Civil war and 
 was killed at the battle of Deep Run, in 
 1865; William died while in the army of 
 disease contracted from exposure ; Enos also 
 died from disease while in the army; Har- 
 vey G. died at his home in Colorado in 1882 ; 
 Richard A. is an attorney of Clinton, Illi- 
 nois; Lloyd died in 1864, at the age of 
 twehe years; Oscar J., our subject, is next 
 
 in order of birth ; and Albert is a traveling 
 salesman for a wholesale drug house, and a 
 resident of Peoria. 
 
 The early education of Oscar J. Lemon 
 was obtained in the common schools of 
 Piatt county, and after coming to El Paso 
 with his parents at the age of thirteen years, 
 he attended the public schools for a time. 
 When nineteen he learned the blacksmith's 
 trade and later purchased a shop, success- 
 fully conducting business along that line for 
 twenty-five years, and disposing of the shop 
 in 1898. He gave his attention to general 
 blacksmithing and horseshoeing, and also 
 built many wagons in early days. He is at 
 the head of the El Paso Ice Company, whose 
 sales now amount to twelve hundred tons of 
 ice annually and are constantly increasing. 
 In this venture he has met with decided suc- 
 cess, and is now running two wagons all the 
 time in the distribution of ice. 
 
 In 1874 was celebrated the marriage of 
 Air. Lemon and Miss Dora Spencer, who 
 was born in Portage county, Ohio, in 1856, 
 but was living with a sister in El Paso at the 
 time of their marriage. She has two sisters 
 who are still residing near the old home 
 in Ohio. IMr. and Mrs. Lemon have no 
 children of their own but have given a home 
 to his nephew, Burt Lemon, now twenty- 
 five years of age, who is a painter of El 
 Paso. 
 
 Politically Mr. Lemon is an ardent Re- 
 publican, and has taken an active part in 
 citv affairs, serving as alderman in 1880 
 and as justice of the peace and police magis- 
 trate at the present time, this being his sec- 
 ond term. He is a member of the blue 
 lodge of the Masonic order, the Knights of 
 Pythias Lodge, Xo. 42, and the IModern 
 ^^'oodmen Camp, all of El Paso, and also 
 holds membership in the Christian church.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 599 
 
 His honorable, upriglit life commends him 
 to the confidence of all, and he is held in the 
 best respect and esteem. 
 
 CHRISTIAN CUEXTHER. 
 
 This honored and highly rcsj>ected citi- 
 zen of Spring- Bay is now living a retired 
 life. He was born in W'urtemburg, Ger- 
 many, September 23, 1S44, secured a good 
 practical education in the public schools of 
 that country, which he attended until twelve 
 years of age. Later he was a student in 
 high institutions of learning, and became 
 familiar with the German and French lan- 
 guages, but his knowledge of English has 
 been self-acquired. His father, Godfrey 
 Guenther, operated a woolen mill and oil 
 mill in Wurtemburg, in which our subject 
 worked until 1863, when he emigrated to 
 America, and worked at his trade for sev- 
 eral years at Rockwell, near Hartford, Con- 
 necticut. Subsequently he was employed 
 in a woolen mill at Maumee, Ohio, for nearly 
 three years, and in 1868 moved to Peoria, 
 Illinois, where he conducted a dyeing estab- 
 lishment until 1873. During the following 
 thirteen years he was engaged in business 
 in Toledo, Ohio, and then returned to Ger- 
 many, spending about a year in visiting his 
 old home and some of the prominent cities 
 of the old world. In 1887 he returned to 
 Peoria, and the following year accepted the 
 general agency of the German Fire Insurance 
 Company at that place, and devoted four 
 years to that business, retiring at the end 
 of that time on account of ill health. 
 
 In 1893 ^Ii"- Guenther came to Spring 
 Bay, and on the 7th of August, that year, 
 married Mrs. Catherine Eichhorn, a daugh- 
 
 ter of Christian W'enckler, one of Wood- 
 ford county's earliest settlers, having lo- 
 cated here about 1830 or 1832. Mrs. Guen- 
 ther was reared and educated in this county, 
 and in 1870 married Peter Eichhorn, a prom- 
 inent brewer of Spring Bay, who died Au- 
 gust 25, 1885, leaving four children: Her- 
 man G., a successful physician of Spring 
 Bay: William, a farmer; Charles, a farmer 
 of Spring Bay; and Algernon, at home 
 with his mother. .Mr. and Mrs. Guenther 
 were both reared in the Lutheran faith, and 
 are people of the highest respectability. Po- 
 litically he is a stanch supporter of the Re- 
 publican party, and is now a member and 
 clerk of the school board of Spring Bay, 
 but he has never cared for political honors. 
 
 MOSES BELSLEY. 
 
 The subject of this sketch is one of the 
 representative farmers of Roanoke township, 
 Woodford county, Illinois, where he owns 
 and operates a good farm of one hundred 
 and eighty acres on section 16. Here he has 
 made his home since 1897 and has placed 
 the land under excellent cultivation. He 
 raises principally corn and oats and is meet- 
 ing with well deserved success in his chosen 
 calling. 
 
 A native of Woodford county, Mr. Bels- 
 ley was born in Worth township July 27, 
 1 871, and is a son of Christian and Mary 
 (Sweitzer) Belsley, both natives of Alsace 
 Lorraine, France, v.hich now forms a part of 
 Germany. The father came to the United 
 States with his parents when eight years of 
 age and first settled in Spring Bay township, 
 Woodford county. Since 1882 he has made 
 his home in Roanoke and is now about sev-
 
 6oo 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 enty years of age. His children are : Mag- 
 delene, wife of Christian Foerter. who hves 
 near Roanoke; Kate, wife of John Sander, 
 of that place; Samuel, who also lives near 
 Roanoke; Mary, wife of Joseph Hodel, of 
 Roanoke; Fanny, wife of John Moser, of 
 Roanoke township; Christian, a resident of 
 the village of Roanoke; Moses, oiir subject: 
 Annie and Benjamin, liotli at home with 
 their parents. 
 
 The boyhood and youth of Moses Belsiey 
 were passed in Worth and Roanoke town- 
 ships and his education was obtained in tlieir 
 public schools. He has made farming his 
 life work and in 1895 took charge of his 
 father's farm, which he operated until lo- 
 cating upon his present place in 1897. On 
 the 1 2th of October, that year, he married 
 Miss Priscilla Salathe, a daughter of Jacob 
 and Annie (Weynett) Salatiie. both natives 
 of Roanoke. Politically Mr. Belsiey is 
 identified witii tiie Republican party, and 
 socially affiliates with Roanoke Camp, No. 
 1206, M. W. A. 
 
 ELIJAH R. MARSHALL. 
 
 Among Woodford county's honored 
 pioneers and highly esteemed citizens none 
 are more deserving of mention in this vol- 
 ume than Elijah R. Marshall, a prosperous 
 farmer living on section 7, Roanoke town- 
 ship. He was born in Mendon, Rutland 
 county, Vermont, November 15. 1826, and 
 comes of good old New England stock. His 
 father, Thomas Marshall, was also a resident 
 of the Green Mountain state, his birth oc- 
 curring in Chester, Windsor county, March 
 13, 1801. Our subject's paternal grandpar- 
 ents were Elijah and Mary ( Pierce) Mar- 
 
 shall. The former, who was a soldier of the 
 war of 181 2, was born in England, Novem- 
 ber 6, 1766, and died in Chester, Vermont, 
 September 24, 1835, while the latter was 
 born near Boston, Massachusetts, Septem- 
 ber 5, 1768, and died in Chester, Vermont, 
 May 4, 1833. 
 
 Thomas Marshall was reared and edu- 
 cated in his native state, and throughout his 
 active business life followed the occupation 
 of farming. On the 8th of November, 1821, 
 he married Miss Martha Brooks, who was 
 also born in Vermont, June 10, 1800, and 
 belonged to an old New England family. 
 By this union were seven children, namely : 
 Lestina, married Abner Bailey, and in 1850 
 they came to Woodford county, Illinois, 
 where they made their home for several 
 years, but are now living in Kansas. Elijah 
 R., our subject, and Mary, were twins. She 
 married Samuel Butterfield, a resident of 
 Cazenovia township, Woodford county, but 
 is now deceased. Amelia married Emerald 
 Fisher, of Cazenovia township, and they 
 are now living in Cherryvale, Kansas. Sol- 
 omon is deceased. Cyrus, the youngest of 
 the family, makes his home in Butler county, 
 Kansas. In 1850 tiie father came to Wood- 
 ford county, Illinois, and after spending one 
 \ear in Metamora township, settled in Roan- 
 oke township, where he li\ed until three 
 years prior to his death. His last days were 
 spent with a daughter in Cazenovia town- 
 ship, where he died September 4, 1879. 
 His wife departed this life June 10, 1892. 
 
 Elijah R. Marshall remained at home 
 with his parents until he attained his major- 
 ity and is indebted to the public schools of 
 Vermont for his educational advantages. In 
 1847 he came west by way of the lakes, canal 
 and river to Peoria, Illinois, in company with 
 an old schoolmate, Leverett Dean, who is
 
 ELUAH R. MARSHALL.
 
 MRS. MARTHA MARSHALL.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 605 
 
 now living near Springfield. From Peoria 
 connty they came to Cazenovia township. 
 Woodford connty. where .Mr. Marsliall's sis- 
 ter, ]\Irs. Bntteriield, was living. .\ftcr 
 spending three weeks here they bought si.K 
 horses and drove back to \'ermont, making 
 tlie trij) in a little less than three weeks. The 
 following March the men again started for 
 Illinois. They crossed the Green Mount- 
 ains in a sleigh, and by stage proceeded to 
 Buffalo. Xew York. They continuetl their 
 journey in that way through Canada luitil 
 within twenty miles of Detroit, when the 
 ice on the lakes broke up and the steamboats 
 began to run. By boat they went to Detroit. 
 .As there were no regular stage lines or water 
 courses at that time, they proceeded on foot 
 to Ottawa. Illinois, covering on an average 
 of fifty miles per day. On reaching Ottawa 
 they found the Illinois river was open for 
 navigation and higher than it has ever been 
 since. There they took a lx)at for Peoria. 
 Going to Brimfield. Peoria county, Mr. 
 Marshall and Mr. Dean rented a farm and 
 in partnership embarked in the sheep busi- 
 ness, buying eight hundred head. Before 
 the end of that first season, however, our 
 subject .Sold his interest U) his partner and 
 llien worked in the hay and harvest fields, 
 mowing grass with a .scythe for fifty cents 
 l)er acre. In the fall he operated a threshing 
 machine. 
 
 Mr. Marshall became a resident of 
 Woodford cciunty in the fall of 1849, and in 
 I'ebruary of the following year went to 
 Si)ringfield on horseback to get the deed for 
 land which he had located on two land war- 
 rants. In jmie. 1 850, he returned to \'er- 
 mont and brought his parents and the re- 
 mainder Ml the family to this state. That 
 year he i)nrchased the farm on .section 7, 
 Roanoko township, where he now lives. He 
 
 32 
 
 built the first frame-house and barn in the 
 township, the former on section (>. the lat- 
 ter on section 7, and also built the second 
 frame hou.se, which now constitutes a part of 
 his i)resent residence. The barn is still stand- 
 ing, but the first house has been destroyed. 
 Throughout life Mr. Marshall has engaged 
 in agricultural pursuits, and meeting with 
 marked success he has become the owner of 
 live hundretl and forty-five acres of valuable 
 and productive land, which he has placed 
 under a high state of cultivation. lie aided 
 in the construction of the Illinois Central 
 Kailrnad through this .section of the state, 
 and lias been prominently identified with the 
 growth and upbuilding of W'oodford county. 
 He fenced the first roads laid out in his town- 
 ship, and assisted in organizing the school 
 district, it being through his efforts that 
 they were made two miles square insteatl of 
 two by three miles. 
 
 On the 17th of February, 1853. .Mr. Mar- 
 shall was united in marriage with Miss Mar- 
 tha Fisher, also a native of Mendon, Rutland 
 county, X'ermont. Her parents, .Amos and 
 Lydia (Stoddard) Fisher, natives of the 
 same state, came to Illinois in 1840, and set- 
 tled in Cazenovia township, W'oodford 
 County, where the father died March 10, 
 1850, the mother May 20, 1879. To Mr. 
 and Mrs. ^Marshall were born four children: 
 Amos F., the eldest, is a resident of Roan- 
 oke. Ira had successfully engaged in the 
 practice of medicine at Chicago for about 
 seven years when he died in that city of 
 pneumonia, March 18, 1895, ^t the age of 
 thirty-nine years and eighteen days. Rolla 
 makes his home in Roanoke township, Orpha 
 is the wife of James Lightfoot. of Cazennia 
 ttnvnship. 
 
 Mr. Marshall and his family are all mem- 
 bers of the Baptist church, and are people
 
 6o6 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 or prominence in the community where tliey 
 reside. Politically he always affiliates with 
 tlie Republican party, and takes an active and 
 commendable interest in public affairs. He 
 has served as commissioner of highways, and 
 for the long period of twenty years was a 
 member of the school board. He has al- 
 \\ays been found true to every trust reposed 
 in him wliether pul.)lic or private, and well 
 merits the high regard in which he is uni- 
 versally held. 
 
 Mrs. j\Iarshall passed to her final reward, 
 September i8, 1900, and was interred Sep- 
 tember 20, in the cemetery in Metamora 
 township one mile west of the Roanoke Bap- 
 tist church. She was a woman held in the 
 highest regard by all and her death is sin- 
 cerely mourned by a large circle of friends 
 and acquaintances. 
 
 THE ROANOKE CALL. 
 
 The history of Roanoke would be in- 
 complete without a sketch of its flourish- 
 ing local paper, "The Call," now in its tenth 
 volume, and a typical home paper, whose 
 calling and mission is to "Give the home 
 news first, last and all the time." While not 
 an old publication, only one other paper pub- 
 lished in the county is now conducted by 
 the same parties who were at the helm at 
 the time of its advent, in August, 1891. It 
 is with pride that its editor, P. B. Hobbs, 
 can point to its record for almost a decade 
 and say that not an issue has gone forth 
 that could not be taken into the homes and 
 read at the firesides by every member of the 
 household. Non-partisan in politics, it 
 finds plenty of matter each week to make 
 a readable sheet without dabbling in politics 
 or i)eddling scandal, but strives always to 
 
 advance the best interests and increase the 
 happiness of all within its circle of influenc. 
 
 Its editor is a native Illinoisan, having 
 lived in the state all his life, with the excej)- 
 tion of about six years, and came first to 
 Woodford county in 1881. He is descended 
 from early pioneers of the state, as his grand- 
 father, David Hobbs. emigrated from Ken- 
 tucky, with his Ijride, in September, 1830, 
 and settled in Adams county, when Ouincy 
 was but a struggling village on the bluff's 
 of the Father of Waters, and Chicago was 
 known only as Fort Deai-born. Here he 
 felled the giants of the primeval forest and 
 built his log cabin and with his own hand 
 held the plow that broke the stubborn glebe 
 converting the rolling prairies into fertile 
 fields. He also served his generation as an 
 acceptable minister of the gospel, preparing 
 his sermons during the week while he tilled 
 his crops and riding far to officiate at wed- 
 dings and funerals. His last resting place 
 is within two miles of the spot on which he 
 built his first cabin. 
 
 His oldest child was a son Jephthah 
 Hobbs, born within six months after his par- 
 ents came to the state. He grew to manhood 
 in Adams county, serving his anprenticeship 
 driving oxen, following the plow and maul- 
 ing rails in a forest hard by, inheriting the 
 love of Nature, so predominant in those who 
 lived so close to her in her own realm, laying 
 broad and deep the foundations of a great 
 state. 
 
 An education was the boon which fired 
 his ambition and he got it in spite of the J 
 disadvantages of frontier life. At twenty- ^ 
 one years of age he was recognized as a 
 promising school teacher. Opening his first 
 term of school in October, 1851, he made 
 it his life work, closing his last term in May, 
 1892. He followed his chosen profession
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 607 
 
 CDiitinuinisly except for tour years spent in 
 l.ethany Colleja^e, Betliany. West \'irginia, 
 nntler the instruction of Alexander Campbell, 
 where he graduated in July, 1858, and dur- 
 ing most of this time did the work of a 
 tutor to the underclass men. F"or almost 
 thirty years he was principal of graded 
 schools in various cities and helped to build 
 up that most enduring monument, the public- 
 school system of our great commonwealth. 
 Seven years he spent in a mission school for 
 the colored race in Mississippi, and did his 
 part to tit and prepare native teachers to carry 
 on the work of uplifting tiie race, and pre- 
 jjare them for full citizenship. Having 
 retired from acti\e labors he now aids in the 
 liubiication of "The Call" and conducts the 
 Kureka column. ha\ing been a constant con- 
 tributor to school journals and the press 
 in general, during his entire career. He 
 maintains his vigor to a remarkable degree 
 and bids fair to reach his four score years 
 and more. 
 
 r. B. Hobbs was born in Edgar county, 
 in the \illage of Kansas, on the second day 
 i>f the battle of Chickamauga, September 
 _'0, 1863, "that beautiful Sunday morning 
 when ^lajor-General Bragg drove General 
 Rosecrans and the 'boys in blue' out of 
 Chickamauga" and when General Thomas 
 made himself famous as the "Rock of Chick- 
 amauga." His youth was spent much as the 
 lives of his companions, except that in ad- 
 dition to attending school and running er- 
 rands, he served an apprenticeship at the 
 "art preservative" or in common phraseol- 
 ogy, served as "printer's devil" under S. 
 Will Rose, of "The Republican Sun," and 
 was thereby doomed to follow in the foot- 
 steps of the immortal Benjamin Franklin. 
 After completing his course in the graded 
 schools of the state, at the different places 
 
 at which the family resided. — as the family 
 of an Illinois school master, like that of a 
 Methodist preacher, may be said to be "raised 
 on the road," — he entered Eureka College in 
 October 14, 1881, and received his sheepskin 
 June 25, 1885. 
 
 After a year spent in teaching, he fol- 
 lowed the advice of that immortal editor 
 and "went w'est to grow up with the coun- 
 try." Five years growing, in Chase county, 
 Xeljraska, sufficed to convince him that Illi- 
 nois was good enough, and after securing 
 a piece of land out of Uncle Sam's domain 
 a ndimbibing with the western atmosphere 
 unmeasurable experience in frontier life in 
 general and western journalism in particu- 
 lar he returned to the state of his birth and 
 founded "The Call" at Roanoke, in August, 
 1 89 1. Here he has labored, cheerfully and 
 persistently, content in doing something to 
 make the lives of those about him somewhat 
 more worth living. The fourth generation 
 is represented by Master Harry O. Hobbs, 
 aged ten years, who long since earned his 
 title as junior member of the firm and can 
 set his "stick" of type with the assurance 
 that it will appear in print, and even wields 
 the editorial "We" in doing the honors of 
 the shop when visitors call. 
 
 JOHN G. ZELLER, M. D. 
 
 On the 17th of June. 1893, there passed 
 away from his home in Spring Bay, Illinois, 
 a well beloved physician, whose many years 
 of faithful toil in his profession made his 
 name a household word in that community. 
 He was a man whose death was felt as a 
 loss among all classes and the following brief 
 account of one so esteemed will be read with 
 unusual interest. 
 
 The Doctor was a native of German v.
 
 6o8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 born in Bavaria December lo, 1828, and 
 comes of a long line of German ancestry. 
 His boj'hood and youtb were spent in his na- 
 tive land and in 1847 li^ came to America, 
 but two years later returned to Germany 
 and did not locate permanently here until 
 1853. He then entered a medical colleg-e at 
 St. Louis, Missouri, where he took two 
 courses of lectures, and was graduated, re- 
 ceiving the degree of M. D. Soon after his 
 graduation he came to Spring Bay. Illinois, 
 and was engaged in practice here for about 
 a year. He then returned to St. Louis, where 
 he married Caroline Nichols, who died in 
 Spring Bay, leaving four children : Alex- 
 ander, George A., Josephine and Frederick. 
 George A. and Frederick are successfully en- 
 gaged in the practice of medicine in Peoria. 
 The latter and his sister, Josephine, visited 
 Europe in the summer of 1900. 
 
 Dr. Zeller again took up his residence 
 in Spring Bay and continued in acti\e prac- 
 tice here until his death. He was again 
 married, in September. 1865, his second 
 union being with Miss Caroline Winckler, 
 a native of Woodford county, where she was 
 reared and educated. Her parents. Chris- 
 tian and Elizabeth (Snider) Wickler, were 
 both born in Germany and when young came 
 to this country, where their marriage was 
 celebrated. They were pioneers of Wood- 
 ford county and were numbered among its 
 most highly respected citizens. By his sec- 
 ond marriage Dr. Zeller had five children, 
 two of whom are deceased, Katie dying at 
 the age of thirteen years, and_ John at the 
 ajre of four. Those living are Julius C, a 
 Methodist minister now located at Manteno, 
 Illinois, who is married and had three chil- 
 dren ; Christina, who married Everett Ogle- 
 bee, of Rockford, Illinois, September 26, 
 1900: and William L., at home. 
 
 Politically Dr. Zeller was an ardent Re- 
 publican antl served as justice of the peace, 
 president of the town board and in other po- 
 sitions of honor and trust. He always en- 
 joyed a large and lucrative practice and suc- 
 ceeded in accumulating a large estate. On 
 coming to the county, however, he was in 
 limited circumstances, and his success in life 
 was due entirely to his own well-directed ef- 
 forts. He was widely and favorably known 
 and his memory will be a sacred inheritance 
 to his children antl will be cherished by a 
 multitude rif friends. Throughout his career 
 of continued and far-reaching usefulness his 
 duties were performed with the greatest 
 care, and during a long life his personal 
 honor and integrity were without blemish. 
 
 GEORGE WINKLER. 
 
 This well-known and successful agricult- 
 urist of Spring Bay township, Woodford 
 county, whose home is pleasantly situated 
 on section 36, four and a half miles from 
 Peoria, is a native of the county, his birth 
 having occurred in Worth township January 
 14, 1856. His father, George Winkler, Sr.. 
 was born in Germany, in 181 5, and in 1830 
 came to the new world with his father, Adam 
 \\'inkler. The family first located in Penn- 
 sylvania, but after spending five vears in that 
 state came to Illinois and took up their resi- 
 dence in Woodford county, being among 
 its first settlers. In Worth township .\dam 
 Winkler opened up and improved a farm. 
 
 George Winkler, Sr., was married, in 
 Woodford county, to Margaretta Hemfling, 
 also a native of Germany, and a daughter of 
 Nicholas Hemfling, who brought his family 
 to America during her childhood and settled
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 609 
 
 liere. .\fter his marriape Mr. Winkler con- 
 timieil u< make his home in Worth townsliip, 
 where he successfully eneaged in farming 
 throusfhout life, dying there in February, 
 1899. at the advanced age of eighty-four 
 years. His wife survives him and lives with 
 a son on the old homestead. In tlieir family 
 were eiglit children, four sons and four 
 daughters, namely: Yetlia. wife of Charles 
 Greiner, of Spring Bay township: .\nianda. 
 wife of George (ireiner. of Har.cy. Cook 
 county, Illinois; George, Jr.. our subject; 
 Margaretta. wife of Morris Braudigan. of 
 Nebraska; .\nna. wife of A. Haed'cke, of 
 Tazewell county, Illinois: Henry I-"., of 
 Spring Bay township, Woodford county; 
 and Peter L. and Charles, both at home. 
 
 During iiis boyhood and youth George 
 Winkler. Jr.. assisted his father in the labors 
 of the farm and attended the district schools 
 of the neighborhood to a limited extent, but 
 his literary education has been mostly self- 
 acquired since reaching manhood. On lea\- 
 ing the parental roof he engaged in farming 
 on rented land for eight years, and in 1K85 
 purchased his present farm of one Inmdred 
 and sixty acres on section 36. Spring Bay 
 townsliip, to the im])rovement and cultiva- 
 tion of which he has since devoted his en- 
 ergies. When he located thereon the place 
 was run down, the old house was in ])oor 
 repairs and the ini])rovenients were all of 
 an inferior order, but he has since built a 
 large and neat residence, good barn, granary, 
 cribs, etc., and in other ways has added 
 greatly to the value and attractive appear- 
 ance of the ])lace. 
 
 On the 7th of Decemlier. 1880. in Worth 
 township. Mr. Winkler was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Louisa S. Haedicke. a na- 
 tive of that townshij) and a flaughter of 
 Adolph and I lannah S. ( Braudigan ) Hae- 
 
 dicke. who were born in Germany and as 
 young peojjle came to the United States, 
 their marriage being celebrated in Illinois. 
 Mr. and Mrs. Winkler have three children 
 living: Elmer (i., Austin L. and Dewey 
 E. One daughter. Palnia. died at the age 
 of three months. 
 
 Politically Mr. Winkler has been a life- 
 long Kei)ublican, but at local elections he 
 \otes for the man whom he believes best 
 (|ualified to fill the ofifice, regardless of party 
 affiliations. His fellow citizens, recognizing 
 his worth and ability, have called him to 
 office, and in 1897 '^^ ^^''^ elected justice of 
 the peace and in 1899 sui^ervisor. Although 
 his township is Democratic he received a 
 good majority. He has also served as com- 
 missioner of highways, a member of the 
 school board six years and clerk of the dis- 
 trict. Xo trust reposed in him has ever been 
 mis])laced ;ind he has discharged his official 
 duties with the utmost ]iromptness and fidel- 
 itv. .\s a member of the county board he 
 is now ser\ing on the road and bridge com- 
 mittee and is chairman of the veteran aid 
 committee. Both he and his wife are mem- 
 bers of the Lutheran church of Peoria. 
 
 FOSTER BE.\J.\MI.\. 
 
 Among the brave men who devoted the 
 opening years of their manhood to the de- 
 fense of the country from the internal foes 
 who sought her dismemberment was Foster 
 Benjamin, now a prominent citizen of the 
 village of Cazenovia. He was born in 
 Coshocton comity, Ohio, Xovember 12, 
 1843, anil is a son of Josei)li and Elizabeth 
 ( Payn) Benjamin. The fatl.er was Ijorn in 
 Xew Jersey and when young mo\ed to
 
 6io 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Coshocton county, Oliio, with his parents, 
 David and Ruth (Paddock) Benjamin, who 
 were pioneers of that county and there spent 
 the remainder of their lives. On reaching 
 manhood Joseph Benjamin married EHza- 
 beth Payn, a native of Coshocton county, 
 where they continued to make their liome for 
 some time after tlieir marriage, and tlien 
 mo^■ed to Owen county, Indiana, where lie 
 opened up and improved a farm. His death 
 occurred there in April, 1889. Later his 
 wife spent one year in \\'oodford county. 
 Illinois, and then returned to Indiana, where 
 she died in 1895. By occupation he was 
 first a shoemaker and later a farmer. Foster 
 is the second in order of birth in their fam- 
 ily of eight children, the others being David 
 J., who was a member of the Twenty-ninth 
 Indiana Regiment during the Civil war and 
 is a resident of Owen county, that state; 
 Mrs. Julia C. Scott, of Clay county, Indi- 
 ana: John N., of Owen county; George H., 
 of Greene county, Indiana ; Mrs. Mary Ma- 
 tilda Williams, of Owen county; Russell, of 
 Greene county; and Andrew, who died while 
 our subject was in the service of his country 
 in 1864. 
 
 Foster Benjamin was reared and edu- 
 cated in Owen county, Indiana, and on start- 
 ing out in life for himself chose the occupa- 
 tion of farming, to which he devoted his en- 
 ergies until his retirement from active labor. 
 In October, 1861, he enlisted at Gosport, 
 Indiana, in Company A, Fifty-ninth Indi- 
 ana Volunteer Infantry, for three years. He 
 was sworn in at Camp Hughes. Indiana, 
 where the regiment was assigned to the 
 Army of the West. He participated in the 
 battles of New Madrid, Fort Pillow, Corinth 
 and luka, the siege of Vicksburg and the en- 
 gagements at Yazoo Pass. On the 22(1 of 
 May, 1863, he received a shell wound in 
 
 the side and was confined in the department 
 hospital at Vicksburg for some time. He 
 rejoined his regiment at Vicksburg, from 
 whence they went to Missionary Ridge, 
 wh.ere he served on detached duty from that 
 tiiue until the close of the war. He was 
 with Slierman on the famous march to the 
 sea and was honorably discharged at Wil- 
 mington, Xc:)rth Carolina, April 4, 1865, 
 after which he returned to his home in In- 
 diana. 
 
 In Owen county, that state, Mr. Benja- 
 min was married, in 1867, to Miss Eliza- 
 beth A. Gardner, who was born in thart 
 county. Her parents, Jams and Permelia 
 ( Hilsalieck) Gardner, were natives of Xew 
 York and Xorth Carolina, respectively, and 
 early settlers of Owen county. Indiana, 
 w here they made their home for many years. 
 In 1867 they removed by team to Woodford 
 county, Illinois, and located at Low Point. 
 By occupation the father was a carpenter and 
 farmer. His father was Jarus Gardner, Sr., 
 who for forty-five years was a minister of 
 the gospel in the Alethodist church. Mrs. 
 Benjamin is the oldest of their children, the 
 others being Mrs. Laney Dyer, of Low 
 Point ; Joseph ]M., of ^Marshall county, Iowa ; 
 larus B., a phvsician and surgeon of Ma- 
 nilla, Iowa; David H., of Rose Lawn, In- 
 diana : William Alliert, a hotel keeper and 
 undertaker of ^Manilla, Iowa ; Mrs. Albert 
 Readout, of Union. Imva ; Parnielia. of 
 Union, Iowa; (jeorge \\'.. a farmer of Stu- 
 art, Iowa: Foster Edison, a railroad man of 
 Siou.x City. Iowa; and Francis B.. of Rose 
 Lawn, Indiana. ]\Ir. and Mrs. Benjamin 
 ha\-e three children: Mandy C. now the 
 wife of Samuel Mumlell. Jr.. a merchant of 
 Cazenovia, by whom she has four children, 
 Maggie Alice, Foster Le Roy, Hazel G. 
 and Maria Elizaljeth : \"iola Berdilla, who
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 6ii 
 
 died at tlie age of eig'.it years ; and Cuma 
 Alice, wife of Jesse Mundell. also a merchant 
 of Cazenovia, by whom she has one son, 
 Lee Benjamin. 
 
 Mr. Benjamin continued his residence in 
 Lidiana until 1867. when he moved to 
 Woodford county, Illinois. Here he success- 
 fully engaged in agricultural pursuits until 
 1900, when he moved to the village of Caze- 
 novia, and is now living a retired life. For- 
 merly he affiliated with the Democratic party, 
 but is now a Prohibitionis; in jiolitics.' Re- 
 ligiously both he and his wife are earnest 
 members of the Christian church and are 
 held in the highest respect and esteem by 
 all will I know them. 
 
 JOSEPH EXCEL. 
 
 The subject (->f this sketch, who is one 
 of the jirosperous citizens of Metamora 
 township, Woodford county, is now success- 
 fully operating a fine farm of twn hundred 
 acres on section 28, within a mile of the city 
 of Metamora. He was born on that place 
 May 8, 1854, and there the greater part of 
 his life has lieen spent. The family to which 
 he l>elongs is one of the oldest and most 
 highly respected families of the county. His 
 grandfather. Peter Engel. was a native of 
 France, and on his emigration to America, 
 in 1 83 1, took up his residence in Metamora 
 township, Woodford county, Illinois, enter- 
 ing the land on which our subject now re- 
 sides. 
 
 The father. Peter R. Engel. was born in 
 Alsace, France, in 1828. and was only seven 
 years old when brought by his jjarents to 
 the United States. He grew to manhood in 
 \\'oodford county and married Barbara 
 Xofsinger. also a natixe of (jermany, who 
 
 came to the new world in chiklhood and was 
 reared in Illinois. Peter R. Engel suc- 
 ceeded to a part of the old homestead and 
 meeting with success in his farming opera- 
 tions he became the owner of four good 
 farms. He died March 12. 1888, honored 
 and respected "by all who knew him. His 
 wife survives him and resides on the home 
 farm with our subject. 
 
 During his boyhood Joseph Engel pur- 
 sued his studies in the local schools and 
 gained a thorough knowledge of agriculture 
 u])on the home farm, where he remained un- 
 til he was married, in ^\'oodford county, 
 February 24. 1876. to Miss Mary Garber, 
 a native of Pekin. Illinois. By this union 
 were born six children, as follows: Lloyd 
 E.. who attended the Metamora schools and 
 later engaged in teaching, but is now a stu- 
 dent at the State University in Champaign : 
 Carl, who assists his father in the operation 
 of the farm; Emanuel P.. Arthur, William 
 J. and Frances, all at home. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Engel began their domestic 
 life on a farm three miles east of Metamora, 
 where they made their home for five years, 
 and then removed to Tazewell county, Illi- 
 nois, Mr. Engel being engaged in farming 
 near Cruger for ten years. In 1891 he re- 
 turned to the old homestead. ha\'ing suc- 
 ceeded to a part of the farm, and has since 
 added to his portion until he now has one 
 hundred and twenty-eight acres here. In 
 connection with this he operates other land 
 and is the owner of a good farm of one hun- 
 dred and si.xty acres in Hamilton county, 
 Nebraska. He is also engaged in stock rais- 
 ing, making a specialty of sheej), and now 
 has a fiock of forty-five pure-blooded 
 Shropshires. He is accounted one of the 
 most thrifty farmers and successful stock 
 raisers of his communitv.
 
 6l2 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Politically he is identitied with the Re- 
 jjublicaii party, but takes no active i)art in 
 politics aside from \-oting-, as he prefers to 
 give his undivided attention to his business 
 interests. He is well known throug'liout 
 his nati\e count}- and tlmse who know him 
 best are luimbered among- his warmest 
 friends, which fact testifies to his sterling- 
 worth. 
 
 THOM.^S ELLIS. 
 
 I^rominent aiuong the successful farm- 
 ers of Cruger township may be numbered 
 the gentlen-ian whose name introduces this 
 sketch. A native of the Keystone state, he 
 was born in Mifflin county. PennsyUania. 
 April 15. 1825, and is a son of Robert and 
 Mary (Dunn) Ellis, who were born in Ire- 
 land, and on their emigration to the new 
 -world settled in Miftlin county, Pennsyl\-ania, 
 making their home near Lewistown, where 
 the father engaged in farming throughout 
 his active husii-iess life. He died there in 
 1864, and his wife also died in Pennsyhania 
 some }-ears later. Of their nine children 
 Eliza died in Pennsylvania: Robert came to 
 Woodford C(nmty, Illinois, at an early day, 
 and later crossed the plains with teams to 
 California, hut is now living in Kansas; 
 James is a resident of Pottsville, Pennsyl- 
 vania: George came to Woodford county in 
 1853, and from here went to Kansas, where 
 he enlisted in a Kansas regin-ient during the 
 Civil war and was killed in the serx'ice: John 
 makes his liome in Kansas: \\'illian-|, who 
 ser\e(l three _\-ears in a Pennsy]\-ania regi- 
 ment during the Civil war, died in Potts- 
 town, that state, about 1895: Catherine died 
 in Kansas: Mrs. Jane Nearhard lives in 
 Snyder county, Pennsylvania: and Thomas, 
 <-iur suhiect^ con-ipletes the family. 
 
 In the county of his nativity Thomas 
 l^llis was reared and educated in much the 
 usual manner of farmer boys of his day, and 
 lie remained there until coming to Illinois 
 ill 1833. He spent three or four months in 
 Montgomery townshi]_), Woodford county, 
 and then returned to Pennsvhania, but in 
 1834 we again find him in the same town- 
 sliij). The followii-|g year he purchased a 
 farm in Waldo township, Livingston county, 
 there being no settlements between Gridley 
 and Panola at that time. In 1858 he re- 
 turned to Pennsyhania b\- tean-|, and flid not 
 locate ])ermanentlv in this state until i8()^, 
 when he purchased his present farm in 
 L'ruger township, Woodford county. To its 
 improvement and cultivation he has since 
 devoted his energies, and now has one of the 
 l)est farms of its size in the locality. 
 
 In McLean county, Illinois, Mr. Ellis 
 v. as n-iarried, in 1858, to Miss Elizabeth 
 hdeming, also a native of Mifflin county, 
 Pennsylvania, and a daughter of William 
 and ]\Iary ( McKinley) Fleming, who spent 
 their entire lives in Pennsylvania and were 
 among the early settlers of Mifflin county. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Ellis were born three chil- 
 dren : Caroline, wife of Joseph Dearth, of 
 Olio township, Woodford county: Eliza 
 Jane, wife of W. O. Davidson, of Cruger 
 township: and Maggie, wife of Fred Bar- 
 rett, of Eureka. 
 
 During the Civil war Mr. Ellis enlisted 
 in the Pennsylvania state militia, and was 
 stationed at Chambersburg for ten days. By 
 his ballot he always supports the men and 
 measures of the Republican party, and takes 
 an actixe interest in political afifairs. He as- 
 sisted in the organization of Cruger town- 
 ship, and has been prominently identified 
 with its development and upbuilding almost 
 continuouslv since 1853. As one of the pio-
 
 THOMAS ELLIS.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 615 
 
 iieers and hoiKired citizens he is certainly 
 deserving of representation in this history 
 of iiis adopted county. 
 
 MICHAEL l)i:X.\ IS. 
 
 Xunihered among the lea(Hng farmers of 
 Kansas townsliip. Woodford county, is tlie 
 gentleman whose name introduces this 
 sketch. He dwus and operates a ricii farm of 
 one hundred and twenty acres, eighty acres 
 being on sectit>n 4, and forty acres on sec- 
 tion y. A native of the Buckeye state, Mr. 
 Dennis was born in Monroe county, Ohio, 
 Septeml)er 16, 1837, and is a son of Jolm 
 and Rachel ( Barniiouse) Dennis. The fa- 
 ther was born and reared in Pennsylvania, 
 and at the age ni twcnty-nne went to \'ir- 
 ginia, where he farmed iov some years. 
 Subsequently he spent a number of years in 
 Monroe county, Ohio, and in the fall of 
 1852 mo\ed to Allen county, Indiana, where 
 he followed farming until his death, which 
 occurred when he was seventy-four years of 
 age. By industry and perseverance he ac- 
 cumulated considerable property, becoming 
 owner of a fine farm of one hundred and 
 twenty acres in Indiana. The mother of our 
 subject survived him about four }ears and 
 died at the age of hfty -four. She had eight 
 children, six of whom are living, Michael 
 being the oldest. The father was twice mar- 
 ried, his first wife being Elizabeth Slacher, 
 who also l)ore him eight children. 
 
 The first fifteen years of his life Michael 
 Dennis sijent in his native county, and was 
 educated in the district schools of his birth- 
 place. He remained with his parents until 
 he was married. Jiuie 24. 1860. in Allen 
 county. Indiana, to Miss Hannaii Jane Craig, 
 
 a daughter of William and Mary ( Brister) 
 Craig, farming people of that county, who 
 in 1867 came to Woodford county, Illinois, 
 and spent the remainder of their lives in 
 Kansas township. Their son, .Andrew' 
 J. Craig, is still a resident of that town- 
 ship. The father, who followed farming 
 throughout life, died at about the age of 
 seventy years. After his death the mother 
 lived with her daughter, Mrs. Dennis, at 
 whose home she died at the age of sexenty- 
 five. 
 
 Ele\en children ha\e been Ixirn to Mr. 
 and Mrs. Dennis, namely: ( i ) Mack, born 
 in .\lleu county, Indiana, is now a farmer 
 of Hancock county, Iowa. He is married 
 and has two children, Rosa .\rdela and 
 James Andrew. (2) The second child of 
 our subject died imnamed. (3) Eliza, born 
 in .\llcn county, Indiana, is the wife of 
 Hem-y Rich, a jirosperous farmer of Han- 
 cock county. Iowa, and they ha\e five chil- 
 dren. .\mie. Katie, Edmund. Lela and Dora. 
 ( 4 ) .Mary, born in Woodford county, Illinois, 
 is the wife of J. L. Xasli, a farmer of El Paso 
 townshi]), that county, and they have three 
 children, .\rabelle, Lillie .\nnie and Pearly 
 May. ( 5 ) Arena and ( 6) Josei^h both died 
 in infancy. (7) William S. died at the age 
 of si.xteen vears. (8) Eli died in infancy. 
 (9) ImiocIi. of Bloomington, Illinois, and 
 ( 10) Christopher C, who assists his father 
 in the operation of the home farm. (11) 1 he 
 youngest child died in infanc\'. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Dennis engaged 
 in fanuing in Huntington, and Allen coun- 
 ties, Indiana, until after the Ci\il war broke 
 out. when he enlisted in 1862, in Company 
 H, Seventy-fifth Indiana \'olunteer Infan- 
 try. He participated in the battle of Chicka- 
 mauga and several skirmishes, and was di,s- 
 charged March 13. 18^5. on account
 
 6i6 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 of disability caused 1)y a gunshot WDund 
 received at the l)attle of Chickamauga. 
 Returning- to his iionie in IncHana, he 
 contintied to follow farming there lui- 
 til the fall of 1868, when he brought 
 his family to \A'oodford county, Illinois, lo- 
 cating first in Montgomery township, where 
 he remained seven years. He then jjurchased 
 his present farm in Kansas township, and to 
 its cultivation and iniprcjx-ement has since 
 devoted his energies, at the same time giv- 
 ing some attention to stock raising. When he 
 located thereon the land was covered with 
 dense brush, but soon acre after acre was 
 cleared, and it is now all under a high state 
 of cultivation and is one of the best farms 
 in the township. He has erected a large farm 
 house and spacious barn, and has made many 
 other improvements which add greatly to the 
 value and attractive appearance of the place. 
 He is one of the men, who by industry and 
 perseverance has helped to make Woodford 
 county what it is today, one of the richest 
 farming districts in the state. Politically Mr. 
 Dennis is a Democrat. For eighteen years 
 he has efficiently served as school director 
 in his district, and at the present time is 
 commissioner of highways of Kansas town- 
 ship, which ofifice he has held for two terms. 
 
 JOSEPH MOORE. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, who is now 
 living a retired life in the village of Roan- 
 oke, Woodford county, Illinois, was born in 
 Rockingham county, X'irginia, January 10, 
 1828, and is the son of Thomas and Dorothy 
 (Spitzer) Moore, the former a native of 
 Germany, and the latter of Pennsylvania, Init 
 of German extraction. Thomas ]\Ioore was 
 
 an exceptionally well educatetl man, w Ikj, af- 
 ter coming to the United States, devoted his 
 time to agricultural pursuits. He had a fam- 
 ily of ten children, eight of whom grew to 
 maturity. Reuben is now deceased. Re- 
 liecca married William Fletcher, but botli are 
 now deceased. David is also deceased. An- 
 drew now resides in Missouri. Philip lives 
 in California. Joseph makes his home in 
 Roanoke, Illinois, while Isaac is li\ing in 
 Nebraska. Sarah married William Gallihue, 
 who died several years ago. She now makes 
 her home in Rockingham county, X'irginia. 
 Joseph is the subject of this sketch. 
 
 Joseph Moore resided in his native state 
 until 1869, and was there principally engaged 
 in farming. During the Civil war he served 
 his state for three years, the greater part of 
 the time in the quartermaster's department. 
 He was taken prisoner at Harrisonburg, Vir- 
 ginia, and was held at Fort JMcHenry for 
 nine months, the w'ar then closing. In 1869 
 he came to Woodford county, Illinois, and 
 located about one mile south of Roanoke, 
 where he engaged in farming until 1881, 
 when he moved to the village where he has 
 since resided. 
 
 Mr. Moore was marrieil April 4, 1849, 
 Miss Sarah Jane Lower, a native of Orange 
 county, Mrginia, and daughter of Michael 
 and Ann (Gibbons) Lower. Her father was 
 a Pennsylvanian by birth, while her mother 
 was born in \'irginia. Of the four children 
 born to Joseph Moore and wife, Susan Vir- 
 ginia married ^^^ B. Gish, but is now de- 
 ceased. William P. resides in Roanoke, Illi- 
 nois. Charles L. is living in Candow, North 
 akota, and N. R. is represented on another 
 page of this volume. The faniil}' are mem- 
 bers of the Alethodist Episcojjal church. In 
 politics Joseph Moore has always lieen a 
 Democrat.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 617 
 
 X. R. MOORE. 
 
 Among' Roanoke's representative l)usi- 
 ness men and jirogressive citizens is N. R. 
 Moore, manager of the firm of Bartlett. 
 Frazier & Company, of Cliicago. A native 
 of Virginia, lie was horn near Harrisburg. 
 Rockingiiam county. January 8. 1865. and 
 is a son of Joseph Moore, now a resident of 
 Roanoke, Illinois. The family came to this 
 state in 1871 and settled in Roanoke, where 
 our subject was educated in the public 
 schools. He commenced his business career 
 as a clerk in the drug store of 1). R. Zimmer- 
 mann. at the age of eighteen years, and there 
 served an api)renticeship of si.x years, at the 
 end of which time he received a certificate 
 of registration as a pharmacist that he has 
 ke])t in force up to the present time. During 
 the following five years he was employed as 
 clerk in the general mercantile estalilishment 
 of R. A. Peterson, of Roanoke, and lor one 
 year was in the grain business lor Henry 
 Tropitz, of that place. At the expiration of 
 that time the property was taken pos.session 
 of by Bartlett. Frazier & Company, of Chi- 
 cago, and liy them Mr. Moore has since 
 been employed as manager. While connected 
 with the drug business he learned telegra- 
 phy, and has had the management of the 
 Postal Telegraph Company at Ro.anoke 
 since 1893. He is a wide-awake, energetic 
 business man. and has the entire confidence 
 and esteem of the firms with which he is 
 connected. 
 
 On the i6th of June, 1886, was celebrated 
 the marriage of Mr. Moore and Miss Lula 
 Upton, of Roanoke, and to them have been 
 born four children: Mabel, born June 20. 
 1 889; Flora. iKirn December 12. 1892; Floyd, 
 born October 29, 1896. and an infant born 
 July 19. 1900. Mr. Moore has e\er taken an 
 
 active interest in public afifairs, and has oflfi- 
 cially served as \illage clerk two terms and 
 school tlirector for two terms. Socially be is 
 connected with the Modern Woodmen of 
 America, and religiously is a member of the 
 Methodist Episcopal church. 
 
 S.VLMACIOUS 15. Dl'..\Kril. 
 
 The subject of this review is one of the 
 highly resi)ected citizens of Palestine town- 
 ship, Woodford county, his home being on 
 section 29. He was born in Marion county. 
 Ohio, October 26, i^^;^. a son of Isaac and 
 Marv .Vnn (Rogers) Dearth, in whose fam- 
 ilv were five children, all now deceased with 
 the exception of our subject, the oldest child. 
 The mother died when quite young. The 
 f;ither, also a native of Ohio, engaged in mill- 
 ing in Marion county for some years, and in 
 1S53 moved to Tazewell county. Illinois, 
 where he lixed retired from acti\-e labor 
 until called from this life at the age of sixty- 
 five years. 
 
 I 'mil he attained his majority S. B. 
 Dearth continued to live in his nati\'e county, 
 and there received his early education. 
 Coming to Illinois in 1853, be settled in 
 ]\IcLean county, where he worked by the 
 mouth as a farm hand for two years, and 
 then engaged in farming on rented land in 
 White Oak town>bip. that county. ;nid Mack- 
 inaw iMwnslii]). Tazewell county. I)uring 
 tlie Ci\il war he moved to Butler county, 
 low.'i. whei-e he owned some land, and re- 
 mained tliere seven years. On his return to 
 Illinois, he locateil in Kansas township, 
 Woodford county., where he rented a farm 
 which he continued to occu])y for nine years. 
 He next renteil his iiresent farm of forty
 
 6i8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 acres on section 29. Palestine township, and 
 in connection witli its o])eration works at 
 the carpenter's trade, to wliicli he has devoted 
 a portion of his time for thirty years. He is 
 a supporter of the Republican party and its 
 principles, and has served as school director 
 in Palestine township, his last term of office 
 expiring in i8g8. 
 
 On the loth of Septemlier. 1856, in 
 Bloomington, Illinois, Mr. Dearth led to the 
 marriage altar Miss ]\lary J. Fordyce. who 
 is the youngest in a familv of nine children, 
 four still living. Her parents were Lebbious 
 and Catherine (Carpenter) Fordyce. The 
 father was a nati\'e of Ohio, and resided in 
 Morgan count}-, that state, some years. .\ 
 half century ago he moved to ]\IcLean coun- 
 ty, Illinois, and engaged in farming and 
 Stock raising in White Oak township, though 
 he w^as a lawyer and followed that profes- 
 sion in Ohio, until coming to this state. He 
 died in Tazewell county, at the age of fiftv- 
 four years. On first locating in McLean 
 county he bought fifteen hundred acres of 
 land for one dollar and a quarter per acre. 
 Mrs. Dearth lost her mother when onlv seven 
 years old. 
 
 Of the nine children horn to our subject 
 antl his wife, Edwin died at the age of fif- 
 teen months, and Salena, the first wife of 
 John Frye, died at the age of twenty-one 
 years. She has one child, Elva, who was 
 born in Kansas township and died at the 
 age of seven months. Those of the family 
 still living are as follows : ( i ) James, born 
 in McLean county, married Etta Neargraith. 
 He is a armer of Bowling (jreen, Palestine 
 township, Woodford countv, and has ser\-ed 
 as constable and school director. (2) Henrv. 
 l)orn in McLean county, is also a farmer 
 and school director of Palestine township. 
 He married Mollie Beber and the\- ha\e two 
 
 children, Carl and Mary. (3) Segal, born in 
 ]McLean county, March 3. 1863, is prevented 
 from work by being a cri])])le and resides at 
 home with his parents. (4) Samuel, born in 
 Clarksville. Iowa, is n(}\v running a tile fac- 
 tory and brick works in Edgewood, that 
 state. He married Eliza Elliott, and thev 
 have three children, Harry, Taylor and Oral. 
 (5) Frances, born in Kansas township, 
 Woodford county,, is the second wife of 
 John Frye. a farmer of Olio township, and 
 they have one child. May. (6) Stephen, born 
 in Woodford county, is a farmer of Kansas 
 township. He married Lizzie, daughter of 
 Jacob Hexamer, of Palestine township, and 
 they have two children, Nellie and Violet. 
 (7) Albert, liorn in Kansas township, mar- 
 ried Mary Michel, of El Paso township, and 
 he is now em])loyed as a stationary engineer 
 in Palestine township. 
 
 E. L. McCLINTOCK. 
 
 The subject of this sketch is one of 
 Woodford county's nati\'e sons and a repre- 
 sentati\"e of one of her most prominent and 
 honored families, whose identification with 
 her history dates from an early period in the 
 development of the county. He was born in 
 Olio township, January ij. 1850, and is a 
 son of John and Elizabeth ( Brown) McClin- 
 tock. the former born in Maryland, the lat- 
 ter born in Lancaster, Pennsyl\-ania. They 
 were married in Pennsylvania and in the 
 early '30s migrated to IMcLean county, Illi- 
 nois. Later they came to Woodford county 
 and took up their residence in what is now 
 Olio towushii), where the father bought a 
 claim that had not been improved, it being 
 the farm on which our subject now resides.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 619 
 
 When he located here tlie country was all 
 wild and unsettled and game was ahundant. 
 He assisted in organizing his township anil 
 county, and bore an active part in the work 
 of development and progress. In politics he 
 was a Democrat. For many years he devoted 
 his time and attention to the improvement 
 and cultivation of his farm, but spent his 
 last days in retirement from active labor in 
 Eureka, where his death occurred in 1884. 
 His wife died in that city the same year. To 
 them were born nine children; li\e <>f 
 whom are still living, namely: Jesse, who 
 resides near Normal. McLean county: W'ill- 
 iani. who served three vears in the Civil war 
 and is now a resident of Btoomington. Illi- 
 nois: Joseph, who is living near Kappa, in 
 Woodford county; E. L., our subject: and 
 Mrs. Mary Fr)e, of Eureka. 
 
 On the home farm ]•'.. L. McClintock 
 passed his boyhood and xouth. early becom- 
 ing familiar with every department oi farm 
 work, and accpiiring his literary education 
 in the district schools of the neighlx)rh(jo(l.. 
 He now owns and t>perates the old home- 
 stead, which is a well-improved farm of 
 sixty-five acres, besides forty more which 
 he has added, on which he has erected ri 
 good residence. He is engaged in general 
 farming and stock raising, and is meeting 
 with well-deserved success in his labors. 
 
 In 1872 in Olio township, Mr. McClin- 
 tock led to the marriage altar Miss Mary 
 Bullington, a native of Indiana, and a daugh- 
 ter of John and Catharine (Mater) Bulling- 
 t(jn, the father a native of Kentucky, and the 
 mother of Ohio, who at an early day came to 
 Woodford county, Ilinois, and located per- 
 menently in this county, about i860, where 
 the father died in 1890, but the mother is still 
 living at the age of eighty-four years, and 
 fintls a i)leasant home with our subject. His 
 
 brother. Robert Bullington. was one of the 
 early pioneers of the county, and is now de- 
 ceased. Mr. and Mrs. McClintock have three 
 children : Jennie, Mabel and Edna. In his 
 political aftiliatit)ns Mr. McClintock is a 
 Democrat, and he has efficiently served as a 
 member of the school board in his district. 
 He takes an active interest in public affairs 
 and gives his support to all measures which 
 he believes will in any way benefit his com- 
 munitv. 
 
 nox. .\. H. brlt..\ki-:r. 
 
 Honored .'uid res]>ected by all. there is 
 no man in Woodford county who occupies 
 a more envial)le imsition than A. H. Brubak- 
 er. of llenson. not alone on account of the 
 l)rilliant success he has achieved, but also on 
 account of the honorable and straightfor- 
 ward ])t)licy he has ever followed. For 
 many years he was actively identified with 
 the Intsiness and ix)litical interests of the 
 count}-, but is now li\ing a retired life at his 
 beautiful home in Benson. 
 
 Mr. Brubaker was bom in Little Cone.s- 
 toga Creek, near Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 
 April 1 1, 1833, and is a son of Jacob B. and 
 .\nna ( Huber) Brubaker, who Ijelonged to 
 an old colonial family of Swiss origin. Their 
 descendants are now scattered throughout 
 \'irginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illi- 
 nois, Canada and the west. Farming has al- 
 ways been the principal occupation of the 
 family. Longevity is numbered among its 
 characteristics. Our subject's paternal 
 grandfather was eighty-seven years of age 
 at the time of his death, and his father died 
 at our subject's home in Benson, August 
 2. 1895, ''t the same age. 
 
 The early education of A. H. Brubaker 
 was limited to a short attendance at the pub-
 
 620 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lie scliools of his native county. In 1S52 
 he married Miss Catherine Schneider, also 
 of Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, and 
 three years later they started west, stopping 
 first in Chicago, and from there went to 
 Free])ort, Illinois, where he remained for a 
 short time. We next find him in Peoria, 
 and from there he came to \\'oodford coun- 
 tv, where he purchased one hundred and 
 sixty acres of land on section 4. Greene 
 township, of the Illinois Central Railroad 
 Compan)-. Here he made a permanent lo- 
 cation, and in his farming operations met 
 with excellent success, becoming owner of 
 much valuable land in Woodford county. 
 In 1884 he embarked in mercantile business 
 in Benson, and also shipped grain east and 
 west, but since October, 1895. has lived a 
 retii'ed life, enjoying a well-earned rest. 
 
 Mr. Brubaker's first wife died February 
 9, 1864, leaving four children, namely: 
 Maria married Benjamin Zirkle and they re- 
 side near San Angelo, Texas ; Aaron married 
 Ida Huxtable and they make their home near 
 Lexington, Dawson county, Nebraska; Hi- 
 ram married Lida Tool and they reside in 
 Benson, Illinois; Sarah is the w'lie of Joseph 
 Wells and the}'' live in Joliet, Illinois. For 
 his second wife Mr. Brubaker married, De- 
 cember 6, 1866, Miss Elizabeth Brubaker, a 
 native of Richland county, Obio^, and a 
 daughter of Hiram Brubaker, who was born 
 in Pennsylvania. He moved to Ohio in 
 1821 and there resided until 1851, when he 
 came west and located in Woodford county, 
 Illinois, near Eureka. Here he resided for 
 four years and then moved to where the town 
 of Roanoke, Woodford county, now stands. 
 He died at the home of our subject April 
 18, 1880, at the age of eighty-four years 
 and nine months. He and his wife were the 
 parents of nine children, of whom three are 
 
 now living, namely : John, who is making his 
 liome in Juliet, Illinois; Elizabeth, wife of 
 our subject; and Daniel, who is engaged in 
 farming in Normal township, McLean coun- 
 ty, Illinois. 
 
 Of the four sons born to Hiram Bru- 
 baker and wife all enlisted and served in the 
 Civil war. Three brothers of our subject 
 also served in the war of the Rebellion, 
 Samuel, Jacol) and John. Jacob rose from 
 the ranks to captain in the regular service. 
 
 Of the six children born of the second 
 marriage of A. H. Brubaker, Henry C. died 
 July 31, 1899, at the age of twenty-nine 
 years; Emma M. married J. E. Eckhart, of 
 whom a sketch appears elsewhere in this 
 volume; Minnie E., wife of George Jeter, 
 resides in Greene township, Woodford 
 county; while Jennie A., Clarence Isi. and 
 Nettie P. are yet residing at home. Clar- 
 ence M. is taking the scientific course at 
 Wesley L^niversity, at Bloomington. Illi- 
 nois, and Nettie P. is attending the schools 
 of Benson. 
 
 Politically Mr. Brubaker is a strong 
 Republican and expansionist, and he has 
 taken a very active and prominent part in 
 public affairs, having served as supervisor 
 from 1878 to 1880, inclusive, and again 
 from 1888 to 1890. He was the candidate 
 of his party for count}- judge, in 1868, and 
 in 1886 was elected to the state legislature 
 in which he ser\ed mie term. He was the 
 originator of the bill which favored holding 
 three terms of court in Woodford county, 
 and introduced the bill for dating seeds and 
 patent medicines, any act to qualify justice 
 of peace and jurisdiction and practice of 
 justice of peace and fix duties of constables. 
 He most ably represented his district and 
 took an active part in the work of the house. 
 i\Ir. Brubaker was a charter member of the
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 621 
 
 Agricultural Association, organized in iHjc). 
 and for twenty years has served as presi- 
 dent of the Roanoke I-'ire Insurance Com- 
 pany, which he was instrumental in organ- 
 izing. Both he and his wife are memhers 
 of the Methodist church, and are held in 
 high esteem in social circles. Their home 
 is a magnificent structure on Front street, 
 which was built in January. iS»)i. from ^Ir. 
 Brubaker's own jilans. and which is sup- 
 plied with all the modern im])ro\ements of 
 a fine city residence, being lighted bv gas, 
 heated by steam and fin-nished with .three 
 kinds of water and all sanitary arrange- 
 ments. Here hospitality reigns supreme 
 and host and hostess take great pleasure in 
 entertaining their many friends. 
 
 Mr. Brubaker can relate many interest- 
 ing incidents of pioneer days when grain 
 was hauled to market in sacks on ox carts, 
 and when there were no bridges and roads 
 were poor. He was the first man in Greene 
 township to get a carload of tile, and was 
 laughed at by the less progressive citizens, 
 but his sound judgment was soon shown by 
 the productiveness of his land, and his farms 
 are now worth one hundred and twenty dol- 
 lars per acre. As a stock raiser lie also met 
 with excellent success, being considered an 
 expert hog raiser, as he never had a case 
 of cholera on his farm. At one time he 
 raised eighty hogs which averaged four 
 hundred and twelve pounds each. 
 
 JOSEPH \\'. KELLOGG. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, who is suc- 
 cessfully engaged in agricultural pursuits 
 on section 36, Cazenovia township, Wood- 
 ford county, Illinois, was born on the 9th 
 
 of December. jS^t). i'l Champaign count\', 
 Ohio, and is the only child of John and 
 Laura (Darling) Kcllogu-. 'riK' father was 
 a native of \ erniont, and when a young 
 man migrated to ()hit). where he married. 
 The mother dieil in Champaign county, that 
 .state, in 1842, and four years later the fa- 
 ther was again married in Vermont, his sec- 
 onil union being with Dorothea Boyington, 
 also a native of that state. In 1K53 he came 
 from Ohio to Woodfortl coimty, Illinois, and 
 purchased land in Metamora township, which 
 he im])ro\-cd, and u\nm wliicli he still con- 
 tinues to live at the age of eighty-three 
 years. By his second marriage he had three 
 children: J\Lartha: Mrs. Phebe B. Murphy, 
 of ]\Ietamora township; and Lorenzo, who 
 died at the age of fifteen years. 
 
 Joseph \y. Kellogg came to Woodford 
 county with his father and was reared and 
 educated in Mctaniora township. Soon 
 after the breaking out of the Civil war he 
 enlisted at I'eoria, in July, iS(u , in the Forty- 
 seventh Illinois \'ohnitcer Infantry, for three 
 years or dm-ing the war. 1 le was a member 
 of a company under command of Captain 
 Wilcox, of Minonk, but was soon taken ill 
 and honorably discharged on account of 
 disability. Later he re-enlisted, September 
 19, 1864. for one year, in Comiianv 1), 
 Eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, which 
 was assigned to the Gulf department of the 
 Western army. He was mustered into the 
 L^nited Slates .service at Springfield, and par- 
 ticipated in the battle of Spanish Fort, Fort 
 Blakely and the siege of Mobile. His regi- 
 ment was the first to enter Fort Blakely, 
 and be was one of the first men to get in- 
 side the fort. He took part in the Texas 
 expedition and was on detached duty at Jef- 
 ferson, that state, for a time. At the close 
 of the war he was honorably discharged at
 
 622 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 New Orleans, in Se])tem1ier, 1865. and re- 
 turned to liis home in Woodford connty. 
 In 1873 he went to I'liillips county, Kansas, 
 and took up a claim, on which he lived for 
 four years, hut with that exception he has 
 made his home in Woodford county, and is 
 now the owner of a good farm of eighty 
 acres on section 36, in Cazenovia township. 
 At Roanoke, in 1865, was celehrated 
 the marriage of Mr. Kellogg and Miss ]\Ie- 
 lissa Spangler, a native of OIney, Illinois, 
 and a daughter of Henrv and Rosella Spang- 
 ler, who were earl\- settlers of Richland 
 county, Illinois, antl are both now deceased. 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Kellogg were born eight 
 children, as follows : Mrs. Minnie Hall, a res- 
 ident of Hastings, Nebraska; John Henry, 
 who died in 1892; Zacharaiah, of Menona 
 county, Iowa : Laura Esther, wife of S. \\'. 
 Newton of Wilco.x, Nebraska; Jesse \^'arner, 
 who is married and lives in Metamora town- 
 ship, Woodford county; Charles Lewis, of 
 Roanoke; Jennie and George, both at home. 
 As a Republican Mr. Kellogg takes an ac- 
 tive interest in political affairs, and has ef- 
 ficiently ser\-ed as a member of the school 
 board in his district. 
 
 ANDERSON VAN SCYOC. 
 
 Anderson Van Scyoc is one of the larg- 
 est land owners of Woodford county, and is 
 aslo one of the best known and most success- 
 ful farmers and stock raisers in the commu- 
 nity in which he lives. His homestead of 
 eight hundred acres of valuable land is pleas- 
 antly located on section 28, Palestine town- 
 ship, and is one of the model farms of the 
 county, being improved with a commodious 
 and pleasant resilience, large barns and sub- 
 
 stantial outbuildings. Indeed it is supplied- 
 with all the con\eniences antl accessories 
 needed b}- the progressive agriculturist of the 
 twentieth century. 
 
 Mr. Van Scyoc came to \\'oodford 
 county March v 1838, and has not only suc- 
 ceeded in becoming independent but has ac- 
 cumulated a large fortune. When he located 
 ir. this section of the state it was all known 
 as McLean county. His father's family set- 
 tied near the present home of our sul)ject. 
 .\t that time there A\as scarcely more than a 
 dozen families within as man_\' square miles. 
 The}- selected what they considered the most 
 fertile soil, and John Van Scyoc, father of 
 our subject, boug'ht the claim of William 
 ^litchell, and when the land came into mar- 
 ket purchased it from the go\'ernment. Upon 
 this eighty-acre tract he spent the remainder 
 of his life, and it is still in possession of the 
 family. He died July 18, 1857, at the age 
 of fifty-nine years and ten months. He was 
 one of the best know-n pioneers of the county, 
 an intelligent, industrious, hard working 
 man, whose chief object in life seemed to be 
 the promotion of the interests of those who 
 lived and were dear to him. He put forward 
 every possible elYort to leave his family com- 
 fortably provided for. He was a native of 
 Virginia, presumably of Dutch ancestry, and 
 was rearetl in what is now Marshall county, 
 that state. There he married Margaret 
 Shepherd, wIki was probably born in the 
 same state, and after their marriage he en- 
 gaged in farming in Virginia for some years. 
 To them were born three children, of whom 
 our subject is the youngest. Kittie died near 
 Shelbyville, Indiana, in the springtime of 
 life, having reached the age of eighteen years. 
 Amanda is now the widow of Asa E. Sparks, 
 a merchant of El Paso. Illinois, where she 
 still resides. Her children are Robert, a
 
 ANDERSON VAN SCYOC.
 
 THE- BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 625 
 
 lanner on section 30. Palestine township. 
 Wodfonl county: Anderson, a farmer of 
 Iowa: Maggie, wife of \\'illiam Dorsey. a 
 stone mason of El Paso: Amos, a farmer of 
 Iowa : Joliu. a teamster of El Paso: Edward, 
 a farmer of Palestine township: and Clara 
 wife of William T. Tegard. of El Paso. 
 
 Anderson \'an Scyoc was horn in Mar- 
 shall couniy, \'irginia. July 12. 1S22, antl 
 was ahout thirteen years of age wdien the 
 tamily moved to Shelby county, Indiana. 
 Many incidents connected with his lioyhood 
 in that state are still fresh in his memory. 
 .\fter three years spent in Indiana, he came 
 with his parents to Woodford comity, Illinois 
 and the journey, made in true pioneer style, 
 with teams an<l wagons, is still impressed 
 upon his mind with the same vividness as 
 e\enls of recent occurrence. Two weeks 
 were occupied in this trip and at last they 
 arri\ed at the Mackinaw river. The land 
 along that stream V-as then unmolested, 
 rough and untrodden, by the white men, 
 game abounded in the timber and the river 
 teemed with the tinny tribe. Soon the neigh- 
 borhood began to attract other people, and 
 comfortable homes were built at intervals. 
 The nearest market places were Pekin and 
 Peoria, where the settlers took their grain 
 and in return received their supplies. After 
 a few }ears of active labor in this community 
 the father died and the mother continued 
 to live with our subject until her second 
 mariage, which took place a few years later, 
 she becoming the wife of James Pearson. 
 When again left a widow she made her home 
 iii the village of Kappa until her death, 
 which occurred May 13, 1878. She had at 
 that time passed her four score years. She. 
 as well as her first husband, Mr. Van Scyoc, 
 was a member of the Methodist church. 
 
 Aniid piioneer scenes Anderson Van- 
 33 
 
 -Scyoc grew to manhood, and for some years 
 he aided his father in the improvement and 
 cultivation of the home farm in W(X)dford 
 county. In early manhood he established a 
 home of his own, being united in marriage 
 December 31, 1857, with Mi.ss Mary L. 
 Carr, who was born in Georgetown, Indiana, 
 ir, 1840, a daughter of Abraham and Maletta 
 Carr. natives of \^irginia. Her parents 
 spent most of their lives in Indiana until the 
 spring of 1857. when they came to Wood- 
 ford county, and resided for some time in 
 Palestine township. The father was a car- 
 penter by trade and met death wdiile in pur- 
 suit of that occupation, being fatally injured 
 by falling ofT an ice house on which he was at 
 work. He was about sixty years of age and 
 was at the time of his death a resident of 
 Kappa. His first wife died at the same place 
 about two years prior. Mrs. Van Scyoc was 
 sixteen years of age when she came to Illi- 
 nois with her parents, and was married the 
 following year. After a few short years oi 
 happy wedded life she died October 22, 
 1865. She had endeared herself to all who 
 knew her, and was loved and admired for 
 hcr strength of character. She left three 
 children, while one son. Charles Edward, 
 preceded her to the final rest. Those li\iiig 
 are as follows : ( i ) Margaret M.. is the wife 
 of John Davidson, a native of Woodford 
 county, and a farmer of Palestine tovvnshi]). 
 and they have two children, Mary and Mil- 
 dre<I. ( j) John A., a prominent farmer and 
 stock raiser of Palestine tow'nship, married; 
 Ida M. Bereer, and they have six children. 
 Charles. Piculah, Grace, Mabel, Hazel and 
 Bessie. (3 ) \\'illiani A., born in Woodforrl 
 county, .\pril 2\, 1863, was educated in the 
 common schools of Palestine township, and 
 is still living on the home farm. On the 
 25th of September, 1895, he married Clara
 
 626 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 \'an Alstine, a daughter of Jolm and Mary 
 (Hart) Van Alstine. Her fatlier is a promi- 
 nent farmer and large stock raiser of Greene 
 township. Wocnlford county. One child 
 blesses this union, \\'illiam Anderson, horn 
 December 5, 1898. 
 
 Mr. Van Scyoc was again married, April 
 17, 1873, his second union l>eing with Mrs. 
 Margaret J- Pierce, who was torn in Mar- 
 shall county, Illinois, August 26, 1835, a 
 daughter of Henry Shepherd. Her first hus- 
 band was John Pierce, who died November 
 29, 1862. 
 
 For man\- years Mr. \'an Scyoc was 
 activel}' and successfully engaged in agri- 
 cultural pursuits, and accumulated a valua- 
 ble property. In addition to his home farm 
 of eight hundred acres of rich and arable 
 land, he owns several others in Palestine 
 township, having one hundred and sixty 
 acres on section 20 ; one hundred and twenty 
 acres on section t,2; eighty acres on section 
 20; eighty acres on section 26; and two hun- 
 dred and sixty acres on section 24. He also 
 has six hundred acres in Greene township, 
 and one hundred and seventy-fi\'e acres in 
 Kansas township, Woodford county, a one- 
 hundred-and-sixt\'-acre tract adjoining- 
 Padua, McLean county; and sixty acres in 
 Hudson township, the same county. His 
 landed possessions in Woodford and I\Ic- 
 Lean counties aggregate something over 
 twenty-four hundred acres of land, mostly- 
 improved. He still resides upon iiis farm 
 but has laid aside business cares, and is now 
 liviiig retired, sm'n.nmded liy all the com- 
 forts of life. He is a man of keen discrimina- 
 tion and sound judgment, ai-id is an able 
 financier, who has carried forward to success- 
 ful completion whatever he has undertaken. 
 
 Mr. Van Scyoc is a man of liberal ideas 
 in matters of religion, and usually votes the 
 
 Republican ticket. He has .served as super- 
 visor and has held other township offices. 
 g-^'\'ing- universal satisfaction in whatever 
 place he has l)een called upt)n to fill. .\ nian 
 of unbounded enterprise, his success in life 
 is due to his own well-directed efforts, and 
 he deserves prominent n-iention among the 
 leading and representative business n-ien of 
 the county . 
 
 DOMINIQUE JACOUIN. 
 
 The subject of this review, who is a re- 
 tired farmer and highly esteemed citizen of 
 Metaniora, Illinois, was born in Lorraine. 
 France, April 7, 1833, and when a lad of 
 fourteen years came t(.i America with his 
 parents. On landing in this country they 
 at once proceeded to Illinois, and in June, 
 of that 3-ear, took up his residence near 
 \\'ashington, Tazewell county, where the fa- 
 ther purchased a farm and engaged in its 
 operation until his death in 1863. 
 
 Dominitjue Jactjuin attended school to a 
 limited extent in his native land, but his 
 knowledge of English has been self-acquired. 
 He assisted his father in the culti\-ation and 
 improvement of the home farm in Tazewell 
 county until he attained his majority, and 
 then started out in life for hiniself as a 
 farmer, operating land for a number of 
 }-ears. On the 24th of July, 1857, in Taze- 
 well county, he married Miss Elizabeth 
 llaker, who was born in that county of Ger- 
 man parentage, and to them ha\e been born 
 six children, as follows; Anna C. wife of 
 C. W. Andrew, who is engaged in the g-rain 
 business in Walnut, Bureau county. Illinois; 
 Sophia C, wife of Jefferson (iriggs, of Meta- 
 niora ; Helen M., wife of A. L. Herriford, 
 of Springfield, Illinois; Nicholas J., who is
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 627 
 
 married and lives in Peoria: Mara Vicdora, 
 wife of I>urt Tyler, (if .Springfield: and J. 
 William, who is married and resides in 
 Liiuisiana. Missouri. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Jac(|iiin began their mar- 
 ried life nixjn a rented farm in Tazewell 
 county, where they made their home for 
 several years. In 1869 he embarked in the 
 mercantile business at Metamora. which he 
 carried on for seven years with good success. 
 In the meantime he purchased a farm of 
 eighty acres in Metamora township, Wood- 
 ford county, in 1872, which he rented until 
 his retirement from business, when he re- 
 sumed agricultural pursuits. Later he sold 
 that place and bought one hundred and sixty- 
 four acres of land near Metamora, to the 
 further improvement and cnltivaticjn of 
 which he devoted his energies until 1894, 
 A\hen he rented it and mined to Metamora. 
 where he has since lived a retireil life, en- 
 joying a well earned rest, free from the cares 
 and res))onsibilities of business life. The 
 ]irMS])erily that has come to him in business 
 is but the just reward of honest labor, for on 
 starting out in life for himself he was with- 
 out ca])ital and has been de])endcnt entireh' 
 upon his own resources. 
 
 Since attaining his majority Mr. jaciiuin 
 has always affiliated with the Democratic 
 party and cast his first presidential vote for 
 James Buchanan. He has been a stanch 
 friend of education and public schools, and 
 has efficiently served as township trustee a 
 number of years. He was reared in the Cath- 
 olic faith but holds mcmbershij) in no church, 
 though he gives to the supjwrt of the Prot- 
 estant churches. His wife attends the Ger- 
 man Lutheran church. He united with the 
 Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Wash- 
 ington. Illinois, and has filled all the chairs 
 in that l(jdge, lieiug past grand. Wherever 
 
 known he is held in high regard, and his cir- 
 cle of friends and acquaintances throughout 
 ^\'(1odford count v is extensive. 
 
 WILLIAM N. B.\TEM.\X. 
 
 Prominent among the successful agricult- 
 urists and highly esteemed citizens of Kan- 
 sas township, Woodford county, is William 
 -V. Bateman, whose home is on section 9. 
 i ie is a native of Ohio, his birth having ik- 
 curred in Ross county, January 23, 1827. 
 There he spent the first sixteen vears of his 
 life, and in 1843 came to Illinois \\itli his 
 ]jarents. William and Susan (Roe) Bateman. 
 The father was also born in Ross county. 
 (-)hio, and passed much of his boyhood there, 
 but after the death of his father went with 
 his mother to Kentucky, where he remained 
 until he attained his majority. Returning to 
 Ohio he was married in that state, and fol- 
 lowed farming there until 1843, when be 
 mo\-ed to Illinois, locating on Big Indian 
 creek, in l.a Salle county, where he followed 
 the same pursuit for a few vears. Subse- 
 (|uently he made his Imme for a lime in 
 Peoria county, and in 1848 went to Texas. 
 w here he engaged in farming and stock rais- 
 ing until 1852. During that year he removed 
 to Illinois and settled in Metamora township, 
 Woodford county, where he followed his 
 chosen profession for thirty years, but his 
 last days were spent in retirement from active 
 labor in the village of Kapjia, where he died 
 .\ugust J3, 1873, at the age of sixty-six 
 years. The mother of our subject died in 
 Texas, in 1849. 
 
 William X. ]^>ateman is the oldest in a 
 lamiK' of nine children, and he remained
 
 628 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 under the parental roof until he was married, 
 jMav 29, 1856, at Metamora, to ]\Iiss Louisa 
 \\'est, a daughter of James and Catherine 
 (Cress) \\'est, who are prominent agricult- 
 urists living near Metamora, and are now de- 
 ceased. To Mr. and Mrs. Bateman were 
 born fourteen children, si.x of whom are 
 now deceased, including their eldest daugh- 
 ter, Missouri B., who was the- second wife 
 of Daniel Gingerich, whose sketch appears 
 on another page of this volume. Four sons 
 and four daughters are living, namely : Cath- 
 erine, wife of Allen Harper, a farmer of Kan- 
 sas township; Columbus, a farmer of Minne- 
 sota ; Mollie, wife of Warren Search, a lirick- 
 maker of Bloomington, Illinois; Albert, 
 James, Walter, Gertrude and Ada, all at 
 home. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Bateman lived in 
 Metamora until ihe spring of 1858, when he 
 ni(..\ cd to Ray county, ilissouri. While there 
 the Civil war broke out, and he entered the 
 L'nion army. He receix'ed a slight wound 
 which caused him almost to lose the sight of 
 (ine eye, and after ser\'ing one year he was 
 discharged August i, 1865. He then re- 
 turned to Illinois and settled in Kansas town- 
 ship, Woodford county, he having purchased 
 forty acres of his present farm before en- 
 listing, in Kansas township in 1864, which 
 at that time was all wild land. He has adtled 
 to his landed possessions from time to time 
 as his financial resources have increased, until 
 be now owns a thousand acres of improved 
 land, and is still successfully engaged in 
 general farming and stock raising. In his 
 linme farm he has one hundred and sixty 
 acres, a like amount on section 4, and all of 
 section 5. Kansas township. Industrious, en- 
 terprising and reliable, he has made for him- 
 self an honorable record in business, and by 
 his well directed efforts has acquired a hand- 
 
 some competence. On starting out in life he 
 was in rather limited circumstances, but he 
 has a]wa_\'s been a hard working man, and 
 ti' this and his good business abilit_\- ma}- be 
 attributed his remarkable success. I-'nr manv 
 \ears he has been a member of the Masonic 
 fraternity, and of El Paso L(jdge for twentv- 
 six years, and his life has been in barnKinx- 
 with its teachings. 
 
 JOHN CARSON. 
 
 John Car.son, a retired contractor and 
 builder, residing in Eureka, \Voodford coun- 
 ty, has been a resident of the county since 
 1857. He was born in \\'ayne township, 
 Adam s county. Ohio, March 12, 1827, and 
 is a son of John and Rachel (Beam) Car- 
 son, both of whom were born in the same 
 county, the former at Manchester, 1 m the 
 Ohio ri\er, January g, 1801. and the latter 
 in the same town, August i, 1799. Pier 
 jjarents were from Pennsylvania. 
 
 James Carson, the paternal grand fatlier, 
 was born in Belfast, Ireland, of Scotch an- 
 cestry. His wife, Jane, was also born in 
 that city. They came to America Avhen 
 young, locating in New York, where their 
 Adams county, (^hio, March 12, 1827, and 
 to Ohio territcu'}', when it was nothing more 
 than a vast wilderness. His son, John Car- 
 son, the father of our subject, grew to man- 
 hood in bis nati\'e count}' and there married 
 Rachel Beam. He was bv dccupation a 
 farmer, a \iication that he followed through- 
 out life. He always avoided holding office, 
 though evev ready to do his duty in the ma- 
 terial interests of his county. In politics 
 he was a Democrat, and, religiouslv, a mem-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 629 
 
 ber oi the Missionary Baptist cliurcli, very 
 strict in beiiavior and stanch in his views. 
 He died September 29, 1877. wliile liis good 
 wife, who was also a member of the Baptist 
 cliurcli, departed this life May 15, i86r. 
 
 The subject of this sketch s])ent his boy- 
 hood and youth on his father's farm, and 
 received a good practical education in tlie 
 schools of the neighborhood. He assisted 
 his father in farm work until he was twenty 
 years of age, when he was apprenticed to 
 learn the carpenter's trade. .After complet- 
 ing his term with his employer he worked 
 as a jnurnevnian in Brown county. Ohio, 
 until 1837. While still residing there he 
 m<-'.rried Miss Mary Pickrill, a native of 
 Annetta died when two years old. John L. 
 Pickerill, a prominent citizen of that ctninty. 
 By this union were born ten children. Al- 
 l>crt W. is married and has two children, 
 Bert and Jessie. He is engaged in the prac- 
 tice of medicine in Dover. Kansas, Lucin- 
 da, now Mrs. Ward, resides in Baker City, 
 OregMii. .Mexander died in infancy. Sarah 
 died at the age of twenty-six years. Mary 
 Annette died when two years old. John L. 
 is a practicing physician of Bakersfield, Cali- 
 fornia. Hannah E., now Mrs. Frank Kent, 
 resides in Washington. Illinois. Fannie, 
 twin sister of Hannah, is now the widow 
 of O. M. Kent, of Eureka. She has one 
 son, Charles M. David L.. a postoffice offi- 
 cial of Topeka, Kansas, is married and has 
 two children. Albert and Enid. Lola M.. 
 now Mrs. L. W. Allison, of Eureka, is the 
 mother of three children. Vergia. Jay .A. 
 and Lottie F. All the children were given 
 good educational advantages, which were 
 si>ecially imi)roved. Mrs. Carson, who was 
 a consistent member of the Christian church 
 from the time she was fourteen years old. 
 was called to her reward, .April 23. 1880. 
 
 She was a loving wife and affectionate moth- 
 er, and her memory is cherished not alone by 
 the bereaved family, but by many friends. 
 
 In Xovember, 1882, Mr. Carson was 
 again united in marriage, choosing for his 
 second wife Mrs. Jemima Karr, itcc Swear- 
 ingen. She, too, has been called away, her 
 death occurring Xovember i, 1883. aged 
 forty-seven years. On the 30th of July,, 
 1885. Mr. Carson married Mrs. Mary J. 
 Swearingen, iicc Sqniers. who died August 
 -"• i^9vV ^*^'' 'i'^ fourth wife he married 
 Mrs. Mary .\. Eiinis, iicc Black. March 20, 
 i8()4. She died September 5, 1898. 
 
 In September, 1857. Mr. Carson came 
 with his family to Woodford county. Illi- 
 nois, and located in the village of Wash- 
 burn, where he engaged in contracting and 
 building, and while residing there did a 
 large business, putting up the greater luini- 
 ber e)f the houses erected in the village and 
 surorunding country. He had purcha.sed a 
 small tract of land, but from the fact that he 
 could not purchase any of the land adjoining, 
 he sold out and later purchased a quarter- 
 section (jf land near Minonk. and also a half- 
 section near Cjilman. Illinois. In was his in- 
 tention of moving to the tract near Gilman, 
 but after considering the matter in every way 
 and looking esi^ecially to the future well- 
 being of his children, he determined to 
 move to Eureka that he might give them the 
 benetit of its schools. 
 
 Locating in Eureka in 1867, for some 
 years Mr. Carson did a large business in 
 contracting and building, and many of the 
 best houses in that locality were put u]) un- 
 der his sujiervision. During his more active 
 career he gave employment to a good many 
 men. For the past twenty years he has been 
 less active in building enteriirises, especially 
 as age was ad\ancing. His own lieautiful
 
 630 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 residence, in the midst of a tract of seven 
 and a quarter acres of land, is as fine a piece 
 of property as there is to be found in Eure- 
 ka. The house lie erected in 1867. Ad- 
 joining the city, he has all the advantages of 
 both city and country. 
 
 Mr. Carson has done considerable trad- 
 ing in real estate, and now owns much prop- 
 erty in Eureka. The farm near Gil- 
 man was disposed of years ago and the 
 money placed at interest. By his frugality, 
 industr)^ and temperate habits, he has be- 
 come the possessor of a competency that en- 
 ables him to live at ease and take such 
 recreations as he thinks best for his general 
 happiness and well-being. 
 
 For six years Mr. Carson served as 
 school director, and he was also on the town- 
 ship board of trustees for several years, but 
 he has ne\er had any special desire for office 
 or for official honors. Always a friend of 
 education, he has given of his means in aid 
 of Eureka College, and has devoted con- 
 siderable time in the interests of public 
 schools. The north school house in Eureka 
 was erected under his supervision, while he 
 was director. 
 
 From the organization of the Republi- 
 can ])arty to the present time Mr. Carson has 
 voted the party ticket, but he has never been a 
 jiolitician in the current acceptation of the 
 term. He has alwa}'s beliex'ed that a man 
 could use his time to better advantage than 
 in local politics. The first year after his 
 marriage he united with the Christian church 
 and for about fourteen years served as a 
 deacon in the church of Eureka. While 
 not now holding an official position in the 
 church, yet he takes the same strong inter- 
 est in its welfare and in the cause of the 
 Master. Wherever known he is held in the 
 highest esteem. 
 
 HE.\RY CLYDE HAYES. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, now chief en- 
 gineer and manager of the Eureka electric 
 light plant, was born in Mt. Vernon, Ohio, 
 April 22. 1871. His father, obn Henry 
 Riggs Hayes, was born in the same place, and 
 is a son of Dr. AMlliam Hayes, a native of 
 England, who came to the United States 
 when a child and li\ed some time in Balti- 
 more, Maryland, where he married. Later 
 he mo\-ed to Mt. \'ernon, Ohio, where he en- 
 gaged in the practice of medicine, but his last 
 days were spent in Clarence, New York. He 
 . and his family were very prominent in the 
 Christian church, with which he w'as officially 
 connected. The father of our subject grew 
 to manhood iij his native place, where he fol- 
 lowed farming for some time, but later 
 owned and operated a lage farm near Bran- 
 don, Knox county, Ohio. In 1887 he left 
 Ohio, and after spending one year in Illi- 
 nois, went to Kansas, locating at Yates Cen- 
 ter. Woodson county, where he took up a 
 tract of wild land and improved a farm. He 
 is now successfully engaged in farming and 
 stock raising near Fort Scott, Bourbon coun- 
 ty, the same state. He is a well educated 
 man, being a graduate of Hopedale College, 
 and successfully engaged in teaching school 
 for .some years. In politics he is a Rqiub- 
 lican, and bv that partv was elected to se\'- 
 eral offices in Woodson county, Kansas. He 
 is an active member of the Christian church 
 and served as elder while living in Ohio. In 
 Mt. \"ernon, that state, he married Miss Car- 
 ( line Daily, who died leaving three children, 
 of whom our subject is the eldest. 
 
 Henry C. Hayes began his education in 
 the schools of Kno.x county, and later attend- 
 ed the schools of W'oodford county, Illinois, 
 his father and tlie family having stojiped here
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 631 
 
 one year on their way west. He went with 
 them to Woodson county, Kansas, but at the 
 age of fifteen returned to Eureka, where he 
 took a course in the high scht)ol in 1890, 
 Going to Fairbury, lUinoi.s, in 1892, he found 
 employment in the electric light plant, where 
 he learned the business of an electrician and 
 machinist, and where he worked his way up- 
 ward until he was made head of the estab- 
 lishment. He remained there until 1897, and 
 then returned to Eureka to take charge of the 
 electric light plant at this place. The water 
 plant is comiectetl with it and does all the city 
 pumping. Mr. Hayes thoroughly understands 
 his cho.sen occupation, and is meeting with 
 e.xcellent success. 
 
 On the 2(jt\i of June. 1898. he was united 
 in marriage with Miss Erma V. Earnheart, a 
 daughter of James Franklin Earnheart, an 
 old and h(nK>red settler of Fairbury. They 
 now have a little son, John Franklin, born 
 July 24, 1899. Mr. Hayes is a member of 
 the Christian church, while his wife holds 
 membership in the Methodist Episcopal 
 church. He also belongs to the Modern 
 Woodmen of America, and the Odd Fellows 
 Lodge of Fairburg, in which he held office 
 during his residence there. In his political 
 affiliations he is a Republican, and is now an 
 efficient member of the board of education of 
 Eureka. 
 
 James Franklin I'^arnlieart was l)Lirn in 
 Mt. \'ernon, Ohio, Sejjtember i, 1834, and 
 was reared by Christian parents, his father 
 I)eing a Methodist minister. When a child 
 he went with his parents to Campbellsburg, 
 Washington county, Indiana, and fmm there 
 with his father to a farm two and a half miles 
 southwest of Fairbury. Illinois. The family 
 later moved to Greencastle, Indiana, where 
 he attended .-\sbury (now De Panw) Uni- 
 versity, his father having been connected 
 
 with that institution from its organization. 
 .-\fter finishing his course in the University 
 he returned to Indian Grove township, Liv- 
 ingston county, and March 20, 1856, he was 
 united in marriage with Mrs. Eady Carr 
 Moore, and to them were born nine children, 
 of whom Mrs. Hayes is the youngest. He 
 enlisted in the war for the Union in July, 
 1861, in Company E, One Hundred and 
 Twenty-Ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, as 
 a private. He was, however, soon detailed 
 as a regimental armourer and jiostmaster, 
 and served as such until honorably dis- 
 charged in Setember. 18O4. Returning 
 home, he purchased a small farm northwest 
 of Fairbury. where he lived until 1862, when 
 he sold and was successfully engaged in the 
 implement business for five years. He then 
 moved to Phillips county, Kansas, in 1879, 
 but after two and a half years he returned 
 to Fairbury, where he lived retired until his 
 death, September 9, 1900. He was a life- 
 long member of the Metluxlist Episcopal 
 church, and one of the oldest members of 
 Livingston Lodge, I. O. O. F.. and took an 
 active interest in that t)rder. His wife is yet 
 living. 
 
 FR.\.\CIS X. H.Al'.SSLAR. 
 
 .\niong the highly res[)ecled and honored 
 citizens of the village of Secor is Francis X. 
 Hausslar, who for over forty years was act- 
 nely identified with its business interests, 
 but is now living a retired Ife. He was 
 born n Alsace. France, March 3, 1834, and 
 is the twelfth in order of birth in a family 
 of si.xteen children, whose parents were Fer- 
 dinand and Barbara Hausslar, also natives 
 of France, where the mother died at the age 
 if si.\tv-four vears. The fatlier served as a
 
 ^y- 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Miklier in the l''rencli army under XapuletMi 
 III., and was in the ser\ice at tlie time nf the 
 Emperor'.'^ capture. Tie distinguished liim- 
 self for liis bravery on field of l^attle. 
 
 In liis native province Francis X. llauss- 
 •lar was reared and educated, and with his 
 'father learned the harness maker's trade, 
 which the latter always fnllowed in France. 
 < )n the _Mid nf July, 1841. nur subject came 
 V ith his father and nldest brother tn the 
 L'nited States, and first located in Xew York 
 city, wliere he began learning the trade of a 
 cp.rpenter and caljinet maker, which he fol- 
 lowed for some vears. He also wt>rked at 
 j)iano manufacturing and the making of 
 billiard tables. In 1858 he came to Illinois 
 and settled in Secor. \V'oodfor(l count}-, 
 ^\■here he has since made his home. Uixm 
 coming to this village he continued to work 
 at his trade of a carpenter and cabinet maker 
 liir some time, and later engaged in the fur- 
 niture and undertaking business, whicli he 
 lollowed until 1900, when he sold <iut the 
 business and is now li\ing a retired life. 
 
 At the age of twenty- four }-ears, Mr. 
 Hausslar was married in the city of Xew 
 York to Miss Magdalena Deitz, a daughter 
 of Frederick Deitz, a German by birth, whi> 
 came from Baden when a young man and 
 settled in New York city. ]\Irs.-Hausslar 
 died in 1887, Three chiUh-en were born to 
 them, nanielv : Alexander died in Secor at 
 the age of about fourteen vears. V . .Vugust 
 is now engaged in the carpenter business in 
 Peoria, Illinois. He married Ellen Richard 
 and they have two children, Artluu and 
 Nellie. Caroline is the wife of Charles Slem- 
 mer, a carpenter of Secor, and they have one 
 child, Edward. In 1892 Mr. Hausslar was 
 again married, in Secor. his second union 
 being with Miss Emma R. Prescott, a daugh- 
 ter of Reuben S. and ]Mary (Baker) Pres- 
 
 cott. I'or many years her father was en- 
 gaged in mercantile business in St. Charles, 
 Illinois, where he died at the age of seventy- 
 nine years, while his wife died in Batavia, 
 th.is state, at the age of eighty-two. Mrs. 
 Hausslar is the third in order of liirth in 
 their family of ten children, four of whom 
 are now living. 
 
 ^Ir. Hausslar was reared in the Roman 
 Catholic faith, but in early life became a 
 P'rotestant, and for man\- \'ears w as a mem- 
 Ijer of the Methodist church. Later he was 
 a constant attendant and supj)orter nf the 
 ■German Evangelical church, in which he 
 ser\ed as class leader for some years, but 
 is now a Christian Scientist, which belief he 
 lias maintained for six years. .\s an up- 
 right Christian man, he is held in the high- 
 est esteem b}- his fellow citizens, and it is 
 safe to say that few men in Secor have more 
 friends than Francis X. Hausslar. 
 
 DANIEL GIXGERICH. 
 
 Among Woodford county's most prosper- 
 ous and substantial farmers must lie num- 
 bered Daniel Gingerich, who owns and occu- 
 pies a valuable farm of eight hundred acres 
 on sections 6 and 7, Kansas township, all of 
 which is improved and under a high state 
 of cultivation. His early home was on the 
 other side of the .Vtlantic. for he was born 
 in (iermany, April J9, 183J, and is the only 
 child uf Peter and Loui.sa (Ritter) Ginger- 
 ich, who spent their entire lives in that conn- 
 try, both dying at an advanced age. 
 
 Our subject passed his boyhood and 
 youth in tlie place of his birth, anil was ed- 
 ucated in its common schools, liaving heard 
 of the advantages afforded young men in the
 
 DANIAL GINGERICH.
 
 I
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 635 
 
 new wmiil. he decided to try liis fnrlune in 
 -Vnicrica, and accurdinyly. at the aj^e of 
 nineteen years, he crossed the ocean, landing 
 in Xew \\>rk city, lie pii 'ceeded at once 
 to C'hicas;"!!. and fur a few ninuths worked 
 on the Michigan canal. Later he was cni- 
 ])loyed at unloading canal hoats at La Salle, 
 Illinois, for a short time. ;inil in 1852 went 
 to 'I'azewell county, where he \\i irked on a 
 farm one }ear. lie was next employed as 
 hostler in Peoria for a short time, and then 
 accei)ted a positii>n as ])orter in the J'eoria 
 House, where he remained three or t\)nr 
 years, .\tter his marriage he opened a Iioard- 
 ing house in that city, which he successfully 
 conducted until 1862. and then came to 
 WOodford county, where he run a gristmill 
 and distillery at Bowling (ireen. Palestine 
 township, for upwards of si.x years. In 1868 
 he traded that pro])erty for one thousand 
 acres of land in .Missouri, which he after- 
 ward traded for a part of his present farm 
 in Kansas township. Woodford county, 
 where he has made his home since ^SC^q. 
 At that tune it was nearly aii wild land, hut 
 he has since cleared it and placed it under 
 excellent cultivation, at the same time erect- 
 ing thereon good and suhstantial huildings. 
 He has added to this property until he now 
 has eight hundred acres of rich and arable 
 land in Kansas townshi]) besides four hun 
 dred and ten acres in I'alestine township, 
 which lie rents, and one hundred and ten 
 acres of partially inipro\ed land in Mont- 
 gomery township, also occupied by a tenant. 
 1 le also owns a section of land in Clay coun- 
 ty. Mississippi. Since it came into liis pos- 
 session Mr. Gingerich has resided upon his 
 farm in Kansas township with the exception 
 of ten years when engaged in the saloon busi- 
 ness in El Paso. At the end of that time he 
 returned to tlie farm, and has since devoted 
 
 his energies to its im])rovement and cultiva- 
 tion. 
 
 In 1836 Mr. (jingcrich was united in 
 marriage with Aliss Adelia I'.ngcl. who was 
 born in b" ranee in 1835. and caine to this 
 country with her parents when quite young. 
 She died soon after tiieir removal to El Paso, 
 in 1872. Maria, the only child born of this 
 union, died in Peoria, at the age of eleven 
 months. In August. 1874, Mr. Gingerich 
 \vas again married, his second union being 
 with Miss Missouri B. Jjatenian, who was 
 born in .Metamora towiishii). Woodford 
 county, in June, 1857. and wa> the oldest 
 daughter of William X. and L(niisa Bate- 
 man, w ho are represented on another page of 
 this vohniie. Three children blessed this 
 marriage, all liorn in LI I'aso. namely: i'cter 
 X.. born December 26, 1875, was educated 
 at K\ Paso and in Kansas township, and now 
 aids his father in the opei'ation of the home 
 farm; Louisa Cora, born December 11, 
 1877. and Missouri Belle, born I'"el)ruar\- 18, 
 1880. are both at home. ]\lrs. Gingerich, 
 who was a de\iited wife and lo\ing mother, 
 died June 13, 1882. in Kansas township, by 
 accidental drowning while attempting to ford 
 the Mackinaw ri\er. there being no bridge 
 across the stream in that township. Her re- 
 mains were interred in White Oak cemetery. 
 She was greatly loved by all who knew her, 
 and her death was widely and deeply 
 moui-ned. 
 
 .Mr. ( iingerich has taken quite an acti\e 
 part in iinblic .atTairs. holding the office of 
 go\ eminent insjiector of distilleries in Mc- 
 J.ean and Woodford counties fof- four vears, 
 and serxing as mail carrier in I'eoria for 
 three years under (jeneral Swett. then post- 
 master of that city. He has also been school 
 director ;m(l comnn'ssioner of bigliwnxs in 
 Kansas township. L'ndei- botli Lincoln's and
 
 636 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Grant's administratidus lie affiliated with the 
 Republican party, but since that time has 
 Aotetl the Democratic ticket. Fraternally he 
 is a member of the Blue Lodge, Chapter and 
 Commandery of El Paso. He and his family 
 are members of the Mennonite church, and 
 as an upright, honorable man, he is held in 
 high regard by all who know him. 
 
 HORACE L. AIcOMBER. 
 
 One of Panola township's most honored 
 and highly respected citizens is Horace L. 
 IMcOmber, who has made his home in Wood- 
 ford county since 1856, and has since been 
 prominently identified with its- agricultural 
 interests. He was born in Gahvay, Sara- 
 toga county, New York, September 17, 1827, 
 a son of Israel and Laura (Hayes) McOm- 
 ber, also natives of New York. The first of 
 the McOmber family to come to America 
 settled in Rensselaer county, that state. Our 
 subject lost his father when only two years 
 old, and his mother died in 184s. at the age 
 of forty-six years. Their children were : 
 Isaac and Lewis, both deceased : Horace, our 
 subject, and Israel, tleceased. 
 
 In his natixe state Horace L. McOmber 
 grew to manhood, and was educated in the 
 common schools of his day. In 1852 he 
 was imited in marriage with Miss Margaret 
 J. Brown, also a native of Saratoga count}-, 
 New York, and a daughter of Justus Brown. 
 To them were born four children, namely : 
 Laura J., wife of Clinton T. Swartz, whose 
 sketch appears elsewhere in this \'olume: 
 Hattie, wife of W'ilhani 11. I'eard, nf Eu- 
 reka, Illinois; Lewis, a farmer of (iridley 
 ttAvnship, McLean county, Illinois ; and Ed- 
 die, a resident of Tavlor Riflge. llliiiiiis. is 
 
 pastor of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
 He has been located at Taylor Ridge for the 
 past four years. He is a member of the 
 Rock Island conference. 
 
 Mr. McOmber followed farming in the 
 Empire state until 185C). when he came to 
 Woodford county, Illinois, and from the 
 Illinois Central Railroad Company purchased 
 eighty acres of his present farm on section 
 34, Panola township. As his financial re- 
 sources have increased, he has added to his 
 liMided possessons from time to time until he 
 now has one hundred and twenty acres in 
 Panola township, and one hundred and 
 twenty-five acres in Gridley township, Mc- 
 Lean county. He is engaged in general 
 farming and stock raising, and has met with 
 excellent success in his life work, becoming- 
 one of the well-to-do as well as one of the 
 biighiy respected citizens of his community. 
 
 In politics Mr. McOmber is independ- 
 ent, voting for the man whom he considers 
 best qualified to fill the oftice regardless of 
 party lines. Religiously he is a consistent 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 and a liberal supporter of the same. Up- 
 right and honoralile in all things, he has ex- 
 erted a great infiuence for good in the com- 
 niunity where he has so long made his home. 
 He has never used, nor would he allow any 
 < Mie in his employ, to use profanity, and he 
 is a man whose word is always considered as 
 good as his bond. 
 
 GIDEON JETER. 
 
 For almost fiftv years this gentleman has 
 made his home in Woodford county, and his 
 name is inseparably connected with the agri- 
 cultural and ])olitical interests of his com-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 637 
 
 iminity. He now resides on section 9. 
 (Ireene townslii]). He was l)orn in Bedford 
 connty. \ irsjinia. December ,^. 1S14. a son 
 of Henry and .\nnie (Craft) Jeter, als(j a 
 native of tlie Old Dominion. The fatiier, 
 will) was a farmer I)y <iccui)ation. spent near- 
 ly liis entire life in Bedford county. l)nt 
 ;d)out eleven years prior to his death went 
 to Missouri to make his home with a son. 
 \vhere he died at tlie advanced age of eighty- 
 si.x. His wife liad died in \'irginia some 
 yeans before. In tiieir family were five 
 chldren. four sons and one daugliter, of 
 whom our subject is the fourth in order of 
 l)n"th and is now the onlv survivor. 
 
 (iideon Jeter grew to manhood in the 
 county of his nati\it\". and there obtained 
 liis early education. }Ie was first married 
 in Botetourt county. Seiitember 19, 1839, 
 t:.' Miss Sarah (i. Baldwin, a daughter iif 
 deorgc \\ . Baldwin. <if N'irginia. who was a 
 school teacher hv ])rofession and a man of 
 ])romineiice in his commnnitw .^-ihe died in 
 that state. October 0, 1S44. Of the three 
 children born of this union, one died in in- 
 fancy unnamed, and lilizabeth died in Roan- 
 oke county. X'irginia. at the age of eight 
 years. James M., the oldest, was born in 
 X'irginia, September 18. 1840, and came w ith 
 his father to this state, lie was educated in 
 the district schools of Roanoke towushi]) and 
 gained a thorougli knowledge of agriculture 
 b}' aiding his father in the operation of the 
 home farm, i le now owns two lunidred and 
 seventy-eight acres of tine farming land be- 
 sides five acres of timber land. Me served 
 as supervi.sor of Cjreene township ten years, 
 as justice of the peace a ninnber of years, 
 and lia.s filled nearly all of the t(")wnship 
 offices. He wedded Mary I'eterson, daugh- 
 ter of Samuel I'eterson. a prosperous farmer 
 of Rf)anoke township. an<i to them were 
 
 born ten children, nine of whom are li\ ing. 
 namely; Jennie, Lewis. George, Mrs. Sal- 
 lie Iloutz, Orxille, John. Pearl, Jessie and 
 .Mary. 
 
 Before leaving \ irginia Mr. Jeter was 
 again married, January 30, 1845, his second 
 union being with Miss Lucy Aim Leonard, a 
 daughter of George and Catherine ( Sum- 
 mers ) Leonard, also \'irginians by birth. 
 Jhrtnighout his active business life the fa- 
 ther followed farming. After reaching the 
 age of seventy-five years he came to Illinois 
 and spent his last days witli his daughter. 
 Mrs. Jeter, in Roanoke ti>\\nship, W'ootlford 
 county, where he died at the advanced age of 
 ninety-seven years. His wife died at the 
 same place when seventy-eight years of age. 
 i'hey had ten children, five sons and ti\e 
 daughters, all of whom are living with the 
 exception of two. By his second marriage 
 -Mr. Jeter had se\en children: William II.. 
 a farmer of Kendall county, Illinois; Luther 
 J., a grain dealer of Yorkvilie, Kendall coun- 
 ty ; X'irginia I'., wife of J. B. Hatcher, an 
 nnplement dealer and collector of I'eoria, by 
 whom she has three children, Lottie A., 
 I'rank B. and Carrie; John C, a farmer of 
 Kane county, Illinois; Martha, who died at 
 the age of eight years ; Sarah C, who died in 
 X irginia at the age of two years and ten 
 u'.onths; and one who died in infancy un- 
 n;unc(l. 
 
 In 1833 .Xlr. Jeter left his old home in 
 X'irginia and came to Woodford county, Illi- 
 nois, where he has since made his hoiue. 1 le 
 first purchased one hundred and twenty 
 acres of wild land in Roanoke township, 
 w hich he broke, improved and placed under 
 e.xcellent cultivation, and later bought eighty 
 acres of land in Linn township, and still 
 later forty acres adjoining his present home 
 on section 9, Greene township, but has since
 
 638 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 sold all his fanii property with the excep- 
 tion of the land on which his residence is 
 located, and is now living a retired life. He 
 still owns a couple of dwelling houses in the 
 village of Roanoke. 
 
 ]Mr. [eter has e\er taken an active and 
 prominent part in ])ul)lic affairs, and has 
 been elected to several responsible positions. 
 While a resident of Roanoke township he 
 hlled all the township offices, ser\-ing as its 
 first treasurer and filUng that position two 
 years. He was supervisor Un- the long pe- 
 riod of fourteen ^-ears ; assessor for ten years, 
 road commissioner nine years; and school 
 director over sixteen years. He also served 
 as coroner of \\''oodford county for one 
 term of two years, and has faithfully dis- 
 charged every duty devohing upon him, 
 whether public or private. In politics he 
 has always been a Democrat, and in religious 
 belief he is a Baptist. His election to public 
 ofifice shows the high esteem in which he is 
 held by his fellow citizens, and he has always 
 proved worthy of their regard. Although 
 eighty-six years of age, and his wife seven- 
 ty-eight, they still enjoy good health, and are 
 now living a quiet, retired life, surrounded 
 by a large circle of friends and acquaintances 
 who esteem them highly for their sterling 
 worth. 
 
 WILLIAM A. DAVIDSON. 
 
 William A. Davidson, who is now living 
 a retired life in the city of Eureka, is one of 
 the oldest native-btirn citizens of Woodford 
 C(_.unty, Illinois. He was lx)rn in Olio town- 
 ship, April 5, 1837, and is the son of Caleb 
 and Martha (Glazebro(ik) Davidson. 
 
 He grew to manrhood on his father's 
 farm and recei\'ed his primary education in 
 
 the subscription schools of the day. He then 
 entered Eureka College, but completed his 
 school life a student of Northwestern LTniver 
 sitv, Evanston, Illinois. In 1859 he entered 
 into the general mercantile business, putting 
 up a store building on the S(|uare, one of the 
 first stiires in the place. He contiinied in 
 trade until August, i86j, when he enlisted in 
 Company E, One Hundred and Eighth Illi- 
 r.ois X'olunteer Infantry, the first service nf 
 the regiment being in the chase after 
 Morgan. It was then sent to Memphis, where 
 it was organized for the campaign against 
 \"icksburg, and participated in the entire 
 siege. l*"r(im ^'icksburg it proceeded south 
 and was in the engagement at Port Hudson, 
 and also at Sjianish Fort, the last regular 
 engagement of the war. On entering the 
 service Mr. Daxidscm was commissioned sec- 
 ond lieutenant, but was later promoted cap- 
 tain, and as such was mustered out and hon- 
 orably discharged. His company started out 
 one hundred and fourteen strong, and on its 
 return home there were left luit twenty-three 
 men of the original number. After the close 
 of hostilities it did provost dut\- niuil mus- 
 tered out in .\ngust, 1865. 
 
 Returning home. Captain Daxidson re- 
 sumed his mercantile business in which he 
 continued until the fall of iXUt). when he 
 traded his stock of merchandise for farm 
 lands in Woodford county, buying the old 
 homestead of two hundred and ninety-three 
 acres, where his parents died. To that farm 
 he moved, and there continued to reside for 
 many years, engaged in general farming antl 
 stiick raising. He was one of the first to in- 
 troduce short horns, Herefords and Callow av 
 cattle. He alwa^'s endeavored to ha\e a high 
 grade of stock and did much to improve the 
 stock of the county. He continued to suc- 
 cessfully operate his farm until iS<)0. when
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 639 
 
 lie returned to the city tliril he miijht hve a 
 retired lite. 
 
 On the I3tli of Octolier. i8r)0. Mr. l)a- 
 xidson was united in marriage witli Jane 
 C'. h'wing, daughter of .\lljert (I. Kwing. 
 who located in F.ureka in 1X5S, coming here 
 fvdm ( )hiii. .Mr. I'.wing was a memhcr "f the 
 Christian church, and was very acti\e in 
 church WMik. and was also greatly interested 
 in College wurk. He was for many years 
 president of the hoard of trustees of Eureka 
 College, a position that he was occupying at 
 the time of his death. He was also chairman 
 CI the l)oard of elders of the clnu-ch. and his 
 church and college work consumed much of 
 lii^ time, hut he cheerfully attended to every 
 duly called upon to perform. Mrs. Davidson 
 is a cousin "f the wife of Colonel Waterson, 
 of Eouis\ille. Kentucky, and conies of a well- 
 known famil\- in Kentuck_\- and Ohio. 
 
 To Mr. and Mrs. Davidson one daughter 
 was Ijorn. Anna E., who yet makes her home 
 with her parents. She is a well known 
 worker in the C. \\'. Ji. M. of the Chri.stian 
 church, and has for some years heen its state 
 president and its guiding spirit, it can he 
 truthfully said that she has done ninre to in- 
 spire the women of the Christian church of 
 the state U> greater aclixitv in the cause of 
 the Master than any other person. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Davidson have for nian\" 
 }ears heen memhers of the Christian church, 
 and Mrs. i)a\idson is a deaconess in the 
 church in J'^ureka. She is also one of the 
 trustees of ]*lureka College, and is also a 
 wiirkcr in the Ladies College .\id Society of 
 the slate. In the work of the C. W. P>. M. 
 she likewise takes an actixe interest. Frater- 
 nally Captain Davidson is a nicmher of Dan 
 Miles Po.st. G. A, R,, of Eureka, and of Will- 
 iam C. Hohhs Lodge No. 306, A. ¥. 6!: A. M., 
 of which he is the present master. He is algo 
 
 a memher ot I a/.ew ell Chapter, Xo. 98, R. 
 A. M., of Washington, Illinois. Politically 
 he is a Democrat, and lias taken an active in- 
 terest in political affairs, serving his party 
 at different times on township and countv 
 central committees, liy his fellow citizens 
 lie has heen hunored with various township 
 ottices. and as lownshi]) ihghwav commis- 
 sioner he did much for the construction of 
 good roads. In 1893 'i*-* ^^'<i^ appointed post- 
 master of lun-eka and served the four years 
 of Cleveland's .second administration, mak- 
 ing an eflicient and popular officer. 
 
 (^n returning to the city. Captain r3:ivid- 
 son erected a heautiful home on Main .street, 
 which has heen the family home for some 
 years. The latch string of that house alwavs 
 l-.angs out and there the many friends of the 
 lamily hnd a cordial welcome and genuine 
 hospitality. .\ lit'e-long resident of the coun- 
 ty, the Captain is well known and is univer- 
 .sally esteemed, and the wife and daughter, 
 e(|ually well known, have innumerahle 
 Iriends nut only in Woodford county, hut 
 throughont the state. 
 
 SILAS D. P.XTTOX. 
 
 The well-known and popular postmaster 
 i<i VA Paso, and a prominent husiness man of 
 that place, was horn in Warren county, Ohio, 
 January J3, 1846, a son of George W. and 
 Sarah (Church) Patton. The father was 
 horn in West Virginia. March 5, 1805, the 
 mother in Massachusettts, August 25, 1805. 
 I'.oth grandfather Patton and Seth Church 
 were natives of England and farmers hy oc- 
 cupation. On his emigration to America the 
 former settled in West \^irginia. the latter in 
 Massachusetts. In his native state George 
 \\^ Patton grew to manhood, receiving a
 
 640 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 cummon school education, and in early life 
 lie learned the art of making barrel hoops for 
 coopers, which occupation he followed 
 throughout his active business life. About 
 1827 he moved to Ohio, settling in a little 
 village, then known as Yankeetown, but now 
 called Mainville, Warren county, where he 
 established himself in Inisiness and con- 
 tiiuied to work at his trade for a number of 
 }ears. Later he lived in Blandchester, Clin- 
 ton county, the same state, from where be 
 moved to Walton, Cass county. Indiana, and 
 w hen be retired from business went to live 
 with his children. He died while on a visit 
 to a sister-in-law in Davenport, Iowa, in the 
 tall of 1873, at the age of seventy years. 
 His wife survived him some years, dying at 
 the liiime nf her son, Henry C, in Fulton 
 count}-, Indiana, in 1882, at the age of se\- 
 enty-se\"en. To them were born thirteen 
 children, ti\e of whom died in early chikl- 
 hood. The others were as follows: Joseph, 
 deceased, who made his home in Walton. 
 Cass county, Indiana ; Samuel, who was a 
 member of Company B, Se\'enty-ninth Obit) 
 Volunteer Infantr}^ during the Ci\-il war, 
 and died when with Sherman on the march 
 to the sea; Ephraim, a retired citizen of Ro- 
 chelle. Ogle county, Illinois; Matilda, who 
 first married Galen Ballard, who was killed 
 in the Civil war while a memlier of the For- 
 ty-seventh Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and she 
 is now the wife of David Olds, of Oregon 
 City, Oregon ; Seth, who as a member of 
 Company B, Seventy-ninth Ohio Regiment, 
 Avas killed at the battle of Lookout Moun- 
 tain : Henry, now a farmer of Fulton county, 
 Indiana, who was a member of the same 
 company as his brother Seth, and was very 
 seriously wounded in the service, a bursting 
 shell destroying his hearing and crippling 
 him for life; Silas D., our subject: Hannah 
 
 Jane, who died at the age of eighteen 
 )ears. 
 
 Silas D. Patton attended the public 
 schools near his early home in Ohio until 
 eighteen years of age, when he accompanied 
 his parents on their removal to Indiana, lo- 
 cating in Walton, where he worked as a farm 
 liand by the month for neighbors, receiving 
 twenty dollars per month, or when he worked 
 by the day one dollar. In Ohio he had previ- 
 ously worked for thirteen dollars per month. 
 After three years spent in the employ of 
 others Mr. Patton came to Woodford coun- 
 ty, Illinois, in 1868, and rented a farm in 
 (n"eene township, from Da\id Graft, one of 
 the early settlers of the county. Here he 
 steadily prosjiered and at length was able to 
 purchase eight}- acres of land in El Paso 
 township. 
 
 On the loth of August, 1871, Mr. Patton 
 married Miss Carrie Augenstein, a native of 
 Tazewell county, Illinois, and a daughter of 
 Ernest Augenstein, who was then living in 
 El Paso township, Woodford county. She 
 is the fourth in order of birth in a family of 
 eight children, of whom four are still living, 
 Tiamely : Eli, who is living with our subject 
 ir. El Paso: Mrs. Patton; Emnia, wife of 
 James Bailey, of Panola township, Woodford 
 county; and Matilda, wife of Oliver M. Dye, 
 of the same township, though they spend 
 much time in travel. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Patton resided 
 upon his farm for about ten years, and then 
 sold that ])lace and purchased one hundred 
 and forty acres of land near Hoopeston. \'er- 
 milion county. In 1881 he came to El Paso 
 and embarked in business as a dealer in 
 jiianos, organs and sewing machines. This 
 store he still conducts in addition to discharg- 
 ing the duties of his office, having been ap- 
 pointed postmaster by President McKinley,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 641 
 
 June 28, 1898. He has pn.xcd a most effi- 
 cient and popular official. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Patton have a family of 
 three children: Charles O.. a practicintj den- 
 tist of El Paso, is a graduate of the high 
 school of that place and the Chicago Dental 
 College. He also took a sjiecial course in 
 piano and violin playing at tlie Wesleyan 
 College at Rloomington. and was graduated 
 there in 1899. He married Nettie Tucker, 
 and they have one child, .\lpha Arleen. Ma- 
 tilda Flora, who is serving as deputy post- 
 master under her father, graduated from the 
 El Paso high school in 1895. and in the 
 fall of that year commenced teaching school, 
 which profession she successfully continued 
 up to the summer of 1899. and three months 
 later entered upon iicr duties as deputy. 
 Frank Ernest is also a clerk in the office. 
 The parents are both earnest and consistent 
 members of the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 of which Mr. Patton is now ser\'ing as treas- 
 urer and trustee. Fraternally he is a charter 
 member and treasurer of the Home Forum. 
 and politically is a stanch Republican, having 
 affiliated with that party since casting his 
 first presidential vote for U. S. Grant. He 
 lias been a delegate to the county conventions 
 of his party a number of times, and has 
 served as tax collector of El Paso two years. 
 Upright and honorable in all the relations of 
 life, he has gained the confidence and respect 
 of those with whom he has come in contact, 
 and justly deserves the high regard in which 
 he is uniformly held by his fellow citizens. 
 
 RILEY H. HALL. 
 
 Among the leading citizens and prosper- 
 ous agriculturists of Panola township, 
 Woodford county, is the subject of this re- 
 
 view, who owns a fine farm of two hundred 
 acres, eighty of which is located on .section 
 10. and one hundre<l and twenty on section 
 15. That he is a thorough and skillful 
 liirmer as well as a man of good business 
 ability is attested by the neat and thrifty ap- 
 pearance of his place, which is one of the 
 most desirable farms of its size in the coun- 
 ty. He was born in Peoria county, Illinois, 
 April 21, 18O0. Inn was only five years old 
 when brougin by jiis parents to Panola town- 
 ship, Woodford county. 
 
 Henrv Hall, father of our subject, was 
 born in England, June 11, 1824, and was 
 employed in large woolen mills in that coun- 
 try from the age of ten years until twenty- 
 six, working for the necessities of life. Find- 
 ing himself no riciier than when he began, he 
 decided to come to America, tiie haven of 
 ihe homeless and destitute. In 1850 at 
 Liverpool, he took i)assage on the Great 
 Western, and after thirty-two days on the 
 water landed in Xew York, with hundreds 
 of other emigranl>. He had previously 
 married Ann Hartley, daughter of Robert 
 and Ann Hartley, natives of England, where 
 both died. Mr. Hall left his wife in Eng- 
 land until he could prepare a home for her. 
 He first worked as a common laborer in Xew 
 York city for a time, and then came west, 
 locating in Peoria county. Illinois, where he 
 engaged in farming upon rented land. In 
 1856 he sent for his wife and daughter. Car- 
 oline, and meeting them in Xew ^ ork, 
 brought them to the home lie had prepared 
 in Peoria county. In 1865 he moved to 
 Woodford county, and purchased eighty 
 acres of land on section 10, Panola town- 
 ship. Industrious, enterpri.sing and perse- 
 vering, he met with success in his new home, 
 and was able to add to his landed possessions 
 until he had two hundred acres of valual)le
 
 642 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD: 
 
 farm land, it lieing the farm iipmi which nur 
 subject now resides. Tliroughoiit his active 
 business life tiie father continued to success- 
 fully engage in general farming and stock 
 raising. His daugliter Caroline died in 
 Peoria county, in 185S. and the wife and 
 mother died in Woodford county ten _\-ears 
 later. For his second wife he married Jane 
 Heal}-, antl after her de.ath he wedded ]\Iar_\- 
 A. Chadwick in 1^83. B}' the last mar- 
 riage he had one child, now deceased. He 
 died January- 2. tSt;'). and two days later was 
 followed by his wife, Ijoth being Imried in 
 the same grave. They were members of 
 the United Brethren church, and were among 
 the useful and respected citizens of Panola 
 township. Politically the father alua^'s 
 supported the Repulilican part}", but was 
 never an otfice seeker. 
 
 Riley H. Hall grew to manhood on his 
 present farm, and received his educatic.m in 
 the public schools of Panola township. He 
 ]:as been a life-long student of the science of 
 agriculture, to which the well-kept appear- 
 ance of his place will testify. Besides this 
 valuable jiroperty he owns two hundred and 
 eighty acres of land in Burt township, Kos- 
 suth county. Iowa. 
 
 On the 8th of Februarv, 1893, was cele- 
 brated the marriage of Mr. Hall and ^liss 
 luta Klaman, daughter of John and Tena 
 Klaman, of Panola township, where the}' 
 now reside. They now have two interesting 
 chiklren ; Edna Caroline, born December 
 16. iiSgf); and Ellen Annie, born Jnlv 16. 
 1809. Mr. Hall is one of the prominent 
 and intluential Republicans of Woodford 
 count}', and has taken (|uite an active part 
 in local i)olitics. He is at present ser\-iug 
 Ins district in the capacit}' of sch(iol director, 
 and as a public-spirited and progressive citi- 
 
 zen lakes a commendalile interest in any en- 
 tcri)rise calculated to ad\ance the jnitjlic wel- 
 fare. 
 
 THO-MAS CRIBBEX. 
 
 Among the representati\e farmers and in- 
 fluential citizens of Palestine township, 
 \\ oodfor<l county. Ililnois, is the subject of 
 this review, who owns a valuable and highlv 
 producti\-e farm of four hundred and fort\- 
 seven acres on sections 15, 22 and 27. He 
 w as born in the \illage of Ballybane, parish 
 of Annaugh, County JMayo, Ireland, on the 
 7th day of January, 1847, ^"cl is of pvn-e 
 Irish ancestry. His father, James Cribben, 
 was Iiorn in the parish of Baken, County 
 ^layo, and was reared to agricultural pur- 
 suits in his natixe county. There he was 
 married, in ;\larch, 1845. ^ Aliss Bridget 
 Tai'p}-, w ho was born and reared not far ivom 
 the hi :me of her husband. Her parents, Will- 
 iam and Honora (Raftery) Tarpy, were 
 closely allied to some of the best families of 
 Counties Mayo and Gaiway, her mother be- 
 ing a native of tlie city of Gaiway. Her pa- 
 ternal grandfather, Thomas Tarpy, had some 
 of the best Irish blood flowing in his veins, 
 and it has been transmitted to a number of 
 .\merican families of the same .name who 
 ha\e figured quite jirominently both in church 
 and state. .He married Margaret Murphy, 
 whose ancestors were prominent and highl}- 
 respected citizens of County Mayo for more 
 than two centuries and were closely allied 
 to the O'Connors of County Roscommon, of 
 which the last monarch of Ireland was a kins- 
 man. The celebrated Charles O'Connor, of 
 Xew York City, who died a few years ago. 
 also belonged to this familv. ]Mrs. Cribben's
 
 THOMAS CRIBBEN.
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 645 
 
 fatlier died w lien she was only eight years of 
 age. leaving eight children to the care of the 
 widowed motiier, wlio reared them carcfnlly 
 and conscientiously to honest and worthy 
 lives. 
 
 .\fter their marriage James Crihben and 
 w ife began housekeeping on a farm in Coun- 
 ty May(j, where their only child, our subject, 
 was liorn. In 11^49 they set sail for America, 
 embarking at Li\erpool, but l>efore they 
 leached their destination the father died, 
 after an illness of ten days duration, and his 
 remains were buried at sea. The mother and 
 son i)ursued their sad and melancholy jour- 
 ney, tinaily reaching New York city after six 
 weeks spent upon the water, and at once pro- 
 ceeded to Savannah, Georgia, where some 
 relatives of the father had settled. Suffering 
 under a sense of loss and bereavement, Mrs. 
 Cribben returned not long afterward to her 
 native land where she remained for a period 
 of two years, then leaving her son with his 
 gramlmother. siie once more crossed the At- 
 lantic, settling this time in the city of Phila- 
 delphia, Pennsylvania. Five years later she 
 married John Connell, a native of Black 
 Rock, County Cork, Ireland, who had emi- 
 grated to the United States when a young 
 man. Soon after their marriage they came 
 t'l Illinois, and after spending a short time in 
 I. a Salle county they located upon the pres- 
 ent farm of our subject in Palestine town- 
 ship, Woodford county, in 1863. Their ef- 
 forts in building up a home were crowned 
 with success, and they became (piite \nx>i- 
 perous. !Mr. Connell died at his homestead 
 in Palestine township, .\pril 17, 1879, at 
 alwut the age of sixty-five years. He was an 
 honest, hardworking, temperate man, and 
 highly respectetl by his neighbors. In poli- 
 tics he was a Democrat, and in religious be- 
 lief a Roman Catholic. Mrs. Bridget Con- 
 
 nell, who resides on the home place with our 
 subject, is an old lady of more than average 
 iiUelligence and a devout member of the 
 i\oman Catholic church, in which she was 
 reared from childhood. For the ])ast fifteen 
 years or more she has been an invalid, and is 
 greatly loved by all for her Christian charac- 
 ter and kindness of heart. 
 
 Thomas Cribben, our subject, was given 
 a good education while with his grandmoth- 
 er in Ireland, under the instruction of a gen- 
 tleman who had been his mother's teacher 
 during her girlhood, and who lived to be 
 over one hundred years of age. In 1859 he 
 again came to the United States, and pnj- 
 ceeded at once to the home of his mother and 
 stepfather in Rutland, La Salle county, Illi- 
 nois. He came with the family to Palestine 
 township, Woodford county, in 1863, and 
 aitled in the acciuiuilation of a fine property. 
 He has ilevoted his life in a great measure to 
 the care and comfort of his mother, to whom 
 he is greath' attached, antl in consequence 
 has remained single. 
 
 Mr. Cribben is a faithful adherent of the 
 doctrines of the Roman Catholic church, in 
 which he was reared, and in politics has 
 l)een a lifelong Democrat. He has held all 
 the local oftices and has repsesented Pales- 
 tine township in the county board of suiier- 
 \ isors continuously since 1884. He was a 
 member of the finance and building com- 
 mittee in the erection of the court house at 
 lunxka in 1897, the county seat having been 
 changed from Metamora to Eureka, and he 
 devoted a great deal of his time to the details, 
 of the buikling of that fine structure, which 
 is now entirely paid for. During his ser- 
 vice as a member of tlie board of sui)ervisors 
 he served as chairman of that body two years, 
 at the exjiiration of which time his fellow 
 members presented him with an elegant gold-
 
 646 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lieaded cane as a token of their appreciation. 
 This is the only incident of that kind that 
 has taken place during the existence of that 
 official hody. He served as chairman of the 
 Democratic central committee about fifteen 
 }ears. For the past twenty years Mr. Crib- 
 ben has practically lived a retired life, his 
 several farms being operated by tenants. He 
 resides on the old homestead on section 22, 
 Avhere he has surrounded himself and moth.er 
 with all the comforts of life. 
 
 DANIEL R. MEEK. 
 
 One of the honored pioneers of \\'o(jd- 
 ford county is Daniel R. Meek, of Secor, who 
 is now retired from active life and quietly 
 enjoying the income which he accumulated 
 in former years. He can relate many inter- 
 esting reminiscences of the early days of the 
 county, for he located here when the land was 
 still in its primitive condition and wolves, 
 deer and other wild game were plentiful. 
 
 Mr. Meek was bom in Jennings county, 
 Indiana, July 24, 1825, a son of Joseph and 
 Eurania (Sullivan) Meek, and a grand.son of 
 Bazel Meek, who was a soldier of the Revo- 
 lutionary war near the close of that struggle. 
 The father was born June 7, 1897, in Pu- 
 laski county, Kentucky, where he continued 
 to make his home until nineteen years of 
 age, when he and his brother Daniel went 
 to Indiana. They purchased and cleared a 
 tract of land in Jennings county, making a 
 home for their parents, who located there 
 the following spring. After ft)urteen years 
 spent in that state they sold out and came 
 to Illinois, in the fall of 1830, and settled at 
 what was called Walnut Grove, which was 
 the present site of the city of Eureka. 
 Woodford county at that time formed a part 
 
 of Tazewell county. The parents follo\ved in' 
 1832 and located in the same neighborhood. 
 Both tlied in Woodford county at an ad- 
 vanced age and were buried here. The la- 
 ther of our suliject engaged in farming antl 
 followed stock raising quite extensively for 
 those days. He continued to make his home 
 on the tract of land which he first purchased 
 until his death, which occurred just five days 
 before the ninety-third anniversary of his 
 birth. His wife, who was born in South 
 Carolina, in 1800, died January 12, 1848. 
 She was a daughter of Berry Sulli\'an, a 
 planter of that state. Throughout life the 
 father of our subject supported the Demo- 
 cratic party, and as a public-spirited man 
 a(l\'ocated all that tended to advance the in- 
 terests of the community in which he lived. 
 When Woodford county was first organized 
 it was governed by three county commis- 
 sioners, and he was one of the three electetl, 
 holding the office three terms. He also served 
 as supervisor of Olio township one term. 
 Religiously he was a member oi the Church 
 of Christ and deacon in the same for years. 
 To himself and wife were born the following 
 children: Eliza, wife of John Sadler, a farm- 
 er of Woodford county, both now deceaed ; 
 Emily, who died in childhood ; Jackson ; 
 Daniel R. ; Ezra P., a retired farmer of Fair- 
 bury, Livingston county; John, a farmer near 
 Washington, Tazewell county, who died at 
 the age of twenty-seven years; William M., 
 who is represented on another page of this 
 volume; Jesse, a retired farmer of Eureka; 
 Sarah E., deceased wife of William Finley, 
 oi Woodford county; and a son who died in 
 infancy unnamed. 
 
 Daniel R. Meek was only fi\-e years old 
 when brought by his parents to what is now 
 \Wiodford county, Illinois, but then forming 
 a part of Tazewell countv. He remained at
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 647 
 
 home until lie attained his twenty-fourth 
 year and then started out in life for himself, 
 purchasing seventy-three acres and receiving 
 from his father one hundred and twenty-scv 
 en acres of land in the same neighborhood, 
 which he improved, erecting thereon good 
 and substantial buildings and placed the land 
 under cultivation. This farm, consisting of 
 two hundred acres, he sold at the end of five 
 years, and l)ought another, of eighty-seven 
 acres, east of Eureka, which was partially 
 inipriiNcd. lie made liis home there for 
 eighteen )ears, then purchased an eighty- 
 acre farm on Walnut creek in Olio town- 
 ship, where he engaged in farming and stock 
 raising alx)ut five years. He sold that place 
 and the farm of eight-seven acres in 1879, 
 and mi)\e(! to the village of Secor, but shortly 
 afterward bought two hundred and forty 
 acres in Palestine township, which he oi^er- 
 aled for a few years. Renting his farm, he 
 returned to Secor in 1890, and has since 
 lived a retired life at his present home sur- 
 rounded l)y all tiie comforts of life. 
 
 On (lid Tanther creek, in Woodford 
 county. May 24, 1849. Mr. Meek married 
 Miss Elmira L. Watkins, a native of Illi- 
 nois and a daughter of Warren C. and Nan- 
 cy (Swarens) Watkins. Her father w-as 
 born in Kentucky and about 1828 came to 
 Illinois. After two years spent in Sangamon 
 ciiniUy he removed to wdiat is now Olio 
 liiwnhip, Woodford county, though it then 
 formed a i)art of McLean county. Here he 
 imprtned a farm on which he spent the 
 greater part of his life, but finally sold the 
 place and lived retired with his youngest 
 daughter, Mrs. Meek, at whose home he died 
 at the age of eighty-two years. His wife sur- 
 vived him about four years and died at the 
 same age. Mr. and Mrs. Meek have one 
 tlaughter, Jennie M., wdio was educated at 
 
 Eureka and is now the wife of E. H. Camp, 
 a shoe merchant of Bement, Piatt county, 
 Illinois. They have one child. Edith J., who 
 was born on her grandfather's farm near lui- 
 reka, and is the wife of W. D. Stone, a car- 
 penter of Bement. 
 
 In his ijolitical affiliations Mr. Meek is a 
 Democrat, and he served as supervisor of 
 Palestine township one year. He and his 
 family are active and prominent members 
 of the Church of Christ, of wdiich he has been 
 an elder for twenty-five years. He gave the 
 land on which the church at Secor is located, 
 it being situated directly east and adjoining 
 his lawn, and in addition to this gift he con- 
 tributed largely toward the erection of the 
 church, which was built in the spring of 
 1898. As a citizen, friend and neighbor he 
 is true to every duty and justly merits the es- 
 teem in which he is held. 
 
 C. M. STEPHEXSU.X. 
 
 There are only two or three citizens of 
 Greene township. Wodford county, who have 
 longer resided within its borders than the 
 gentleman whose name heads this article. He 
 has made his home here since the age of four- 
 teen years. 
 
 Mr. Stephenson was born in (ireene 
 county, Pennsylvania, April 2, 1838, a son of 
 Henry and Mary (Myers) Stephenson. The 
 Stepliens(_)n family is originally from Scot- 
 land. \\\ that county the great-grandfather, 
 1 1 ugh Stephenson, made the ac(|uaintance of 
 a Scotchman, who was captain of a sailing 
 vessel, and without the knowledge of his fa r.- 
 ily came to the L'nited States, where the re- 
 mainder of his life was passed. His descend- 
 ants have settled in various jiarts of the 
 country.
 
 648 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Henry Stephenson, father of our subject, 
 was also a native of Greene county, Penn- 
 sylvania, where he \vas married shortly after 
 attaining his majority to Mary Myers, who 
 was horn in Monongalia count}', \'irginia, 
 of Cjerman and luiglish parentage. After 
 iiis marriage lie followed farming in (ireene 
 county, Pennsylvania, for a number of years, 
 Ijut in 185J he left his home in the east and 
 started for Illinois, accompanied by his fam- 
 ily, taking with them all their worldly pos- 
 sessions. The_\' boarded a steamboat at Mc- 
 Conn's ferry ()n the Alonongahela riser, and 
 sailed lUnvn that stream to Pittsburg, where 
 they were transferred to a larger \essel, 
 which carried them to St. Louis, whence they 
 came up the Mississippi and Illinois rivers 
 to Spring Bay, \\'oo<lford county. Two 
 weeks later they settled in Greene township. 
 Here they met with the trials and hartlships 
 incident to pioneer life, and by untiring in- 
 dustry and persexerance they developed a 
 farm from the raw prairie and at length 
 made for themselves a good and comfortaljle 
 home where before was only a barren waste. 
 The parents resided in Woodford couiUy un- 
 til their deaths, 'i he mother died on the 10th 
 of August, 1874, at the age of si.xty-three 
 years. She was a most estimable lady, 
 greatly admired and dearly beloved by her 
 many friends. To her no task was too great 
 to perform to promote the happiness of those 
 she cherished and lo\ed. The father sur- 
 vived his wife se\eral years, dying August 
 29, 1881, at the age of seventy-five years. He 
 was a man of quiet and retiring disposition, 
 vet was genial in bis manner, and enjoyed the 
 society of his friends. His home was noted 
 for its lio.spitality, and all who entered it^ 
 doors were made welcome. He did not care 
 to become a rich man, but was content if the 
 familv were in favorable circumstnces. He 
 
 was fond of bunting, was an e.xpert marks- 
 man, and during the early days of the coun- 
 ty many a wolf fell liefore his ride. To him- 
 self and w 1 f e were born live children, four oi 
 whom are still living; James A., of Blockton, 
 Ta\lor county, Iowa: Martha .\., wife of 
 .Stephen Cummins, a farmer and stock raiser 
 of Marysxille, .Missoiu"i; C. M., our subject; 
 and (Jr])ha. who married F. M. Miller, but 
 is now deceasetl. 
 
 -\mid pioneer scenes C. M. Stephenson 
 grew to manhood, the greater part of his 
 education being acquired by home stud\-. C)ii 
 the 8th of June, i86j, he was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Mary C. Livingston, a na- 
 tive of Tazewell county, Illinois, and the sec- 
 (jud in order of birth in a large famih- uf 
 children, w hose ijarents were Lewis and Amv 
 (Powell) Lixingston, natives of \'irginia. 
 Her father, who was generally known as 
 Luke Livingston, was born in 181 1. and died 
 October 4, 1874, while her mother, who was 
 horn in 1814, died September 3, 1895. Mr. 
 and Mrs. Stephenson have four children, all 
 born in (ireene township, namely: .Mice Al. 
 is now the wife of S. C. Baringer, a retired 
 farmer of .\orth Peoria. Illinois, wliu t.)wns 
 farms in Palestine and Roanoke townships, 
 \\'<iodford county, which he rents. They 
 ha\e two children, Ralph and Mary. Lewis 
 H. marrietl Helena Fagot, daughter of Peter 
 Fagot, a farmer of Linn township, Wood- 
 ford count}-, and is engaged in farming on 
 his own place of one hundred and twenty 
 acres in Cazenoxia townshij). Ida I. is at 
 iioine. Reamer J., a graduate of the Eu- 
 reka I'usiness College, married Lavinia Co- 
 \ain, of Roanoke, and is engaged in farming 
 on his father's place. 
 
 Since attaining his majt)rity Air. Steph- 
 enson has followed agricultural pursuits, and 
 for several years after his marriage operated
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 649 
 
 rented land, hut is now the owner of a val- 
 nal)le tract <>f two linndred and tliirty-five 
 acres, iniproxed witli j^'ood huildin^s wliich 
 Tnakes it one of llic best farms in (ireene 
 townslii]). I'Jtjhtx- acres of tliis ])ro|)erty is 
 on section 20. eighty acres on section 17 and 
 seventy-five acres on section \i). Stamhng 
 ujjon the farm is a white elm tree, w hich was 
 used as an old government witness tree, and 
 the blaze made over sixty-six years ago is 
 still di.stinct. It is probably the largest tree in. 
 the cmnity. measuring twenty-three feet in 
 circumference. 
 
 Mr. Stephenson has been c.-illcd upon to 
 till many public oflices of honor and trust. 
 lie is secretary of the Roanoke b'ire In- 
 siu-ance .\ssociation. which was organized 
 April _'. 1875. and has been of mitold ben- 
 efit t(j the farmers of the community. i''rom 
 the .start he has been closely connected with 
 the institution and was one of its lirst di- 
 rectors. .\t the lirst regular ;nnuial elec- 
 tion held in Se]iteniber, 1S73. he was ap- 
 pointed secretary and treasurer b\' the boartl 
 of directors, and has held that responsible 
 jjosition ever since. The business of tjie 
 association has steadilv ])rospered. tlie 
 officers and directors of the company being 
 men of good business and executive al)ility. 
 Mr. Ste])henson served one term as scliool 
 director, as townsiiip clerk .seven years, col- 
 lector one year, assessor five years. ;ind town- 
 ship treasurer thirty years, llis offici;il du- 
 ties have always been most conscientiously 
 and faithfulh- discharged, gix'ing entire sat- 
 isfaction to his constituents. He holds mem- 
 bership in the Masonic lodge at El Paso. 
 For a number of years he has acted as report- 
 er for the bureau of agriculture of the state; 
 is one of the directors of the I'll Paso District 
 Fair; and is superintendent of the depart- 
 ment of condiologv and minerolmjv. having 
 
 made a specialty of these two branches of 
 science for many years. At his home he has 
 a large and fine classified collection of both 
 shells and geological specimens. 
 
 CLiXTox r. s\\.\Rrz. 
 
 .\mong Woodford county's prosjierous 
 and representative farmers the subject of 
 this sketch occu))ies an emiable position. 
 Throughout his active business life he has 
 been proniinenll\- identified with the agri- 
 cultural interests of I'an^la townshi]). and 
 besides the valuable property he owns here, 
 he now has considerable farming land in 
 Iowa. 
 
 Joseiih !j. .Swartz. the fatlier of our su'i- 
 ject. was born in Fairfield county. Ohio, 
 ?\lay S, 1S34. a son of (ieorge and .Mary 
 ( P.eerv ) .Swartz. also nati\es of ( )hio. whose 
 ancestors on both sides were o| ( jcrnian ori- 
 gin. .\l an early day both the lieery and 
 Swartz families remoxed to Ohio and were 
 among the ])ioncers of l-"airlield county. 
 Joseph H. Swartz hail but limited educa- 
 t;onal ad\antages. yet managed to ac(|u:re 
 consideralile learning by reading and otlier- 
 wi.se imijroving his opportunities, lie was 
 married. .\i>ril -'3. 1S57. to .\lis> I'.arbara 
 F. Keller, who was born in I. eking c mnty, 
 Ohio. |ulv S. 1S40. a dau'.;litev of .\br;iliam 
 and lUuTara (Fussing) Keller, also of (ler- 
 ipan descent. .She lost her pareiUs during 
 infancv and was reared by an uncle, Joseph 
 Keller. To Mr. and Mrs. Swart/, were 
 born ten children, two of whom died in early 
 chil.dhootl. The others are Clinton P.. our 
 subject; Clara, wife of W. R. Sluinian. of 
 McLean countv. Illinois: MeKin, of Pe iria ;
 
 650 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Ida B. married William Ostler, of El Paso ; 
 Lucy M., deceased; Elsie E., J. Wn-non and 
 Ralph B. When our subject was a year 
 old the family moved to Putnam county, 
 Ohio, and three years later to Hancock coun" 
 ty, this state, locating near Findlay. In 
 the spring of 1866 they came to Woodford 
 county, Illinois, and took up their residence 
 en section 34, Panola township, a mile and 
 a half east of the present home of our sub- 
 ject. The farm the father placed under a 
 liigh state of culti\ation, and he continued 
 its operation until 1889, when he moved ti> 
 section 32, the same township. In Decem- 
 ber, 1893, he l)ecame a resident of El Paso, 
 and there died sr-xteen months later, on the 
 5th of April. i8()5. At that time he owned 
 five hundred and twenty-five acres (.)f pro- 
 ductive and valuable land in El Paso town- 
 .ship, Woodford county, and Gridley town- 
 .ship, McLean connty. He was a capable 
 business man, enterprising and energetic, 
 and was one of the most successful farmers 
 of his community. He always affiliated 
 with the Republican party, and was called 
 ujion to fill numerous local offices in his tmvn- 
 ship. in religious belief he was a Baptist, 
 while his wife holds membership in the 
 Methodist church. She and the vounger 
 children are still living in El I'aso. 
 
 Clinton T. Swartz, the subject of this re- 
 view, was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, 
 (iebruary 9, 1858, and accompanied his par- 
 ents on their removal to Putnam and Han- 
 cock counties, Ohio. In the sprirng of 1866 
 he came with them to Woodford countv, Illi- 
 nois, and uijon the home farm in I'anola 
 township grew to manhood. At the age of 
 twenty-one he commenced farming i}n his 
 own account, and is now the nwner of a 
 \vell-impro\ed and highly cultivated farm in 
 Panola townshii). Since his father's (jeath 
 
 he has <)urchased considerable farming ]irop- 
 ertv in Iowa, which he still retains. lie, 
 too, is an acti\e snp[)orter of the Re])ublican 
 p;.rt}': is usualh' a member of the countv 
 central committee: and at present is secre- 
 tary of that organization. On the i6th of 
 March. ]88i, he was muted in marriage 
 with Miss Laura J. McOmber, daughter of 
 Horace McOmljer, of Panola, a sketch of 
 whom a])pears on another page of this \-ol- 
 ume, and U> them has been born one child, 
 Nelhe M. 
 
 HEXRV DAM MAX. 
 
 Woodford comity has many enterprising 
 and successful citizens who started out in 
 life with naught but an abundance of de- 
 termination and indefatigable industry, and 
 ;i strong and healthy constitution, and have 
 succeeded through their own diligence, en- 
 ergy and economy. To this class belongs 
 the suliject <if this sketch, who owns and 
 operates a fine farm of two hundred and 
 fifty-two acres of land on sections 27 and 28, 
 Greene t(i\\nship, his home being on the 
 l.;tter section. 
 
 Mr. l-amman was Itorn in Spenge, near 
 Bielefeld, Westphalia, Germany, November 
 18, 1844, a son of Casper and Mary Dam- 
 man, al.so natives of that cou;itry, where the 
 father spent his entire life as a farmer, dying 
 there at the age of fort\--fi\e \ears. The 
 rr:(ither came to America and li\ed with our 
 Nubject for some time. She died in Ben- 
 ton comity, Iowa, at the age of si.xtv-nine 
 \ears. In the famih- were elesen children, 
 but only four are now li\ing. Our subject 
 lias three sisters: Anna, wife of John 
 .\oellscli, a farmer of Holt cou;itv, Mis- 
 souri: Lena, wife of Herman Stiegelmeyer, 
 a farmer of Benton countv, Iowa: and Clara,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 651 
 
 wife of U. S. Fry. a grain dealer oi \'an 
 Horn, Iowa. 
 
 In 1853, at tiie age of nine years. Mr. 
 Daniman came to America with his mother, 
 landing in New Orleans. From there they 
 went to St. Louis. Missouri, and then to 
 Menard county, Illinois, locating near Pe- 
 tersburg. Our subject began work by the 
 month on farms in that neighborhood, and 
 remained there until about twenty-three 
 years of age, when he went to Iowa and pur- 
 chased land on which he lived for eighteen 
 months. Selling his property in that state, 
 he returned to Illinois in 1869. and this time 
 located in El Paso township, Woodford 
 county, where he was engaged in farming on 
 rented land for some time. He finally pur- 
 ciiased a partially improved tract of eighty 
 acres, and to its further development and 
 cultivation devoted his attention until the 
 spring of 1888, when he purchased his pres- 
 ent fine farm in Greene township. Here he 
 lias erected a commodious and substantial 
 residence as well as a large barn and other 
 bul.dings, and has made many other improve- 
 ments upon the place which make it one of 
 the most desirable farms of its size in the 
 township. Mr. Damman also owns a farm 
 of eighty acres on .section 9, Greene town- 
 ship, which is operated by his son, John. 
 He is successfully engaged in general farm- 
 ing and stock raising, making a specialty of 
 short horn cattle. Poland China hogs and 
 Norman horses. 
 
 On the 29th of I)ecenil)cr. 1869. at Peo- 
 ria, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. 
 Damman and Miss Mary Stiegelmeyer. a 
 daughter of Casper and Mary Stiegelmeyer. 
 farming people of El Paso township, Wood- 
 ford county. The father is now deceased, 
 but the mother is still living and continues 
 to reside on the home farm with her .son, 
 
 Henry. Xine chiklren have been born to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Daman, namely: Clara, 
 born in El Paso township. December 8, 1870, 
 married Henry Armstri)ng, a prominent 
 farmer of Greene townsliip, and died .April 
 .:o. 1900. leaving one child, Ralph, then only 
 iwo ilays oil!. She was buried at Secor. 
 John, born April 17, 1872, married Ada B., 
 daughter of Philip Evans, a farmer of Pa- 
 n(.)la township, and is now engaged in farm- 
 ir.g on his father's place on section 9, Greene 
 tt^)wnship. Anna, born in McLean county, 
 December 10, 1873; \\ ihia'n. born in El 
 Paso township, Woodford county, October 
 30, 1875; George W., born September 20, 
 1877; and Henry A., born May 26, 1879, 
 are all at home. Edwin F.. born March 6, 
 1881, and Mary .\., born Fel)ruarv 16. 1883, 
 are teaching district schools and reside at 
 home. Frank, born July 21, 18S7. is also 
 at home. All ha\e received good tlistrict 
 school educations. 
 
 As a Republican Mr. Damman takes an 
 active interest in local politics, and is now 
 chairman of the township committee, but he 
 has never sought nor desired public oftice, 
 preferring to devote his entire time and at- 
 tention to his business interests. His wife and 
 iwo daughters are members of the Methodist 
 Episcopal church. Starting out in life for 
 himself a poor boy, his success is due to his 
 iiidustry. perseverance and good manage- 
 n^ent. and he justly deserves the prosperity 
 that has come to him. He is highly respected 
 ai:d esteemed bv all who know him. 
 
 .M.l'.FkT C. JONES. 
 
 The subject of this sketch, one of the 
 leading agriculturists of El Paso township, 
 Woodford countv. claims Illinois as his na-
 
 6s: 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 live state. He was Ixtii in Trcimnit. Taze- 
 well county, October 31. 1S53. and lielongs 
 to one of the prominent pioneer families. 
 His father, Cushing Jones, of El I'aso. was 
 Lorn in Scituate Plymouth county, Massa- 
 chusetts, December 5, 1824. and is a son of 
 Charles and Elizabeth ( Xichols ) Jones, also 
 natives of Scituate, the former born in May, 
 1786. the latter in 1783. Her ancestors were 
 originally from England, while the Jones 
 family was of Welsh descent. The great- 
 grandfather of our subject was Thomas 
 Jones also a nati\e of Massachusetts. In 
 1834 the grandfather, Charles Jones, came 
 west with the Tremont coliniy, whicli 
 founded the tnwn of Tremont, Tazewell 
 county, Illinois, and which was organized b\ 
 Josiah L. James. John H. Harris and Will- 
 iam Sampson, all of New York. The colony 
 was composed of about thirty families. Mr. 
 Jones, his wife and children went up the 
 Hudson river to AIban_\- h\- railroad, pro- 
 ceeded to Schenectady, In- canal to Buffalo, 
 the lake to Cleveland, thmugh Oliio bv the 
 Wheeling canal, then down the Ohio river tn 
 Cairo. Illinois, and up the Mississipi)i and 
 Illionis rivers en route fur Pekin. but at the 
 mouth of Apple creek, near Jackson\ille, the 
 boat struck on a sand bar, and the famih' was 
 forced to remain there during the winter. 
 In the spring of 1835, '^liey settled at Tre- 
 mont. Inhlding the first house at that place. 
 There Charles Jones engaged in farming for 
 some years. He died at Streator. Illinois, in 
 1874, and his wife passed away at Kappa, 
 Woodford county, in 1862. In their familv 
 were six children, all of whom made their 
 home in Illinois. 
 
 Cushing Jones, the youngest and onlv 
 surviving memebr of the family, remained a 
 resident of Tremont until 1853. when he 
 moved to Woodford countv, having entered a 
 
 tract of government lanfl on section _>i. El 
 I'aso township, the year previous, when the 
 Illinois Central Railrf)ad was started, during 
 the first sale of land in that section. There he 
 built a small house, hauling the lumber fmni 
 Pekin. It was the first house within three 
 miles of the present site of El Pasn. When lie 
 located here wolves and deer were as ])lenti- 
 ful as domestic animals are to-day. His farm 
 consisting of two hundred and forty acres 
 of unlirnken prairie land, he at once com- 
 menced to improve and cultivate, and he con- 
 tniued its operation until 1897. making his 
 li(.me in one house for thirtv-two vears. In 
 1897 he purchase<l ])roperty in El Pa.so, 
 where he is now practical!}- living a retired 
 life, though he still has a nmnber of invest- 
 ments lie looks after. He was married, 
 April 6, 1848, to Charlotte Brooks, a daugh- 
 ter of Thomas Brooks, of Hano\-er. Massa- 
 chusetts, who came to Illinois in 1837 and 
 settled in Pekin. B}- this union were born 
 nine children, naniel)' : Thomas, who died in 
 infanc}-: John, a resident of Saxonv. Rice 
 count}-, Kansas; .\lbert C.. our suliiect; 
 William C. who was killed li\- an accident 
 in an ele\ator in El Paso: Fred, a resident of 
 Hudson, AIcLean count}- Illinois; Lizzie, 
 wife of Joseph Wadsw-orth. of El Paso; 
 Frank, a resident of the same place; Mary, 
 at home; and Perrv, deceased. 
 
 During- his bo^-hood and \-outli Allien C 
 Jones attended the public schools of Wood- 
 ford Count}', and became familiar with all 
 the duties which fall to the lot of the agri- 
 culturist. He has .'dw-a}-s been engaged in 
 farming in Illinois, with the exception of 
 th.ree years, from 1876 to 1879 spent in 
 Sterling, Rice county, Kansas. In 1885 he 
 located upon his present farm of one hundred 
 and si.xt}- acres, which is i)leasantlv situated 
 on section 4, El Paso township, a half mile
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 653 
 
 nortli of tlie village of El Paso. His i)rinci- 
 i;al ])ro(lucts are oats and corn, of which he 
 raises an excellent (|uality ami in larafe (|nan- 
 tities. 
 
 On the 30th of Deceniher. 1S80 Mr. 
 Jones married Miss Mary, danghter of r>. S. 
 Hoper. of El Paso. They lia\e an ado])ted 
 danghter. Cora Beatrice. Mr. Jones is a sup- 
 porter of the Prohihition |)arty and an active 
 and consistent nieniher of tlic Ilajitist clnnxli 
 c.i El Pa.so. 
 
 JO.SRIMI P.. SCHWI'-.IZKR. 
 
 Wdodfdrd count}' has no more enter])ris- 
 ing or progressixe l)usiness man than Jose])!! 
 B. Schweizer. of the tirni of Scliweizcr iK: 
 Huffman, well-known general mercjiants of 
 Panola. He was horn in that village. Septem- 
 her I. 1S70. a son of John and .\nna 
 ( Storm ) Schweizer. ihe father was a native 
 of (iermanv. his l)irth lia\ing occurred in 
 .\ullen. .\])ril _>o. iS^S. Determined to try 
 l",is fortune in America, he crossed the .At- 
 lantic in 1868 and ])rocecding at once to Illi- 
 nois he located in the \illage of Panola. 
 Woodford count\'. 1 la\ing learned the shoe- 
 maker's trade in his nati\e land, he o])ened a 
 sho]) in Panola and engaged in that husiness 
 until 1875, ^vhen he turned his attention to 
 mercantile pursuits, conducting a general 
 store the first door south of the huilding now 
 occupied by our suhjcct. He continued in 
 active husiness along that line until his death. 
 which occurred June 21, 1898. He had tlie 
 ( nl\- store in Panola for about ten years, and 
 for about the .same length of time he was also 
 engagcfl in the grain and coal husiness. For 
 three terms he served as tax collector of Pan- 
 ola township and held several other political 
 positions. By his ballot he supported the 
 
 men and measures of the Democratic party. 
 In his family were four children, namely: 
 I'arbara. wife of John Koch, of Benson, 
 Illinois: Mary, wife of William McGraw. 
 of Sccor. Illinois: Jose])h P... our subject; 
 and Katie, wife of John Koch, Jr.. of Panola. 
 
 Joseph B. Schweizer was reareil in Panola 
 and educated in its public schools. He was 
 associated with his father in business until 
 the latter's death, and thus gained a jiractical 
 knowledge of commercial affairs. In 1898 
 when the estate was settled up he took charge 
 of the .store in partnership with .V. W. Huff- 
 man, and under the lirni name of Schweizer 
 & Huffman, they ha\e carried on the business 
 ever since. They ha\e a large and well se- 
 lected stock, carrying a complete line of all 
 goods usually foimd in a general store. Bv 
 fair and honoraljle d-ealing they have built 
 up an excellent trade and receive a liberal 
 share of the iniblic patronage. 
 
 On the 4th of !\Iay, 1890, Mr. Schweizer 
 was united in marriage with Miss Bertha 
 Welte, a daughter of Sebastian Welte. of 
 I'anola townshi]), and b\- this union ha\e 
 been born four children, namely: Frank, 
 nianchc. Walter and John. Politically Mr. 
 Schweizer is identified with the Democratic 
 ])arty. and socially affiliates with the Court 
 of I'lon^.r. 
 
 JOHN I.. W.\RXFK. 
 
 l-"or o\er half a century this gentleman 
 has made his home in Woodford county, and 
 lor manv vears was actively identified with 
 its agricultural interest, but is now li\ing a 
 retired life in the village of Secor. He was 
 born in X'orthamiiton county, Pennsylvania, 
 .\pril 29, 182J, and is a son of John R. and 
 Sarah (Konkler) Warner, also natives of
 
 654 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 the Keystone state. The father followed the 
 boot and shoe maker's trade throughout his 
 active business life. In 1837 he moved U> Ui- 
 nois, and first located in Clark county, hut in 
 1949 came to Woodford county and pur- 
 chased a farm in Palestine township, where 
 he made his home until called from this life 
 at the age of sixty-five }-ears. His wife sur- 
 \ived him some time, and died on the home 
 farm at the age of eighty-one. Both were laid 
 to rest in the cemetery of Palestine town- 
 ship. They were consistent and faithful 
 members of the Methodist church, and he 
 was a Democrat in politics. A public-spirited 
 man, he took an active interest in all that 
 tended to the impnnement anil development 
 of his county. In the family \\ere ele\-en 
 children, of whom our subject is third in 
 (.rder of birth. Four of the number are still 
 living. 
 
 Icihn L. Warner came with his parents to 
 Illinois in 1837, and obtained his earlv edu- 
 cation in the common schools of Clark coun- 
 t\-. He remained at home with his parents 
 until twenty years of age, working on the 
 larm which his father had purchased. On 
 attaining his majority he left the parental 
 rrof and for some years worked by the month 
 m Illinois. Coming to Woodford county, in 
 1849, he purcha.sed a farm of one hundred 
 and sixty acres on sections 9 and 10, Pales- 
 tine township, and as it was then all wild 
 land, he made many improvements on the 
 place, erecting a good and substantial dwell- 
 ing, barns and other liuildings, finally bring- 
 ing the entire farm imder a high state of 
 cultivation. At the end of about six years he 
 sold that place and bought another farm of 
 one hundred and twenty acres of land on 
 section 15, the same township. Here he also 
 made many improvements, Init in iS^d sold 
 the place and purchased a part'aily imi)roved 
 
 farm on sections 15 and 16, Palestine town- 
 ship. He erected additional buildings, and 
 continued the further improvement and cul- 
 tivation of that place until 1892, when he 
 nio\-ed to the village of Secor and purchased 
 for himself a home, where is is now enjoying 
 a well-earned rest, surrounded by all the com- 
 forts of life. 
 
 On the 15th of September, 1850, Mr. 
 Warner was united in marriage with Miss 
 S^'rena Potter, a nati\e of Indiana, and a 
 daughter of Ejjhraim and Elizabeth (Hed- 
 drick) Potter. Her father was born in North 
 Carolina and at an early day moved to In- 
 diana. He afterward came to Illinois, where 
 both he and his wife died. By occupation he 
 was a farmer. Mrs. Warner died in Palestine 
 townshi]), in .\pril, 1892, at the age of fifty- 
 seven years. She was a devoted wife and 
 loving mother, and was highly respected and 
 esteemed bv all who kno\\- her. Six children 
 were born to Mr. and ]\Irs. \\'arner. namely: 
 Lewis C born in Woodford county, is an 
 invalid residing with his father in Secor; 
 Handle}' C. a grocer of Peoria, married Nel- 
 lie Barraga. and the}- have one child. John ; 
 Elizabeth and Simon both died in infancy: 
 Marion P. is a resident of Missouri; and 
 Emily R. is at home with her father. 
 
 Mr. Warner was a member of the 
 Tvlounted Rifles in the Mexican war, and was 
 in active service in 1847 and 1848. during 
 which time he had the misfortune to k ise the 
 sight of his right eye. Since attaining his 
 majority he has alifiliated with the Demo- 
 cratic party, but has never cared for the hon- 
 ors or emoluments of public office. He is an 
 advocate of all measures that would advance 
 the interests of the community in which he 
 lives, and through his industry and perse- 
 \erance has assisted in making the county 
 what it is to-day, one of the richest agricul-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 653 
 
 tiiral districts in tlie state, .\tter a life of 
 industry, he is now li\ing retired at his pleas- 
 j'.nt home in Secor, and is numbered amonsj 
 its liighly respected citizens, well wortliy of 
 representation in the l)in<jra])liical record of 
 Woodford county. 
 
 JOSIATT FiSHKR. 
 
 This well known and highly respected cit- 
 izen of Greene township. Woodford county, 
 Illinois, whose home is on section 4. was 
 l.r.rn in Lancaster count)-, I'ennsvlvania, on 
 the _'4th of September, 182O, and is a son of 
 George and Xancy (Heastent) Fisher, life- 
 long residents of that state. The mother 
 died when (|uite \-oung. hut the father H\ei! 
 to the advanced age of eighty years. Ho 
 was a farmer and distiller and followed that 
 occupation for many years. 
 
 Our subject, who was the onl_\" child of 
 this worthy couple. pin\sued his studies in 
 the common schools of his native countv, 
 and continued to make his home tlierc until 
 twenty-two vears of age. ( )n tlic iitli of 
 Ma\'. 1849 he migrated ti 1 Illinois and lirst 
 located in Peoria, where he worked at his 
 trade of a plasterer for nine or ten years. 
 Coming to Woodford county, in 1859. he 
 has since resided ujion his ])resent farm on 
 section 4. CIreene township, and has success - 
 tully carried on general farming and stock 
 raising. Out of what was once wild land he 
 as developed a good farm, and has erected 
 thereon large and substantial residence, barn 
 and other buildings. His home farm consists 
 of eighty acres, but elsewhere in the lownshi]) 
 he has two hundred acres of rich and arable 
 land, all of which ))roi)erty has been ac(|uired 
 through his perse\erance, indnstrj' and good 
 n.anaeement. 
 
 In 1847. Mr. Fisher was united in mar- 
 riage with Miss Eliza M. Brown, also a na- 
 tive of Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, who 
 died at their home in Greene township, in 
 1896 beloved by all who knew her. Her re- 
 mains were interred in the El Paso cemetery. 
 By this union were born three chldren : Ben- 
 jamin, a farmer of Greene township, married 
 Kate Ettenberg, and they have four chil- 
 dren. Jessie, Alta. Frederick and Frank: 
 Thaildeus is single and resides at home; 
 Sarah Ann is the wife of Levi Stumbaugh, a 
 retired farmer and prominent citizen of El 
 i'aso. 
 
 Mr. I*"isher has served as road commis- 
 sioner for two terms hut has never sought 
 public ofiice. He is. ho\\e\er, enterprising 
 and public-spirited and advocates all meas- 
 i.res tending to ad\ance and improve the dis- 
 trict in which he resides. He has watched 
 with interest the wonderful changes made in 
 the country during the past forty years, ami 
 has always borne his part of the work of 
 jirogress. He is therefore numbered among 
 the most \alual)le and useful men as well as 
 ( ne of the most highly esteemed citizens of 
 his adopted county. 
 
 (iEORGE JOHNSON. 
 
 The subiect of this review has made 
 i:irniing his chief occupation through life 
 thus far. and has become one of the most 
 thorough and practical agriculturalists of 
 i 'anola township, Woodford county, Illi- 
 nois. He was born in Tazewell county, this 
 state. October 2\, i860, but since the age of 
 eight years has made his home in Woodford 
 ci'inuy. 
 
 His father, Andrew Johnson, was Ixirn
 
 656 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 in Hanover, Germany, December 10. 1827, 
 and heinj^ left an orplian at the age (it three 
 years, lie was forced to earn liis own li\eH- 
 liood earlv in hfe. He was reared to farm 
 labor, and as he had to sui)port himself as 
 son as old enough he receix'ed but a \ery 
 limited education. In 1853 he took (jassage 
 en a sailing \'essel bnund from Bremen to 
 the L'nited States, and after a \Myage of 
 se\en weeks landed on American soil. He 
 first located in Tazewell countv, Illinnis. and 
 as a stranger in a strange land he accepted 
 any employment he could hnd, working as 
 a farm hand and also on the railroad for two 
 years. Jn 1868 he came to Panola town- 
 .^hip. Woodford county, and tonk up his 
 residence on the farm still occupied li\- the 
 family. When he located here it was all 
 \vild land. Init under his able management 
 acre after acre was placed imder the plow, 
 and in time the wdiole tract was transformed 
 into a \aluable and well improved farm, 
 It comprises .three hundred acres, and is 
 one of the most desiral)le farms of the lo- 
 cality. Mv. Johnson dieil December 4, 1896. 
 He was an earnest member of the German 
 Lutheran church, was upright and honorable 
 in all his dealings, and his wurd was consid- 
 ered as good as his bond. In politics he was 
 a Democrat, and for many years he efficientl\- 
 ser\ed as school director, making it a point 
 to maintain good schools. ( )n the 14th of 
 April, 1859, he wedded Miss Mar}- (iibson, 
 a native of Jo Daviess county, Illinois, who 
 departed this life in 1890. To them were 
 born nine children, tw'o of whom died in 
 infancy. The others are ]Melinda, wife of 
 (Jscar Cotton, of El Paso; George, oin- sub- 
 ject: Isaac, a resident of Woodford counts': 
 Sarah, widow of James Co\-erly : Tina, who 
 died July 19, 1888; Charles and Arthur. 
 On the home farm George Johnson grew 
 
 lo manhood, earl\- becoming familiar witli 
 all the duties which fall to the lot of the 
 auricultiu-ist, and acquiring his literary edu- 
 c.'.tion in the ])ulilic schools of the neighbor- 
 I'.odd. 1 le owns and operates a farm of one 
 hundred and four acres of as hue land as is 
 to lie seen within the limits nf I'anola town- 
 ship, and is meeting with well deserved suc- 
 cess in his chosen calling, fie is one of 
 Wooilford count\''s most progressive and 
 imlilic-spirited men, and is widely and fa\- 
 orably known. On the 29th of March, 1892, 
 -Mr. Johnson was united in marriage with 
 Miss Leona, daughter of Charles McHugh, 
 of Greene township, Woodford county, and 
 til them ha\'e been liorn three children, as 
 lolliiws: Annie. Beatrice and Cecil. 
 
 ^IICHAIH. FITZGERALD, Sr. 
 
 Michael Fitzgerald, Sr., is a typical rep- 
 resentative of that steady class of upright, 
 fionorable men who make up the best por- 
 tion of an agricultural community. They 
 usually become well-to-do citizens and take 
 an acti\e part in the tipbuilding and (le\el- 
 ii])ment of their township and county. 
 
 Oiu' subject was born in P>allingary. 
 count}- Tipperar}-, Ireland, April 16, 1830, 
 and is a son of William and Margaret 
 i Hackett ) Fitzgerald, also natives of that 
 coimtv, where the father died in early life, 
 The mother afterward came to America, 
 w here she spent her last years, departing" this 
 life at El Paso. Illinois. In her family were 
 eight children. 
 
 In his natixe land ^Michael Fitzgerakl 
 passed his bo}'hood and youth, and was there 
 educated in the national schools. In 1849 
 be crossed the broad .\tlantic to America,- 
 
 i
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 657 
 
 and after traveling considerahh- in various 
 parts of tlie country for al)<)ut six years, he 
 came to El Paso. Illinois, in 1851). With 
 the \ie\v of making Woodford counts hi> 
 home he purchased (jne hundred and iweiUy 
 acres of land from the Illinois Central Rail- 
 road Com])any. which at that time was wild. 
 unbrokeu prairie, and to its improvement 
 and cnltixation he at once tin'ne<l his atten- 
 tion. In his labors he met with excellent 
 success, anil now has one of the linesi farm.-, 
 ir, his sectit)!! of the county. 
 
 Mr. Eitzgerald was married. January 31, 
 i.S58, to Miss l-.lizaheth Smith, of lllooming- 
 toii, daughter of Daniel and I'-lizabeth ( ( Rea- 
 son ) Smith, who died in x:ounly Tii)i)erary, 
 Ireland, of which place they were born na- 
 tives. To our subject and his wife were 
 born eight children, namely : William, a 
 resident of [-".l Paso; Daniel, of lUooming- 
 tou ; 'riionias. at home; Timoth)-. of St. 
 Louis: .Margaret, wife of Owen Kippen- 
 brock, of Mohnrn. Missouri: J'atrick, de- 
 ceased : .Michael .and El.izabeth, both at home. 
 I'oliticall)- Mr. b'itzgerald is a stanch sup- 
 jji-rter of the Democratic jjarty and its prin- 
 ciples, and he is justly regardetl as one of 
 the most useful and honored citizens of El 
 J^aso township. 
 
 WESLI-.N W. DLX.MlUi:. 
 
 This well known agriculturist, residing 
 on section 2^. JCl ]'aso township. WHodford 
 county. Illinois, was born in Cambria countv, 
 J'enn.sylvania. December 7. 1857. and is a 
 son of Daniel and Maria ( Raubaugh ) Dun- 
 mire, the former also a nati\e of I'emisyl- 
 vania. born in i8jj. The mother was born 
 in Ciermany. in 183J, but was onlv tun \ears 
 old when lirought to the United States. Thcj' 
 were married in Cambria count\', I'emisxl- 
 
 vania. the lather being owner of one of the 
 large nulls of that locality for several years. 
 In connection with its operation he worked 
 ai the carpenter's trade, farming I)ut little 
 in that state. hi 1866 he came to Wood- 
 tord coniuy, Illinois, and purchased three 
 lumdred and twenty acres of land on sec- 
 tions J5 and ^](k VA Paso township, which at 
 that time was only ])artially iinpro\ed. lie 
 located on section _'3, and to the further de- 
 velopment ami culii\ation of Iris land he at 
 once turned his attention, lie laid many 
 rods of tiling, erected good buildings and 
 otherwise im|)roved his place. .\lwa\s a 
 \ery hard-working man, he carried on fann- 
 ii g (|uite extensively and met with marked 
 success in his undertakings. In his declin- 
 ing years he is now enjoying a well-earned 
 rest at his pleas;int home in Xormal, Illinois, 
 lie was formerly a ]\e])ublicaii in ])olitics, 
 but now >upporls the Prohibition parly, and 
 while li\iiig in the county he was oriiciallv 
 connected with the school interests of \\'in)d- 
 ford county. Both he and his wife are act- 
 ive workers in the Evangelical church, and 
 are held in the highest respect liy all who 
 know them. 
 
 To them were born nine children, three '>f 
 whom are deceased. Two died in infancy, 
 antl Mary, wife of Isaac Pringle, has al.so 
 pa.sesd away. Those living are Joseph W., 
 .1 farmer of Palestine township, Woodford 
 comity: Lucy, wife oi Richard Box'd. a 
 f.irmer of Mt. X'ernon, Illinois; Wesley W.. 
 our subject; Hattie, wife of C. D. Pierce, a 
 retired citizen of Xormal; I'rank, who oper- 
 ates a part of his father's farm in El Paso 
 township; and Isora, wife of Xew ton Savior. 
 ;i retired citizen of Xormal. 
 
 The subiect of this .sketch is indebted to 
 district scliools of El Paso township for 
 ins educational advantages. He has always
 
 6;8 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 lived on the old homestead, assisting in plac- 
 ing the land under cultivation and otherwise 
 improving it. Since reaching manhood he 
 has oiierated a part of the farm on his own 
 account, renting it from his father, and is 
 successfully engaged in general farming and 
 Slock raising. 
 
 In 1887 Mr. Dunmire married iNIiss Hat- 
 tie Betz, who was born in Greene ttnvnship, 
 \\'oodford county, in uly, 1863, a daughter 
 01 Jacob and Susanna Betz. The father 
 died in 1895, but the mother is still living, 
 and now makes her home in El Paso. Mrs. 
 Dunmire has three sisters, namely : Mary, 
 wife of W. A. Renii, a merchant and real es- 
 ti'te dealer of \\"ell.ington, Kansas; Delia, 
 wife of Alonzo Stretch, of El Paso, both of 
 v.honi are exangelists, she being a preacher, 
 her husband a musician; and Dora, wife of 
 O. S. Kring, of El Paso township. Our 
 subject and his wife have one son, Ralph R., 
 now twelve years of age, who is being edu- 
 cated in the district schools. 
 
 Politically Mr. Dunmire is a Republican, 
 and he has served as school director for sev- 
 eral years. Both he and his wife hold mem- 
 bership in the Methodist Episcopal church, 
 are teachers in the Sunday school, and take 
 an active part in all church work. He is 
 also serving as one of the trustees and di- 
 rectors of the church. They are \videI3' and 
 favorably known, and have many friends in 
 the community where they have so long made 
 ti^eir hoi'ne. 
 
 W. C. HOGELUCHT. 
 
 Among the more prominent and enter- 
 prising farmers of Greene township, Wood- 
 ford county, who are of alien birth, is the 
 S'entleman whose name heads this sketch. 
 
 Like others of his countrymen, lie has 
 brought to the new world the habits of econ- 
 omy and frugality which are inherent char- 
 acteristics of his native land, and the exer- 
 cise of which, accompanied by industry and 
 good management, have secured for him a 
 comfortable competence. He now owns and 
 occupies a fine farm of two hundred and 
 eighty-five acres of land on section 18, 
 Greene township. 
 
 i\Ir. Hogelucht was born in Friesland, 
 Germany, in 1830, son of Carl W. and Tatye 
 (Redenius) Hogelucht, also natives of that 
 country, where the mother died, after wdiich 
 the father married again. He came to Amer- 
 ica and lived to the age of sixty-five years. 
 Our subject received a good practical educa- 
 tion in the common schools and a gymnas- 
 ium in Germany, and during his youth as- 
 sisted his father in the work of the home 
 farm. In 1S54 he came to the United States 
 on a sailing vessel, and after nine weeks 
 spent upon the water landed in New Orleans, 
 whence he came by boat up the Mississippi 
 and Illinois rivers to Peoria. After a short 
 stay in that city he w-ent to Tazewell county, 
 Illinois, and rented a farm near Washington, 
 which he operated one year. 
 
 Air. Hogelucht was then joined Iiy bis fa- 
 ther, who had just come to America .and t(j- 
 gether they b(jught an unimproved farm in 
 Greene township, Woodford county, but 
 after two years our subject sold his interest 
 in the place and purchased one iiundred and 
 twenty-five acres of his present farm on sec- 
 tion 18, to which he has since added until he 
 now has two hundred and eighty-five acres. 
 When he located thereon it was all wild land, 
 but by persistent and untiring effort he has 
 coverted it into one of the most highly culti- 
 vated tracts in the township. The buildings 
 and other impro\-enients on the place are in
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 659 
 
 first class condition, and stand as monnnients 
 to liis tln^ift and enterprise. 
 
 At Metaniora, ]\Ir. Hogelnclit married 
 Mrs. Gertie (Jolmson) Redenins, widow of 
 Harm Redenius, liy whom she liad four cliil- 
 dren, namely : Helen first married Jacob 
 Monk, a farmer by whom she had four chil- 
 dren, Harm, W'ilk. Gertie and Getke, and 
 for her second husband married William 
 Webber, by whom she has had three chil- 
 dren, John, Fritz and Johanna. Mrs. Web- 
 ber died about eight years ago and was bur- 
 ied in Greene township cemetery. Johanna 
 is the wife of Albert Sathofif, a farmer of 
 Kansas, and they have a large family of chil- 
 dren. John is a farmer of Wisconsin. 
 Harm is a prominent farmer and stock raiser 
 of Greene township, where he owns a farm 
 of one hundred and twenty-seven acres on 
 section 7. He married Wilbelmina Flor, and 
 they have nine children. Mrs. Hogcluclu, 
 who was a devoted wife and loving mother, 
 died November 3, 1894, and was buried in 
 the Lutheran church yard cemetery in Greene 
 township. She was a faithful member of 
 that church and took an active interest in 
 itf work. 
 
 Mr. Hogelucht has never cared for po- 
 litical preferment, though as a public-spirit- 
 ed and progressive citizen, he takes a deep 
 interest in all that tends to improve his town- 
 ship and county and has done all in his power 
 to promote the general welfare of his com- 
 munity. He is widely and favorably known 
 and his friends are many throughout Wood- 
 ford count V. 
 
 A. B. TURNER. 
 
 This gentleman, who is recognized as one 
 of the leading farmers of El Pa.so township. 
 Woodford county, and one of the first to give 
 
 his supjjort to any enterprise for the advance- 
 ment of the people of his community, was 
 broil in Eaton, Ohio, Nmember 19, 1840, 
 a sou of John and Rebecca (Berry) Turner. 
 The father, who was al.so a farmer by occu- 
 pation, was born in Rockingham county, 
 \'irginia, of Scotch ancestry, and died in 
 1843, 'I' ab(nit the age of thirty-three years. 
 The mother was born in 1815. in Fairfield 
 county, Ohio, and belongs to one of the old- 
 est families of that state. Her ancestors were 
 early residents of Pennsylvania, and later of 
 Virginia, from which state they moved to 
 Ohio in 1800, making the trip down the river 
 in a flat boat. After the death of I\Ir. Tur- 
 ner she returned to I'airfiekl county, where 
 she still resides at the ripe old age of eighty- 
 live vears. By her tirsl marriage she had i\\{^ 
 cildren, Jacob, K. C, Joseph, A. B., and 
 Peter, all of whom ser\x'il in the army during 
 the Ci\il war except Jacob. E. C. was 
 wounded at Franklin and is now deceased; 
 Joseph and Jacob, now living in Bremen, 
 i'airfield county, Ohio; .V. B., our subject, 
 is next in order of birth ; and Peter, who re- 
 sitles in Lancaster, Ohio. Joseph, Peter and 
 A. 15. all served in Company A, Seventeenth 
 Oiiio \'olunteer Infantry. For her second 
 husband the mother married John Shoemak- 
 er, by whom she has nine children, namely : 
 Mary, wife of John Syfert, who was also 
 a member of Company .\, Seventeenth Ohio 
 Volunteer Infantry, and is now a resident of 
 Bremen, Fairfield county; Martha, wife of 
 Aaron Lutz, a member of the same regiment, 
 and a resident of Carroll, Ohio; Eli, a min- 
 ister of the Methodist Episcopal church, a 
 resident of Seneca county, Ohio ; John W., 
 superintendent of the infirmary in Van Wert 
 county, that state; William, a farmer of 
 Fairfield county; Sophia, now Mrs. O'Hare, 
 of Fairfield countv, C^hio ; Anna, wife of
 
 66o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Frank Syfert, of Sunnier cnunty, Kansas: 
 Clare, wife of Daniel kiiler. of \'an Wert 
 county, (Jliio ; and Sarah, w hi i <lieil ;it the a^e 
 of six \ears. 
 
 The suhject of this sketch receivetl liis 
 education in the common scliools of Fairfield 
 county. Ohio, wliere he yrew to manhood, 
 and while living' with an uncle learned the 
 carpenter's trade. In response to the Presi- 
 dent's call for more troops, he enlisted, Aug- 
 ust to. i8C)i, in Compan\' A, Se\enteenth 
 CUiio \ olunteer Infantry, which was the first 
 reg'inient to cross the river into Kentucky 
 from Cincinnati. it did \alual)le sersice, 
 participating in twenty-three important en- 
 gagements, including the hattles of Wild 
 Cat, Mill Springs, Corinth, Perryville, Stone 
 River, Hoo\er's Gap, Chickamaiiga, Brow n's 
 Ferry, Missionary Ridge, Resaca, Kenesaw 
 Mountain. Chattahoucha River, near Atlan- 
 ta, Jonesboro, Waynesboro. Black River. Sa- 
 vannah, Fayetteville, Bentonville, Goldsboro, 
 Smithfield and Raleigh. At Mission- 
 ary Ridge ]\lr. Furner re-enlisted to ser\e 
 rmtil the close of the war, and was honorably 
 discharged at Columbus, Ohio, July 22, 1865. 
 He was always found at 'his post of duty, 
 valiantly defending the old flag and the cause 
 it represented, and ne\er lost a day during 
 his entire ser\ice of almost four years. }dr. 
 Turner enlisted as a ])ri\ate and at the time 
 of his discharge was first sergeant of his 
 company. 
 
 Returning to his home Mr. Turner en- 
 gaged in farming in I'"airheld county, Ohio, 
 until 1S70, when he came to Illinois and took 
 up his residence in Panola township, Wood- 
 ford county, Init in 1883 purchased his pres- 
 ent farm on section 33, 1l1 Paso township, to 
 the further impro\ement and cultivation of 
 which he has since de\oted his time and at- 
 tention with most gratifying results. Flis 
 
 success in life is due to his own well-direct- 
 ed and energetic efforts, and his ])rosj)eritv 
 is certainly well merited. 
 
 -Mr. Turner was married, .\ugust 30. 
 iS()0, to Alis^ Xanc}- .\. lL\'ersole, of Fair- 
 field county, (Jhio. and they have become the 
 l);uents of nine children: David, born June 
 -'(), I St)/, died March 12, 1868. The others 
 are (jeorge T.. born January 3. 1869. a resi- 
 dent of El I^aso, township: Alvin Perry, born 
 January 3, 1871. married Anna Lambert, of 
 (ireene township, and they have one child. 
 Atha L. : Martha E.. Ijorn December 27, 
 1872: Cora .Mice. Iiorn March 31, 1875; l'"'"- 
 lienton, born jul\- 14. 1877; Carrie R., born 
 July 8. 1880; Frank E., born May i. 1883; 
 and Anna M., liorn March 22, 1SS6. 
 
 In his jiolitical \ iews Mr. Turner is a 
 Prohibitionist, and lie is an honored mem- 
 ber of the lall Rogers Post. G. A. R., 
 of El Paso. He is a pleasant, genial gentle- 
 man, and through his hospitality has gath- 
 ered roimd him man_\- warm friends who ap- 
 l)eciate his sterling worth an<l nianv excel- 
 lencies of character. 
 
 Mrs. Turner is a daughter of David and 
 Jilizabeth (^filler) Eversole, both natives of 
 Rockingham county, A'irginia, and botii of 
 old N'irginian families. They were married 
 in their nati\e state and settled in Ohio at 
 a \ery earl\' tlate. He was one t)f the pioneer 
 stock dealers of Ohio, in those days called 
 "drovers." He was also engageti in farming. 
 Ihev reared a family of ten children, viz. : 
 Maria married Joseph Graham, deceased, of 
 Colfax, Fairfield county, Ohio; Henry mar- 
 ried Sarali Work.who died in Arcola.Illinois. 
 in 1899. He was one of the pioneers of that 
 part of the state; Jacob married Catharine 
 Swartz and resides in Shelby county, Illi- 
 nois ; Elizabeth died at the age of eighteen : 
 David lives in \'an Wert county, Ohio ; Ly-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 66 1 
 
 dia married Xewton Peters, of Fairfield 
 county, Ohio; Emanuel also served in the 
 Seventeenth Ohio Regiment. He now oc- 
 sides in Iroquois county, Illinois. He mar- 
 ried Elizabeth Artz. John married Abbie 
 Brown, of Fairfield county, Ohio; Xancy, 
 wife of our subject; and Martha married 
 Jacob Tidd, of Columbus, Ohio. The par- 
 ents died in Fairfield county, Ihio, in 1881, 
 the lather in January, and the mother in Oc- 
 tober. 
 
 JEREMIAH RAY. 
 
 The agricultural interests of \\'oodford 
 county find a worthy representative in this 
 gentleman, who is now operating a farm of 
 two hundred and forty acres of land on sec- 
 tion 14. Greene township. He is a native 
 of the county, his birth occurring at ^leta- 
 mora, July 6, 1839. During his boyhod and 
 youth he attended the C(.)mmon schools and 
 also a select school at ^letamora, and assist- 
 ed his father on the farm. 
 
 The parents of our subject were George 
 and Jane (Banta) Ray, honored pioneers of 
 Woodford county. His paternal grand- 
 father, George Ray, Sr., was born and reared 
 in Pennsylvania, and after reaching manhood 
 went to Ohio, where the remainder of his 
 life was passed as a farmer. He died when 
 well advanced in years. The Ray family 
 came originally from Prussia, and with one 
 of William Penn's colony crossed the At- 
 lantic in the latter part of the seventeenth 
 century and settled in Pennsylvania. The 
 Bantas came to tliis country with a Dutch 
 colony that settled in the city of Xew York 
 about 1660. Our subject's maternal grand- 
 father, Jacob Banta, was born in Xew Jer- 
 sev, and married Marv Brewer. His father 
 
 36 
 
 and one or two brothers were soldiers of the 
 Continental army during tiie Revolutionary 
 war. 
 
 George Ray, Jr., father of our subject, 
 was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, March 
 II, 1808, and remained on the home place 
 until alxjut 1834, when he traveled west on 
 horseback, being at that time in ill-health, 
 l-lnally, in 1836, he located on the present 
 site of Metamora, Woodford county, Illi- 
 nois, buying out an earlier settler who had a 
 little land broken just south of the village, 
 and there he made a home for himself and 
 family. He made all the improvements 
 upon the place, in the way of buildings, erect- 
 ing a good residence and large barn, and at 
 length placed the tract of one hundred and 
 forty acres under high cultivation. He 
 bought other property at different places, 
 and became quite a large land owner for 
 those days. In connection with general 
 farming he engaged in cattle raising quite 
 extensively, keeping a large herd on the 
 prairie, from which he shipped to the Chi- 
 cago market. For se\-eral terms he served 
 a-i justice of the peace in Greene township, 
 and was twice elected sheriff of the county, 
 first on the Democratic ticket and second on 
 an independent ticket. He was a Univer- 
 salist in religious faith and a generous giver 
 to churches of all denominations in the town- 
 siiip where he lived. He was a broad and 
 liberal-minded man, who advocated all 
 measures that tended to the advancement and 
 development of the community, and was 
 oi:e of Woodford county's most useful and 
 valued citizens. He died at ^letamora, in 
 r^Iarch, 1897, lacking only a few days of 
 being eighty-nine vears of age. The mother 
 of our subject died on the home farm in 
 1852, leaving nine children, six of whom are 
 still living. Jeremiah being the oldest.
 
 662 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Jeremiah Ray remained with iiis parents 
 until twenty-two years of age, when he en- 
 tered the service of his country as one of the 
 boys in bhie during tlie Civil war. He en- 
 listed in May, 1861, in Company G. Seven- 
 teenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, which was 
 organized at Metamora and Eureka, and was 
 made sdrgeant of his company. The princi- 
 pal engagements in which he took part were 
 the battles of Fort Donelson and Shiloh, the 
 entire siege of Vicksburg, and a number of 
 skirmishes. After three years of faithful 
 and arduous service he was mustered out at 
 Springfield, Illinois, June, 4, 1864. 
 
 After being discharged Mr. Ray returned 
 lo the home farm in Woodford county, and 
 tor a couple of years operated a farm be- 
 longing to his father in Roanoke township. 
 In 1868 he married Harriet T. Swallow, a 
 daughter of Joseph and Nancy (Wilson) 
 Swallow. Her father, who was a native of 
 Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, and a fur- 
 niture manufacturer by occupation, came to 
 Illinois in 1855 and settled in Woodford 
 county, where he passed several years, but 
 about twenty-five years ago moved to Ford 
 county, where his death occurred. His 
 widow is still living in that county at the 
 age of eighty years. Mr. and Mrs. Ray have 
 four children, namely : Ernest L., a real es- 
 tate dealer of Chalmers, White county, In- 
 diana, married Belle Ray, of Rossville, Illi- 
 nois, and they have one child, Harry ; .\n- 
 gie is at home with her parents; George J., 
 a graduate of the State University, is now 
 a civil engineer in the employ of the Illinois 
 Central Railroad and resides at Carbondale; 
 and Edna F. has for the past three years 
 successfully taught the Willow Tree school 
 in Greene township. All were born in ]\Ieta- 
 mora. 
 
 After his marriage Mr. Rav located on 
 
 a farm one mile north of Metamora, where 
 lie engaged in general farming and stock 
 raising for eleven years. In 1879, accom- 
 panied by his wife and four children, he 
 moved to Kansas, but after farming there 
 for three years returned to Illinois. For 
 four years he lived in the vicinity of Eu- 
 reka, then spent some time in Panola town- 
 ship, Woodford county, and for the past 
 eleven years has made his home in Greene 
 township. He owns a small farm, which he 
 rents, while he leases and operates a tract of 
 two hundred and forty acres. Since the 
 war Mr. Ray has been identified with the 
 Republican party, but has ne\'er cared for 
 political favors. He and his family are 
 members of the Panola Baptist church, of 
 which he has been a trustee for a number 
 of years. He can relate many interesting 
 incidents connected with his early life in 
 Woodford county, when the few settlers 
 were widely scattered and the land was in 
 its primitive condition, and wolves and deer 
 were numerous as well as smaller game. 
 In the work of development and progress he 
 and his family have borne an active part, 
 and are well worthy of representation among 
 the honored pioneers and highly respected 
 citizens of the county. 
 
 GUSTAVUS BUTTLER, M. D. 
 
 This well-known physician and snrgeon 
 of Panola, Illinois, was born in the village of 
 Oschatz, Saxony, November 9, 1830, and be- 
 longs to a very old and distinguished family 
 of Germany. The Buttlers (or Van But- 
 tlers) trace their ancestry back to Gultherus, 
 the youngest brother of Duke Richard Van 
 Erionne. who was a descendant from one 
 
 {
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 663 
 
 cii the Xorman dukes and was the first 1)ut- 
 ler of Henry I. nf Kn<ila;ul. lie was liorn 
 in 1068 and died in 1 135. He married Me- 
 didda, daughter of King; Antiochus, fnmi 
 Curien. whom he brouglit home wlien he re- 
 turned from the crusade. His son, Achilles 
 Buttler, emigrated from England to Ger- 
 many in 1 164 with a colony of four hun- 
 dred relatives and friends, being adherents 
 of Archbishop Thomas of Canterbury. They 
 settled in Fulda province, in the central part 
 of Germany. Since that time the family 
 have largely lived in Germany, and lia\e 
 most been distinguished soldiers (jf various 
 rank in the German army. The first mem- 
 bers of the family of which we have any rec- 
 ord is twenty-six generations remote from 
 Dr. Buttler, but his descent can be accurately 
 traced. A genealogical record has been pre- 
 pared by Rudolph Buttler, of I'ritzler, Ger- 
 many. 
 
 Our subject's grandfather, John Arden 
 August Buttler, was a prominent general, 
 and was a member of the king's cabinet. 
 Three of his sons were soldiers, including the 
 Doctor's father. Captain Henry Buttler, who 
 followed a military career throughout life, 
 and died while in active service of typhoid 
 fever at Oschatz. His wife, who bore the 
 maiden name of Ninon Gilbert, was a native 
 of France. 
 
 Dr. Buttler was the seventh child in order 
 of birth in a family of eight children, lie 
 obtained his literary education at a gymna- 
 sium in Dresden, and then took up the study 
 ot medicine at Leipsic, Germany, where he 
 was graduated in 1859. , The following 
 year he came to this country, and first lo- 
 cated in Newark, Licking county, Ohio, 
 where he followed the practice of his pro- 
 fession for some time. Subsequently he 
 spent a short time in Columbus, that state, 
 
 and in 1868 came to Woodford county. Illi- 
 nois. For a few months he had an office in 
 1"1 Paso, but later in the same year came to 
 Panola, where he has since successfully en- 
 gaged in practice, his patronage being quite 
 extensive. 
 
 In 1866 Dr. Buttler married Miss Nata- 
 lie Arand, also a native of Germany, and to 
 tliem were born two children, namely : Ida, 
 deceased wife of Newton Sheen, a farmer of 
 Woodford county; and Robert, who married 
 Louisa Kretsmor, of West \'irginia, and 
 lives in Panola. IVilitically the Doctor is a 
 stanch Democrat, and is now serving his 
 third term as township clerk. In religious 
 liclief he is a Catholic. He is a courteous, 
 genial gentleman who wins many friends, 
 and has the happy faculty of being able to 
 retain them. 
 
 HENRY DIERKIXG. 
 
 No foreign element has become a more 
 important part in our American citizenship 
 than that furnished by Germany. The emi- 
 grants from that land have brought with 
 them to the new world the stability, enter- 
 l^rise and perseverance characteristic of their 
 jieople and have fused these qualities with the 
 progressiveness and indomitable spirit of the 
 v.est. Mr. Dierking, the well-known banker 
 of Secor. is a worthy representati\e of this 
 class. 
 
 He was l)orn on the uth of April. 1830. 
 in the province of Hanover. Germany,, of 
 which his parents, Henry and Wilhelmina 
 (Stunkel) Dierking, were also natives. In 
 1844 they brought their family to the L'nited 
 States and settled in Lafayette county, Mis- 
 souri, where the father followed his chosen 
 occupation, that of farming, for a number of
 
 664 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 years. There lie was killed during the war of 
 the Rel^ellion at the age of about sixty years. 
 His wife survived him and after his death 
 came to Woodford county, Illinois, to make 
 her home with our subject in Secor. where 
 she died at the age of eighty-one years. In 
 their family were seven children, five S(ins 
 and two daughters, of whom Henry is the 
 oldest. 
 
 Our subject received his education in the 
 common schools of his native land, and as- 
 sisted his father in the labors of the farm. 
 He was fourteen years of age when he ac- 
 companied the family on their removal to 
 the United States, and at their home in :\Iis- 
 souri they grew to manhood. In 1850 he 
 crossed the plains to California, traveling 
 on foot with a party, and reaching their 
 destination after twenty weeks spent upon 
 the road. ~Mv. Dierking remained in that 
 state two years prospecting and mining, and 
 then returned to his old home in La Fayette 
 countv, Missouri, where he purchased a 
 farm, which he tilled until the civil war 
 broke out. In 1861 he entered the service 
 as cook for the home guards and remained 
 with them se\-eral months, after which he 
 resumed farming in La Fayette county. 
 Leaving home in 1862, he spent a couple of 
 years traveling over the country, and in 1865 
 located at Secor, Woodford county, Illinois, 
 where he has since made his home. He was 
 first engaged in general merchandising for a 
 number of years and next embarked in the 
 grain business, buying an elevator, which 
 he operated until the fall of 1899, wdien he 
 sold the business to Mr. Felter and turned 
 his attention to the banking business, be- 
 coming proprietor of what is known as the 
 Secor Bank. He erecti^d the brick building 
 in which the bank is now located and is doing 
 a successful general banking business. 
 
 On the loth of December, 1852, in La 
 Fayette county, Missouri, Mr. Dierking was 
 united in marriage with Miss Mary Wallner, 
 a native of Germany, who came to the United 
 States in 1852, her parents being dead. She 
 died in Secor March 19, 1900, at the age of 
 sixty-seven years and one month, and was 
 laid to rest in the cemetery there. She was 
 a faithful member of the German Lutheran 
 church, a devoted mother and a loving wife 
 and helpmeet, who took a special interest in 
 the work of the church and endeared her- 
 self to all who knew her. Hers was a well- 
 spent and useful life and she left behind 
 many friends to mourn her loss. To Mr. 
 and j\Irs. Dierking were born nine children, 
 three sons and six daughters, of whom Carl 
 died at the age of six years, ^Martin at the 
 ap-e of five and one in infancy unnamed. 
 Kathleen, born in Missouri, is the wife of 
 Hiram Flessner, a real estate dealer of 
 Peoria, Illinois, and they have three children, 
 Emma, Edward and Lone. Edward, a mer- 
 chant of Secor, married Mrs. Etta Smith, 
 and they have five children, Clara, Carl, 
 Sophia, Bertha and Lora. Alary is the wife 
 of C. C. Herman, a prominent druggist of 
 Secor, and they have two children, Irwin and 
 Edna. Anna and Matilda are both at home 
 and the latter assists' as bookkeeper in the 
 bank. 
 
 ]\Ir. Dierking has held the office of trus- 
 tee of the village board for a number of 
 years and has been president of the village 
 two or three terms. He is a member of 
 the German Lutheran church, wdiich his 
 family all attend, and is one of the most 
 highly respected citizens of his adopted town. 
 When he came to the county there were but 
 few improved farms, and he has seen nearly 
 all the wild land transformed into a highly 
 cultivated district. He is one of the men
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 665 
 
 will). l)y his industry and perseverance, lias 
 helped to make the county what it is to-day, 
 and as a useful and prominent citizen he 
 is well worthy of representation in this 
 volume. 
 
 MEXRY SWATSLEV. 
 
 rroniinent aniont^- the representative citi- 
 zens and respected and intluential men of 
 Greene township, Woodford county, is fouml 
 tlie subject of this biographical notice, who 
 resides on section 15. where he has a well- 
 improved and highly cultivated farm of 
 eighty acres. For many years he was en- 
 gaged in agricultural ])ursuiis. 1)Ut is now 
 living a retired life. 
 
 .\ native of West \'irginia, ^[r. Swats- 
 ley was horn in Augusta county May 7, 
 1836, and is a son of John and Catherine 
 (Haybarger) Swatsley, natives of the same 
 state. Tlie father spent the greater part of 
 his life in .\ugusta county, where his birth 
 occurred in 1809, and throughout iiis active 
 business career followed farming and stock 
 raising. In the fall of 1856 he came to Illi- 
 nois and took uj) his residence near Meta- 
 niora in Metamora township, where he pur- 
 cha.sed a farm of one hundred and twenty 
 acres. He made many improvements upon 
 the place and continued to reside there until 
 well advanced in years, when he went to 
 live with his sons in Greene township, where 
 he died at the age of seventy-one years. He 
 met witli success in his farming operations 
 and accumulated quite a property. Polit- 
 ically he was a Democrat, and religiously 
 was a faithful and consistent member of the 
 Presbyterian church. His wife had died at 
 the age of sixty-three years while they were 
 Ii\'ing in Metamora townshi]). Thev were 
 
 the parents of four children, wlio in order 
 of birth were as follows : John has for 
 some years engaged in farming in Nebraska 
 and has become a leader in public life, hav- 
 ing represented his district in the state leg- 
 islature. He is married and has a family. 
 Henry, our subject, is the next of the fam- 
 il_\'. Sarah married Jacob Tool, a farmer 
 and stock raiser of Iowa, and they died leav- 
 ing three children: James; .Mrs. Sylvina 
 Whistler, of Te.xas; and Charles. George, 
 a resident of Gibson City, Illinois, was en- 
 gaged in milling for some years, but is now 
 engaged in farming, which he followed 
 earlier in life. He married Lavina .\irley 
 and they have eight children. 
 
 Henry Swatsley obtained liis early edu- 
 cation in the subscription schoolsof his birth- 
 place. He was about .seventeen years of age 
 when he came with the l";niiily to Illinois 
 and remained on the home farm in Meta- 
 mora township nnlil t\venl\- li\e, when he 
 started out in life for himself. lie pur- 
 chased a farm in that township, but after 
 operating it for a few years he sold the place 
 and bou.ght his present farm of eight)' acres 
 on section 15, Greene township. n])on which 
 he has since erected a lar.ge atid jjle.'isant 
 residence, good barns and other outbuildings. 
 He successfully engaged in general farming 
 and stock raising for several years, but has 
 now laid aside business cares to enjoy a well- 
 earned rest. 
 
 On the 13th of March. i8f)_>, in .Meta- 
 mora. Mr. Swatsley led to the ni.arria.ge 
 altar Miss Margaret Xichols, who died De- 
 cember 17. 1884, and was laid to rest in the 
 Clayton church yard in Greene township. 
 She was a consistent member of the I'aptist 
 church and a most estimable lady. .She 
 left seven children, all Imrti in W'oodfurd 
 countw namelv: James, a resident of EI
 
 666 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 Paso, married Flora Kippenbrock. and tliey 
 have one child. Minnie: ^lary is the wife of 
 C. H. Tool, a machinist of Benson, Illinois, 
 and they have one son, Lawrence; Annie is 
 the wife of Conrad Otto, a farmer of Greene 
 township, and they have three children, 
 Charles, Edna and Ina; Flora is the wife of 
 Charles Jeter, a farmer on section 15, Greene 
 township; Alice is the wife of Oscar Gish, 
 a farmer of Greene township, and they have 
 three children, Ethel, Bessie and Blanche 
 Emma: Fannie is at home with her father; 
 and John married Eliza Nicholson and also 
 lives on the home place. 
 
 Since attaining his majority Mr. Swats- 
 ley has always affiliated with the Democratic 
 party, and he is now efficiently serving as 
 justice of the peace in Greene township, 
 which office he has filled for four vears. He 
 has also been school director for many years 
 and has done much to promote the educa- 
 tional interests and secure a better school 
 system for his district. It is only necessary 
 to mention his long and continuous public 
 service to show the esteem in which he is 
 held by his fellow citizens. In religious 
 belief he is a Baptist. 
 
 EDWIX HODGSON. 
 
 This well-known and prominent importer 
 and dealer in horses at El Paso is a native 
 of Illinois, born in Tazewell county, January 
 I, 1842, and is a son of William and Phebe 
 (Bennett) Hodgson, both natives of Ohio 
 and early settlers of Tazewell county, Illi- 
 nois. The Hodgson family are of English 
 descent, those coming from England being 
 members of the Society of Friends. Our 
 subject's father was born near Wilmington, 
 
 Ohio, in 18 15. anil was about sixteen yer.rs 
 of age when he came to Illinois with his 
 father, Amos Hodgson, who settled in Taze- 
 well county, and died at the home of his son 
 William at about the age of ninety years. 
 At an early day the latter took up govern- 
 ment land and became quite an e.xtensiv? 
 land owner. He continued to successfu'.lv 
 engage in farming until seventy-two years 
 of age, when he moved to Hopedale, Taze- 
 well county, autl has since lived a retired 
 life. Politically he is identified with the 
 Republican party. His \\ife is now de- 
 ceased. 
 
 To this worthy couple were born eight 
 children, of whom the eldest died in infancy. 
 The others are: Mary Ann, wife of Daniel 
 Hill, of El Paso; Albert, a resident of Kan- 
 sas; Edwin, our subject; Eliza, a resident of 
 Pekin, Illinois ; Newton, of Des Moines, 
 Iowa; Emeline, wife of R. M. Worley, of 
 Pekin; and Elva, deceased wife of J. W. 
 Craft. 
 
 Edwin Hodgson recei\ed his education 
 in an old log school-house on his father's 
 farm in Brushhill township, within eighty 
 rods of the house. There he pursued his 
 studies during the winter season until 
 eighteen years of age. and assisted in the 
 farm work through the summer months. 
 I'or the following three years he operated a 
 rented farm belonging to his father. In 
 November. 1863. when only twenty-one 
 years of age Mr. Hodgson married Sarah 
 E. Worley. then sixteen. She, too, was a 
 native of Tazewell county, and a daughter 
 cf Simeon and Mary E. Worley, who were 
 liorn in Ohio, and at an early tlay moved to 
 Tazewell countv, this state. Mrs. Worley 
 is now living in El Paso. 
 
 Soon after his marriage Mr. Hodgson 
 came to Woodford county and located in
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 667 
 
 Panola t<n\iisliii). where he hmiyiit eightx' 
 acres of land, ami his father i;a\e him fiirt\' 
 acres. inakin<j one hnndreil ami t\\ent\' acres 
 C)f well im])rove(l land. lie ft)llo\ved farm- 
 ing on this place until coming to El Paso 
 in 1 88 1, since which time he has engaged 
 exclusively in importing and dealing in 
 horses. In 1875 he liought his first im- 
 ported horse, it being a Xorman by the name 
 of Belgian, and the same \ear bought a 
 Clydesdale. In 1882 he went to luuMpe and 
 made an importation of fourteen head of 
 Kormans; the fulldwing vear iniju^rted 
 twenty, and in 18S4 thirty-one. since then 
 his agents doing the buving fur him. Me 
 liuilt his present barn in i88j. and has ac- 
 commodations for about one hundreil head 
 of stock. He is a progressive and energetic 
 bi:siness man. and has met with marked suc- 
 cess in his luidertakings. having gained a 
 handsome ciim])etence l)y his well-directed 
 efforts. 
 
 Mr. Hodgson lost his first wife in 1876. 
 and of the eiglit children born to them foiu" 
 daughters dide in infancv. Those li\ing 
 are: William I'"., who ser\ed as deputv 
 county treasurer for four years, and is n^w 
 assistant cashier of the First National ]>ank, 
 of El Paso; Lester E., a resident of Idaho: 
 Eugene M.. a druggist of Minonk. Illinois; 
 and Charles \V., a jeweler of Wallace. Idaho. 
 Mr. Hodgson was again married, in i88r, 
 his second union being with Miss Kate Cib- 
 son, a native of Woodt'urd coinitv. and a 
 daughter <if (leorge L. (iib.son. whu at cme 
 time owned the largest part of the land on 
 which El Paso is now located. 
 
 For twelve years Mr. Hodg.son was 
 president of the El Paso Fair Association, 
 and has been one of its directors since its or- 
 ganization. He has entered stuck at over 
 tliirtv consecutive state fairs, and has car- 
 
 ried (iff more premiums than any other nue 
 individual. One 1 f his horses. Charton, 
 tidk ])rizcs at many state fairs, and also at 
 the New Orleans E.xposition. He was valued 
 at four thousand dollars. Mr. Hodgson 
 also owns road and coach horses as well as 
 araft animals. He is a charter member of 
 El Paso Camp, No. 168, M. W. .\.. and is 
 a stanch supporter of the Republican party, 
 w ith which he has affiliated since casting his 
 first presidential vote for .Abraham Lincoln 
 in 1864. He was a member of the county 
 central committee ten years, and has been 
 called upnn u> fill sexeral local offices, hav- 
 ing serxed as schonl directnr. path master, 
 tiiwnship snperxisiir. and aUlerman and a 
 member of the school board of El Paso. In 
 1894 he was elected county treasurer, and 
 most capably and satisfactorily filled that 
 office four years, during which time the 
 county seat was char.ged from Metamora to 
 Eureka. He is pre-eminentlv pulilic-spir- 
 iied and i)rogressi\-e. whd keeps well abreast 
 with the times, and is thoroughly identified 
 with the interests nf his ;id(>pted county. He 
 is well known as an enterprising and reliable 
 business man, as well as one of the leading 
 citizens of El Paso. 
 
 BEN'JAMIX F. STREID. 
 
 .\mong the progressive and enterprising 
 .'ii^ricultiUMsts of Worth township, Woodford 
 county, is Benjamin F. Streid, who owns 
 and operates a valuable and well-improved 
 farm of foiu" hiuidred acres on section 24, 
 only two miles and ;i (|nrn-ter from Meta- 
 mora. He is a nati\e of Ohio, his birth oc- 
 curring in Holmes county, that state. Inly 
 3, 1854. His father. Joseph Streid, was
 
 668 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 born in Strasburg, Germany, in 1829, of 
 French ancestry, and there married Frances 
 Fordenwad, a native of France. Joseph 
 Streid spent his early Hfe npon a farm, and 
 lor some time ser\ed as a soldier in the 
 French army. Later he accepted a position 
 on a mail ship and in that capacity visited 
 all of the great cities and sea ports of the 
 old world, remaining in the mail service for 
 five years. In 1852 he came to America 
 and first located in Holmes county, Ohio, 
 where he engaged in farming until 1866, 
 and then mo\-ed to ^IcLean cnunty, Illinois, 
 settling on a farm near Chenoa, where he 
 continued agricultural pursuits. He died 
 there in 1886, his wife in 1884. and both 
 were laid to rest in Chenoa cemetery. 
 
 At the age of twelve years Benjamin F. 
 Streid accompanied his parents on their re- 
 moval to McLean county, Illinois, where he 
 grew to manhood, his education being ob- 
 tained in the country schools near his home. 
 After attaining man's estate he worked on 
 hif father's farm for a few vears, and in 
 1882 came t<i Woodford county, operating a 
 rented farm in \>'i>rth township for three 
 years. He then formed a partnership with 
 Peter Schertz, and engaged in mercantile 
 business at Metamora for ten years, as deal- 
 ers in hardware, agricuhural implements, 
 harness and saddlery. To this the firm 
 later added the grain business at Cazenovia 
 and Low Point, and in all their undertak- 
 ings were very successful. In 1895 Mr. 
 Streid sold out and moved to his present 
 farm of foiu' hundred acres on section 24, 
 Worth township, where he has built one of 
 the best residences in the township, also two 
 good barns and other outbuildings, makine 
 the place one of the best improved farms 
 in the community. In connection wth gen- 
 eral farming he is also engaged in stock rais- 
 
 ing, making a specialty of pure-blooded short 
 horn cattle and Chester White hogs, and 
 in this lie has also prospered. 
 
 In \\'oodford countv ]Mr. Streid was 
 niarried. I'ebruarv 29. 1S76, to Miss Mary 
 Schertz, who was born, reared and educated 
 in Worth township, and they have become 
 the parents of six children, namely : Joseph- 
 ine, Peter, Lizzie, Joseph and Julia, all grad- 
 uates of the .Metamora high school ; and Fre- 
 da, still in school. The Democratic party 
 finds in Mr. Streid a stanch supporter of its 
 principles, and for six or eight years he effi- 
 ciently served as a member of the Metamora 
 town board. Both he and his wife are mem- 
 bers of the Mennonite church, and are highly 
 respected and esteemed b^- all who know 
 them. 
 
 HON. JOSIAH KERRICK. 
 
 Hon. Josiah Kerrick comes of one of the 
 families which possessed the true pioneer 
 spirit — that spirit which bravely endures the 
 untold hardships of frontier life while lay- 
 ing the foundations of a later civilization. 
 We. who have entered into the fruits of 
 their labors, owe a debt of gratitude which 
 we cannot repay, but we are glad to bring a 
 tribute of praise to these heroic souls, who, 
 indeed, "builded better than they knew." 
 In tracing the history of Illinois and Wood- 
 ford county one is impressed with the im- 
 portant place which the Kerricks have taken 
 in its de\'elopment, and no name is held in 
 higher esteem by the people. 
 
 In 1824, our subject's father, Armstead 
 Kerrick, emigrated from Virginia, his native 
 place to Muskingum county, Ohio, and the 
 following year removed to the Indiana 
 wilderness, Franklin couiitv, and there
 
 JOSIAH KERRICK. 
 
 i
 
 MRS. JOSIAH KERRICK.
 
 i
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 673 
 
 cleared a farm and aided in the sjreat work 
 of preparing tliat state for future genera- 
 tions of prosi)erous people. In 1840 they 
 removed to Decatur county. Indiana. In 
 1856. Mr. Kerrick decided to remove fur- 
 ther west, and for the twenty-nine years 
 that followed he was numlwred among the 
 inhabitants of Illinois. lie was successfully 
 engaged in farming and stock raising in 
 Woodford and Marshall counties for many 
 years, his residence in the last-named county 
 dating from 1864. -\n ardent member of 
 the ^lethodist Episcopal church, he became 
 a local preacher, and in that capacity was 
 known far and wide, throughout central 
 Illinois. His noble life, governed by high 
 ideals and purposes, was an incentive to 
 countless numbers and was a jiower for good 
 in every community he visited. When he 
 was called to his reward, .\ugust 7, 1S93, 
 at the age of seventy-four years, five months 
 and sixteen days, his loss was felt to be a 
 public one, and to his children and posterity 
 he left the priceless heritage of an untar- 
 nished name. 
 
 The mother of our subject was a Miss 
 Sarah A. Sloan in her girlhood, and her 
 birthplace was in Union county, Ohio. Her 
 parents were from New Jersey. She mar- 
 ried 'Mr. Kerrick in Indiana, and in tiiat 
 state some of their eleven children were 
 born. She was a fine ty|)C of the pioneer 
 woman, resourceful, courageous and cheer- 
 ful, even under the reverses common to the 
 lot of the early settler. Loving and faith- 
 ful in all of the varied relationships of life, 
 she possessed the love and admiration of 
 all who were associated with her in any 
 manner. She, too, was a worthy exponent 
 of the Christian faith, and many besides her 
 children "rise up and call her blessed." Her 
 
 eldest daughter. Joanna, widow of .\lma 
 Rogers, resides in Dixon, Illinois. Mary, 
 the next in order of birth, died in 1898, 
 when about fifty-four years of age. Steven 
 died when about ten years old, in 1856, and 
 Jacol), who died in 1854, was in his sixth 
 year. Thomas, who married Ella Wineteer, 
 lives in Sedgwick count\ , Kansas. Har- 
 rison, of Lone Tree, Missouri, married Fran- 
 ces Davidson, and James, of Minonk, chose 
 Emma E. Hollenback for a wife. Henry, 
 of Bloomington, Illinois, wedded Cora Ever- 
 ly, and Benjamin, a resident of Claude, 
 Texas, is unmarried, while PlKcbe, who re- 
 sides in the same town, is the wife of Dr. 
 William \\'arner. After the death of his 
 first wife, Armstead Kerrick married Mrs. 
 Jane (Burley) Sauers. a widow with one 
 child. Minnie. She survi\c'd Ikt liu-.Iiand 
 and is now living in I'airfield, low a. in which 
 town Minnie and Richard L. reside with lier. 
 The other son, John B.. who chose Min- 
 nie Mcirrill for a wife, also resides there. 
 There was one daughter, (/)rpha, wIid died 
 aged five years. 
 
 The birth of the Hon. Josiah Kerrick 
 occurred in Franklin county, Indiana, July 
 20, 1848, and his youth was chiefly spent 
 in Woodford and Marshall counties. Illinois. 
 After leaving the comnio.i schouls it was 
 his privilege to attend the Wesleyan L'ni- 
 versity at Bloomington, and tlius. when he 
 eml)arked in business, he \\as well ecjuipped 
 for his duties. For four years he was suc- 
 cessfully engaged in a^rricultural pursuits, 
 but since the fall of 1874 he has been a resi- 
 dent of Minonk. At present he is a luember 
 of the firm of Kerrick & Humphrey, owning 
 ;uid running the only mill oiierated in the 
 town. Besides this. Mr. Kerrick organized 
 the Minonk Electric Light and I'ower Com-
 
 674 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 pany, in 1890, since which time he has been 
 the sole manager and operator. This was 
 the first electric power and light company 
 in Minonk, and he may well be prond of this 
 enterprise. The plant, which is well equipped 
 with modern machinery and apparatus, has 
 fine engines of one-hundrod-and-fifty-horse 
 power and everything about the place speaks 
 well for the energy and foresight of the 
 owner. 
 
 Many of the minor official positions of 
 this county have been filled by ^Ir. Kerrick 
 in a most creditable manner, and as he "was 
 faithful in a few things, he was made ruler 
 over many." For a number oi terms he 
 served as supervisor of his township, and 
 also has been chairman of the board of 
 county supervisors. He also held the office 
 of school director and for eighteen consecu- 
 tive years was an efficient member of the 
 board. In short, he has been a powerful 
 factor in the affairs uf this region, and has 
 exercised his influence for the elevation and 
 permanent welfare of his fellow-men. Fre- 
 ciuently he has attended the con\-entions of 
 the Republican party in this county, in the 
 capacity of a delegate, and is an earnest ad- 
 vocate of the policy pursued by that party. 
 The people of this twentieth senatorial dis- 
 trict chose him to represent them in the 
 state legislature, and were so well satisfied 
 with his eft'orts on their Ijehalf that he was 
 again their nominee for the responsible po- 
 sition, in 1900. For a period of two terms 
 he was the mayor of Minonk, and during his 
 term of occupancy of that post, about ten 
 years ago, the excellent city water-works 
 plant was instituted. Fraternally he is an 
 Odd Fellow of high standing, and has passed 
 all the chairs in the local lodge. He is past 
 chancellor in the onler of the IvniHits of 
 
 Pythias, belongs to the Knights of the Mac- 
 cabees and is the president of the Fraternal 
 Alutual Life Reserve Association. 
 
 On the loth of March, 1870, Mr. Ker- 
 rick married Margaret E. Hollenback, a 
 daughter of Jacob and Margaret Hollen- 
 back, of \A'ashburn, Illinois. The only son 
 of our subject and wife, Harrison S., is a 
 captain in the army of the United States, 
 in Company F, Thirtieth Regiment, now lo- 
 cated in the Philippines. He was one of the 
 brave soldier boys who enlisted in the ranks 
 during the Spanish-American war, and by 
 meritorious service rose to the lieutenancy 
 of Company D, Second Illinois Infantry. 
 On July 25, 1899, he was commissioned 
 Captain of Company F, Thirtieth Regiment, 
 Lnited States Infantry. His regiment has 
 been in the Philippines since October, 1899, 
 ha\-ing sailed from San Francisco, September 
 29, 1899. Eva L., Florence E. and Elsie 
 E. are living at home. Florence has been 
 successfully engaged in teaching in the local 
 schools for the past five A^ears, and at present 
 is engaged in the Minonk city schools. Elsie 
 is a member of the class of 1902. Eva L. 
 is president of the Epworth Junior League, 
 Normal district. 
 
 Mrs. Kerrick is a daughter of Jacob 
 Hollenback, who was born in Perry county, 
 Ohio, July 14, 1827, and who is a son of 
 Darjiel Hollenback, a native of Pennsyl- 
 vania. Daniel Hollenback's parents re- 
 moved to Perry county, Ohio, in an early 
 day and there spent the remaining years of 
 their lives. Daniel was reared in Ohio and 
 upon reaching manhood married Martha 
 Thralls, a native of Maryland. He and his 
 wife resided in Ohio until 1835, when they 
 came overland to Marshall county, Illinois, 
 where he purchased a tract of partially im-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 67 s 
 
 pruvcd land at the head of Crow creek. 
 Here lie reside<l until i860, when he sold his 
 farm and removed to Minonk, dying Jan- 
 uary 13. 1868, when over seventy-two years 
 of age. His wife passed away March ig, 
 1864. aged sixty-nine years. 
 
 To Daniel Hollenback and wife eight 
 children were horn, all of whcmi grew to 
 maturity. 
 
 Jacob flollcnhack was hut eight years of 
 age when he came to Illinois with his par- 
 ents, and e.xperienced all the pri\ations and 
 hardships incident to pioneer life. He le- 
 sided at home until his marriage to Margaret 
 IMcCune. who was born in Cumberland 
 county. Pennsylvania, August 31, 1830. 
 Her father, William McCune, also a native 
 of Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, moved 
 to Ohio in 1833, where he resided four years 
 and then came west to Marshall county, 
 Illinois, locating eight miles southeast of 
 Lacon, where he had previously purchased 
 a tract of land. Later he returned to Ohio 
 to settle some business matters and on the 
 journey the stage was overturned and he 
 recci\ed injuries from which he nc\er re- 
 c<)\ered, dying soon after his return iiome. 
 
 William McCune married Eleanor Cul- 
 bertson. a native of Pennsylvania, born in 
 1S13, and to this marriage were born eight 
 children : Samuel C, ilary Jane, Emily, 
 Jnhn. Eleanor, Elizalieth. William and Mar- 
 garet. William McCune was a son of John 
 McCune. burn in county Ulster, North of 
 Ireland, about 1725, and who was a minister 
 of the Presbyterian church. After the death 
 of his wife he emigrated with his two daugh- 
 ters to .America, about i "Relocating in Cum- 
 berland CMuniy. Pennsylvania. In 1761 he 
 married Mrs. James Fullerton, a native of 
 Scotland, whose maiden name was Mary 
 Sliar])e. and who had emigrated to .\merica 
 
 after the death of Mr. Fullerton, with her 
 three sons, James, Alexander and .\dam. 
 
 To John McCune and wife four children 
 were born, Robert, John. William ( father of 
 Mrs. Hollenback), and Mary. 
 
 To Jacob and Margaret I lollenback four 
 children have been born : Margaret Ellen, 
 wife of our subject : Jacob Henry, a resident 
 of Cameron. Missouri : Clara Belle, wife of 
 Frank Combes, of I'airbury, Lixingston 
 county, and Charles C, married Ida Krull. 
 They reside at Fairbury also. After their 
 marriage, which occurred in October, 1848, 
 Mr. and Mrs. Hollenback began housekeep- 
 ing in the log cabin near the old homestead, 
 his father having given him one hundred and 
 fifty-four acres in Linn township. Wood- 
 ford county. He was actively engaged in 
 its im])rovement and cultivation until 1887, 
 when he moved to Washb.irn. where he is 
 spending his declining years in ease and 
 ])lenty. He has added to his land until he 
 now owns nearly a half section in a body 
 in Linn township. On August 17, 1900, 
 Mrs. Hollenback passed to her final reward, 
 leaving a large circle of friends and acquaint- 
 ances to mourn her loss. She was a faith- 
 ful member nf the Metlmdist F,pisc(ii)al 
 church, of which Mr. Hollenback is als(j a 
 memhcr. 
 
 EDWARD l!L'RK()L"(illS. 
 
 Ranking foremost among the enterpris- 
 ing young men of Panola township is the 
 subject of this biography, who owns and 
 ((perates one hundred and sixty acres of 
 Woodford countv's most productive soil, 
 which he keejjs under an excellent state of 
 cultivation. He is well known throughout 
 a large section of the state as one of the most 
 successful fine stock breeders of Illinois. .\1-
 
 676 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 tlioiigh lie is a young man and lias been in 
 business but a few years the excellency of the 
 fine herd of Poland China hogs found on his 
 place attests his success as a fine stock 
 breeder. He usually keeps on hand about 
 two hundred head, the value of some being 
 as high as one thousand dollars per head, 
 which is the best evidence of the liigh stand- 
 ard of his stock. 
 
 ]\Ir. Burroughs is a native of Illinois, 
 born in Washington, Tazewell county, Au- 
 gust 19, 1873, 3-"^ 's a son of William and 
 Elizabeth (Pinkham) Burroughs, natives of 
 Kentucky and Illinois, respectively. When 
 four years old he was brought to Woodford 
 county by his parents, who located in Pa- 
 nola township, on the farm where they still 
 reside. Thev are among the most promi- 
 nent and highly respected citizens of the 
 community. 
 
 Edward Burroughs was educated in the 
 public schools of Woodford county, and the 
 I^ni\-ersity of Illinois, where he was gradu- 
 ated in the class of 1895. Immediately af- 
 ter leaving school he turned his attention to 
 farming and stock breeding on his present 
 place. He was united in marriage Decem- 
 ber 24, 1895, with Miss Bessie Mayne, an 
 accomplished and estimable young lady of El 
 Paso, Illinois, and b\- this union have been 
 born two children : Eleanor Estes and 
 George Earl. 
 
 Fraternally Mr. Burroughs is a mem- 
 ber of the Masonic order, and politically is 
 an uncompromising Democrat, being recog- 
 nized as one of the active and influential 
 workers for the cause of his party. 
 
 \\'illiam S. Burroughs, the father of our 
 subject, is a prosperous farmer of Panola 
 township, \\'oodford county. He was born 
 in Christian countv, Kentuckv, June 2^, 
 1846, and is the son of William Cook and 
 
 ^Martha (Bondurant) Burroughs, the for- 
 mer being born near the Potomac river, in 
 Mrginia, in 1796, of English extractiim, and 
 the latter a native of Kentuck}-, and of 
 French descent. William Cook Burroughs 
 was a son of Traverse Burroughs, who 
 served as a commissioned officer under Gen- 
 eral Washington during the Revolutionary 
 vvar. In his native state William C. Bur- 
 roughs was a planter and sla\'e nwner, Ijut 
 in i860 he moved to \\'ashington, Tazewell 
 county, Illinois, where he followed farming" 
 the remainder of his life and died in i879_. 
 Flis wife died in Washington, Illinois, in 
 1866. They reared a family of five chil- 
 aren, of whom Elizabeth married James 
 Strickland, of El Paso, Illinois; Traverse 
 died at the age of five years ; John resides 
 near Peoria, Illinois; Frances, deceased, 
 married William Brown, of Cloverdale, Illi- 
 nois; and \\'illiam S., the father of our sub- 
 ject. 
 
 \\'illiam S. Burroughs settled near his 
 present place in 1880, and has met with good 
 success in his farming operations. He now 
 owns one thousand acres of land in Panola 
 and Palestine townships. He married Eliz- 
 abeth Pinkham, of Peoria, Illinois, October 
 17, 1872, and they became the parents of 
 nine children: Edward. our subject; 
 George, a farmer in Panola townshii); Cora 
 Belle, Omah Elizabeth and Clarence R., at 
 home; Jerry F., deceased; Lulu and Lester, 
 at home. 
 
 JOSEPH GETZ. 
 
 The well-known and efficient superin- 
 tendent of the \Voodford county poor farm, 
 on section 28, Metaniora township, was born 
 ir. that township, on the 24th of October,
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 677 
 
 1871, and has liekl Lis present position for 
 the p.'ist three years with cre(Ht to liimself 
 and to the entire satisfaction of all con- 
 cerned. His father, Joseph Getz, Sr., was 
 born in Ba\aria. (lerinany, May /, iii-i7, 
 and died in Woodford county, IlHnois, Sep- 
 tenilier 28, 1900. Jn his native country he 
 learned the blacksmith's trade, which he 
 made his life work. In 1854 he emigrated 
 to America, and at once proceeded to Illi- 
 nois, his destination l)eing- Woodforil county. 
 He opened a shop in Panola township, which 
 he conducted for some time and then moved 
 to JMetamora, where l.e carried on business 
 m.til his retirement from active labor. Here 
 lie marrietl Maggie W'aiil, who was also born 
 and reared in Germany, and came to the 
 United States with her father, Peter W'ahl, 
 who was ior some years engaged in the shoe 
 business in Melamnra. but spent his last davs 
 in Peoria. 
 
 Our subject is the third in order of birth 
 in a family of four children still living, the 
 others being: Andrew, a resident of Okla- 
 homa; Peter, of Kearney, Nebraska; and 
 Frederick, of ^letamora. Those of the fam- 
 ily now deceased are: Kate, who died at 
 the age of nine years; Rosa, who died at 
 the age of three \^ars; Eva, who died Sep- 
 tember 6, 1900, at the age of twenty-two 
 years; and Henr)- and Frank, who died in 
 infancy. 
 
 The early education of Joseph Getz, Jr., 
 was obtained in common and select schools 
 of Metamora. At tiie age of fourteen years 
 he began life for himself as a farm hand, 
 and has since devoted his time and energies 
 to agricultural pursuits. In 1891 he com- 
 menced work for Mr. MeeTc, then superin- 
 tendent of tiie poor farm, and remained in 
 Ins employ, in various capacities, for seven 
 vears. He rose to the position of foreman 
 
 and became thoroughly familiar with the 
 n-anagement of the place and the care of 
 the inmates. In December, 1897, he was 
 appointed superintendent, and has since filled 
 that responsible position in a most creditable 
 and satisfactory manner. 
 
 In Chatsworth, Livingston county, Mr. 
 Getz was married, October 5, 1897, to Miss 
 Rosa Rocke, who was born in Woodford 
 county, but was reared and educated in Liv- 
 irigston county. Her father. Henry Rocke, 
 dietl in the latter county. Both Mr. and 
 Mrs. Getz are members of the Catholic 
 cluu-ch. and he is also connected with the 
 Mndcrn Woodmen camp at Metamora. In 
 his political affiliations he is a stanch Demo- 
 crat, and as a public-spirited and progress- 
 i\e citizen he gives his support to every en- 
 terprise for the public good. 
 
 S. L. PETERSON. 
 
 In this enlightened age when men of 
 energy, industry and merit are rapidly push- 
 ing their way to the front, those who, by 
 their own individual efforts, have won favor 
 and fortune may properly claim recognition. 
 ^Ir. Peterson eminently deserves classifica- 
 tion with the self-made men of Woodford 
 count}-, who have distinguished themselves 
 for their ability to master the opposing forces 
 of life and to wrest from fate a large meas- 
 ure of success. 
 
 He was born in Salem county, New Jer- 
 sey, in 1852, and is one of a family of eight 
 children whose parents were Sanuiel and 
 Jane Peterson, also natives of New Jersey. 
 In 1856 the family left that state and moved 
 to Indiana, but six months later came to Illi- 
 ncjis, taking up their residence in Peoria
 
 678 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 county, where tlie father was engaged in 
 farming for over a year. They next made 
 their home in Farmington. and in 1858 came 
 to Woodford county, where the father en- 
 gaged in stock raising in connection with 
 farming. 
 
 During his boyhood our subject went to 
 school but little, his time being devoted to 
 farming and herding cattle. He often let 
 his herd graze on the present site of Ben- 
 son, it being at that time only prairie, and 
 up to 1879 farmed within three miles of 
 Benson. He then embarked in the grain 
 business at his present office in Benson, and 
 in 1883 bought out the lumber firm of Kipp 
 & Gordon, taking as a partner George Sauer, 
 but this connection was dissolved in 1886, 
 and Mr. Peterson has since been alone in 
 business. He has two large grain eleva- 
 tors with a capacity of one hundred thou- 
 sand bushels, and in connection with his 
 other business carries a large line of ready 
 mixed paints. He has become an extensive 
 stock dealer, and handles about half the hogs 
 shipped from Benson, which is one of the 
 largest hog shipping points in this section 
 of the state. In June, 1900, he succeeded 
 ]\Ir. Zinger as president of the Benson State 
 Bank, and now discharges the duties of that 
 position in addition to his other business en- 
 terprises. He is one of the most energetic 
 and progressive business men of the county, 
 has the genius for devising and executing the 
 right thing at the right time, which joined 
 to every day common sense and guided by 
 resistless will power, have brought to him 
 remarkable success. Connected with the 
 leading enterprises of the village the place 
 he occupies in business circles is in the front 
 rank. 
 
 ^Ir. Peterson was married, January 13, 
 1887, to Aliss Emma F. Ray, daughter of 
 
 Mrs. Susan Ray. They have one child, 
 Ray, a bright boy of eleven years. Another 
 son, Harold, died in 1895, at the age of 
 two, dying but a few days after his grand- 
 mother Ray's death. The family have a 
 l^eautiful home on Front street, which is the 
 finest residence in the town. 
 
 Mr. Peterson has been called upon to fill 
 several local positions of honor and trust, 
 such as president of the town board of trus- 
 tees, and school director for three vears. He 
 also served as postmaster during President 
 Cleveland's last administration, and by his 
 fellow citizens was considered the best post- 
 master that Benson has ever had. In all 
 the relations of life he has been found true 
 to any trust reposed in him, and is upright 
 and honorable in all his dealings. 
 
 FRANK A. VAN ALSTINE. 
 
 This well-known telegraph operator for 
 the Toledo, Peoria & Warsaw Railroad at 
 El Paso, is a native of Woodford county, 
 born in Secor, Palestine township, March 
 27, 1870, and is a son of John E. and ]\Iary 
 E. (Hart) Van Alstine, the former a na- 
 tive of Beardstown, Illinois, the latter of 
 Palestine township, Woodford county, and 
 both representatives of pioneer families of 
 this section of the state. Our subject's pa- 
 ternal grandfather, Cornelius Van Alstine, 
 conducted a general store and served as the 
 first postmaster at Secor, where his death 
 occurred. He was twice married, and by 
 one union had two sons, of whom John 
 E. is the older. There are two daughters 
 by another marriage: Mamie, wife of Jo- 
 siah Demsey, a grocer of Belvidere, Illinois; 
 and Bessie, wife of L. D. Carpenter, of Sen-
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 679 
 
 eca, Illinois. Allen Hart, our subject's ma- 
 ternal grandfather, came from New York 
 and settled in Woodford county at a very 
 early day in its development. He was also 
 married twice, and by the first union had 
 two daughters: Mary E., mother of our 
 subject: and Mrs. Lucy Darst, of Blooming- 
 ton. Illinois. The children by his second 
 marriage are : Harvey, an attorney, of 
 Bloomington ; William, a real estate dealer 
 of La Junta, Colorado; Sallie, a resident of 
 Xew York city; Clara, wife of Judge Ken- 
 nedy, of Minonk; John, a resident of Bloom- 
 ington; Edson, a physician of that city; and 
 Hester, a resident of New York city. They 
 are all connected with the leading families of 
 Woodford county. 
 
 John E. Van Alstine, father of our sub- 
 ject, came to the county with his parents 
 in 1856, and was educated in the schools of 
 Secor. On starting out in life for himself 
 he engaged in farming and stock raising, and 
 for thirty-five years has been one of the lead- 
 ing stock buyers and shippers in his locality. 
 He makes his home in Greene township, 
 where he owns a fine farm of one hundred 
 and twenty-one acres, which he has placed 
 under a high state of cultivation. Politi- 
 cally he was formerly a Democrat, but now 
 supports the Republican party, and relig- 
 iously both he and his estimable wife are 
 earnest members of the Christian church. 
 They are the parents of eleven children, of 
 whom two died in infancy. The others are : 
 Louis H., who married Ida Clay, and is en- 
 gaged in farming in Greene township; 
 Frank A., the subject of this sketch; Elmer 
 J., who married Sylvia Arnold, and lives in 
 Carlock, Illinois; Clara L.. wife of William 
 Van Scyoc, a farmer and stock raiser of 
 Palestine township; Claura R.. at home; 
 Florence E., wife of Willis McCord, a dray- 
 
 man of Roanoke. Illinois: Lida O.. Harvey 
 B. and Nellie W.. all at home. The chil- 
 dren have received good common school 
 educations. 
 
 Frank .1. A'an Alstine was reared on the 
 home farm and attended the public schools 
 of Palestine township until seventeen years 
 of age, when he went to live with his uncle, 
 R. M. Darst, a prosperous farmer of Nor- 
 mal township, McLean county, Illinois, with 
 whom he remained two years, continuing his 
 education at the same time. He then re- 
 turned to his father's farm in Greene town- 
 ship, Woodford county, for a short time, 
 and on again leaving the parental roof he 
 commenced learning telegraphy in Secor. 
 He worked as an extra operator for a short 
 time, and was then given a permanent posi- 
 tion at El Paso, being made night operator 
 and ticket agent for the Toledo, Peoria & 
 Warsaw Railroad Company, July 21, 1893. 
 That position he has since most satisfacto- 
 rily filled. By his ballot Mr. Van Alstine 
 supports the Republican party, and in the 
 fall of 1900 received the nomination of his 
 party for circuit clerk in Woodford county. 
 Since 1895 he has been a member of the 
 Christian church of El Paso, and takes an 
 active interest in church and Sunday school 
 work. Fraternally he is a Royal Arch Ma- 
 son, a member of the Knights of Pythias, the 
 Court of Honor and the Modern Woodmen 
 of America, all of El Paso. 
 
 JOSEPH DEARTH. 
 
 This well-known and prominent agri- 
 culturist has lived in diflferent parts of Olio 
 township, W'oodford county, since 1877, ^"f' 
 in March, 1892, purchased the fine farm of
 
 68o 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 eighty acres on section 21, where he now 
 resides. A native of Illinois, he was born 
 in Danvers township, ^McLean county, in 
 185s, and is a son of Randolph and Eliza- 
 beth (Fuhrman Dearth), the former a na- 
 tive of Muskingum county, Ohio, the latter 
 of Pennsylvania. They were among the 
 early pioneers of McLean county, making 
 their home in Danvers township, where 
 the father purchased a tract of wild land, 
 which he impro\-ed and placed under excel- 
 lent cultivation. L'pon that farm he con- 
 tinued to make his home throughout life, 
 and was one of the honored and highly re- 
 spected men of his community. In his po- 
 litical views he was a Democrat. He died 
 March 11, 1898, but his wife is still living, 
 and continues to make her home in Dan- 
 vers. The following children were born to 
 them: Mrs. Hannah Spickman, a resident 
 of Bloomington; Mrs. Rosina StuUer; Jo- 
 seph; Martin, of Fort Scott, Kansas; Ran- 
 kin, of Blomington; Ed, who lives on the 
 old homestead in Danvers township; Perry, 
 who makes his home near Clarksville, Iowa ; 
 and August, of Bloomington, Illinois. 
 
 Joseph Dearth was reared on the home 
 farm, and acquired his education in the pub- 
 lic schools of Danvers. Since starting out 
 in life for himself he has always engaged in 
 farming, and has met with fair success in 
 his hfe work. On the 20th of February, 
 1888, in Danvers, he married Miss Carrie 
 Ellis, a native of Pennsylvania and a daugh- 
 ter of Thomas Ellis, one of the early settlers 
 of Cruger township, Woodford county. By 
 this union were born two children, namely : 
 Mable and Bessie. 
 
 Politically jMr. Dearth is a supporter of 
 the Democratic party, and takes an active 
 interest in politics. He is a worthy repre- 
 sentative of one of the honored and highly 
 
 respected families of McLean county, and is 
 a man of exemplary habits, having never 
 drank, swore, used tobacco or played cards. 
 In this respect he has followed in the foot- 
 steps of his father, who never had any of 
 these faults. 
 
 J. D. JENKINS. 
 
 This well-known jeweler and prominent 
 business man of El Paso, was born in that 
 place. May 20, 1861, and is a worthy repre- 
 sentative of an old and honored family, 
 whose ancestr}- can be traced back about 
 nine hundred years. In 1690 four brothers 
 of the Jenkins family left their old home in 
 Wales and started for America, but one died 
 on the voyage across the Atlantic. Of 
 those who landed safely in this country Da- 
 vid Jenkins, the great-great-great-grand- 
 father of our subject, took out his land patent 
 under the William Penn charter, securing a 
 tract of land in Lancaster county, Pennsyl- 
 \'ania, which is now owned by \\'illiam ^Ic- 
 Cay, whose mother was a sister of our sub- 
 ject's father. This property has never 
 passed out of the familv. The great-grand- 
 father, who also bore the name of David 
 Jenkins, spent his entire life in Lancaster 
 county. He was one of the first to engage 
 in the smelting of iron ore in Pennsyhania 
 and the product of pig iron. His foundry 
 was probably located near Bethlehem. He 
 made the first iron sto\-e kneiwn to have lieen 
 manufactured in the United Slates, ami was 
 also engaged in the molding of shells and 
 solid shot for the Continental army during 
 the Revolutionary war. 
 
 David Jenkins, our subject's grandfather, 
 was also a life-long resident of Lancaster 
 county, Pennsylvania, though he once visited
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 68 1 
 
 his children in lUimiis. lie was born in 
 1775, and died in 1847, and his wife, who 
 bore tlie maiden name of Sarah McCammet, 
 was born in 1777 and died in 1848. 
 
 Robert Jenkins, our su1)ject's father, was 
 born in Churchtown, Lancaster county, 
 Pennsylvania, June 23, 1812, and in early 
 life learned the carpenter's trade. He first 
 came west in 1835, but soon returned to his 
 native state, and did not locate permanently 
 in Illinois until 1840, when he was accom- 
 panied by his two brothers, Isaac ami Will- 
 iam. They settled in Kickapoo township, 
 Peoria county, where the brothers operated 
 a saw-mill and grist-mill for several years, 
 but in 1856 came to Woodford county. For 
 his brothers Robert erected a store building 
 at the corner of what is now Front and Main 
 streets, in El Paso, it being the second frame 
 structure built at that place. He framed it 
 in Peoria, and the timbers were the first 
 shipment made over the Peoria & Oquawka 
 Railroad, now the Toledo, Peoria & Warsaw 
 Railroad. He engaged in contracting and 
 building at El Paso until 1864, when he re- 
 turned to Peoria county. During all this 
 time he spent the winter in Xatchez, Missis- 
 sippi, superintending the erection of build- 
 i!igs for a relative of his who was extensive- 
 ly engaged in the cotton and sugar business 
 at that place. In 1868 Robert Jenkins re- 
 nioNcd to Wyanet, Bureau county, Illinois, 
 where he remained until the fall of 1869, 
 and then went to Ladora, Iowa. In 1870 
 he moved to Viola, Mercer county, Illinois, 
 and in the spring of the following year re- 
 turned to El Paso, but in 1882 he again went 
 to Wyanet, where he died June 6, 1883. At 
 Peoria he was married, in 1854, to Miss 
 Ajalinda Kindred, of that place, who died 
 August 4, 1870. The first of the Kindred 
 family to come to .America were two broth- 
 
 ers, weavers by trade, who came from Lon- 
 don, England, in 1583. Mrs. Jenkins' 
 grandfather, Thomas Kindred, Sr., was a 
 Kentuckian by birth, but spent some time 
 ill Virginia, and then returned to Kentucky. 
 He was a soldier of the Revolutionary war, 
 and the gun that he carried in the service is 
 now in possession of our subject. It was 
 also used by Mrs. Jenkins' father, Thomas 
 Kindred, Jr., in the war of 1812. He fought 
 with General Jackson in the battle of New 
 Orleans, and was a man of exceptional cour- 
 age. He was born in X'irginia, and prior to 
 the Civil war was a wealthy distiller and 
 planter in Virginia, but during the struggle 
 lost his property. He then came to Peoria, 
 Illinois, and spent his last days in Pontiac, 
 where he died in 1873, at the extreme old 
 age of one hundred and three years. 
 
 After coming to El Paso, in 1856, Isaac 
 and Wilham Jenkins conducted a store for 
 many years, but finally sold out. Later 
 William bought it again and carried on busi- 
 ness alone until 1874. He served as the 
 first postmaster of the place, receiving his 
 appointment from President Buchanan in 
 1857. He remained a resident of El Paso 
 until 1884, when he moved to San Bernar- 
 dino, California, where he is now living a 
 retired life. He was a civil engineer and 
 held the office of city engineer of El Paso 
 for some time. He also served as alderman 
 and as mayor two terms, and as a Demo- 
 crat he took an active part in county politics. 
 When Isaac Jenkins retired from mercantile 
 business he moved to a farm about one mile 
 east of El Paso, where he spent the remain- 
 der of his life in agricultural pursuits, dying 
 there in 1880. lie was also a stanch Demo- 
 crat. His widow is still a resident of El 
 Paso township. 
 
 J. D. Jenkins, of this review, is the fourth
 
 682 
 
 THE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 
 
 ill order of birth in a family of seven chil- 
 dren, the others being Mary, wife of E. 1'. 
 Sellers, of Creston, Iowa ; William, of Wya- 
 net, Bureau county, Illinois ; John, of Chero- 
 kee, Iowa; Kate, wife of Will.iam Bailey, of 
 the same place ; Anderson, also of Cherokee, 
 Iowa; and James, a jeweler of Peoria, 
 Illinois. 
 
 J. D. Jenkins is practically self-educated, 
 as he attended school but two years. He 
 commenced life as an apprentice to the 
 printer's trade in the office of the "El Paso 
 Jotirnal," when about twelve years old, and 
 followed that occupation from 1873 to 1879. 
 He worked at the trade in Chillicothe for a 
 while, and has often assisted in the work of 
 his home paper. He set up and printed the 
 first fair daily special of the "Journal." In 
 the fall of 1879 he commenced learning the 
 jeweler's trade at El Paso, and has since de- 
 voted his attention to that busii'Less, working 
 as a journeyman in Streator for a time in 
 1884, in Minonk for about a year, and Janes- 
 ville, Wisconsin, six months. In 1887 he 
 returned to Minonk for a short time, and 
 then opened a store of his own in El Paso, 
 where today he is the leading jeweler. 
 
 On the 1 2th of October, 1886, Mr. Jen- 
 
 kins married Miss Duckie Ross, a descend- 
 ant of General Ross of Revolutionary fame, 
 whose sword is now in possession of our sub- 
 ject. Her parents were James and Kate 
 (Burger) Ross. The mother is now de- 
 ceased, but the father is still living and makes 
 liis home in El Paso. Mr. and Mrs. Jen- 
 kins have four children : Edith, Adelina, 
 Grover C. and Julius D. Socially Mr. Jen- 
 kins is a member of the Knights of Pythias, 
 the Modern Woodmen of America and the 
 Court of Honor. He is one of the promi- 
 nent Democrats of El Paso, and has been a 
 member of the county central committee 
 since 1894, being elected chairman of the 
 same in 1900. 
 
 Mr. Jenkins has the finest collection of 
 antique curios in this section of the state, 
 including an extensive collection of valuable 
 old coins, watches, firearms, two thousand 
 geological specimens, and over six thousand 
 Indian relics, including a rock crystal arrow 
 for which he has been offered fifty dollars. 
 He has a finely-carved ivory jewel box once 
 owned by Lord Byron, and a knife which 
 was once the property of Colonel Bowie, and 
 many other relics of great interest and 
 value.
 
 inde::^. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Adams, John 508 
 
 Albrecht, Joseph O 339 
 
 Allen, Dr. Joel 21 
 
 Andrews, Georgre 574 
 
 Andrews, Thomas 325 
 
 Armitage, William 202 
 
 Armstiong, John T 161 
 
 Baird, Henry C 455 
 
 Baker, Alpha 270 
 
 Balmer, John 201 
 
 Bangs, J. E 308 
 
 Barickman, Benjamm ;i37 
 
 Barickman, Charles M 298 
 
 Barickman, \V. H 424 
 
 Barnhizer.Dr.Jay G 279 
 
 Barr, Josiah N 13(> 
 
 Barton, Thomas K 34(5 
 
 Baleman, W. X 627 
 
 Bauman, Peter 156 
 
 Belsley, Moses 599 
 
 Belsley, Peter .Wl 
 
 Bennett, Aaron J 324 
 
 Bennett George E 425 
 
 Bentley, George W 429 
 
 Biddle, William 381 
 
 Bischoff.Wilhelm 85 
 
 Bocock, William H 552 
 
 Boyer, Samuel H 127 
 
 Brace, William H 1.55 
 
 Bradle, Uavid 576 
 
 Bradley, Joseph M 412 
 
 Briggs, Francis F 567 
 
 Broadhead, James J 268 
 
 Brownson, G. B 347 
 
 Brown, Jacob E 209 
 
 Brown, James 276 
 
 Brown. Joseph 313 
 
 Brubaker, A. H 619 
 
 Bruce, John H 389 
 
 Bruner.John W 199 
 
 Brunskill, Wm. S 434 
 
 Buck, Nelson 204 
 
 Burns, Charles T 2,59 
 
 Burroughs, Edward 675 
 
 Buttler, Dr. Gustavus 662 
 
 Button, Harvey 242 
 
 Caldwell, James A 86 
 
 Call, The Roanoke 606 
 
 Camp, Apollos 108 
 
 Capes, David E 146 
 
 Carson, John 628 
 
 Cavan, Judge A. M 560 
 
 Chapman, George H 248 
 
 Childs, Edwin A 569 
 
 Clandin, Joseph R 522 
 
 Cleary, Michael 320 
 
 Collins, Jeremiah 180 
 
 Conrad, H 571 
 
 Converse, Orlin 174 
 
 Cornell, Henry M 360 
 
 Countryman, Nelson 140 
 
 Cowan, Augustus W 104 
 
 Crabb, Archie 24 
 
 Crabb, John 129 
 
 Crawford, Napoleon B., M. D.. 470 
 Crawford, William T 133 
 
 VAGE 
 
 Cribben, Thomas 642 
 
 Crumbaker, John H 116 
 
 Dahl, James P 13 
 
 Damman, Henry 6.50 
 
 Daniels, Thomas A 444 
 
 Darst, Homer E 490 
 
 Davenport, William H 520 
 
 Davidson, E. K .581 
 
 Davidson, W. A 688 
 
 Davidson, W. 585 
 
 Dearth, Joseph 579 
 
 Dearth, S. B 617 
 
 Defenbaugh, Amnion 424 
 
 Defenbaugh, Elijah 3.52 
 
 Denehe, John 134 
 
 Dennis. Alichael 615 
 
 Desire, Miles 299 
 
 Dierking, Henrv 663 
 
 Dixon, Charles Albert 383 
 
 Duckett, Frederick 11 
 
 Dunham, Solon C 117 
 
 Dunmire, W. W 6.57 
 
 Earp. Charles S 402 
 
 Eckhart, J. E 476 
 
 Eichhorn, Dr. H. G .595 
 
 Eilts, Tjark 540 
 
 EUinger, John 2.57 
 
 Ellingwood, C. v.. M. D 436 
 
 Ellis, Cyrus S 378 
 
 Ellis, Thomas 612 
 
 Engel, Joseph 611 
 
 Engelsen, Lars 125 
 
 Erickson, Alfred 416 
 
 Evans, David .524 
 
 Fagot, Peter 587 
 
 Farley, Job 105 
 
 Farmers Bank The, of Roan- 
 oke 449 
 
 Farney, Joseph 211 
 
 Faw, lacob J 547 
 
 Feehan, Owen 189 
 
 Fellows, John W 235 
 
 Finchman, H. L., D. D. S 481 
 
 Finley, John M 107 
 
 Fisher, Josiah 6.55 
 
 Fisher, James N 467 
 
 Fitzgerald, M., Sr 6.56 
 
 Flagler, George Z 69 
 
 Flessner, Enno 318 
 
 Fosdick, Joel D 168 
 
 Foster, IJenjamin 609 
 
 Fox, Captain Henry 260 
 
 Frakes, Francis F 166 
 
 Francis, Joseph S 2;W 
 
 Frederick, F'rnest .594 
 
 Frederick, Wm. H 597 
 
 Fry, George 221 
 
 Gaff, James H 14 
 
 Gardner, William T 280 
 
 George, Newell P 415 
 
 ( letz, Joseph 676 
 
 Gibbons, Austin 76 
 
 Gingerich, Daniel 634 
 
 Gingrich, Jacob ;)81 
 
 Gish, Charles H .5.58 
 
 Glinnen, Dennis 369 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Goembel, William P 245 
 
 Goodman, Stephen A 71 
 
 Goodwin, I. B .537 
 
 Gordon, R. Earl, M. D 5.59 
 
 Gourlev, James P 333 
 
 Graftt, David 477 
 
 (iraham, lames K 340 
 
 Grandy, Nathan S 62 
 
 Gregory, Charles H 407 
 
 Grieser, Henry .370 
 
 Grove, Benjamin .562 
 
 Guenther, Christian 699 
 
 Guihrie, John 115 
 
 Hack, F. K 426 
 
 Hall, Riley H 641 
 
 Hancock, John 142 
 
 Harms, Louis W 490 
 
 Hart, Walter 141 
 
 Hartnian, Elias 290 
 
 Hau.sslar, F. X 631 
 
 Hawk, Alexander .538 
 
 Hayes, H. C 630 
 
 Haynes, Rev. Nathaniel S.... 578 
 
 Hays, Luther C 50 
 
 Heisner, Paul 373 
 
 Hemstreet, George W 442 
 
 Hertlein, Rev. George 306 
 
 Hester, Hon. Robt. S 492 
 
 Hodgson, Edwin 666 
 
 Hogelucht, W. C 6,58 
 
 Hoke, Charles H 292 
 
 Hoke, Samuel 278 
 
 Hoke, William E 327 
 
 Holman, Joseph A .544 
 
 Holt, Richard M 401 
 
 Hoobler, Andrew J 106 
 
 Hoobler, Erastus 114 
 
 Hoover, John W 64 
 
 Horneman, Fred -S 468 
 
 Horton, George W 430 
 
 Hoshor, Perrv W ,544 
 
 Hotaling, Miller 47 
 
 Houder, Ephraim 173 
 
 Huffman. A. W 463 
 
 Hughes. Thomas 330 
 
 Humiston. Bennet 158 
 
 Huxlable, J.H 460 
 
 Irving, James Castner 5.54 
 
 Ivins, John A 568 
 
 Jac(|uin, D 626 
 
 lamison, Simon 357 
 
 Jenkins, J. D 680 
 
 Jeter, Gideon 636 
 
 Johnson, George 655 
 
 Johnson, John Q 80 
 
 lohnson, Sherman H 267 
 
 Johnston, Thomas 122 
 
 Jones, Albert C 651 
 
 Jones, Henry C 48 
 
 Jury, William 514 
 
 Kahe, Patrick H 126 
 
 Karr, Lyon .504 
 
 Kellog, Joseph W 621 
 
 Kellogg, N. M. and T. M 73 
 
 Kenney, Thomas 441 
 
 Kent, Lester E 92
 
 684 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Kerrick, James -^O!) 
 
 Kerrick, Hon. Josiah tJU8 
 
 Ketcham, Williain H Ki^ 
 
 Kimber, \ViUiani 42 
 
 Klein, John 192 
 
 Kleen, Garner hbl 
 
 Knisht, IraM 3.58 
 
 KuU, John 84 
 
 Kuntz, Joseph 291 
 
 Large, Leonard 299 
 
 Large, William 233 
 
 Lawrence, Nelson D 178 
 
 Learned, Frank E .W3 
 
 Leffers, Herman .528 
 
 Leggate, John 3U3 
 
 Leggaie, Walter 296 
 
 Leiserovvitz, Samuel A 26.5 
 
 Lehmann, William F.C 191 
 
 Lemon. Oscar J .597 
 
 Leonard, Christopher C 3B2 
 
 Lewis, Herbert D -543 
 
 LinviUe, Prof. LG 542 
 
 Lommatch, Herman 135 
 
 Long, Charles H 74 
 
 Louderback, Liberty 374 
 
 Lovell, John Thomas 247 
 
 Lower, .A.bram 212 
 
 Lucus, Edwin R 400 
 
 Liming, William 408 
 
 McCabe, George \V 234 
 
 McClmtock, E^ L 618 
 
 McCormick, James 287 
 
 McCormick, Theodore . 418 
 
 McGregor, Charles A 130 
 
 McGuire, Hon. John L 534 
 
 McGiiire, Joseph A 500 
 
 McKinney, A. Smith 588 
 
 iMcKinnev, William 403 
 
 McMillan, William D 2.56 
 
 McOneber, H. L 636 
 
 Manhser, Albert 427 
 
 Marshall, Arthur 334 
 
 Marshall, Elijah R 600 
 
 Meek, Col. Bazel D 450 
 
 Meek, U. R 046 
 
 Meek, William M 464 
 
 Michels, John B 573 
 
 Miller, William M 302 
 
 Moore, Joseph 616 
 
 Moore, R. B 617 
 
 Morgan, Philander 387 
 
 Morris, W'illiam R 349 
 
 Morrison, Adam F 368 
 
 Morrison, Samuel G 146 
 
 Mourer, Andrew J 613 
 
 Munson, John 187 
 
 Murphy, James , l'^4 
 
 Murtaugh, Owen 236 
 
 Mver, Nelson J 33 
 
 Myers, David S .54 
 
 Myers, Henry A 486 
 
 Naffziger, Louis A 102 
 
 Nelhs, Peter G 336 
 
 Nichols, Samuel H 186 
 
 Nicol, lames 114 
 
 O'Brien, Rev. M. P 443 
 
 O'Connor, Thomas J 325 
 
 Oleson, John H 198 
 
 Oleson, John K 20 
 
 Oliver, Franklin 420 
 
 Ore, Benjamin K 584 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Oughton, John R 165 
 
 Owen, Maria 96 
 
 Parker, Jackson 517 
 
 Patterson, F. M 384 
 
 Patterson, Stephen A 391 
 
 Patton, George W 9 
 
 Patton, Silas D 639 
 
 Pearson, E. W 118 
 
 Pearson, Hammond A 351 
 
 Perryman, William 480 
 
 Peterson, S. L 677 
 
 Pettett, John A 224 
 
 Phillips, John T 390 
 
 Pifer, Michael 629 
 
 PiUsbury, Nathaniel J 176 
 
 Piper, Alexander S 431 
 
 Potter. Elvie T 2.53 
 
 Potter, S. H 80 
 
 Prisk, Samuel J 152 
 
 Quinn, Rev. James J 223 
 
 Quinn, William L 331 
 
 Rabe, Df. William Louis 282 
 
 Radford, Prof. Benjamin J. . . . 548 
 
 Ray, Jeremiah 661 
 
 Reed, Edward O 94 
 
 Reed, Henrv B 51 
 
 Reed. John E ,5.33 
 
 Reineke, Fred 428 
 
 Reising, Michael 218 
 
 Ringler, Henry 221 
 
 Riss, Frederick .■ilt8 
 
 Robeson, Columbus A 4.58 
 
 Robinson, Augustus 288 
 
 Robinson, Sylvanus S 577 
 
 Rohrer, G. E 363 
 
 Romberger, Charles L 60 
 
 Rook, William 207 
 
 Roth, William H 364 
 
 Rumbold, Robert 214 
 
 Ryerson, Thomas G 367 
 
 Saemisch, Henry A 393 
 
 Santelman, Henry J 3.50 
 
 Schafer, Christian 583 
 
 Schlosser, A. C 448 
 
 Schoenbeck, Frederick .53 
 
 Schroeder, C. G 593 
 
 Schweizer, J. B 6.53 
 
 Seamans, Henry 447 
 
 Shaf er, Adam 306 
 
 Shantz, David 300 
 
 Shedd, William W 422 
 
 Siegert, Herman E 316 
 
 Simmons, Emile A 31 
 
 Simpson, G. M 540 
 
 .Simpson, J. A 497 
 
 Skinner, George 81 
 
 Skinner, Dr. William S 281 
 
 Smith, Frank L 32 
 
 Smith, lames A 413 
 
 Smith, John H HI 
 
 Smith, Rudolph G 410 
 
 Sneyd, Albert J 2.55 
 
 Snyder Brothers 680 
 
 Somers, Michael 432 
 
 Springer, Nathan 394 
 
 Stephenson, C. M 647 
 
 Starry, Christopher W 34 
 
 Stewart, Frank R ■. . <371 
 
 Stewart, Hamilton R 10 
 
 .Stewart, John 143 
 
 St. John, William 1 157 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Stoddard, Bela M 4.56 
 
 Streid, B. F 667 
 
 Stroud, Laban M 131 
 
 Sullivan, John Francis 203 
 
 Sullivan. Lott .530 
 
 Sumner, Jarvis C 162 
 
 Sutton, [ohn B 437 
 
 Swartz, C. T..... 649 
 
 Swatsley, Henry 666 
 
 Talbott, Will L 439 
 
 Tallyn, Frederick N 523 
 
 Tambling, Myron W 406 
 
 Tanquary, Isaac Q 414 
 
 Taylor, John C 163 
 
 Taylor, William H 328 
 
 The Leslie E. Keeley Co 25 
 
 Theena, Joseph 571 
 
 Thomson, Thomas H 410 
 
 Throne & Hatfield ,• 269 
 
 Tiffany, Rev. Horace 379 
 
 Tombaugh, Charles R ' 30 
 
 Tombaugh, Mathias 29 
 
 Torrance, George 16 
 
 Trecker, Conrad 315 
 
 Truitt, Charles R 179 
 
 Tucker, F. J 478 
 
 Turner, A. B 669 
 
 Tuttle, Albert Grant 294 
 
 \"ahev, Eugene A 345 
 
 VanAlstine, F. A 678 
 
 \'ance, Rev. Samuel E 219 
 
 Van .Scyoc, A 622 
 
 Vaughan, Horatio X 188 
 
 Veerkamp, Rev. Isadore 466 
 
 Vercler, Christian 198 
 
 A'incent, Jean P. A 167 
 
 Von Nordheim, A 503 
 
 Wagenseller, Harry W 435 
 
 Watkins, Jonathan D 612 
 
 Wallace, Robert R 44 
 
 Walsh Brothers 332 
 
 Walter, George J 295 
 
 Warner, John L 653 
 
 Wassom, William W 43 
 
 Watson, Charles E 197 
 
 Watson, Henry B 395 
 
 Watson, John H .596 
 
 Weber, Leonard 93 
 
 Welte, Christian 377 
 
 Whalen, Thomas 397 
 
 Whitham, George 342 
 
 Whitmire, JoelW 319 
 
 Wilcox, Hon. E. A., M. D . . . . 482 
 WiUems, George Herman. . . . 5.50 
 
 Williamson, William A 244 
 
 Wilder, .Marshall DeF 446 
 
 Wilson, M. W .590 
 
 Winkler, George 608 
 
 W'Itt, Silas M 39 
 
 Womeldorff, George W 90 
 
 Woodling, William 123 
 
 Worthington, S. H 656 
 
 Wright, Rev. E. F 23 
 
 Wyatt, James T., M. D 499 
 
 Wylie, Samuel 501 
 
 Yates, Albert L 185 
 
 Zeller, Dr. J. G 607 
 
 Zimmerman, Ernest 519 
 
 Zinser, Harley A., M. D 479 
 
 Zollinger, William W 438
 
 tv/(i