-LI B RARY
OF THE
UN IVE.RSITY
Of ILLINOIS
IIDitii Historical Survej
. — *:>
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
n
Containing Sio graphical Sketches of pioneers ana Ceabing Citizens.
"Biography is the only true history." --Emerson.
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW PUBLISHING CO.
1892.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
10
George Washington 9
John Adams 14
Thomas Jefferson 20
James Madison 26
James Monroe 32
John Quincy Adams 38
Andrew Jackson 47
Martin Van Buren 52
William Henry Harrison 56
John Tyler 60
James K. Polk 64
Zachary Taylor 68
Millard Fillmore ".2
Franklin Pierce 70
James Buchanan 80
Abraham Lincoln 84
Andrew Johnson ! 3
Ulysses S. Grant 96
R. B.Hayes 102
J. A. Garfield . . . '. 109
Chester A. Arthur 113
Grover Cleveland 117
Benjamin Harrison 120
CONTENTS.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
Adams, Wm. T 244
Agnew, Jas. M 321
Alexander, W. L 288
Allard, Cad 271
Allen,, A. R 366
Alleu, D. H 382
Allison, Jos ... 430
Allphin,G. W 133
Allphin, Z 134
Anderson, E. M 610
Anderson, Frank 820
Anderson, Robert 580
Anderson, V 405
Angler, F. L 258
Arenz, J. A 236
Armstrong, Thomas 5(i8
Aten, C. L 438
Aten, Robert 391
Avery, Philander 181
Ayers, M 144
B
Bacon, H. M . 458
Bader, Wm 291
Bagby, John. C 150
Baker, N. W 541
Baujan, John 496
Baujan, H. J 508
Barneycastle, G. W 580
Barry, L. T 378
Barton, Thos 406
Baxter, H. B 387
Beatty, J. J 568
Becker, Conrad 538
Beckwith,E. W 203
Bell, Ira 589
Bennett, John. L 238
Berry, F. E 139
Berry, O. A*. 233
Bertholf, Edward 520
Black, Isaac 549
Black, J. F 128
Black. John. H 296
Black, J. M 174
Black, R. S .. 616
Black, W.T 132
Blackburn, B. M 369
Bleyer, J. W 523
Blose, D. A 474
Bokemeier, Chas 246
Bolle, E. H 488
Bollman, W. C 201
Boone, N. H 471
Bordenkircher, Geo 143
Bowe, Mrs. M. F 606
Boyd, Mark 160
Boyd, Richard 540
Brackenridge, W. H 357
Bradbury, J. T 159
Brannan, Stephen 521
Briar, Joseph 272
Brockman, Wash 131
Brockschmidt, Christian 503
Broker, Win A 287
Brooks, Martin 164
Brown. Robt 280
Browning, J.J 898
Brumback, W. L 504
Buck, J.J 318
Buracker, Win 153
Burnside, Wm. H 361
Bush, Richard 533
Byrns, G. A 341
Cady, F. E 507
Cady, Henry 209
Cady, M. E 283
Calef, S. L 146
Campbell, G. S 220
Campbell, Geo. W 515
Campbell, L. C 313
Campbell, Pauline 464
Campbell, Wm 365
Carles, L. M 166
Carls, J. 1 1 458
Carr, David 446
Carter, Thomas H 259
Chaltant, T. J 497
Clark, Abner A 323
Clark, Elias 522
Clark, F. A 438
Clark, J.H 529
Clark, J. K 187
Clark, J. T. 316
Clark, L. W 188
Clark, T.J 206
Clark, W. A 316
Cleek, M. M 403
Clifford, Michael 176
Coil, A. S 488
Coleman, Wm. H 270
Colt, D. P 389
Coningham, Grove 289
Conover, Geo 367
Cook,S. W 541
Cosner, Jos. L 350
Cox, Wm. M 164
Cramer, Englebert 576
Crampton, S. C 391
Craske, Henry 151
Crawford, Jas 170
Crum, G. W 219
Crutn, H. J 443
Crum, Jas 436
Crum, Thos. J 312
Cunningham, A 343
Cunningham, James 416
Cuningham, T. E 513
Curry, F. M 161
D
Daniel, J. W 4] 8
Darnell, Jesse 597
Davis, F. E 360
Davis, J. A 307
Davis, J.H 415
Davis, W. B 180
Davis, Wm. J 199
De Counter, Samuel 311
Demaree, W. L 381
Deppe, J. H 396
De Witt, Jas 262
De Witt, Jas. L 497
Dick, Levi 216
Dirreen, John 345
Dodds, David 371
Dodge, J. S 290
Dorselt, C 420
Dorsett, W. D 157
Downing, F. E 584
Druse, W. H 577
Ducharclt, Christian 357
Dunlap, C. M 491
Dunn, Chas. N 136
Dunn, R. H 865
Dupes, Christian 239
Dyson, Edwin 333
Edgar, A. C 137
Edmonston, Enoch 195
Edwards, J. M 507
Eif'ert, Geo. H 260
Elliott, John 333
Ellis, S. E 304
Emmerson, Wm. T 588
Erwin, Geo. W 599
Erwin, Lewis D 461
Evans, Hiram 437
F
Fields, G. 1 249
Fischer, Henry Jr 545
Flinn, J.C 387
Foote, John 61S
Foster, H. T 179
Frank, Ed S 449
Frankenfield.Theo 473
Freesen. Wm 594
Frey, John. Geo 485
Frisby, Geo. W 525
Fulks, R. B 512
Funk, H. C. 612
CONTENTS.
G
Gapeu, Thos 587
Garni, Henry 442
Garner, I. R 581
Garner, W.S 423
Gaut. W. P 493
Gen -ish, Cynthia 46(i
Gerrish, Jacob D 466
Gibson, Ira N 480
Gifford, Jog 233
Glandon, John 454
Glaze, W. W 245
Glover, W. S 561
Goodell, J. H 385
Green, Nancy 198
Greenwell, Wm. M 170
Greer,Geo 802
Greer.J.L 578
Greer, M. W 130
Greve, Henry 417
Griffith, K. H 478
Griffith, W. H 558
Grimwood W. M 516
Grover, Jas 519
Grover, H. P 530
H
Hackman, E. F 211
Hackraan, Wm 23>
Hageman, A. L 567
Hagener, Ed 495
Hagener, John H 320
Hager, Ly man 432
Hale, Wm . . 505
Hall, E.G 445
Hambaugh, J. M 601
Hammer, F. A 242
Hansmeyer, H 127
Harbison, Martha J 352
Harbison, Moses 470
Hardiug, Peyton 548
Harris, Maro 557
Harshey, Amos. 450
Hash, Zachariah 490
Hayes, J. W 579
Heaton, Henry W 401
Heaton, John 37!)
Hedgcock, A. J 193
Hedgcock, Joshua 344
Herron, David 143
Herzberger, Conrad 39!)
Hierman H. A 537
Higgius, Jackson 279
Hiles,Jas B19
Hill, A 575
Hill, Chas 451
Hill, Israel 359
Hills, John. T 517
Hind 111:111, Samuel 552
Hines, H . .; 433
llimiun. Mrs. M 556
llin.-s H 433
Hottman, Geo. H 551
Hoffman, J. C '. 511
Hood, S. .1 271
Horrom, Cyrus 181
Horton, John. D 324
Howell, Jacob 524
Howell, Tlios. S 383
Hueschen, John 421
Huff,G. P 479
Huge, F. W 512
Hunt, Jos 197
Huppers, Wm 136
HUBS', C. J 611
Huss, John. F 301
Irwin, C. N 441
Jackson, Ezra 205
Jackson, Mary 590
Jaques, Hiram 256
Jockisch, Ernest "620
Jockisch, Wm 346
Johnson, C. F 294
Johnston, D. W. C 600
Jokisch, C. T 145
Jokisch, C. G 141
Jokisch, Philip 377
Jones, C. E 210
Jones, Thos 353
Juett, Chas. H- 535
K
Kallasch, Adolph 402
Keil, H. C 241
Keith, P. K 486
Kendrick, John. G 612
Kennedy, Charles 426
Kerley, King 410
Kerr, John 196
Kircher, John 007
Kirkham, Geo. H 527
Kloker, L. F 298
Knight, Thos 252
Korsmeyer, F. W 153
Korsmeyer, H. H : 400
Korte, Henry C 273
Krohe, August 562
Krohe, Henry W 283
Krohe, Fred 259
Krohe, Henry C 310
Krohe, Lewis E 395
Krueger, C. S 467
Kruse, F. H. D 465
Kuhl, George 277
Kuhlmann, Chris 381
Lambert, Wm J 534
Lancaster, Reuben 352
Lane, C. M 484
Lang, F. C 340
Larash, W. I 308
Launer, T. C 595
Lawler, J. Thomas 480
Lawrence, Frank 429
Leach. E. D :!17
Lee, W. H 392
Leek, H 477
Leeper, A. A 330
Leib, E 571
Lewis, Azariah 222
Linn, D. C 570
Listmann, John , 374
Little, Robt 574
Logsdon, Aaron 476
Logsdon, Andrew c2(i
Logsdon, Joseph . 531
Logsdon, Perry 203
Lovekamp, H. H 554
Lowry, A. K 175
Lucas, G. W 407
Lucas, Newton 155
Lucas, Wm 384
Lutterell, Mrs. S. B 348
Lyons, Daniel 593
H
Main, Z. E 318
Manlove, Wm. B 248
Marshall, A. L 399
Martin, Rachel D 414
Matthew, James D 332
Mayreis, Conrad 314
McCabe, Dr. A. A 560
McCabe, John 159
McCaskill, W. H 583
McClintock, J. W 539
McCormick, A. B 425
McCoy, G. W 344
McCreery, W. T 494
McDannold, J. J 194
McDannold, T. 1 246
McFarland, R. N 324
McKee, Wm 334
McMaster, R. B 230
McPhail, Angus 536
Mead, A. J 200
Mead, R. H 212
Meats, Isaac 459
Merscher, J. W 356
Merz.John 483
Meserve, N. P 563
Meservey, Joseph 297
Meyer, Fred 551
Meyer, F. W 204
Meyer, Henry 535
Meyer, H. C 329
Meyer, H. W 274
Milby,E.T 554
Miller, Aaron 280
Miller, Samuel ..".• 592
Mills, R. W 253
Milner, R 390
Misenhimer, Isaac. 515
Mohlmann, W. G 234
Moore, Alex 481
Moore. J. B 278
Moore, 8. A 566
Morrell, Wm 434
Morris, J. W 473
Muhlert, Francis 585
Mumford, Wm. N 404
Munroe, Thomas 125
Murphy, J. P 502
CONTENTS.
vii
N
Neeley, James '. 484
Neeley, J. E 544
Newbold, H. Y 575
Newman, Robt 453
Nicholson, J. S 244
Nieman, C. E 472
Niestradt, H. C 553
Noble A. L 342
Nokes, S. D 261-
Norbury, C. J.' 237
O
Oetgen, Win 142
Oetgen, H. W 455
Orr, D. W 588
Orwig, J. W 572
Osborn, R. J 370
Owens, D. W 394
Parke, Jos 544
Parke, Overton 349
Parrott, Thos. P 227
Parsons, Norman 223
Pattesou, Jonathan 138
Patterson, Jas. M 559
Pence, Joseph 322
Perry, 1 241
Perry, Jas 509
Perry, Win 557
Persinger, L. G 326
Petefisb, S. H 372
Pevehouse, I. N 428
Phelps, Chas. H 531
Philippi, P. P 358
Pilger, C 368
Pilger, \Tm 506
Plaster, Jeptha 498
Price, F. C 240
Price, Mrs. Wm 140
Price, Wm. T 305
Prince, F. R 424
Pruett, J. S 167
R
Ranney, S. T 174
Ravenscroft, Mary F 411
Read, Jas. M 468
Redman, B. F 200
Redfield, T. M 361
Reeve, S. A 202
Reid Duncan, 294
Reno, W. C 563
Rice, Chauncey 163
Rich, Robert 435
Richardson, Geo. E 574
Rickard, P. W 189
Rigg, J. N 287
Rigg, Peter 309
Rink, Anton 295
Ritchea, George 319
Ritchey, Chas. D 546
Ritchey, F. T 601
Ritchey, Jacob 335
Bitter, Henry D 350
Robinson, J. F 28!
Robison, Jas. N 172
Rogge, H. H 404
Rohn, Casper 228
Rohn, J. Henry . . 231
Rohn, Wm 483
Rottger, F. W 179
Rowland, B. L 564
Rowland, T. J 510
Runkle, Darius • 452
Ryan, Thos 249
S
Sandidge, John 299
Sands, R. E 604
Saunders, Mrs. C 555
Savage, Henry S 355
Scanland, S. W 261
Schaad, Andrew 275
Schaar, Theodore 460
Schaeffer, C. A 336
Schewe, Wm 569
Schisler, Lewis 515
Schmitt, Geo. J 485
Schmoldt, H. M 182
Schroder, Samuel M 292
Schroeder, H. J 274
Schultz, H. C 315
Schultz, John 468
Schuman, Adam 154
Scoggan, W. D 172
Scott, E. J 167
Scott, Leonidas 139
Scott, T. W 188
Scott, T. W 196
Seaman, J. W 221
Seasly, Adam P 226
Seckman, Nancy P 264
Seeley, E. H. O .. . 184
Serrot, Leonard 448
Settles, Gilderoy 444
Sewall, Wm 456
Shafer, Mrs. E 169
Shank, John 147
Shupe, W. K 331
Sielschott, A. H 177
Six, A. D 214
Bkiles, H. A 518
Skiles, Oswell 375
Slack, N. G 565
Smith, A. M 362
Smith, D. G 431
Smith, J. J 495
Smith, T. L 469
Snyder, Geo. E 500
Snyder, J. F 604
Snyder, J. H 397
Snyder, J. W 135
Spencer, J. M 207
Spring, Ebenezer
Stark, Henry , 429
Stephens, Daniel 229
Stevenson, Wm 373
Stock, Casper 422
Stout, A. L 532
Stout, F. M 350
Stover, D. Marion 165
Stribling, 1. M 418
Stutsman, J. S B25
Sutherland, H. R 5^7
Sutton, Nathan 327
Talkemeyer, Wm 459
Taylor, Duncan 192
Taylor, H. W 217
Taylor, Robt 427
Teel, Jas. A 185
Thomas, Peter.'. 447
Thomas, Wm... 571
Thompson, A. M 301
Thompson, J. D 218
Thron, David 525
Tinney, C. M 368
Treadway, E. N 269
Treadway, W. T 213
Trone, Geo. W 149
Tureman, J. H 614
Tyson, Wm. T 266
U
Unland, John 284
Unland, Dr. W. G 591
Utter, G. D 257
Van Deventer, J. F 191
Van Deventer, L. J 419
Van Deventer, T. R 285
Venires. Henry 347
Vette, Henry 475
W
Wagner, George 388
Wagner, Gregory, Jr 364
Walker, C. T 300
Walker, D. N 265
Walker, John H 538
Walker, J. S 617
Ward. Wm. W 393
Warden, F. A 156
Watkins, Jas. M 224
Watts, Thos. W 463
Way, Win. A 309
Webb, Allen 542
Webb, John 586
Webb, J. W ,. 487
Weigard, Wm 503
Wellfare, F. E 162
Wells, R 149
Wetzel, John. B 311
Whetstone, Marcus 462
Wier, Geo. H 598
Wight, Jesse 308
Williams, G. W 247
Williams, P. S 420
Williams, R. E 501
Williams, T. R 207
Wilson, B. R 613
Wilson, D. D 276
Wilson, Geo. W. & F. M 619
Wilson, Jas. M 613
viii
CONTENTS.
Wilson, Thos 293
Wilson, Win. B 613
Winuokl, F 598
Witte, Henry F 251
Wood, Wm 489
Wright, S. G
Wyatt, W. .M
492
408
Young, Mrs. Almira 543
Young, J. A 231
Zaun Henry 550
Zimmer, Lewis, Sr., 573
Zimmer, Lewis, Jr 597
Z'mmerman, Geo. W 440
Zimmerman, Jacob 389
GEORGE WASHINGTON.
EORGE WASHING-
TON, the " Father of
his Country" and its
first President, 1789-
'97, was born Febru-
ary 22, 1732, in Wash-
ington Parish, West-
moreland County, Virginia.
His father, Augustine Wash-
ington, first married Jane But-
ler, who bore him four chil-
dren, and March 6, 1730, he
married Mary Ball. Of six
children by his second mar-
riage, George was the eldest,
the others being Betty, Samuel, John, Au-
gustine, Charles and Mildred, of whom the
youngest died in infancy. Little is known
of the early years of Washington, be3rond
the fact that the house in which he was
born was burned during his early child-
hood, and that his father thereupon moved
to another farm, inherited from his paternal
ancestors, situated in Stafford County, on
the north bank of the Rappahannock, where
he acted as agent of the Principio Iron
Works in the immediate vicinity, and died
there in 1743.
From earliest childhood George devel-
oped a noble character. He had a vigorous
constitution, a fine form, and great bodily
strength. His education was somewhat de-
fective, being confined to the elementary
branches taught him by his mother and at
a neighboring school. He developed, how-
ever, a fondness for mathematics, and en-
joyed in that branch the instructions of a
private teacher. On leaving school he re-
sided for some time at Mount Vernon with
his half brother, Lawrence, who acted as
his guardian, and who had married a daugh-
ter of his neighbor at Belvoir on the Poto-
mac, the wealthy William Fairfax, for some
time president of the executive council of
the colony. Both Fairfax and his son-in-law,
Lawrence Washington, had served with dis-
tinction in 1740 as officers of an American
battalion at the siege of Carthagena, and
were friends and correspondents of Admiral
Vernon, for whom the latter's residence on
the Potomac has been named. George's
inclinations were for a similar career, and a
midshipman's warrant was procured for
him, probably through the influence of the
Admiral ; but through the opposition of his
mother the project was abandoned. The
family connection with the Fairfaxes, how-
ever, opened another career for the young
man, who, at the age of sixteen, was ap-
pointed surveyor to the immense estates of
the eccentric Lord Fairfax, who was then
on a visit at Belvoir, and who shortly after-
ward established his baronial residence at
Grcenway Court, in the Shenundoah Valley.
30
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
Three years were passed by young Wash-
ington in a rough frontier life, gaining ex-
perience which afterward proved very es-
sential to him.
In 1751, when the Virginia militia were
put under training with a view to active
service against France, Washington, though
only nineteen years of age, was appointed
Adjutant with the rank of Major. In Sep-
tember of that year the failing health of
Lawrence Washington rendered it neces-
sary for him to seek a warmer climate, and
Ge irge accompanied him in a voyage to
Bai Dadoes. They returned early in 1752,
and Lawrence shortly afterward died, leav-
ing h.s large property to an infant daughter.
In his will George was named one of the
executors and as eventual heir to Mount
Vernon, and by the death of the infant niece
soon succeeded to that estate.
On the arrival of Robert Dinwiddie as
Lieutenant-Governor of Virginia in 1752
the militia was reorganized, and the prov-
ince divided into four districts. Washing-
ton was commissioned by Dinwiddie Adju-
tant-General of the Northern District in
1753, and in November of that year a most
important as well as hazardous mission was
assigned him. This was to proceed to the
Canadian posts recently established on
French Creek, near Lake Erie, to demand
in the name of the King of England the
withdrawal of the French from a territory
claimed by Virginia. This enterprise had
been declined by more than one officer,
since it involved a journey through an ex-
tensive and almost unexplored wilderness
in the occupancy of savage Indian tribes,
either hostile to the English, or of doubtful
attachment. Major Washington, however,
accepted the commission with alacrity ; and,
accompanied by Captain Gist, he reached
Fort Le Boeuf on French Creek, delivered
his dispatches and received reply, which, of
course, was a polite refusal to surrender the
posts. This reply was of such a character
as to induce the Assembly of Virginia to
authorize the executive to raise a regiment
of 300 men for'the purpose of maintaining
the asserted rights of the British crown
over the territory claimed. As Washing-
ton declined to be a candidate for that post,
the command of this regiment was given to
Colonel Joshua Fry, and Major Washing-
ton, at his own request, was commissioned
Lieutenant-Colonel. On the march to Ohio,
news was received that a party previously
sent to build a fort at the confluence of the
Monongahela with the Ohio had been
driven back bv a considerable French force,
which had completed the work there be-
gun, and named it Fort Duquesne, in honor
of the Marquis Duquesne, then Governor
of Canada. This was the beginning of the
great " French and Indian war," which con-
tinued seven years. On the death of Colonel
Fry, Washington succeeded to the com-
mand of the regiment, and so well did he
fulfill his trust that the Virginia Assembly
commissioned him as Commander-in-Chief
of all the forces raised in the colony.
A Cessation of all Indian hostility on the
frontier having followed the expulsion of
the French from the Ohio, the object of
Washington was accomplished and he re-
signed his commission as Commander-in-
Chief of the Virginia forces. He then pro-
ceeded to Williamsburg to take his seat in
the General Assembly, of which he had
been elected a member.
January 17, 1759, Washington married
Mrs. Martha (Dandridge) Custis, a young
and beautiful widow of great wealth, and de-
voted himself for the ensuing fifteen years
to the quiet pursuits of agriculture, inter-
rupted only by his annual attendance in
winter upon the Colonial Legislature at
Williamsburg, until summoned by his
country to enter upon that other arena in
which his fame was to become world wide.
It is unnecessary here to trace the details
of the struggle upon the question ol local
GEORGE WASHINGTON.
it
self-government, which, after ten years, cul-
minated by act of Parliament of the port of
Boston. It was at the instance of Virginia
that a congress of all the colonies was called
to meet at Philadelphia September 5, 1774,
to secure their common liberties — if possible
by peaceful means. To this Congress
Colonel Washington was sent as a dele-
gate. On dissolving in October, it recom-
mended the colonies to send deputies to
another Congress the following spring. In
the meantime several of the colonies felt
impelled to raise local forces to repel in-
sults nnd aggressions on the part of British
troops, so that on the assembling of the next
Congress, May 10, 1775, the war prepara-
tions of the mother country were unmis-
takable. The battles of Concord and Lex-
ington had been fought. Among the earliest
acts, therefore, of the Congress was the
selection of a commander-in-chief of the
colonial forces. This office was unani-
mously conferred upon Washington, still a
member of the Congress. He accepted it
on June 19, but on the express condition he
should receive no salary.
He immediately repaired to the vicinity
of Boston, against which point the British
ministry had concentrated their forces. As
early as April General Gage had 3,000
troops in and around this proscribed city.
During the fall and winter the British policy
clearly indicated a purpose to divide pub-
lic sentiment and to build up a British party
in the colonies. Those who sided with the
ministry were stigmatized by the patriots
as " Tories," while the patriots took to them-
selves the name of " Whigs."
As early as 1776 the leading men had
come to the conclusion that there was no
hope except in separation and indepen-
dence. In May of that year Washington
wrote from the head of the army in New
York: "A reconciliation with Great Brit-
ain is impossible When I took
command of the army, I abhorred the idea
of independence ; but I am now fully satis-
tied that nothing else will save us."
It is not the object of this sketch to trace
the military acts of the patriot hero, to
whose hands the fortunes and liberties of
the United States were confided during the
seven years' bloody struggle that ensued
until the treaty of 1783, in which England
acknowledged the independence of each of
the thirteen States, and negotiated with
them, jointly, as separate sovereignties. The
merits of Washington as a military chief-
tain have been considerably discussed, espe-
cially by writers in his own country. Dur-
ing the war he was most bitterly assailed
for incompetency, and great efforts were
made to displace him ; but he never for a
moment lost the confidence of either the
Congress or the people. December 4, 1783,
the great commander took leave of his offi-
cers in most affectionate and patriotic terms,
and went to Annapolis, Maryland, where
the Congress of the States was in session,
and to that body, when peace and order
prevailed everywhere, resigned his com-
mission and retired to Mount Vernon.
It was in 1788 that Washington was called
to the chief magistracy of the nation. He
received every electoral vote cast in all the
colleges of the States voting for the office
of President. The 4th of March, 1789, was
the time appointed for the Government of
the United States to begin its operations,
but several weeks elapsed before quorums
of both the newly constituted houses of the
Congress were assembled. The city of New
York was the place where the Congrees
then met. April 16 Washington left his
home to enter upon the discharge of his
new duties. He set out with a purpose ot
traveling privately, and without attracting
any public attention ; but this was impossi-
ble. Everywhere on his way he was met
with thronging crowds, eager to see the
man whom they regarded as the chief de-
fender of their liberties, and everywhere
12
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
he was hailed with those public manifesta-
tions of joy, regard and love which spring
spontaneously from the hearts of an affec-
tionate and grateful people. His reception
in New York was marked by a grandeur
and an enthusiasm never before witnessed
in that metropolis. The inauguration took
place April 30, in the presence of an immense
multitude which had assembled to witness
the new and imposing ceremony. The oath
of office was administered by Robert R.
Livingston, Chancellor of the State. When
this sacred pledge was given, he retired
with the other officials into the Senate
chamber, where he delivered his inaugural
address to both houses of the newly con-
stituted Congress in joint assembly.
In the manifold details of his civil ad-
ministration, Washington proved himself
equal to the requirements ol his position.
The greater portion of the first session of
the first Congress was occupied in passing
the necessary statutes for putting the new
organization into complete operation. In
the discussions brought up in the course of
this legislation the nature and character of
the new system came under general review.
On no one of them did any decided antago-
nism of opinion arise. All held it to be a
limited government, clothed only with spe-
cific powers conferred by delegation from
the States. There was no change in the
name of the legislative department ; it still
remained " the Congress of the United
States of America." There was no change
in the original flag of the country, and none
in the seal, which still remains with the
Grecian escutcheon borne by the eagle,
with other emblems, under the great and
expressive motto, " E Plunbus [/num."
The first division of parties arose upon
the manner of construing the powers dele-
gated, and they were first styled " strict
constructionists " and " latitudinarian con-
structionists." The former were for con-
fining the action of the Government strictly
within its specific and limited sphere, while
the others were for enlarging its powers by
inference and implication. Hamilton and
Jefferson, both members of the first cabinet,
were regarded as the chief leaders, respect
ively, of these rising antagonistic parties,
which have existed, under different names
from that day to this. Washington was re-
garded as holding a neutral position between
them, though, by mature deliberation, he
vetoed the first apportionment bill, in 1790,
passed by the party headed by Hamilton,
which was based upon a principle construct-
ively leading to centralization or consoli-
dation. This was the first exercise of the
veto power under the present Constitution.
It" created considerable excitement at the
time. Another bill was soon passed in pur-
suance of Mr. Jefferson's views, which has
been adhered to in principle in every ap,
portionment act passed since.
At the second session of the new Con-
gress, Washington announced the gratify-
ing fact of " the accession of North Caro-
lina" to the Constitution of 1787, and June
i of the same year he announced by special
message the like " accession of the State of
Rhode Island," with his congratulations on
the happy event which " united under the
general Government " all the States which
were originally confederated.
In 1792, at the second Presidential elec-
tion, Washington was desirous to retire ;
but he yielded to the general wish of the
country, and was again chosen President
by the unanimous vote of every electoral
college. At the third election, 1796, he was
again most urgently entreated to consent to
remain in the executive chair. This he
positively refused. In September, before
the election, he gave to his countrymen his
memorable Farewell Address, which in lan-
guage, sentiment and patriotism was a fit
and crowning glory of his illustrious life.
After March 4, 1797, he again retired to
Mount Vernon for peace, quiet and repose.
fiEOffOE WASHINGTON.
His administration for the two terms had 1
been successful beyond the expectation and
hopes of even the most sanguine of his
friends. The finances of the country were
no longer in an embarrassed condition the
public credit was fully restored, life was
given to every department of industry, the
workings of the new system in allowing
Congress to raise revenue from duties on
imports proved to be not only harmonious
in its federal action, but astonishing in its
results upon the commerce and trade of all
the States. The exports from the Union
increased from $19,000,000 to over $56,000,-
ooo per annum, while the imports increased
in about the same proportion. Three new
members had been added to the Union. The
progress of the States in their new career
under their new organization thus far was
exceedingly encouraging, not only to the
friends of liberty within their own limits,
but to their sympathizing allies in all climes
and countries.
CM the call again made on this illustrious
chief to quit his repose at Mount Vernon
and take command of all the United States
forces, with the rank of Lieutenant-General,
when war was threatened with France in
1798, nothing need here be stated, except to
note the fact as an unmistakable testimo-
nial of the high regard in which he was still
held by his countrymen, of all shades of po-
litical opinion. He patriotically accepted
this trust, but a treaty of peace put a stop
to all action under it. He again retired to
Mount Vernon, where, after a short and
severe illness, he died December 14, 1799,
in the sixty-eighth year of his age. The
whole country was filled with gloom by this
sad intelligence. Men of all parties in poli-
tics and creeds in religion, in every State
in the Union, united with Congress in " pay-
ing honor to the man, first in war, first in
peace, and first in the hearts of his country-
men."
His remains were deposited in a tamilj
vault on the banks of the Potomac at Mount
Vernon, where they still lie entombed.
PRESIDENTS Of Tt/B UNITED STATES.
OHN ADAMS, the second
President of the United
States, 1797 to 1 80 1, was
born in the present town
of Quincy, then a portion
of Braintree, Massachu-
setts, October 30, 1735. His
father was a farmer of mod-
erate means, a worthy and
industrious man. He was
a deacon in the church, and
was very desirous of giving
his son a collegiate educa-
tion, hoping that he would
become a minister of the
gospel. But, as up to this
time, the age of fourteen, he had been only
a play-boy in the fields and forests, he had
no taste for books, he chose farming. On
being set to work, however, by his father
out in the field, the very first day con-
verted the boy into a lover of books.
Accordingly, at the age of sixteen he
entered Harvard College, and graduated in
1755, at the age of twenty, highly esteemed
for integrity, energy and ability. Thus,
having no capital but his education, he
started out into the stormy world at a time
of great political excitement, as France and
England were then engaged in their great
seven-years struggle for the mastery over
the New World. The fire of patriotism
seized young Adams, and for a timr he
studied over the question whether he
should take to the law, to politics or the
army. He wrote a remarkable letter to a
friend, making prophecies concerning the
future greatness of this country which have
since been more than fulfilled. For two
years he taught school and studied law,
wasting no odd moments, and at the carry
age of twenty-two years he opened a law
office in his native town. His inherited
powers of mind and untiring devotion to
his profession caused him to rise rapidly
in public esteem.
In October, 1764, Mr. Adams married
Miss Abigail Smith, daughter of a clergy-
man at Weymouth and a lady of rare per-
sonal and intellectual endowments, who
afterward contributed much to her hus-
band's celebrity.
Soon the oppression of the British in
America reached its climax. The Boston
merchants employed an attorney by the
name of James Otis to argue the legality of
oppressive tax law before the Superior
Court. Adams heard the argument, and
afterward wrote to a friend concerning the
ability displayed, as follows : " Otis was a
flame of fire. With a promptitude of
classical allusion, a depth of research, a
rapid summary of historical events and
dates, a profusion of legal authorities and a
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLIHOIS
JOHN
prophetic glance into futurity, he hurried
away all before him. American independence
was then and there born. Every man of an
immensely crowded audience appeared to
me to go away, as I did, ready to take up
arms."
Soon Mr. Adams wrote an essay to be
read before the literary club of his town,
upon the state of affairs, which was so able
as to attract public attention. It was pub- j
lished in American journals, republished j
in England, and was pronounced by the ;
friends of the colonists there as " one of the
very best productions ever seen from North
America."
The memorable Stamp Act was now
issued, and Adams entered with all the
ardor of his soul into political life in order
to resist it. He drew up a series of reso-
lutions remonstrating against the act, which
were adopted at a public meeting of the
citizens of Braintree, and which were sub-
sequently adopted, word for word, by more
than forty towns in the State. Popular
commotion prevented the .Janding of the
Stamp Act papers, and the English author-
ities then closed the courts. The town of
Boston therefore appointed Jeremy Grid-
ley, James Otis and John Adams to argue a
petition before the Governor and council
for the re-opening of the courts; and while
the two first mentioned attorneys based
their argument upon the distress caused to
the people by the measure, Adams boldly
claimed that the Stamp Act was a violation
both of the English Constitution and the
charter of the Provinces. It is said that
this was the first direct denial of the un-
limited right of Parliament over the colo-
nies. Soon after this the Stamp Act was
repealed.
Directly Mr. Adams was employed to
defend Ansel 1 Nickerson, who had killed an
Englishman in the act of impressing him
(Nickerson) into the King's service, and his
client was acquitted, the court thus estab-
lishing the principle that the infamous
royal prerogative of impressment could
have no existence in the colonial code.
But in 1770 Messrs. Adams and Josiah
Quincy defended a party of British soldiers
who had been arrested for murder when
they had been only obeying Governmental
orders ; and when reproached for thus ap-
parently deserting the cause of popular
liberty, Mr. Adams replied that he would a
thousandfold rather live under the domina-
tion of the worst of England's kings than
under that of a lawless mob. Next, after
serving a term as a member of the Colonial
Legislature from Boston, Mr. Adams, find-
ing his health affected by too great labor,
retired to his native home at Braintree.
The year 1774 soon arrived, with its fa-
mous Boston " Tea Party," the first open
act of rebellion. Adams was sent to the
Congress at Philadelphia ; and when the
Attorney-General announced that Great
Britain had " determined on her system,
and that her power to execute it was irre-
sistible," Adams replied : " I know that
Great Britain has determined on her sys-
tem, and that very determination deter-
mines me on mine. You know that I have
been constant in my opposition to her
measures. The die is now cast. I have
passed the Rubicon. Sink or swim, live or
die, with my country, is my unalterable
determination." The rumor beginning to
prevail at Philadelphia that the Congress
had independence in view, Adams foresaw
that it was too soon to declare it openly.
II 2 advised every one to remain quiet in
that respect; and as soon as it became ap-
parent that he himself was for independ-
ence, he was advised to hide himself, which
he did.
The next year the great Revolutionary
war opened in earnest, and Mrs. Adams,
residing near Boston, kept her husband ad-
vised by letter of all the events transpiring
in her vicinity. The battle of Bunker Hill
PRESIDENTS OF THE UN /TED STATES.
came on. Congress had to do something
immediately. The first thing was to
choose a commander-in-chief for the — we
can't say " army " — the fighting men of the
colonies. The New England delegation
was almost unanimous in favor .of appoint-
ing General Ward, then at the head of the
Massachusetts forces, but Mr. Adams urged
the appointment of George Washington,
then almost unknown outside of his own
State. He was appointed without oppo-
sition. Mr. Adams offered the resolution,
which was adopted, annulling all the royal
authority in the colonies. Having thus
prepared the way, a few weeks later, viz.,
June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee, of Vir-
ginia, who a few months before had declared
that the British Government would aban-
don its oppressive measures, now offered
the memorable resolution, seconded by
Adams, " that these United States are, and
of right ought to be, free and independent."
Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Sherman and
Livingston were then appointed a commit-
tee to draught a declaration of independ-
ence. Mr. Jefferson desired Mr. 'Adams
to draw up (he bold document, but the
latter persuaded Mr. Jefferson to perform
that responsible task. The Declaration
drawn up, Mr. Adams became its foremost
defender on the floor of Congress. It was
signed by all the fifty-five members present,
and the next day Mr. Adams wrote to his
wife how great a deed was done, and how
proud he was of it. Mr. Adams continued
to be the leading man of Congress, and
the leading advocate of American inde-
pendence. Above all other Americans,
he was considered by every one the prin-
cipal shining mark for British vengeance.
Thus circumstanced, he was appointed to
the most dangerous task of crossing the
ocean in winter, exposed to capture by the
British, who knew of his mission, w-hich
was to visit Paris and solicit the co-opera-
tion of the French. Besides, to take him-
self away from the country of which he
was the most prominent defender, at that
critical time, was an act of the greatest self-
sacrifice. Sure enough, while crossing the
sea, he had two very narrow escapes from
capture ; and the transit was otherwise a
stormy and eventful one. During thc-
summer of 1779 he returned home, but was
immediately dispatched back to France, to
be in readiness there to negotiate terms of
peace and commerce with Great Britain as
soon as the latter power was ready for such
business. But as Dr. Franklin was more
popular than heat the court of France, Mr.
Adams repaired to Holland, where he was
far more successful as a diplomatist.
The treaty of peace between the United
States and England was finally signed at
Paris, January 21, 1783; and the re-action
from so great excitement as Mr. Adams had
so long been experiencing threw him into
a dangerous fever. Before he fully re-
covered he was in London, whence he was
dispatched again to Amsterdam to negoti-
ate another loan. Compliance with this
order undermined his physical constitution
for life.
In 1785 Mr. Adams was appointed envoy
to the court of St. James, to meet face to
face the very king who had regarded him
as an arch traitor ! Accordingly he re-
paired thither, where he did actually meet
and converse with George III.! After a
residence there for about three years, he
obtained permission to return to America.
While in London he wrote and published
an able work, in three volumes, entitled:
" A Defense of the American Constitution."
The Articles of Confederation proving
inefficient, as Adams had prophesied, a
carefully draughted Constitution was
adopted in 1789, when George Washington
was elected President of the new nation,
and Adams Vice-President. Congress met
for a time in New York, but was removed
to Philadelphia for ten years, until suitable
JOHN ADAMS.
buildings should be erected at the new
capital in the District of Columbia. Mr.
Adams then moved his family to Phila-
delphia. Toward the close of his term of
office the French Revolution culminated,
when Adams and Washington rather
sympathized with England, and Jefferson
with France. The Presidential election of
1796 resulted in giving Mr. Adams the first
place by a small majority, and Mr. Jeffer-
son the second place.
Mr. Adams's administration was consci-
entious, patriotic and able. The period
was a turbulent one, and even an archangel
could not have reconciled the hostile par-
ties. Partisanism with reference to Eng-
land and France was bitter, and for four
years Mr. Adams struggled through almost
a constant tempest of assaults. In fact, he
was not truly a popular man, and his cha-
grin at not receiving a re-election was so
great that he did not even remain at Phila-
delphia to witness the inauguration of Mr.
Jefferson, his successor. The friendly
intimacy between these two men was
interrupted for about thirteen years of their
life. Adams finally made the first advances
toward a restoration of their mutual friend-
ship, which were gratefully accepted by
Jefferson.
Mr. Adams was glad of his opportunity
to retire to private lite, where he could rest
his mind and enjoy the comforts of home.
By a thousand bitter experiences he found
the path of public duty a thorny one. For
twenty-six years his service of the public
was as arduous, self-sacrificing and devoted
as ever fell to the lot of man. In one im-
portant sense he was as much the " Father
of his Country " as was Washington in
another sense. During these long years of
anxiety and toil, in which he was laying)
broad and deep, the foundations of the
greatest nation the sun ever shone upon, he
received from his impoverished country a
meager support. The only privilege he
carried with him into his retirement was
that of franking his letters.
Although taking no active part in public
affairs, both himself and his son, John
Quincy, nobly supported the policy of Mr.
Jefferson in resisting the encroachments of
England, who persisted in searching
American ships on the high seas and
dragging from them any sailors that might
be designated by any pert lieutenant as
British subjects. Even for this noble sup-
port Mr. Adams was maligned by thou-
sands of bitter enemies ! On this occasion,
for the first time since his retirement, he
broke silence and drew up a very able
paper, exposing the atrocity of the British
pretensions.
Mr. Adams outlived nearly all his family.
Though his physical frame began to give
way many years before his death, his mental
powers retained their strength and vigor to
the last. In his ninetieth year he was
gladdened by the popular elevation of his
son to the Presidential office, the highest in
the gift of the people. A few months more
passed away and the 4th of July, 1826,
arrived. The people, unaware of the near
approach of the end of two great lives —
that of Adams and Jefferson — were making
unusual preparations for a national holiday.
Mr. Adams lay upon his couch, listening to
the ringing of bells, the waftures of martial
music and the roar of cannon, with silent
emotion. Only four days before, he had
given for a public toast, " Independence
forever." About two o'clock in the after-
noon he said, "And Jefferson still survives."
But he was mistaken by an hour or so:
and in a few minutes he had breathed his
last.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
:OMASJEFFER-
son, the third Presi-
dent of the United
States, iSoi-'g, was
born April 2, 1743,
the eldest child of
his parents, Peter
and Jane (Randolph) Jef-
ferson, near Charlottes-
ville, Albemarle County,
Virginia, upon the slopes
of the Blue Ridge. When
he -was fourteen years of
age, his father died, leav-
ing a wido\v and eight
children. She was a beau-
tiful and accomplished
lady, a good letter-writer, with a fund of
humor, and an admirable housekeeper. His
parents belonged to the Church of England,
and are said to be of Welch origin. But
little is known of them, however.
Thomas was naturally of a serious turn
of mind, apt to learn, and a favorite at
school, his choice studies being mathemat-
ics and the classics. At the age of seven-
teen he entered William and Mary College,
in an advanced class, and lived in rather an
expensive style, consequently being much
caressed by gay society. That he was not
ruined, is proof of his stamina of character.
But during his second year he discarded
society, his horses and even his favorite
violin, and devoted thenceforward fifteen
hours a day to hard study, becoming ex-
traordinarily proficient in Latin and Greek
authors.
On leaving college, before he was twenty-
one, he commenced the study of law, and
pursued it diligently until he was well
qualified for practice, upon which he
entered in 1767. By this time he was also
versed in French, Spanish, Italian and An-
glo-Saxon, and in the criticism of the fine
arts. Being very polite and polished in his
manners, he won the friendship of all whom
he met. Though able with his pen, he was
not fluent in public speech.
In 1769 he was chosen a member of the
Virginia Legislature, and was the largest
slave-holding member of that body. He
introduced a bill empowering slave-holders
to manumit their slaves, but it was rejected
by an overwhelming vote.
In 1770 Mr. Jefferson met with a great
loss; his house at Shadwell was burned,
and his valuable library of 2,000 volumes
was consumed. But he was wealthy
enough to replace the most of it, as from
his 5,000 acres tilled by slaves and his
practice at the bar his income amounted to
about $5,000 a year.
In .1772 he married Mrs. Martha Skelton,
a beautiful, wealthy and accomplished
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
THOMAS JEFFERSON.
young widow, who owned 40,000 acres of
land and 130 slaves; yet he labored assidu-
ously for the abolition of slavery. For his
new home he selected a majestic rise of
land upon his large estate at Shadwell,
called Monticello, whereon he erected a
mansion of modest yet elegant architecture.
Here he lived in luxury, indulging his taste
in magnificent, high-blooded horses.
At this period the British Government
gradually became more insolent and op-
pressive toward the American colonies,
and Mr. Jefferson was ever one of the most
foremost to resist its encroachments. From
time to time he drew up resolutions of re-
monstrance, which were finally adopted,
thus proving his ability as a statesman and
as a leader. By the year 1774 he became
quite busy, both with voice and pen, in de-
fending the right of the colonies to defend
themselves. His pamphlet entitled : " A
Summary View of the Rights of British
America," attracted much attention in Eng-
land. The following year he, in company
with George Washington, served as an ex-
ecutive committee in measures to defend
by arms the State of Virginia. As a Mem-
ber of the Congress, he was not a speech-
maker, yet in conversation and upon
committees he was so frank and decisive
that he always made a favorable impression.
But as late as the autumn of 1775 he re-
mained in hopes of reconciliation with the
parent country.
At length, however, the hour arrived for
draughting the " Declaration of Indepen-
dence," and this responsible task was de-
volved upon Jefferson. Franklin, and
Adams suggested a few verbal corrections
before it was submitted to Congress, which
was June 28, 1776, only six days before it
was adopted. During the three days of
the fiery ordeal of criticism through which
it passed in Congress, Mr. Jefferson opened
not his lips. John Adams was the main
champion of the Declaration on the floor
of Congress. The signing of this document
was one of the most solemn and momentous
occasions ever attended to by man. Prayer
and silence reigned throughout the hall,
and each signer realized that if American
independence was not finally sustained by
arms he was doomed to the scaffold.
After the colonies became independent
States, Jefferson resigned for a time his seat
in Congress in order to aid in organizing
the government of Virginia, of which State
he was chosen Governor in 1779, when he
was thirty-six years of age. At this time
the British had possession of Georgia and
were invading South Carolina, and at one
time a British officer, Tarleton, sent a
secret expedition to Monticello to capture
the Governor. Five minutes after Mr.
Jefferson escaped with his family, his man-
sion was in possession of the enemy ! The
British troops also destroyed his valuable
plantation on the James River. " Had they
carried off the slaves," said Jefferson, with
characteristic magnanimity, " to give them
freedom, they would have done right."
The year 1781 was a gloomy one for the
Virginia Governor. While confined to his
secluded home in the forest by a sick and
dying wife, a party arose against him
throughout the State, severely criticising
his course as Governor. Being very sensi-
tive to reproach, this touched him to the
quick, and the heap of troubles then sur-
rounding him nearly crushed him. He re-
solved, in despair, to retire from public life
for the rest of his days. For weeks Mr.
Jefferson sat lovingly, but with a crushed
heart, at the bedside of his sick wife, during
which time unfeeling letters were sent to
him, accusing him of weakness and unfaith-
fulness to duty. All this, after he had lost
so much property and at the same time
done so much for his country ! After her
death he actually fainted away, and re-
mained so long insensible that it was feared
he never would recover! Several weeks
P/tESfDEWTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
passed before he could fully recover his
equilibrium. He was never married a
second time.
In the spring of 1782 the people of Eng-
land compelled their king to make to the
Americans overtures of peace, and in No-
vember following, Mr. Jefferson was reap-
pointed by Congress, unanimously and
without a single adverse remark, minister
plenipotentiary to negotiate a treaty.
In March, 1784, Mr. Jefferson was ap-
pointed on a committee to draught a plan
for the government of the Northwestern
Territory. His slavery -prohibition clause
in that plan was stricken out by the pro-
slavery majority of the committee; but amid
all the controversies and wrangles of poli-
ticians, he made it a rule never to contra-
dict anybody or engage in any discussion
as a debater.
In company with Mr. Adams and Dr.
Franklin, Mr. Jefferson was appointed in
May, 1784, to act as minister plenipotentiary
in the negotiation of treaties of commerce
with foreign nations. Accordingly, he went
to Paris and satisfactorily accomplished his
mission. The suavity and high bearing of
his manner made all the French his friends;
and even Mrs. Adams at one time wrote
to her sister that he was " the chosen
of the earth." But all the honors that
he received, both at home and abroad,
seemed to make no change in the simplicity
of his republican tastes. On his return to
America, he found two parties respecting
the foreign commercial policy, Mr. Adams
sympathizing with that in favor of England
and himself favoring France.
On the inauguration of General Wash-
ington as President, Mr. Jefferson was
chosen by him for the office of Secretary of
State. At this time the rising storm of the
French Revolution became visible, and
Washington watched it with great anxiety.
His cabinet was divided in their views of
constitutional government as well as re-
garding the issues in France. General
Hamilton, Secretary of the Treasury, was
the leader of the so-called Federal party,
while. Mr. Jefferson was the leader of the
Republican party. At the same time there
was a strong monarchical party in this
country, with which Mr. Adams sympa-
thized. Some important financial measures,
which were proposed by Hamilton and
finally adopted by the cabinet and approved
by Washington, were opposed by Mr.
Jefferson ; and his enemies then began to
reproach him with holding office under an
administration whose views he opposed.
The President poured oil on the troubled
waters. On his re-election to the Presi-
dency he desired Mr. Jefferson to remain
in the cabinet, but the latter sent in his
resignation at two different times, probably
because he was dissatisfied with some of
the measures of the Government. His
final one was not received until January I,
1794, when General Washington parted
from him with great regret.
Jefferson then retired to his quiet home
at Monticello, to enjoy a good rest, not even
reading the newspapers lest the political
gossip should disquiet him. On the Presi-
dent's again calling him back to the office
of Secretary of State, he replied that no
circumstances would ever again tempt him
to engage in anything public ! But, while
all Europe was ablaze with war, and France
in the throes of a bloody revolution and the
principal theater of the conflict, a new
Presidential election in this country came
on. John Adams was the Federal candi-
date and Mr. Jefferson became the Republi-
can candidate. The result of the election
was the promotion of the latter to the Vice-
Presidency, while the former was chosen
President... In this contest Mr. Jefferson
really did not desire to have either office,
he was " so weary " of party strife. He
loved the retirement of home more than
any other place on the earth.
THOMAS
But for four long years his Vice-Presi-
dency passed joylessly away, while the
partisan strife between Federalist and Re-
publican was ever growing hotter. The
former party split and the result of the
fourth general election was the elevation of
Mr. Jefferson to the Presidency ! with
Aaron Burr as Vice-President. These men
being at the head of a growing party, their
election was hailed everywhere with joy.
On the other hand, many of the Federalists
turned pale, as they believed what a portion
of the pulpit and the press had been preach-
ing— that Jefferson was a " scoffing atheist,"
a "Jacobin," the " incarnation of all evil,"
" breathing threatening and slaughter ! "
Mr. Jefferson's inaugural address con-
tained nothing but the noblest sentiments,
expressed in fine language, and his personal
behavior afterward exhibited the extreme
of American, democratic simplicity. His
disgust of European court etiquette grew
upon him with age. He believed that
General Washington was somewhat dis-
trustful of the ultimate success of a popular
Government, and that, imbued with a little
admiration of the forms of a monarchical
Government, he had instituted levees, birth-
days, pompous meetings with Congress,
etc. Jefferson was always polite, even to
slaves everywhere he met them, and carried
in his countenance the indications of an ac-
commodating disposition.
The political principles of the Jeffersoni-
an party now swept the country, and Mr.
Jefferson himself swayed an influence which
was never exceeded even by Washington.
Under his administration, in 1803, the Lou-
isiana purchase was made, for $15,000,000,
the " Louisiana Territory " purchased com-
prising all the land west of the Mississippi
to the Pacific Ocean.
The year 1804 witnessed another severe
loss in his family. His highly accomplished
and most beloved daughter Maria sickened
and died, causing as great grief in the
stricken parent as it was possible for him to
survive with any degree of sanity.
The same year he was re-elected to the
Presidency, with George Clinton as Vice-
President. During his second term our
relations with England became more com-
plicated, and on June 22, 1807, near Hamp-
ton Roads, the United States frigate
Chesapeake was fired upon by the Brit-
ish man-of-war Leopard, and was made
to surrender. Three men were killed and
ten wounded. Jefferson demanded repara-
tion. England grew insolent. It became
evident that war was determined upon by
the latter power. More than 1,200 Ameri-
cans were forced into the British service
upon the high seas. Before any satisfactory
solution was reached, Mr. Jefferson's
Presidential term closed. Amid all these
public excitements he thought constantly
of the welfare of his family, and longed
for the time when he could return home
to remain. There, at Monticello, his sub-
sequent life was very similar to that of
Washington at Mt. Vernon. His hospi-
tality toward his numerous friends, indul-
gence of his slaves, and misfortunes to his
property, etc., finally involved him in debt.
For years his home resembled a fashion-
able watering-place. During the summer,
thirty -seven house servants were required !
It was presided over by his daughter, Mrs.
Randolph.
Mr. Jefferson did much for the establish-
ment of the University at Charlottesville,
making it unsectarian, in keeping with the
spirit of American institutions, but poverty
and the feebleness of old age prevented
him from doing what he would. He even
went so far as to petition the Legislature
for permission to dispose of some of his
possessions by lottery, in order to raise the
necessary funds for home expenses. It was
granted ; but before the plan was carried
out, Mr. Jefferson died, July 4, 1826, at
12:50 I'. M.
PRESfDBNTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
AMES MADISON, the
fourth President of the
United States, 1809-' 17,
was born at Port Con-
way, Prince George
County, Virginia, March
16, 1751. His father,
Colonel James Madison, was
a wealthy planter, residing
upon a very fine estate
called " Montpelier," only
twenty-five miles from the
home of Thomas Jefferson
at Monticello. The closest
personal and political at-
tachment existed between
these illustrious men from their early youth
until death.
James was the eldest of a family of seven
children, four sons and three daughters, all
of whom attained maturity. His early edu-
cation was conducted mostly at home,
under a private tutor. Being naturally in-
tellectual in his tastes, he consecrated him-
self with unusual vigor to study . At a very
early age he made considerable proficiency
in the Greek, Latin, French and Spanish
languages. In 1769 he entered Princeton
College, • New Jersey, of which the illus-
trious Dr. Weatherspoon was then Presi-
dent. He graduated in 1771, with a char-
acter of the utmost purity, and a mind
highly disciplined and stored with all the
learning which embellished and gave effi-
ciency to his subsequent career. After
graduating he pursued a course of reading
for several months, under the guidance of
President Weatherspoon, and in 1772 re-
turned to Virginia, where he continued in
incessant study for two years, nominally
directed to the law, but really including
extended researches in theology, philoso-
phy and general literature.
The Church of England was the estab-
lished church in Virginia, invested with all
the prerogatives and immunities which it
enjoyed in the fatherland, and other de-
nominations labored under serious disabili-
ties, the enforcement of which was rightly
or wrongly characterized by them as per-
secution. Madison took a prominent stand
in behalf of the removal of all disabilities,
repeatedly appeared in the court of his own
county to defend the Baptist nonconform-
ists, and was elected from Orange County to
the Virginia Convention in the spring of
1766, when he signalized the beginning of
his public career by procuring the passage
of an amendment to the Declaration of
Rights as prepared by George Mason, sub-
stituting for " toleration" a more emphatic
assertion of religious liberty.
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
JAMES MADISOK.
V)
In 1776 he was elected a member of the
Virginia Convention to frame the Constitu-
tion of the State. Like Jefferson, he took
but little part in the public debates. His
main strength lay in his conversational in-
fluence and in his pen. In November, 1777,
he was chosen a member of the Council of
State, and in March, 1780, took his seat in
the Continental Congress, where he first
gained prominence through his energetic
opposition to the issue of paper money by
the States. He continued in Congress three
years, one of its most active and influential
members.
In 1784 Mr. Madison was elected a mem-
ber of the Virginia Legislature. He ren-
dered important service by promoting and
participating in that revision of the statutes
which effectually abolished the remnants of
the feudal system subsistent up to that
time in the form of entails, primogeniture,
and State support given the Anglican
Church ; and his " Memorial and Remon-
strance" against a general assessment for
the support of religion is one of the ablest
papers which emanated from his pen. It
settled the question of the entire separation
of church and State in Virginia.
Mr. Jefferson says of him, in allusion to
the study and experience through which he
had already passed :
" Trained in these successive schools, he
acquired a habit of self-possession which
placed at ready command the rich resources
of his luminous and discriminating mind and
of his extensive information, and rendered
him the first of every assembly of which he
afterward became a member. Never wan-
dering from his subject into vain declama-
tion, but pursuing it closely in language
pure, classical and copious, soothing al-
ways the feelings of his adversaries by civili-
ties and softness of expression, he rose to the
eminent station which he held in the great
National Convention of 1787; and in that of
/irginia, which followed, he sustained the
new Constitution in all its parts, bearing off
the palm against the logic of George Mason
and the fervid declamation of Patrick
Henry. With these consummate powers
were united a pure and spotless virtue
which no calumny has ever attempted to
sully. Of the power and polish of his pen,
and of the wisdom of his administration in
the highest office of the nation, I need say
nothing. They have spoken, and will for-
ever speak, for themselves."
In January, 1786, Mr. Madison took the
initiative in proposing a meeting of State
Commissioners to devise measures for more
satisfactory commercial relations between
the States. A meeting was held at An-
napolis to discuss this subject, and but five
States were represented. The convention
issued another call, drawn up by Mr. Madi-
son, urging all the States to send their dele-
gates to Philadelphia, in May, 1787, to
draught a Constitution for the United
States. The delegates met at the time ap-
pointed, every State except Rhode Island
being represented. George Washington
was chosen president of the convention,
and the present Constitution of the United
States was then and there formed. There
was no mind and no pen more active in
framing this immortal document than the
mind and pen of James Madison. He was,
perhaps, its ablest advocate in the pages of
the Federalist.
Mr. Madison was a member of the first
four Congresses, i78o-'97, in which he main-
tained a moderate opposition to Hamilton's
financial policy. He declined the mission
to France and the Secretaryship of State,
and, gradually identifying himself with the
Republican party, became from 1792 its
avowed leader. In 1796 he was its choice
for the Presidency as successor to Wash-
ington. Mr. Jefferson wrote : " There is
not another person in the United States
with whom, being placed at the helm of our
affairs, my mkid would be so completely at
3°
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
rest for the fortune of our political bark."
But Mr. Madison declined to be a candi-
date. His term in Congress had expired,
and he returned from New York to his
beautiful retreat at Montpelier.
In 1794 Mr. Madison married a young
widow of remarkable powers of fascination
— Mrs. Todd. Her maiden name was Doro-
thy Paine. She was born in 1767, in Vir-
ginia, of Quaker parents, and had been
educated in the strictest rules of that sect.
When but eighteen years of age she married
a young lawyer and moved to Philadelphia,
where she was introduced to brilliant scenes
of fashionable life. She speedily laid aside
the dress and address of the Quakeress, and
became one of the most fascinating ladies
of the republican court. In New York,
alter the death of her husband, she was the
belle of the season and was surrounded with
admirers. Mr. Madison won the prize.
She proved an invaluable helpmate. In
Washington she was the life of society.
If there was any diffident, timid young
girl just making her appearance, she
found in Mrs. Madison an encouraging
friend.
During the stormy administration of John
Adams Madison remained in private life,
but was the author of the celebrated " Reso-
lutions of 1798," adopted by the Virginia
Legislature, in condemnation of the Alien
and Sedition laws, as well as of the " report"
in which he defended those resolutions,
which is, by many, considered his ablest
State paper.
The storm passed away ; the Alien and
Sedition laws were repealed, John Adams
lost his re-election, and in 1801 Thomas Jef-
ferson was chosen President. The great re-
action in public sentiment which seated
Jefferson in the presidential chair was large-
ly owing to the writings of Madison, who
was consequently well entitled to the post
of Secretary of State. With great ability
he discharged the duties of this responsible
office during the eight years of Mr. Jeffer-
son's administration.
As Mr. Jefferson was a widower, and
neither of his daughters could be often with
him, Mrs. Madison usually presided over
the festivities of the White House; and as
her husband succeeded Mr. Jefferson, hold-
ing his office for two terms, this remarkable
woman was the mistress of the presidential
mansion for sixteen years.
Mr. Madison being entirely engrossed by
the cares of his office, all the duties of so-
cial life devolved upon his accomplished
wife. Never were such responsibilities
more ably discharged. The most bitter
foes of her husband and of the administra-
tion were received with the frankly prof-
fered hand and the cordial smile of wel-
come; and the influence of this gentle
woman in allaying the bitterness of party
rancor became a great and salutary power
in the nation.
As the term of Mr. Jefferson's Presidency
"drew near its close, party strife was roused
to the utmost to elect his successor. It was
a death-grapple between the two great
parties, the Federal and Republican. Mr.
Madison was chosen President by an elec.
toral vote of 122 to 53, and was inaugurated
March 4, 1809, at a critical period, when
the relations of the United States with Great
Britain were becoming embittered, and his
first term was passed in diplomatic quarrels,
aggravated by the act of non-intercourse of
May, 1810, and finally resulting in a decla-
ration of war.
On the i8th of June, 1812, President
Madison gave his approval to an act of
Congress declaring war against Great Brit-
ain. Notwithstanding the bitter hostility
of the Federal party to the war, the country
in general approved ; and in the autumn
Madison was re-elected to the Presidency
by 128 electoral votes to 89 in favor of
George Clinton.
March 4, 1817, Madison yielded the Presi-
JAMES MADISOX.
dency to his Secretary of State and inti-
mate friend, James Monroe, and retired to
his ancestral estate at Montpelier, where he
passed the evening of his days surrounded
by attached friends and enjoying the
merited respect of the whole nation. He
took pleasure in promoting agriculture, as
president of the county society, and in
watching the development of the University
of Virginia, of which he was long rector and
visitor. In extreme old age he sat in 1829
as a member of the convention called to re-
form the Virginia Constitution, where his
appearance was hailed with the most gen-
uine interest and satisfaction, though he
was too infirm io participate in the active
work of revision. Small in stature, slender
and delicate in form, with a countenance
full of intelligence, and expressive alike of
mildness and dignity, he attracted the atten-
tion of all who attended the convention,
and was treated with the utmost deference.
He seldom addressed the assembly, though
he always appeared self-possessed, and
watched with unflagging interest the prog-
ress of every measure. Though the con-
vention sat sixteen weeks, he spoke only
twice ; but when he did speak, the whole
house paused to listen. His voice was
feeble though his enunciation was very dis-
tinct. One of the reporters, Mr. Stansbury,
relates the following anecdote of Mr. Madi-
son's last speech:
" The next day, as there was a great call
for it, and the report had not been returned
for publication, I sent my son with a re-
spectful note, requesting the manuscript.
My son was a lad of sixteen, whom I had
taken with me to act as amanuensis. On
delivering my note, he was received with
the utmost politeness, and requested to
come up into Mr. Madison's room and wait
while his eye ran over the paper, as com-
pany had prevented his attending to it. He
did so, and Mr. Madison sat down to correct
the report. The lad stood near him. so that
his eye fell on the paper. Coming to a
certain sentence in the speech, Mr. Madison
erased a word and substituted another ; but
hesitated, and not feeling satisfied with the
second word, drew his pen through it also.
My son was young, ignorant of the world,
and unconscious of the solecism of which he
was about to be guilty, when, in all simplic-
ity, he suggested a word. Probably no
other person then living would have taken
such a liberty. But the sage, instead of
regarding such an intrusion with a frown,
raised his eyes to the boy's face with a
pleased surprise, and said, ' Thank you, sir ;
it is the very word,' and immediately in-
serted it. I saw him the next day, and he
mentioned the circumstance, with a compli-
ment on the young critic."
Mr. Madison died at Montpelier, June 28,
1836, at the advanced age of eighty -five.
While not possessing the highest order of
talent, and deficient in oratorical powers,
he was pre-eminently a statesman, of a well,
balanced mind. His attainments were solid,
his knowledge copious, his judgment gener-
ally sound, his powers of analysis and logi-
cal statement rarely surpassed, his language
and literary style correct and polished, his
conversation witty, his temperament san-
guine and trustful, his integrity unques-
tioned, his manners simple, courteous and
winning. By these rare qualities he con-
ciliated the esteem not only of friends, but
of political opponents, in a greater degree
than any American statesman in the present
century.
Mrs. Madison survived her husband thir-
teen years, and died July 12, 1849, m tne
eighty -second year of her age. She was one
of the most remarkable women our coun-
try has produced. Even now she is ad-
miringly remembered in Washington as
" Dolly Madison," and it is fitting that her
memory should descend to posterity in
company with thatof the companion of
her life.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UN1THD STATES.
AMES MONROE, the fifth
President of the United
States, i8i7-'25, was born
in Westmoreland County
Virginia, April 28, 1758.
He was a son of Spence
Monroe, and a descendant
of a Scottish cavalier fam-
ily. Like all his predeces-
sors thus far in the Presi-
dential chair, he enjoyed all
the advantages of educa-
tion which the country
could then afford. He was
early sent to a fine classical
school, and at the age of six-
teen entered William and Mary College..
In 1776, when he had been in college but
two years, the Declaration of Independence
was adopted, and our feeble militia, with-
out arms, amunition or clothing, were strug-
gling against the trained armies of England.
James Monroe left college, hastened to
General Washington's headquarters at New
York and enrolled himself as a cadet in the
army.
At Trenton Lieutenant Monroe so dis-
tinguished himself, receiving a wound in his
shoulder, that he was promoted to a Cap-
taincy. Upon recovering from his wound,
he was invited to act as aide to Lord Ster-
ling, and in that capacity he took an active
part in the battles of Brandywine, Ger-
mantown and Monmouth. At Germantown
he stood by the side of Lafayette when the
French Marquis received his wound. Gen-
eral Washington, who had formed a high
idea of young Monroe's ability, sent him to
Virginia to raise a new regiment, of which
he was to be Colonel; but so exhausted was
Virginia at that time that the effort proved
unsuccessful. He, however, received his
commission.
Finding no opportunity to enter the army
as a commissioned officer, he returned to his
original plan of studying law, and entered
the office of Thomas Jefferson, who was
then Governor of Virginia. He developed
a' very noble character, frank, manly and
sincere. Mr. Jefferson said of him:
"James Monroe is so perfectly honest
that if his soul were turned inside out there
would not be found a spot on it."
In 1782 he was elected to the Assembly
of Virginia, and was also appointed a mem-
ber of the Executive Council. The next
year he was chosen delegate to the Conti-
nental Congress for a term of three years.
He was present at Annapolis when Wash-
ington surrendered his commission of Com-
mander-in-chief.
With Washington, Jefferson and Madison
he felt deeply the inefficiency of the old
Articles of Confederation, and urged the
formation of a new Constitution, which
should invest the Central Government with
something like national power. Influenced
by these views, he introduced a resolution
r
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
JAAfES MONROR.
that Congress should be empowered to
regulate trade, and to lay an impost duty
of five per cent. The resolution was refer-
red to a committee of which he was chair-
man. The report and the discussion which
rose upon it led to the convention of five
States at Annapolis, and the consequent
general convention at Philadelphia, which,
in 1787, drafted the Constitution of the
United States.
At this time there was a controversy be-
tween New York and Massachusetts in
reference to their boundaries. The high
esteem in which Colonel Monroe was held
is indicated by the fact that he was ap-
pointed one of the judges to decide the
controversy. While in New York attend-
ing Congress, he married Miss Kortright,
a young lady distinguished alike for her
beauty and accomplishments. For nearly
fifty years this happy union remained un-
broken. In London and in Paris, as in her
own country, Mrs. Monroe won admiration
and affection by the loveliness of her per-
son, the brilliancy of her intellect, and the
amiability of her character.
Returning to Virginia, Colonel Monroe
commenced the practice of law at Freder-
icksburg. He was very soon elected to a
seat in the State Legislature, and the next
year he was chosen a member of the Vir-
ginia convention which was assembled to
decide upon the acceptance or rejection of
the Constitution which had been drawn up
at Philadelphia, and was now submitted
to the several States. Deeply as he felt
the imperfections of the old Confederacy,
he was opposed to the new Constitution,
thinking, with many others of the Republi-
can party, that it gave too much power to
the Central Government, and not enough
to the individual States.
In 1789 he became a member of the
United States Senate, which office he held
acceptably to his constituents, and with
honor to himself for four years.
Having opposed the Constitution as not
leaving enough power with the States, he,
of course, became more and more identi-
fied with the Republican party. Thus he
found himself in cordial co-operation with
Jefferson and Madison. The great Repub-
lican party became the dominant power
which ruled the land.
George Washington was then President.
England had espoused the cause of the
Bourbons against the principles of the
French Revolution. President Washing-
ton issued a proclamation of neutrality be-
tween these contending powers. France
had helped us in the struggle for our lib-
erties. All the despotisms of Europe were
now combined to prevent the French
from escaping from tyranny a thousandfold
worse than that which we had endured.
Colonel Monroe, more magnanimous than
prudent, was anxious that we should help
our old allies in their extremity. He vio-
lently opposed the President's procla-
mation as ungrateful and wanting in
magnanimity.
Washington, who could appreciate such
a character, developed his calm, serene,
almost divine greatness by appointing that
very James Monroe, who was denouncing
the policy of the Government, as the Minis-
ter of that Government to the republic of
France. He was directed by Washington
to express to the French people our warm-
est sympathy, communicating to them cor-
responding resolves approved by the Pres-
ident, and adopted by both houses of
Congress.
Mr. Monroe was welcomed by the Na-
tional Convention in France with the most
enthusiastic demonstrations of respect and
affection. He was publicly introduced to
that body, and received the embrace of the
President, Merlin de Douay, after having
been addressed in a speech glowing witk
congratulations, and with expressions of
desire that harmony might ever exist be
PRESfDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
tvveen the two nations. The flags of the
two republics were intertwined in the hall
of the convention. Mr. Monroe presented
the American colors, and received those of
France in return. The course which he
pursued in Paris was so annoying to Eng-
land and to the friends of England in
this country that, near the close of Wash-
ington's administration, Mr. Monroe, was
recalled.
After his return Colonel Monroe wrote a
book of 400 pages, entitled " A View of the
Conduct of the Executive in Foreign Af-
fairs." In this work he very ably advo-
cated his side of the question; but, with
the magnanimity of the man, he recorded a
warm tribute to the patriotism, ability and
spotless integrity of John Jay, between
whom and himself there was intense antag-
onism ; and in subsequent years he ex-
pressed in warmest terms his perfect
veneration for the character of George
Washington.
Shortly after his return to this country
Colonel Monroe was elected Governor of
Virginia, and held that office for three
years, the period limited by the Constitu-
tion. In 1802 he was an Envoy to France,
and to Spain in 1805, and was Minister to
England in 1803. In 1806 he returned to
his quiet home in Virginia, and with his
wife and children and an ample competence
from his paternal estate, enjoyed a few years
of domestic repose.
In 1809 Mr. Jefferson's second term of
office expired, and many of the Republican
party were anxious to nominate James
Monroe as his successor. The majority
were in favor of Mr. Madison. Mr. Mon-
roe withdrew his name and was soon after
chosen a second time Governor of Virginia.
o
He soon resigned that office to accept the
position of Secretary of State, offered him
by President Madison. The correspond-
ence which he then carried on with the
British Government demonstrated that
there was no hope of any peaceful adjust-
ment of our difficulties with the cabinet of
St. James. War was consequently declared
in June, 1812. Immediately after the sack
of Washington the Secretary of War re-
signed, and Mr. Monroe, at the earnest
request of Mr. Madison, assumed the ad-
ditional duties of the War Department,
without resigning his position as Secretary
of State. It has been confidently stated,
that, had Mr. Monroe's energies been in the
War Department a few months earlier, the
disaster at Washington would not have
occurred.
The duties now devolving upon Mr. Mon-
roe were extremely arduous. Ten thou-
sand men, picked from the veteran armies
of England, were sent with a powerful fleet
to New Orleans to acquire possession of
the mouths of the Mississippi. Our finan-
ces were in the most deplorable condition.
The treasury was exhausted and our credit
gone. And yet it was necessary to make
the most rigorous preparations to meet the
foe. In this crisis James Monroe, the Sec-
retary of War, with virtue unsurpassed in
Greek or Roman story, stepped forward
and pledged his own individual credit as
subsidiary to that of the nation, and thus
succeeded in placing the city of New Or-
leans in such a posture of defense, that it
was enabled successfully to repel the in-
vader.
Mr. Monroe was truly the armor-bearer
of President Madison, and the most efficient
business man in his cabinet. His energy
in the double capacity of Secretary, both
of State and War, pervaded all the depart-
ments of the country. He proposed to
increase the army to 100,000 men, a meas-
ure which he deemed absolutely necessary
to save us from ignominious defeat, but
which, at the same time, he knew would
render his name so unpopular as to preclude
the possibility of his being a successful can-
didate for the Presidency.
JAMES MONROE.
The happy result of the conference at
Ghent in securing peace rendered the in-
crease of the army unnecessary; but it is not
too much to say that James Monroe placed
in the hands of Andrew Jackson the
weapon with which to beat off the foe at
New Orleans. Upon the return of peace
Mr. Monroe resigned the department of
war, devoting himself entirely to the duties
of Secretary of State. These he continued
to discharge until the close of President
Madison's administration, with zeal which
was never abated, and with an ardor of
self-devotion which made him almost for-
getful of the claims of fortune, health or
life.
Mr. Madison's second term expired in
March, 1817, and Mr. Monroe succeeded
to the Presidency. He was a candidate of
the Republican party, now taking the name
of the Democratic Republican. In 1821 he
was re-slected, with scarcely any opposition.
Out of 232 electoral votes, he received 231.
The slavery question, which subsequently
assumed such formidable dimensions, now
began to make its appearance. The State
of Missouri, which had been carved out of
that immense territory which we had pur-
chased of France, applied for admission to
the Union, with a slavery Constitution.
There were not a few who foresaw the
evils impending. After the debate of a
week it was decided that Missouri could
not be admitted into the Union with slav-
ery. This important question was at length
settled by a compromise proposed by
Henry Clay.
The famous " Monroe Doctrine," of which
so much has been said, originated in this
way: In 1823 it was rumored that the
Holy Alliance was about to interfere to
prevent the establishment of Republican
liberty in the European colonies of South
America. President Monroe wrote to his
old friend Thomas Jefferson for advice in
the emergency. In his reply under date of
October 24, Mr. Jefferson writes upon the
supposition that our attempt to resist this
European movement might lead to war:
" Its object is to introduce and establish
the American system of keeping out of our
land all foreign powers; of never permitting
those of Europe to intermeddle with the
affairs of our nation. It is to maintain our
own principle, not to depart from it."
December 2, 1823, President Monroe
sent a message to Congress, declaring it to
be the policy of this Government not to
entangle ourselves with the broils of Eu-
rope, and not to allow Europe to interfere
with the affairs of nations on the American
continent; and the doctrine was announced,
that any attempt on the part of the Euro-
pean powers " to extend their system to
any portion of this hemisphere would be
regarded by the United States as danger-
ous to our peace and safety."
March 4, 1825, Mr. Monroe surrendered
the presidential chair to his Secretary of
State, John Quincy Adams, and retired,
with the universal respect of the nation,
to his private residence at Oak Hill, Lou-
doun County, Virginia. His time had been
so entirely consecrated to his country, that
he had neglected his pecuniary interests,
and was deeply involved in debt. The
welfare of his country had ever been up-
permost in his mind.
For many years Mrs. Monroe was in such
feeble health that she rarely appeared in
public. In 1830 Mr. Monroe took up his
residence with his son-in-law in New York,
where he died on the 4th of July, 1831.
The citizens of New York conducted his
obsequies with pageants more imposing
than had ever been witnessed there before.
Our country will ever cherish his mem-
ory with pride, gratefully enrolling his
name in the list of its benefactors, pronounc-
ing him the worthy successor of the illus-
trious men who had preceded him in the
presidential chair.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
OHN QUINCY ADAMS,
the sixth President of the
United States, i825-'9,
was born in the rural
home of his honored
father, John Adams, in
Q u i n c y , Massachusetts,
July 11, 1767. His mother,
a woman of exalted worth,
watched over his childhood
during the almost constant
absence of his father. He
commenced his education
at the village school, giving
at an early period indica-
tions of superior mental en-
dowments.
When eleven years of age he sailed with
his father for Europe, where the latter was
associated with Franklin and Lee as Minister
Plenipotentiary. The intelligence of John
Quincy attracted the attention of these men
and received from them flattering marks of
attention. Mr. Adams had scarcely returned
to this country in 1779 ere he was again
sent abroad, and John Quincy again accom-
panied him. On this voyage he commenced
a diary, which practice he continued, with
but few interruptions, until his death He
journeyed with his father from Ferrol, in
Spain, to Paris. Here he applied himself
for six months to study; then accompanied
his father to Holland, where he entered,
first a school in Amsterdam, and then the
University of Leyden. In 1781, when only
fourteen years of age, he was selected by
Mr. Dana, our Minister to the Russian
court, as his private secretary. In this
school of incessant labor he spent fourteen
months, and then returned alone to Holland
through Sweden, Denmark, Hamburg and
Bremen. Again he resumed his studies
under a private tutor, at The Hague.
In the spring of 1782 he accompanied his
father to Paris, forming acquaintance with
the most distinguished men on the Conti-
nent. After a short visit to England, he re-
turned to Paris and studied until May,
1785, when he returned to America, leav-
ing his father an embassador at the court
of St. James. In 1786 he entered the jun-
ior class in Harvard University, and grad-
uated with the second honor of his class.
The oration he delivered on this occasion,
the " Importance of Public Faith to the
Well-being of a Community," was pub-
lished— an event very rare in this or any
other land.
Upon leaving college at the age of twenty
he studied law three years with the Hon.
Theophilus Parsons in Newburyport. In
1790 he opened a law office in Boston. The
profession was crowded with able men, and
the fees were small. The first year he had
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
JOHN
ADAMS.
no clients, but not a moment was lost. The
second year passed away, still no clients,
and still he was dependent upon his parents
for support. Anxiously he awaited the
third year. The reward now came. Cli-
ents began to enter his office, and before
the end of the year he was so crowded
with business that all solicitude respecting
a support was at an end.
When Great Britain commenced war
against France, in 1793, Mr. Adams wrote
some articles, urging entire neutrality on
the part of the United States. The view
was not a popular one. Many felt that as
France had helped us, we were bound to
help France. But President Washington
coincided with Mr. Adams, and issued his
proclamation of neutrality. His writings
at this time in the Boston journals gave
him so high a reputation, that in June,
1794, he was appointed by Washington
resident Minister at the Netherlands. In
July, 1797, he left The Hague to go to Port-
ugal as Minister Plenipotentiary. Wash-
ington at this time wrote to his father, John
Adams:
" Without intending to compliment the
father or the mother, or to censure any
others, I give it as my decided opinion,
that Mr. Adams is the most valuable char-
acter we have abroad; and there remains
no doubt in my mind that he will prove the
ablest of our diplomatic corps."
On his way to Portugal, upon his arrival
in London, he met with dispatches direct-
ing him to the court of Berlin, but request-
ing him to remain in London until he should
receive instructions. While waiting he
was married to Miss Louisa Catherine John-
son, to whom he had been previously en-
gaged. Miss Johnson was a daughter of
Mr. Joshua Johnson, American Consul
in London, and was a lady endowed with
that beauty and those accomplishments
which fitted her to move in the elevated
sphere for which she was destined.
In July, 1799, having fulfilled all the pur-
poses of his mission, Mr. Adams returned.
In 1802 he was chosen to the Senate of
Massachusetts from Boston, and then was
elected Senator of the United States for six
years from March 4, 1804. His reputation,
his ability and his experience, placed him
immediately among the most prominent
and influential members of that body. He
sustained the Government in its measures
of resistance to the encroachments of Eng-
land, destroying our commerce and insult-
ing our flag. There was no man in America
more familiar with the arrogance of the
British court upon these points, and no
one more resolved to present a firm resist-
ance. This course, so truly patriotic, and
which scarcely a voice will now be found
to condemn, alienated him from the Fed-
eral party dominant in Boston, and sub-
jected him to censure.
In 1805 Mr. Adams was chosen professor
of rhetoric in Harvard College. His lect-
ures at this place were subsequently pub-
lished. In 1809 he was sent as Minister to
Russia. He was one of the commissioners
that negotiated the treaty of peace with
Great Britain, signed December 24, 1814,
and he was appointed Minister to the court
of St. James in 1815. In 1817 he became
Secretary of State in Mr. Monroe's cabinet
in which position he remained eight years.
Few will now contradict the assertion that
the duties of that office were never more
ably discharged. Probably the most im-
portant measure which Mr. Adams con-
ducted was the purchase of Florida from
Spain for $5,000.000.
The campaign of 1824 was an exciting
one. Four candidates were in the field.
Of the 260 electoral votes that were cast,
Andrew Jackson received ninety-nine; John
Quincy Adams, eighty-four; William H.
Crawford, forty-one, and Henry Clay,
thirty-seven. As there was no choice by
the people, the question went to the House
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
of Representatives. Mr. Clay gave the
vote of Kentucky to Mr. Adams, and he
was elected.
The friends of all disappointed candidates
now combined in a venomous assault upon
Mr. Adams. There is nothing more dis-
graceful in the past history of our country
than the abuse which was poured in one
uninterrupted stream upon this high-
minded, upright, patriotic man. There was
never an administration more pure in prin-
ciples, more conscientiously devoted to the
best interests of the country, than that of
John Quincy Adams; and never, perhaps,
wa,s there an administration more unscru-
pulously assailed. Mr. Adams took his seat
in the presidential chair resolved not to
know any partisanship, but only to con-
sult for the interests of the whole Republic,
He refused to dismiss any man from of-
fice for his political views. If he was a faith-
ful officer that was enough. Bitter must
have been his disappointment to find that the
Nation could not appreciate such conduct.
Mr. Adams, in his public manners, was
cold and repulsive; though with his per-
sonal friends he was at times very genial.
This chilling address very seriously de-
tracted from his popularity. No one can
read an impartial record of his administra-
tion without admitting that a more noble
example of uncompromising dignity can
scarcely be found. It was stated publicly
that Mr. Adams' administration was to be
put down, " though it be as pure as the an-
gels which, stand at the right hand of the
throne of God." Many of the active par-
ticipants in these scenes lived to regret the
course they pursued. Sonus years after,
Warren R. Davis, of South Carolina, turn-
ing to Mr. Adams, then a member of the
House of Representatives, said:
" Well do I remember the enthusiastic
zeal with which we reproached the admin-
istration of that gentleman, and the ardor
and vehemence with which we labored to
bring in another. For the share I had in
these transactions, and it was not a small
one, I hope God will forgive me, for I shall
never forgive myself."
March 4, 1829, Mr. Adams retired from
the Presidency and was succeeded by An-
drew Jackson, the latter receiving 168 out
of 261 electoral votes. John C. Calhoun
was elected Vice-President. The slavery
question now began to assume pretentious
magnitude. Mr. Adams returned to
Quincy, and pursued his studies with una-
bated zeal. But he was not long permitted
to remain in retirement. In November,
1830, he was elected to Congress. In this
he recognized the principle that it is honor-
able for the General of yesterday to act as
Corporal to-day, if by so doing he can ren-
der service to his country. Deep as are
our obligations to John Quincy Adams for
his services as embassador. as Secretary of
State and as President; in his capacity as
legislator in the House of Representa-
tives, he conferred benefits upon our land
which eclipsed all the rest, and which can
never be over-estimated.
For seventeen years, until his death, he
occupied the post of Representative, tow-
ering above all his peers, ever ready to do
brave battle for freedom, and winning the
title of " the old man eloquent." Upon
taking his seat in the House he announced
that he should hold himself bound to no
part}'. He was usually the first in his
place in the morning, and the last to leave
his seat in the evening. Not a measure
could escape his scrutiny. The battle
which he fought, almost singly, against the
pro-slavery party in the Government, was
sublime in its moral daring and heroism.
For persisting in presenting petitions for
the abolition of slavery, he was threatened
with indictment by the Grand Jury, with
expulsion from the House, with assassina-
tion; but no threats could intimidate him.
and his final triumph was complete.
JOHN %UINCr ADAMS.
On one occasion Mr. Adams presented a
petition, signed by several women, against
the annexation of Texas for the purpose of
cutting it up into slave States. Mr. How-
ard, of Maryland, said that these women
discredited not only themselves, but their
section of the country, by turning from
their domestic duties to the conflicts of po-
litical life.
"Are women," exclaimed Mr. Adams,
" to have no opinions or actions on subjects
relating to the general welfare ? Where
did the gentleman get his principle? Did
he find it in sacred history, — in the language
of Miriam, the prophetess, in one of the
noblest and sublime songs of triumph that
ever met the human eye or ear? Did the
gentleman never hear of Deborah, to whom
the children of Israel came up for judg-
ment ? Has he forgotten the deed of Jael,
who slew the dreaded enemy of her coun-
try ? Has he forgotten Esther, who, by her
petition saved her people and her coun-
try?
" To go from sacred history to profane,
does the gentleman there find it ' discredita-
ble ' for women to take an interest in politi-
cal affairs? Has he forgotten the Spartan
mother, who said to her son when going
out to battle, ' My son, come back to me
with thy shield, or upon thy shield ? ' Does
he remember Cloelia and her hundred com-
panions, who swam across the river unc'er
a shower of darts, escaping from Porsena ?
Has he forgotten Cornelia, the mother of
the Gracchi ? Does he not remember Por-
tia, the wife of Brutus and the daughter of
Cato?
" To come to later periods, what says the
history of our Anglo-Saxon ancestors ?
To say nothing of Boadicea, the British
heroine in the time of the Caesars, what
name is more illustrious than that of Eliza-
beth ? Or, if he will go to the continent,
will he not find the names of Maria Theresa
of Hungary, of the two Catherines of
Prussia, and of Isabella of Castile, the pa-
troness of Columbus ? Did she bring ' dis-
credit ' on her sex by mingling in politics ? "
In this glowing strain Mi-. Adams si-
lenced and overwhelmed his antagonists.
In January, 1842, Mr. Adams presented
a petition from forty-five citizens of Haver-
hill, Massachusetts, praying for a peaceable
dissolution of the Union. The pro-slavery
party in Congress, who were then plotting
the destruction of the Government, were
aroused to a pretense of commotion such as
even our stormy hall of legislation has
rarely witnessed. They met in caucus, and,
finding that they probably would not be
able to expel Mr. Adams from the House
drew up a series of resolutions, which, if
adopted, would inflict upon him disgrace,
equivalent to expulsion. Mr. Adams had
presented the petition, which was most re-
spectfully worded, and had moved that it be
referred to a committee instructed to re-
port an answer, showing the reason why
the prayer ought not to be granted.
It was the 2$th of January. The whole
body of the pro-slavery party came crowd-
ing together in the House, prepared to
crush Mr. Adams forever. One of the num-
ber, Thomas F. Marshall, of Kentucky, was
appointed to read the resolutions, which
accused Mr. Adams of high treason, of
having insulted the Government, and or
meriting expulsion; but for which deserved
punishment, the House, in its great mercy,
would substitute its severest censure. With
the assumption of a very solemn and mag-
isterial air, there being breathless silence in
the audience, Mr. Marshall hurled the care-
fully prepared anathemas at his victim.
Mr. Adams stood alone, the whole pro-slav-
ery party against him.
As soon as the resolutions were read,
every eye being fixed upon him, that bold
old man, whose scattered locks were whit-
ened by seventy-five years, casting a wither-
ing glance in the direction of his assailants^
44
PRESIDENTS OP THE UNITED STATES.
in a clear, shrill tone, tremulous with sup-
pressed emotion, said:
" In reply to this audacious, atrocious
charge of high treason, I call for the read-
ing of the first paragraph of the Declaration
of Independence. Read it ! Read it! and
see what that says of the rights of a people
to reform, to change, and to dissolve their
Government.'
The attitude, the manner, the tone, the
words; the venerable old man, with flash-
ing eye and flushed cheek, and whose very
form seemed to expand under the inspiration
of the occasion — all presented a scene over-
flowing in its sublimity. There was breath-
less silence as that paragraph was read, in
defense of whose principles our fathers had
pledged their lives, their fortunes and their
sacred honor. It was a proud hour to Mr.
Adams as they were all compelled to listen
to the words:
" That, to secure these rights, govern-
ments are instituted among men, deriving
their just powers from the consent of the
governed; and that whenever any form of
government becomes destructive of those
ends, it is the right of the people to alter or
abolish it, and to institute new government,
laying its foundations on such principles
and organizing its powers in such form
as shall seem most likely to effect their
safety and happiness."
That one sentence routed and baffled the
foe. The heroic old man looked around
upon the audience, and thundered out,
" Read that again ! " It was again read.
Then in a few fiery, logical words he stated
his defense in terms which even prejudiced
minds could not resist. His discomfited
assailants made several attempts to rally.
After a conflict of eleven days they gave
up vanquished and their resolution was ig-
nominiously laid upon the table.
In January, 1846, when seventy-eight
years of age, he took part in the great de-
bate on the Oregon question, displaying
intellectual vigor, and an extent and accu-
racy of acquaintance with the subject that
excited great admiration.
On the 2istof February, 1848, he rose on
the floor of Congress with a paper in his
hand to address the Speaker. Suddenly
he fell, stricken by paralysis, and was caught
in the arms of those around him. For a
time he was senseless and was conveyed
to a sofa in the rotunda. With reviving
consciousness he opened his eyes, looked
calmly around and said, " This is the end of
earth." Then after a moment's pause, he
added, " I am content." These were his last
words, and he soon breathed his last, in the
apartment beneath the dome of the capitol
— -the theater of his labors and his triumphs.
In the language of hymnology, he " died at
his post;" he " ceased at once to work and
live."
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY Of ILLINOIS
ANDREW JACKSON.
47
.
ANDREW JACKSON,
the seventh President
of the United States,
i829-'37, was born at
the Waxhaw Settle-
ment, Union Coun-
ty, North Carolina,
March 16, 1767. His parents
were Scotch-Irish, natives of
Carrickfergus, who came to
America in 1765, and settled
on Twelve-Mile Creek, a trib-
utary of the Catawba. His
father, who was a poor farm
laborer, died shortly before An-
drew's birth, when his mother removed to
Waxhaw, where some relatives resided.
Few particulars of the childhood of Jack-
son have been preserved. His education
was of the most limited kind, and he showed
no fondness for books. He grew up to be a
tall, lank boy, with coarse hair and freck-
led cheeks, with bare feet dangling from
trousers too short for him, very fond of ath-
letic sports, running, boxing and wrestling.
He was generous to the younger and
weaker boys, but very irascible and over-
bearing with his equals and superiors. He
was profane — a vice in which he surpassed
all other men. The character of his mother
he revered; and it was not until after her
death that his predominant vices gained
full strength.
In 1780, at the age of thirteen, Andrew,
or Andy, as he was called, with his brother
Robert, volunteered to serve in the Revo-
lutionary forces under General Sumter, and
was a witness of the latter's defeat at Hang-
ing Rock. In the following year the
brothers were made prisoners, and confined
in Camden, experiencing brutal treatment
from their captors, and being spectators of
General Green's defeat at Hobkirk Hill.
Through their mother's exertions the boys
were exchanged while suffering from small-
pox. In two days Robert was dead, and
Andy apparently dying. The strength of
his constitution triumphed, and he regained
health and vigor.
As he was getting better, his mother
heard the cry of anguish from the prison-
ers whom the British held in Charleston,
among whom were the sons of her sisters.
She hastened to their relief, was attacked
by fever, died and was buried where her
grave could never be found. Thus Andrew
Jackson, when fourteen years of age, was
left alone in the world, without father,
mother, sister or brother, and without one
dollar which he could call his own. He
48
PRESIDENTS Off TH& UNITED STATES.
soon entered a saddler's shop, and labored
diligently for six months. But gradually,
as health returned, he became more and
more a wild, reckless, lawless boy. He
gambled, drank and was regarded as about
the worst character that could be found.
He now turned schoolmaster. He could
teach the alphabet, perhaps the multiplica-
tion table; and as he was a very bold boy,
it is possible he might have ventured to
teach a little writing. But he soon began to
think of a profession and decided to study
law. With a very slender purse, and on
the back of a very fine horse, he set out
for Salisbury, North Carolina, where he
entered the law office of Mr. McCay.
Here he remained two years, professedly
studying law. He is still remembered in
traditions of Salisbury, which say:
" Andrew Jackson was the most roaring,
rollicking, horse-racing, card-playing, mis-
chievous fellow that ever lived in Salisbury.
He did not trouble the law-books much."
Andrew was now, at the age of twenty,
a tall young man, being over six feet in
height. He was slender, remarkably grace-
ful and dignified in his manners, an exquis-
ite horseman, and developed, amidst his
loathesome profanity and multiform vices, a
vein of rare magnanimity. His temper was
fiery in the extreme; but it was said of him
that no man knew better than Andrew
Jackson when to get angry and when not.
In 1786 he was admitted to the bar, and
two years later removed to Nashville,
in what was then the western district of
North Carolina, with the appointment of so-
licitor, or public prosecutor. It was an of-
fice of little honor, small emolument and
great peril. Few men could be found to
accept it.
And now Andrew Jackson commenced
vigorously to practice law. It was an im-
portant part of his business to collect debts.
It required nerve. During the first seven
years of his residence in those wilds he
traversed the almost pathless forest between
Nashville and Jonesborough, a distance of
200 miles, twenty-two times. Hostile In-
dians were constantly on the watch, and a
man was liable at any moment to be shot
down in his own field. Andrew Jackson
was just the man for this service — a wild,
daring, rough backwoodsman. Daily he
made hair-breadth escapes. He seemed to
bear a charmed life. Boldly, alone or with
few companions, he traversed the forests,
encountering all perils and triumphing
over all.
In 1790 Tennessee became a Territory,
and Jackson was appointed, by President
Washington, United States Attorney for
the new district. In 1791 he married Mrs.
Rachel Robards (daughter of Colonel John
Donelson), whom he supposed to have been
divorced in that year by an act of the Leg-
islature of Virginia. Two years after this
Mr. and Mrs. Jackson learned, to their
great surprise, that Mr. Robards had just
obtained a divorce in one of the courts of
Kentucky, and that the act of the Virginia
Legislature was not final, but conditional.
To remedy the irregularity as much as pos-
sible, a new license was obtained and the
marriage ceremony was again performed.
It proved to be a marriage of rare felic-
ity. Probably there never was a more
affectionate union. However rough Mr.
Jackson might have been abroad, he was
always gentle and tender at home; and
through all the vicissitudes of their lives, he
treated Mrs. Jackson with the most chival-
ric attention.
Under the circumstances it was not un-
natural that the facts in the case of this
marriage were so misrepresented by oppo-
nents in the political campaigns a quarter
or a century later as to become the basis
of serious charges against Jackson's moral-
ity which, however, have been satisfactorily
attested by abundant evidence.
Jackson was untiring in his duties as
A.VDREH"
United States Attorney, which demanded
frequent journeys through the wilderness
and exposed him to Indian hostilities. He
acquired considerable property in land, and
obtained such influence as to be chosen
a member of the convention which framed
the Constitution for the new State of Ten-
nessee, in 1796, and in that year was elected
its first Representative in Congress. Albert
Gallatin thus describes the first appearance
of the Hon. Andrew Jackson in the House:
" A tall, lank, uncouth-looking personage,
with locks of hair hanging over his face and
a cue down his back, tied with an eel skin;
his dress singular, his manners and deport-
ment those of a rough backwoodsman."
Jackson was an earnest advocate of the
Democratic party. Jefferson was his idol.
He admired Bonaparte, loved France and
hated England. As Mr. Jackson took his
seat, General Washington, whose second
term of office was just expiring, delivered
his last speech to Congress. A committee
drew up a complimentary address in reply.
Andrew Jackson did not approve the ad-
dress and was one of twelve who voted
against it.
Tennessee had fitted out an expedition
against the Indians, contrary to the policy
of the Government. A resolution was intro-
duced that the National Government
should pay the expenses. Jackson advo-
cated it and it was carried. This rendered
him very popular in Tennessee. A va-
cancy chanced soon after to occur in the
Senate, and Andrew Jackson was chosen
United States Senator by the State of Ten-
nessee. John Adams was then President
and Thomas Jefferson, Vice-President.
In 1798 Mr. Jackson returned to Tennes-
see, and resigned his seat in the Senate.
Soon after he was chosen Judge of the Su-
preme Court of that State, with a salary of
$600. This office he held six years. It is
said that his decisions, though sometimes
ungrammatical, were generally right. He
did not enjoy his seat upon the bench, and
renounced the dignity in 1804. About
this time he was chosen Major-General of
militia, and lost the title of judge in that of
General.
When he retired from the Senate Cham-
ber, he decided to try his fortune through
trade. He purchased a stock of goods in
Philadelphia and sent them to Nashville,
where he opened a store. He lived about
thirteen miles from Nashville, on a tract of
land of several thousand acres, mostly un-
cultivated. He used a small block-house
for a store, from a narrow window of
which he sold goods to the Indians. As he
had an assistant his office as judge did not
materially interfere with his business.
As to slavery, born in the midst of it, the
idea never seemed to enter his mind that it
could be wrong. He eventually became
an extensive slave owner, but he was one of
the most humane and gentle of masters.
In 1804 Mr. Jackson withdrew from pol-
itics and settled on a plantation which he
called the Hermitage, near Nashville. He
set up a cotton-gin, formed a partnership
and traded in New Orleans, making the
voyage on flatboats. Through his hot tem-
per he became involved in several quarrels
and " affairs of honor," during this period,
in one of which he was severely wounded,
but had the misfortune to kill his opponent,
Charles Dickinson. For a time this affair
greatly injured General Jackson's popular-
ity. The verdict then was, and continues
to be, that General Jackson was outra-
geously wrong. If he subsequently felt any
remorse he never revealed it to anyone.
In 1805 Aaron Burr had visited Nash-
ville and been a guest of Jackson, with
whom he corresponded on the subject of a
war with Spain, which was anticipated and
desired by them, as well as by the people
of the Southwest generally.
Burr repeated his visit in September,
1806, when he engaged in the celebrated
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
combinations which led to his trial for trea-
son. He was warmly received by Jackson,
at whose instance a public ball was given
in his honor at Nashville, and contracted
with the latter for boats and provisions.
Early in 1807, when Burr tiad been pro-
claimed a traitor by President Jefferson,
volunteer forces for the Federal service
were organized at Nashville under Jack-
son's command; but his energy and activ-
ity did not shield him from suspicions of
connivance in the supposed treason. He
was summoned to Richmond as a witness
in Burr's trial, but was not called to the
stand, probably because he was out-spoken
in his partisanship.
On the outbreak of the war with Great
Britain in 1812, Jackson tendered his serv-
ices, and in January, 1813, embarked for
New Orleans at the head of the Tennessee
contingent. In March he received an or-
der to disband his forces; but in Septem-
ber he again took the field, in the Creek
war, and in conjunction with his former
partner, Colonel Coffee, inflicted upon the
Indians the memorable defeat at Talladega,
Emuckfaw and Tallapoosa.
In May, 1814, Jackson, who had now ac-
quired a national reputation, was appointed
a Major-General of the United States army,
and commenced a campaign against the
British in Florida. He conducted the de-
fense at Mobile, September 15, seized upon
Pensacola, November 6, and immediately
transported the bulk of his troops to New
Orleans, then threatened by a powerful
naval force. Martial law was declared in
Louisiana, the State militia was called to
arms, engagements with the British were
fought December 23 and 28, and after re-en-
forcements had been received on both sides
the famous victory of January 8, 1815,
crowned Jackson's fame as a soldier, and
made him the typical American hero of
the first half of the nineteenth century.
In I8i7-'i8 Jackson conducted the war
against the Seminoles of Florida, during
which he seized upon Pensacola and exe-
cuted by courtmartial two British subjects,
Arbuthnot and Ambrister acts which
might easily have involved the United
States in war both with Spain and Great
Britain. Fortunately the peril was averted
by the cession of Florida to the United
States; and Jackson, who had escaped a
trial for the irregularity of his conduct
only through a division of opinion in Mon-
roe's cabinet, was appointed in 1821 Gov-
ernor of the new Territory. Soon after he
declined the appointment of minister to
Mexico.
In 1823 Jackson was elected to the United
States Senate, and nominated by the Ten-
nessee Legislature for the Presidency. This
candidacy, though a matter of surprise, and
even merryment, speedily became popular,
and in 1824, when the stormy electoral can-
vas resulted in the choice of John Quincy
Adams by the House of Representatives,
General Jackson received the largest popu-
lar vote among the four candidates.
In 1828 Jackson was triumphantly elected
President over Adams after a campaign of
unparalleled bitterness. He was inaugu-
rated March 4, 1829, and at once removed
from office all the incumbents belonging to
the opposite party — a procedure new to
American politics, but which naturally be-
came a precedent.
His first term was characterized by quar-
rels between the Vice-President, Calhoun,
and the Secretary of State, Van Buren, at-
tended by a cabinet crisis originating in
scandals connected with the name of Mrs.
General Eaton, wife of the Secretary of
War; by the beginning of his war upon the
United States Bank, and by his vigorous
action against the partisans of Calhoun,
who, in South Carolina, threatened to
nullify the acts of Congress, establishing a
protective tariff.
In the Presidential campaign of 1832
AN DREW
Jackson received 219 out of 288 electoral
votes, his competitor being Mr. Clay, while
Mr. Wirt, on an Anti-Masonic platform,
received the vote of Vermont alone. In
1833 President Jackson removed the Gov-
ernment deposits from the United States
bank, thereby incurring a vote of censure
from the Senate, which was, however, ex-
punged four years later. During this second
term of office the Cherokees, Choctaws and
Creeks were removed, not without diffi-
culty, from Georgia, Alabama and Missis-
sippi, t6 the Indian Territory; the National
debt was extinguished; Arkansas and
Michigan were admitted as States to the
Union; the Seminole war was renewed; the
anti-slavery agitation first acquired impor-
tance; the Mormon delusion, which had
organized in 1829, attained considerable
proportions in Ohio and Missouri, and the
country experienced its greatest pecuniary
panic.
Railroads with locomotive propulsion
were introduced into America during Jack-
son's first term, and had become an impor-
tant element of national life before the
close of his second term. For many rea-
sons, theretore, the administration of Presi-
dent Jackson formed an era in American
history, political, social and industrial.
He succeeded in effecting the election of
his friend Van Buren as his successor, re-
tired from the Presidency March 4, 1837;
and led a tranquil life at the Hermitage
until his death, which occurred June 8,
1845.
During his closing years he was a pro-
fessed Christian and a member oi the Pres-
byterian church. No American of this
century has been the subject of such oppo-
site judgments. He was loved and hated
with equal vehemence during his life, but
at the present distance of time from his
career, while opinions still vary as to the
merits of his public acts, few of his country-
men will question that he was a warm-
hearted, brave, patriotic, honest and sincere
man. If his distinguishing qualities were
not such as constitute statesmanship, in the
highest sense, he at least never pretended
to other merits than such as were written
to his credit on the page of American his-
tory— not attempting to disguise the^le-
merits which were equally legible. The
majority of his countrymen accepted and
honored him, in spite of all that calumny
as well as truth could allege against him.
His faults may therefore be truly said to
have been those of his time; his magnifi-
cent virtues may also, with the same jus-
tice, be considered as typical of a state o/
society which has nearly passed away.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
MARTIN VAN BU-
REN, the eighth
President of the
United States, 1837-
"41, was born at Kin-
derhook, New York,
December 5, 1782.
His ancestors were of Dutch
origin, and were among the
earliest emigrants from Hol-
land to the banks of the
Hudson. His father was a
tavern-keeper, as well as a
( farmer, and a very decided
Democrat.
Martin commenced the study
of law at the age of fourteen, and took an
active part in politics before he had reached
the age of twenty. In 1803 he commenced
the practice of law in his native village.
In 1809 he removed to Hudson, the shire
town of his county, where he spent seven
years, gaining strength by contending in
the courts with some of the ablest men
who have adorned the bar of his State.
The heroic example of John Quincy Adams
in retaining in office every faithful man,
without regard to his political preferences,
had been thoroughly repudiated by Gen-
eral Jackson. The unfortunate principle
was now fully established, that "to the
victor belong the spoils." Still, this prin-
ciple, to which Mr. Van Buren gave his ad-
herence, was not devoid of inconveniences.
When, subsequently, he attained power
which placed vast patronage in his hands,
he was heard to say : " I prefer an office
that has no patronage. When I give a man
an office I offend his disappointed competi-
tors and their friends. Nor am I certain of
gaining a friend in the man I appoint, for,
in all probability, he expected something
better."
In 1812 Mr. Van Buren was elected to
the State Senate. In 1815 he was appointed
Attorney-General, and in 1816 to the Senate
a second time. In 1818 there was a great
split in the Democratic party in New York,
and Mr. Van Buren took the lead in or-
ganizing that portion of the party called
the Albany Regency, which is said to have
swayed the destinies of the State for a
quarter of a century.
In 1821 he was chosen a member of the
convention for revising the State Constitu-
tion, in which he advocated an extension of
the franchise, but opposed universal suf-
frage, and also favored the proposal that
colored persons, in order to vote, should
have freehold property to the amount of
$250. In this year he was also elected to
the United States Senate, and at the con-
clusion of his term, in 1827, was re-elected,
but resigned the following year, having
been chosen Governor of the State. In
March, 1829, he was appointed Secretary of
-A
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF HUNOiS
MARTIN VAN BUR EN.
55
State by President Jackson, but resigned
in April, 1831, and during the recess of
Congress was appointed minister to Eng-
land, whither he proceeded in September,
but the Senate, when convened in Decem-
ber, refused to ratify the appointment.
In May, 1832, Mr. Van Buren was nomi-
nated as the Democratic candidate for Vice-
President, and elected in the following
November. May 26, 1836, he received the
nomination to succeed General Jackson as
President, and received 170 electoral votes,
out of 283.
Scarcely had he taken his seat in the
Presidential chair when a financial panic
swept over the land. Many attributed
this to the war which General Jackson had
waged on the banks, and to his endeavor to
secure an almost exclusive specie currency.
Nearly every bank in the country was com-
pelled to suspend specie payment, and ruin
pervaded all our great cities. Not less than
254 houses failed in New York in one week.
All public works were brought to a stand,
and there was a general state of, dismay.
President Van Buren urged the adoption of
the independent treasury system, which
was twice passed in the Senate and defeated
in the House, but finally became a law near
the close of his administration.
Another important measure was the pass-
age of a pre-emption law, giving actual set-
tlers the preference in the purchase of
public lands. The question of slavery, also,
now began to assume great prominence in
national politics, and after an elaborate
anti-slavery speech by Mr. Slade, of Ver-
mont, in the House of Representatives, the
Southern members withdrew for a separate
consultation, at which Mr. Rhett, of South
Carolina, proposed to declare it expedient
that the Union should be dissolved ; but
the matter was tided over by the passage
of a resolution that no petitions or papers
relating to slavery should be in any way
considered or acted upon.
In the Presidential election of 1840 Mr.
Van Buren was nominated, without opposi-
tion, as the Democratic candidate, William
H. Harrison being the candidate of the
Whig party. The Democrats carried only
seven States, and out of 294 electoral votes
only sixty were for Mr. Van Buren, the re-
maining 234 being for his opponent. The
Whig popular majority, however, was not
large, the elections in many of the States
being very close.
March 4, 1841, Mr. Van Buren retired
from the Presidency. From his fine estate
at Lindenwald he still exerted a powerful
influence upon the politics of the country.
In 1844 he was again proposed as the
Democratic candidate for the Presidency,
and a majority of the delegates of the
nominating convention were in his favor ;
but, owing to his opposition to the pro-
posed annexation of Texas, he could not
secure the requisite two-thirds vote. His
name was at length withdrawn by his
friends, and Mr. Polk received the nomina-
tion, and was elected.
'In 1848 Mr. Cass was the regular Demo-
cratic candidate. A schism, however,
sprang up in the party, upon the question
of the permission of slavery in the newly-
acquired territory, and a portion of the
party, taking the name of " Free-Soilers,"
nominated Mr. Van Buren. They drew
away sufficient votes to secure the election
of General Taylor, the Whig candidate.
After this Mr. Van Buren retired to his es-
tate at Kinderhook, where the remainder
of his life was passed, with the exception of
a European tour in 1853. He died at
Kinderhook, July 24, 1862, at the age of
eighty years.
Martin Van Buren was a great and good
man, and no one will question his right to
a high position among those who have
been the successors of Washington in the
faithful occupancy of the Presidential
chair.
PRESIDENTS OP THE. UNITED STATES.
WILLIAM HENRY HflHRISDN
ILLIAM HENRY
HARRISON, the
ninth President of
the United States,
1841, was born
February 9, 1773,
in Charles County,
Virginia, at Berkeley, the resi-
dence of his father, Governor
Benjamin Harrison. He studied
at Hampden, Sidney College,
with a view of entering the med-
ical profession. After graduation
he went to Philadelphia to study
medicine under the instruction of
Dr. Rush.
George Washington was then President
af the United States. The Indians were
committing fearful ravages on our North-
western frontier. Young Harrison, either
lured by the love of adventure, or moved
by the sufferings of families exposed to the
most horrible outrages, abandoned his med-
ical studies and entered the army, having
obtained a commission of ensign from Pres-
ident Washington. The first duty assigned
him was to take a train of pack-horses
bound to Fort Hamilton, on the Miami
River, about forty miles from Fort Wash-
ington. He was soon promoted to the
rank of Lieutenant, and joined the army
which Washington had placed under the
command of General Wayne to prosecute
more ' vigorously the war with the In-
dians. Lieutenant Harrison received great
commendation from his commanding offi-
cer, and was promoted to the rank of
Captain, and placed in command at Fo/t
Washington, now Cincinnati, Ohio.
About this time he married a daughter
of John Cleves Symmes, one of the fron-
tiersmen who had established a thriving
settlement on the bank of the Maumee.
In 1797 Captain Harrison resigned his
commission in the army and was appointed
Secretary of the Northwest Territory, and
ex-officio Lieutenant-Governor, General St.
Clair being then Governor of the Territory.
At that time the law in reference to the
disposal of the public lands was such that
no one could purchase in tracts less than
4,000 acres. Captain Harrison, in the
face of violent opposition, succeeded In
obtaining so much of a modification of
this unjust law that the land was sold in
alternate tracts of 640 and 320 acres. The
Northwest Territory vas then entitled
to one delegate in Congress, and Cap-
tain Harrison was chosen to fill that of-
fice. In 1800 he was appointed Governor
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON.
of Indiana Territory and soon after of
Upper Louisiana. He was also Superin-
tendent of Indian Affairs, and so well did he
fulfill these duties that he was four times
appointed to this office. During his admin-
istration he effected thirteen treaties with
the Indians, by which the United States
acquired 60,000,000 acres of land. In 1804
he obtained a cession from the Indians of
all the land between the Illinois River and
the Mississippi.
In 1812 he was made Major-General of
Kentucky militia and Brigadier-General
in the army, with the command of the
Northwest frontier. In 1813 he was made
Major-General, and as such won much re-
nown by the defense of Fort Meigs, and the
battle of the Thames, Octobers, 1813. In
1814 he left the army and was employed in
Indian affairs by the Government.
In 1816 General Harrison was chosen a
member of the National House of Repre-
sentatives to represent the district of Ohio.
In the contest which preceded his election
he was accused of corruption in respect to
the commissariat of the army. Immedi-
ately upon taking his seat, he called for an
investigation of the charge. A committee
was appointed, and his vindication was
triumphant. A high compliment was paid
to his patriotism, disinterestedness and
devotion to the public service. For these
services a gold medal was presented to him
with the thanks of Congress.
In 1819 he was elected to the Senate of
Ohio, and in 1824, as one of the Presiden-
tial electors of that State, he gave his vote
to Henry Clay. In the same year he was
elected to the Senate of the United States.
In 1828 he was appointed by President
Adams minister plenipotentiary to Colom-
bia, but was recalled by General Jackson
immediately after the inauguration of the
Jatter.
Upon his return to the United States,
General Harrison retired to his farm at
North Bend, Hamilton County, Ohio, six-
teen miles below Cincinnati, where for
twelve years he was clerk ofr the County
Court. He once owned a distillery, but
perceiving the sad effects of whisky upon
the surrounding population, he promptly
abandoned his business at great pecuniary
sacrifice.
In 1836 General Harrison was brought
forward as a candidate for the Presidency.
Van Buren was the administration candi-
date; the opposite party could not unite,
and four candidates were brought forward.
General Harrison received seventy-three
electoral votes without any general concert
among his friends. The Democratic party
triumphed and Mr. Van Buren was chosen
President. In 1839 General Harrison was
again nominated for the Presidency by the
Whigs, at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Mr.
Van Buren being the Democratic candi-
date. General Harrison received 234 elec-
toral votes against sixty for his opponent.
This election is memorable chiefly for the
then extraordinary means employed during
the canvass for popular votes. Mass meet-
ings and processions were introduced, and
the watchwords " log cabin " and " hard
cider " were effectually used by the Whigs,
and aroused a popular enthusiasm.
A vast concourse of people attended his
inauguration. His address on that occasion
was in accordance with his antecedents, and
gave great satisfaction. A short time after he
took his seat, he was seized by a pleurisy-
fever, and after a few days of violent sick-
ness, died April 4, just one short month after
his inauguration. His death was universally
regarded as one of the greatest of National
calamities. Never, since' the death of
Washington, were 'there, throughout one
land, such demonstrations of sorrow. Not
one single spot can be found to sully his
fame; and through all ages Americans will
pronounce with love and reverence the
name of William Henry Harrison.
6o
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
^g&-
rOHN TYLER, the tenth
President of the United
States, was born in
Charles City County,
Virginia, March 29, 1790.
His father, Judge John
Tyler, possessed large
landed estates in Virginia,
and was one of the most
distinguished men of his
day, filling the offices of
Speaker of the House of
Delegates, Judge of the Su-
preme Court and Governor
of the State.
At the early age of twelve
young John entered William and Mary
College, and graduated with honor when
but seventeen years old. He then closely
applied himself to the study of law, and at
nineteen years of age commenced the prac-
tice of his profession. When only twenty-
one he was elected to a seat in the State
Legislature. He acted with the Demo-
cratic party and advocated the measures of
Jefferson and Madison. For five years he
was elected to the Legislature, receiving
nearly the unanimous vote of his county.
When but twenty-six years of age he was
elected a member of Congress. He advo-
cated a strict construction of the Constitu-
tion and the most careful vigilance over
State rights. He was soon compelled to
resign his seat in Congress, owing to ill
health, but afterward took his seat in the
State Legislature, where he exerted a
powerful influence in promoting public
works of great utility.
In 1825 Mr. Tyler was chosen Governor
of his State — a high honor, for Virginia
had many able men as competitors for
the prize. His administration was signally
a successful one. He urged forward inter-
nal improvements and strove to remove
sectional jealousies. His popularity secured
his re-election. In 1827 he was elected
United States Senator, and upon taking his
seat joined the ranks of the opposition. He
opposed the tariff, voted against the bank
as unconstitutional, opposed all restrictions
upon slavery, resisted all projects of inter-
nal improvements by the General Govern-
ment, avowed his sympathy with Mr. Cal-
houn's views of nullification, and declared
that General Jackson, by his opposition to
the nullifiers, had abandoned the principles
of the Democratic party. Such was Mr.
Tyler's record in Congress.
This hostility to Jackson caused Mr.
Tyler's retirement from the Senate, after
his election to a second term. He soon
after removed to Williamsburg for the
better education of his children, and again
took his seat in the Legislature.
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
JOHN TrLER.
In 1839 he was sent to the National Con-
vention at Harrisburg to nominate a Presi-
dent. General Harrison received a majority
of votes, much to the disappointment of the
South, who had wished for Henry Clay.
In order to conciliate the Southern Whigs,
John Tyler was nominated for Vice-Presi-
dent. Harrison and Tyler were inaugu-
rated March 4, 1841. In one short month
from that time President Harrison died,
and Mr. Tyler, to his own surprise as well
as that of the nation, found himself an
occupant of the Presidential chair. His
position was an exceedingly difficult one,
as he was opposed to the main principles of
the party which had brought him into
power. General Harrison had selected a
Whig cabinet Should he retain them, and
thus surround himself with councilors
whose views were antagonistic to his own?
or should he turn against the party that
had elected him, and select a cabinet in
harmony with himself? This was his fear-
ful dilemma.
President Tyler deserves more charity
than he has received. He issued an address
to the people, which gave general satisfac-
tion. He retained the cabinet General
Harrison had selected. His veto of a bill
chartering a new national bank led to an
open quarrel with the party which elected
him, and to a resignation of the entire
cabinet, except Daniel Webster, Secretary
of State.
President Tyler attempted to conciliate.
He appointed a new cabinet, leaving out all
strong party men, but the Whig members
of Congress were not satisfied, and they
published a manifesto September 13, break-
ing off all political relations. The Demo-
crats had a majority in the House ; the
Whigs in the Senate. Mr. Webster soon
found it necessary to resign, being forced
out by the pressure of his Whig friends.
April 12, 1844, President Tyler concluded,
Through Mr. Calhoun, a treaty for the an-
nexation of Texas, which was rejected by
the Senate ; but he effected his object in the
closing days of his administration by the
passage of the joint resolution of March i
1845.
He was nominated for the Presidency by
an informal Democratic Convention, held
at Baltimore in May, 1844, but soon with-
drew from the canvass, perceiving that he
had not gained the confidence of the Demo-
crats at large.
Mr. Tyler's administration was particu-
larly unfortunate. No one was satisfied.
Whigs and Democrats alike assailed him.
Situated as he was, it is more than can
be expected of human nature that he
should, in all cases, have acted in the wisest
manner ; but it will probably be the verdict
of all candid men, in a careful review of his
career, that John Tyler was placed in a
position of such difficulty that he could not
pursue any course which would not expose
him to severe censure and denunciation.
In 1813 Mr. Tyler married Letitia Chris-
tian, who bore him three sons -and three
daughters, and died in Washington in 1842.
June 26, 1844, he contracted a second mar-
riage with Miss Julia Gardner, of New
York. He lived in almost complete retire-
ment from politics until February, 1861,
when he was a member of the abortive
"peace convention," held at Washington,
and was chosen its President. Soon after
he renounced his allegiance to the United
States and was elected to the Confederate
Congress. He died at Richmond, January
17, 1862, after a short illness.
Unfortunately for his memory the name
of John Tyler must forever be associated
with all the misery of that terrible Re-
bellion, whose cause he openly espoused.
It is with sorrow that history records that
a President of the United States died while
defending the flag of rebellion, which was
arrayed against the national banner in
deadly warfare.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
A .\ [ K 8 K N O X P O LK,
the eleventh President of
the United States, 1845-
'49, was born in Meck-
lenburg County, North
Carolina, November 2,
1795. He was the eldest
son of a family of six sons
and four daughters, and was
a grand-nephew of Colonel
Thomas Polk, celebrated in
connection with the Meck-
lenburg Declaration of In-
dependence.
In 1806 his father, Samuel
Polk, emigrated with his fam-
ily two or three hundred miles west to the
valley of the Duck River. He was a sur-
veyor as well as farmer, and gradually in-
creased in wealth until he became one of
the leading men of the region.
In the common schools James rapidly be-
came proficient in all the common branches
of an English education. In 1813 he was
sent to Murfreesboro Academy, and in the
autumn of 1815 entered the sophomore class
in the University of North Carolina, at
Chapel Hill, graduating in 1818. After a
short season of recreation he went to Nash-
ville and entered the law office of Felix
Grundy. As soon as he had his finished
legal studies and been admitted to the bar,
he returned to Columbia, the shire town of
Maury County, and openeu an office.
James K. Polk ever adhered to the polit-
ical faith of his father, which was that of
a Jeffersonian Republican. In 1823 he was
elected to the Legislature of Tennessee. As
a " strict constructionist," he did not think
that the Constitution empowered the Gen-
eral Government to carry on a system of
internal improvements in the States, but
deemed it important that it should have
that power, and wished the Constitution
amended that it might be conferred. Sub-
sequently, however, he became alarmed lest
the General Government become so strong
as to undertake to interfere with slavery.
He therefore gave all his influence to
strengthen the State governments, and to
check the growth of the central power.
In January, 1824, Mr. Polk married Miss,
Mary Childress, of Rutherford County, Ten-
nessee. Had some one then whispered to
him that he was destined to become Presi-
dent of the United States, and that he must
select for his companion one who would
adorn that distinguished station, he could
not have made a more fitting choice. She
was truly a lady of rare beauty and culture.
In the fall of 1825 Mr. Polk was chosen
a member of Congress, and was continu-
LIBRARY
Of THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINO'S
JAMES K. POLK.
ously re-elected until 1839. He then with-
drew, only that he might accept the
gubernatorial chair of his native State.
He was a warm friend of General Jackson,
who had been defeated in the electoral
contest by John Quincy Adams. This
latter gentleman had just taken his seat in
the Presidential chair when Mr. Polk took
his seat in the House of Representatives.
He immediately united himself with the
opponents of Mr. Adams, and was soon
regarded as the leader of the Jackson party
in the House.
The four years of Mr. Adams' adminis-
tration passed away, and General Jackson
took tne Presidential chair. Mr. Polk had
now become a man of great influence in
Congress, and was chairman of its most
important committee — that of Ways and
Means. Eloquently he sustained General
Jackson in all his measures — in his hostility
to internal improvements, to the banks, and
to the tariff. Eight years of General Jack-
son's administration passed away, and the
powers he had wielded passed into the
hands of Martin Van Buren ; and still Mr.
Polk remained in the House, the advocate
of that type of Democracy which those
distinguished men upheld.
During five sessions of Congress Mr.
Polk was speaker of the House. He per-
formed his arduous duties to general satis-
faction, and a unanimous vote of thanks to
him was passed by the House as he with-
drew, March 4, 1839. He was elected
Governor by a large majority, and took
the oath of office at Nashville, October 14,
1839. He was a candidate for re-election
in 1841, but was defeated. In the mean-
time a wonderful revolution had swept
over the country. "W. H. Harrison, the Whig
candidate, had been called to the Presiden-
tial chair, and in Tennessee the Whig ticket
had been carried by over 12,000 majority.
Under these circumstances Mr. Folk's suc-
cess was hopeless. Still he canvassed the
State with his Whig competitor, Mr. Jones,
traveling in the most friendly manner to-
gether, often in the same carriage, and at
one time sleeping in the same bed. Mr.
Jones was elected by 3,000 majority.
And now the question of the annexation
of Texas to our country agitated the whole
land. When this question became national
Mr. Polk, as the avowed champion of an-
nexation, became the Presidential candidate
of the pro-slavery wing of the Democratic
party, and George M. Dallas their candi-
date for the Vice-Presidency. They were
elected by a large majority, and were in-
augurated March 4, 1845.
President Polk formed an able cabinet,
consisting of James Buchanan, Robert J.
Walker, William L. Marcy, George Ban-
croft, Cave Johnson and John Y. Mason.
The Oregon boundary question was settled,
the Department of the Interior was created,
the low tariff of 1846 was carried, the
financial system of the Government was
reorganized, ' the Mexican war was con-
ducted, which resulted in the acquisition of
California and New Mexico, and had far-
reaching consequences upon the later fort-
unes of the republic. Peace was made.
We had wrested from Mexico territory
equal to four times the empire of France,
and five times that of Spain. In the prose-
cution of this war we expended 20/300
lives and more than $100,000,000. Of this
money $15,000,000 were paid to Mexico.
Declining to seek a renomination, Mr.
Polk retired from the Presidency March 4,
1849, when he was succeeded by General
Zachary Taylor. He retired to Nashville,
and died there June 19, 1849, in the fifty-
fourth year of his age. His funeral was at-
tended the following day, in Nashville, with
every demonstration of respect. He left
no children. Without being possessed of
extraordinary talent, Mr. Polk was a capable
administrator of public affairs, and irre-
proachable in private life.
PKESfDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
ACHARY TAY-
LOR, the twelfth
President of the
United States,
i849-'5o, was born
in Orange County,
Virginia, Septem-
ber 24, 1784. His father,
Richard Taylor, was Colo-
nel of a Virginia regiment
in the Revolutionary war,
and removed to Kentucky
in 1785 ; purchased a large
plantation near Louisville
and became an influential cit-
izen ; was a member of the convention that
framed the Constitution of Kentucky; served
in both branches of the Legislature ; was
Collector of the port of Louisville under
President Washington ; as a Presidential
elector, voted for Jefferson, Madison, Mon-
roe and Clay; died January 19,1829.
Zachary remained on his father's planta-
tion until 1808, in which year (May 3) he
was appointed First Lieutenant in the
Seventh Infantry, to fill a vacancy oc-
casioned by the death of his elder brother,
Hancock. Up to this point he had received
but a limited education.
Joining his regiment at New Orleans, he
was attacked with yellow fever, with nearly
fatal termination. In November, 1810, he
was promoted to Captain, and in the sum-
mer of 1812 he was in command of Fort
Harrison, on the left bank of the VVabash
River, near the present site of Terre Haute,
his successful defense of which with but a
handful of men against a large force of
Indians which had attacked him was one of
the first marked military achievements of
the war. He was then brevetted Major,
and in 1814 promoted to the full rank.
During the remainder of the war Taylor
was actively employed on the Western
frontier. In the peace organization of 1815
he was retained as Captain, but soon after
resigned and settled near Louisville. In
May, 1816, however, he re-entered the army
as Major of the Third Infantry ; became
Lieutenant-Colonel of the Eighth Infantry
in 1819, and in 1832 attained the Colonelcy
of the First Infantry, of which he had been
Lieutenant-Colonel since 1821. On different
occasions he had been called to Washington
as member of a military board for organiz-
ing the militia of the Union, and to aid the
Government with his knowledge in the
organization of the Indian Bureau, having
for many years discharged the duties of
Indian agent over large tracts of Western
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
ZACHAItr TAYLOR.
7i
country. He served through the Black
Hawk war in 1832, and in 1837 was ordered
to take command in Florida, then the scene
of war with the Indians.
In 1846 he was transferred to the com-
mand of the Army of the Southwest, from
which he was relieved the same year at his
own request. Subsequently he was sta-
tioned on the Arkansas frontier at Forts
Gibbon, Smith and Jesup, which latter work
flad been built under his direction in 1822.
May 28, 1845, he received a dispatch from
the Secretary of War informing him of the
receipt of information by the President
" that Texas would shortly accede to the
terms of annexation," in which event he
was instructed to defend and protect her
from "foreign invasion and Indian incur-
sions." He proceeded, upon the annexation
of Texas, with about 1,500 men to Corpus
Chnsti, where his force was increased to
some 4,000.
Taylor was brevetted Major-General May
p8, and a month later, June 29, 1846, his full
commission to that grade was issued. After
needed rest and reinforcement, he advanced
in September on Monterey, which city ca-
pitulated after three-days stubborn resist-
ance. Here he took up his winter quarters.
The plan for the invasion of Mexico, by
way of Vera Cruz, with General Scott in
command, was now determined upon by
the Govenrment, and at the moment Taylor
was about to resume active operations, he
received orders to send the larger part of
his force to reinforce the army of General
Scott at Vera Cruz. Though subsequently
reinforced by raw recruits, yet after pro-
viding a garrison for Monterey and Saltillo
he had but about 5,300 effective troops, of
which but 500 or 600 were regulars. In
this weakened condition, however, he was
destined to achieve his greatest victory.
Confidently relying upon his strength at
Vera Cruz to resist the enemy for a long
time, Santa Anna directed his entire army
against Taylor to overwhelm him, and then
to return to oppose the advance of Scott's
more formidable invasion. The battle of
Buena Vista was fought February 22 and
23, 1847. Taylor received the thanks of
Congress and a gold medal, and " Old
Rough and Ready," the sobriquet given
him in the army, became a household word.
He remained in quiet possession of the
Rio Grande Valley until November, when
he returned to the United States.
In the Whig convention which met at
Philadelphiajune 7, 1848, Taylor was nomi-
nated on the fourth ballot as candidate if
the Whig party for President, over Henry
Clay, General Scott and Daniel Webster.
In November Taylor received a majority
of electoral votes, and a popular vote of
1,360,752, against 1,219,962 for Cass and
Butler, and 291,342 for Van Buren and
Adams. General Taylor was inaugurated
March 4, 1849.
The free and slave States being then equal
in number, the struggle for supremacy on
the part of the leaders in Congress was
violent and bitter. In the summer of 1849
California adopted in convention a Consti-
tution prohibiting slavery within its borders.
Taylor advocated the immediate admission
of California with her Constitution, and the
postponement of the question as to the other
Territories until they could hold conven-
tions and decide for themselves whether
slavery should exist within their borders.
This policy ultimately prevailed through
the celebrated " Compromise Measures" of
Henry Clay ; but not during the life of the
brave soldier and patriot statesman. July
5 he was taken suddenly ill with a bilious
fever, which proved fatal, his death occur-
ring July 9, 1850. One of his daughters
married Colonel W. W. S. Bliss, his Adju-
tant-General and Chief of Staff in Florida
and Mexico, and Private Secretary during
his Presidency. Another daughter was
married to Jefferson Davis.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
LLARD FILL-
MORE, the thir-
teenth President
of the United
States, i85o-'3, was
born in Summer
Hill, C a y u g a
County, New York, Janu-
ary 7, 1800. He was of
New England ancestry, and
his educational advantages
were limited. He early
learned the clothiers' trade,
but spent all his leisure time
in study. At nineteen years
of age he was induced by
Judge Walter Wood to abandon his trade
and commence the study of law. Upon
learning that the young man was entirely
destitute of means, he took him into his
own office and loaned him such money as
he needed. That he might not be heavily
burdened with debt, young Fillmore taught
school during the winter months, and in
various other ways helped himself along.
At the age of twenty-three he was ad-
mitted to the Court of Common Pleas, and
commenced the practice of his profession
in the village of Aurora, situated on the
eastern bank of the Cayuga Lake. In 1825
he married Miss Abigail Powers, daughter
of Rev. Lemuel Powers, a lady of great
moral worth. In 1825 he took his seat in
the House of Assembly of his native State,
as Representative from Erie County,
whither he had recently moved. .
Though he had never taken a very
active part in politics his vote and his sym-
pathies were with the Whig party. The
State was then Democratic, but his cour-
tesy, ability and integrity won the respect
of his associates. In 1832 he was elected
to a seat in the United States Congress.
At the close of his term he returned to his
law practice, and in two years more he was
again elected to Congress.
He now began to have a national reputa-
tion. His labors were very arduous. To
draft resolutions in the committee room,
and then to defend them against the most
skillful opponents on the floor of the House
requires readiness of mind, mental resources
and skill in debate such as few possess.
Weary with these exhausting labors, and
pressed by the claims of his private affairs,
Mr. Fillmore wrote a letter to his constitu-
ents and declined to be a candidate for re-
election. Notwithstanding this ccmmuni-
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
MILLARD FILLMORE.
75
cation his friends met in convention and
renominated him by acclamation. Though
gratified by this proof of their appreciation
of his labors he adhered to his resolve and
returned to his home.
In 1847 Mr. Fillmore was elected to the
important office of comptroller of the State.
In entering upon the very responsible duties
which this situation demanded, it was nec-
essary for him to abandon his profession,
and he removed to the city of Albany. In
this year, also, the Whigs were looking
around to find suitable candidates for the
President and Vice-President at the ap-
proaching election, and the names of Zach-
ary Taylor and Millard Fillmore became
the rallying cry of the Whigs. On the 4th
of March, 1849, General Taylor was inaug-
urated President and Millard Fillmore
Vice-President of the United States.
The great question of slavery had as-
sumed enormous proportions, and perme-
ated every subject that was brought before
Congress. It was evident that the strength
of our institutions was to be severely tried.
July 9, 1850, President Taylor died, and, by
the Constitution, Vice-President Fillmore
became President of the United States.
The agitated condition of the country
brought questions of great delicacy before
him. He was bound by his oath of office
to execute the laws of the United States.
One of these laws was understood to be,
that if a slave, escaping from bondage,
should reach a free State, the United States
was bound to do its utmost to capture him
and return him to his master. Most Chris-
tian men loathed this law. President Fill-
more felt bound by his oath rigidly to see
it enforced. Slavery was organizing armies
to invade Cuba as it had invaded Texas,
and annex it to the United States. Presi-
dent Fillmore gave all the influence of his
exalted station against the atrocious enter-
prise.
Mr. Fillmore had serious difficulties to
contend with, since the opposition had a
majority in both Houses. He did every-
thing in his power to conciliate the South,
but the pro-slavery party in that section
felt the inadequency of all measures of tran-
sient conciliation. The population of the
free States was so rapidly increasing over
that of the slave States, that it was inevita-
ble that the power of the Government
should soon pass into the hands of the free
States. The famous compromise measures
were adopted under Mr. Fillmore's admin-
istration, and the Japan expedition was
sent out.
March 4, 1853, having served one term,
President Fillmore retired from office. He
then took a long tour through the South,
where he met with quite an enthusiastic
reception. In a speech at Vicksburg, al-
luding to the rapid growth of the country,
he said:
" Canada is knocking for admission, and
Mexico would be glad to come in, and
without saying whether it would be right
or wrong, we stand with open arms to re-
ceive them; for it is the manifest destiny of
this Government to embrace the whole
North American Continent."
In 1855 Mr. Fillmore went to Europe
where he was received with those marked
attentions which his position and character
merited. Returning to this country in
1856 he was nominated for the Presidency
by the "Know-Nothing" party. Mr. Bu-
chanan, the Democratic candidate was
the successful competitor. Mr. Fillmore
ever afterward lived in retirement. Dur-
ing the conflict of civil war he was mostly
silent. It was generally supposed, how-
ever, that his sympathy was with the South-
ern Confederacy. He kept aloof from the
conflict without any words of cheer to the
one party or the other. For this reason
he was forgotten by both. He died of
paralysis, in Buffalo, New York, March 8,
1874.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
'RANKLIN PIERCE,
the fourteenth Presi-
dent of the United
States, was born in
Hillsborough, New
Hampshire, Novem-
ber 23, 1804. His
father, Governor
Benjamin Pierce, was a Rev-
olutionary soldier, a man of
rigid integrity ; was for sev-
eral years in the State Legis-
lature, a member of the Gov-
ernor's council and a General
of the militia.
Franklin was the sixth of eight children.
As a boy he listened eagerly to the argu-
ments of his father, enforced by strong and
ready utterance and earnest gesture. It
was in the days of intense political excite-
ment, when, all over the New England
States, Federalists and Democrats were ar-
rayed so fiercely against each other.
In 1820 he entered Bowdoin College, at
Brunswick, Maine, and graduated in 1824,
and commenced the study of law in the
office of Judge Woodbury, a very distin-
guished lawyer, and in 1827 was admitted
to the bar. He practiced with great success
in Hillsborough and Concord. He served
in the State Legislature four years, the last
two of which he was chosen Speaker of the
House by a very large vote.
In 1833 he was elected a member of Con-
gress. In 1837 ne was elected to the United
States Senate, just as Mr. Van Buren com-
menced his administration.
In 1834 he married Miss Jane Means
Appleton, a lady admirably fitted to adorn
every station with which her husband was
honored. Three sons born to them all
found an early grave.
Upon his accession to office, President
Polk appointed Mr. Pierce Attorney-Gen-
eral of the United States, but the offer was
declined in consequence of numerous pro-
fessional engagements at home and the
precarious state of Mrs. Pierce's health.
About the same time he also declined the
nomination for Governor by the Demo-
cratic party.
The war with Mexico called Mr. Pierce
into the army. Receiving the appointment
of Brigadier-General, he embarked with a
portion of his troops at Newport, Rhode
Island, May 27, 1847. He served during
this war, and distinguished himself by his
bravery, skill and excellent judgment.
When he reached his home in his native
State he was enthusiastically received by
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
FRANKLIN PIERCE.
the advocates of the war, and coldly by its
opponents. He resumed the practice of his
profession, frequently taking- an active part
in political questions, and giving his sup-
port to the pro-slavery wing of the Demo-
cratic party.
June 12, 1852, the Democratic convention
met in Baltimore to nominate a candidate
for the Presidency. For four days they
continued in session, and in thirty-five bal-
lotings no one had received the requisite
two-thirds vote. Not a vote had been
thrown thus far for General Pierce. Then
the Virginia delegation brought forward
his name. There were fourteen more bal-
lotings, during which General Pierce
gained strength, until, at the forty-ninth
ballot, he received 282 votes, and all other
candidates eleven. General Winfield Scott
was the Whig candidate. General Pierce
was elected with great unanimity. Only
four States — Vermont, Massachusetts, Ken-
tuck}' and Tennessee — cast their electoral
votes against him. March 4, 1853, he was
inaugurated President of the United States,
and William R. King, Vice-President.
President Pierce's cabinet consisted of
William S. Marcy, James Guthrie, Jefferson
Davis, James C. Dobbin, Robert McClel-
land, James Campbell and Caleb dishing.
At the demand of slavery the Missouri
Compromise was repealed, and all the Ter-
ritories of the Union were thrown open to
slavery. The Territory of Kansas, west of
Missouri, was settled by emigrants mainly
from the North. According to law, they
were -about to meet and decide whether
slavery or freedom should be the law of
that realm. Slavery in Missouri and
other Southern States rallied her armed
legions, marched them into Kansas, took
possession of the polls, drove away the
citizens, deposited their own votes by
handiuls, went through the farce of count-
ing them, and then declared that, by an
overwhelming majority, slavery was estab-
lished in Kansas. These facts nobody
denied, and yet President Pierce's adminis-
tration felt bound to respect the decision
obtained by such votes. The citizens of
Kansas, the majority of whom were free-
State men, met in convention and adopted
the following resolve :
"Resolved, That the body of men who,
for the past two months, have been passing
laws for the people of our Territory,
moved, counseled and dictated to by the
demagogues of other States, are to us a
foreign body, representing only the lawless
invaders who elected them, and not the
people of this Territory ; that we repudiate
their action as the monstrous consummation
of an act of violence, usurpation and fraud
unparalleled in the history of the Union."
The free-State people of Kansas also sent
a petition to the General Government, im-
ploring its protection. It; reply the Presi-
dent issued a proclamation, declaring that
Legislature thus created must be recog-.
.nized as the legitimate Legislature of Kan-
sas, and that its laws were binding upon
the people, and that, if necessary, the whole
force of the Governmental arm would be
put forth to inforce those laws.
James Buchanan succeeded him in the
Presidency, and, March 4, 1857, President
Pierce retired to his home in Concord,
New Hampshire. When the Rebellion
burst forth Mr. Pierce remained steadfast
to the principles he had always cherished,
and gave his sympathies to the pro-slavery
party, with which he had ever been allied.
He declined to do anything, either by
voice or pen, to strengthen the hands of
the National Government. He resided in
Concord until his death, which occurred in
October, 1869. He was one of the most
genial and social of men, generous to
a fault, and contributed liberally of his
moderate means for the alleviation of suf-
fering and Want. He was an honored
communicant of the Episcopal c-hurch.
PRESIDENTS Of THE UNITED STATES.
AMES BUCHANAN, the
fifteenth President of the
United States, i857-'6i,
was born in Franklin
County, Pennsylvania,
April 23, 1791. The
place where his father's
cabin stood was called
Stony Batter, and it was
situated in a wild, romantic
spot, in a gorge of mount-
ains, with towering sum-
mits rising all around. He
was of Irish ancestry, his
father having emigrated in-
1783, with very little prop-
erty, save his own strong arms.
James remained in his secluded home for
eight years enjoying very few social or
intellectual advantages. His parents were
industrious, frugal, prosperous and intelli-
gent. In 1799 his father removed to Mer-
cersburg, where James was placed in
school and commenced a course in English,
Greek and Latin. His progress was rapid
and in 1801 he entered Dickinson College
at Carlisle. Here he took his stand among
the first scholars in the institution, and was
able to master the most abstruse subjects
with facility. In 1809 he graduated with
the highest honors in his class.
He was then eighteen years of age, tall,
graceful and in vigorous health, fond ol
athletic sports, an unerring shot and en-
livened with an exuberant flow of animal
spirits. He immediately commenced the
study of law in the city of Lancaster, and
was admitted to the bar in 1812. He rose
very rapidly in his profession and at once
took undisputed stand with the ablest law-
yers of the State. When but t went)'- six
years of age, unaided by counsel, he suc-
cessfully defended before the State Senate
one of the Judges of the State, who was
tried upon articles of impeachment At
the age of thirty it was generally admitted
that he stood at the head of the bar, and
there was no lawyer in the State who had
a more extensive or lucrative practice.
In 1812, just after Mr. Buchanan had
entered upon the practice of the law, our
second war with England occurred. With
all his powers he sustained the Govern-
ment, eloquently urging the rigorous pros-
ecution of the war; and even enlisting as a
private soldier to assist in repelling the
British, who had sacked Washington and
were threatening Baltimore. He was at
that time a Federalist, but when the Con-
stitution was adopted by both parties,
Jefferson truly said, " We are all Federal-
ists; we are all Republicans."
The oppos;tion of the Federalists to the
war with England, and the alien and sedi-
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
JAMES BUCHANAN.
tion laws of John Adams, brought the party
into dispute, and the name of Federalist
became a reproach. Mr. Buchanan almost
immediately upon entering Congress began
to incline more and more to the Repub-
licans. In the stormy Presidential election
of 1824, in which Jackson, Clay, Crawford
and John Quincy Adams were candidates,
Mr. Buchanan espoused the cause of Gen-
eral Jackson and unrelentingly opposed the
administration of Mr. Adams.
Upon his elevation to the Presidency,
General Jackson appointed Mr. Buchanan,
minister to Russia. Upon his return in 1833
lie was elected to a seat in the United States
Senate. He there met as his associates,
Webster, Clay, Wright and Calhoun. He
advocated the measures proposed by Presi-
dent Jackson of making reprisals against
France, and defended the course of the Pres-
ident in his unprecedented and wholesale
removals from office of those who were not
the supporters of his administration. Upon
this question he was brought into direct col-
lision with Henry Clay. In the discussion
of the question respecting the admission of
Michigan and Arkansas into the Union, Mr.
Buchanan denned his position by saying:
" The older I grow, the more I am in-
clined to be what is called a State-rights
man."
M. de Tocqueville, in his renowned work
upon " Democracy in America," foresaw
the trouble which was inevitable from the
doctrine of State sovereignty as held by
Calhoun and Buchanan. He was con-
vinced that the National Government was
losing that strength which was essential
to its own existence, and that the States
were assuming powers which threatened
the perpetuity of the Union. Mr. Buchanan
received the book in the Senate and de-
clared the fears of De Tocqueville to be
groundless, and yet he lived to sit in the
Presidential chair and see State after State,
in accordance with his own views of State
rights, breaking from the Union, thus
crumbling our Republic into ruins; while
the unhappy old man folded his arms in
despair, declaring that the National Consti-
tution invested him with no power to arrest
the destruction.
Upon Mr. Polk's accession to the Presi-
dency, Mr. Buchanan became Secretary of
State, and as such took his share of the
responsibility in the conduct of the Mexi-
can war. At the close of Mr. Polk's ad-
ministration, Mr. Buchanan retired to pri-
vate life; but his intelligence, and his great
ability as a statesman, enabled him to exert
a powerful influence in National affairs.
Mr. Pierce, upon his election to the
Presidency, honored Mr. Buchanan with
the mission to England. In the year 1856
the National Democratic convention nomi-
nated Mr. Buchanan for the Presidency.
The political conflict was one of the most
severe in which our country has ever en-
gaged. On the 4th of March, 1857, Mr.
Buchanan was inaugurated President. His
cabinet were Lewis Cass, Howell Cobb,
J. B. Floyd, Isaac Toucey, Jacob Thomp-
son, A. V. Brown and J. S. Black.
The disruption of the Democratic party,
in consequence of the manner in which the
issue of the nationality of slavery was
pressed by the Southern wing, occurred at
the National convention, held at Charleston
in April, 1860, for the nomination of Mr.
Buchanan's successor, when the majority
of Southern delegates withdrew upon the
passage of a resolution declaring that the
constitutional status of slavery should be
determined by the Supreme Court.
In the next Presidential canvass Abra-
ham Lincoln was nominated by the oppo-
nents of Mr. Buchanan's administration.
Mr. Buchanan remained in Washington
long enough to see his successor installed
and then retired to his borne in Wheatiand.
He died June i, 1868, aged seventy-seven
years.
PKES/DENTS OF THE UN f TED STATES.
. ffc -sU ffo _4- _ ^fo _!j» «» _-k
^F
*i!»-
BRAHAM LIN-
COLN, the sixteenth
President of the
United States, i86i-'5,
was born February
12, 1809, in Larue
(then Hardin) County,
Kentucky, in a cabin on Nolan
Creek, three miles west of
Hudgensville. H i s parents
were Thomas and Nancy
(Hanks) Lincoln. Of his an-
cestry and early years the little
that is known may best be
given in his own language : " My
parents were both born in Virginia, of un-
distinguished families — second families, per-
haps I should say. My mother, who died
in my tenth year, was of a family of the
name of Hanks, some of whom now remain
in Adams, and others in Macon County,
Illinois. My paterna' grandfather, Abra-
ham Lincoln, emigrated from Rockbridge
County, Virginia, to Kentucky in 1781 or
1782, where, a year or two later, he was
killed by Indians — not in battle, but by
stealth, when he was laboring to open a
farm in the forest. His ancestors, Avho were
Quakers, went to Virginia from Berks
County, Pennsylvania. An effort to iden-
tify them with the New England family of
the same name ended in nothing more defi-
nite than a similarity of Christian names in
both families, such as Enoch, Levi, Mor-
decai, Solomon, Abraham and the like.
My father, at the death of his father, was
but six years of age, and he grew up, liter-
ally, without education. He removed from
Kentucky to what is now Spencer County,
Indiana, in my eighth year. We reached
our new home about the time the State came
into the Union. It was a wild region, with
bears and other wild animals still in the
woods. There -I grew to manhood.
" There were some schools, so called, but
no qualification was ever required of a
teacher bevond ' readin', writin', and cipher-
in' to the rule of three.' If a straggler, sup-
posed to understand Latin, happened to
sojourn in the neighborhood, he was looked
upon as a wizard. There was absolutely
nothing to excite ambition for education.
Of course, when I came of age I did not
know much. Still, somehow, I could read,
write and cipher to the rule of three, and
that was all. I have not been to school
since. The little advance I now have upon
this store of education I have picked up
from time to time under the pressure of
necessity. I was raised to farm- work, which
i —
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
I continued till I was twenty-two. At
twenty-one I came to Illinois and passed
the first year in Macon County. Then I got
to New Salem, at that time in Sangamon,
now in Menard County, where I remained
a year as a sort of clerk in a store.
" Then came the Black Hawk war, and I
was elected a Captain of volunteers — a suc-
cess which gave me more pleasure than any
I have had since. I went the campaign,
was elated ; ran for the Legislature the
same year (1832) and was beaten, the only
time I have ever been beaten by the people.
The next and three succeeding biennial
elections I was elected to the Legislature,
and was never a candidate afterward.
" During this legislative period I had
studied law, and removed to Springfield to
practice it. In 1846 I was elected to the
Lower House of Congress; was not a can-
didate-for re-election. From 184910 1854,
inclusive, I practiced the law more assid-
uously than ever before. Always a Whig
in politics, and generally on the Whig elec-
toral tickets, making active canvasses, I was
losing interest in politics, when the repeal
of the Missouri Compromise roused me
again. What I have done since is pretty
well known."
The early residence of Lincoln in Indi-
ana was sixteen miles north of the Ohio
River, on Little Pigeon Creek, one and a
half miles east of Gentryville, within the
present township of Carter. Here his
mother died October 5, 1818, and the next
year his father married Mrs. Sally (Bush)
Johnston, of Elizabethtown, Kentucky. She
was an affectionate foster-parent, to whom
Abraham was indebted for his first encour-
agement to study. He became an eager
reader, and the few books owned in the
vicinity were many times perused. He
worked frequently for the neighbors as a
farm laborer ; was for some time clerk in a
store at Gentryville; and became famous
throughout that region for his athletic
powers, his fondness for argument, his in-
exhaustible fund of humerous anecdote, as
well as for mock oratory and the composi-
tion of rude satirical verses. In 1828 he
made a trading voyage to New Orleans as
" bow-hand " on a flatboat ; removed to
Illinois in 1830; helped his father build a
log house and clear a farm on the north
fork of Sangamon River, ten miles west of
Decatur, and was for some time employed
in splitting rails for the fences — a fact which
was prominently brought forward for a
political purpose thirty years later.
In the spring of 1851 he, with two of his
relatives, was hired to build a flatboat on
the Sangamon River and navigate it to
New Orleans. The boat " stuck " on a
mill-dam, and was got off with great labor
through an ingenious mechanical device
which some years later led to Lincoln's
taking out a patent for "an improved
method for lifting vessels over shoals."
This voyage was memorable for another
reason— the sight of slaves chained, mal-
treated and flogged at New Orleans was
the origin of his deep convictions upon the
slavery question.
Returning from this voyage he became a
resident for several years at New Salem, a
recently settled village on the Sangamon,
where he was successively a clerk, grocer,
surveyor and postmaster, and acted as pilot
to the first steamboat that ascended the
Sangamon. Here he studied law, inter-
ested himself in local politics after his
return from the Black Hawk war, and
became known as an effective "stump
speaker." The subject of his first political
speech was the improvement of the channel
of the Sangamon, and the chief ground on
which he announced himself (1832) a candi-
date for the Legislature was his advocacy
of this popular measure, on which subject
his practical experience made him the high-
est authority.
Elected to the Legislature in 1834 as a
88
PltFSinR\TS OP THE UXtTED STATES.
" Henry Clay Whig," he rapidly acquired
that command of language and that homely
but forcible rhetoric which, added to his
intimate knowledge of the people from
which he sprang, made him more than a
match in debate for his few well-educated
opponents.
Admitted to the bar in 1837 he soon
established himself at Springfield, where
the State capital was located in 1839,
largely through his influence; became a
successful pleader in the State, Circuit and
District Courts; married in 1842 a lady be-
longing to a prominent family in Lexington,
Kentucky; took an active part in the Pres-
idential campaigns of 1840 and 1844 as
candidate for elector on the Harrison and
Clay tickets, and in 1846 was elected to the
United States House of Representatives
over the celebrated Peter Cartwright.
During his single term in Congress he did
not attain any prominence.
He voted for the reception of anti-slavery
petitions for the abolition of the slave trade
in the District of Columbia and for the
Wilmot proviso ; but was chiefly remem-
bered for the stand he took against the
Mexican war. For several years there-
after he took comparatively little interest
in politics, but gained a leading position at
the Springfield bar. Two or three non-
political lectures and an eulogy on Henry
Clay (1852) added nothing to his reputation.
In 1854 the repeal of the Missouri
Compromise by the Kansas-Nebraska act
aroused Lincoln from his indifference, and
in attacking that measure he had the im-
mense advantage of knowing perfectly well
the motives and the record .of its author,
Stephen A. Douglas, of Illinois, then popu-
larly designated as the " Little Giant." The
latter came to Springfield in October, 1854,
on the occasion of the State Fair, to vindi-
cate his policy in the Senate, and the " Anti-
Nebraska" Whigs, remembering that Lin-
coln had often measured his strength with
Douglas in the Illinois Legislature and be-
fore the Springfield Courts, engaged him
to improvise a reply. This speech, in the
opinion of those who heard it, was one of
the greatest efforts of Lincoln's life ; cer-
tainly the most effective in his whole career.
It took the audience by storm, and from
that moment it was felt that Douglas had
met his match. Lincoln was accordingly
selected as the Anti-Nebraska candidate for
the United States Senate in place of General
Shields, whose term expired March 4, 1855,
and led to several ballots ; but Trumbull
was ultimately chosen.
The second conflict on the soil of Kan-
sas, which Lincoln had predicted, soon be-
gan. The result was the disruption of the
Whig and the formation of the Republican
party. At the Bloomington State Conven-
tion in 1856, where the new party first
assumed form in Illinois, Lincoln made an
impressive address, in which for the first
time he took distinctive ground against
slavery in itself.
At the National Republican Convention
at Philadelphia, June 17, after the nomi-
nation of Fremont, Lincoln was put for-
ward by the Illinois delegation for the
Vice-Presidency, and received on the first
ballot no votes against 259 for William L
Dayton. He took a prominent part in the
canvass, being on the electoral ticket.
In 1858 Lincoln was unanimously nomi-
nated by the Republican State Convention
as its candidate for the United States Senate
in place of Douglas, and in his speech of
acceptance used the celebrated illustration
of a "house divided against itself '' on the
slavery question, which was, perhaps, the
cause of his defeat. The great debate car-
ried on at all the principal towns of Illinois
between Lincoln and Douglas as rival Sena-
torial candidates resulted at the time in the
election of the latter ; but being widely cir-
culated as a campaign document, it fixed
the attention of the country upon the
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
former, as the clearest and most convinc-
ing exponent of Republican doctrine.
Early in 1859 he began to be named in
Illinois as a suitable Republican candidate
for the Presidential campaign of the ensu-
ing year, and a political address delivered
at the Cooper Institute, New York, Febru-
ary 27, 1860, followed by similar speeches
at New Haven, Hartford and elsewhere in
New England, first made him known to the
Eastern States in the light by which he had
long been regarded at home. By the Re-
publican State Convention, which met at
Decatur, Illinois, May 9 and 10, Lincoln
was unanimously endorsed for the Presi-
dency. It was on this occasion that two
rails, said to have been split by his hands
thirty years before, were brought into the
convention, and the incident contributed
much to his popularity. The National
Republican Convention at Chicago, after
spirited efforts made in favor of Seward,
Chase and Bates, nominated Lincoln for
the Presidency, with Hannibal Hamlin
for Vice-President, at the same time adopt-
ing a vigorous anti-slavery platform.
The Democratic party having been dis-
organized and presenting two candidates,
Douglas and Breckenridge, and the rem-
nant of the " American" party having put
forward John Bell, of Tennessee, the Re-
publican victory was an easy one, Lincoln
being elected November 6 by a large plu-
rality, comprehending nearly all the North-
ern States, but none of the Southern. The
secession of South Carolina and the Gulf
States was the immediate result, followed
a few months later by that of the border
slave States and the outbreak of the great
civil war.
The life of Abraham Lincoln became
thenceforth merged in the history of his
country. None of the details of the vast
conflict which filled the remainder of Lin-
coln's life can here be given. Narrowly
escaping assassination by avoiding Balti-
more on his way to the capital, he reached
Washington February 23, and was inaugu-
rated President of the United States March
4, 1861.
In his inaugural address he said: " I hold,
that in contemplation of universal law and
the Constitution the Union of these States is
perpetual. Perpetuity is implied if not ex-
pressed in the fundamental laws of all na-
tional governments. It is safe to assert
that no government proper ever had a pro-
vision in its organic law for its own termi-
nation. I therefore consider that in view
of the Constitution and the laws, the Union
is unbroken, and to the extent of my ability
I shall take care, as the Constitution en^
joins upon me, that the laws of the United
States be extended in all the States. In
doing this there need be no bloodshed or vio-
lence, and there shall be none unless it be
forced upon the national authority. The
power conferred to me will be used to hold,
occupy and possess the property and places
belonging to the Government, and to col-
lect the duties and imports, but beyond
what may be necessary for these objects
there will be no invasion, no using of force
against or among the people anywhere. In
your hands, my dissatisfied fellow-country-
men, is the momentous issue of civil war.
The Government will not assail you. You
can have no conflict without being your-
selves the aggressors. You have no oath
registered in heaven to destroy the Gov-
ernment, while I shall have the most sol-
emn one to preserve, protect and defend
it."
He called to his cabinet his principal
rivals for the Presidential nomination —
Seward, Chase, Cameron and Bates; se-
cured the co-operation of the Union Demo-
crats, headed by Douglas ; called out 75,000
militia from the several States upon the first
tidings of the bombardment of Fort Sumter,
April 15; proclaimed a blockade of the
Southern posts April 19; called an extra
PRBStDBNTS OF THE U VI TED STATES.
session o[ Congress for July 4, from which
he asked and obtained 400,000 men and
$400,000,000 for the war; placed McClellan
at the head of the Federal army on General
Scott's resignation, October 31; appointed
Edwin M. Stanton Secretary of War, Jan-
uary 14, 1862, and September 22, 1862,
issued a proclamation declaring the free-
dom of all slaves in the States and parts of
States then in rebellion from and after
January i, 1863. This was the crowning
act of Lincoln's career — the act by which
he will be chiefly known through all future
time — and it decided the war.
October 16, 1863, President Lincoln called
for 300,000 volunteers to replace those
whose term of enlistment had expired ;
made a celebrated and touching, though
brief, address at the dedication of the
Gettysburg military cemetery, November
19, 1863; commissioned Ulysses S. Grant
Lieutenant-General and Commander-in-
Chief of the armies of the United States,
March 9, 1864; was re-elected President in
November of the same year, by a large
majority over General McClellan, with
Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, as Vice-
President; delivered a very remarkable ad-
dress at his second inauguration, March 4,
1865; visited the army before Richmond the
same month; entered the capital of the Con-
federacy the day after its fall, and upon the
surrender of General Robert E. Lee's army,
April 9, was actively engaged in devising
generous plans for the reconstruction of the
Union, when, on the evening of Good Fri-
day, April 14, he was shot in his box at
Ford's Theatre, Washington, byJohnWilkes
Booth, a fanatical actor, and expired early
on the following morning, April 15. Al-
most simultaneously a murderous attack
was made upon William H. Seward, Secre-
tary of State.
At noon on the i$th of April Andrew
Johnson assumed the Presidency, and active
measures were taken which resulted in the
death of Booth and the execution of his
principal accomplices.
The funeral of President Lincoln was
conducted with unexampled solemnity and
magnificence. Impressive services were
held in Washington, after which the sad
procession proceeded over the same route
he had traveled four years before, from
Springfield to Washington. In Philadel-
phia his body lay in state in Independence
Hall, in which he had declared before his
first inauguration "that I would sooner be
assassinated than to give up the principles
of the Declaration of Independence." He
was buried at Oak Ridge Cemetery, near
Springfield, Illinois, on May 4, where a
monument emblematic of the emancipation
of the slaves and the restoration of the
Union mark his resting place.
The leaders and citizens of the expiring
Confederacy expressed genuine indignation
at the murder of a generous political adver-
sary. Foreign nations took part in mourn-
ing the death of a statesman who had proved
himself a true representative of American
nationality. The freedmen of the South
almost worshiped the memory of their de-
liverer; and the general sentiment of the
great Nation he had saved awarded him a
place in its affections, second only to that
held by Washington.
The characteristics of Abraham Lincoln
have been familiarly known throughout the
civilized world. His tall, gaunt, ungainly
figure, homely countenance, and his shrewd
mother-wit, shown in his celebrated con-
versations overflowing in humorous and
pointed anecdote, combined with an accu-
rate, intuitive appreciation of the questions
of the time, are recognized as forming the
best type of a period of American history
now rapidly passing away.
UBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
ANDREW JOHNSON.
9?
NDREWJOHNSON,
the seventeenth Presi-
dent of the United
States, i865-'9, was
born at Raleigh,
North Carolina, De-
c em b e r 29, 1808.
Hisfatherdied when
he was four years old, and in
his eleventh year he was ap-
prenticed to a tailor. He nev-
er attended school, and did
not learn to read until late in
his apprenticeship, when he
suddenly acquired a passion for
obtaining knowledge, and devoted
all his spare time to reading.
After working two years as a journey-
man tailor at Lauren's Court-House, South
Carolina, he removed, in 1826, to Green-
ville, Tennessee, where he worked at his
trade and married. Under his wife's in-
structions he made rapid progress in his
education, and manifested such an intelli-
gent interest in local politics as to be
elected as " workingmen's candidate " al-
derman, in 1828, and mayor in 1830, being
twice re-elected to each office.
During this period he cultivated his tal-
ents as a public speaker by Inking part in a
debating society, consisting largely of stu-
dents of Greenville College. In 1835, and
again in 1839, ne was chosen to the lower
house of the Legislature, as a Democrat.
In 1841 he was elected State Senator, and
in 1843, Representative in Congress, being
re-elected four successive periods, until
1853, when he was chosen Governor of
Tennessee. In Congress he supported the
administrations of Tyler and Polk in their
chief measures, especially the annexation
of Texas, the adjustment of the Oregon
boundary, the Mexican war, and the tariff
of 1846.
In 1855 Mr. Johnson was re elected Gov-
ernor, and in 1857 entered the United
States Senate, where he was conspicuous
as an advocate of retrenchment and of the
Homestead bill, and as an opponent of the
Pacific Railroad. He was supported by the
Tennessee delegation to the Democratic
convention in 1860 for the Presidential
nomination, and lent his influence to the
Breckenridge wing of that party.
When the election of Lincoln had
brought about the first attempt at secession
in December, 1860, Johnson took in the
Senate a firm attitude for the Union, and
in May, 1861, on returning to Tennessee,
he was in imminent peril of suffering from
PRESIDENTS OF THF. UNlThP STATES.
popular violence for his loyalty to the " old
flag." He was the leader of the Loyalists'
convention of East Tennessee, and during
the following winter was very active in or-
ganizing relief for the destitute loyal refu-
gees from that region, his own family being
among those compelled to leave.
By his course in this crisis Johnson came
prominently before the Northern public,
and when in March, 1862, he was appointed
by President Lincoln military Governor of
Tennessee, with the rank of Brigadier-Gen-
eral, he increased in popularity by the vig-
orous and successful manner in which he
labored to restore order, protect Union
men and punish marauders. On the ap-
proach of the Presidential campaign of 1864,
the termination of the war being plainly
foreseen, and several Southern States being
partially reconstructed, it was felt that the
Vice-Presidency should be given to a South-
ern man of conspicuous loyalty, and Gov-
ernor Johnson was elected on the same
platform and ticket as President Lincoln;
and on the assassination of the latter suc-
ceeded to the Presidency, April 15, 1865.
In a public speech two days later he said:
"The American people must be taught, if
they do not already feel, that treason is a
crime and must be punished; that the Gov-
ernment will not always bear with its ene-
mies; that it is strong, not only to protect,
but to punish. In our peaceful history
treason has been almost unknown. The
people must understand that it is the black-
est of crimes, and will be punished." He
then added the ominous sentence: " In re-
gard to my future course, I make no prom-
ises, no pledges."' President Johnson re-
tained the cabinet of Lincoln, and exhibited
considerable severity toward traitors in his
earlier acts and speeches, but he soon inaug-
urated a policy of reconstruction, proclaim-
ing a general amnesty to the late Confeder-
ates, and successively establishing provis-
ional Governments in the Southern States.
These States accordingly claimed represen-
tation in Congress in the following Decem-
ber, and the momentous question of what
should be the policy of the victorious Union
toward its late armed opponents was forced
upon that body.
Two considerations impelled the Repub-
lican majority to reject the policy of Presi,
dent Johnson: First, an apprehension that
the chief magistrate intended to undo the re-
sults of the war in regard to slavery; and, sec-
ond, the sullen attitude of the South, which
seemed to be plotting to regain the policy
which arms had lost. The credentials of the
Southern members elect were laid on the
table, a civil rights bill and a bill extending
the sphere of the Freedmen's Bureau were
passed over the executive veto, and the two
highest branches of the Government were
soon in open antagonism. The action of
Congress was characterized by the Presi-
dent as a " new rebellion." In July the
cabinet was reconstructed, Messrs. Randall,
Stanbury and Browning taking the places
of Messrs. Denison, Speed and Harlan, and
an unsuccessful attempt was made by
means of a general convention in Philadel-
phia to form a new party on the basisof the
administration policy.
In an excursion to Chicago for the pur-
pose of laying a corner-stone of the monu-
ment to Stephen A. Douglas, President
Johnson, accompanied by several members
of the cabinet, passed through Philadelphia,
New York and Albany, in each of which
cities, and in other places along the route,
he made speeches justifying and explaining
his own policy, and violently denouncing
the action of Congress.
August 12, 1867, President Johnson re-
moved the Secretary of War, replacing
him by General Grant. Secretary Stanton
retired under protest, based upon the ten-
ure-of-office act which had been passed the
preceding March. The President then is-
sued a proclamation declaring the insurrec-
A NDKE W JOHNSON.
tion at an end, and that " peace, order, tran-
quility and civil authority existed in and
throughout the United States." Another
proclamation enjoined obedience to the
Constitution and the laws, and an amnesty
was published September 7, relieving nearly
all the participants in the late Rebellion
from the disabilities thereby incurred, on
condition of taking the oath to support the
Constitution and the laws.
In December Congress refused to confirm
the removal of Secretary Stanton, who
thereupon resumed the exercise of his of-
fice; but February 21, 1868, President
Johnson again attempted to remove him,
appointing General Lorenzo Thomas in his
place. Stanton refused to vacate his post,
and was sustained by the Senate.
February 24 the House of Representa-
tives voted to impeach the President for
" high crime and misdemeanors," and March
5 presented eleven articles of impeachment
on the ground of his resistance to the exe-
cution of the acts of Congress, alleging, in
addition to the offense lately committed,
his public expressions of contempt for Con-
gress, in " certain intemperate, inflamma-
tory and scandalous harangues" pronounced
in August and September, 1866, and there-
after declaring that the Thirty-ninth Con-
gress of the United States was not a
competent legislative body, and denying
its power to propose Constitutional amend-
ments. March 23 the impeachment trial
began, the President appearing by counsel,
and resulted in acquittal, the vote lacking
one of the two-thirds vote required for
conviction.
The remainder of President Johnson's
term of office was passed without any such
conflicts as might have been anticipated.
He failed to obtain a nomination for re-
election by the Democratic party, though
receiving sixty-five votes on the first ballot.
July 4 and December 25 new proclamations
of pardon to the participants in the late
Rebellion were issued, but were of little
effect. On the accession of General Grant
to the Presidency, March 4, 1869, Johnson
returned to Greenville, Tennessee. Unsuc-
cessful in 1870 and 1872 as a candidate re-
spectively for United States Senator and
Representative, he was finally elected to the
Senate in 1875, and took his seat in the extra
session of March, in which his speeches
were comparatively temperate. He died
July 31, 1875, and was buried at Green-
ville.
President Johnson's administration was a
peculiarly unfortunate one. That he should
so soon become involved in bitter feud with
the Republican majority in Congress was
certainly a surprising and deplorable inci-
dent; yet, in reviewing the circumstances
after a lapse of so many years, it is easy to
find ample room for a charitable judgment
of both the parties in the heated contro-
versy, since it cannot be doubted that any
President, even Lincoln himself, had he
lived, must have sacrificed a large portion
of his popularity in carrying out any pos-
sible scheme of reconstruction.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
SIMPSON
GRANT, the eight-
eenth President of the
United States, i86o.-'77,
was born April 27, 1 822,
at Point Pleasant,
j Clermont County,
Ohio. His father was of Scotch
descent, and a dealer in leather.
At the age of seventeen he en-
tered the Military Academy at
West Point, and four years later
graduated twenty-first in a class
of thirty-nine, receiving the
commission of Brevet Second
Lieutenant. He was assigned
to the Fourth Infantry and re-
mained in the army eleven years. He was
engaged in every battle of the Mexican war
except that of Buena Vista, and received
two brevets for gallantry.
In 1848 Mr. Grant married Julia.daughter
of Frederick Dent, a prominent merchant of
St. Louis, and in 1854, having reached the
grade of Captain, he resigned his commis-
sion in the army. For several years he fol-
lowed farming near St. Louis, but unsuc-
cessfully ; and in 1860 he entered the leather
trade with his father at Galena, Illinois.
When the civil war broke out in 1861,
Grant was thirty-nine years of age, but en-
tirely unknown to public men and without
any personal acquaintance with great affairs.
President Lincoln's first call for troops was
made on the I5th of April, and on the igth
Grant was drilling a company of volunteers
at Galena. He also offered his services to
the Adjutant-General of the army, but re-
ceived no reply. The Governor of Illinois,
however, employed him in the organization
of volunteer troops, and at the end of five
weeks he was appointed Colonel of the
Twenty-first Infantry. He took command
of his regiment in June, and reported first
to General Pope in Missouri. His superior
knowledge of military life rather surprised
his superior officers, who had never before
even heard of him, and they were thus led
to place him on the road to rapid advance-
ment. August 7 he was commissioned a
Brigadier-General of volunteers, the ap-
pointment having been made without his
knowledge. He had been unanimously
recommended by the Congressmen from
Illinois, not one of whom had been his
personal acquaintance. For a few weeks
he was occupied in watching the move-
ments of partisan forces in Missouri.
September i he was placed in command
of the District of Southeast Missouri, with
headquarters at Cairo, and on the 6th, with-
out orders, he seized Paducah, at the mouth
of the Tennessee River, and commanding
the navigation both of that stream and oJ
LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
S. GRANT.
99
the Ohio. This stroke secured Kentucky
to the Union ; for the State Legislature,
which had until then affected to be neutral,
at once declared in favor of the Govern-
ment. In November following, according
to orders, he made a demonstration about
eighteen miles below Cairo, preventing the
crossing of hostile troops into Missouri ;
but in order to accomplish this purpose he
had to do some fighting, and that, too, with
only 3,000 raw recruits, against 7,000 Con-
federates. Grant carried off two pieces of
artillery and 200 prisoners.
After repeated applications to General
Halleck, his immediate superior, he was
allowed, in February, 1862, to move up the
Tennessee River against Fort Henry, in
conjunction with a naval force. The gun-
boats silenced the fort, and Grant immedi-
ately made preparations to attack Fort
Donelson, about twelve miles distant, on
the Cumberland River. Without waiting
for orders he moved his troops there, and
with 15,000 men began the siege. The
fort, garrisoned with 21,000 men, was a
strong one, but after hard fighting on three
successive days Grant forced an " Uncon-
ditional Surrender " (an alliteration upon
the initials of his name). The prize he capt-
ured consisted of sixty -five cannon, 17,600
small arms and 14,623 soldiers. About 4,-
ooo of the garrison had escaped in the night,
and 2,500 were killed or wounded. Grant's
entire loss was less than 2,000. This was the
first important success won by the national
troops during the war, and its strategic re-
sults were marked, as the entire States of
Kentucky and Tennessee at once fell into the
National hands. Our hero was made a
Major-General of Volunteers and placed in
command of the District of West Ten-
nessee.
In March, 1862, he was ordered to move
up the Tennessee River toward Corinth,
where the Confederates were concentrat-
ing a large army ; but he was directed not
8
to attack. His forces, now numbering 38.-
ooo, were accordingly encamped near Shi-
loh, or Pittsburg Landing, to await the
arrival of General Buell with 40,000 more;
but April 6 the Confederates came out from
Corinth 50,000 strong and attacked Grant
violently, hoping to overwhelm him before
Buell could arrive ; 5,000 of his troops were
beyond supporting distance, so that he was
largely outnumbered and forced back to the
river, where, however, he held out until
dark, when the head of Buell's column
came upon the field. The next day the
Confederates were driven back to Corinth,
nineteen miles. The loss was heavy on
both sides ; Grant, being senior in rank to
Buell, commanded on both days. Two
days afterward Halleck arrived at the front
and assumed command of the army, Grant
remaining at the head of the right wing and
the reserve. On May 30 Corinth was
evacuated by the Confederates. In July
Halleck was made General-in-Chief, and
Grant succeeded him in command of the
Department of the Tennessee. September
19 the battle of luka was fought, where,
owing to Rosecrans's fault, only an incom-
plete victory was obtained.
Next, Grant, with 30,000 men, moved
down into Mississippi and threatened Vicks-
burg, while Sherman, with 40,000 men, was
sent by way of the river to attack that place
in front ; but, owing to Colonel Murphy's
surrendering Holly Springs to the Con-
. federates, Grant was so weakened that he
had to retire to Corinth, and then Sherman
failed to sustain his intended attack.
In January, 1863, General Grant took
command in person of all the troops in the
Mississippi Valley, and spent several months
in fruitless attempts to compel the surrender
or evacuation of Vicksburg; but July 4,
following, the place surrendered, with 31,-
600 men and 172 cannon, and the Mississippi
River thus fell permanently into the hands
of the Government. Grant was made a
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
Major-General in the regular army, and in
October following he was placed in com-
mand of the Division of the Mississippi.
The same month he wenjt to Chattanooga
and saved the Army of the Cumberland
from starvation, and drove Bragg from that
part of the country. This victory over-
threw the last important hostile force west
of the Alleghanies and opened the way for
the National armies into Georgia and Sher-
man's march to the sea.
The remarkable series of successes which
Grant had now achieved pointed him out
as the appropriate leader of the National
armies, and accordingly, in February, 1864,
the rank of Lieutenant-General was created
for him by Congress, and on March 17 he
assumed command of the armies of the
United States. Planning the grand final
campaign, he sent Sherman into Georgia,
Sigel into the valley of Virginia, and Butler
to capture Richmond, while he fought his
own way from the Rapidan to the James.
The costly but victorious battles of the
Wilderness, Spottsylvania, North Anna and
Cold Harbor were fought, more for the
purpose of annihilating Lee than to capture
any particular point. In June, 1864, the
siege of Richmond was begun. Sherman,
meanwhile, was marching and fighting daily
in Georgia and steadily advancing toward
Atlanta; but Sigel had been defeated in the
valley of Virginia, and was superseded by
Hunter. Lee sent Early to threaten the Na-
tional capital ; whereupon Grant gathered
up a force which he placed under Sheridan,
and that commander rapidly drove Early,
in a succession of battles, through the valley
of Virginia and destroyed his army as an
organized force. The siege of Richmond
went on, and Grant made numerous attacks,
but was only partially successful. The
people of the North grew impatient, and
even the Government advised him to
abandon the attempt to take Richmond or
crush the Confederacy in that way ; but he
never wavered. He resolved to " fight it
out on that line, if it took all summer."
By September Sherman had made his
way to Atlanta, and Grant then sent him
on his famous " march to the sea," a route
which the chief had designed six months
before. He made Sherman's success possi-
ble, not only by holding Lee in front of
Richmond, but also by sending reinforce-
ments to Thomas, who then drew off and
defeated the only army which could have
confronted Sherman. Thus the latter was
left unopposed, and, with Thomas and Sheri-
dan, was used in the furtherance of Grant's
plans. Each executed his part in the great
design and contributed his share to the re-
sult at which Grant was aiming. Sherman
finally reached Savannah, Schofield beat
the enemy at Franklin, Thomas at Nash-
ville, and Sheridan wherever he met him ;
and all this while General Grant was hold-
ing Lee, with the principal Confederate
army, near Richmond, as it were chained
and helpless. Then Schofield was brought
from the West, and Fort Fisher and Wil-
mington were captured on the sea-coast, so
as to afford him a foothold ; from here he
was sent into the interior of North Caro-
lina, and Sherman was ordered to move
northward to join him. When all this was
effected, and Sheridan could find no one else
to fight in the Shenandoah Valley, Grant
brought the cavalry leader to the front of
Richmond, and, making a last effort, drove
Lee from his entrenchments and captured
Richmond.
At the beginning of the final campaign
Lee had collected 73,000 fighting men in
the lines at Richmond, besides the local
militia' and the gunboat crews, amounting
to 5,000 more. Including Sheridan's force
Grant had 1 10,000 men in the works before
Petersburg and Richmond. Petersburg fell
on the 2d of April, and Richmond on the
3d, and Lee fled in the direction of Lynch-
burg. Grant pursued with remorseless
ULTSSBS S. GRANT.
energy, only stopping to strike fresh blows,
and Lee at last found himself not only out-
fought but also out-marched and out-gen-
eraled. Being completely surrounded, he
surrendered on the gth of April, 1865, at
Appomattox Court-House, in the open field,
with 27,000 men, all that remained of his
army. This act virtually ended the war.
Thus, in ten days Grant had captured
Petersburg and Richmond, fought, by his
subordinates, the battles of Five Forks and
Sailor's Creek, besides numerous smaller
ones, captured 20,000 men in actual battle,
and received the surrender of 27,000 more
at Appomattox, absolutely annihilating an
army of 70,000 soldiers.
General Grant returned at once to Wash-
ington to superintend the disbandment of
the armies, but this pleasurable work was
scarcely begun when President Lincoln was
assassinated. It had doubtless been in-
tended to inflict the same fate upon Grant ;
but he, fortunately, on account of leaving
Washington early in the evening, declined
an invitation to accompany the President
to the theater where the murder was com-
mitted. This event made Andrew Johnson
President, but left Grant by far the most
conspicuous figure in the public life of the
country. He became the object of an en-
thusiasm greater than had ever been known
in America. Every possible honor was
heaped upon him ; the grade of General
was created for him by Congress; houses
were presented to him by citizens; towns
were illuminated on his entrance into them ;
and, to cap the climax, when he made his
tour around the world, " all nations did him
honor" as they had never before honored
a foreigner.
The General, as Commander-in-Chief,
was placed in an embarrassing position by
the opposition of President Johnson to the
measures of Congress ; but he directly man-
ifested his characteristic loyalty by obeying
Congress rather than the disaffected Presi-
dent, although for a short time he had
served in his cabinet as Secretary of War.
Of course, everybody thought of General
Grant as the next President of the United
States, and he was accordingly elected as
such in 1868 "by a large majority," and
four years later re-elected by a much larger
majority — the most overwhelming ever
given by the people of this country. His first
administration was distinguished by a ces-
sation of the strifes which sprang from the
war, by a large reduction of the National
debt, and by a settlement of the difficulties
with England which had grown out of the
depredations committed by privateers fit-
ted out in England during the war. This
last settlement was made by the famous
" Geneva arbitration," which saved to this
Government $15,000,000, but, more than all,
prevented a war with England. " Let us
have peace," was Grant's motto. And this
is the most appropriate place to remark
that above all Presidents whom this Gov-
ernment has ever had, General Grant was
the most non-partisan. He regarded the
Executive office as purely and exclusively
executive of the laws of Congress, irrespect-
ive of "politics." But every great man
has jealous, bitter enemies, a fact Grant
was well aware of.
After the close of his Presidency, our
General made his famous tour around the
world, already referred to, and soon after-
ward, in company with Ferdinand Ward,
of. New York City, he engaged in banking
and stock brokerage, which business was
made disastrous to Grant, as well as to him-
self, by his rascality. By this time an in-
curable cancer of the tongue developed
itself in the person of the afflicted ex-
President, which ended his unrequited life
July 23, 1885. Thus passed away from
earth's turmoils the man, the General, who
was as truly the " father of this regenerated
country" as was Washington the father of
the infant nation.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
,
UTHERFORD BIRCH-
ARD HAYES, the nine-
teenth President of
the United States,
i877-'8i, was born in
Delaware, Ohio, Oc-
tober 4, 1822. His
ancestry can be traced as far
back as 1280, when Hayes and
Rutherford were two Scottish
chieftains fighting side by side
with Baliol, William Wallace
and Robert Bruce. Both fami-
lies belonged to the nobility,
owned extensive estates and had
a large following. The Hayes
family had, for a coat of-arms, a
shield, barred and surmounted by a flying
eagle. There was a circle of stars about
the eagle and above the shield, while on a
scroll underneath the shield was inscribed
the motto, "Recte." Misfortune overtaking
the family, George Hayes left Scotland in
1680, and settled in Windsor, Connecticut.
He was an industrious worker in wood and
iron, having a mechanical genius and a cul-
tivated mind. His son George was born
in Windsor and remained there during his
life.
Daniel Hayes, son of the latter, married
Sarah Lee, and lived in Simsbury, Con-
necticut. Ezekiel, son of Daniel, was born
in 1724, and was a manufacturer of scythes
at Bradford, Connecticut. Rutherford
Hayes, son of Ezekiel and grandfather of
President Hayes, was born in New Haven,
in August, 1756. He was a famous black-
smith and tavern-keeper. He immigrated to
Vermont at an unknown date, settling in
Brattleboro where he established a hotel.
Here his son Rutherford, father of Presi-
dent Hayes, was born. In September, 1813,
he married Sophia Birchard, of Wilming-
ton, Vermont, whose ancestry on the male
side is traced back to 1635, to John Birch-
ard, one of the principal founders of Nor-
wich. Both of her grandfathers were
soldiers in the Revolutionary war.
The father of President Hayes was of a
mechanical turn, and could mend a plow,
knit a stocking, or do almost anything that
he might undertake. He was prosperous
in business, a member of the church and
active in all the benevolent enterprises of
the to wn. After the close of the war of 1812
he immigrated to Ohio, and purchased a
farm near the present town of Delaware.
His family then consisted of his wife and
two children, and an orphan girl whom he
had adopted.
It was in 1817 that the family arrived at
Delaware. Instead of settling upon his
s
U/LV.&-.O &>
~] L,
UNIVERSITV Of ILLINOIS
RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.
105
farm, Mr. Hayes concluded to enter into
business in the village. He purchased an
interest in a distillery, a business then as re-
spectable as it was profitable. His capital
and recognized ability assured him the
highest social position in the community.
He died July 22, 1822, less than three
months before the birth of the son that was
destined to fill the office of President of the
United States.
Mrs. Hayes at this period was very weak,
and the subject of this sketch was so feeble
at birth that he was not expected to live
beyond a month or two at most. As the
months went by he grew weaker and weaker
so that the neighbors were in the habit of
inquiring from time to time " if Mrs.
Hayes's baby died last night." On one oc-
casion a neighbor, who was on friendly
terms with the family, after alluding to the
boy's big head and the mother's assiduous
care of him, said to her, in a bantering way,
"That's right! Stick to him. You have
got him along so far, and I shouldn't won-
der if he would really come to something
yet." " You need not laugh," said Mrs.
Hayes, " you wait and see. You can't tell
but I shall make him President of the
United States yet."
The boy lived, in spite of the universal
predictions of his speedy death; and when,
in 1825, his elder brother was drowned, he
became, if possible, still dearer to his mother.
He was seven years old before he was
placed in school. His education, however,
was not neglected. His sports were almost
wholly within doors, his playmates being
his sister and her associates. These circum-
stances tended, no doubt, to foster that
gentleness of disposition and that delicate
consideration for the feelings of others
which are marked traits of his character.
At school he was ardently devoted to his
studies, obedient to the teacher, and care-
ful to avoid the quarrels in which many of
his schoolmates were involved. He was
always waiting at the school-house door
when it opened in the morning, and never
late in returning to his seat at recess. His
sister Fannie was his constant companion,
and their affection for each other excited
the admiration of their friends.
In 1838 young Hayes entered Kenyon
College and graduated in 1842. He then
began the study of law in the office of
Thomas Sparrow at Columbus. His health
was now well established, his figure robust,
his mind vigorous and alert. In a short
time he determined to enter the law school
at Cambridge, Massachusetts, where for
two years he pursued his studies with great
diligence.
In 1845 ne was admitted to the bar at
Marietta, Ohio, and shortly afterward went
into practice as an attorney-at-law with
Ralph P. Buckland, of Fremont. Here he
remained three years, acquiring but limited
practice, and apparently unambitious ot
distinction in his profession. His bachelor
uncle, Sardis Birchard, who had always
manifested great interest in his nephew and
rendered him assistance in boyhood, was
now a wealth)' banker, and it was under-
stood that the young man would be his
heir. It is possible that this expectation
may have made Mr. Hayes more indifferent
to the attainment of wealth than he would
otherwise have been, but he was led into no
extravagance or vices on this account.
In 1849 ne removed to Cincinnati where
his ambition found new stimulus. Two
events occurring at this period had a pow-
erful influence upon his subsequent life.
One of them was his marriage to Miss
Lucy Ware Webb, daughter of Dr. James
Webb, of Cincinnati; the other was his
introduction to the Cincinnati Literary
Club, a body embracing such men as Chief
Justice Salmon P. Chase, General John
Pope and Governor Edward F. Noyes.
The marriage was a fortunate one as every-
body knows. Not one of all the wives oi
io6
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
our Presidents was more universally ad-
mired, reverenced and beloved than is Mrs.
Hayes, and no one has done more than she
to reflect honor upon American woman-
hood.
In 1856 Mr. Hayes was nominated to the
office of Judge of the Court cf Common
Pleas, but declined to accept the nomina-
tion. Two years later he was chosen to the
office of City Solicitor.
In 1861, when the Rebellion broke out,
he was eager to take up arms in the defense
of his country. His military life was
bright and illustrious. June 7, 1861, he
was appointed Major of the Twenty-third
Ohio Infantry. In July the regiment was
sent to Virginia. October 15, 1861, he was
made Lieutenant-Colonel of his regiment,
and in August, 1862, was promoted Colonel
of the Seventy-ninth Ohio Regiment, but
refused to leave his old comrades. He was
wounded at the battle of South Mountain,
and suffered severely, being unable to enter
upon active duty for several weeks. No-
vember 30, 1862, he rejoined his regiment as
its Colonel, having been promoted Octo-
ber 15.
December 25, 1862, he was placed in com-
mand of the Kanawha division, and for
meritorious service in several battles was
promoted Brigadier-General. He was also
brevetted Major-General for distinguished
services in 1864. He was wounded lour
times, and five horses were shot from
under him.
Mr. Hayes was first a Whig in politics,
and was among the first to unite with the
Free-Soil and Republican parties. In 1864
he was elected to Congress from che Sec-
ond Ohio District, which had always been
Democratic, receiving a majority of 3,098.
In 1866 he was renominated for Congress
and was a second time elected. In 1867 he
was elected Governor over Allen G. Thur-
man, the Democratic candidate, and re-
elected in 1869. In 1874 Sardis Birchard
died, leaving his large estate to General
Hayes.
In 1876 he was nominated for the Presi-
dency. His letter of acceptance excited
the admiration of the whole country. He
resigned the office of Governor and retired
to his home in Fremont to await the result
of the canvass. After a hard, long contest
he was inaugurated March 5, 1877. His
Presidency was characterized by compro-
mises with all parties, in order to please as
many as possible. The close of his Presi-
dential term in 1881 was the close of his
public life, and since then he has remained
at his home in Fremont, Ohio, in Jefferso-
nian retirement from public notice, in strik-
ing contrast with most others of the world's
notables.
UBRARV
UN/VERSITY (/ILLINOIS
JAMES A. GAKFIELD.
109
"AMES A. GARFIELD,
twentieth President of
the United States, 1881,
was born November 19,
1831, in the wild woods
o f Cuyahoga County,
Ohio. His parents were
Abram and Eliza (Ballou)
Garfield, who were of New
England ancestry. The
senior Garfield was an in-
dustrious farmer, as the
rapid improvements which
appeared on his place at-
tested. The residence was
the familiar pioneer log cabin,
and the household comprised the parents
and their children — Mehetable, Thomas,
Mary and James A. In May, 1833, tne
father died, and the care of the house-
hold consequently devolved upon young
Thomas, to whom James was greatly in-
debted for the educational and other ad-
vantages he enjoyed. He now lives in
Michigan, and the two sisters live in Solon,
Ohio, near their birthplace.
As the subject of our sketch grew up, he,
too, was industrious, both in mental and
physical labor. He worked upon the farm,
or at carpentering, or chopped wood, or at
any other odd job that would aid in support
of the family, and in the meantime made the
most of his books. Ever afterward he was
never ashamed of his humble origin, nor for-
got the friends of his youth. The poorest
laborer was sure of his sympathy, and he
always exhibited the character of a modest
gentleman.
Until he was about sixteen years of age,
James's highest ambition was to be a lake
captain. To this his mother was strongly
opposed, but she finally consented to his
going to Cleveland to carry out his long-
cherished design, with the understanding,
however, that he should try to obtain some
other kind of employment. He walked all
the way to Cleveland, and this was his first
visit to the city. After making many ap-
plications for work, including labor on
board a lake vessel, but all in vain, he
finally engaged as a driver for his cousin,
Amos Letcher, on the Ohio & Pennsyl-
vania Canal. In a short time, however, he
quit this and returned home. He then at-
tended the seminary at Chester for about
three years, and next he entered Hiram In-
stitute, a school started in 1850 by the
Disciples of Christ, of which church he was
a member. In order to pay his way he
assumed the duties of janitor, and at times
taught school. He soon completed the cur-
riculum there, and then entered Williams
College, at which he graduated in 1856,
taking one of the highest honors of his class.
PRESIDENTS OP THE U KITED STATES.
Afterward he returned to Hiram as Presi-
dent. In his youthful and therefore zealous
piety, he exercised his talents occasionally
as a preacher of the Gospel. He was a
man of strong moral and religious convic-
tions, and as soon as he began to look into
politics, he saw innumerable points that
could be improved. He also studied law,
and was admitted to the bar in 1859.
November u, 1858, Mr. Garfield married
Miss Lucretia Rudolph, who ever after-
ward proved a worthy consort in all the
stages of her husband's career. They had
seven children, five of whom are still living.
It was in 1859 that Garfield made his
first political speeches, in Hiram and the
neighboring villages, and three years later
he began to speak at county mass-meetings,
being received everywhere with popular
favor. He was elected to the State Senate
this year, taking his seat in January, 1860.
On the breaking out of the war of the
Rebellion in 1861, Mr. Garfield resolved to
fight as he had talked, and accordingly he
enlisted to defend the old flag, receiving
his commission as Lieutenant-Colonel of the
Forty-second Regiment of the Ohio Volun-
teer Infantry, August 14, that year. He
was immediately thrown into active service,
and before he had ever seen a gun fired in
action he was placed in command of four
regiments of infantry and eight companies
of cavalry, charged with the work of driv-
ing the Confederates, headed by Humphrey
Marshall, from his native State, Kentucky.
This task was speedily accomplished, al-
though against great odds. On account of
his success, President Lincoln commissioned
him Brigadier-General, January u, 1862;
and, as he had been the youngest man in
the Ohio Senate two years before, so now
he was the youngest General in the army.
He was with General Buell's army at Shi-
loh, also in its operations around Corinth
and its march through Alabama. Next, he
was detailed as a member of the general
court-martial for the trial of General Fitz-
John Porter, and then ordered to report to
General Rosecrans, when he was assigned
to the position of Chief of Staff. His mili-
tary history closed with his brilliant ser-
vices at Chickamauga, where he won the
stars of Major-General.
In the fall of 1862, without any effort on
his part, he was elected as a Representative
to Congress, from that section of Ohio
which had been represented for sixty years
mainly by two men — Elisha Whittlesey and
Joshua R. Giddings. Again, he was the
youngest member of that body, and con-
tinued there by successive re-elections, as
Representative or Senator, until he was
elected President in 1880. During his life
in Congress he compiled and published by
his speeches, there and elsewhere, more
information on the issues of the day, espe-
cially on one side, than any other member.
June 8, 1880, at the National Republican
Convention held in Chicago, General Gar-
field was nominated for the Presidency, in
preference to the old war-horses, Elaine
and Grant ; and although many of the Re-
publican party felt sore over the failure of
their respective heroes to obtain the nomi-
nation, General Garfield was elected by a
fair popular majority. He was duly in-
augurated, but on July 2 following, before
he had fairly got started in his administra-
tion, he was fatally shot by a half-demented
assassin. After very painful and protracted
suffering, he died September 19, 1881, la-
mented by all the American people. Never
before in the history of this country had
anything occurred which so nearly froze
the blood of the Nation, for the moment, as
the awful act of Guiteau, the murderer.
He was duly tried, convicted and put to
death on the gallows.
The lamented Garfield was succeeded by
the Vice-President, General Arthur, who
seemed to endeavor to carry out the policy
inaugurated by his predecessor.
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
. ...^
CHESTER A. ARTHUR.
"3
El
HESTER ALLEN
ARTHUR, the twen-
ty-first Chief Execu-
tive of this growing
republic, i88i-'s, was
born in Franklin
County, Vermont,
October 5, 1830, the eldest of a
family of two sons and five
daughters. His father, Rev.
Dr. William Arthur, a Baptist
clergyman, immigrated to this
country from County Antrim,
Ireland, in his eighteenth year,
and died in 1875, in Newton-
ville, near Albany, New York,
after serving many years as a successful
minister. Chester A. was educated at that
old, conservative institution, Union Col-
lege, at Schenectady, New York, where he
excelled in all his studies. He graduated
there, with honor, and then struck out in
life for himself by teaching school for about
two years in his native State.
At the expiration of that time young
Arthur, with $500 in his purse, went to the
city of New York and entered the law office
of ex-Judge E. D. Culver as a student. In
due time he was admitted to the bar, when
he formed a partnership with his intimate
••>'
friend and old room-mate, Henry D. Gar.
diner, with the intention of practicing law
at some point in the West; but after spend-
ing about three months in the Westen.
States, in search of an eligible place, they
returned to New York City, leased a room,
exhibited a sign of their business and al-
most immediately enjoyed a paying patron-
age.
At this stage of his career Mr. Arthur's
business prospects were so encouraging
that he concluded to take a wife, and ac-
cordingly he married the daughter of Lieu-
tenant Herndon, of the United States Navy,
who had been lost at sea. To the widow
of the latter Congress voted a gold medal,
in recognition of the Lieutenant's bravery
during the occasion in which he lost his
life. Mrs. Artnur died shortly before her
husband's nomination to the Vice-Presi-
dency, leaving two children.
Mr. Arthur obtained considerable celeb-
rity as an attorney in the famous Lemmon
suit, which was brought to recover posses-
sion of eight slaves, who had been declared
free by the Superior Court of New York
City. The noted Charles O'Conor, who
was nominated by the " Straight Demo-
crats" in 1872 for the United States Presi-
dency, was retained by Jonathan G. Lem-
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
mon, of Virginia, to recover the negroes,
but he lost the suit. In this case, however,
Mr. Arthur was assisted by William M.
Evarts, now United States Senator. Soon
afterward, in 1856, a respectable colored
woman was ejected from a, street car in
New York City. Mr. Arthur sued the car
company in her behalf and recovered $500
damages. Immediately afterward all the
car companies in the city issued orders to
their employes to admit colored persons
upon their cars.
Mr. Arthur's political doctrines, as well
as his practice as a lawyer, raised him to
prominence in the party of freedom ; and
accordingly he was sent as a delegate to
the first National Republican Convention.
Soon afterward he was appointed Judge
Advocate for the Second Brigade of the
State of New York, and then Engineer-in-
Chief on Governor Morgan's staff. In 1861,
the first year of the war, he was made In-
spector-General, and next, Quartermaster-
General, in both which offices he rendered
great service to the Government. After
the close of Governor Morgan's term he
resumed the practice of law, forming first a
partnership with Mr. Ransom, and subse-
quently adding Mr. Phelps to the firm.
Each of these gentlemen were able lawyers.
November 21, 1872, General Arthur was
appointed Collector of the Port of New
York by President Grant, and he held the
office until July 20, 1878.
The next event of prominence in General
Arthur's career was his nomination to the
Vice-Presidency of the United States, under
the influence of Roscoe Conkling, at the
National Republican Convention held at
Chicago in June, 1880, when James A. Gar-
field was placed at the head of the ticket.
Both the convention and the campaign that
followed were noisy and exciting. The
iriends of Grant, constituting nearly half
the convention, were exceedingly persist-
ent, and were sorely disappointed over
their defeat. At the head of the Demo-
cratic ticket was placed a very strong and
popular man ; yet Garfield and Arthur were
elected by a respectable plurality of the
popular vote. The 4th of March following,
these gentlemen were accordingly inaugu-
rated ; but within four months the assassin's
bullet made a fatal wound in the person of
General Garfield, whose life terminated
September 19, 1881, when General Arthur,
ex officio, was obliged to take the chief
reins of government. Some misgivings
were entertained by many in this event, as
Mr. Arthur was thought to represent espe
cially the Grant, and Conkling wing of the
Republican party ; but President Arthur
had both the ability and the good sense to
allay all fears, and he gave the restless,
critical American people as good an ad-
ministration as they had ever been blessed
with. Neither selfishness nor low parti-
sanism ever characterized any feature of
his public service. He ever maintained a
high sense of every individual right as well
as of the Nation's honor. Indeed, he stood
so high that his successor, President Cleve-
land, though of opposing politics, expressed
a wish in his inaugural address that he
could only satisfy the people with as good
an administration.
But the day of civil service reform had
come in so far, and the corresponding re-
action against "third-termism" had en-
croached so far even upon "second-term"
service, that the Republican party saw fit
in 1884 to nominate another man for Presi-
dent. Only by this means was General
Arthur's tenure of office closed at Wash-
ington. On his retirement from the Presi-
dency, March, 1885, he engaged in the
practice of law at New York City, where he
died November 18, 1886.
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
GROVER CLEVELAND.
117
ROVER CLEVE-
LAND, the twenty-
second President of the
United States, 1885—,
was born in Caldwell,
Essex County, New
Jersey, March 18,
1837. The house in which he
was born, a small two-story
wooden building, is still stand-
ing. It was the parsonage of
the Presbyterian church, of
which his father, Richard
Cleveland, at the time was
pastor. The family is of New
England origin, and for two centuries has
contributed to the professions and to busi-
ness, men who have reflected honor on the
name. Aaron Cleveland, Grover Cleve-
land's great-great-grandfather, was born in
Massachusetts, but subsequently moved to
Philadelphia, where he became an intimate
friend of Benjamin Franklin, at whose
house he died. He left a large family of
children, who in time married and settled
in different parts of New England. A
grandson was one of the small American
force that fought the British at Bunker
Hill. He served with gallantry through-
out the Revolution and was honorably
discharged at its close as a Lieutenant in
the Continental army. Another grandson,
William Cleveland (a son of a second Aaron
Cleveland, who was distinguished as a
writer and member of the Connecticut
Legislature) was Grover Cleveland's grand-
father. William Cleveland became a silver-
smith in Norwich, Connecticut. He ac-
quired by industry some property and sent
his son, Richard Cleveland, the father of
Grover Cleveland, to Yale College, where
he graduated in 1824. During a year spent
in teaching at Baltimore, Maryland, after
graduation, he met and fell in love with a
Miss Annie Neale, daughter of a wealthy
Baltimore book publisher, of Irish birth.
He was earning his own way in the world
at the time and was unable to marry; but
in three years he completed a course of
preparation for the ministry, secured a
church in Windham, Connecticut, and
married Annie Neale. Subsequently he
moved to Portsmouth, Virginia, where he
preached for nearly two years, when he
was summoned to Caldwell, New Jersey,
where was born Grover Cleveland.
When he was three years old the family
moved to Fayetteville, Onondaga County,
New York. Here Grover Cleveland lived
until he was fourteen years old, the rugged,
healthful life of a country boy. His frank,
generous manner made him a favorite
among his companions, and their respect
was won by the good qualities in the germ
which his manhood developed. He at-
tended the district school of the village and
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
was (or a short time at the academy. His
lather, however, believed that boys should
be taught to labor at an early age, and be-
fore he had completed the course of study
at the academy he began to work in the
village store at $50 for the first year, and the
promise of $100 for the second year. His
work was well done and the promised in-
crease of pay was granted the second year.
Meanwhile his father and family had
moved to Clinton, the seat of Hamilton
College, where his father acted as agent to
the Presbyterian Board of Home Missions,
preaching in the churches of the vicinity.
Hither Grover came at his father's request
shortly after the beginning of his second
year at the Fayetteville store, and resumed
his studies at the Clinton Academy. After
three years spent in this town, the Rev.
Richard Cleveland was called to the vil-
lage church of Holland Patent. He had
preached here only a month when he was
suddenly stricken down and died without
an hour's warning. The death of the father
left the family in straitened circumstances,
as Richard Cleveland had spent all his
salary of $1,000 per year, which was not
required for the necessary expenses of liv-
ing, upon the education of his children, of
whom there were nine, Grover being the
fifth. Grover was hoping to enter Hamil-
ton College, but the death of his father
made it necessary for him to earn his own !
livelihood. For the first year (185 3-'4) he
acted as assistant teacher and bookkeeper in
the Institution for the Blind in New York
City, of which the late Augustus Schell was
for many years the patron. In the winter
of 1854 he returned to Holland Patent
where the generous people of that placej
Fayetteville and Clinton, had purchased a
home for his mother, and in the following
spring, borrowing $25, he set out for the
West to earn his living.
Reaching Buffalo he paid a hasty visit to
an uncle, Lewis F. Allen, a well-known
stock farmer, living at Black Rock, a lew
miles distant. He communicated his plans
to Mr. Allen, who discouraged the idea of
the West, and finally induced the enthusi-
astic boy of seventeen to remain with him
and help him prepare a catalogue of blooded
short-horn cattle, known as " Allen's Amer-
ican Herd Book," a publication familiar to
all breeders of cattle. In August, 1855, he
entered the law office of Rogers, Bowen
& Rogers, at Buffalo, and after serving a
few months without pay, was paid $4 a
week — an amount barely sufficient to meet
the necessary expenses of his board in the
family of a fellow-student in Buffalo, with
whom he took lodgings. Life at this time
with Grover Cleveland was a stern battle
with the world. He took his breakfast by
candle-light with the drovers, and went at
once to the office where the whole day was
spent in work and study. Usually he re-
turned again at night to resume reading
which had been interrupted by the duties
of the day. Gradually his employers came
to recognize the ability, trustworthiness
and capacity for hard work in their young
employe, and by the time he was admitted
to the bar (1859) he stood high in their con-
fidence. A year later he was made confi-
dential and managing clerk, and in the
course of three years more his salary had
been raised to $1,000. In 1863 he was ap-
pointed assistant district attorney of Erie
County by the district attorney, the Hon.
C. C. Torrance.
Since his first vote had been cast in 1858
he had been a staunch Democrat, and until
he was chosen Governor he always made
it his duty, rain or shine, to stand at the
polls and give out ballots to Democratic
voters. During the first year of his term
as assistant district attorney, the Democrats
desired especially to carry the Board of Su-
pervisors. The old Second Ward in which
he lived was Republican- ordinarily by 250
majority, but at the urgent request of the
GROVER CLEVELAND.
119
party Grover Cleveland consented to be
the Democratic candidate for Supervisor,
«tnd came within thirteen votes of an elec-
tion. The three years spent in the district
attorney's office were devoted to assiduous
labor and the extension of his professional
attainments. He then formed a law part-
nership with the late Isaac V. Vanderpoel,
ex-State Treasurer, under the firm name
of Vanderpoel & Cleveland. Here the-bulk
of the work devolved on Cleveland's shoul-
ders, and he soon won a good standing at
the bar of Erie County. In 1869 Mr.
Cleveland formed a partnership with ex-
Senator A. P. Laning and ex-Assistant
United States District Attorney Oscar Fol-
som, under the firm name of Laning, Cleve-
land & Folsom. During these years he
began to earn a moderate professional in-
come; but the larger portion of it was sent
to his mother and sisters at Holland Patent
to whose support he had contributed ever
since 1860. He served as sheriff of Erie
County, i87o-'4, and then resumed the
practice of law, associating himself with the
Hon. Lyman K. Bass and Wilson S. Bissell.
The firm was strong and popular, and soon
commanded a large and lucrative practice.
Ill health forced the retirement of Mr. Bass
in 1879, and the firm became Cleveland &
Bissell. In 1881 Mr. George J. Sicard was
added to the firm.
In the autumn election of 1881 he was
elected mayor of Buffalo by a majority of
over 3,500 — the largest majority ever given
a candidate for mayor — and the Democratic
city ticket was successful, although the
Republicans carried Buffalo by over 1,000
majority for their State ticket. Grover
Cleveland's administration as mayor fully
justified the confidence reposed in him by
the people of Buffalo, evidenced by the
great vote he received.
The Democratic State Convention mel
at Syracuse, September 22, 1882, and nomi-
nated Grover Cleveland for Governor
on the third ballot and Cleveland was
elected by 192,000 majority. In the fall of
1884 he was elected President of the United
States by about 1,000 popular majority,
in New York State, and he was accordingly
inaugurated the 4th of March following.
PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.
BENJAMIN HAI^ISON
^-?5 — 6) -1 »•
BENJAMIN HAERISON,
the twenty-third Presi-
dent of the United States,
1889, was born at North
Bend, Hamilton County,
Ohio, in the house of his
grandfather, William Hen-
ry Harrison (who was the
ninth President of this
country), August 20th,
1833. He is a descendant
of one of the historical
families of this country, as
also of England. The
head of the family was a
Major-General Harrison
who was devoted to the cause of Oliver
Cromwell. It became the duty of this Har-
rison to participate in the trial of Charles 1.
and afterward to sign the death warrant of
the king, which subsequently cost him his
life. His enemies succeeding to power, he
was condemned and executed October 13th,
1660. His descendants came to America,
and the first mention made in history of the
Harrison family as representative in public
aifairs, is that of Benjamin Harrison, great-
grandfather of our present President, who
was a member of the Continental Congress,
1774-5-6, and one of the original signers of
the Declaration of Independence, and three
times Governor of Virginia. His son, Will-
iam Henry Harrison, made a brilliant mili-
tary record, was Governor of the Northwest
Territory, and the ninth President of the
United States.
The subject of this sketch at an early age
became a student at Farmers College, where
he remained two years, at the end of which
time he entered Miami University, at Ox-
ford, Ohio. Upon graduation from said seat
of learning he entered, as a student, the of-
fice of Stover & Gwyne, a notable law firm at
Cincinnati, Ohio, where he applied himself
closely to the study of his chosen profession,
and here laid the foundation for the honora-
ble and famous career before him. He spent
two years with the firm in Cincinnati, at the
expiration of which time he received the
only inheritance of his life, which was a lot
left him by an aunt, which he sold for $800.
This sum he deemed sufficient to justify him
in marrying the lady of his choice, and to
whom he was then engaged, a daughter of
Dr. Scott, then Principal of a female school
at Oxford, Ohio.
After marriage he located at Indianapolis,
Indiana, where he began the practice of law.
Meeting with slight encouragement he made
but little the first year, but applied himself
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
BENJAMIN HARRISON.
123
closely to his business, and by perseverance,
honorable dealing and an upright life, suc-
ceeded in building up an extensive practice and
took a leading position in the legal profession.
In 1860 he was nominated for the position
of Supreme Court Reporter for the State of
Indiana, and then began his experience as a
stump speaker. He canvassed the State
thoroughly and was elected.
In 1862 his patriotism caused him to
abandon a civil office and to offer his country
his services in a military capacity. He or-
ganized the Seventieth Indiana Infantry and
was chosen its Colonel. Although his regi-
ment was composed of raw material, and he
practically void of military schooling, he at
once mastered military tactics and drilled his
men, so that when he with his regiment was
assigned to Gen. Sherman's command it was
known as one of the best drilled organ-
izations of the army. He was especially
distinguished for bravery at the battles of
Resacca and Peach Tree Creek. For his
bravery and efficiency at the last named bat-
tle he was made a Brigadier-General, Gen-
eral Hooker speaking of him in the most
complimentary terms.
While General Harrison was actively en-
gaged in the Held the Supreme Court declared
the office of Supreme Court Reporter vacant,
and another person was elected to fill the
position. From the time of leaving Indiana
with his regiment for the front, until the fall
of 1864, General Harrison had taken no leave
of absence. But having been nominated
that year for the same office that he vacated
in order to serve his country where he could
do the greatest good, he got a thirty-day leave
of absence, and during that time canvassed
the State and was elected for another term as
Supreme Court Reporter. He then started
to rejoin his command, then with General
Sherman in the South, but was stricken down
with fever and after a very trying siege, made
his way to the front, and participated in the
closing scenes and incidents of the war.
In 1868 General Harrison declined a re-
election as Reporter, and applied himself to
the practice of his profession. He was a
candidate for Governor of Indiana on the
Republican ticket in 1876. Although de-
feated, the brilliant campaign brought him
to public notice and gave him a National
reputation as an able and formidable debater
and he was much sought in the Eastern
States as a public speaker. He took an act-
ive part in the Presidential campaign of
1880, and was elected to the United States
Senate, where he served six years, and was
known as one of the strongest debaters, as
well as one of the ablest men and best law-
yers. When his term expired in the Senate
he resumed his law practice at Indianapolis,
becoming the head of one of the strongest
law firms in the State of Indiana.
Sometime prior to the opening of the
Presidential campaign of 1888, the two great
political parties (Republican and Democratic)
drew the line of political battle on the ques-
tion of tariff, which became the leading issue
and the rallying watchword during the mem-
orable campaign. The Republicans appealed
to the people for their voice as to a tariff to
protect home industries, while the Democrats
wanted a tariff for revenue only. The Re-
publican convention assembled in Chicago in
June and selected Mr. Harrison as their
standard bearer on a platform of principles,
among other important clauses being that of
protection, which he cordially indorsed in
accepting the nomination. November 6,
1888, after a heated canvass, General Harri-
son was elected, defeating Grover Cleveland,
who was again the nominee of the Demo-
cratic party. He was inaugurated and as-
sumed the duties of his office March 4, 1889.
UBRARV
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
SCHUYLER AND VROWN COUNTIES.
125
fHOMAS MONROE, M. D., Rushville,
Illinois. — There is, in the career of the
earnest professional or business man,
toiling on through the busy, work a-day years
of a long and arduous life, but little to at-
tract the attention of an idle reader in search
of a sensational chapter. But for the mind
fully awake to the real meaning of human
existence there are immortal lessons in the
life of the man who, without other means
than a strong arm, a true heart and determined
will, conquers adversity, overcomes obstacles,
and closes the evening of a long life with
an honorable competence and good name.
Such a man is the subject of this biography,
Doctor Thomas Munroe.
Doctor Munroe was a son of John and Ann
(Wells) Munroe, and was born at Annapolis,
Maryland, January 4, 1807. His father and
mother were both natives of Maryland ; the
former was born August 6, 1763, and the
latter January 20, 1771. They were married
May 14, 1789. The boyhood of Thomas
Munroe did not differ much from that of
other boys born of and reared by Christian
parents, who held progressive and correct
ideas of the higher duties and privileges of
American citizenship. He entered school at
an early age, and, being an apt scholar, made
rapid headway in his studies and graduated
from St. John's College with honors, having
taken the full classical course.
After finishing at St. John's College, he
decided to adopt the profession of medicine
as his life-work. He began reading under
the direction of Dr. Dennis Claude, and later
entered the University of Maryland in Balti-
more, from which he graduated with the de-
gree of M. D. in 1829. All through his life,
Dr. Munroe took a just pride in having upon
his diploma the famous names of Drs. Roger
B. Taney and Reverdy Johnson, —the first as
10
Provost, the second a member of the execu-
tive committee of the University of Mary-
land.
After graduating, Dr. Munroe began the
practice of his profession in Baltimore, but
after twelve mouths concluded it was bet-
ter for him to go West. In accordance
with this wise conclusion, he closed up his
business in Baltimore, and in 1834 re-
moved to Illinois and settled in Jacksonville,
where he remained until 1843, when he came
to Rushville, and was actively engaged in
professional labor until the breaking out of
the civil war, when he offered his services to
his country, and was commissioned Surgeon
of the One Hundred and Nineteenth Illinois
Volunteer Infantry. He participated in all
the marches of the regiment, and was in all
its campaigns and battles for two years; at
the end of that period he was obliged to re-
sign his commission on account of ill health.
He returned to his home and resumed his
practice, which he continued, with great ac-
tivity and success, until a short time previous
to his death, which occurred April 23, 1891.
Dr. Munroe was married October 5, 1841,
to Annis Hininan, who was born at Utica.
New York, December 10, 1815; her father,
Benjamin Hinman, was a native of South-
bury, Connecticut; he was a son of Deacon
David Hinman, who was a son of Benjamin
Hinman, who was a son of Benjamin Hinman,
Sr., who was a son of Sergeant Edward Hin-
man, the first settler of that name in this
country. (See genealogy published by R. R.
Hinman, New York.) Mrs. Munroe's father
was a soldier in the war of the Revolution,
and had the title of Major; lie was one of the
early settlers of Little Falls, New York, and
purchased a large tract of land there; he
afterward removed to Utica, New York, and
died in Pennsylvania in 1821, while making
126
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
a business trip to the State. He married
Anna Keyser, who was born at Fort Keyser,
.New York, a daughter of John Keyser,
of Montgomery county, New York. Her
father was taken captive by the Indians
during the Revolutionary war and was car-
ried to Canada, where he was held for three
years; his death occurred at Fort Keyser;
his wife survived until August 9, 1863; she
was living in Illinois at that time, her sons
being among the pioneers of Brown county;
they emigrated to the State in 1836, and
were of a party that laid out the town of
La Grange.
Children are indeed blessed who have edu-
cated and Christian parents to guide and
direct those early impulses which have so
much to do with the ultimate direction of
ambition and mentality; and no family of
children were ever more favored in this than
the children of this good father and mother.
The breadth of Dr. Munroe's mind, his great
wisdom in giving his children splendid edu-
cations and permitting them to select their
own vocations, is manifest in the marked
degree of success which has attended their
efforts. The eldest son, Thomas, is one of
the progressive and successful men of Mus-
kegon, Michigan, being the head of the well-
known firm of Thomas Munroe & Co., and
the general superintendent of the Thayer
Lumber Company, both of Muskegon. In this
double capacity he has acquired more than
an ordinary fortune, and, with his marked
success as a financier, he has won a greater
meed of victory — that of the love and re-
spect of all who know him.
The second son, James E. Munroe, resides
in Chicago, and is engaged in the practice
of law. He is a lawyer of good ability, fair
attainments and great industry. As the re-
sult of twenty years of labor at the bar he has
acquiesced a large practice and a handsome
competence.
The daughter, Mary A., of Rushville, is
deeply interested in all that pertains to the
betterment and advancement of mankind.
She resides at the family home, the compan-
ion and comfort of her aged and gentle
mother. Her brothers, Hintnan and Charles
G., are also residents of Rushville, the former
being married and residing in a happy home,
a close neighbor of his mother. Charles G.
is a member of the family at the old home-
stead, and is engaged with his brother Hin-
man in the lumber business, in which thej
are eminently successful. The youngest son
is a resident of Muskegon, Michigan, where
he holds a position of trust under his brother.
Dr. Munroe was related to such men as
Jonathan Pickney, Nathan Hammond and
William Munroe, all of whom occupy honored
places in the early history of the United
States from their participation in the notable
events incident to those times. The fine
engraved portrait of Dr. Munroe, which faces
this sketch, was executed specially for this
history. An examination of the portrait
will reveal better than word-painting the
character of the man herein recorded.
In the death of Dr. Munroe, the city of
Rushville lost one of the men whose great
mentality, indefatigable energy and true
Christian manhood did so much to make the
city what it is. The following appeared in
the Schuyler Citizen a short time after Dr.
Munroe's death, and was written by his emi-
nent co- laborer, Dr. J. N. Speed:
" No man in the community performed
more faithfully the duties of a citizen and a
Christian, or led a more exemplary life than
he did; and this could be as truly said of
him during his army as well as his civil life.
He was a life-long member of the Methodist
SCIIOTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
127
Episcopal Church, and always held one or
more official positions; and, what is a little re-
markable. he held the position of Recording
Steward and Secretary in the Rushville Meth-
odist Episcopal Church continuously for thir-
ty-eight years, and then resigned by reason
only of the infirmities of age. I doubt if in the
memory of any person a like office has been
tilled for so long a time continuously by the
same person, and certainly no more faithfully.
He was very regular in his attendance on the
means of grace. Even after the first ad-
monition of his approaching affliction his seat
at church, day and night, at prayer- meeting
and class-meeting, was very seldom occupied
by any other than himself. As a citizen he
always took an active interest in the affairs
of the public, and his influence was always on
the side of the public welfare. As a phy-
sician Dr. Munroe was ever studious and
attentive, and his habit of study continued
even after his active practice ceased, and in
all his intercourse with his brother physicians
he was the embodiment of professional recti-
tude, and in this respect he had no superiors
and but few equals. He was looked upon by
all who knew him as a perfect gentleman.
He was always kind to the poor, and the re-
sources of his skill and watchfulness were as
faithfully extended to the pallet of the lowly
as to the silken couch of the affluent, thus
manifesting in his life the saying of the ven-
erable Beerhaave, that ' the poor were his best
patrons because God was their paymaster.' "
HANSMEYER was born in
Lippe-Detmold, Prussia, Germany, in
1833. He came of pure German an-
cestry and of hardy stock. His father, Fred
Hansmeyer, married Wilhelmina Hoy of the
same province. In 1849 they took passage
for America and landed in New Orleans after
a seven-weeks voyage. Thence the family
came up the Mississippi, to St. Louis,
where the mother and one child died of the
cholera after being there one week. The
father and four children came on to Chicago,
where Henry was attacked by the cholera and
confined to the house for two weeks, later
he joined his father and the other children at
Watertown, and it was near there that the
father died about one year later, being then in
middle life.
Henry Hansmeyer is the second of the
four sons yet living. He came to this coun-
try in 1849 and lived on a farm in Jefferson
county, Wisconsin, until 1851, working for
$10 a month. He came to Beardstown in
1851 and still worked by the month, for a
time for $10; he saved his money, became a
stock dealer and trader and did various things
until he accumulated enough to purchase
land. In 1865 he found himself on safe
ground for business, which he carried on
successfully and extensively. He was an
active farmer and stock-raiser until 1880.
In that year he retired from business and
moved into Beardstown. He owns a fine
farm of 306 acres, 250 acres of which is
under the plow and the rest is pasture, good
land and all supplied with first-class farm
buildings. He purchased this farm in 1865
and also owns some good residence property
in Beardstown, the opera house building at
Mount Olive, Illinois, and other residence
property there.
He was married in Beardstown, in 1857, to
Miss Catharina Schmidt. She was born in
Hesse- Darmstadt. She was the daughter of
the Rev. George and Kate Schmidt, who
came to the United States in 1856, settling in
Beardstown, where 'they died. Mr. Schmidt
128
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
was for many years pastor of the Lutheran.
He was a tine minister and an anti-slavery
advocate, a Republican in politics and a
leader in his community. Mrs. Hansmeyer
is a great worker in the Lutheran Church
and a very tine woman. They have four
children: Augusta, wife of Henry Oetgen,
a farmer in Schuyler county; Minna,
wife of Henry Stock; Katie, wife of John
Dnvall, First State Bank of Beardstown;
William, a miller by trade. Mr. Hansmeyer
is a public-spirited citizen, a Republican in
politics and a member of the Fourth Street
Lutheran Church, of which he has been a
Trustee for sixteen years.
fOSEPH FRANKLIN BLACK was born
in Murray county, Tennessee, February
23, 1828. His father, William Black,
was born near Milledgeville, Georgia, Jan-
nary 3, 1796, son of Thomaa Gillespie Black,
who was born in Markingham county, North
Carolina, in January, 1772, whose father,
William Black, a native of Maryland, re-
moved to North Carolina. William Black
was captain of a company of militia at the
time the Revolutionary war broke out, and
was one of the first who refused to take the
oath of allegiance to the British government.
He died soon after the war began. The
maiden name of his wife was Beard, They
were members of the Presbyterian church.
Thomas G. Black was reared and educated
in his native State. He taught school several
years. Removing from North Carolina to
Georgia, he settled near Milledgeville, where
he bought a tract of land and on it passed the
residue of his life, dying in 1823. He was
married February 26, 1795, to Polly Calla-
lan, who was born April 7, 1773, daughter
of William and Elizabeth (Shepard) Callahan.
her father being of Irish and her mother of
German descent. Mrs. Black went to Ten-
nessee after the death of her husband, and
from there to Illinois in 1825. Her death
occurred in Morgan county, this State, in
1853. Grandfather and grandmother Black
were members of the Presbyterian Church.
They reared ten of their eleven children, viz.:
William, Susanna, John, Cynthia, James,
Thomas, Polly, Jefferson, Eleanor and Eliza-
beth. Rebecca died in infancy.
Willliam Black, father of the subject of
our sketch, grew up and received his educa-
tion in his native State, and went with the
family to Tennessee directly after the death
of his father. He was a natural mechanic
and with his brother John established a
a furniture factory in Maury county, remain-
ing in business there till 1834. That year,
with his wife and six children, he came
to Illinois, their removal being made via the
Cumberland, Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois
rivers. He located four miles north of Win-
chester, in Scott county, where he bought
eighty acres of prairie and eighty acres of
timber laud, paying $2.50 per acre for a part
of it. He at once built a small frame house,
containing two rooms, and commenced im-
proving his land. In 1846 he sold this farm
for $8 per acre. He then came to Cass
county and bought 200 acres of land, located
six miles southeast of Virginia, for which he
paid $6 an acre. There was a double log
house on this place, which the family occupied
one year, at the end of which time they moved
into the substantial brick house which Mr.
Black erected, and which still stands. He
also built a work shop. He, however, gave
the most of his attention to farming. He
lived there till after the death of his wife,
when he went to Virginia and spent his last
BOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
129
days at the borne of his son, John, where he
died October 3, 1884. December 4, 1823,
he married Miss Mary S. Vaughn, who was
born in Tennessee, November 1, 1803, daugh-
ter of Dixon and Susan Vaughn. She died
on the home farm, January 29, 1881. Of
the ten children born to them they reared
eight, namely: Thomas G., Joseph F., William
L., Richmond V., Green V., James B., Mary
J. and John. Both he and his wife were reared
in the Presbyterian Church, and after coining
to Illinois they united with the Christian
Church, of which they remained consistent
members till the time of their death.
Joseph Franklin Black, the subject of our
sketch, was six years old when he moved to
Illinois with his parents, and remembers dis-
tinctly many of the incidents connected with
their removal and frontier life. At that time
Central Illinois was sparsely settled and it
was long before the advent of railroads here.
Naples was the principal market for the sur-
rounding country. Mr. Black relates that
at one time his father went to St. Louis to
mill. Instead of being gone one week, as he
had eApected, he was gone three weeks, and
in the mean time the supply of meal gave
out at home. By pounding corn in a mor-
tar, the children made meal enough to last
till their father's return. In 1836 three
cooking stoves were brought to Jacksonville,
one of which Mr. Black's father bought, pay-
ing $75 for it. Such a curiosity was this
stove that the neighbors for miles around
came to see it.
Joseph F. received his education in the
primitive schools of Illinois. He inherited
from his father a talent for mechanical work
and early began to assist him in the shop.
At the age of twenty he began life on his
own responsibility, commencing at once as a
contractor and builder, and before he was
twenty-one he bought 102 acres of land near
the village of Philadelphia, for which he paid
$3.50 an acre. He continued contracting and
building for a time. Then for three years he
was engaged in farming. After that he
moved to Philadelphia and devoted his time
to the invention of farm machinery. To him
belongs the distinction of having invented
and patented the first self-binder ever made.
He took three different patents on it, and in
partnership with his brother William got two
patents on a gang plow. The value of such
a man to a communi'ty cannot be estimated.
Indeed, the worth of his inventive genius
extends beyond his own community and State,
being felt all over the world.
In 1867 he resumed farming and continued
that occupation till 1876. That year he moved
to Virginia and established himself as a con-
tractor and builder. Many of the best store
buildings and residences in thiscity are monu-
ments to his skill. Nor have his labors been
confined to Virginia. He has done work in
Springfield, Jacksonville, Beardstown, and
various other places. For some years past
Mr. Black has devoted his time to architecture,
which he studied in his younger days, pre-
paring plans and specifications and superin-
tending the construction of buildings. He
made the plans for the county jail and super-
intended its construction; also the two addi-
tions to the courthouse.
Mr. Black was married May 17, 1849 to
Mary F. Wilmott, a native of Illinois and a
daughter of Charles R. Wilmott. They had
five children, as follows: Charles W., born
September 23, 1850, was married November
24, 1870, to Elsie Buckley, and has five
children: Mabel, Roy, Mary, Stella and Clyde;
Mary, born May 28, 1855, married Armstead
Mains, and has seven children: Maude, Elma,
William, Reatta, Toura, Louese and Leslie;
130
BIOGRAPHICAL .REVIEW Off OAS8,
Eva, born August 29, 1860, was married
January 26, 1882, to William G. Payne;
Robert, born September 22, 1864, was mar-
ried October 18, 1889, to Maggie Gray and
has two children, Edna and an infant; and
Frank born March 23, 1868, married a Miss
Elliott, and has one child, Edward. Mrs.
Black died January 26, 1879, and in May,
1883, Mr. Black wedded Mary (Thompson)
Skiles.
Mr. Black is a member of the Christian
Church, as also was his first wife. His pres-
ent companion has her membership with the
Methodist Episcopal Church. Politically, he
was formerly a Whig, but since the organiza-
tion of the Republican party he has affiliated
with it.
jjARTIN W. GREEK, a life- long res-
ident of Rushville township, was
born August 5, 1843, a son of James
Greer, a native of County Tyrone, Ireland,
born in the month of May, 1812. Martin
Greer, the paternal grandfather of our sub-
ject, was also a native of Ireland, but of
Scotch ancestry, he was a farmer by occupa-
tion, and spent his entire life in his own
country; he married Lucy Crosier, who after
the death of her husband came to America
with her children; she died at the residence
of her son James in 1870, at the age of
eighty-three years. She was the mother of
five children, all of whom came to this
country: George, James, Jane, Richard and
Robert. James Greer was a youth of eigh-
teen years when he crossed the sea to' Amer-
ica; he resided in the State of New York
until 1836, and then came to Illinois, lo-
cating in Schuyler county. After is mar-
riage he bought a farm on which he passed
the rest of his life; he died in 1875. He
was married in 1842, to Martha Wilson,
a native of Nelson county, Kentucky, born
October 15, 1818. Martha Wilson was the
daughter of Elijah M. Wilson, who was born
in Prince William county, Virginia, a son of
Henry Wilson, also a Virginian by birth ;
Henry Wilson married Sarah Melton, who
was a native of Virginia; they removed to
Kentucky and were among the pioneers of
the Blue-grass State. Elijah M. Wilson
married Jane Hawley, a native of Virginia
and a daughter of Absalom and Martha
(Field) Hawley. He removed with his wife
to Illinois, and entered a tract of Government
land four miles south of Rushville; at the
end of five years he sold this place for $600,
and removed to Littleton township, where he
purchased a farm on which he lived until his
death. To them were born nine children:
Martin W., Elijah M., William J., George
S., Samuel E., Lucy J., Mary E., Maria E. and
Vietta. Lucy married James Neill; Mary is the
wife of Fel ix Jackson ; Maria E. m arried Charl es
E. Lawler. The parents were both devoted
church members, the father having joined
the Methodist Episcopal Church in his youth ;
the mother first united with the Baptist
Church, but after her marriage was a mem-
ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Martin W. Greer passed his youth on his
4 »
father's farm, assisting in the labors of seed-
time and harvest, and attending the district
school a portion of each year. At the age of
twenty-one years he began to teach school,
and was engaged in this profession for a pe-
riod of six terms. Aside from this experi-
ence he has been interested exclusively in
agricultural pursuits, in which he has been
more than ordinarily successful. He intro-
duced the first Berkshire hogs into the
county, and has a fine herd of short-horn
SCHUYLER AND BHOWN COUNTIES.
131
cattle; his horses are of excellent pedigree,
and he takes great pride in elevating the
standard of all classes of live stock. At the
time of his marriage Mr. Greer settled ou
the farm he now owns on section 34, Rush-
ville township; he has good, substantial farm
buildings, an orchard, and very attractive
grounds surrounding his residence; in fact,
the farm is one of the most desirable in the
county.
He was married in April, 1867, to Susan
H. Krnse, who was born in Rushville town-
ship, a daughter of Francis H. and Elizabeth
Kruse, whose history appears on another page
of this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Greer are
the parents of five children living: Fred A.,
Luther M., Henry E., Millie M. and Owen
J. The father is a member of the Method-
ist Episcopal Church, but the mother belongs
to the Christian denomination. Politically,
Mr. Greer has always, until the past two
years, been a Democrat, and has been School
Treasurer of Rushville township for a period
of sixteen years; he has always been loyal to
home interests and home industries, and is
one of the most highly respected men in the
county. For the past two years Mr. Greer
has advocated the principles of the People's
party arid was nominated for Congress on
that ticket for the Eleventh district by the
convention held at Bnshnell, June 11, 1892.
WASHINGTON BROCKMAN is one
of the leading business men of Mount
Sterling, where he was born Septem-
ber 13, 1844. His father, James, was born
in Kentucky, and was there reared and edu-
cated. He turned his attention to the study
of medicine when young. He graduated
from Lexington Medical College, and in 1836
or 1837 he came to Illinois, locating in Mount
Sterling, where he began his practice. It
was at this time that he had a very narrow
escape from being drowned by being caught
in the high water at Meredosia. His prac-
tice extended into Pike and Morgan counties,
where he had to go on horseback. He con-
tinued practicing until 18 — , when lie was
elected Circuit Clerk, which position he held
until his death. His wife's name was Sophia
Price, of Scott county, Kentucky, the daugh-
ter of one of the pioneers of Brown county.
Dr. Brockman was a Democrat; served as
school commissioner of Brown county; was a
member of the Second State Constitutional
Convention; was one of the charter members
of Hardin Lodge, No. 44, A. F. and A. M.,
and was buried with Masonic honors.
"Washington was an infant when his mother
died, and but eight years when his father
died. His step-mother was left in limited
circumstances with four children to care for,
and consequently at thirteen years of age he
went to live with an uncle. He remained with
him about a year, and then went to live with
another uncle, who owned a flour mill. For
several years he worked in the mill, in a black-
smith shop and on a farm, and was also in a
drug store in Mount Sterling. In September,
1861, he enlisted in Company K, Tenth Illi-
nois Cavalry, and went to Missouri. His
company was one of the four detached from
the regiment and sent to join General Curtis
after the Pea Ridge fight. They marched to
Helena, Arkansas, and then participated in
the capture of Vicksburg, after which he was
granted a furlough of twenty days, which was
extended to twenty days more, and then his
health being poor he was assigned to duty in
the drug department. He remained there by
order of the physicians until the spring of
1864. when he was ordered to take charge of
132
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF UAS8,
a company of the Veteran Reserve Corps.
He was honorably discharged in December,
1864, as his term had expired, and he returned
home and soon secured a position in the post
office for thirty days, and then was clerk in
the enrolling department of the Provost Mar-
shal's office, remaining there until after the
war, when the office was discontinued. He
Went to Macomb, Illinois, to secure a job, but
not being successful he returned and bought
a book and stationery store. In less than a
year he sold out, and was employed at various
kinds of work for a few months, and then
purchased one-half interest in another book
and stationery store; later he bought the
interest of his partner and conducted the
busines alone. He carries a full line of
books, stationery, wall paper, sporting goods
and other goods of like nature. In 1886 he
opened a buggy repository and farm imple-
ment business and conducted it successfully
for six years, but in 1892, owing to poor
health, he was obliged to sell that branch of
the business.
He was married, in 1865, to Estdla J.
Leeped, of Mount Sterling, daughter of John-
son and Catherine (Dawson) Leeped. Mr.
and Mrs. Brockman have four living chil-
dren: George Leon, Clarence Eugene, Ernest
Edgar and Percy Washington. Mr. Brock-
man organized the Isaac McNeil Post, of
which he is a member, No. 289, G. A. R.
He is also a member of Unity Lodge, No.
310, I. O. O. F. He is a charter member of
the Mount Sterling Lodge, No. — A. O. U.
W. ; and of the Crescent Lodge, I. O. M. A.;
also a Fellow-craft member of Hardin Lodge,
No. 44, A. F. and A. M. He and his wife
are greatly respected by their host of friends.
He is one of the directors of the Mount Ster-
ling Building and Loan Association, and is
vice-president of the Mount Sterling Elec-
tric Light and Power company, which he
helped to organize.
Politically he is a strong Republican, hav-
ing cast his first ballot in 1864 for " honest
Old Abe " Lincoln, and from this party he
has never departed, believing that the prin-
ciples of said party are just and true.
ILL1AM T. BLACK, a prominent
farmer of Woodstock township, was
born in Dubois county, Indiana,
March 18, 1821. When he was four years
old his parents removed to Schuyler county.
and here he has since resided. He remained
under the parental roof until he had attained
his majority, and then he started out in life
on his own account; he first rented a farm in
Woodstock township, which he cultivated one
year, and then removed to Rushville town-
ship.
He was united in marriage, October 30,
1842, to Matilda Matheny, a native of Mor-
gan county, Ohio, born March 29, 1823.
Her parents, Andrew and Sarah (Harris)
Matheny, were natives of New England and
Virginia respectively; they emigrated to Illi-
nois in 1835, purchased a farm in Schuyler
county, and there spent the balance of their
days. Both the paternal and maternal an-
cestors were patriots and fought in the war
of the Revolution. Mrs. Black is one of a
family of four children. After his marriage,
Mr. Black rented land for a few years longer,
and in 1849 bought 120 acres, on which he
built a small frame house; this was his home
until 1867, when he sold the place and pur-
chased 280 acres in Woodstock township. In
1869 he erected a dwelling, which has since
been enlarged and remodeled; he has made
all the improvements on the farm, and has
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
133
developed it into one of the most desirable in
the township. He carried on a general farm-
ing business, and is considered one of the
leading agriculturists of the county.
Mr. and Mrs. Black are the parents of six
children: Austin married Nancy King, and
they have one son; Athelinda is the wife of
Richard Kettenring, and the mother of two
sons; Harriet A. died at the age of forty-two
years; William H. married Rachel Boiles,
and they have seven children, five sons and
twodaughters; Richard married Jane Stevens,
and they have two sons and a daughter; Frank-
lin P. married Sarah Kennedy, and they have
two sons.
Politically, Mr. Black affiliates with the
Democratic party; he has filled the office of
Assessor for three years, and in 1877 he was
elected Justice of the Peace, and is the present
incumbent. He is a member of the Farmers'
Alliance. In his religious faith he is a Bap-
tist. He has endured all the vicissitudes of
life on the frontier, and has accumulated his
property entirely by his own exertions. He
has always employed the most correct busi-
ness methods, and has the respect of the en-
tire community.
IEORGE W. ALLPHIN, section 15,
Huntsville township, was born in Ken-
tucky, September 13, 1830. He is the
son of Reuben and Susan (Brumbeck) All-
phin. He was five years old when the family
came to Illinois. He was reared on the farm
and helped improve the new land. He at-
tended such schools as those early days
afforded, when they had log houses, with
slabs for seats, and holes on the south side
for windows. In the spring of 1850 he
crossed the plains to California, and followed
mining for four years, and was successful, re-
turning by way of New Orleans. On his re-
turn he purchased eighty acres, on which he
now resides. The land was unimproved and
covered with timber. He now owns 115
acres of land, and has the same well im-
proved. He has also a fine quality of stock.
He is a Republican in politics, although he
was a Democrat for thirty .years. He has
been Justice of the Peace and held many
minor offices. He has been a successful man,
having made his money since 1854, when he
came to Illinois, settling in Huntsville.
He married, December 10, 1854, Miss At-
lanta Wilson, daughter of Jamison Wilson.
She was born in Huntsville township, in
February, 1835. Mr. and Mrs. Allphin have
had six children, three living: Anna, wife of
James Bnrmood; Calvin and Sherman. They
were members of the Cumberland Presby-
terian Church for many years, and when that
society failed they united with the Methodist
Episcopal Church. Mr. Allphin is a mem-
ber of Huntsville Lodge, No. 365, A. F. &
A. M., and of Cyclone Lodge, I. O. 0. F.
He and his wife are highly respected citizens
of Huntsville.
Jamison Wilson, the oldest living settler
in Huntsville township, was born in what is
now Grant county, Kentucky, November 29,
1829. His parents, John R. and Rachel
(Junip) Wilson, were early settlers in this
part of the State. He resided in Kentucky
until 1836, and then came to Illinois, locating
in Cass county, but finally settled in Adams
county. They had eight children, of whom
the subject was the oldest. The second child
was Polly; the others were Nancy, Jane,
Sarah, Lucy, Dora and Robert. Jamison
Wilson was reared a farmer, and in 1834 he
came to Illinois and settled in Huntsville
township. He entered and purchased land,
134
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
where he resided until quite recently. He
became the owner of 207 acres of land. He
continued to reside on a farm until 1886,
since which he has resided with his daughter,
Mrs. Allphin. In politics he 'was a Republi-
can, and a Justice of the Peace for a time.
He has been a church member all his life,
having been connected with different denomi-
nations, as convenient.
He was married in 1832, to Miss Ellen
Thornhill. She was born in Kentucky in
1810, being a daughter of John and Jane
Thornhill. She died July 23, 1881. They
had seven children: Ulysses resides in Linn
county, Kansas; Atlanta, now Mrs. G. W.
Allphin; Melvina married Solomon Rawson,
of Jacksonville, Iowa, and died in 1862;
Mary married John Rawson, and resides in
Grant county, Kansas; Lucurgus resides in
Frederick, Illinois; Palenicus resides on the
old homestead; and Xenophon resides in
Huntsville township, Illinois.
JEBULON ALLPHIN resides on section
twenty-two, Huntsville Township, and
is not only a prosperous farmer, but a
specimen of 1835, born in Boone county,
Kentucky, in July, 1832. His father Reu-
ben Allphin, was a native of Kentucky in
1801, and was the son of Zebulon Allphin,
born in Virginia, but emigrated to Kentucky,
where he died at the age of ninety-six years.
He had nine children, of whom two are still
living: William, Dollie, Jackson, Luke, Shel-
ton, Ransom, Rebecca, Nancy and Reuben.
All came to Schuyler county except Dollie
and Ransom, who removed to Kentucky.
Father of subject was a small boy when the
family removed to Kentucky and was reared
a farmer and overseer on his father's planta-
tion. He married Susan Brumbeck. She
was born in Virginia in 1800. In 1835 they
came to Illinois and settled at Camden. Some
time after they settled on section ten, Hunts-
ville township, where he purchased a claim.
In 1840 he removed to Rushville and re-
mained five years, when he enlisted in the
Mexican war. In 1848 he came to Mc-
Donough county. In 1850 he returned to
Schuyler county, and after the Civil war went
to St. Joseph, Missouri, where he pursued
farming until 1870. He then returned to
Schuyler county and passed his remaining
years with his children. His wife died in
1852. They had eight children: William,
Zarilda Thornhill, Sarah Hills, Henry,
James, George W., Zebulon, and Susan
Brumbeck. The parents were members of
the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. The
father is buried in Rnshville and the mother
in Huntsville. Mr. Allphin was a Democrat,
and held local offices. He was reasonably suc-
cessful as a farmer, notwithstanding he was an
uneducated man.
Zebulon was but three years old when he
came to Schuyler county and lived with the
family until he was married. He was edu-
cated at the district schools.
He was married in 1852, to Mary L. Cal-
vin, daughter of Samuel and Phoebe Calvin,
and a native of Ohio. After marriage Mr.
Allphin settled where he now resides and
soon purchased 160 acres of unimproved land/
He has since resided on the same, and now
owns over 240 acres of land. He is a general
farmer, dealing in live stock. Mr. and Mrs.
Allphin have eight children: William C. re-
sides in Carthage, Missouri; James Henry
resides in Huntsville township; Addie, wife
of Frank Seward, resides in Huntsville town-
ship; Cornelia, wife of Harvey Hoover of
Clark county, Misssouri; George M., at home;
SOHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
135
Leonidas, of Huntsville; and Jessie, at home.
Mr. Allphin is a Democrat in politics. He
has been Supervisor several times and has
held minor offices. His wife died February
25, 1890. She was a member of the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church. Mr. Allphin is a
member of Hnntsville Lodge, No. 465, A. F.
& A. M. He has made all his property
himself.
fOHN W. SNYDER, a well known and
highly respected citizen of section 20,
Bnena Vista township, became a resi-
dent of Schuyler county in 1834. He is a
native of Virginia, having been born in
Frederick county of that State, June 4, 1823.
His father, Jacob Snyder, was a farmer. He
married Margaret Hughes, and in 1834
emigrated to Illinois, locating in Buena Vista
township, where he at first rented land, but
later purchased a tract, adding to it from time
to time until he owned about 500 acres. This
he improved by erecting a good substantial
residence and commodious barns for his grain
and. stock, and in time brought the land to a
high state of cultivation. He died September
28, 1865, aged sixty-seven years. His wife,
the mother of our subject, had died on Nov-
ember 7, 1849, at the early age of fifty-one
years. She was a woman of intelligence and
warm impulses, a faithful wife and fond
mother, and left many friends to mourn her
loss. They had four children: John W.,
James, now residing near Hamilton, Illinois;
Joseph, a resident of Littleton township, Illi-
nois; and George Edward, residing in Buena
Vista township, same State. The parents
were consistent members of the Methodist
Protestant Church, and contributed to its
support. Politically the father was a Demo-
crat, but was never an office seeker, or poli-
tician in the modern sense of the term.
The subject of our sketch, John W. Snyder,
was but a mere boy when his parents came to
Illinois, since which time he has continued a
resident of Schnyler county. He was reared
to log-cabin life on a farm, and received his
education in a log schoolhonse. He lived at
home until he attained to the age of man-
hood. He married, June 18, 1848, Miss
Cynthia Blackley, a daughter of William and
Jane Blackley. She was born in Tennessee,
November, 1825. After his marriage our
subject resided on the farm on which he still
lives. He commenced with 260 acres of land,
with no improvements, and now owns 190
acres, well improved with good house and
barns for grain and stock and other modern
improvement?, while his land is well cul-
tivated, being devoted to mixed farming.
Mr. and Mrs. Snyder have had nine chil-
dren, six of whom are living. Sarah Jane
was born June 21, 1849, and married Harvey
Cole. She died in Bueua Vista township
May 3, 1878, leaving three children. Mar-
garet E. was born December 12, 1850, and
resides at home. Martha E. was born April
3, 1853, and died June 18-, 1856. Mary E.
was born April 3, 1853, and married George
Warrington, and resides in Buena Vista
township. Lydia F. was born November 18,
1859, and resides at home. Louisa A. was
born December 27, 1862, and married Ross
Pittman, and now resides in Rushville, of
Schuyler county, Illinois. Cynthia B. was
born October 9, 1864, and died December 15,
1864. Hannah L. was born May 24, 1867,
and resides at home. Mazie C. was born
September 25, 1868, and lives with her par-
ents at home.
Mr. Snyder affiliates with the Democratic
party, and has been honored by his constitu-
ents by an election to the office of Justice of
136
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
the Peace, in which capacity he served his
county ably and well. Like his parents
before him, he is a Protestant Methodist,
to the support of which church he contrib-
utes.
Commencing life with little means, he has,
by industry and economy, accumulated a
competence, and by reason of his honest deal-
ings and cordial manner he has won the
o
friendship and good will of the community.
fILLIAM H UPPERS, an old and suc-
cessful business man of Beardstown,
was born in the Rhine province, Oc-
tober 1, 1839. His parents lived and died
in their native province. His father, Gear-
heard Huppers, was a mechanic and small
farmer, and had been quite active in local
matters of his native town. He died at the
age of eighty-six. His mother, who died at
the age of eighty-one, before her marriage
bore the name of Elizabeth Waltham. They
were members of the German Reformed
Church.
Mr. Huppers was well reared, and when
thirteen years of age, after attending public
school, was apprenticed to the tailor's trade.
After completing his time he started out as
a journeyman workman, going to Belgium,
where he spent six months, and then pro-
ceeded to Paris, where he remained for two
years, and then came to the United States,
stopping first in New York and then Colum-
bus, Ohio, and later coining to Beardstown.
Here he has made all his money, having,
when he landed in Columbus, less than one
dollar in his pocket. He now does a large and
lucrative business as merchant tailor and
gentlemen's furnisher, at the corner of Main
and State streets. He arrived in Beardstown
and established a similar business with Mr.
Miller, who continued with him until 1881;
since then Mr. Huppers has carried the busi-
ness on very successfully alone. He has been
a leader in many local enterprises. He is
interested in the Beardstown Electric Light
and Power Company, is a director of the
First State Bank, and is a member of the
Board of Education. His lellow- citizens
have always known where to find him in
public matters.
He was married in Arenzville, to Minnie
Henkel, of Hesse Darmstadt. She came
with her mother to this country when she
was twelve years of age. Mrs. Henkel, a
much respected member of the church, died
in Beardstown, aged fifty-three years. Mr.
and Mrs. Huppers are the parents of two
children: Lula A., who was educated in
Beardstown, but completed her course in the
university at Evanston, Illinois, and is now
a skilled teacher in vocal arid instrumental
music; Harry C., twelve years of age, is at
home. Mr. and Mrs. Huppers are leading
people in this city, Mrs. Huppers being a
member of the First Lutheran Church. Mr.
Huppers is a member of the order of F. &
A. M., a member of Cass Lodge, No. 23,
of Clark Chapter No. 29, and is Treasurer in
both. He is a sound Republican in politics.
HARLES N. DUNN, a successful
farmer and stock-raiser of Beardstown,
was born here, and has always lived on
this farm. His father was John Dunn, of
Cornwall, England, born in 1822. He grew
up in his native country as a farmer boy and
with his brother Luke came to the United
States in the '40s, on a sailing vessel from
Liverpool and landed in New York and came
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
137
from there to Beardstown. Soon afterward he
came out to his present location where he
purchased 160 acres of wild land, which is
now owned by his son. On this place John
Dunn began life as a young single man and
here made farming a success. He was mar-
ried to Caroline Treadway, who was born in
Maryland, but had come to Cass county when
young, as her parents were old settlers. They
soon accumulated 320 acres of fine land in
what is known as the Sangamon bottoms and
here John Dunn died in 1877, aged fifty-
five years. His wife survived him until 1885,
when she died, aged seventy-two years. She
was a noble, good woman and the best of
neighbors. Mr. Dunn was an honest man
and both he and his wife were highly esteemed
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Charles Dunn is the youngest of a family
of eight children, four of whom are yet liv-
ing, Mary Paschal, now living in Morgan
county; Sarah Kuhlman, living near Vir-
ginia, this county; William, a farmer in But-
ler county, Kansas; and Charles, who has
never been married. He is a sound Repub-
lican of good habits and sound principles.
He has been a very successful farmer and
stock-raiser and now owns a fine farm of 160
acres, well improved and with a fine set of
farm buildings. The place has been his own
for fifteen years, and is where he was born
and resides.
>MAZIAH C. EDGAR was born at Vir-
ginia, Cass county, Illinois, May 12,
1845. His father, George Edgar, was
a native of Franklin county, Kentucky, and
was there reared and married; he emigrated
to Illinois at an early day, and was one of
the honored pioneers of Schuyler county.
After a few years he removed to Cass county,
Illinois, and located at Virginia, engaging in
fanning near that place. In 1849, when the
gold fever swept this country, he joined the
train of emigrants journeying to the Pacific
coast. He remained in the Golden State six-
teen years, and then returned to Illinois, and
resumed agricultural pursuits in Cass county;
his death occurred soon after his return. He
was united in marriage to Elizabeth Nail, a
native of Kentucky and a daughter of Gabriel
and Fanny (Tnttl) Nail. To them were born
four children: Martha, Robert, Amaziah C.,
the subject of this biography, and Henrietta.
Mr. Edgar received his education at Vir-
ginia, and in early life was thrown upon his
own responsibility; he also assisted in the
support of the family, and by industry and
economy managed to save his earnings until
he could get a start in the world. He resided
at Virginia until after his marriage, and then
removed to Macon county, Illinois, and pur-
chased a farm near Niantic; here he was en-
gaged in agricultural pursuits until 1882,
when he sold this land and came to Rushville,
where he lives a retired life.
He has been twice married: In 1868 he
was united to Julia (Carr) Cook, a native of
Cass county, Illinois, and a daughter of David
Carr; her first husband was John Cook, and
her death occurred in 1875. Mr. Edgar's
second marriage was in 1878, to Eliza E.
Ford, a native of Arkansas and a daughter of
Elias E. Ford; her father was a Kentuckian
by birth and one of the pioneers of Macon
county, Illinois; he removed thence to- Ar-
kansas in search of health, but soon returned
and now lives a retired life at Niantic; he
married Sarah McDonald, a native of Ohio.
Mrs. Edgar died at Las Vegas, New Mexico,
April 23, 1892, on the thirty-fourth anniver-
sary of her birth ; she had gone there in quest
of health, but the hand of death was laid
138
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
upon her, and she was called from this life to
the reality of the future. She was the mother
of two children: Effie May and Ballinger.
Mr. Edgar had one child by his first marriage,
named Nevada. Politically he has always
been a Democrat, and a stanch supporter of
the principles of the party. He represented
Niantie on the County Board of Supervisors
for six years, and as a member of the County
Central Committee. He was president of the
Macon County Fair Association four years.
He is a member of Rushville Lodge, No. 9,
A. F. and A. M. In all the walks of life his
action has been characterized by that integrity
and honor which insures the respect and con-
fidence of the entire community.
fONATHAN PATTESON was born in
State of Virginia, June 1, 1797. His
father was Charles Patteson, also a na-
tive of Virginia, who removed from that
State to Green county, Kentucky about the
year 1800, and was thus one of the pioneers
of that locality. He bought a tract of timber
land, and erected thereon a log cabin, in which
were domiciled the family. They were in a
wilderness and were compelled to live off the
products of their little place and the game
that was found in abundance in the woods.
Mr. Patteson was an owner of slaves, and they
cultivated flax and cotton, and used to card,
spin and weave all the cloth for the entire
family. They were compelled to be self-sup-
porting, and knew little of the outside world
because railroads were unheard of, newspapers
rarely seen, and even steamboats had but just
been heard of. He continued to reside in
Green county until his death. His wife,
the mother of our subject, was Regina De-
Graphenreidt, a native of North Carolina,
who died when our subject was but four years
of age.
Our subject, Jonathan Patteson, is the only
survivor of a family of six children. He was
reared on the farm in Kentucky and was there
married. At quite an early age he went to
live with a merchant in Columbia, Adair
county, and there he remained, clerking in a
store, until he was married. He then went
to that part of Adair county now included in
Russell county, and took charge of a paper
mill. Soon after his location there, Russell
county was organized, and the first court was
held in his house. He lived there until 1837,
at which time he came to Illinois. While in
Kentucky he lived on a small stream, six miles
from the Cumberland river. This little stream
was known as Greasy creek. He built a flat
boat, and himself and family, accompanied by
Thomas J. Garrett, floated down to the Cum-
berland river and there took a steamer and
continued on down to the Ohio, thence down
to the Misssissippi, thence up the Mississippi
and Illinois rivers, stopping at Erie (now
Frederick), Schuyler county. This country
was then an utter wilderness, tilled with wild
animals and with a few scattering pioneers,
almost as wild as the animals. He bought a
tract of 160 acres, two miles east of town,
covered with heavy timber, upon which two
log cabins had been erected and a few acres
cleared by the former owner. He paid $2,-
000 for the entire tract, which was then con-
sidered a very high price. Here he lived
and labored until 1871, when he came to
Rushville and has since lived there retired
from active business. He is the oldest man
now living in Schuyler county. Generally
his health has been good, but of late years he
has suffered with rheumatism, though his
mind and memory are yet well preserved.
During his long life he has witnessed the in-
SCHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
139
trod action of railroads and steamboats, tele-
graph lines, and when he came to Illinois, as
he passed through Louisville, he traded for
two stoves, the first ever brought to Schnyler
county. They were rough, primitive affairs,
which would now sell for about three dollars,
but for which he paid the sum of seventy
dollars.- In 1822 he was married to Miss
Matilda Caldwell, a native of Columbia, Ken-
tucky, and a daughter of William aud Eliza
(Pyles) Caldwell. To himself and wife have
been born seven children: Eliza M., Charles
JR., William C., Harriet J., Laura, Matilda
and Louisa Caroline. Of these children all
are living except the daughter, Laura, who
died in 1872.
§EONIDAS SCOTT, one of the promi-
nent citizens of Rushville, Schnyler
county, Illinois, is a native of this county,
born September 7, 1855 (for family history,
see sketch of Mrs. T. W. Scott). He was
united in marriage March 25, 1874, to Me-
linda B. Demaree, a native of Mercer county,
Kentucky, born August 9, 1855. Her par-
ents, Hold man and Martha J. Demaree, were
also natives of Mercer county, Kentucky.
They emigrated to Schuyler county in 1857,
and bought land on which they lived until
death; they had born to them eight children,
six of whom are living. Mrs. Scott's grand-
parents were Virginians by birth, and were
among the pioneers of Kentucky.
Mr. and Mrs. Scott have two children:
Laura B. was born March 18, 1876, and
Catherine, born August 16, 1888. Mr. Scott
passed an uneventful youth, being reared to
the occupation of a farmer; after his marriage
he remained on the home farm until 1887,
when he purchased his present residence in
Rushville. He rents his farm, which consists
of 200 acres, and devotes his time to the
breeding of fine horses. Netty Thorn is a
very line animal belonging to his stables, and
he has sent out some of the most promising
horses that are on the turf to-day.
Our worthy subject is a member of the
Knights of Pythias, and takes an active in-
terest in the order. His wife belongs to the
Christian Church. They are giving their
children a good education, and are thus pro-
viding them with a legacy of which no man
can defraud them.
S REDE RICK E. BERRY, one of the
managers of the National Union store
at Rushville, was born in Schuyler
county, Illinois, December 23, 1841, a son of
Daniel and Msry A. (Crow) Berry, natives of
Washington county, Pennsylvania. Samuel
Berry, the paternal grandfather, was also a
resident of Washington county, Pennsylvania.
Daniel Berry was reared to the occupation of
a farmer; he emigrated to Schuyler county,
Illinois, in an early day, and settled in Rush-
ville township, where he purchased eighty
acrea of land, partially improved; here he
lived until his death in 1871; his widow still
resides on the home farm. They had a family
of nine children, all of \vhom grew to mature
years: William C. died in Rushville, leaving
a family; Daniel died in California; George
G. died at Tombstone, Arizona; Sarah is the
wife of Morris Hobart; Elizabeth married
C. L. Easley; Mary A. is the wife of W. R.
Milby; Frederick E. is the subject of this
sketch; Martha M. is the wife of A. V.
Quinn; John S. died in New York city;
Frederick E. was brought up amid rural
scenes, and attended the common schools.
When the great Civil war arose between the
140
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
North and South, he was not slow to espouse
the cause of the Union, and May 10, 1861, he
enlisted in the service of the State Govern-
ment; and May 24, 1861, enlisted for three
years in Company G, Sixteenth Illinois Vol-
unteer Infantry, and spent the summer and
fall of 1861 in Missouri; in January, 1862,
he went to Cairo and afterward joined Pope's
army in the siege of New Madrid; he partici-
pated in the capture of Island No. 10, the
siege of Corinth, and was afterward stationed
at Big Spring, Mississippi; next at Tuscum-
bia, Alabama, and took part in the retreat of
Negley's and Palmer's brigades; next they
were at Decatnr and Nashville, Tennessee,
remaining at the latter place during the two
months of the siege; he was at Stone river,
at Nashville, and during the siege of Chatta-
nooga was at Kelly's Ferry. January 1, 1864,
he was transferred to the Sixtieth Illinois
Volunteer Infantry, and took part in the
battles of Tunnel Hill and Buzzard Roost
Gap; he was transferred March 1st to the
Sixteenth Regiment, which he joined in the
beginning of the war, and served until May
2d, when he began the Atlanta campaign; he
went as far as Burnt Hickory, and there was
ordered back, and June 13th, at Chattanooga,
was discharged. He returned to his home,
and resumed the more peaceful pursuit of
agriculture.
Mr. Berry was married January 3, 1867,
to Miss Maggie Milby, a daughter of Ben-
jamin and Mary Milby, a native of Delaware,
born January 30, 1845. He then took charge
of his father's farm, which he managed until
the fall of 1891. In October of that year the
branch store of the National Union Company
was organized; he was made manager at Rush-
ville; this company does a general mercantile
business, carries a well selected stock, and is
worthy of the generous patronage received.
Mr. Berry owns the old homestead left by
his father, which consists of 178 acres.
Mr. and Mrs. Berry have had born to them
a family of live children: Katie is the wife
of Miles Van Horn; Anna, Elizabeth, Grace
and Fred E. In politics Mr. Berry is inde-
pendent, although he formerly affiliated with
the Republican party. He has been Tax Col-
lector and served as a member of the School
Board. He belongs to the Grand Army of the
Republic, and has been Commanderof Colonel
Harney Post, No. 131; he is also a member
of the A. (). U. "W., and is Secretary of the
County Alliance. He has also been interested
in public movements, and has been a loyal
supporter of home industries. He is a man
of superior business qualifications, and
through strictly honorable methods he has
accumulated considerable property.
RS. WILLIAM PRICE, a resident
of Rushville, Illinois, has the honor
of being one of the earliest settlers
of Schuyler county, Illinois, her parents re-
moving there in 1826. She was born in
Crawford county, Indiana, October 8, 1816,
a daughter of Wiliarn and Cassie (Frakes)
McKee, whose history appears on another
page of this volume. She recalls many in-
cidents of life on the frontier, and has not
forgotten the privations and hardships en-
dured by those who were courageous enough
to undertake to subdue the wild land and con-
vert it into fertile farms. She was married
at the age of sixteen years, to William Price,
a native of Tennessee, born October 8, 1809,
a son of Samuel and Beersheba (Atehily)
Price; his father removed from Tennessee to
Illinois, and was a pioneer of Schuyler county;
he afterward removed to Arkansas, and lived
SCHUYLSR AND BROWN COUNTIES.
141
there until after the death of his wife, when
he returned to Illinois; he spent his last years
at the home of Mrs. Price in Rushville.
William Price was reared in his native State,
and there learned the trade of a blacksmith;
he remained in Tennessee until 1830, when
he emigrated to Schuyler county, Illinois,
where he resided until his death. At the time
of his marriage lie settled on the land now oc-
cupied by Mrs. Mary Price, which was the
gift of her father; he followed his trade, and
at the same time superintended the cultiva-
tion of his farm; he made many excellent
improvements, erecting good buildings, and
bringing the land to a high state of produc-
tiveness. His death occurred March 21,
1887.
Mrs. Price has four children living; John
married Margaret Owen; George married
ErnmaMeador; Agnes is the wife of Oscar
B. Hite; James F. married Nannie Boden-
heimer.
In his political views Mr. Price adhered to
the principles of the Republican party. He
was a man of great integrity of character, and
enjoyed the respect of all who knew him.
CHARLES GOTTHELF JOKISCH, an
old settler and farmer of Cass county,
now deceased, was born in Saxony, Ger-
many, February 27, 1819. He was one of
nine children. His grandfather, believing
that opportunities for young men were better
in the United States than in Germany, urged
his two sons and their families to emigrate
to this country. This they did early in the
thirties, and began in Cass county on Govern-
ment land, and here the father of Gotthelf
died in what is now Bluff Springs precinct,
at about the age of fifty. He had accumulated
a tine property and left an estate valued at
twenty-rive thousand dollars. His aged father
also died here. (For fuller history of family
see biography of William Jockisch.)
Charles Gotthelf grew up an industrious
boy, and was ever afterward identified with
the best interests of the county, but unfortu-
nately died before he was very old. In spite
of his early death lie left an estate that was
very valuable. His death occurred in March;
1874, in the fifty-fourth year of his age. By
industry and economy he first was able to buy
a small farm, and from time to time increased
it until he owned a property of 350 acres, most
of it in a high state of cultivation. He was
a quiet, good man, gave his en tire time to his
business, never engaged in politics, except to
vote the Republican ticket.
He was married here to Elinore Carls, of
Hanover, Germany, November 1, 1846. Her
mother had died in Germany, arid she carne
to this country with her father and other
members of the family in 1843, and has since
lived in the borders of Cass county. (For
family history, bee biography of Louis M.
Carls.) Mrs. Jokisch is the youngest of the
family now living. She has two brothers,
George and Henry, both of this county. She
is a well preserved lady and very intelligent.
She and her husband were life-long members
of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
She is the mother of ten children: Theophi-
lus, Otto, George and Matilda (Loomis) are
deceased; those living are: Maurice W., a far-
mer living in Virginia; Mary E., a noble
character, living at home; Philip J., a very
successful farmer of this township; Amelia
Hackman, a native of this county; Edward
F., a successful farmer in Virginia; Harry J.,
now running the homestead, is a well edu-
cated farmer. He attended the high school
of Virginia, and also the Wesleyan University
142
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OA88,
at Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, and the Illinois State
Normal School. He taught recently in the
schools of Beardstown. He is industrious
and knows how to put his education to good
use. He clings to the same political faith as
did his father, and bids fair to do that parent
honor.
fILLIAM OETGEN, one of the old
settlers and successful farmers living
inCass county, was born in Hanover,
Germany, May 31, 1817. He came of pure
German ancestry. His father, G. Henry,
was a native of the same place in Germany,
born in 1787 and died December 26, 1820.
He was a blacksmith, as were all his brothers
and his father before. They were all mem-
bers of the Lutheran Church. The name of
his mother was Helen L. Veslage, a native of
Hanover, who survived her first husband, and
in 1823 married Dr. J. C. A. Seeger, who
came to the United States in 1831, and in
1832 was joined by his wife and oar subject.
The family settled in Philadelphia, Pennsy-
lvania, in September, 1832, where Mr. Oetgen
learned the shoemaker's trade. Mr. Oeto-en
r")
made a quick passage of twenty-eight days
and landed in New York City. In 1834 his
parents came to Beardstown, and were joined
a year later by our subject. They both died
here, but left no children: hence Mr. Oetgen
is the only one of his family now living that
came from Germany. Mr. Oetgen landed in
this county July 25, 1835. He began here a
poor boy and worked for years for $8 a month;
later he received as much as $12.50 a month,
and in 1843 fanned one year as a renter, and
in 1844 purchased his first land not far from
Beardstown city. This consisted of 290
acres, which he improved, and in 1859 he pur-
chased 126 acres on section 20, township 18,
range 11, where he now lives. He later
added 120 acres, and then seventy acres more,
and again eighty acres, all of which is valu-
able and some of which is worth more than
$100 an acre. He has been one of the lead-
ing men of the county, and has had all the
experiences of a pioneer. Being a smart and
intelligent man he has a tine memory, and
can tell in a very interesting manner of the
condition of things in the past history of the
county. He has been a good citizen.
He was married, in Cass county, to Cathe-
rine Middlebusher, born in Hanover, near
Osnabruck, December 23, 1826, and came to
the United States in 1835, and to Cass county
with her parents, Adam and Petro N". (Ket-
wick) Middlebusher, who died here of cholera
two weeks after landing in Beardstown.
They were members of the Lutheran Church,
and while only in this country a short time
theycame in a day when their names should
be associated with the other pioneers. Mrs.
Oetgen was yet very young when her parents
died, and was partly reared by the mother
and step-father of Mr. Oetgen. She is yet
living. She was married, April 7, 1843, to
Mr. Oetgen, and has proved herself a good,
true wife. They are the parents of eight
children, of whom Mary and Hannah died
young. John recently died in Beardstown,
leaving a wife and two bright children. He
had been educated at Poughkeepsie, New
York, and was book-keeper for Henry Keil.
At the time of his death he was a promising
young man and a worthy member of the
family. The living are: Helen Fricke, of
Lafayette county, Missouri; Henry William,
who married Augusta Hansmier, a farmer in
Schuyler county; and George C., who married
Henrietta Reichert, and also on the old home-
stead; Martha, wife of Louis Leonhard, work-
SGHUYLER AND SHOWN COUNTIES.
143
ing Mr. Oetgen farm in this township; and
Edward L., on the home farm. The latter
was appointed in 1890 as a census enumerator
in this county. The children are all smart
and self-sustaining, and are all active Repub-
licans.
HERRON, a prominent farmer
of Bainbridge township, was born in
county Down, Ireland, in June, 1829,
a son of Robert Herron, who was born in
the same county; the paternal grandfather,
Eobert Herron, was a native of Ireland, of
Scotch ancestry. The father of our subject
learned the trade of linen weaver at a time
when this work was done on hand looms, and
followed this occupation through life. He
married Mary Cleland, a daughter of Thomas
and Jane (Bell) Cleland, natives of Ireland,
of Scotch lineage. After the death of her
husband, Mrs. Herron emigrated to America,
in 1850, and spent the last years of her life
in Schuyler county, Illinois. She was the
mother of eight children: Sarah, Robert,
Thomas, Jane, David, John, William and
Hugh. David Herron passed his youth in
his native country, and there received his
education. In 1850 he determined to try his
fortunes in the New World, and accordingly,
the 27th day of March, sailed from Belfast
on the vessel Annie, and landed at the port
of New York after a voyage of forty-nine
days. He went directly to Ohio, via the
Hudson river and Erie canal to Buffalo,
and thence by lake to Cleveland; from that
city he went by team to Mahoning county.
He began to learn the tanner's trade, but on
account of ill health abandoned the plan; he
then went to work in the iron furnaces and
continued there for two years, after which he
engaged in farming; he was employed by the
month until 1858, when he came to Schuyler
county, Illinois, and purchased 160 acres of
land; about eighty acres of this tract were
cleared, and a log cabin had been built, which
was their first Illinois home. Mr. Herron
has added to his first purchase of land until
he now owns 240 acres, more than half of
which is under a high state of cultivation;
he has erected a good set of frame buildings,
and has developed the place into one of the
most desirable in the township.
He was united in marriage, in 1857, to Mary
Hull, who was born in Mahoning county,
Ohio, a daughter of Logan and Annie (Ross)
Hull, of the same county; Mrs. Herron's
paternal grandfather, Benjamin Ross, was a
native of New Jersey, and one of the earliest
settlers of Mahoning county; he was a man
of much energy and enterprise, and erected
the first mill operated by water power in
Mahoning county. Mr. and Mrs. Herron
are the parents of six children: Jane, Thomas,
Blanche, Lula, Mary A. and Robert L., who
died in 1865. They are consistent members
of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Poli-
tically Mr. Herron affiliates with the Demo-
cratic party.
EORGE BORDENKIRCHER, Chair-
man of the County Board of Supervisors,
was born on a farm in Ohio, May 1,
1842. His father was named Wendal, and
was born in Germany; and his father, David,
was born in Germany, and there married and
came to America about 1833 and settled in
Coshocton county, Ohio. He bought a large
tract of land there, and lived there until his
death. Wendal was eighteen years old when
he came to America, and he resided with his
144
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
parents until his marriage, when his father
gave him land in Coschocton county, and he
lived there until 1851, when he moved to In-
diana and lived there until 1856, and then
came to Illinois and settled in Mount Ster-
ling township, and bought a tract of unim-
proved land with a set of log buildings Their
first home was a log hut. He quickly im-
proved his land, erected frame buildings and
lived there until 1878, when he removed into
the city of Mount Sterling, and now lives
retired. His wife's name was Mary Stous,
born in Germany, and came an orphan girl
to America. When she died in Mount Ster-
ling she left four children.
George attended school both in Ohio and
Indiana. He remained on the farm with his
father until his enlistment, August 8, 1863,
in Company D, One Hundred and Nineteenth
Illinois Volunteers, and remained with the
regiment until the close of the war, being in
all the various marches, campaigns and bat-
tles of his regiment. He worked his
father's farm in 1867, then bought eighty
acres of land in section 14, Mount Sterling
township, which is included in his present
farm. He has in all 180 acres of land.
He was married, April 10, 1866, to Floren-
tine Meyer, born in Alsace, Germany, April
29, 1846. Her lather came to America
in 1851 and settled in Ohio, and his wife and
seven children followed him two years later.
He followed his trade of tailor for four years
in Cincinnati, and then moved to Mount
Sterling and continued the business. Mr.
and Mrs. B. have six children living: Emily,
Edward, Anna, Albert, Celestine and Freddie.
Our subject with his family is a member of
the St. Joseph Catholic Church. He is a
Democrat in politics, and is now serving his
third term as Supervisor and second term as
chairman of the board, and is president of
the Brown County Agricultural Society.
He is also a member of the Western Catholic
Union, and his wife is a member of the
Sacred Heart Society.
jORTIMER AYERS, M. D., a lead-
ing member of the medical fraternity
in Schuyler county, Illinois, has been
a resident of Rushville since October 1, 1873.
He was born at Springfield, Illinois, June
35, 1848, a son of Grover and Jane (Stock-
dale) Ayers. The father was a native of
New York state, born near Penn Yan, May
21, 1818, and emigrated to Wapakoneta,
Ohio, with his family at an earl}' day. There
he was married, and in 1844 he emigrated to
Illinois, and settled at Springfield ; here he
embarked in a general mercantile trade, which
he carried on nntil 1862, when he retired
from active life; he removed to Vermont,
Fulton county, in 1876, and there passed the
remainder of his days; his death occurred in
1880; his wife survives him, and is a resident
of Vermont, Illinois. He was very prosperous
in business and accumulated a competency.
In his religious faith he was a Baptist. The
family consisted of five children: Bryon W.,
died in Springfield, Illinois; Ada is the wife
of George W. Whitney; Sylvanus resides in
La Fayette, Indiana; the fourth born is the
subject of this sketch; Grover died at Spring-
field, at the age of twenty years.
Dr. Ayers passed his boyhood days at
Springfield, and attended the public schools
until he was fifteen years of age. He then
entered the United States Navy as midship-
and served in this capacity for three
man,
years; the greater portion of this time was
spent at Annapolis, Maryland, although he
made several cruises. In 1866 he returned
SOHUYLEB AND BROWN COUNTIES.
145
to Springfield, and began the study of medi-
cine, soon afterward going to St. Louis,
where he continued the pursuit of the science
under the direction of Prof. T. G. Comstock.
He entered the Homeopathic Medical College
of Missouri at St. Louis, and was graduated
in the spring of 1868. He then located at
Pana, Illinois, where he engaged in practice.
He had not yet attained his majority, being
only twenty years of age, and he soon decided
to enter the navy; when he reached New
York, however, he went on board a merchant
vessel as surgeon, sailed to South America,
and was absent three years. Returning to
the United States at the end of that period,
he located at Rusliville, Illinois. He has
taken several special courses in medicine, the
last of which was at the Royal Ophthalmic
Hospital, London, England; he has been a
close and careful student of all topics per-
taining to the science and practice of medi-
cine, and has made his mark as a skillful
physician. He is the only member of the
Homoepathic school in Rusliville.
Dr. Avers was united in marriage, July
15, 1874, to Miss Dora Hill, a daughter of
Major William Hill, and a native of Little-
ton township, Schuyler county. Two chil-
dren have been Itorn to them, Ethel and
Olive. In his religious faith the Doctor is a
Presbyterian. He is a member of the
Masonic order, belonging to the blue lodge,
chapter and commandery ; he has held the
office of Commander of Rusliville Com-
mandery, No. 56, K. T.
Major William Hill was born in Lan-
cashire, England, June 27, 1825. At the
age of twenty-one years he emigrated to
America, and became one of the pioneers of
Schuyler county in 1846. He was a cabinet-
maker by trade, and followed this vocation
for ten years. He married Rachel Knowles,
a daughter of Joseph Knowles, who came to
the United States with his family aboard the
same vessel with the Major. After abandon-
ing his trade he was interested in a flouring
mill, but when the Civil war broke out he was
one of the first to respond to the call for
troops; he raised a company, which was
mustered into the service as part of the En-
gineer's Regiment of the West; he was
elected Captain, served through the entire
conflict, and was mustered out with the rank
of Lieutenant Colonel by brevet; he had
arisen in regular order to the rank of Major.
After the war he became a member of the
firm of J. & J. Knowles & Co., and was con-
nected with this firm until his death, which
occurred March 25, 1877. His wife died
April 12, 1877. They had a family of five
Children, four of whom lived to mature years:
Maria, wife of C. M. Cowan, of York, Ne-
braska; Mary A. is Deputy County Clerk of
York county, Nebraska; Dora is the wife of
Dr. M. Ayers; Laura was the wife of the late
Luther Jackson, of Rushville.
Major Hill was a staunch Republican, and
took a prominent part in local affairs. He
was a man of plain and unpretentious manner,
true to his convictions, and worthy of the
esteem in which he was held.
[ARL TRAUGOTT JOKISCH, a good
farmer and stock-raiser of sections
twenty-eight and twenty nine, township
eighteen, range eleven west, was born in Ger-
many near Bautzen, January 4, 1822. He
is the fifth of his father's children and
the oldest one now living. He was thirteen
years of age when his parents left Germany
for the United States in the fall of 1834, com-
ing on a sailing vessel and landing in New
146
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
Orleans, January 1, 1835. They came up
the Mississippi and Illinois rivers to Beards-
town, landing February 2, 1835, and have as
a family since been identified with the history
of the county. The mother died in the latter
part of January, 1835, at St. Louis, while the
family were on the way. She was only forty
two years of age. She was always a member
of the German Lutheran Church, as was her
husband who survived her.
Traugott has always been a farmer in the
county to which he came so many years ago.
He was raised by an uncle, C. G. Jokisch,
now deceased, the father having died in 1851.
The father had obtained new lands in this
county and here spent the remaining years
of his life. (See William Jokisch, this
book.)
The farm of our subject has a beautiful lo-
cation near Bluff Springs, in the Illinois river
valley, where he owns a tine and well im-
proved farm of 235 acres, with substantial
farm buildings.
He was married, in this county to Mary
Ellen Carls, born in Hanover in 1834. She
came with her parents to the United States
and Cass county in 1845 and has since lived
here, being a true helpmate to a good hus-
band. She is an honest, good woman. She
was the daughter of John Frederick and
Elizabeth Carls, natives of Hanover, who
came with their family to this country, but
misfortune overtook them. Early after land-
ing the father was killed by an accident while
building a house for his family in Beards-
town. A piece of timber fell on him and
caused his death. He was then in the prime
of life, being then about thirty-eight. He
was a very skillful cabinet-maker, a good
citizen and devoted Christian for many years.
His wife survived him for four years and
then died, in Beardstown, in 1849, of the
cholera, which was epidemic at that time.
She was a Christian woman.
Mrs. Jokisch has one sister and two
brothers. The sister, a widow, is Mrs. Eliza-
beth Kuhl, living in Pekin, Illinois; Henry
is a farmer in Montana; and John F. is a
farmer in Cass county, Illinois. They are
both married.
Mr. and Mrs. Jokisch and family are mem-
bers of the Methodist Church, and are very
good, moral, upright people. Mr. Jokisch is
a Republican in politics. Mr. and Mrs.
Jokisch are the parents of twelve children,
four of whom are deceased: John W. died an
infant; Edward, married, left a wife and one
child; Philipena died at the age of thirty-six,
leaving two children; Ida died in Montana
when twenty years of age. The living ones
are: Louis, a teacher for more than twenty
years in Central Illinois, and is single; Emme,
wife of Charles Wilson, farmer and fruit-
grower of Virginia; Elizabeth, wife of Adam
Hegeman, farmer in this county; Albert W.,
living near the homestead, farming; George
F., living in the east end of the county on a
farm; Richard, at home, helping on the farm;
Cora and Tillie are also at home.
L. CALEF, one of the old, representa-
tive families of Cass county, lives on
a fine farm on section nine, township
eighteen, range eleven, where he owns 320
acres, all well improved except a few acres,
and all lying in the familiar and famous
Sangamon bottom. On this tine land he has
erected two sets of tine buildings. He came
to the county in the fall of 1844, when he
was a man of small means, but in a year's
time he was able to purchase his first land of
eighty acres and began to farm on his own
SG SUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
147
account. Soon after this he bought another
eighty, and some years later invested in 160
acres more, making 320 acres in all. He has
as fine land as there is in the county, and it
is all paid for. He has a comfortable bank
account in addition, and is considered one of
the well-to-do men of the county. He gave
up active farming some fifteen years ago,
and since that time has been taking life easy,
having rented his farm to William Coleman
(see biography). Mr. Calef came to this
county and State from New Hampshire,
where he was born, near Plainfield, Sullivan
county, June 25, 1820. He came of New
England parents, born in New Hampshire,
of English ancestry. His father, Nathaniel
Calef, was a native of Salisbury, New Hamp-
shire, son of Benjamin Calef, who was born
in New Hampshire, and lived and died in
Salisbury, New Hampshire, being a farmer
all his life. He was an old man when he
died, and had always been a prominent mem-
ber of society. He married a New Hamp-
shire lady who li ed and died there when
quite old. Nathaniel Calef was married
twice. He was married for the first time to
Miss Elizabeth Hall, who died on the farm
where they had settled after marriage. She
left several children, of whom John Hall Ca-
lef is still living. He is on the old Calef
farm in New Hampshire, and is an old man,
aged eighty-six. His second wife, mother
of subject, was Sarah Pettengill, she having
been first married and borne a family to a
Mr. Little, who died, and she married Na-
thaniel Calef, to whom she proved a good
and faithful wife. She bore him our subject
and a daughter, Lucinda, who became Mrs.
Harrington, and died in New Hampshire, as
did her mother, both old people. Nathaniel
Calef, the oldest half-brother of the subject
of this sketch, was a soldier in the war of 1812.
Our subject was married in Cass county
to Lucy A. Main. She was born, reared and
educated in Geanga county, Ohio, in 1829,
and came to Illinois when young, settling on
a farm in Cass county with her parents, Lod-
rick and Ann Eliza (Beard) Main. They
were early settlers and improved their farm,
and died when old people. They were na-
tives of Connecticut and went to Ohio when
young, marrying in Geuaga county, from
which they came to Cass county, Illinois.
Mr. and Mrs. Calef have no children,
but have raised and helped several young
people. They are very well known people
and have made a host of friends for them-
selves during their lives in this county.
Mrs. Calef is a Methodist, and her husband is
a Republican in politics.
fOHN SHANK, a successful farmer, hor-
ticulturist and florist, and a prominent
citizen of Mount Sterling, Illinois, was
born in Frauklin, Johnson county, Indiana,
July 11, 1843. His paternal grandparents
were John and Catherine (Dosing) Shank,
the former a native of Pennsylvania and of
German descent, while the latter was of
French ancestry. The former was an early
settler of Ohio, when that State was the fron-
tier of civilization, his last days having been
passed at his home in Preble county, near
Eaton, that State. His son, William Shank,
the father of the subject of this sketch, was
born in Montgomery county, Virginia, in
May, 1821, and was twelve years of age at
the time of his father's death. After this
event his mother removed with her family to
Indiana, and located in Johnson county, near
Morgan sville. Here William Shank grew to
manhood, and, in 1842, married Julia E. Me-
148
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
Cord, a native of Tennessee. Her parents
were John and Mary (Brown) McCord, both
of Scotch-Irish descent, who emigrated in an
early day from Virginia to Tennessee, whence,
about the year 1836, they removed to In-
diana. They resided in that State nearly
twenty years, when finally, in 1855, they re-
moved to Illinois. Here the father pur-
chased land in Moultrie county, near the vil-
lage of Bethany, on which he and his wife
settled, and where his death occurred in
1865, lamented by all who knew him. Will-
iam Shank and his young wife preceded her
parents to Illinois by eleven years, having
removed thence in 1844, two years after their
marriage. They settled in Pea Ridge town-
ship, Brown county, where William bought
a tract of land, a portion of which was heav-
ily timbered. Here they resided for many
years, the wife, mother of the subject of this
sketch, dying in 1889, universally beloved
and mourned.
John Shank, whose name heads this biog-
raphy, was thus about a year old when his
parents removed to the Prairie State> which
was then new and sparsely settled. Here, in
the freedom of a wild expanse, he grew to
manhood, — physically strong and athletic,
and mentally acute and active,— receiving
the educational advantages afforded by his
surroundings and circumstances.
On the breaking out of the great Civil war,
with all the enthusiasm of youth and patriot-
ism, he rallied to the defense of his country's
flag, enlisting in Company B, Fiftieth Vol-
unteer Infantry, on August 20, 1861, and
serving until the close of the war. The most
important engagements in which he partici-
pated were the siege of Corinth, Shiloh, Co-
rinth and Resaca. In January, 1864, he
re-enlisted or veteranized, and was given a
furlough of thirty days. After the battle of
Resaca, at Rome, Georgia, he was placed on
detached duty in the Commissary Depart-
ment of General Sherman's army, where he
continued until cessation of hostilities. He
was honorably discharged with his regiment
at Springfield, Illinois, on July 14, 1865.
He then, like thousands of others, resumed
his former peaceful occupations, engaging,
during the first year of his return, in farm-
ing. Later, he embarked in mercantile pur-
suits at Clayton, Illinois, remaining there for
about three years, when he sold his business
and acted as traveling salesman for about
eight years, making Clayton his home. Dur-
ing the latter period, he bought a part of his
father's land in Pea Ridge township, and,
discontinuing traveling, he engaged in gen-
eral farming, making a specialty of horti-
culture. In 1874 he engaged in the nursery
business and raising of small fruits, in which
he continued successfully for some time.
Finally, in 1884, he removed to Mount Ster-
ling, the county seat, his present home, where
lie continued the nursery and fruit business,
to which he later added that of floriculture.
His natural adaptability and careful attention
to business have resulted in well-merited suc-
cess, while his liberal methods and uniform
courtesy have secured for him a constantly
increasing patronage, until he now realizes a
comfortable income from these various indus-
tries.
Mr. Shank was married in 1867, to Miss
Sue Mead, an estimable lady and a native of
Morgan county, Ohio. She was a daughter
of Zaccheus and Margaret (Logue) Mead, the
former a native of New York, where he was
reared and married. He and his wife were
prominent and esteemed pioneers of Morgan
county, Ohio, where they resided many years,
the father finally expiring there, regretted by
his family and many friends. The mother
SOHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
149
still survives, and makes her home with her
daughter, Mrs. Shank.
Mr. and Mrs. Shank have four children:
Jesse E., Samuel M., Nora A. and Joe H.
Politically, Mr. Shank affiliates with the
Republican party. Religiously, he is a mem-
ber of the Presbyterian Church, while his
wife belongs to the Methodist Episcopal de-
nomination. Both are esteemed residents of
Mount Sterling, to the social and financial
status of which they have given material aid
by their energy, public spirit and sterling
worth.
(EORGE W. TRONE, one of the most
practical and progressive farmers of
Schuyler county, has resided here since
he was a youth of fifteen years. He was born
in Carroll county, Maryland, April 4, 1849,
a son of Adam Trone, a native of York
county, Pennsylvania. The father was a
miller by trade, and followed that vocation
in Pennsylvania and Maryland; he settled in
Carroll county before his marriage, and re-
sided there until 1858, when he removed to
Illinois and settled at Astoria. Fulton county;
there he operated a mill until 1863, when he
invested in land in Rushville township; the
remainder of his life was devoted to agricult-
ure. He was united in marriage to Rebecca
Erb, a native of Carroll county, and a daugh-
ter of John Erb. The paternal ancestors of
our subject were of German extraction, while
those on the mother's side were of Irish ori-
gin. Mrs. Trone still resides on the farm in
Rushville township. George W. received his
education in the common schools of his native
county, and at Astoria and in Rushville town-
ship. When but a boy he began to assist his
father in the mill, but he preferred farming,
and did not follow the trade any length of
time. After the family removed to Rushville
township he was occupied on the farm until
he attained his majority.
In 1871 he bought a tract of land in Bain-
bridge township, one-half of which he sold
afterward. In 1880 he purchased the farm
he now occupies; it consists of 150 acres of
land in Rnshville township, and the most of
it is in a high state of cultivation. In 1883
he sold fifty-three acres. Mr. Trone devotes
his entire time to farming and stock-raising;
he breeds high-class registered stock, and fre-
quently exhibits at the county and State fairs,
and as frequently carries off the prizes.
He was married in 1874 to Sarah R. Boise,
a native of Rushville township and a daugh-
ter of Matthew Boise; they have three chil-
dren: Libbie E., George Carl and Earl R.
The mother is a worthy member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church. Politically,
Mr. Trone affiliates with the Democratic
party.
,ENSSELAER WELLS was born in Lo-
rain county, Ohio, February 22, 1823.
He was the son of Charles and Elizabeth
(Durand) Wells. The latter was a native of
Connecticut, came to Illinois when subject
was eleven years old, and settled in Littleton
township, this county, and died at Rushville,
aged sixty-five years. His wife was born in
the same county as her son, and she died on
the old farm, aged thirty-five.
Subject remained at home until his mar-
riage, when he bought his present farm and
put up a log cabin, where they lived for sev-
eral years, until he built the frame house in
which they lived until 1871. He then built
their present fine residence, which cost
$3,500. He has now about 500 acres of land,
where he carries on mixed farming, and he
150
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
has made this farm one of the finest in the
county.
He was married in 1844, to Rebecca Rose,
born in Morgan county, Illinois, daughter of
Randolph and Rebecca (Bazier) Rose, the
latter of Kentucky. Mrs. .Rose died in
this county. Mr. and Mrs. Rose were among
the earliest settlers, and Mrs. Wells was one
of eight children, five yet living. Mr.
Wells is one of seven children, two yet
living.
Mr. and Mrs. Wells have had seven chil-
dren: George, married and has three chil-
dren, Randolph, married and has two chil-
dren; William, at home; David, married
and has two children; Charles, married and
has one child; Mary A., single and at home.
They have all been well educated. Mr. and
Mrs. Wells are members of the Christian
Church, and Mr. Wells is a Democrat, voting
first in 1844. He takes no active part in
politics.
He traces his grandfather Durand back to
his residence in France, of which country he
was a native, first settling in Ohio, where he
died when a very old man.
Mr. and Mrs. Wells are very good people,
and are highly respected by all who have the
pleasure of knowing them.
JOHN C. BAGBY, attorney at
law, was born in Glasgow, Barren coun-
ty, Kentucky, January 24, 1819. His
father was Rev. Sylvanus M. Bagby, a native
of Louisa county, Virginia, born September
29, 1787. His grandfather was Richard
Bagby, a native of the same county, and his
great grandfather was John Bagby, a native
of Scotland, who went from there to Wales,
where he married and lived a number of years,
and then came to America in colonial times,
accompanied by his family, and settled in
Virginia. He settled in Louisa county,
where he became a prominent planter and
slave owner. Richard Bagby, the son of
John Bagby, and grandfather of our subject,
was also a planter and passed his entire life
in Louisa county. His wife was Miss Sarah
Kimbrongh, a native of the Old Dominion
and of Welsh descent. The father of our
subject, Sylvanus M. Bagby, was left an or-
phan at an early age and was cared tor by
an uncle, John Bagby, of Rocbkridge county,
Virginia. He learned the carpenter trade,
and in 1808 removed to Kentucky, and was
one of the early settlers of Glasgow. While
there, in June, 1813, he married Miss Fran-
ces S. Courts, a native of Caroline county,
Virginia, born May 17, 1793, her father,
John Courts, being a native of England, and
an early emigrant to Virginia. His wife
was Frances Winn, a native of Culpeper,
Virginia.
Sylvanus M. Bagby was converted in early
youth and joined the Baptist Church. He
became a preacher of that demonination, but
did not give up his trade as a carpenter, which
he followed during the week, preaching, on
Sundays. He remained a member of the
Baptist Church until 1828, when he accepted
the religious doctrines of Alexander Camp-
bell, whom he assisted in organizing a Chris-
tian Church in Barren county, and was from
that time forward a minister of that denom-
ination. He resided in Glasgow until 1842,
when, with his wife and eight daughters, he
journeyed overland to Illinois, stopping at
Rushville, where he engaged in the mercan-
tile business. Later he purchased a farm, a
portion of which is now included in the city,
upon which is located the railroad depot. He
died in 1848, having lived a useful, pious and
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
151
honorable life. His wife passed away in 1858.
She reared ten children as follows: Albert K.,
who still resides in Glasgow; Martha A. Hall;
Frances H. Montgomery; Clara Ramsey;
Sarah C. ; Elizabeth Lusk; Mary M. Doyle;
Emily C., Zorelda VanHosen, and our sub-
ject, John C.
In the school of Barren county our sub-
ject, John C. Bagby, was educated, supple-
menting the same by an attendance at Bacon
College, which at that time was located in
Georgetown, but later was removed to Har-
rodsburg. He continued at this college until
his graduation as a civil engineer, in 1840,
when he returned to Glasgow, and taught
school tive years, devoting his spare moments
to the study of law with Judge Christopher
Tompkins of that town. He was admitted
to the bar in 1846 and in April of that year
came to Rnshville and began the practice.
In 1847 he formed a partnersiiip with William
A. Minsliall, which partnership continued until
1848, when Mr. Minshall was elected Circuit
Judge. Mr. Bagby, with the exception of
the time spent in Congress, continued the
practice of law until he was elected Circuit
Judge in 1885. He cast his first presidential
vote for William Henry Harrison, and was a
prominent Whig and Free Soiler until 1856,
when he was one of seven to organize the
Republican party in this county. He con-
tinued a Republican until 1872, when he
branched off and voted for Horace Greeley,
since which event he has affiliated with the
Democratic party. He has filled various
offices of trust, and in 1874 was elected a
member of Congress. He served as Circuit
Judge six years, entering upon his duties in
1885. He has been a member of Rushville
Lodge, No. 9, A. F. & A. M., for forty-six
years, and was Master of the lodge eleven
terms. He was one of the organizers of Sta-
pleton Chapter, .No. 9, R. A. M., and has
been a member of the order of the Sons of
Temperance. On October 1, 1850, he mar-
ried Miss Mary A. Scripps, a native of Cape
Girardeau county, Missouri, and daughter of
George H. and Mary (Hyler) Scripps. They
have been blessed with nine children: Mary
Frances; John S. ; Virginia Ellen, who died
at the age of eleven years; Albert; Morris;
George Henry, who died aged twenty-seven
years; William Ray, who died in infancy;
Catherine B. ; Arthur F. and Edwin H.
,ENRY CRASKE, a member of the State
Board of Equalization, a resident of
Rnshville, and one of its most promin-
ent citizens, was born in Bury St. Edmunds,
Suffolk county, England, September 26, 1845.
His father, -James Craske, was born in the
same place, January 4, 1798, and his grand-
father was also a native of England, where he
passed his entire life. James Craske was
the only one of his children to come to
America. He was reared and educated in his
native land and lived there until 1862, when
he came to this country and located at Little
Falls, New York, where he still lives, at the
unusual age of ninety-four years. His wife's
maiden name was Eliza Clark, a native of
Barton Mills, England, and died in Bury
St. Edmunds, of the same country, in 1849.
Her children were named Marianne, Sarah,
James, Caroline, Elizabeth and Henry, all of
whom were reared to maturity.
The original of this sketch and the young-
est of the family was educated in the public-
schools of Bury St. Edmunds, and when fif-
teen years of age joined his older brother and
sisters in America, He located in York
State, where he continued to reside. On Sep-
152
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF C1AS8,
tetnber 5, 1862, he enlisted in Company A,
One Hundred and Fifty-second New York
Volunteer Infantry, and served with dis-
tinction until the close of the war. He
was in the Second Army Corps, of the
second division, and at different times was
connected with the First, Second and Third
Brigades. At the battle of the Wilderness,
o
May 6, 1863, he was wounded in the head by
a minie ball while charging the enemy's
lines, a portion of his skull being torn away.
On the following day he fell into the hands
of the enemy and lay on the field without
medical attendance for fourteen days. The
provisions of the rebels ran short and they
sent word to the Federal commander that he
might supply his wounded with food and
medicine. Consequently a forage train was
sent upon the field when Mr. Craske man-
aged to crawl aboard and in that way escape to
the Union lines. He remained in the hos-
pital until the last of June, when he joined
his regiment and remained with it in all its
campaigns, marches and battles until he was
honorably discharged, July 14, 1865.
Upon the termination of his military
career he returned to York State and on
December 23, 1865, was united in marriage
to Miss Ellen Maria Jones, a native of Little
Falls and a daughter of Elijah and Jane
Jones, born respectively in England and
New York. On the 23d of April, 1866, he
came West, and located in Springfield, Illi-
nois, and there followed his trade, that of a
dyer, until March 28, 1868, when he re-
moved to Rushville and resumed his trade,
continuing until 1870, when he went to
Decatur and lived a year and a half and
then returned to Rushville and engaged in
the grocery business and in buying and ship-
ing produce to St. Louis, Chicago, New
York and Boston, continuing the same fora
number of years. Mr. and Mrs. Craske have
seven interesting children: Geneva A., Caro-
line Elizabeth, Mamie, Frances C., Harry
Barton, Lillian M. and John A. Logan.
Fraternally Mr. Craske is a member of .Rush-
ville Lodge, No. 9, A. F. & A. M.; Rushville
Chapter, No. 184, R. A. M.; and Rushville
Commandery No. 56, K. T. He is also a
member of the A. O. U. W. and of Security
Lodge, No. 31, I. O. M. A.; and also of Col-
onel Harney Post, No. 131, G. A. R.
Mr. Craske has taken considerable inter-
est in politics and in that difficult and doubt-
ful field has distinguished himself- He was
elected a member of the State Board of
Equalization in 1888, and in 1885 was the
originator of the scheme in the Thirty-fourth
District which elected a Republican Represent-
ative to the State Legislature, thus breaking
the dead lock which had tied up the General
Assembly for months and ended in the election
of John A. Logan for United States Senator.
The following letter explains itself, and shows
how the part taken by Mr. Craske con-
tributed to Republican success:
LELAND HOTEL, Springfield, 111.
May 20, 1885.
HENRY CRASKE,
My Dear Sir: The election is over and
the victory is ours. To the Thirty- fourth
Representative District we are indebted for
the vote that gave us the majority in the
Legislature, and to you, my dear sir, there is
much due for the organization and success.
You were the first man who suggested to me
the possibility of carrying the district. I
wrote you then, saying the plan was a good
one. Of course, great credit is due to all our
friends who aided in carrying out the pro-
gramme from whom I would not wish to de-
tract anything; but to you I give the credit
as the originator of the plan which was a
SGIIUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
153
success, and to you I now return my grateful
acknowledgments. Your friend,
JOHN A. LOGAN.
It should he said by way of explanation,
that in the Thirty-fourth General Assembly
the two houses were a tie on joint ballot and
in consequence there was a dead lock in the
Senatorial contest which continued under
great excitement for months. On the 12th
of April, a Democratic member of the Thirty-
fourth Senatorial District died, and a special
election was called for May 6th to fill his
seal. In that district the Democrats had a
majority of 2,000, and therefore felt certain
of electing their nominee. Mr. Craske wrote
a letter suggesting a still hunt and the plans
to be pursued to secure success. His plan
was submitted to General Logan and by him
to the Republican caucus, and were adopted
and acted upon. The result fully met their
anticipations, the Republican nominee was
elected, the Democrats were out-generaled
and astonished, and even the people in dis-
tant States were filled with surprise. The
movement was so adroit that General Logan
pronounced it the most daring piece of
political strategy, so successfully executed,
since the days of Alexander the Great.
ILLIAM BURACKER was born on
a farm in township 17, range 9,
Cass county, Illinois, September 14,
1846.
His parents, Philip A., and Jane (Holzman)
Buracker, were born, reared and married in
Page county, Virginia, and in 1844 came to
Illinois, making the journey with a team.
They .located on the farm on which their son
William was born, and there resided six
years. They then moved to a farm in range
10, of the same township, where they passed
the rest of their lives. The father died May
28, 1891, at the age of sixty-eight years.
The mother passed away in 1873. They
reared three children, William, Alfred and
George. Alfred is deceased.
William Buracker was reared and educated,
and has passed his life thus far, in his native
county. He was brought up on the farm,
and has since been engaged in agricultural pur-
suits. When he attained his majority he
commenced farming for himself on his
father's land, and in 1870 his father gave
him the farm he has since occupied, which is
located in section 27, township 17, range 10.
In connection with his agricultural pursuits
he is also engaged in stock raising.
In 1868 Mr. Buracker was united in mar-
riage with Helen C. Heslep, a native of Cass
county, and a daughter of Thomas and Cath-
erine Heslep. Mr. and Mrs. Buracker have
two children, Philip T. and Katie.
Politically, Mr. Buracker has always affili-
ated with the Democratic party, and is a most
efficient member of the same. He was
elected a member of the Board of County
Commissioners in 1885, and was re-elected
in 1888. In this capacity he has always
worked for the good of the entire county,
ever taking a bold stand in favor of the right.
SRED W. KORSMEYER, one of the
most successful men of this locality,
lives on section 30, township 17, range
12. He is a German, being born in Hanover,
January 15, 1838. His parents were J. H.
and Mary (Lovecamp) Korsmeyer, who were
born in the same place, and descended from
the best German blood. When our subject
was thirteen years of age they came to the
154
BIOGRAPHICAL RBI VIEW OP OASS,
United States in the fall of 1851. They took
the usual passage of their fellow country-
men, from Bremer to New Orleans, and from
there up the Mississippi and Illinois rivers
to Beard stown. They located very near the
present home of our subject, and here they
lived and died, the father about sixty, and
the mother seventy. They had always been
members of the German Lutheran Church
and are remembered as good, honest German
settlers of that early day. Our subject and
a brother, Herman, are the only living mem-
bers of the family.
Mr. Korsmeyer began farming on his own
account about the time of his majority. His
first was a purchase of 140 acres, and he in-
creased it from time to time until he now
owns 600 acres, the most of which is under
the plow. He has made many improvements
on the farm he has owned for the past thirty
years. He has very fine land, lying in the
bottoms of the Illinois river, and adjoining
the Meredosia lake.
Mr. Korsmeyer was married in Cass county,
to Miss Minnie Miller, who came from her
birthplace, in Hanover, Germany, when
young. Her parents settled in Beard stown,
where her father died some years ago, at the
home of his daughter, as did also his wife.
They had lived to good old age and had been
valued1 members of the Lutheran Church.
Mrs. Korsmeyer is the youngest of three chil-
dren. .Her two brothers are Fred, a Morgan
county far,mer, and Henry, who lives in
Springfield. Mr. and Mrs. Korsmeyer have
seven living children: Henry and Herman
assist in running the farm; Emma, William
C., Christian, and Theodore and Charles, the
twins, live at home. The children are all natur-
ally bright, and the parents intend to educate
them thoroughly. The family is Lutheran in
religion, and Mr. Korsmeyer is very prominent
in the politics of his township, being a Dem-
ocrat, and has held almost all of the local
offices. He is now a candidate for County
Commissioner, and so popular is he that this
means a certain election. They are among
the most prominent people in the township.
,DAM SCHUMAN, one of the enterpris-
ing and successful young farmers of
section 13, range 12, owning a farm
of 120 acres which he has occupied
since the death of his father, John A.
Schuman, in October, 1886, has been the
proprietor of the farm where he was born,
reared and educated. The date of his birth is
February 13, 1851. Since he came into pos-
session of the farm, he has greatly improved
it and made it very successful, having it well
stocked and employing good farm hands.
Although only a young man, he is ambitious
and is bound to succeed.
Adam is the only son of John Adam and
Katie (Loab) Schuman, both natives of Ger-
many, of good ancestry. They were born,
reared and educated in Germany, and while
yet young came in the early forties to Amer-
ica, sailing from Hesse Darmstadt, arriving
after several weeks' voyage in New Orleans,
coming from there to St. Louis, Missouri.
Here he stopped for a short time and unfor-
tunately was taken sick and was taken to the
hospital. As soon as he was able to leave he
came to Beardstown, with the help of an old
friend, Valentine Thron. After his arrival
in Beardstown, he worked for six months for
Mr. Thron to repay him for his kindness;
later John A. Schuman was engaged as a
butcher for a time, but later purchased land
on section 13, township 17, range 12, at
which place he spent the remainder of his life
SCIIUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
155
as a farmer, dying at the age of sixty-six. He
was a good and worthy citizen, straightfor-
ward and upright in all his dealings with his
fellow men. He was a prominent member
and a good worker in the German Methodist
Church, to which he was a generous support-
er, being always ready to help everything that
tended toward the advancement of good prin-
ciples. The Sunday-school received much
of his attention. He was a sound Democrat
in politics. His wife died some years before
in 1865, when she was forty years of age. She
was a good, Christian woman, a faithful wife
and devoted mother, a kind neighbor and a
worthy member of the Emanuel Methodist
Episcopal Church, near Arenzville.
Adam was the only son in the family, but
there were four daughters, Lizzie, wife of
George Hauffman, farmer of this township;
Mary, wife of Joseph Pierce, of Bluff Springs
precinct; Lydia, wife of William Schute,
also of Bluff Springs; and Amelia, wife of
Charles Johnson, a farmer of Beardstown.
Mr. Schurnan was married, at Arenzville,
to Miss Lizzie Thron, a native of this county,
being born, reared and educated here. She
is the daughter of Valentine and Margaret
(Bier) Thron, natives of Hesse Darmstadtj
Germany. They were young, single people
when they came to the United States, settling
in Illinois, where they were married, in the
city of Beardstown, where Mr. Thron en-
gaged in wagon-making, and was thus en-
gaged for some years, when he purchased
land in the early fifties in township 17, range
12, and there lived for some years. Later he
removed to Arenzville, and there his wife
died, in January, 1884. She was then quite
an old woman and a worthy member of the
Lutheran Church, to which she had belonged
all her life. She was a good, kind wife and
mother, and was highly respected by all her
neighbors. Mr. Thron now makes his home
with his daughter, Mrs. Schuman, and passed
his eighty-second birthday in June, 1892. He
has been a good, hard-working man all his life
and a consistent member of the Lutheran
Church. He is a Democrat in politics.
Mr. and Mrs. Throu were the parents of
nine children, six yet living and all are mar-
ried, being successful in life. Mr. and Mrs.
Schuman are active workers in the Emanuel
Lutheran Church, and Mr. Schuman takes
especial interest in the Sunday-school. He is
a good and worthy man.
Mr. Schurnan and his wife are the parents
of six children: John W., Mary L., Fred G.,
Liddy E., Elmer and Myrtle.
,EWTON LUCAS, a resident of Pea
Ridge township, was born in what is
now Cooperstown township, December
11, 1838. His father, D. R. Lucas, was one
of the pioneers of Brown county, born in
Butler county, Ohio, March 21, 1810. His
father, John Lucas, was born September 7,
1760, in Virginia, and was a soldier in the
Revolutionary war. He was taken prisoner
by the Indians and by them taken to Ken-
tucky and Ohio. He was pleased with the
country, and after the close of the war located
in Kentucky, but failed to secure a good title
to his land and lost it, and then went to that
part of Ohio now included in Butler county,
secured a large tract of land in the Miami
bottom, improved a farm, residing there until
his death June 15, 1836. His wife's name
was Jemima Robbins, who was born Novem-
ber 19, 1768, who died on the home farm,
November 22, 1831, aged sixty- three years.
She was the mother of twelve children. Dan-
iel Robbins Lucas was raised in his native
156
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF VAS8,
county, but when a young man went to In-
diana and commenced the study of medicine.
In January, 1836, he came to Mt. Sterling.
Illinois, and commenced to practice his pro-
fession. He also engaged in teaching and in
the mercantile and lumber business. About
1843 he purchased land in Lee township, and
resided there the greater part of the time un-
til his death, which occurred January 26,
1884. His wife's name was Sarah Ann Keith,
to whom he was married in 1836; she was
born in Hardin county, Kentucky, December
14, 1817, and died March 22, 1890. She was
the mother of twelve children; their names
are: William, Newton, Martha, Ann (now
dead), Mary E., George W., Henry C. (now
dead), John H., Ethan A., Helen A. (now
dead), Daniel W., Benjamin F., James E.
Three dead and nine living, seven of whom
live in the county, one, B. F., lives in Colo-
rado. I. E. lives in Missouri. Newton re-
ceived his earlier education in the pioneer
schools which were held in the log houses
with furniture of the most primitive kind,
where the teacher boarded around among the
scholars; as suon as he was large enough to
manage a yoke of oxen lie worked upon the
farm. He caught the Pike's Peak fever in
the spring of 1860, went across the plains in
an ox wagon to the Rocky Mountains, returned
in July of same year. He met with an acci-
dent December 25, 1860, while cutting a tree
for firewood; in trying to get out of the way
of some falling limbs, the tree struck and
crushed his hip, making a cripple of him for
life. He was appointed route agent on mail
route from Clayton, Illinois, to Keoknk, Iowa,
in 1864, but after some two months' service
resigned; taught school during the winter of
1862-'63 at what is now Fargo, in this county;
taught at Ashland, Adams county, during the
winter of 1869-'70; remained with his par-
ents until he was married in 1865; then
farmed and operated a saw mill until the
spring of 1871, when he moved to Scotland
county, Missouri, and operated a saw mill for
three years; then moved to Memphis, Mis-
souri, and went into the hay business with his
brother for two years; moved back to Brown
county, Illinois, engaged in fanning and
running a sawmill; operated a sawmill on
Sangamon river bottom during the winter of
1880-'81; moved to Mt. Sterling in the
spring of 1882, and operated a steam thresher,
lived there until December, 1883; then
bought the farm he now lives upon; owns
220 acres; farm is well improved and has good
buildings; the house he built himself.
In politics he is a Republican; cast his first
ballot for Abraham Lincoln for president,
and Richard Yates for governor; has always
been a Republican; and was a delegate to the
Republican State Convention, May 4, 1892.
August 29, 1865, he married Barbara
Frank, who was born in Davison county,
North Carolina, February 21, 1842, daughter
of William and Sarah (Winkler) Frank. Mr.
and Mrs. Lucas have three children: Minnie
S., William D., Ruth R. Minnie is the wife
of Henry L. Lee and has two children; they
live in Maxwell City, New Mexico.
A. WARDEN, senior member of the
firm of Warden & Son, proprietors of
the Rushville Republican, was born in
Clermont county, Ohio, January 2, 1839.
His father, Moses Warden, was a native of
Pennsylvania, and in his j'outh was con-
verted to the Christian religion and became a
preacher of the gospel; he learned the trade
of a saddler, and followed this vocation in ad-
dition to his ministerial labors. When quite
SOHDTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
157
a young man he went to Ohio, and there was
married to Margaret Anderson, a native of
Brown county, Ohio. Mr. Warden lived in
Bethel, Clermont county, and there worked
at his trade and preached in the Methodist
Episcopal Church; later he purchased a farm
near Bethel, and engaged in agriculture;
there he passed the last days of his life. His
only brother, Richard Warden, settled in the
same county, and there spent the remainder
of his life. The mother of our subject died
in 1851. There was a family of seven chil-
dren: Anderson, William, Martha L., Salathiel
L., Margaret L., Sarah E., and Francis A.
Francis A. was a lad of twelve years when
his father died, and one year later the mother
passed away; he was then cared for by his
older brothers and sisters, and was reared and
educated in his native county. At the age of
seventeen years he began clerking in a drug
store at Felicity, Ohio, and was thus employ-
ed for two years; at the end of this period he
became a partner in the business, which was
continued until 1876. In that year he came
to Shelby county, Illinois, and engaged in
mercantile trade, which he conducted eight
years. Kay Warden, son of Francis A.,
having learned the art of printing, engaged
in the business at Stewardson and Cowden,
Shelby county, conducting a paper at each
place for a year; at the end of twelve months
he went to Augusta, Hancock county, and
published the Augusta Eagle for eight years;
during all this time his father was a partner
in the business, and in January, 1891, they
(F. A. Warden and son, S. R. Warden,) came
to Schuyler county, and established the Rush-
ville Republican. This is a well edited sheet,
newsy, and a loyal supporter of Republican
principles.
Mr. Warden was married in 1863, to Olive
B. Leffingwell, a native of Williamsburg,
12
Ohio, and daughter of Sidney and Melissa
Leffingwell. Five children have been born to
them: S. Ray, F. Ella, Louise, Mary E., and
Jessie.
During the late civil war, Mr. Warden
supported the Government of the Union; he
cast his first vote for Abraham Lincoln, and
has since affiliated with the Republican party;
he and his wife are worthy members of the
Methodist Episcopal Church. He belongs to
Rushville Lodge, No. 9, A. F. and A. M., to
the Knights of Honor Lodge, No. 990, and
to Augusta Camp, M. W. A.
ILLIAM D. DORSETT was born in
Randolph county, North Carolina,
December 28, 1828. His father was
Azariah Dorsett, a native of the same State,
who was a cooper by trade, but he also fol-
lowed farming for a livelihood. In 1835 he
came in a six-horse wagon with his family,
consisting of a wife and twelve of his four-
teen children, to Illinois, camping out over
night on their entire trip to Scnnyler county.
They settled in what is now Huntsville town-
ship, and a little, lafer bought a tract of land
upon which a few ^cres had been broken and
a log cabin erected. The cabin was a very
rough, primitive concern, with a roof of
boards rived by hand, a,nd a chimney of
sods. After a little while this was replaced
by a more pretentious and comfortable struc-
ture. Here he resided until his death in
1840. His widow died the following morn-
ing, and both were buried in the same grave.
The mother was formerly Mary Beckerdite,
of North Carolina, who reared to maturity
fourteen children.
Our subject, William D. Dorsett, was six
years old when he was brought to Illinois by
his parents, and he well remembers the wild
158
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
animals that could be seen almost daily in
the woods and on the prairie. At that time
it was easy to find an abundance of wild
honey, as an experienced bee hunter could
tell the location of a bee tree by watching the
flight of the insect. Gristmills were very
scarce, and often could not be reached at all.
Tn this extremity the early settlers were com-
pelled to grate their corn and wheat by hand,
and Mr. Dorsett recollects having eaten many
a meal of this homely food. At first the
people of this vicinity had to go to mill fifty
miles below Quincy, and were absent several
days. He was quite young when his parents
died, and was taken to live with an older
brother. He bought forty acres of land in
Birmingham township, at $10 an acre, pay-
ing for it by installments. When he began
housekeeping, after his marriage, he had
neither table nor chairs to commence with,
and instead thereof had three bee-hives, one
of which was used as a table and the other
two for stools. Some kind person presented
them with a dry-goods box, which was made
to serve as a cupboard, and a bedstead was
presented to them by Mrs. Dorsett's father.
This was considered a great luxury. But
this little home, though humble and rude,
was made comfortable and bright by Mrs.
Dorsett, who took great pride in making it
cozy and comfortable. Mr. Dorsett went to
work with a will, was very industrious and
his wife very economical, and together they
have come to prosperous circumstances and a
happy home. He secured early employment
as a rail-splitter, like Abraham Lincoln, and
it was not his fault that he did not reach the
presidency instead of Mr. Lincoln. The first
money he thus earned was used to buy his
first table. After a period of seven years he
was the owner of sixty acres, free from in-
cumbrance, which he then traded for 100
acres in Huntsville township, and at the close
of his career as' a farmer in Illinois he was
the owner of 400 acres of rich Huntsville
soil and a section of land in Texas. In 1883
he rented his farm and came to Rushville,
and has since lived a retired life.
On the 15th of November, 1849, he was
married to Elizabeth Ann Pendleton, who
was born in Hardin county, Kentucky, Jtily
11, 1832. Her father was Edwin Pendleton,
a native Virginian, and her grandfather was
James Pendleton, also of that State. Her
father was reared in his native State, and
went to Kentucky when a young man, and
was there united in marriage. He learned
the shoemakers trade, which he followed for
a few years, and in 1830 came to Illinois.
He came the entire distance on horseback,
accompanied by his wife and eldest child.
Upon his arrival here his entire possessions
consisted of two horses and 50 cents in
money. One of the horses died soon after
crossing the Ohio river. He located in
Huntsville township, entered land from the
Government, upon which he built a log
house and commenced to improve his farm.
Mrs. Dorsett's mother was a thorough pioneer
woman and knew how to make cloth from
flax and cotton. Her daughter, Mrs. Dorsett,
learned the art, and after her marriage made
all the clothing for her family. Mr. and
Mrs. Dorsett have had six children: Martha
L., Hattie E., Joshua E., Ellis Benson, Har-
din Wallace and Alvin De W. The parents
are members of the First Methodist Episco-
pal Church of Rushville.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Dorsett in their youth
attended the pioneer schools of this county,
where they learned "readin', ritin' and rith-
metic," — the three R's, as they were termed.
The schoolhouse, of course, was a log build-
ing, and a very rough one at that. The seats
SCHlfYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
159
were made of slats, and wooden pins served
for legs. Holes were bored in the wall, pins
inserted, and a board laid thereon served as a
desk upon which the older scholars, with
quill pens, learned to write. The windows
consisted of a section taken out of the side
of the house and the aperture covered with
greased paper, which served to admit the
light.
fOHN T. BRADBURY was born in Har-
rison county, West Virginia, March 4,
1840. His father is James Lee Bradbury,
born in Virginia in 1816. He was reared
on the farm and when he was twenty- three
he went to Kentucky and engaged in teach-
ing for some forty years. He came to
Illinois in the fall of 1847, bringing his wife
and two children. They came across the
country in a lumber wagon and a horse
team. It took them about thirty days to
make the trip. Mr. Bradbury soon secured
a school in Brown county. They soon moved
into Mt. Sterling, where they lived until
1858. Mrs. Bradbury died in 1857, in the
prime of her life, thirty-six, leaving live
children to mourn her loss, namely: John T. ;
Nancy, deceased ; James R., carpenter; Mar-
garet Mallory; William, a farmer on the
bluffs of the Illinois river.
John was brought up to be industrious
and was well educated. At sixteen he began
to study under Dr. Witty at Mt. Sterling. In
summer he took charge of the farm, but in
the winter studied under the instruction of
the able Dr. Witty. In 1859 he went to
the Missouri Medical College at St. Louis,
and graduated in 1861. He opened his first
office in Ripley, but very soon closed it and
went to Hiawatha, Kansas, in the spring of
1861. Here he remained, practicing until
1863, when he returned home and enlisted
in the One Hundred and Nineteenth Illinois
Infantry, Company D. He was in the ser-
vice three years, but most of the time as hos-
pital surgeon. He was mustered out at
Mobile, Alabama. In the spring of 1865
he returned to Missouri, at Parke, in Sharon
county, and opened an office, where he prac-
ticed for about a year, when he returned to
Versailles, in Brown county. Here he opened
an office and drug store. In 1872 he sold
out and came to Cooperstown, where he has
resided since. He has had a large practice
these many years and has felt the need of
rest at times. He has been Postmaster dur-
ing the Harrison administration.
He was married in 1861, in Mt. Sterling, to
Viola Hatcher, daughter of E. and Maria
N. (Brisbin) Hatcher, the former from North
Carolina, the latter from Lancaster county,
Pennsylvania. She was born in Madison,
Indiana. The family carne to Illinois in
1856.
Mr. and Mrs Bradbury have had seven
children, only three of whom are now living:
Samuel E. married to Ellen Logsden, two
children; James Mitehel married Kate Hur-
lett; George Anderson, a youth of fifteen.
They have all been educated. Dr. Bradbury
is an Odd Fellow and a stanch Republican.
He and his wife are very estimable people and
are highly respected by all.
fOHN McCABE, well-known in business
circles in Schuyler county, Illinois, was
born in Coshocton county, Ohio, Sep-
tember 11, 1828. His father, John McCabe,
Sr., was a native of Pennsylvania, but was
taken to Ohio when quite young by his par-
ents; there he learned the blacksmith's trade,
ICO
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
which lie followed until 1844. In that year
he emigrated to Indiana and settled in Ma-
rion county; here he resumed his occupation,
remaining for three years. In 1847 he came
to Illinois, and settled in the 'town of Wood-
land; he afterward entered a tract of land on
which he erected a log house; he followed
his trade until 1862, when he enlisted in the
war. He died in 1863, while in the service.
His wife died in Rushville, Illinois. They
reared a family of eight children. Our sub-
ject resided with his parents until he had at-
tained his majority, when he started out in
life for himself; he had worked in a brick-
yard-three or four seasons, and at the age of
twenty-two years he embarked in this busi-
ness on his own account. His first yard was
at Littleton, where he conducted a business
for two years; thence he removed to Macomb,
where he continued until 1863. In Jnne
of that year he enlisted in Company A,
Eighty-fourth Illinois Volunteer Infantry,
and served until the close of the war. The
most important battles in which he partici-
pated were Stone River and Chickamauga;
in the latter he was wounded, and so dis-
abled from active duty in the field; when he
had sufficiently recovered he was made hos-
pital steward, and served the remainder of
the war in that capacity. He was mustered
out in August. 1865, after which he returned
to Macomb. There he remained until the
spring of 1866, when he came to Rushville
and engaged in the manufacture of brick.
In 1879 he added machinery for the manu-
facture of tile, and his products find a ready
sale at the yard.
Mr. McCabe was married in 1851, to
Mary Clark, a native of Indiana and a
daughter of Henry and Margaret Clark.
Four children have been born to them:
James is engaged in business with his father;
Arthur is a resident of Versailles, where he
is engaged in the practice of medicine; How-
ard C. lives in Rushville; Cora married Allen
Walker, and also resides in Rushville; two
children died ininfancy. Theparentsarecon-
sistent members of the Methodist Episcopal
Church; the father joined in May, 1842, and
the mother ten years later. For thirty years
Mr. McCabe has been Steward of his church.
He is a zealous advocate of temperance, and
an ardent supporter of the Prohibition party.
He is a member of the Tile Manufacturers'
Association, and has been treasurer of this
body for a number of years. He belongs to
Colonel Homey Post, No. 156, G. A. R., and
is actively interested in its welfare. He is
a man of energy and entertains progressive
views upon questions of public interest, sup-
porting those movements which tend to aid
and elevate the masses.
ARK B O Y D, a pioneer farmer of
Rushville township, now retired from
active labor, was born in county
Armagh, Ireland, February 6, 1823, a son
of William Boyd, a native of the same county.
The paternal ancestors were natives of Scot-
land. William Boyd was reared to the life
of a farmer, and when he had arrived at man's
estate he emigrated to America; this was
previous to the war of 1812, and he remained
three years; at the end of that period he re-
turned to Ireland, was married, and resided
there until 1838. In that year he sailed
with his wife and three children for the port
of New York, the voyage consuming three
weeks. He engaged in teaming in New
York city, and resided there until 1868,
when he bought a farm of 120 acres, on
which he lived until his death, February 10,
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
161
1868. He married Maria Boyd, who died
in Rushville, in 1868; she was the mother of
three children: Esther J., Mark and Samuel.
Mark Boyd was a child of five years when he
crossed the deep blue sea with his parents.
He received his education in New York, the
school which he attended being located on
Seventeenth street, near Eighth avenue.
In 1841 he began to learn the trade of a
baker, and followed this calling until 1860,
when he went to Orange county, New York;
he was employed on a farm until 1867, when
he came to Sehuyler county, Illinois. His
first investment here was in a farm of eighty
acres, and to this he has made additions until
he now owns nearly 200 acres, in Oakland and
Rushville townships. There he made his
home until 1892; in February of this year
he removed to Rushville, where he is living
in the quiet enjoyment of the reward his
years of industry and toil have won.
Mr. Boyd was married in New York city,
September 11, 1845, to Sarah Fourgeson,
the daughter of Daniel Fourgeson. Her
paternal grandfather, John Fourgeson, was
a native of Scotland, and removed to
county Derry after his marriage, where he
purchased a farm and passed the remainder
ot his life. He married Ann Kennedy, also
a native of Scotland. Daniel Fourgeson,
their son, spent his entire life on the farm
where he was born; he married Mary Fulton,
a descendant of Scotch ancestors, but a na-
tive of county Derry, Ireland, Mrs. Boyd
and her sister Elizabeth, wife of Duncan
Taylor, were the only members of their fam-
ily who came to America. Mrs. Boyd sailed
from Liverpool in 1850, and after twenty-
one days on the water reached the port of
New York. Our subject and wife are the
parents of three children: Maria J., Eliza-
beth and Sarah. Maria married James Bill
and is the mother of three children; Eobert
W., Henry and Charles; Elizabeth is the wife
of George Manlove, and has a faiuily of three
children, — Bessie, Annie and Mark; Sarah
married Elijah "Wilson, and has a family of
six children, Nellie, Annie, Maud, Henry,
Walter and Jennie.
Mr. and Mrs. Boyd were reared in the
Presbyterian Church, and have always ad-
hered to that faith. They are people of
much force and stability of character, and
have reared a family who are an honor to
them and a credit to the community in which
they live.
fRANCIS M. CURRY, a highly respected
citizen of Mount Sterling, was born in
Scott county, Kentucky, April 9, 1825,
a son of John K. Curry, who was born
October 19, 1803. The paternal grandfather,
Alexander Curry, the honored founder of
Mount Sterling, Illinois, was born October
14, 1770, in the State of Maryland, the
son of Archibald Curry, a native of Scotland,
who emigrated to America in colonial times
and settled in Maryland, where he passed the
remainder of his life. Alexander Curry was
a pioneer of Scott county, Kentucky; he pur-
chased a tract of land on the Lexington pike,
on which he lived until 1830, when he came
to Illinois; he was accompanied by his wife
and children, and made a settlement in Brown
county, which was then a part of Sehuyler
county. As soon as the land came into mar-
ket he entered 2,000 acres, including the pre-
sent site of Mount Sterling; he erected a
double log house on the lot now occupied by
the Christian Church, which was used at the
same time as a dwelling, a justice's room and
a meeting-house. He did not keep a hotel
but entertained travelers free of charge. He
162
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF UASS,
was the first Justice of the Peace and the first
Postmaster of Mount Sterling. In 1833 he
laid out the town, and June 21 of that year
occurred the first sale of lots. His son,
Robert, had the first store in 'the place, the
goods being brought by teams from St. Louis.
He continued a resident of the place until his
death in 1842. The maiden name of his wife
was Elizabeth Nutter, a native of Delaware,
born August 20, 1776. They reared a fam-
ily of nine children: Daniel, Robert N.,
John R., Olivia, Sarah, Nancy, Leah, Mary
and Harriet.
John K. Curry was reared and married in
Kentucky, and came from the Blue Grass
State with his parents. He located on land
his father gave him near Mount Sterling, and
engaged in farming. He died November 17,
1882. He married Belle Brockman, a na-
tive of Scott county, Kentucky, born May
15, 1804; she died December 17, 1875.
They reared a family of five children: Fran-
cis M., James R., Elizabeth, Alexander A.
and Mary B. Francis M. was a child of five
years when he came to Illinois with his pa-
rents. He received his education in the pio-
neer schools which were taught in the primi-
tive log structures, often without a floor, and
furnished with puncheon seats and puncheon
desks; the building was erected without
nails, and light was admitted by an opening
in the wall, which was made by taking out a
part of the log; in cold weather this hole
was covered by a piece of greased paper. At
the age of fourteen years Mr. Curry began
clerking, receiving $12.50 a month the first
year, and boarding himself. After a few
years he engaged in business on his own ac-
count, which he conducted successfully a
number of years.
He was married September 21, 1853, to
Mary Clements, a native of Bourbon county,
Kentucky, born March 26, 1829. Her father,
William H. Clement, was born in Kentucky,
and died in that State in 1834; he married
Maria Givens, a daughter of John and Ruth
Givens, Mr. and Mrs. Curry are the parents
of five children: Lizzie B., Ida M., Mattie
G., Frank C. and Charles A.; the oldest son,
William, died at the age of three and a half
years. The father and mother are members
of the Presbyterian Church. Politically our
subject has been identified with the Demo-
cratic party, but he is a Prohibitionist both
in principle and practice. He is a man of
many excellent traits and has the respect and
confidence of the entire community.
f REDBRICK E. WELLFARE, foreman of
the copper shops of the Quincy Railroad
at Beardstown for the past nine years,
was born in Candage, Erie county, New
York, June 23, 1858. He was but one year
old when his parents moved to Illinois. He
is the son of John Wellfare. who was born
in England, of English parentage, and was
yet a small child when his parents brought
him to the United States and settled in New
York. Here he grew up in the town of Can-
dage and acquired a complete knowledge of
the coppersmith's trade, also tin, sheet-iron
and pipe fitting; and, having become skilled
in these departments of mechanical work, he
came in 1859 with his family to Illinois.
Here he was connected for about two years
with a prominent manufacturer of copper
pipe, sheet copper and brass goods, and his
skill secured him the foremanship of the
shops. Finally he was offered a partnership,
but refused it and went to Aurora to take
charge of the copper shops of the main line
or Chicago division of the Quincy Railroad.
SCEUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
163
He was afterward connected with this large
corporation for about thirty years, but owing
to failing health he had to withdraw and
entered into the hardware business, in 1883,
in Aurora; but, not receiving the proper re-
lief for his malady (catarrh of the head), he
went to Kansas, and after two years, not
being able to stand the heated winds, he went
iu 1886 to Los Angeles, California, and
there opened and has since carried on a first-
class restaurant. He is now about sixty
years of age. He was married in Youngs-
town, New York, to Harriet Myers. She
was born and reared in the Empire State, and
was of German parentage. She is yet living
and is about three years her husband's junior.
They are members of the Presbyterian Church,
and Mr. Wellfare is a sound Republican in
politics.
Our subject is the eldest of three sons and
three daughters yet living. He began when
about twelve years of age with his father in
the Quincy shops. Here he has remained
with the exception of about three years. One
year he was with his father in his hardware
store at Aurora, and later was one year with
the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad,
with headquarters at Dubuque, Iowa, and the
last year with the Kansas City, St. Joseph &
Council Bluffs Railroad, with headquarters
at St. Joseph, Missouri. Since then he has
been in the employ of the Quincy Railroad,
for the last eleven years at Beardstown. He
is a practical and thorough workman in his
department. He also does the tin and sheet-
iron work for the St. Louis division, and the
steam-pipe fitting for it also.
He was married in Aurora, to Miss Almira
Warner, of New York, born in 1862. She
was brought to Cook county in 1867, and
reared near the city of Chicago. She is the
daughter of John P. and Julia (Havens)
Warner, both now living near Aurora. Mr.
Warner is a stock-breeder, and he and family
live on a farm one mile southeast of Aurora.
Mr. and Mrs. Wellfare are good, hard-
working young people. Mr. Wellfare is a
member of the Ark Lodge, -No. 116, I. O.
O. F., of Beardstown. He is a sound Re-
publican. Mr. and Mrs. Wellfare are the
parents of two bright little children, — Lydia,
aged seven, and Dare, aged four.
HAUNCEY RICE, a well known and
reliable druggist, and dealer in all kinds
of goods generally carried by those in
this business, was born in St. Lawrence
county, New York, February 21, 1830. He
was yet young when his parents moved to
Ohio in 1842, and to Illinois in 1846. They
were natives of New York. His father was
.born in Herkimer county, and came of New
England stock, his parents being natives of
Connecticut, and the family carne of Welsh
ancestry. Andrus Rice, father of our sub-
ject, married a Miss Mary Parks, of Ver-
mont.
Chauncev is the eldest of the four surviv-
ing children. Mr. Rice has been in the drug
business, and in the building he now occu-
pies ever since 1859. He was in the same
business in Rnshville, Illinois, from 1850 to
1856, and hence is one of the oldest druggists
in the State. He has seen the State strug-
gle through many changes in the last fifty
years. Nearly all the railroads have been
built since then. He has taken an active
part in the building up of the city himself,
and has lent a helping hand to all enter-
prises, and has attended closely to business,
and has made money. He was a director
and stockholder in the old CassCountyBank,
164
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
and a stockholder in the first State bank
since it started. He is also a member and
stockholder of the Beardstown Building and
Loan Association.
He was first married in Hancock county,
Illinois, to Miss Emily J. Denney, of Bond
county, Illinois, but reared and married in
Hancock county. She died in Nebraska,
when in the prime of life, leaving three
children: James, a commercial traveler in
Iowa; Mary J., wife of Henry J. Nead;
Chauncey A., now with a theatrical troupe
in the West. Mr. Rice was married for the
second time, to Elizabeth J. Knight, of
Beardstown, but born in England. She died
here April 4, 1892, aged about fifty years.
Mr. Rice and wife have always been identi-
fied as members of the Methodist Episcopal
Church. He is a member of the order of
[. O. O. F., and Knights of Honor.
^ARTIN BROOKS, editor of the
Mount Sterling Examiner, was born
in Jacksonville, in 1836. His father,
Samuel S., came from Connecticut, of Scotch
ancestry.
Martin commenced very young to learn
the trade of printer, and was employed in
different places until 1863, when he came to
Mount Sterling, and with his brother Sam-
uel bought the office and good will of the
Mount Sterling Union, a weekly paper, and
changed the name to the Mount Sterling
Record. He was elected Circuit Clerk in
1864, and served eight years, and then bought
an interest in the Mount Sterling Message,
and two years later sold out, and was clerk-
ing in the courthouse for a time. In 1879
he bought the furniture and lease of the
Lambert House, and kept hotel two years,
was
and then resumed clerking in the courthouse.
In 1883, he was elected Police Magistrate,
and served two terms. In the meantime,
with George S. Campbell he bought the
Mount Sterling Examiner, and has been its
editor ever since.
He was married in 1867, to Sophia S.
Price, of Brown county, who died in 1869.
In 1872 he was married to Nannie Kendrick.
He has two daughters by his second mar-
riage: Mabel Claire and Bernice A. He
belongs to Hardin Lodge, No. 44, A. F. &
A. M., is a Democrat, and he and his wife
belong to the Christian Church.
LLLIAM M. COX, M. D., one of the
leading members of the medical pro-
fession in Brown county, Illinois,
born five miles from Jacksonville, Mor-
gan county, Illinois. His father, Charles
Cox, was a native of Virginia, and removed
from that State to Kentucky, where he mar-
ried; he afterward removed to Indiana, and
thence to Morgan county, Illinois, where he
was one of the early settlers; he located there
previous to the "winter of the deep snow"
(1830-'31), and experienced all the hardships
and privations of that year. His brother,
Hon. Jerry Cox, settled there at the same
time. He entered a tract of Government
land, on which he erected a log cabin. For
several years after his settlement there w.ild
game was plentiful, and the merchandise was
brought from St. Louis by teams. The first
railroad in the State was the one from Jack-
sonville to Naples, and the cars were first
drawn by horses. Mr. Cox improved his
farm, built good frame buildings, and re-
sided there several years. He removed to
Adams county and bought a farm, on which
SCHUYLER AND VROWN COUNTIES.
165
he made his home one year; at the end of
that time he sold and moved to Hancock
county, where he purchased a large tract of
land opposite Keokuk; there he was exten-
sively engaged in general farming, raising
and feeding large numbers of live-stock, and
carrying on a profitable business. He mar-
ried Rachel N. Craig, who was born in Ken-
tucky and died at her home in Hancock
county; his death also occurred at the home
farm. They had a family of seven children,
six of whom grew to mature years. William
M., their son, received his education in the
public schools, and at the age of nineteen
years turned his attention to the study of
medicine; his first work was done under the
direction of Dr. McGongin, of Keokuk, and
he afterward entered the medical department
of the Iowa State University, from which he
was graduated in 1860; ten years later he
received a diploma from the College of Phy-
sicians, New York, and in 1878 he was grad-
ua'ed from the College of Physicians and
Surgeons, Keoknk, Iowa. He began the
practice of his profession at Bloornfield, Iowa,
in 1860, and upon the breaking out of the
Civil war he entered the United States ser-
vice as First Surgeon of the Third Iowa Cav-
alry; after three months he was stricken with
typhoid fever and was compelled to resign
his position. In 1862 he settled in Liberty,
Adams county, and remained there until
1877, when he came to Mount Sterling,
where he has since been in active practice.
He has been an indefatigable worker, a close
student, and has kept fully abreast of the
times upon all subjects pertaining to the
great science.
The fire of May, 1892, destroyed his
library, which was one of the most extensive
and valuable to be found in Illinois outside
the city of Chicago.
Dr. Cox was united in marriage to Eftie
M. Morris, who was bom in Payson,
Adams county, Illinois, a daughter of Israel
and Emily H. Morris. Of this union one
child has been born, Eleanor M. The mother
and daughter are members of the Presbyte-
rian Church. Politically, the Doctor affiliates
with the Democratic party. He is a member
of Hardin Lodge, No. 44, A. F. & A. M.; of
the Chapter, R. A. M., and of Delta
Commandery, No. 48, K. T. He belongs to
the Adams County and American Medical
Societies, and is highly esteemed in profes-
sional, business and social circles for his many
excellent traits, his ability as a physician, and
his unswerving devotion to his country's in-
terests.
MARION STOVER is the present
superintendent of schools in Schuyler
county, Illinois. He was born in
Bainbridge township, this county, October 27,
1848, a son of Samuel Stover, a native of
Page county, Virginia, born in November,
1813; he was a son of Samuel Stover, whose
father was also named Samuel Stover. The
parental great grandfather, who lived in Shen-
andoah county, Virginia, married Barbara
Lionbarger. The paternal grandfather emi-
grated to Ohio in 1816, and was a pioneer of
Licking county; he purchased a tract of land
on which was a log house and other scant im-
provements; there were no market towns, and
cattle and other live-stock had to be driven to
Baltimore and other eastern markets; the
wife carded and spun and wove the cloth with
which her children were clothed; the maiden
name of the paternal grandmother was
Susanna Brumback, a native of Virginia, who
died in Licking county, Ohio. She reared a
family of thirteen children; the father of our
166
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Off GABS,
subject was a child of three years when his
parents removed to Ohio; there he was reared,
receiving his education in the subscription
schools that were taught in the primitive log
cabin. Re remained with his parents until
he attained his majority, and then started out
in life for himself. He first rented land and
carried on farming in this way for three
years; at the end of that time he turned his
attention to the carpenter's trade, which he
followed until 1845, when he came to Illinois;
he made the journey overland, accompanied
by his wife and one child. He settled in
what is now Bainbridge township, on land
which he had purchased previous to coming
here, the quarter section costing $150. Then
there were no railroads, and grain had to be
delivered at river towns. Mr. Stover went to
work diligently to improve his farm, erecting
substantial buildings, and placing the land
under good cultivation; he lived on this place
until 1888, when he rented it and removed to
Rushville, where he has since lived a retired
life. He was married to the mother of our
subject in 1842; her maiden name was Maria
Campbell, a native of Richland county, Ohio,
and a daughter of Peter L. Campbell; he was
born in 1799, and was but one year old when
his parents removed to Ohio, and there he was
reared and married to Agnes Jones; in 1844 he
emigrated to Illinois, and settled in Schuyler
county, where he became a prominent citizen;
he and his wife are both deceased. Mrs.
Stover has also passed from this life; seven of
her children survive her: Milton L., Oscar
A., D. Marion, Horace T., Rollin M., Robert
C. and Zelm E.
D. Marion Stover spent his early days
upon the farm, and attended the rural
schools during the winter season. Although
his opportunities were very limited he was
diligent and used his time to the best advan-
tage. At the age of twenty-one years he be-
gan teaching, and has since become well-
known among the educators of the county.
In 1886 he was elected to the office of county
superintendent of schools, in which he has
served continuously since that time. Familiar
with all the needs of the child, he is very ef-
ficient in this capacity, and has brought the
schools to a high grade of excellence. Politi-
cally he is a Democrat. He is a member of
Rushville Lodge, No. 9, A. F. & A. M.
JiOUIS W. CARLES, a well-to-do and
flrW successful farmer and stock-raiser, living
^®? on section 30, township 18, range 11,
was born in this township in 1847, and was
here reared and educated. He is the son of
George H. Carles, born in Germany in 1818.
He was of pure Germany ancestry. His
wife's name was Elizabeth Crims, and she died
at the age of sixty-one. She and her people
were members of the Lutheran Church. The
father and his children, in September, 1844,
started for the United States, landed in New
Orleans, and on the largest steamer then
running on the Mississippi they came to
Beardstown. They arrived January 10, 1845,
having been three months on the way. Soon
after landing Mr. Carles and one son pur-
chased land in the county, and before long the
family became large land owners. Here Mr.
Carles, Sr., spent the last years of his life, and
died when eighty-six years. He had always
been identified with the Lutheran Church as
had his parents before him. George H.
Carles, Jr., has, since he came to this county
been a resident near BlnfF Spring station.
He is yet smart and active, and runs the
homestead, having many friends in the county,
among the early settlers. He was married in
SCHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
167
1842, in Hanover, to L. O. Nora Deydrick.
She was born and reared in Germany. Mrs.
George Carles is yet living, and is quite
feeble. She is a Lutheran, as is her husband.
Mr. Carles is a Democrat.
Louis is the only surviving member of
quite a large family. Mr. Carles has been a
resident of this county all his life. He has
a line farm of 160 acres, well supplied with
good farm buildings. He still attends to
overlooking everything himself. He is a
well informed man of good judgment, and is
a prominent citizen.
He was married, in this county, to Caroline
Musch, daughter of John and Albidena
(Leppe) Musch. Her father came from Ger-
many, and now resides in Virginia, Caes
county; and her mother was born on the ves-
sel from which she was named on the passage
from Germany to A.rnerica. She died in this
county when past middle age. Mr. Mnsch
has married a third wife, who is still living.
Mr. and Mrs. Carles of this notice are
energetic young people and faithful members
of the Lutheran Church. They are the par-
ents of eleven children, two of whom died
young: George H., Jr.; Gustav A., Robert
G., William M., Herman H., Louis W., Jr.,
Julius O., J. Albert and Paul B. The whole
family is an honor to the county in which they
live. ,
JUGENE J. SCOTT, one of the leading
farmers and stockmen of Schuyler
county, Illinois, was born at George-
town, Scott county, Kentucky, June 3, 1845.
He passed a quiet, uneventful youth, remain-
ing under the parental roof until his marriage.
He was first united to Miss Ida V. Watson,
March 15, 1877. She was born in Collins-
ville, Illinois, February 7, 1847, and died in
Schuyler county, Illinois, January 1, 1881;
her father was a physician, who died when
she was yet a child. By this marriage one
child was born, Eugene W., the date of his
birth being February 6, 1879, and the place
Rushville township. Mr. Scott was married
a second time, April 10, 1888, when he was
united to Miss Nora L. Finch, who was born
in Greenfield, Greene county, Illinois, July
6, 1855, a daughter of Thomas and Eliza
Finch. Mr. and Mrs. Scott are the parents
of one child, Thomas F., born May 28, 1889.
Mr. Scott lived on a farm four years after
his marriage, and then rented the land and
removed to Rushville; here he owns a pleas-
ant residence, and is very comfortably sit-
uated. He makes a specialty of the breeding
of fine horses and cattle, his favorite stock
being Hambletonian horses and red-polled
cattle; he has some of the finest animals in
the State, in which he takes a just pride.
In politics he is allied with the Democratic
party. He is a member of the school board,
and in this capacity has done his utmost to
further educational advancement. In all the
walks of life his actions have been character-
ized by the highest integrity, and he is well
worthy of the confidence reposed in him by
his fellow-men.
fACOB S. PRUETT, who for many years
has been prominently identified with the
agricultural interests of Schuyler county,
was born at St. Mary's, Hancock county, Illi-
nois, December 3, 1834, a son of Constant
Pruett. His father was a native of Roane
county, Tennessee, and his grandfather was
a farmer of that State, and spent his entire
life within its borders. Constant Pruett was
reared and married in Tennessee, and emi-
grated to Illinois in 1829, accompanied by
168
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 0V CASS,
his wife aud one child; they journeyed on
horse-hack to Kentucky, arid then secured a
cart in which they completed the trip. They
first settled in Cass county, but at the end of
a year removed to Hancock county, where
Mr. Pruett entered a tract of Government
land; on this he built a log house in which
Jacob S., the subject of this sketch, was born.
In 1835 he sold the place and moved to Mc-
Donough county, entering eighty acres of
land on what is now section 33, Bethel town-
fihip; he built a log cabin on tlie east side of
the tract, and a few years later erected one
on the west side, in which he lived until his
death in March, 1890, aged eighty-nine years.
He married Susan Schoopman, of Koane
county, Tennessee; her father, Jacob Schoop-
man, started to Illinois in an early day; he
fell ill on the way and died before reaching
his destination; his widow came to this county,
and died in Bethel township. Jacob S. is
one of a family of nine children; he was an
infant when his parents moved to McDon-
ongh county; he attended the pioneer schools
which were taught in the primitive log house,
with the yet more primitive furnishing of
puncheon seats and desks of the same pattern;
the children were dressed in cloth of their
mother's own weaving; there were no rail-
roads, and wheat was hauled to market sixty
miles distant, and sold at twenty-five cents a
bushel. Our subject remained with his par-
ents until he was twenty year^ of age. He
then began life for himself. Having no capi-
tal he rented land in Bethel township for two
years, and at the end of two years purchased
forty acres of his father's original entry, and
later he purchased the adjoining land across
the county line on section 4, Brooklyn township.
In 1861, at the first call for troops, he
enlisted in the Sixteenth Illinois Volunteer
Infantry, and reported at Springfield; thence
he went to Quincy, but the quota was filled
before his arrival; therefore he returned to
his home, and in February, 1862, he again
enlisted, entering Company I, Sixty-second
Illinois Volunteer Infantry, for a term of three
years or during the war; the regiment was
organized at Anna, Illinois, and mustered in
at Cairo; thence he went to Padncah, Ken-
tucky, and then to Columbus, and then to
Kenton, Tennessee, where Companies I and
K were detailed to guard a railroad trestle;
while on duty here he was taken ill, and was
honorably discharged; he returned home and
resumed agricultural pursuits.
In March, 1864, he started with four com-
panions overland to Montana; at the end of
one hundred and five days he arrived at Idaho
Gulch, and there was engaged in cutting hay
for three months, at $50 per month; then he
and his brother and Solomon Pestel, engaged
in the live-stock trade. In the spring of
1866 he disposed of his interest, and began
teaming between Virginia City and Salt Lake.
In the fall of the same year he returned to
his home, and again took up agricultural
pursuits. He was very successful, made in-
vestments in land as his means increased,
until he is now the owner of 360 acres; this
is cultivated by his sons. He resided on the
farm until 1882, when he removed to Rush-
ville.
Mr. Pruett was first married March' 4,
1855, to Jane Stoneking, who was born in
Pennsylvania, August 29, 1833, a daughter
of Joseph and Rebecca Stoneking, and died
August 1, 1881. Mr. Pruett was married a
second time, February 1, 1883, when he was
united in marriage to Mrs. Mary J. (Mooney)
Bales, a native of Henderson county, Ken-
tucky, and a daughter of Henry L. and Octa-
via (Kelley) Mooney, and widow of George
Bales. Mr. Pruett has five children born of
SCIIUTLBB AND SHOWN COUNTIES.
169
hisfirst marriage: Nicholas, Susan, Eliza A.,
Harriet and Mary; one child has been born of
the second union, named Charles. Mrs. Pruett
had by her first union six children : Effie E., Ad-
die E., Edward Clarence, Zelma A., Cora V.
and Kate. Politically oursubject affiliates with
the Democratic party, having cast his first
presidential vote for Buchanan. He was
elected Sheriff of the county in 1882, and
served in this capacity four years. He was a
zealous, capable officer and enjoyed the entire
confidence of his constituency. Mrs. .Pruett
is a consisten t member of the Christian
Church.
S. EMELINE SHAFER, of Lee
township, was born in Kingston,
Lnzerne county, Pennsylvania, De-
cember 9, 1808. Her father was Peter
Shafer and her mother was Elizabeth Shoals,
both of Pennsylvania. Grandfather Shoals
and his wife both came from Germany and
both were sold for their passage, as was the
custom in those days, that their time for one
year should be sold to pay their passage. Be-
ing sold to the same man in Philadelphia
they became acquainted, and when they left
this place they were married and walked the
whole distance from Philadelphia to the
Wyoming valley along the banks of the Sus-
quehanna river. Here they soon became ten-
ant farmers, and by industry and economy
they became owners of a good farm there.
Mrs. Shafer had grown up in the same neigh-
borhood with her husband, and though mar-
riage did not change her name, she was not
related to him. Of course their means were
very small, but their neighbors were iu the
same condition. After nine years they moved
to Ohio by team. This was a pleasant trip of
two weeks in 1834. They lived four years in
Union county, four more in Madison county,
and then traded their nice farm of 100 acres
with good buildings and orchard for 160
acres of timber, two miles west of Mt. Ster-
ling village, getting $200 in cash. They
again took up the line of march, bringing
with them their four children. They moved
into an old log stable near their land, which
they made tenable for a short time. Mr.
Shafer was tired of his trade when he found
that much of the fine timber had been cut,
and upon making inquiry he found that the
man who had taken much out of this timber
had used it to fence eighty acres near what is
now Fargo. They settled this by trading
an eighty of Mr. Shafer's for the improved
eighty that had been fenced with his timber.
This was the place where Mrs. Shafer now
lives, on which there was a comfortable, but
rough house 16 x 16, with a fireplace and stick -
and-mud chimney. They have lived here
ever since. Here Mr. Shafer died in 1864,
aged sixty nine years. They had buried three
small children in Ohio and had eight living
at his death, although all had gone from home
but three. Charles Shafer and his brother
Hiram D. were soldiers in the One Hundred
and Seventeenth Illinois Volunteers Infantry
from Brown county; Charles returned to die
at his brother's at Mound Station at the age
of twenty eight years. Hiram was in active
service as a musician for over three years;
Francis was in the ranks from February, 1864,
to September of the same year. Of the eleven
children born to Mrs. Shafer, seven are still
living. Benjamin and Francis are at home
conducting the farm for their venerable old
mother. She has 170 acres in this farm.
She has three motherless grandchildren with
her, Maude, Cora and William. Perrv Shafer,
the eldest son, is a farmer in Kingman county,
Kansas; Denison is a farmer in Smith
170
BIOORAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
county, Kansas; Wealthy Ann is the wife of
Thomas Crahb, a farmer in Smith county,
Kansas; Emeline, wife of Jordan Madison, a
farmer in Leaven worth, Kansas; and Caroline,
wife of James Wilson, a farmer in Kingman
county, Kansas.
This grand old lady is now nearly eighty-
four years of age and is still as vigorous as
most women at fifty years. She thinks noth-
ing of walking three or five miles and attends
church regularly in the village. She has a
lively recollection of much of her experience
in pioneer life. She tells how they shelled
the corn by driving the horses over it on the
barn floor and drew it sixteen miles to the
river market and then sold it for ten cents a
bushel. She tells her children that a person
can live entirely on corn meal, because she
has tried it. All of her experiences, with
many of her rough ones, are told with a zest
which shows the stuff that this old heroine
was made of, and it is refreshing to hear her
speak of it as a rich romance in which she
took part.
fAMES CKAWFORD, of township 17,
range 10, Virginia, is a native of Ireland
born in 1833. His parents were William
and Margaret (Patterson) Crawford, both na-
tives of Ireland who came to America after
marriage, about 1843. They located near
what is now Virginia, where they spent their
lives. Both parents are interested in the
Virginia cemetery. They had four children,
two of whom are now living.
James grew to manhood on his father's
farm. He has always worked hard and has
accumulated property valued at thousands of
dollars, all the result of his own industry and
economy. He owns 540 acres of land sur-
rounding the town of Virginia, for which he
has refused $100 per acre. He gives his
whole attention to stock-raising and feeding.
He and his son are now feeding about 500
head of three to four year old steers. He is
raising about 300 acres of corn this year
(1892). The voters of the family are Demo-
crats, and the family are among the represent-
ative citizens of Virginia. They have been
raised in the Presbyterian faith. This is not
a long-lived family, the members generally
dying young.
He was married in Jacksonville, in 1868,
to Miss Jane Elliott, of Virginia, born in
1841. They have five children: Fannie,
Willie, James, Maggie and Floy; two died
in infancy, — Henry C. and Thomas Elliott.
Willie is now of age and is supporting him-
self by farming a portion of the homestead,
feeding 125 head of cattle.
Mr. Crawford is an outspoken man, who
speaks exactly what he thinks, and these
qualities indicate the honesty of his nature,
as he scorns to gain the favor of men by flat-
tery. He has given his children a good edu-
cation. He is a man of almost unlimited
means, yet he spends his days in toil, feeling
that his work is not yet accomplished, though
he feels the weight of advancing years. He
is a man of sterling honesty and the county
is indebted to such men as he for much of
its prosperity. He has resided for forty-five
years on his farm.
ILLIAM M. GREENWELL, an in-
telligent and progressive citizen of
Cooperstown, Brown county, Illinois,
and a prosperous farmer, was born in Meade
county, Kentucky, June 27, 1842.
His parents were George and Amanda
(Rentfro) Greenwell, -both natives of Ken-
tucky, the former born in 1816, the latter in
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
171
1813. The father's grandparents came from
Germany. His paternal grandfather was a
well-to-do-farmer in Kentucky, who died in
middle life, leaving a widow and seven chil-
dren, four sons and three daughters. George,
the father of the subject of this sketch, had
charge of the homestead farm for many years,
and was married there. In the spring of
1846, he and his family removed to Brown
county, Illinois; his brother William had
preceded him in 1840, and had erected a
gristmill on Crooked creek. This was for
many years the only water-power mill nearer
than Quincy, and did a large custom business,
and could have been sold at one time for
$10,000. George and his family made their
home with this brother for about six weeks,
when, having sold their homestead in Ken-
tucky, the father and brothers bought eighty
acres near Mount Sterling, on which therewere
good improvements, paying for the farm $800.
They added to their original purchase from
time to time, until they had 280 acres, which
continued to be their permanent home, and
on which the father still resides. Here the
father lost his first wife, mother of the sub-
ject of this notice, who died in 1882. aged
seventy years. They were the parents of ten
children, five now living. They lost an infant
son, and a daughter, Sarah J., at the age of
twelve years. Mary E., unmarried lives at
home; William M., of this sketch; Horace
D., a successful farmer of Cooperstown town-
ship; Henry H. served six months in the
army, in Kansas, where he was accidentally
drowned, in 1862; Harriet A. married John
G. Dennis, and died in 1872, aged twenty-
two years, leaving one daughter, who lives
with her grandfather; Amy I., wife of N. B.
Cox, a prosperous farmer of Cooperstown
township; Benjamin S. was a schoolteacher
of high reputation, a self-educated man, and
very enthusiastic in his work, whose .early
death was, no doubt, due to overwork; he
went to California for his health, and taught
while there; he came back home and died, at
the age of twenty-eight; George F., the
youngest, is at home, an invalid.
William M., whose name heads this sketch,
was but a child when he accompanied his
father to Brown county, Illinois, where his
youth was spent. At the age of nineteen
years, he volunteered his services to the
Union, and enlisted in October, 1861, in the
Tenth Illinois Cavalry, for three years. He
served four years and three months, and was
with his regiment most of the time. He
entered the service as a private and came out
as an Orderly.
Within two years after his return to civil
life he was married, and after marriage set-
tled on forty acres of land in Ripley town-
ship, which property he had bought while
in the army, paying for it $1,350. Four
years later, he sold this land for $2,150, and
bought sixty-seven acres in Cooperstown
township, on which he farmed for eight
years. He then again sold out, disposing
of his farm of 107 acres for $3,000, and
buying his present place of 160 acres. Since
then he has bought an additional eighty acres
a mile and a half away, making, altogether,
240 acres which he now owns, all of which
he is farming.
He was married on December 26, 1866,
to Mary Ann Bates, an estimable lady and a
native of Brown county, Illinois, where she
was born in 1845. Her parents are William
H. and Mary A. (Price) Bates, well-to-do and
esteemed residents of Brown county. They
have had eight children, seven now living: a
son died in infancy; James, aged twenty-
five, married Julia Six, and has one son; Os-
car, aged twenty-one is at home, as are also
172
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GA8S,
all the rest, — William, aged nineteen; Lilly
Pearl, sixteen; Amanda, twelve; Lettie,
eight; and Laura, aged six.
Although a Republican in politics, he has
been once elected as census enumerator, and
once as Assessor of a strongly Democratic
township. In the discharge of his official
duties, as in his private life, he has displayed
superior ability and unimpeachable integrity.
He is a member of the G. A. R., and belongs
to Isaac McNeil Post at Ripley. He and
his wife and two sons have been for a number
of years earnest and useful members of the
Christian Church, of which he is an Elder.
Aside from his highly respectable family
relations, his father having been for many
years a prominent resident of the State, he
has gained for himself, by continued indus-
try, upright dealing and uniform courtesy,
both financial prosperity and the universal
esteem of his fellow men.
fILLIAMS D. SCOGGAN was born
Lee township, Brown county,
Illinois, December 28, 1843. His
father was Isham Scoggan, born 1807, in
Shelby county, Kentucky. He was the son
of William Dotson Scoggan, who settled in
Kentucky at a very early day, living to be a
very old man, rearing seven children. Isham
was the eldest son and on coming to this
county he bought 320 acres of land and in
1839 brought his wife and two children. They
made this journey by team. Some eight or ten
years later his brothers and one sister came,
and with them the aged father and mother.
The mother of our subject was his father's sec-
ond wife and was named Eliza Jane Arnold.
Her parents were Kentucky farmers who lived
and died there, leaving a family of nine chil-
dren. The father of Mr. Scoggan died Septem-
ber 8, 1861, in his fifty-seventh year, leaving
700 acres of land and other property. The
mother, in her seventy-eighth year, is still liv-
ing, but is in feeble health.
William received a common school educa-
tion and was reared to a farm life. He is
now engaged in stock-farming, raising great
numbers of cattle and horses. He has from
150 to 200 head of stock. His land is very
fertile and he is able to rasise upon it corn,
wheat, oats and hay and, as it is rolling and
has natural drainage, he has not been obliged
to do much tilling.
He was first married in Kansas, in 1875,
but he lost his wife and one child within two
years. He was at that time a farmer of La-
bette county, and remained there nine years.
He owned 320 acres, which he sold and then
returned to Illinois to the old homestead.
His present wife was Susie Long, a native of
Morgan county, Illinois, and daughter of An-
drew and Lizzie (Buckton) Long. He was
married September 30, 1891. Mrs. Scoggan
is a Methodist, his mother a Missionary Bap-
tist, his niece a Campbellite, and he himself
represents the outside world, supporting them
all. He' is an ardent Republican.
fAMES N. ROBISON of Lee township,
was born in Huntingdon county, Penn-
sylvania, November 22, 1823. His
father, Henry Robison, was born in the same
county, April 22, 1798, and his father was
born in Scotland, but spent his last years in
Huntingdon county, dying when his son
Henry was six years old. Henry after his
father's death was obliged to earn his own
living and remained on a farm in the same
8GHUYLBH AND BROWN COUNTIES.
173
county until 1824, and then with his wife and
infant son emigrated to Ohio and lived near
Cadiz for two years, then returned to West-
moreland county, Pennsylvania, there en-
gaged in farming and dealing in stock. He
bought stock in Ohio and drove the
across the mountains to Philadelphia. He
made considerable money, which he expended
on a stage line, but failed in that enterprise.
In 1837 he came to Illinois with his wife and
four children by team to Pittsburg, then by
way of the steamer, Rion, to Phillips Ferry,
landing in Pike county. In August of that
year he rented some land and exercised his
natural good judgment in stock and farming
and in six years' time was able to purchase
land. He first bought eighty acres, which he
soon sold and then bought 160 acres near
Pittsfield, Pike county. He occupied that
farm a number of years, then sold it and
moved to Adams county, lived there a few
years, then bought three miles west of Perry,
pike county, and there remained until his
death in 1870. The maiden name of his
wife was Margaret Taylor, who was bo.rn }n
Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, daughter
of Robert and Mary (McElroy) Taylor. She
died at her home, August 1, 1867.
James was in his fourteenth year when his
parents came to Illinois. At that time this
section of country was but little improved,
and deer, wolves a^nd wild-cats were plentiful.
There was no railroads for years and the river
towns were the only markets. He resided
with his, father until twenty-one and then
with a, horse which his father gave him he
started, out for himself. He went to school
during the winter and worked for his board.
In the following spring he rented land and
farmed for three years and then bought 160
acres in Lee township. It was military land
arid he soon lost that on account of a faulty
18
title, but he then bought another farm, of 120
acres. He has been a resident of Lee town-
ship since 1847, with the exception of one
year in Adams county. He now has 700
acres in Lee township, 480 in Buckhorn town-
ship, 225 acres in Pike county and 370 in
Johnson county, Kansas.
He was married December 1, 1847, to
Mary E. Caughenon. She was born in Hunt-
ingdon county, Pennsylvania, January 14,
1829. Her father, Henry, was born in Lan-
caster county, Pennsylvania, and his father,
John, as far as known was born in Penn-
sylvania of German ancestry. He came to
Illinois in 1887, settled in Pike county, then
moved to Pea Ridge in JBrown county, bought
a farm and lived there until his death. The
maiden name of his wife was Dorathea Law-
rence of Lancaster county. She died in L'ike
county. The father of Mrs. Robison was
reared and married in Pennsylvania and re-
sided there until 1836, and with his wife and
four children came to Illinois. He lived in
Pike county for two years and followed his
trade of miller and then built a mill on Mc-
Grees creek and operated it for ten years. He
then traded the mill for a farm, three miles
west of Mt. Sterling, remained four years,
then traded the farm for a stock of goods,
engaged in the mercantile business in Clayton,
Adams county, and remained there until his
death in 1859. The first name of his wife
was Agnes, daughter of William and Nancy
(Tayler), likely natives of Ireland and Penn-
sylvania. The grandfather was of Scotch
ancestry. Mrs. Robison's mother died in
Clayton in 1889.
Mr. and Mrs. Robison have eight living
children : Henry, Mary, William, Robert,
Enos M., Fred, Belle and Walter. The first
child, Margaret, the wife of Rev. J. O. Jen-
nings, died in California, January 29, 1891.
174
BIOORAPUICAL REVIEW OP CASS,
Three others died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs.
Robison are members of the Presbyterian
Church, and he has served as Trustee of the
church and his wife has taught in the Sunday-
school. He has been a Republican since the
formation of the party.
fAMES M. BLACK, dealer in hard coal
and wood, was born in Indiana county,
Pennsylvania, October 12, 1835. He
was the son of John W. Black of the same
county, who was one of thirteen children.
All grew to maturity, and the sons were me-
chanics by trade. John W. Black was a
blacksmith by trade. After he came West he
was foreman of the Boyles Scales Company
of St. Louis, Missouri, for some years, and,
later came to Beardstown and established
himself with Mr. T. A. Fisher, another old
blacksmith. He was later with Messrs. Milner
and Hill. He did business as a smith and a
manufacturer of wagons and buggies. He
went to Pike's Peak in the early sixties and
was a miner there for some time. He se-
cured his claim, but later came back to Van-
dalia and died there, about fifty years of age.
He was married in his native county, to Mar-
get A. Shankle, of early English ancestry.
She was born in Indianacounty, Pennsylvania,
where her parents lived and died. She died
when in St. Louis, after the birth of five chil-
dren, when she was in the prime of life.
James M. Black came to this town, Beards-
town, in 1851. From here he went to Iowa,
and after residing there for six years came
to Beardstown in 1861 and engaged in team-
ing until 1870, when he established his coal
business.
He was married in Polk county, Iowa, June
11,1857, to Miss Mary Shepherd. She was born
in Kentucky and came with her parents, Ben-
jamin and Minerva Shepherd of Kentucky, to
Polk county, Iowa, and for some years fol-
lowing the marriage of their daughter. Mr.
Shepherd died in Peoria county. Mrs. Shep-
herd still lives there, about ninety years of
age. Mrs. Black died at her home in Beards-
town, in 1878. She had three children,
namely: Francis Ellen, born January 21,
1862, died May 6, 1864; Edward Franklin,
born March 1, 1865, married Grace Putnam,
and now live? in Virginia, where he is agent
for the Quincy & Missouri Railroad; and
Harry L., born October 6, 1870, who is still at
home and assists his father. Mr. Black is a
Republican and is chairman in one of the
local district Republican central committees.
He is a member of the Methodist Church.
He is a working member of the A. O. U. W.,
and has managed their financial affairs for
six years. He has been the representative to
the Grand Lodge.
TEPHEN T. RANNEY, a well known
member of commercial circles in Mount
Sterling, was born in Elkhorn township,
Brown county, Illinois, January 1, 1847, a
son of Solomon Ranney. The paternal grand-
father, Stephen Ranney, was a native of the
State of New York, and his father emigrated
from Wales in colonial times, and settled in
New York State. Stephen Ranney was a
lawyer by profession, and had a large and
profitable practice. He was married to Olive
Jaques, a native of New York State, who
lived to the advanced age of ninety years.
Solomon Ranney removed from New York to
Ohio in an early day, and in 1842 came to
Illinois; he spent a few years in Case county,
returned to Ohio, and again came to this
State; he located the second time in Brown
SGHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
175
county, and as his means were limited he did
not invest in land; he is now a resident of
Pike county, Illinois. His wife's maiden
name was Melinda Reeves, a native of Vir-
ginia, who died in 1849.
After the death of his mother, Stephen T.
Kanney was taken in charge by his paternal
grandmother, and was reared by her in Elk-
horn township. In his youth he divided his
time between the work on the farm and at-
tending the common school.
There were no events of great importance
connected with his career until 1864. In
November of that year he enlisted in Com-
pany G, Fiftieth Illinois Volunteer Infantry,
and served until the close of the war. He
was honorably discharged at Louisville, Ken-
tucky, July 13, 1865, after which he returned
to his home. He was variously employed for
several years, but finally purchased land in
Elkhorn township, which he cultivated until
his removal in 1882, to Mount Sterling,
where he has since made his home.
Mr. Ranney was married in 1877, March
3, to Melinda C. Perry, who. was born No-
vember 12, 1847, in Brown county, Illinois.
Of late years he has been one of the most
prominent real-estate dealers in the place,
having laid out an addition and built more
residences in the past ten years than any one
other individua.1; he erected th« Ranney
Block, one of the handsomest business struc-
tures in Mount Sterling, and has been one of
the mpst enterprising and energetic support-
ers of the county's interests.
Politically he is identified with the Demo-
cratic party. He served as Justice of the
Peace in Elkhorn township, has represented
the Second Ward on the Board of Aldermen,
and in 1882 was elected Sheriff of the county;
four years later he was elected Treasurer of
the county, and in 1890 he was made Justice
of the Peace. He has been a director of the
Building and Loan Association since its or-
ganization, and in all the walks of life has
shown himself a stanch, reliable man, worthy
of the confidence reposed in him by the com-
munity in which he lives.
,ON. ALEXANDER K. LOWRY was
born in Armstrong county, Pennsylva-
nia, November 7, 1829, a son of Joseph
Lowry, a native of Franklin county, Penn-
sylvania. The paternal grandfather, Adam
Lowry, was a native of Ireland, but was the
descendant of Scotch ancestors; he emigrated
to America, accompanied by his family about
the year 1780, and settled near Chambers-
burg, Franklin county, Pennsylvania; he died
at the age of ninety-five years in Armstrong
county, Pennsylvania. His son Joseph
learned the blacksmith's trade, but engaged
in agricultural pursuits in Armstrong county,
where he had settled previous to his marriage;
he bought a tract of timber land, cut out the
trees to make a spot for the erection of his
cabin, and also built a shop where he followed
his trade in connection with his farming; he
there spent the remainder of his days, his
death occurring in 1853. He married Eliza-
beth Kerr, a native of Armstrong county,
Pennsylvania, and a daughter of William
Kerr, who was born in the north of Ireland,
of Scotch ancestry; he settled in Pennsylva-
nia after landing in America, and he and
his wife there spent the remainder of their
days.
Alexander K. Lowry was reared and edu-
cated in the county of his birth; he taught
school one term in Indiana county, Penn-
sylvania, and in 1848 and 1849 was en-
gaged in clerking in a country store. From
176
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
1850 to 1853 he was bookkeeper for the
owners of the furnaces in Bedford county,
and from 1853 to 1855 he was clerking.
Before the end of the latter year he emi-
grated to Iowa, going via the Ohio and
Mississippi rivers to Keokuk, and thence
by team to Poweshiek county, being one of
the first settlers in Grinnell. At that time
there was not a mile of railway in the State
of Iowa; the central and western portions
of the State were very sparsely settled, and
the Missouri river bounded the frontier.
Mr. Lowry began business by opening a
hotel, and soon after was appointed Post-
master upon the establishment of an office
at that point. He remained at Grinnell
about a year and a half, and then went to
Pennsylvania, the home of his youth. It
was not long, however, before, he emi-
grated to Dakota county, Nebraska, where
he purchased a claim of Government land
and on which he remained six months.
Returning to Grinnell at the end of that
time he embarked in mercantile trade, and
also began the study of law. He was ad-
mitted to the bar in 1858, and soon after
came to Macomb, Illinois, where he engaged
in practice until 1861; in this year he re-
moved to Mount Sterling, and devoted him-
self to legal work until 1864, when he made
a trip to California, going via the Isthmus.
Arriving in the Golden State he opened a
hotel, which he kept for three years at Marys-
ville, and then came back to Illinois, the
return trip being made via the Nicaragua
route.
Mr. Lowry has been twice married; in
1855 he was united to Sarah McCartney, a
native of Indiana county, Pennsylvania, who
died in 1870. Mr. Lowry's second marriage
occurred in 1872, when he was united to
Martha J. Means, who was born one mile
from Mount Sterling, Brown county, Illinois;
she died in February, 1888. Two children
were born of the first marriage, Clara B. and
Hattie; the latter is the wife of James L.
Gray, and has one child, Mary Vivian.
In politics Mr. Lowry affiliated with the
Democratic party until 1869, but since that
time he has supported the principles of the
Republican party. He was elected County
Superintendent of Schools in 1861, was
County Treasurer in 1863, and in 1886 was
elected a member of the State Legislature.
In these various offices he discharged his du-
ties with marked ability, reflecting great
credit upon himself as well as his constituency.
At the present time he is a member of the
School Board, filling the office of president.
,EV. MICHAEL CLIFFORD has been
pastor of St. Mary's Church, Mount
Sterling, Illinois, for more than twenty
years, and during this time has been a faith-
ful servant to his Master, and has won the
esteem and Admiration of the people with
whom he has labored. He was born in county
Limerick, Ireland, and his ancestors for many
generations were natives of the same county.
He received his early education in the Latin
school at Charley ville, county Cork, and later
became a student at All Hallow's College,
Dublin, from which institution he was grad-
uated in 1862. In July of the same year he
crossed the sea to America, and came directly
from the seaboard to Illinois.
His first charge was at Bunker Hill, Ma-
conpin county; thence he was sent to Sanga-
mon county, and removed from this point to
Morgan county, where he remained until
1872, when he came to Mount Sterling and
took charge of St. Mary's congregation.
8OHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
177
This is the first Koinan Catholic Church of
Mount Sterling, having been founded more
than fifty years ago; the present structure is
a handsome brick edifice, with a seating
capacity of 500, and the membership num-
bers 185 families. The parochial school
under the care of the church is in charge of
the Dominican Sisters, and has an attendance
of eighty-five. Since Father Clifford has
been pastor of St. Mary's, improvements
have been made to the extent of over $10,000;
a residence for the priest and one for the Do-
minican Sisters are included in the work
accomplished by him. He has been devoted
to the interests of his people, and in him
they find that wise counsel and loving ad-
monition which has been a safe guide on the
pathway of life.
H. SIELSCHOTT, Beardstown, Illi-
nois. — The United States, the grand-
est government that shelters a people,
possesses alone of all the governments of the
world, the privilege which makes it possible
for each individual to force his way through
the ranks of the many and become one of the
few. Emerson says " it is purpose that differ-
ences men," and the man who, by birth or its
equivalent, enjoys the possibilities of a high
and noble purpose, under such a government,
and who through energy, tact, and strict
integrity overcomes the obstacles that engulf
smaller men, who levels the impossibilities
of other men to his own convenience and
makes them his opportunities, is that man of
purpose, and is by the law of natural selection
a leader. It is to such men that society and
progression owes its highest attainments; and
it is of one of those whose straightforward
career has made his name worthy the pages
of history, that this sketch is written.
. A. H. Sielschott was born in the busy prov-
ince of Hanover, Germany, in 1835. He is
a son of Frederick and Amelia Sielschott, who
were also natives of Hanover. His parents
were of that sturdy conservative element that
has enriched the great Empire of Germany
and advanced it to the front rank in the
world's history of great soldiers and states-
men, and placed it in close touch with the
advance of civilization and the fellowship of
men. They were farmers owning their land,
and as is characteristic of that eminently
worthy husbandry, were given entirely to the
cultivation of their land, leaving travel to
those who were less inspired with the habits
of their forefathers. They were never out-
side the borders of their loved fatherland, but
lived 'out their allotted time, happy, and con-
tented, with the pleasures and prosperity their
home life and patriotism afforded them.
They each attained the good age of three
score years and ten.
The boyhodd bf A. H. Sielschott was prac-
tically the same' as that of other boys whose
parents were devoted to labor and frugality.
At the age customary in his native land, Mr.
Sielschott entered the public schools and
acquired a classical education in his native
tongue. After leaving school and being of a
decidedly progressive temperament and en-
dowed with a full share of native pluck, he
decided to leave his home and try for his
fortune in the broader fields of America. In
the early part of 1854 he left Bremen on the
steamer Hansa, ticketed for New York. Ar-
riving there he soon pushed boldly westward
and reached Beardstowu in the fall of that
year. Here he decided to remain, and here
with but a five-dollar gold piece in his pocket
he began the life that has been so full of good
for himself and also for the community. Mr.
Sielschott did not waste any time looking for
178
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS '8,
an easy job, but with determination and
energy took hold of the first honest work that
presented itself. He was familiar with farm
work and naturally bent his energies in that
direction. He engaged to work on a farm,
and went at it with a will. While working
and while resting he kept his brain busy
evolving plans for the future, and speculating
honestly, and with a method well worked out,
he advanced step by step in popularity and
position until he had acquired not only a com-
fortable income but the higher victory, name-
ly, the confidence and respect of all who knew
him. In 1876 he was elected by a large
majority to the office of Sheriff, and so satis-
factorily did he discharge the duties of his
office that he was repeatedly re-elected until
he had held the office for an unbroken period
of ten years. After ten years in office Mr.
Sielschott had reason to hope for a rest from
public service, but he was almost immediately
elected to the office of County Treasurer, and
held that important office until 1890, a period
of four years. In 1889 the First State Bank
of Beardstown was organized and Mr. Siels-
chott was elected its president, an office which
he has continued to hold ever since. Under
his wise direction the bank has prospered,
and is to-day one of the richest banking or-
ganizations in the State. Its principles are
sound, and it enjoys a financial solidity far
beyond any possible event or turn in values.
Mr. Sielschott's record in the government
affairs in the city and county is a most unus-
ual and remarkable one. In addition to the
fourteen years in which he discharged the
important duties of Sheriff and Treasurer of
the county, he has served five terms as Mayor
of the city of Beardstown. A single term in
any office, no matter how important, seldom
determinesaman's fitness for high commenda-
tion. It is the repeated voice of the people
in recalling a man to public office — in making
him his own successor year after year — that
establishes beyond question that man's ability
and worthiness.
Mr. Sielschott has also served many times
as delegate to County and Congressional con-
ventions. He is a Democrat, believing the
principles of that great party to be in closer
touch with the needs of the people, and in
greater harmony with the progress of the age
than all the planks, principles and platforms
of all other political parties combined. In a
word he believes Democratic doctrine ever-
lastingly right, and all opposition thereto
everlastingly wrong. He has always sup-
ported these principles fully and faithfully,
and has done more than one man's share to
establish purity in office and the great truth
that public office is a public trust.
In business life Mr. Sielschott has been a
promoter of many important. enterprises, one
of the most important of which was the con-
struction of the tine bridge that spans the
Illinois river at Beardstown. He is, also,
identified with many other worthy and pros-
perous enterprises.
In March, 1862, Mr. Sielschott was married
to Miss Ellen Piper, of Beardstown, a native
of Hanover, Germany, who at the age of
seven accompanied her parents to the United
States and settled in Beardstown. They were
worthy and consistent members of the Lu-
theran Church. They died after having at-
tained the good old age of four-score years.
Mr. and Mrs. Sielschott have three chil-
dren: A. F. Sielschott, of the firm of Spring
& Sielschott, of Beardstown ; Alice A. and Mar-
tha M. are still members of the family home.
Both of the young ladies have received a splen-
did education, and both are prominent in
social matters. The family worship at the
Congregational Church.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
179
Socially Mr. Sielschott is a leading mem-
ber of the Masonic fraternity. Personally
he is kind, courteous and affable. In a word,
he possesses just such a personality as the
intelligent reader would expect to find in
conjunction with such an admirable record.
^ENRYTRUE FOSTER, the well-known
first settler of Beardstown yet living,
was born on February 3, Ibi6, in Lin-
coln county, Maine. He grew up and ac-
quired a practical education at Warren and
Newcastle, and when seventeen years of age
went to Bangor, Maine, and spent three years
in the clothing store of Thomas Furber, the
first store of that kind in the city. When
twenty years of age he came with his father
to Illinois, where they had landed interests.
After landing at Meredosia, on the Illinois
river, he came to Beardstown, where Mr. Fos-
ter has since resided. He has engaged in a
variety of occupations, having been a farmer,
merchant, manufacturer, grain buyer, packer,
and dealer in grain. He was an active busi-
ness man and was very successful in his
many business ventures. He is generous td
a fault, and never paused to consider his per-
sonal gain or loss if an enterprise was started
that was likely to prove a benefit to the city.
It was through his personal efforts that the
railroads were run to Beardstown. In 1861
he was appointed Postmaster of the place
and held the office for seven years, and in 1868
was placed at the head of the municipality of
Beardstown. He infused new life into the
place by promoting the welfare of the city.
He introduced new enterprises, and it is doubt-
ful if there is another citizen of the city who
has devoted so much time and energy to the
development of that place as Mr. Foster. He
has been a prominent Republican in politics
since the organization of the party. He has
been an active worker in that party in local
matters. President Lincoln and he were per-
sonal friends, and he was a member of the
State Central Committee during the second
campaign of Mr. Lincoln. He is a member
of the Congregational Church of which he is a
Deacon and of which he was for years a Trus -
tee. Mr. Foster was one of those who voted
for William H. Harrison in 1836 and 1840.
Mr. Foster was married in Beardstown, 1839,
to Mary De Haven, of Philadelphia, Penn-
sylvania. She was born, reared and educated
in that city and came west when a young
woman. She died at her home January 11,
1888, at the age of seventy-seven. She ever
proved herself a true and noble wife and
mother, and her death was deeply felt by those
she left behind her. She left two sons: Ed-
win C., who married Isabel Dale and who
now resides in Waterloo, Iowa; and Robert
Harry, who married Emma Logan and they
live in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They are
both prosperous young men.
8REDERICK W. ROTTGEB.oue of the
most successful and enterprising busi-
ness men of Mount Sterling, was born
near Mendon, Prussia, August 8, 1844. His
father, William Rottger, was born in the
same country, and there was reared and mar-
ried. In 1845 he determined to try his for-
tunes in the New World, and left his family
behind until he should seek out a home for
them in the strange, new land. He located
in Morgan county, Illinois, where he died
about a year later. His wife was left in very
humble circumstances, with four little chil-
dren. In 1850 she brought her family to
180
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
America, sailing from Bremen and landing
in New Orleans; thence they came via the
.Mississippi and Illinois rivers to Naples, and
completed the journey to Jacksonville by
rail. Frederick "W. was bound out to E. S.
Hendrickson, a farmer then residing in Mor-
gan county, with whom he remained until he
had attained his majority. His early life was
spent on the farm, but he managed to learn
the art of telegraphy, and came to Mount
Sterling to accept a position with the Wabash
Railway Company as station agent. For
more than a quarter of a century he has had
charge of the company's business at this
point, and by his years of faithful service has
gained the entire confidence of the officials of
the corporation. After he had been in Mount
Sterling a short time he began contracting
for railroad ties, and has carried on this busi-
ness continuously since that time. In 1874
he purchased an interest in the lumber busi-
ness of C. M. Dunlap, and in 1882 bought
the entire concern, since which time he has
conducted the trade alone. In 1878 he added
the grain business to his own interests, and
has done a large amount of buying and
shipping. He also has immense agricultural
interests, and owns 800 acres of fine farming
land in Pea Ridge township.
Mr. Rottger was married October 18, 1865,
to Eugenia Peters, a native of Steubenville,
Ohio, and a daughter of Stebbens and Alicia
(Tracy) Peters; of this union five children
have been born: Eugenia, Nina, Myrtle,
Frederick W. and Winnifred. Mrs. Rottger
is a consistent member of the Presbyterian
Church. Our worthy subject belongs to the
Masonic order, being a member of Hardin
Lodge, No. 44, A. F. & A. M., Delta Com-
mandry, No. 48, K. T., and the Quincy Con-
sistory. Politically he is identified with the
Democratic party, and has represented the
people of his township in many of the local
offices; he was the first Mayor of Mount
Sterling, and has been a member of the
County Board of Supervisors. He is also the
choice of his party to represent Brown county
in the State Legislature. He is a man of
unquestioned integrity, true to his friends,
and strong in the purposes he considers just
and right.
ILL1AM B. DAVIS, proprietor of
the Democrat Message, was born in
La Fayette county, Missouri, July 10,
1865. His • father, Henry K. Davis, was
born in Wheeling, West Virginia, and his
father, Samuel H. Davis, was a printer, and
at one time published a paper in Wheeling,
and later in Peoria, 111. He spent his last
days there. His son was also a printer, and
followed his trade many years. He issued
the first daily paper ever published in Peoria,
and the first ever published in Champaign
county, and during the war published the
Lexington Union at Lexington, Missouri.
It was a strong Union paper, and there his
life was fraught with much danger. Later
he established the Daily Advertiser at Kan-
sas City, and it is now known as the Kansas
City Times. Among the other places where
he published papers were Paris, Texas, and
Warrensburg, Missouri.
In December, 1874, he came to Mount
Sterling and bought the Mount Sterling
Democrat and continued its publication un-
til his death, April 6, 1886. His wife's
name was Mary Davis, of Cumberland, Mary-
land, a daughter of John Davis. She now
resides at Mount Sterling, where she has
reared six children.
William was ten years old when he came
to Mount Sterling, and at the age of eighteen
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
181
he began to learn the trade of printing in
the office of the .Democrat. In 1886 he
bought the office and good will of the Mes-
sage and consolidated it with the Democrat
under the name of the Democrat Message.
His mother still retains a half interest in the
paper.
He married, in 1888, Laura G. Givens, of
Mount Sterling, Illinois, daughter of John
and Maria Putman Givens. They have one
child, Catherine Maria. Mrs. Davis belongs
to the Methodist Episcopal Church, Mr
Davis is a Democrat in politics, and belongs
to the Cincinnatis, No. 287, K. P.
IYRUS HORROM dates his birth in
Dearborn county, Indiana, September
4, 1820. His father, Benjamin Hor-
rom, was born in New York state, and when
a young man moved to Ohio. A few years
later he continued his way westward, and
took up his abode in Dearborn county, In-
diana, where he lived till December, 1828-
At that time he started with his wife and
nine children for Illinois, making the re-
moval with ox teams, and landing in Cass
county the following March. Here he en-
tered a tract of Government land in town-
ship 18, range 10, and erected a log house-
The maiden name of his wife was Sarah Aus-
tin, she being a native of the same locality in
which her husband was born. They reared
nine children, and on the home farm the
parents died.
Cyrus Horrom was eight years of age at
the time the family moved to Illinois. At
the time Central Illinois was sparsely set-
tled, and in the northern part of the State
the only inhabitants were Indians. Game of
all kinds was plenty throughout the State,
and the people dressed in homespun. Little
of the land in Cass county had been entered,
most of it belonging to the Government.
The means of transportation being limited,
farm produce necessarily brought a low
price. Corn was ten cents per bushel, good
steers sold at half a cent per pound, and pork
brought seventy-five cents per hundred
pounds.
Mr. Horrom lived with his parents till he
reached his majority. He then went to
Marshall county and worked on a farm three
months. Returning to Cass county, he
rented land of his father, and in 1845 settled
on the farm he now owns and occupies. This
farm is located on section 17, contains 145
acres, and is well improved with good
buildings, etc.
Mr. Horrom was married in 1845, to Mary
J. Briar, a native of Pennsylvania, and a
daughter of James and Mary (Davis) Briar.
Joseph Briar, a sketch of whom appears
elsewhere in this volume, is a brother of
hers. Mr. and Mrs. Horrom have seven
children living, viz: John H., Matilda J.,
Mary E., William H., Martha Ellen, Preston
W., and Cora Alice. Charles, Addie, Mil-
lard and George A. are deceased.
|HILANDER AYERY, one of the large
land owners of Schuyler county, resides
on section 26, Camden township.
He first came to the county in 1832,
being a native of Franklin county, Ohio,
born June 13, 1823. His parents, David
and Margaret (Adams) Avery, were natives of
Pennsylvania and Ohio. The grandfather of
the subject was born in Ireland, but came- to
the United States when a boy and for some
time was a sailor. He then farmed and fol-
182
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS 8,
lowed the carpenter trade. Some time after
his children were settled he emigrated to
Illinois, settled in Schuyler county, where he
died at the age of eighty-five. His wife also
died in Schuyler county. They had ten chil-
dren: Stephen, Chancey, Pelatin, Nancy,
Maria, Daniel, William, Polly, Betsy and
Sarah. The father of the subject was born in
New York State, July 1, 1797, and when a
boy removed with the family to Ohio, where
he worked at the trade of carpenter. He
was married in 1821, in Ohio, to Mar-
garet Adams, who was born in Franklin
county, Ohio. In 1832 he came to Colwell,
Illinois, and resided for eight years in Rush-
ville, then settled in Woodford county, where
he entered some land. He next spent three
years in Missouri and on his return went to
Cainden township, where he owned eighty
acres. He died in 1851, aged fifty-five
years. His wife died two months later, aged
fifty-four. They had nine children, Matilda,
deceased; Rebecca, deceased; Nancy, de-
ceased; Sarah Carter, deceased; Elizabeth J.,
deceased; Charles resides at Industry, Illi-
nois, and Zavin, deceased.
Philander is the second of the family. He
came with the family to Illinois and has re-
mained a farmer ever since. After his mar-
riage he removed to Knoxville, where he re-
sided until 1851 and then returned to Schuy-
ler county and purchased eighty acres of land
in Camden township and has since been a
resident of the place. He now owns 700
acres of land and deals largely in live stock.
He has always been a good, hard-working
man, and is known well and favorably all over
the county. He is a Democrat in politics
and has always been an ontspoken man. He
is uneducated in schools, but has been edu-
cated in the great school of experience.
He was married in 1842 to Mrs. Meeks,
nee Bryant. She was born in Stokes county,
North Carolina, and married there, coming to
Illinois with her husband, Mr. Meeks. She
had three children by him: Miria, Columbus
and Helen. She bore her second husband
two children: Mary Ann, who was drowned
in a stream near home when fifteen, and
James, who resides in Camden township.
Mrs. Avery died, November 16, 1891.
Mr. Avery is a member of Camden Lodge,
No. 648, A. F. & A. M. He is worth a good
deal of property, which he has made himself.
James Avery was born in Knox county,
Illinois, July 30, 1844. He has always lived
with his father, although he owns 120 acres
of land himself. He is a Democrat and has
been Highway Commissioner and member of
the School Board. He is a member of Cam-
den Lodge, No. 648, A. F. & A. M. He
has worked as a carpenter.
He was married in 1868, to Martha Dixon,
daughter of Lawone and Hannah Dixon. She
was born in Brown county, in 1848. They
have one son, La Fayette, born July 3, 1870.
>ENRY M. SCHMOLDT, Beardstown,
Illinois. — It is the constitutional privi-
lege of every American to aspire to the
highest honors within the gift of the people;
and when such aspiration is supplemented by
progressive and well balanced mentality,
backed with integrity, tact and energy, it fol-
lows as a law of natural selection that such a
man is a leader among his fellow men. It
matters not whether hi? father be a prince of
fortune, or an humble mechanic; the law of
selection, made natural by the inspired prin-
ciples of our constitution, remains the same;
for under the beneficent and noble doctrine
of a true republican government, mon-
SOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
183
archial succession is relegated to the repel-
lent past, and all men are born equal — equal
in the right of law and privilege, the only
aristocrat being the man possessing a wealth
of brains. Such a man may have an academic
sheepskin learnedly inscribed as an early
voucher to his mentality and title to distinc-
tion. When snch is happily the case the man
simply rises the more rapidly, simply obtains
an earlier hold upon the confidence and re-
spect of his fellow men. The history such a
man makes becomes his own property, BO to
speak, and not alone an embellishment of the
future. His progress has outstripped time,
and he lives to read, in accredited form and in
the suffrage of approval of his fellow men,
the story of his life. How eminently fitting
to a good life is such an honor, and how few
men enjoy it! It is one of those few, a man
who, though still in the morning of his life,
has made a record worthy the pages of his-
tory that this sketch is written.
Henry M. Schmoldt was born in Cass
county, Illinois, September 19, 1858. He is
the eldest son of Robert G. and Johanna
(Blohn) Schmoldt, both natives of Hanover,
Germany. Robert G. Schmoldt was the
eighth son of Herman Schmoldt, a wealthy
land owner in Hanover. The father of Henry
M. Schmolt spent a portion of his early life
upon the ocean. In 1852 he was married, by
the American consul at Hamburg, to Miss
Johanna Blohn, of Hanover, after which he
emigrated to the United States, locating in
New York city. In July of the following
year he removed to Beardstown, where with
his good wife he enjoys the fruits of a well-
earned competence and good name.
In 1890, at the retirement of his father
from business, Henry M. Schmoldt, in com-
pany with his brothers, Adolph E. and Rob-
ert W., assumed full control of the exten-
sive business built up by their father, a busi-
ness which with the advent of younger blood
at the helm has made additional strides in the
favor of the public. The boyhood of Henry
M. Schmoldt was full of active usefulness
and hard work. At the usual age he entered
the public school at Beardstown, and to this,
the education there obtained, was added a
commercial course of study in a business col-
lege in St. Louis, Missouri, after which he
took a course at Asbury (now Depauw) Uni-
versity, Greencastle, Indiana.
In 1876, he returned to Beardstown and
associated himself with his father in the
manufacture of cooperage supplies, and has
continued in the business ever since, the firm
now being Schmoldt Bros. & Company. This
firm also deals extensively in lumber and
house-furnishing supplies.
Mr. Schmoldt, of whom this sketch is
written, is one of the younger war horses in
the Republican party, and has widened his
strength and wisdom in office by having been
repeatedly elected to the office of Mayor of
Beardstown, besides having served as Alder-
man for several years. He is a hard worker,
scrupulous and exact in his dealings with
men, and a staunch advocate of the principles
of the great party, in whom and through
whom he sees the great truths which his
party believes have made America what it is.
He is, however, more of a statesman than a
politician; for politicians are not generally
given to great scruples in matters of con-
science in politics, and Mr. Schmoldt is; but
it is the honest, straightforward man that wins
a lasting meed of victory in politics as well
as in social and business life; and such is the
record of Mr. Schmoldt. In the local coun-
sels of the Republican party he is an able
and welcome adviser.
On May 12, 1880, Mr. Schmoldt was mar-
184
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
ried to Miss Lena Earhardt, of Beardstown,
daughter of the late Dr. Fred Earhardt, an
old and leading physician of Cass county.
They have one child, a daughter, whom they
have named Jennie.
Socially, Mr. Schmoldt is a prominent
member of the Masonic fraternity, and also
of the Odd Fellows. Personally he is kind,
courteous and affable.
H. OWEN SEELEY is on of the old-
est settlers of Schuyler county and re-
sides in Rushville. He was born at
Thetford, Orange county, Vermont, Decem-
ber 15, 1811. His father, Luke Seeley, was
born in the same town October 15, 1792.
The grandfather, Sheldon Seeley, was a na-
tive of New England and it is supposed was
born in Vermont, at least he was one of the
pioneers of Thetford where he followed agri-
cultural pursuits. At a very early day he
went to Ohio, prospecting, but was taken
sick while there and died near Sandusky.
His wife was Deborah Bowker, a native of
New England, who died at Thetford at the
age of about ninety years.
Luke Seeley was reared and married in his
native State. Upon reaching manhood he en-
gaged in mercantile pursuits, which he con-
tinued in Vermont until 1818, when he re-
moved to Franklin county, New York, and
there lived on a farm for about one year. He
then moved to Malone, New York, and en-
gaged in merchandising, conducting at the
same time a cabinet shop and employing a
foreman to carry it on. In 1828 he came to
Illinois to look at his piece of land in the mil-
itary tract, but then went back to New York
in September, 1830, and returned to Illinois
with his family. He started on the 12th of
September, and journeyed with a two-horse
team to Buffalo, thence by lake to Cleveland,
thence by team to Columbus, Ohio, where he
remained until the 27th of October, and then
with a company of fourteen families made the
overerland journey by team to Schuyler
county, and after forty days on the road ar-
rived at Eushville. He located on land just
north of Rushville, but one year later moved
to the village and started the first nursery in
Schuyler county, which he conducted success-
fully until his death October 15, 1856. His
wife, and the mother of our subject, was for-
merly Miss Electa Owen, a native of Milton,
Vermont, and the daughter of Elijah Owen.
She died in Rushville, May 10, 1834. Both
parents were substantial citizens, good neigh-
bors, and enjoyed the high esteem of all who
knew them.
Our subject, E. H. Owen Seeley, was edu-
cated at Malone Academy. One of the
friends of the family, Dr. Waterhonse, had
lost his only son and he expressed his desire
to have our subject go to Burlington, Ver-
mont, and study medicine, and to this the
father assented. It was considered necessary
that he should have a Latin education and ac-
cordingly he secured a Latin grammar, Cic-
ero's Orations, Ainsworth's Latin and Eng-
lish Dictionary, the Iliad of Homer and the
Bucolics of Virgil in two volumes; but at
this juncture, on the eve of his departure, and
after his father had procured him a suit of
sheep's-gray clothing, his mother objected to
his going, and instead thereof he entered a
shop to learn the cabinet trade, but he still
had his books that he had purchased, and in
1830, when he came West, he traded his books
for a rifle, as it was evident that he would
have much more use for that instrument of
death in the wilds of Illinois than for his
classic, Latin works. Soon after his arrival
SCHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
185
here, he bought the lot on the corner east of
the court house, and in 1831 began under-
taking. The first person he buried was the
fourth body consigned to the cemetery at this
place. When the cholera swept the town in
1834, taking off thirty persons or more, him-
self and one other person conducted all the bur-
ials. For many years he was the only fur-
niture dealer and undertaker in the city. He
continued an active business until 1878, but
since then has been mainly retired.
On the 26th of September, 1839, he mar-
ried Catherine A. Haskell, a native of Troy,
New York, whose father was Joseph Haskell
of New Hampshire. Joseph Haskell was
left an orphan at an early age, and upon ar-
riving at adult years, went to York State,
where he followed blacksmithing. In 1831,
accompanied by his wife and family, he came
by team to Wheeling, West Virginia, and
then by the Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois
rivers to Beardstown. He did not settle on the
1 and he had previously bought in Schuyler
county, but established himself in Rushville,
then a little hamlet. He bought the land
now occupied by the courthouse and erected
thereon a frame dwelling, in which the mother
of Mrs. Seeley taught the first school in the
village. Mr. Haskell followed the trade of a
mason and resided here until his death,
October 2, 1864. The maiden name of his
wife was Clarissa Pier. She was born in
Poultney, Yermont, March 5, 1792, and died
August 10, 1879 in Rushville.
Mr. Seeley has always been a Democrat,
and in 1847 and 1848 was Assessor and
Treasurer of this county. He visited every
house in the county and made his returns in
ninety days. From 1857 to 1861 he served
as Postmaster. To himself and wife were born
six children: Charles, Albert, Frank, Dora
William L. and Ella. Dora died at the age
of five years. Mrs. Seeley joined theMethodist
Church at the age of ten years and has been
a consistent member ever since. She has in
her possession the matms'cript of a history of
Rushville written by her mother several
years ago.
§AMES A. TEEL, a pioneer of Schuyler
county, and one the most successful
farmers and stock-raisers of the State of
Illinois, was born in Washington county,
Pennsylvania, July 19, 1830. His father,
Henry P. Teel, was born in New Jersey;
and it is thought that the grandfather, John
Teel, also was a native of New Jersey. The
great-grandfather, Captain John Teel, com-
manded a company in the war of the Revo-
lution; he spent his last years in Beaver
county, Pennsylvania, and was buried with
military honors; his widow came to Illinois
and spent her last days here. John Teel
served five years in the regular army, and
participated in the struggle of 1812; he
emigrated from Pennsylvania and spent the
last years of his life in Guernsey county; he
married Huldah Haines, a native of the Key-
stone State; she also died in Guernsey county.
Henry P. Teel was a millwright by trade, and
followed this vocation in Pennsylvania until
1833, when he came to Illinois, accompanied
by his wife and two children ; the trip was
made via the Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois
rivers to Erie, and thence by team to Rush-
ville; here he lived two years, and then re-
moved to the Territory of Iowa, locating at
Fort Madison, where he lived one year; he
then came back to Schuyler county, and re-
sumed work at his trade. He saved his
money, and in 1845 he purchased a tract of
school land on section 16, Rushville town-
ship; in connection with his trade he super-
186
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF . CASS,
intended the cultivation of this land, and
resided on the farm until his death, which
occurred March 21, 1878. He married Mar-
tha Ann Mathews, who was -born in New
Castle, Delaware, November 11, 1811; her
father, James Mathews was born on the sea
when his parents were emigrating to America;
Thomas Mathews, the great-grandfather of
our subject, was born in Ireland, of Scotch
ancestry; after emigrating to America he set-
tled in Delaware, but later removed to Penn-
sylvania, locating in Washington county; he
afterward came to Ohio, where he spent the
remainder of his days; he married Margaret
Steward, a native of Ireland. James Math-
ewe, the maternal grandfather, was a paper-
maker by trade, learning the business at New
Castle, Delaware; after his marriage he re-
moved to Washington county, Pennsylvania,
and thence to Kansas, where he spent the
last days of his life in Cherokee county; he
was a thirty-third degree Mason, and his
funeral was conducted by that body. Henry
P. Teel and wife reared a family of seven
children: James A. the subject of this notice,
H uldah A., John T., William, Alice, Henry
and Case. The parents are members of the
Presbyterian Church; Mr. Teel affiliates with
the Democratic party.
James A. Teel was four years of age when
his parents came to Schuyler county to reside;
settlers were few, and wild game abounded.
At Fort Madison also the Indians were nu-
merous, Black Hawk and Keokuk being
prominent chiefs, well remembered by Mr.
Teel. He attended the pioneer schools of
Schuyler county, which were taught in log
school houses, furnished in primitive style;
the seats were made of slabs with wooden
pins for legs, and the desks for the older
scholars were constructed after the same pat-
tern; the pens were made by the teacher
from goose-quills. Cooking was done by a
tire-place, and the children were clothed in
home-spun of the mother's own weaving.
James A. resided with his parents until he
was nineteen, and then, in 1849, he emigrated
to California, joining the great throng that
pressed to the gold fields of that State; he
was one of a company of sixty who made the
journey overland with ox teams, walking the
entire distance. He arrived at Biddle's Bar
out of funds; he soon found employment in
the mines, and worked two days and a half at
$9 per day; he then began mining on his own
account, and remained there until 1851, when
he returned to his home via the Nicaragua
route and New York. In 1853 he made
another trip across the plains, spent a few
months in the golden State, and returned by
way of the Isthmus. He engaged in farm-
ing in Rushville township, and soon turned
his attention to the breeding of fine cattle.
In 1856 he located on a farm which he still
owns on section 2, Rushville township; this
tract consists of 570 acres, and is improved
with good substantial buildings; Mr. Teel
lived there until March, 1891, when he re-
moved to the farm where he now resides, one
mile north of the courthouse; he owns nearly
1,200 acres of land, all in Rushville and
Buena Vista townships.
He was married July 29, 1856, to Miss
Elizabeth Smith, a native of Rushville town-
ship, born December 24, 1834, a daughter of
Jonathan and Nancy (Skiles) Smith (see
sketch of William Wood). Mr. and Mrs.
Teel have four children living: Herschel V.,
Neosho May, Marshall E. and Walter H.:
the oldest child, Everett L., was born July
14, 1866; he was graduated from the law
department of the State University, Madison,
Wisconsin, in the class of 1890, and his
death occurred in October, of the same year.
SVIIUYLER AbD BROWfi COUN1IBS.
137
In early days Mr. Teel belonged to the
Whig party, but for many years past has
affiliated with the Democratic party. He has
served as collector of Rushville township,
and has been a member of the county Board
of Supervisors. He is a stock-holder in the
Schuyler County Agricultural Society, and
has made an exhibit at the second fair held
in the county, receiving two silver spoons as
premiums; his herd of short-horns has been
seen at many county fairs in Illinois since
that time, and has been awarded sweep-stakes
and other prizes on different occasions. Mr.
Teel is a stock-holder in the Schuyler Hotel
Company, and also in the Bank of Schuyler
County. He is a man of superior business
qualifications, and his judgment in all mat-
ters pertaining to agriculture is highly es
teemed throughout the county and State.
?OHN K. CLARK, a well-to-do and promi-
nent farmer, living on sections 31 and 32,
Township 18, Range 11, Cass county,
Illinois, where he owns a fine farm, well im-
proved and well supplied with farm buildings,
of about 400 acres, lying in the Sangamon
valley, near Bluff Springs, was born in this
county, in jWhat is now Monroe precinct, in
1828. He is the oldest man in Cass county
that was born here. The family later came
to what is now Bluff Springs precinct in
1846, and here the parents afterward lived.
Prior to coming to Bluff Springs they had
lived for a time in Morgan county, Illinois,
and also in Schnyler county, later in Henry
county, Iowa, and there the father, Thomas,
struck the first stake of what is now Mount
Pleasant, Iowa. Some time after this his
attention was called to a beautiful spring
located about three miles east of Mount
Pleasant, and during his four years' sojourn in
Henry county, Iowa, when it was all new
ground, unbroken, he remained there. Later
he sold and returned to Illinois, and in 1840
located in Cass county, where he became a
prominent citizen and spent his remaining
days there, dying in the vicinity of Bluff
Springs, in 1852. He was sixty-seven years
of age at his death. He was a good, well-
known citizen of this county. He was born
in Kentucky, and was the son of Thomas
Clark, Sr., who was born in London, England,
and came to America when a young man, set-
tling in Kentucky, in Barren county, and
there lived for some years as a prominent
pioneer. He was married, and while yet in
middle life was attacked by the Indians and
murdered, and his house burned down. The
mother died a natural death in Kentucky
when quite an old woman. Thomas Clark,
Jr., had followed his brother, William M., to
Illinois, the latter coming here in the early
'20s and settling in Morgan county. He is
now dead. Thomas Clark was married in Ken-
tucky to a lady of that State, Julia Ann King,
of Scotch-Irish stock. She labored with her
husband in building a home in those early
days in Illinois. She died some fourteen
years after her husband, and was about seventy-
six years old. She was a Methodist.
John is the eldest son of four yet living
children. His sister, Mrs. Mary Loosley, is
the eldest, being a widow and now lives with
him. Another brother, Owen W., was a
teacher for many years in the public schools
and taught penmanship in twenty-seven
States, and also in the Dominion of Canada.
He is single, as is our subject. Another sis-
ter is Martha, wife of Judge D. N. Walker,
of Virginia. Two brothers and three sisters,
now dead. Kev. William Clark, the older,
was a member of the Methodist Episcopal
188
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Off CAS8,
Conference, and preached the gospel for forty
years. Thomas was a well-to-do farmer, and
owned a fine farm near Blnff Springs, where
his widow, two sons and a daughter, still re-
side. Cynthia, the oldest daughter, was a
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
and lived a consistent Christian life, and died
at the age of seventy-two. Rebecca and Jane
were also members of the Methodist Church.
They died younger.
John Clark is one of the prominent men
of the county and takes an active part in local
matters. He is a Democrat, a live, good fel-
low who enjoys life as it comes. He started
Bluff Springs, built the first house and store,
old the first merchandise, and was Post-
master of the place. This was about 1872.
His brother Owen was also Postmaster for
some time, and both brothers were teachers.
fHOMAS W. SCOTT, M. D., Rushville,
Illinois, is a son of Thomas W. and
Catherine (Fitzgerald) Scott, whose his-
tory is fully given in another biographical
sketch in this work. He was born in Scott
county, Kentucky, April 18, 1848, and was
but a child when his parents came to Illinois.
Here he grew to manhood; he attended the
common schools, and also enjoyed the oppor-
tunities afforded in the academy at Mon-
mouth, Illinois. He assisted his father in
the farm work, and thus gained an intelligent
comprehension of agriculture as a science.
In 1881 he began the study of medicine
at Mount Vernon, Missouri, under the pre-
ceptorship of Dr. G. L. Knapp; he subse-
quently attended lectures at the Missouri
Medical College, St. Louis, and was graduated
with the degree of M. D. in March, 1884.
He immediately located at Mt. Vernon, Mis-
souri, and the following year removed to
Rushville. He is a close student of his pro-
fession and the science of medicine, and is
fully abreast of the times upon all subjects
pertaining thereto. The July (1892) session
of the Board of County Supervisors appointed
him County Physician.
In addition to his professional duties the
Doctor finds time for horticultural pursuits,
and is very successful; he also raises poultry,
breeding the best grades. He owns a farm
east of Rushville, which is cultivated under
his supervision.
Politically he is identified with the Demo-
cratic party, although he gives little atten-
tion to politics beyond exercising his right of
suffrage. He is an honored member of the
Knights of Pythias. He is a man of great
energy and enterprise, and in all the walks
of life has earned the success and merited
the prosperity that has attended him.
£ Hfi
§UKE W. CLARK, M. D., has been a
close student of his profession for many
years, and long ago won an enviable
reputation as a skillful practitioner. He was
born in Pike county, Ohio, September 6,
1841. His father, Ebenezer Clark, was a
native of the State of New York, and was
there reared and married, his wife's maiden
name being Julia A. Wilcox, also of the Em-
pire State. His early life was spent amid
rural scenes, in closest touch with Nature,
who is always a wise and gentle teacher. He
attended the common schools, and in his
youth began the study of botany and medi-
cine; there was not a tree or plant in the
State of Illinois with which he was not as
familiar as with the members of his own
household. He emigrated to Ohio, and there
SC SUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
189
was engaged in agricultural pursuits; he was
still devoted to the study of medicine, and
after the family came to Illinois and located
at Rushville, in 1845, he began the practice
of his profession, which he continued to the
time of his death. While for many years he
enjoyed a wide and paying practice, he did
not accumulate wealth; he was kind to the
poor and did much for charity; in his death
the poor lost one of their stanchest friends.
In politics he was an ardent supporter of
Republican principles; in his religious faith
he was also possessed of the courage of his
convictions, denying any future state; he did
not approve of secret societies. His wife
died in February, 1892; they had born to
them nine children, all of whom lived to
years of maturity: Marcus, a physician, died
at Vermont, Illinois, in 1892; Franklin is a
farmer in McDonough county; Y'ct°r is a
farmer in Adair county, Missouri; Luke "W.
is the subject of this sketch; Albert R. is
practicing medicine at Vermont, Illinois;
Mary married Dr. B. F. Taylor, and died at
Vermont, Illinois; Lucy is the wife of Jacob
Trout, of Rushville; Cornelia is the wife
of C. P, Neill; Emaline manned William
Barber.
Dr. Luke W. Clark received his literary
education in the common schools of Rush-
ville, and at the age of sixteen years began
the study of medicine under the preceptor-
ship of his father, with whose botanical rem-
edies he became familiar. After finishing
his medical education he came to Rushville
and engaged in practice with his father. He
is now one of the oldest physicians in Schuy-
ler county, and has a large and lucrative
practice.
Dr. Clark was married, in 1872, to Miss
Frances Schenk, a daughter of John Schenk,
and a native of Fulton county, Illinois.
14
Four sons have blessed this union: Wheeler'
Myron, Earl and Homer.
The Doctor is a member of the State Medi-
cal Eclectic Society; in all his professional
relations he has preserved that integrity and
honor which graced the name of his father.
He has been a close student of the science of
medicine, and employs a set of remedies
which have come to be known as "Clark's
Family Medicines," and are now manu-
factured for the trade. In politics he affili-
ates with the Republican party.
ETER W. RICKARD, an intelligent
and progressive farmer of Cass county,
Illinois, residing in township 19, range
9, was born in Windham county, Connecti-
cut, August 26, 1823.
His parents were Peter and Mary (Healy)
Rickard, both natives of Massachusetts, the
mother's birth having taken place in Dudley,
of that State. The father died one month
previous to the birth of the snbject of this
sketch. Grandfather Rickard was a brave
and eificient soldier in the Revolutionary war,
and died in the service. The Rickard family
is of French ancestry and took a prominent
part in early Colonial times. Our subject's
mother was a daughter of Stephen and Rhoda
(Marcy) Healy, also natives of Massachusetts,
both of whom were related to old and re-
spected families of that State. They died in
the Bay State between the ages of seventy
and eighty years. Both her father and grand-
father were distinguished soldiers in the Revo-
lutionary war, although the fame of her grand-
father, Major Nathan Healy, rather outshone
that of her father, the elder gentleman receiv-
ing a liberal pension from the Government
for his able services in that memorable
190
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
struggle. The Healys were originally from
England, and, as far as known, were success-
ful farmers. On the maternal side, Mr. Rick-
aroVs mother was an own cousin of William
L. Marcy, at one time Governor of New York.
Their revered parents had eight children, of
whom our present subject is the sole survivor;
some of these were tradesmen and successful
merchants. The mother died in Windham
county, Connecticut, aged about sixty-nine
years, universally lamented for her kindly
ways and Christian character.
The subject of this sketch lived with his
mother until he was eight years of age, when
he went to live with a brother-in-law, with
whom he remained until he was fourteen.
He, then, found employment by the day or
month, and at the same time diligently prose-
cuted his studies in the free school, which he
continued to attend until he attained the age
of twenty-one.
He then started for the West, Illinois be-
ing the objective point, then on the extreme
frontier. In these days of rapid transit, it is
interesting to note, by way of contrast, the
time consumed by the journey. He went by
cars and boat to New York city, and thence,
via the Erie canal and Cumberland stage
route, to Philadelphia and Wheeling, which
took four weeks' time. He then.ee proceed-
ed by the rivers to Beardstown, Illinois
being twenty days en route, arriving at the
latter place in the fall of 1844. He taught
a subscription school for several terms, after
which he taught a free school, continuing
thus for many years, teaching in the winter
and farming during the summer. He first
purchased 120 acres in his present township,
on which he settled soon after marriage. He
afterward kept a general store for a year in
Chandlerville, when, in 1857, he sold his
first farm and bought 240 acres, on which he
now. resides. He lived on the old farm while
the present one was being prepared for occu-
pancy. Besides this valuable and extensive
property, he owns a fine tract of forty acres,
in this vicinity, all of which is devoted to
mixed farming, in which he is very success-
ful, being numbered among the most pros-
perous farmers of the county.
Mr. Rickard was first married June 22,
1846, to Miss Elizabeth Pease, an intelligent
lady, and a native of Ohio. Her parents
were Aborn Pease and wife, natives of Con-
necticut, prominent and early settlers of Illi-
nois, who died at an advanced age. By this
marriage, Mr. Rickard has one son, Henry A.,
who was born February 12, 1848; he married
Julia Hardin, and has two children. Mr.
Rickard's union was destined to be of short
duration, his wife dying on the old farm, in
the twenty-seventh year of her age.
November 5, 1854, Mr. Rickard was again
married, his second wife being Miss Mary
Harbison, an estimable lady, a native of this
county and a sister of Moses Harbison, a
prominent resident of this locality. (See
sketch in this book.) By this marriage there
was one child, now deceased. This union
was also suddenly dissolved by the hand of
death, before whose power all must bow.
This gentle and beloved lady expired October
6, 1856, leaving many friends to mourn her
untimely taking away.
April 21, 1856, Mr. Rickard was married
to Miss Mary C. Taylor, well and favorably
known in this community, where she was
born March 21, 1840. Her parents, Henry
B. and Mary P. (Hawthorn) Taylor, are hon-
ored pioneers of Illinois. Mrs. Rickard was
a pupil of her husband when he taught
school here in the early day. She is well
informed and intellectual, being well adapted
to be a companion to a person of her
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
191
husband's superior ability and training.
By this marriage there have been nine
children, live now living; all born on this
farm. Those surviving are: Charles E., born
July 28, 1860; John T., born June 29, 1862;
Francis M., born October 8, 1867; Mary,
born March 4, 1871; James A., born Decem-
ber 25, 1879.
Mr. Rickard was formerly an old-line
Whig, and cast his first vote for William H.
Harrison, at a time when there was no tick-
ets, each person writing the name of the can-
didate of his choice. He has taken an active
interest in the politics of his township, and
has held the position of superintendent and
other local offices, discharging his duties in
his several capacities with ability and integ-
rity.
Mr. and Mrs. Rickard and all the family
are earnest and useful members of the Con-
gregational Church, of which Mr. Rickard is
a Deacon and Trustee. The entire family are
prominent in temperance work and all mat-
ters tending to the material and moral ad-
vancement ot the community.
Although caring less for pedigree than our
English cousins across the water, yet we
tacitly admit that tendencies and early train-
ing have much to do with shaping a man's
career through life. While Mr. Rickard has
worked out his own prosperity and salvation,
yet he has, no doubt, often drawn inspiration
from the contemplation of the virtues of his
illustrious ancestors, whose example he has
insensibly been led to emulate.
fOSEPH FENTON VAN DEVENTER
was born in Highland county, Ohio,
June 25, 1826, a son of Jacob Van De-
venter, who was born in Loudoun county,
Virginia, a descendant of the colonial settlers
who came from Holland in the early history
of this country. The father of our subject
was reared and married in Virginia, but re-
moved to Ohio, where he was a pioneer of
Highland county; there he bought a tract of
timber-land, erected a log cabin, and made
it his home until the fall of 1832, when he
sold and came to Illinois; he was accompanied
by his wife and children, and his brother and
family. The trip was made overland, and
after a journey covering three weeks he ar-
rived in Schuyler county, which portion is
now included in Brown county; he made a
claim to a tract of Government land, bought
a log cabin, and lived there until his death in
1833. He was twice married, the second
wife being the mother of Joseph F. Her
maiden name was Jane Rogers, and she was
born near Paris, Kentucky, a daughter of
Thomas Rogers; she kept the family together
until her death in 1843. Joseph F. was a
child of six years when his parents emigrated
to the frontier: most of the land was owned
at that time by the Government, the country
was thinly settled, and the river towns were
the only market-places. He attended the
pioneer schools until he was old enough to as-
sist on the farm; the mother had rented land
which the sons cultivated. In 1850 Joseph
and his brothers, Thomas and Henson, and a
Mr. Adams and his son, crossed the plains to
California; they started with ox teams March
27, and arrived at Weavertown, August 27.
They engaged in mining thirty-five miles
east of Sacramento until the following spring,
and then went to Humboldt, and from that
point across the mountains to Weaverton;
there they resumed mining and continued the
industry until June, 1852, when they
started to Sacramento. They turned their
attention to feeding cattle now, and fol-
192
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
lowed the business until 1853, when they re-
turned to Illinois, coming by the Isthmus to
New York, and thence overland to their
prairie home. Mr. Van Deventer and his
brothers, Thomas, Barnett and Henson, com-
bined their interests in farming and stock-
raising, and bought land at different times,
until they owned at one1 time 3,500 acres;
Barrett and Henson are now deceased.
Our subject was married in 1868 to Lnti-
tia Givens, who was born at Mt. Sterling,
Brown county, Illinois, a daughter of John
A. and Mary F. (Curry) Givens, pioneers of
Brown county. Mr. and Mrs. Van Deventer
have two children living, Homer G. and
Lloyd T. They are both members of the
Presbyterian church. He was formerly a
supporter of the principles of the Whig party,
but has been a Republican since the organi-
zation of that body. He is a man of honor
and unquestioned integrity, and has the re-
spect of his fellow-men.
DUNCAN TAYLOR, a well-known citi-
zen of Rushville township, is a citizen
of the Republic by adoption, his native
laud being Scotland; he was born in Perth-
shire, in March, 1819, a son of Collin and
Mary (Watt) Taylor, natives of the same
shire. The parents spent their lives in their
own country; they reared a family of eight
children, named as follows: Jane, Thomas and
John, twins, James, Margaret, Duncan, the
subject of this biographical sketch, Ann and
Catherine. Duncan Taylor and his brother
James were the only members of the family
who emigrated to America; James entered the
service in the Florida war, and was never
heard of after leaving Boston. Our subject
was reared and educated in Scotland, and re-
sided in that country until he was eighteen
years of age. He then went to London, Eng-
land, and there followed the baker's trade un-
til 1843. In that year he emigrated to the
United States, embarking on board a sailing
vessel at Liverpool, which landed in New
York after a voyage of thirty days. He
worked at his trade in New York city until
1848, and then started toward the setting
sun. The city of Chicago at that time had a
population of a few thousand people, but
there was not a railroad entering the place,
and stages ran to St. Louis and other im-
portant points. Mr. Taylor engaged in work
at his trade in Chicago, and remained there
a year, coming at the end of that time to
Rushville.
At the breaking out of the civil war he
abandoned his private interests, and in
August, 1861, he enlisted in Company G,
Twenty-eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry,
and was with his regiment fn all the marches
and campaigns; the most important battles in
which he took part were Fort Henry, Fort
Donelson, Shiloh, Jackson, Miss, and the
sieges of Corinth and Vicksburg. He was
honorably discharged August 26, 1864, the
term of his enlistment having expired.
He returned to his home and resumed his
former vocation, which he pursued a number
of years; he was successful in his business
operations, and at different times invested in
and, until he now owns three farms in Wood-
stock township.
Mr. Taylor was married in 1843 to Eliza-
beth Fourgeson, a native of Ireland, and a
daughter of Daniel and Mary (Fulton) Four-
geson. Four children were born of this
union, two of whom are living, Robert and
William, twins; Sarah and Mary are botli de-
ceased. Robert married Ann Beck, and has
four children ; William married Adele Van-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
193
davenor; Sarah was the wife of Richard Law-
ler, and Mary married Charles Reed; she
left two children. Mr. and Mrs. Taylor are
worthy and consistent members of the Pres-
byterian Church. In politics Mr. Taylor is
an ardent supporter of Republican principles.
He is a member of Colonel Harvey Post, No.
131, G. A. R. He is a man of superior busi-
ness ability, is honorable in all his dealings,
and worthy of the confidence his fellow-men
repose in him.
jNDREW J. HEDGCOCK, a prosper-
ous farmer and esteemed citizen of
Schuyler county, Illinois, was born in
Davidson county, North Carolina, November
25, 1831, and is a son of John and Temper-
ance (Bodenhainer) Hedgcock. Three gen-
erations of the family were born in the old
North State: the subject of this sketch, his
father, John, and his grandfather, Elisha.
The originator of the family in that State
was Elisha's father, John, who removed to
North Carolina from within sixteen miles of
Baltimore, Maryland. This was about six
years before the Revolutionary war. Will-
iam, an older brother of John's, was a sol-
dier in that war; and it is more than proba-
ble that John also fought with the Colonies
for independence. Elisha, son of John,
spent his whole life in North Carolina. He
had four sons, all dead but one. His son,
John, a farmer, removed to Illinois in 1834,
with his wife and three children. The long
trip was made overland with a one-horse wag-
on, and consumed about eight weeks. He
at first settled near Rushville, but afterward
removed to Birmingham township, where
he bought seventy-nine acres of wild land.
On this he built a log cabin, 16 x 18 feet,
in which his family lived for sixteen or
eighteen years. He then erected a nice
frame house, where he resided until his
death, at the age of seventy-five years. He
was well and favorably known in his com-
munity, and was sincerely mourned by many
friends. In politics, he was originally a
Whig, but joined the Republican party on
its organization. He was a devout church
member, and interested in all good works.
His worthy wife died on the same farm,
aged fifty-five years.
Andrew is one of the eight children, seven
of whom are yet living, nearly all in this
county. He remained on the old farm un-
til he was twenty-two years old working
With his father at the cooper trade, and at-
tending the subscription school. He mar-
ried early in life, and rented a farm for two
years, but at the end of that time he bought
eighty acres that were but little improved,
on which he built a log house. Here they
lived for four years and then he replaced the
old house by a neat frame one. He has 520
acres now, and it is divided into several as
good farms as are in the county, all having
fine farm houses and buildings upon them.
Mr. Hedgcock has always been a strong Re-
publican in politics, and voted for John C.
Fremont. He and his wife are prominent
members of the Congregational Church, he
having joined in 1857.
He was married April 17, 1855, to Miss
Martha P. Hall, of Iredell county, North
Carolina. She is the daughter of Robert S.
and Annie (King) Hall. Her parents were
married in 1819 and came to Illinois in the
spring of 1835, for the purpose of freeing
their slaves, of whom they had some eleven
or twelve by inheritance, which they suc-
ceeded in doing after several years of trouble
and expense. They had ten children. Mr.
194
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS8,
Hall was a good man, and always acted up to
his convictions of right and wrong. He
lived in Indiana for some time and then re-
turned to Illinois, and died here at the age of
seventy-two. The whole family were very
prominent wherever they lived;
Mr. and Mrs. Hedgcock had eight chil-
dren, seven of whom are still living: Robert
S., born February 28, 1856, married Laura
Balton, and they have three children; Mary
J., born September 10, 1857, married Albert
S. Glass, and they have one child; John F.,
born November 3, 1861, married Anna E.
Wade, and they have four children. He is
Township Treasurer, to which office he. was
elected in 1886.' He is a farmer, and resides
on his own farm. The fourth child, Bessie
E., born June 14, 1864, married George
Dorsett, and they have one child; Matilda
A., born September 25, 1866, and Anna E.,
born May 16, 1875, are both at home. Lil-
lie E., born November 8, 1870, married
William E. Dorsett, September 10, 1891.
All but two of the children have been at
Plymouth High school, of which three are
graduates. Most of the family are active in
church work, and the occupation of them all
is farming and stock raising. This is a
family of whom the county may well be
prond.
. JOHN J . McDANNOLD, a promi-
nent citizen of Brown county, is the sub-
ject of the following biography, and is
cheerfully accorded a space in this history.
He was born on the homestead in Pea Ridge
township, Brown county, Illinois, August 29,
1851. His father, Thomas I. McDannold, was
born near Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, a son of
John McDannold, a native of Virginia. The
great-great-grandfather of our subject, Alex-
ander McDannold, was born near Aberdeen,
Scotland, and emigrated to America in colo-
nial days; he settled near Culpeper Court
House, Yirginia, and spent the remainder of
his life in that State. John McDannold re-
moved from Virginia to Kentucky and was
an early settler of that State; he improved a
farm on which he lived .the remainder of his
days. Thomas I. McDannold grew to man-
hood in his native State, and came to Illinois.
After his marriage he purchased a tract of
wild land in Pea Ridge township; there he
built a small frame house, and began the task
of reducing his land to cultivation. As his
means increased he made other investments
in land, and now owns 500 acres. He was
united in marriage to Mary E. Means, a na-
tive of Kentucky and a daughter of Major
John and Patsey (Parker) Means. They
reared a family of four children: John J.,
Thomas R., George R. and Clara. John J.
received his early education in the district
schools, and this training was supplemented
by a course at the Quincy high school, one
term at Farwell's English and Classical
school, and two years at Dr. Corbin's private
school.
Supplying himself with the necessary
books, he returned to the home farm, and be-
gan the study of law. In 1873 he entered
the law department of the Iowa State Uuiver-
sity at Iowa City, and was graduated
from that institution in 1874; December
25th of that year he opened an office in Mt.
Sterling, and has since devoted himself to
legal work.
He was united in marriage, in 1876, to
Miss Cora Harris, who was born in Macomb,
Illinois, a daughter of Dr. Ralph and Mary
Harris. Two children were born to Judge
and Mrs. McDannold, Malcolm and Helen.
8OHDTLBR AND BROWN COUNTIES.
195
Judge McDannold lias filled various offices
of trust and honor; he has served as a mem-
ber of the School Board, has served in the
City Council, has been Mayor of the city,
Master in Chancery for seven years, and
County Judge for six years; the last named
position he resigned in 1892. He was made
the nominee of the Democratic party for
Congress at the convention held at Jersey-
ville, in May, 1892, being the first man in
Brown county to receive this distinction.
He is a member of Hard in Lodge, No. 44,
A. F. & A. M., of the chapter, and of Delta
Commandry, No. 48, K. T. In his profes-
sion he has been very successful, and has at-
tained a prominent position among the mem-
bers of the bar of Illinois.
INOCH EDMONSTON, a member of
the county Board of Supervisors, rep-
resenting Bainbridge township, is one
of the prominent citizens of Sclmyler county,
and is entitled to recognition in its annals.
He was born in Carroll county, Missouri,
March 2, 1856, a son of Enoch Edmonston,
Sr.; the father was born in Buncombe
county, North Carolina, July 20, 1801, a son
of Baeiel Edmonston, who removed from
Maryland, his native State, to North Carolina,
and thence to the Territory of Indiana, in
1808; he was a pioneer of Dubois county,
and there spent the last years of his life. He
was married to Hannah Rose, who was born
in North Carolina and died in Indiana.
Enoch Edtnonston, their son, was reared in
Indiana and was married there. In 1829 he
emigrated to Illinois with his brother, spent
the summer in Schuylef county, and in the
autumn returned to Indiana. In 1834 he
again came to the State, accompanied by his
family; he made the trip overland with two
teams, camping on the way, and located on a
tract of land that was afterward found to be
patent land; he then removed to section
31, where he resided a short time, soon mak-
ing a claim to a tract of Government land on
section 29; he erected a house on this place,
made some improvements, and lived there
until he purchased land on section 32. As
he prospered he added to his landed estate,
and at one time owned about 1,000 acres.
In 1855 he rented his farms, and went to
Carroll county, Missouri, where he purchased
land and resided for two or three years; at
the end of that time he returned to Schuyler
county, where he was living at the time of
his death, August 2, 1872. He was twice
married; the first wife was Susan Allen, a
native of Buncombe county, North Carolina,
and a daughter of Daniel and Celia (Hyde)
Allen; she died in 1854; the second marriage
was to Sarah (Barbee) Newsom. Mr. Ed-
monston was prominently identified with the
best interests of the county; for six years he
was Sheriff of the county, and was Treasurer
for two years, discharging his duties with
marked ability and fidelity.
Enoch Edmonston, Jr., was two years old
when his parents returned from Missouri to
Illinois. He received his education in the
common schools, and had the advantage of a
term at a business college in Quincy. For a
period of three years he was engaged in busi-
ness at Quincy, and with the exception of
that time he has given his attention exclu-
sively to agricultural pursuits; he now occu-
pies the old homestead. He was married in
March, 1885, to Nancy Ater, a native of
Cass county, Illinois, and a daughter of John
J. and Mary Ater, natives of Morgan county,
Illinois, and pioneers of Cass county. Mr.
and Mrs. Edmonston are the parents of four
106
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GA88,
children: Belle, Roy, Floss and Fay. Inde-
pendent in thought and action, Mr. Edmon-
ston has never been associated with any
political party, but cast his first vote with
the Labor party, and now gives his support
to the organization known as the People's
party. He is a member of Woodstock
Grange, No. 443, P. of H.
fOHJM KERR, Rushville. — -America has
drawn her population from every conti-
nent and all the islands of the sea. Ireland
has contributed her quota, sending many of
her sturdy sons, who have aided in the de-
velopment and growth of the New World,
and pushed their way to the frontier, that the
path might be made for the onward march
of civilization. John Kerr, proprietor of the
Schuylerville coal mine and one of the prom-
inent agriculturists of Schuyler county, Illi-
nois, is a native of County Fermanagh, Ire-
land, born near Five-mile Town, July 15,
1840. His father was also a native of the
Emerald Isle, but the grandfather was born
in Scotland, although he spent his last days
in County Fermanagh. The father was a
weaver by trade, and operated a hand loom
with great skill; later in life he became the
proprietor of a shop, and employed several
men; the last years of his life, however, were
devoted to farming, the land being leased; he
married Rebecca Wier, a native of Scotland,
and to them were born eight children.
John Kerr and his brother Alexander emi-
grated to America in 1864, the latter settling
at Newark, New Jersey; they were the only
members of the family who came to this
country. Our subject was reared and edu-
cated in his native land, and followed agri-
cultural pursuits. He did not bring his
family with him to the United States, as it
was to them an untried land, and he wished
to be able to return if the prospects were not
fair. He was first located at Whitestone on
the Hudson, his wife and children joining
him there the following year. Later on he
went to Newark, New Jersey, and was em-
ployed in the woolen mills until 1872. In
that year he removed to Illinois, and pur-
chased eighty acres of land, ten miles north
of Rushville; here he lived a year, and then
sold out, buying ten acres near Rushville.
Two years later he had the good fortune to
open a coal bank, and since that time he has
been busily engaged in operating the same;
he ships to northern Illinois and Wisconsin,
and carries on a profitable trade. He has in-
vested in lands at different times, and now
owns one hundred and ninety and a half
acres, lying three quarters of a mile from the
courthouse. x
Mr. Kerr was united in marriage in 1862,
to Miss Eleanor Bell, a native of County Fer-
managh, Ireland, and a daughter of Robert
and Ann Bell. Eight children have been
born to them: Joseph, Catherine, Robert,
Annie, Fred, William, Burtand May.
Politically, Mr. Kerr adheres to the prin-
ciples of the Republican party, and is a
thoroughly loyal citizen of his adopted
country.
HOMAS W. SCOTT, deceased, was
born in Montgomery county, Maryland,
December 2, 1808. His father, Amos
Scott, was a native of the same county, born
in 1777, of Scotch-Irish ancestors, who were
among the early settlers of this country. He
was reared to agricultural pursuits, and re-
sided in Maryland until 1814, when he re-
moved to Kentucky. The journey was made
SCHUYLER AND SHOWN COUNTIES.
197
with teams to the Ohio river, and thence
down that stream on flatboats. Mr. Scott
located near Georgetown, Scott county, and
was engaged in planting until 1832, when he
came to Schuyler county, Illinois, and settled
on land in Buena Vista township, which his
son Thomas W. had purchased; there he and
his wife spent the remainder of their days;
her maiden name was Nancy "West, and she
was born in Montgomery county, Maryland;
she was the mother of two sons and five
daughters. Thomas W. was a child of six
years when the family removed to Kentucky,
and there in the Blue-Grass State he was
reared and educated. In 1829 he came to
Illinois, making the trip on horseback, and
located at Eushville, which was but a hamlet;
the surrounding country was thinly settled,
and much of the land was yet owned by the
Government. He embarked in the mercan-
tile trade at Rushville, opening the first store
of the kind in that place; he carried on a
business there until 1835, and then returned
to Scott county, Kentucky. He bought the
Blue Springs farm, five miles west of George-
town, and cultivated this land with slave
labor; he lived there until 1851, when he
sold out and returned to Rushville, Illinois.
He was engaged in conducting a general loan
and brokerage business until his death, which
occurred January 22, 1885.
Mr. Scott was twice married; his first wife
was Adeline Johnson; she was born in Scott
county, Kentucky, and died there in 1834;
the issue of this marriage was one son, R. J.,
now living at Brookfield, Missouri, a phy-
sician. The second marriage was December
20, 1840, when he was united to Catherine
Fitzgerald. She was born one mile from Lex-
ington, Kentucky, October 30, 1822, a daugh-
ter of Jesse Fitzgerald, a native of Coif ax
county, Virginia. The paternal grandfather,
William Fitzgerald, was also a Virginian by
birth, but removed to Kentucky, being one of
the earliest white settlers there. On account
of the hostility of the Indians, he with sev-
eral others lived for some time in the fort at
Boone Station. Later he purchased land in
Fayette county, and resided there until his
death. Jesse Fitzgerald was a young child
when his parents moved to Kentucky. He
was reared to the occupation of a farmer, and
owned land one mile from Lexington which
was cultivated by slaves. He married
Lucretia Shellars, a native of Maryland and a
daughter of William Shellars.
Mrs. Scott has nine children living: Jo-
sephine, Eugene J., Mary F., Thomas W.,
Catherine, Leonidas, Winfield, Mentor and
Florida. The parents were both consistent
members of the Christian Church. Mr. Scott
cast his first vote for General Jackson, and
was all his life an ardent supporter of the
principles of Democracy. He was a man of
much force and integrity of character, and
his name is honored among the pioneers of
Schuyler county.
fOSEPH HUNT, farmer, of section 2,
township 17, range 10, post office Vir-
ginia, was born in Kentucky, September
19, 1824. His parents moved to Sullivan
county, Indiana, when he was one year old.
Here he grew to manhood, coming to Illinois
when he was twenty-five and stopping two
years in Sangamon county. From there he
went to Cass county, thirty-eight years ago.
His parents were John R. and Hannah (Davis)
Hunt. Both were natives of Kentucky, and
the grandfather was also a Kentuckian, who
ived to be ninety years old. Both parents
died in Sullivan county, Indiana. They had
198
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
eleven childreu, of which large family Joseph
was the eldest. Eight of the children are
still living. John "Wesley died in JSashville
during the war, being a soldier; Dora was
killed accidently with a scythe, and George
died in mature years, leaving a family. Levi,
James, Sarah A., Mary, Elizabeth, Martha
and Macia all live in Sullivan county, Indiana.
Joseph enlisted in August, 1862, in Com-
pany D, One Hundred and Fourteenth
Illinois Infantry, and was assigned to
duty with the army of the Cumberland. He
participated in the siege of Vicksburg
under General Grant. From there he went
to the battle of Jackson, returned to Memphis,
and was in that fight; next engaged in the
fight at Champion Hills, and from there went
to the Black .River, where he built a bridge
under tire from the enemy. He was under
General Thomas at this time. He guarded a
pontoon bridge for about six months, and
while there heard of the surrender of Lee and
Johnson. He was discharged in August,
1865, having served three years. Joseph was
home but once during his service, and that
was on a sick furlough. He had the erysipe-
las while in service and it injured his eyes so
much that he was nearly blind, and a furlough
was necessary. He has never recovered from
the effect of it. He receives a small pension,
on account of heart disease.
He was married on the farm where he now
lives, to Durinda B. Freeman, February 12,
1854. They have had two children: James
Henry, the eldest, is married and resides in
Leadville, Colorado. He has been keeping
hotel until recently. He is now employed at
the Government Fish Hatchery. He has one
child, Bernice. Ida married John T. Drink-
water, and lives near by. They have two
sons, Ralph and Joe. Mr. Drinkwater is a
breeder of road and draft horses.
Mr. Hunt is a staunch Republican, al-
though the rest of the family were Democrats.
He and his wife are members of the Cumber-
land Presbyterian Church and are worthy
people and are highly respected by their hosts
of friends. Mr. Hunt does not belong to any
social orders.
RS. .NANCY GREEN was born in
Ohio, November 30, 1824, and lived
there until two or three years of age,
and then came to Kentucky with her parents.
They were James and Lovey (Tolle) Tolle,
both born in Virginia, who had gone to Ohio
in an early day. In 1836 they concluded to
move West and sold every thing except some
household goods, and with a two-horse
wagon came overland and first settled in
Schuyler county for two months. They
then came to Brown county and entered
eighty acres of land and bought 160 more
of that partly improved, and hewed out
a log hut in which they lived until about
1850. They then sold out again and went
to Grundy county, Missouri, where Mr.
Tolle bought an improved farm of 160 acres
and there lived until his death, but he had
sold the farm before this. He was living at
the home of his daughter Sarah when he died,
aged about seventy-four years. The mother
of our subject died at the same place, aged
about sixty-five years. There were ten chil-
dren, four of whom are yet living. The
father was a wheelwright and chair-maker.
The grandparents on the mother's side were
Reuben and - Tolle, and the paternal
grandparents were William and Diana Tolle.
The marriage of our subject took place
January 28, 1843, to Mr. Hiram Green,
who was born in Culpeper county, Virginia,
December 25, 1817. He was the son of
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
199
John and Sarali (Newby) Green, who lived
in Virginia all their lives and died about
o
middle age. The husband of our subject
came to Illinois about 1838, with some of
his relatives, and worked by the month for
some time, but was a cooper at the time of his
marriage. He bought a farm of 160 acres in
the county of Brown from a man who had im-
proved it; but Mr. Green built a log house
and there they lived for about six years, and
then he bought another eighty acres and
built a better house. There the family lived
until 1873, when he sold it and bought his
present farm of 240 acres on which are all
improvements. He died August 2, 1877.
He was a Democrat in his politics but did
not bother much about them.
Our subject and her husband started with
nothing and at the time of his death had ac-
quired as fine a farm as there is in the
county. They were faithful members of the
Union Baptist Church for years, and he was
an active member, assisting in the building
of it and was lamented by all at the time of
his death.
Mrs. Greene, the estimable lady whose
sketch we are presenting, is' well known in
the township where she and her husband
have shown to the world a life of married
felicity. She has been the beloved mother
of fourteen children and is not only esteemed
above all others by her immediate family but
by the neighborhood. We close this short
notice with the names of her family. Mary
Jane is at home; Sarah is married and has
two children; Lovey M. is married and died
leaving four children; Ann G. is married and
has seven childre; Juliet is married and has
five children; William F. is married and has
six children ; Celinda E. is married and has five
children; Angeline is married and has four
children; George W. is married and has
three children ; Purlina is married and has
two children; Olive; Almira is married but
has no family..
Mrs. Greene looks after the farm herself
and rents to her son George, who carries on a
very successful mixed farming.
ILLIAM J. DA VIS, of Lee township,
was born in Adams county, Illinois,
in 1845. His father, Washington,
was born in Virginia about 1822, and his
father, Edward, was a Virginia farmer who
emigrated to Illinois in 1837, where he
died at an advanced age, in Adams county.
They came by land the most of the way.
The mother of William J. was Nancy Chip-
man of North Carolina, a daughter of David
Chipman, who came to Illinois in 1835. She
survived her husband.
William Davis had a good common-school
education, was reared to farm life, and this
has been his vocation except a little agency as
a salesman in fruit trees. He remained at home
until twenty-six years of age, when he married
Maggie, daughter of George and Hannah
(Ferguson) Colgate. She was born in Pike
county, of which her parents were early set-
tlers. Her mother died about 1877. Her
father is living, at the age of seventy-five.
Mr. and Mrs. Davis settled on a small farm
near Clayton in 1874. Three years later they
sold there and moved to their present home
in Brown county, buying sixty acres for $2,-
250. He rents part, and farms about 120
acres a year. They have been greatly blessed,
and have not lost any of their ten children.
They are, Charles E., Adelbert, Walter, Har-
riet, Jackson, Julia, George, Belle, Mary and
Nellie. This family is all comely, bright
and dutiful; and are being carefully educated
200
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP CASS,
Mr. Davis is a Missionary Baptist, he is also
a Democrat, but is not strongly partizan.
While he has been very busy raising stock
and engaged in general farming he has had
time to become a successful bee-keeper in
the last six years. He is School Director and
a very active member in his church. His
family is highly thought of in the commun-
ity as is he himself.
[ENJAMIN F. REBMAN, a farmer and
dairyman, was born in Schuyler county,
Illinois, at Pleasant View, January 12,
1848. He was the seventh child in a family
of nine born to John and Margaret (Huffman)
Rebman, the former of whom was born at
Strasburg, Germany, and the latter near the
same place. They emigrated to America
in 1830 and were married in New York city
in 1832. They lived in New York State
about four years, when they removod to St.
Louis, and after remaining there two years
removed to Beardstown, Illinois, where they
lived four years more. At the end of that
time they moved to Schuyler county and
here they both died, Mrs. Rebman in 1877
and her husband four years later. Mr. Reb-
man was a mechanic by trade.
Benjamin Rebman, after the slight school-
ing he was able to obtain in the country
schools, at the age of eighteen, engaged in
farming, working by the month for farmers
until he had accumulated enough to begin
business for himself. He has been engaged
in the dairy business for some years and has
supplied the city of Beardstown with vast
quantities of milk. This taken in connection
with his extensive farming yield him a nice
income. He was engaged in the manufacture
of brick, but sold out recently.
He was married in this county January 1,
1879, to Mrs. Louisa Curry, daughter of An-
thony Messeren, one of the pioneers of
Schuyler county. He was a very successful
farmer, being a representative of an agricul-
tural family for generations back. He went
from Germany, his birthplace, to the West
Indies, when he was six years of age. The
uncle who was taking him to America died
on the voyage and the child was adopted by a
West Indian planter. Here he grew toman-
hood, and came to Illinois in 1832 and en-
tered a large tract of land in Schuyler county,
where he lived until the time of his death in
1859. His wife survived him for twenty-
two years. They had five children, two of
whom died in infancy.
Mr. and Mrs. Rebman have had three
children: Anthony, deceased; Gale and Her-
man Blane. His religious views are those of
a free- thinker; is Republican in politics.
NDREW J. MEAD is located at Hunts-
ville and is the oldest physician in
Schuyler county, as he has been lo-
cated at this place since March, 1840. He
was born in Henry county, Kentucky, April
4, 1815, being a son of William and Mary
(Scott) Mead.
He grew to manhood in his native State,
passing his boyhood on the farm. At the
age of thirteen he commenced to clerk in a
store and continued there four years. He
then lived with Dr. Gosle, with whom he
studied medicine until he was twenty-one
arid then practiced with him one year. He
then went to Indiana, whence he came to
Illinois and located at Huntsville. He had
been on a visit to Missouri, and on his return
stopped in Huntsville, where he met some
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
201
old Kentucky friends who induced him to
locate in this place. He has had a large
practice and is well and favorably known.
He married in December, 1843, Mary J.
Briscoe, born near Perryville, Kentucky,
June 2, 1825, daughter of George H. and
Eliza K. (Ewing) Briscoe. She died December
4,1891. They had four children: Alice, died,
aged six years; Richard Homer, see sketch;
"William 13., a physician in Kansas, graduate
of Rush Medical College; and Clara, wife of
Charles Everson, of Huntsville. Both sons
studied medicine with their father and both
graduated before they were twenty-one years
of age. The Doctor is a Democrat in poli-
tics and has always been an active worker
in the party. He never accepted any office,-
as his profession occupied all his time. He
is a man who is liberal in his religious views.
oNTo one is more highly respected and ad-
mired than this same pioneer doctor of
Huntsville.
JILL1AM C. BOLLMAN, Postmaster
at Browning, is a native of Pike
county, Illinois, born March 13, 1839.
His parents were John and Rebecca (Hedgen)
Bollman. Both were natives of Ohio and
came to Illinois in 1837, locating in Pike
county, where the father died in 1850, and
the mother died in Quincy, of the cholera,
when it was raging there. There were seven
children by this marriage, and two by the
former one. The brothers and sisters of
William were: Michael, deceased; our subject
was the next child; Samuel, still living in
Pike county, married; John, deceased; Or-
ville, deceased; Sarah Massey of Fulton
county, Illinois; Mary O., married; Aaron
Finton resides near Pittsfield, Illinois, The
other two are dead.
William grew to manhood in Pike county,
and married there Miss Amanda Preston, of
Ohio. Her parents were John and Hannah
Preston. The father died when Mrs. Boll-
man was a child, but the mother died in
Browning with her daughter, Mrs. Bollman.
Mr. Bollman farmed for many years in Pike
county, and then removed to Browning,
Schuyler county, where he lived until 1861
when he enlisted in Company H, Third Illi-
nois Cavalry, as a private, and became
Quarter Master Sergeant of his regiment.
He served four years and two months, and
participated in the battles of Pea Ridge; was
with Sherman when he made the attack on
Haines' Bluff, at Vicksburg; was at the cap-
ture of Arkansas Post, and from thence to Hol-
low Springs, Mississippi ; did scouting duty in
Mississippi, and afterward had a serious en-
gagement at Gravelly Springs, Tennessee,
and he was also engaged in many other skir-
mishes and battles of less importance. After
the surrender of the rebel armies, the regi-
ment was sent across the plains to award the
Indians, and remained there until Octo-
ber, 1865. They were mustered out at Min-
neapolis, October 10, 1865. Mr. Bollman
returned to Browning, and engaged in farm-
ing, and remained in that business until 1887,
when he engaged in mercantile business. He
was appointed Postmaster in 1890, and still
holds that position.
Mr. and Mrs. Bollman have had nine chil-
dren, but only one of that number is
living, Frank, now twenty- three years of age,
is married and resides in Beardstown, Illi-
nois. The Bollman family are of German
and Irish origin. Mr. Bollman is a Repub-
lican, though he entered the army as a Demo-
crat, but changed his views while in the
service, and has faithfully voted with the Re-
publican party ever since. He is a member
202
SIOGRAPUICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
of the G. A. E., also of the I. O. O. F.'
Browning Lodge, No. 309. He is a P. G.,
and has represented his lodge for two years
at the Grand Lodge of the State. Mr. and
Mrs. Bollman are members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church.
Mr. Bollman was not the only member of
his family who served iu the late war; a
brother, Samuel, served three years in the
Ninety-ninth Illinois Infantry. Both escaped
injury, except to general health.
[IMON A. REEVE, who has long been
closely connected with the agricultural
interests of Schuyler county, is a native
of the State of Illinois, born at Springfield,
December 28, 1828. His father, John Reeve,
was a native of New York, and the pa-
ternal grandfather was born in the same
State; the latter is supposed to have visited
Illinois at an early day, as he purchased land
in Fulton county. John Reeve was still a
youth when he acccompanied his parents to
Kentucky, and there he was married to Bet-
sey Ross, a Kentuckian by birth; from the
Brue Grass State he removed to Indiana, and
thence to Illinois, being one of the pioneers
of Springfield ; he resided there some years
before it became the capital city of the com-
monwealth. In 1829 he came to Schuyler
county, and settled in Bainbridge township
on land his father had given him; the tract
was heavily timbered, and there were no im-
provements. Mr. Reeve erected a lug house,
and began the task of placing the laud under
cultivation. He resided there until after the
death of his wife, which occurred in 1843,
when he returned to Indiana; in a few years
he came back to Illinois and located in Peoria
county, where he spent the last days of his
life. His death occurred in his seventy-fifth
year. Simon A. Reeve was but an infant
when his parents removed to Schuyler county;
here he was reared amid the privations and
hardships incident to life on the frontier; the
country was thinly settled, Indians still
roamed the prairie, and wild game was abund-
ant. The mother spun and the sister wove
all the cloth with which the children were
dressed. Our subject attended the pioneer
schools taught in the primitive log house,
and in early youth began to earn his own liv-
ing; for some time he received as compensa-
tion only his board and clothing; later he had
$8 or $9 per month, which he considered ex-
cellent wages. He afterward learned the
cooper's trade, which he followed a number of
years, and at this vocation earned the money
with which he bought the first land he owned.
An incident worthy of note as illustrating the
value of neighbors as compared with that of
land, is furnished in the act of the father of
the subject of this sketch: When he settled
on 160 acres of land in Schuyler county, his
neighbors were few and far between, and in
order to secure a near neighbor, Mr. Reeve sold
fifty of his 160 acres to a gentleman for
$25, upon the condition that he would reside
upon it. Mr. Reeve has been very success-
ful as a farmer, and has accumulated consid-
erable amount of property; to his oldest son
he has given 107 acres, to another 91 acres,
and now occupies a farm of 120 acres, which
is well improved.
Mr. Reeve was married, in 1854, to Miss
Jane Orr, a native of county Tyrone, Ireland,
and a daughter of Joseph and Mary (Burn-
side) Orr. Two sons have been born of this
union, William H. and Pulaski; the former
married Harriet E. Ackley, who was born in
Adams county, Illinois, a daughter of Latham
and Pauline (Spangler) Ackley; their three
SOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
203
children died in infancy: Pulaski married
Mary I. Ward, and they have one child liv-
ing, named Bertha. Mr. and Mrs. Reeve are
consistent members of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church. In his political opinions Mr.
Reeve adheres to the principles of the Demo-
cratic party.
WALKER BECKWITH was one of
the early settlers of Bain bridge town-
ship, Schnyler county, Illinois, and is
entitled to recognition as a member of that
worthy band of men and women who pene-
trated the wilderness of the frontier, and
made the way for the onward march of prog-
ress. He was born at Stephentown, Rens-
selaer county, New York, August 17, 1798,
and is a son of Elisha Beckwith, a native of
New England, and grandson of Elisha Beck-
with, Senior; the latter was a sailor and fol-
lowed the sea for many years, visiting the
principal ports of the world; he spent his
last years in Chenango county, New York.
The father of our subject was reared to agri-
cultural pursuits; from Stephentown he re-
moved to Chenango county, New York,
where he was one of the early settlers; he
bought a tract of timber land there, and
erected a log house; he cleared a farm, made
many valuable improvementss, and spent his
last years in that home. He married Mary
Walker, a daughter of James Walker; she
survived him many years, coming to Illinois
after his death; she died in Hancock county.
E. Walker Beckwith grew to manhood
among the primitive surroundings of Chen-
ango county, New York; there were no rail-
roads, and Albany was the principal market
town; the mother spun and wove the cloth
with which her children were clothed. Here
he remained until he was about twenty-six
years of age, and then pushed his way to Ohio;
after a year spent in that State he went to
Indiana, and while a resident of the Hoosier
State was engaged in various occupations; he
once made a trip on a flat-boat, loaded with
produce, to New Orleans. He lived in Indi-
ana seven years, and then came to Illinois, lo-
cating in Schnyler county; as before stated,'
he was one of the early settlers in Bainbridge
township, and with the exception of four years
spent in Hancock county, Illinois, this has
been his home for the past forty years.
He married Mary Waugh, a native of Ken-
tucky and a daughter of Thomas and Sally
Waugh. She died in 1886. Of this union
five children were born: James, Charles, Nor-
man, Stephen and Emily J. Stephen resides
on the home farm, and has the management
of the same; he married Elizabeth Kline,
May 8, 1884, and they are the parents of
three children; Olie T., Fidelia and Min-
nie E.
Mr. Beckwith is a consistent member of
the Baptist Church, as was also his wife. He
is a man of honor and integrity, and has the
respect of the entire community.
,ON. PERRY LOGSDON, a citizen of
Schuyler county, is a man whose name
is honored where it is known. He was
born in Madison county, Kentucky, July 8,
1842, a son of Joseph and Lucy (Parker)
Logsdon (see sketch of Joseph Logsdon).
Until the age of eighteen years he passed an
uneventful life amid the scenes of his child-
hood, but this quiet was then rudely dis-
turbed by the breaking out of the Civil war
between the North and South. In 1861 he
enlisted in Company H, Fiftieth Illinois
Volunteer Infantry, and served his country
faithfully until the cessation of hostilities,
204
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
July 13, 1865, being the date of his die-
charge. He participated in every engagement
of his company, and when the war was ended
he returned to his home, with, the rank of
First Lieutenant.
Mr. Logsdon was married September 5,
1867, to Miss Lizzie Byers, who was born in
Schuyler county, Illinois, March 12, 1850, a
daughter of William and Eleanor (Stntsman)
Byers (see sketch of John S. Stutsman). Mr.
Byers was born in the Blue-grass State, and
removed to this county in 1847, where he
spent his last days; the date of his birth is
May 22, 1826, and his death occurred Feb-
ruary 24, 1862; his wife was born August
23, 1828, in the State of Indiana. The
paternal grandparents of Mrs. Logsdon were
John and Elizabeth Byers; he died in 1827,
and she survived until 1857. After his mar-
riage, Mr. Logsdon settled on land which is
a portion of his present farm; the dwelling
was a log house which was raised the day
General William Henry Harrison was in-
augurated President of the United States;
there he lived six years, and then removed to
his present home. He first bought 106 acres
of choice land, to which he added 120 acres
later on; to this he added two eighty-acre
tracts, and is now the owner of one of the
most desirable farms in the county; a portion
of this land is rented, and the rest is devoted
to general farming.
To Mr. and Mrs. Logsdon have been born
seven children, four of whom are deceased:
Luella was born on the home farm, August
5, 1869; Julia was born July 31, 1873;
Charles F. was born January 6, 1880. Mr.
Logsdon has for many years been identified
with the political movements of his county;
he has been Assessor, was Supervisor two
years, and has been School Director; in
1884 he was elected a member of the State
Legislature, and in 1888 was re-elected by a
large majority. He is a Republican, but
carried a Democratic district. While a mem-
ber of the Legislature he was on several
committees of importance, among which
were these on Penal and Reformatory Insti-
tutions, Canals and Rivers, Insurance, Drain-
age, and Farm Drainage. He discharged his
duties with marked ability, and such was the
dignity and courtesy of his bearing as to com-
mand the respect of his allies as well as oppo-
nents. Throughout all his career, Mr.
Logsdon has borne himself with a deep sense
of honor which has insured a name above re-
proach, a credit to his ancestry and a legacy
of great worth to his posterity. In the terri-
ble conflict of this nation he was a brave,
courageous soldier; in the private walks of
life he has been as much the hero. He is a
prominent member of the G.A. R. at Rush-
ville, and takes an active interest in this
organization.
f WILLIAM MEYER, a prosperous
farmer and stock-raiser of section 17,
0 range 11, was born in Westphalia'
Prussia, Germany, in 1838. In 1849, he
came to America with his parents (see bio-
graphy of Fred Meyer) and has been living
in this country ever since. Here he grew
to manhood, obtaining a little knowledge of
English and English books. While he is not
a well educated man he has good judgment
and is very intelligent He is the eldest of
his father's family, of whom all are married
and live in the United States. Mr. Meyer
owns a well improved farm of 160 acres, all
under the plow with first-class farm buildings,
all erected by himself. Beside this fine farm
he owns seventy acres of good grass land and
SGHUTLER AND SHOWN COUNTIES.
205
eighty acres of timber land. These lands
are all earned by his own hard work. He
follows general farming and stock-raising and
breeds cattle from a first-class stock.
He was married the first time to Caroline
Telkemeyer, born in Cass county, in 1845,
where she was reared and educated. She
came of German parents who came to the
United States and settled in Cass county
where they lived and died, the mother when
young and the father, William, when about
sixty-five. They were earnest members of
the German Lutheran Church. Mrs. Meyer
died at her home in this county in 1879, on
Easter Sunday of that year. She was thirty-
three years of age, a true, good wife and
mother, anda devout member of the Lutheran
Church. She was the mother of three chil-
dren: Mary at home with her father; Minnie
and Emma, also at home. They are intelli-
gent young women. Mr. Meyer was married
the second time in Schuyler county, to Lizzie
Gise, of Hesse Darmstadt, born in 1849. She
came to the United States when a young
woman with her father, John, the mother
having died in Germany. They settled in
Cass county. Later, Mr. Gise went tq Ore-
gon and died there when an old man,. He
and his family were Lutherans. Mr. and
Mrs. Meyer have one child, Lucy. . They are
members of the Lutheran Churph, and are
true, good people. Mr. Meyer is a Republi-
can in politics.
IZRA JACKSON is a Hoosier by birth,
born in Scott county, February 26,
1823. His father, Samuel Jackson,
was a native of North Carolina, and his
grandfather, Solomon Jackson, was probably
a native of the same State. The grandfather
was a powerful man and lived to the great
15
age of ninety-eight years. He enlisted three
different times in the Colonial army during
the Revolutionary war, the first two enlist-
ments being as substitute. He served dur-
ing nearly the entire war, and was very
j'oung when he first enlisted. He was a
shoemaker by occupation, but also taught
school, and remained in North Carolina until
the formation of the Territory of Indiana,
when he came there, too, and settled in what
is now Scott county. He was thus one
of the earliest settlers and pioneers of Indi-
ana. He bought land and lived there until
his death. For many years he drew a pen-
sion from the Government for his services
and patriotism during the Revolutionary war.
He visited Sphnyler county several times, but
finally died in Jefferson county, Indiana.
Samuel Jackson, the father of our subject,
was quite a young man when he went to Indi-
ana. He married and lived there until 1829,
and then, accompanied hyhiswifeandfivechil-
dreu, all drawn by two yoke of oxen, hitched
to an old-fashioned wagon, came to Illinois
in search of a home. There was scarcely an
inhabitant on the broad prairie then, and not
a lajd-out road in Schuyler county. He
located in what is now Bainbridge township,
moving into a vacant log cabin, which the
family occupied for two years, buying in the
meantime a tract of land upon which was a
rude log cabin and five or six acres of cleared
land, the remainder of the farm being heavy
timber. There wag little value then in stand-
ing timber, no matter how large and fine, and
accordingly the great trees were cut down,
rolled together, and destroyed by the torch.
This was necessary in order to clear the land
for cultivation. Upon this farm he resided
until his death in 1839. He was an indus-
trious, exemplary citizen, and an honor to
the great and historic name of Jackson. The
206
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA88,
maiden name of his wife, the mother of our
subject, was Esther Close, who was born
within two miles of Albany, New York. Her
father was a native of England, who came to
America at the age of thirteen. He mar-
ried a Connecticut lady, and came to Scott
county, Indiana, in a very early day, being
one of its pioneers.
Our subject, Ezra Jackson, is one of seven
children born to his parents, viz.: Zadok, Ezra,
Calvin, Elizabeth, Jesse, Solomon and Mary
J. When Ezra was five years of age, he
was brought to Schuyler county, where Tie grew
to manhood. He was reared on the farm,
and remained there until the age of twenty
years, when he commenced to learn the trade
of a cooper, after following which a few
years, he conducted a hotel for one year in
Frederick. In 1865 he bought property at
the corner of Liberty and Lafayette etreets,
Rushville, where he kept hotel for twenty
years. He then removed the building stand-
ing there and erected the brick stpre build-
ing now occupying the site of the hoteL
For some time he has been retired from
active business. He was married, in 1846, to
Emily JBrunk, who was born in Morgan
county, Illinois, June 8, 182Q, the daughter
of Jesse and Eliza (Day) Brunk, natives of
Kentucky, and pioneers of Morgan county.
Mr. and Mrs. Jackson's living children are;
Owen, Felix, Mary Ellen, Effigene, Martha
and Frederick. Mr. Jackson is a Democrat in
politics.
fHOMAS J. CLARK was born in Hunts-
ville township, Schuyler county, Sep-
tember 16, 1853. His father, Harrison,
was born in Logan county, Kentucky, Febru-
ary 15, 1811, and he was the son of Abner
Clark. . The father of our subject was reared
and married in his native township and re-
sided there until 1833, when he emigrated to
Illinois. He was accompanied by his wife
and child, and his brother-in-law, Mr. Wilgus,
and family. They owned a wagon together,
and each one had his own horse, and in this
way made an overland journey to Illinois and
located in Schuyler county. When he landed
here his entire wealth consisted in his inter-
est in the wagon, his horse and $150. He
lived at Mount Sterling one year, then en-
tered a tract of Government land in what is
now Huntsville township, Schuyler county.
He wanted a quarter section of land, but that
would have cost more money than he had,
consequently he entered eighty acres, and as
soon as he obtained the money he entered the
remainder of the quarter. As every other
settler, he first built a log cabin on the place
and commenced to improve his farm. For
several years there were no railroads, and he
hauled his wheat to Quincy, forty miles away.
He commenced very soon to deal in stock,
and was very successful both as a stock-dealer
and farmer. He continued to purchase land
until he had about 500 acres. Here he con-
tinued until his death in 1883. His wife
was named Lydia Coffman, of Hardin county,
Kentucky, born August 3, 1815. Her par-
ents came from Germany, and were early
settlers of Kentucky. She died in 1860.
Thomas was educated in Schuyler county,
and two years at Lincoln University. In 1875
he went to Sedgwick county, Kansas, pur-
chased a farm twelves from Wichita and there
engaged in farming for two years, when he
went into Wichita and engaged in the grain
business. He remained there two years and
then went to McPherson, where he engaged
in the same business, there built an elevator
and shipped the first car load of grain ever
shipped from that station. After two years
SOHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
207
he returned to Illinois and purchased the farm
where he now resides in Pea Ridge township.
It contains 240 acres, and is one of the finest
in the county.
He was married in 1874, to Virginia,
daughter of John S. Anderson. She was born
in Huntsville township. Mr. and Mrs. Clark
have seven children: Helen, Arthur R., Ches-
ter L., John H., Paul, Mary A. and Stanley.
Mr. Clark joined the Cumberland Presby-
terian Church when sixteen years of age, and
is an Elder in the church and has officiated
both as Superintendent and teacher in the
Sunday-school. Politically he is a stanch
Republican, and is a member of the County
Central Committee. In 1890 he was special
agent of the Government to make note of the
recorded indebtedness of the Twelfth Con-
gressional District. He has served several
terms as Secretary of the Mount Sterling
Mutual Insurance Company, which office he
now holds. Mr. Clark is well read, keeps.
posted on all general questions, is also a for-
cible writer, and is one of the prominent men
of the township.
[HOMAS R. WILLIAMS, Superintend-
ent of the Cass County Poor Farm, was
born in Bertie cqunty, North Carolina,
June 1, 1850. He is the son of Williamson
A. and Margaret (Thomas) Williams, natives
of Bertie county, North Carolina. The
family is an pld one in the State. The pa-
rents liyed on. a farm until after the birth of
six children, and in the fall of 1856 removed
tp Illinois by wagon, and settled in this
favored section, not far from Bluff Springs.
They rented for two years, and then purchased
the farm where they lived, when the mother
died in May, 1884, three-score-and-ten. She
was a member of the Methodist Episcopal
Church. Her husband remained on the farm
for two years longer, and then went to Beards-
town, and one year later came to Bluff
Springs, and here spent his last years, dying
iu October, 1888. He was a good citizen, a
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
a stanch Democrat, and a very worthy man.
Our subject and his brother are the only
members of the family now living. Mr.
Williams has lived in this county since he
was six years of age, and has been a practi-
cal farmer since he was twenty-two years ot
age. He took charge of the Poor Farm in
1887, after his brother had managed it for
eight years. It is located at Bluff Springs,
and consists of more than 1QQ acres of fine
land. It is well managed by Mr. Williams.
The average poor in attendance all the
time is, about twelve, and there is but one
feeble-minded person among them.
Our subject was married in this county to
Sophia Reichert, born in Beardstown, in
1857, reared and educated in Cass county,
and a daughter of Conrad and Sophia Rei-
chert, of Gerrnany. The mother died in the
prime of life, in Cass county. Mr. Reichert
was married the second time to Mrs. Withroe,
and they live in Beardstown, now quite old.
Mr. and Mrs. Williams have three chil-
dren: Charles F., John F. and Howard, all
at home. The family belongs to the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church, and Mr. Williams is
a Democrat. The county has the right man
in the right place.
fOSEPH M. SPENCER, an intelligent
and progressive citizen of Ashland, Illi-
nois, and an honored veteran of the late
war, was born in Gibson county, Indiana,
October 24, 1842.
208
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Of . CASS,
His parents were Joseph and Elizabeth
(Hayhurst) Spencer, both of whom were na-
tives of Morgantown, Virginia, the father of
Welsh and the mother of German ancestry.
They were married in Miami county, Ohio,
removing thence to Indiana, from where
they came to Morgan county, Illinois, in
1849. The parents and younger children
later removed to Kansas, where the father
died in 1870, leaving his family and many
friends to mourn his loss. He was a man of
superior intelligence and generous impulses,
and was very popular among his associates,
who keenly felt his loss. His devoted wife,
whose greatest interest was the welfare of
her husband and family, returned to Illinois
after her husband's death, finally expiring in
Morgan county, Illinois, in 1879, deeply
lamented by all who knew her and who ap-
preciated her many excellent qualities of
mind and heart.
This worthy couple were the parents of
seven children, four of whom are now living:
Job H., the eldest, died in Arkansas, in
April, 1890, leaving two children, his wife
having previously died; John D. served three
years in the Forty- second Indiana Infantry,
is now married and is a prosperous farmer of
Gibson county, Indiana; William S. resides
in Buena Vista, Colorado: he is a widower
and has a family; Rebecca, wife of William
A. Baldwin, lives in Loami, Sangamon
county, Illinois; Amos and Simeon died in
youth.
The subject of this sketch accompanied
his parents to Illinois when he was seven
years of age, and his boyhood and early man-
hood was spent in this State, in the quiet
pursuits of farm and home life. These
peaceful, happy days were disturbed by the
Civil war, and young Joseph enlisted at
Springfield, on September 15, 1861, in Com-
pany K, Thirty-third Illinois Infantry. He
was in the Department of Missouri, and was
taken prisoner by the notorious Jeff Thomp-
son, at the battle of Blackwell Station, in
October, 1861, and was paroled on the same
day. Jeff said " they could either take the
oath of allegiance, receive a parole, or be
shot;" that he had "no use for prisoners."
It was at this battle that Mr. Spencer saved
the life of General Lippincott, a service
which the General appreciated until the day
of his death, and the heroic act afterward
brought many courtesies to the subject of
this sketch. He was offered a commission as
Second Lieutenant, but declined it as a re-
ward for doing his duty. We pause, to ex-
claim, In what other country could such an
incident have occurred? Truly, America
rears kings, not ordinary men !
Mr. Spencer was seven months under pa-
role, when he returned to the right of his
command, at Village Creek, Arkansas, and
took part in the fight at Cotton Plant,
which occurred the following day. Here, he
captured Colonel Harris' horse, sword and
two revolvers. This was the Colonel who
commanded the Texas Legion in that engage-
ment. Mr. Spencer was next engaged in
battle at Port Gibson, May 1, 1863; he had
been in several unimportant battles during
the interim, but this was the next general
engagement. He was at Champion Hills
and Black River Bridge; after which came
the siege of Vicksburg, where he dug in the
ditches and was under fire for forty-seven
days. Here, he received a sunstroke, and
was sent to St. Louis on a hospital boat. It
was then that he realized fully the saying
that misfortunes never come singly, for,
while en route, he fell down a hatchway,
striking on his head and causing deaf ness in his
left ear, from which he has never recovered.
SCHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
209
He rejoined his regiment at New Orleans,
in February, 1864, they being on their way
home on veteran furlough. Mr. Spencer re-
enlisted as a musician, and accompanied the
boys home. Afterward, he returned to New
Orleans, where he did garrison duty until the
Mobile campaign, when the regiment was
badly decimated by a railroad wreck, which
killed and wounded many men. Mr. Spen-
cer was assigned to the Sixteenth Army
Corps, under General A. J. Smith, and par-
ticipated in the fight at Spanish Fort. He
then went to Montgomery, Alabama, and
thence to Selma, of the same State, whence
be and the command moved forward to
Meridian, Mississippi. From there they
went to Vicksburg, and, later, to Yazoo,
where Mr. Spencer was mustered out of ser-
vice, November 24, 1865, after a continuous
service of more than four years.
His duty done, his thoughts naturally
turned to procuring a means of livelihood.
It was then that he turned his attention to
learning the business of painting and deco-
rating, which he has followed most of the
time ever since, In 1866, he went to Kan-
sas, where he remained until 1874, at which
time he removed to Iowa. While in Mis-
souri, in the winter of 1862, he met with a
very painful accident^ in which he lost one
finger and had another severely injured,
which, although not incapacitating him from
work, has, at times, seriously interfered with
his dexterity. In 1880, he finally returned
to Ashland, Illinois, to which place he is at-
tached by all the associations of his child-
hood. Here he and his family have since
resided, in a substantial and comfortable
home surrounded by neat and attractive
grounds, the whole place breathing the air of
thrift and content. Besides this, Mr. Spencer
is also the owner of other valuable property.
He was married, August 7, 1870, to Miss
Mary E. Gafd, an estimable lady, who is a
native of Morgan county, Illinois, of which
place her parents, Ephraim and Paulina
Gard, were worthy pioneers. Her eldest
brother, John S., died in the United States
service, while waiting for his discharge, after
the close of the war. Mrs. Spencer was the
second of six children, only three of whom
now survive: William, Mary and Lydia.
Mr. and Mrs. Spencer have three daugh-
ters, Ella, Anna and Lulu, all of whom are at
home, the second being a teacher in the
public schools. They are all highly intel-
lectual and have been liberally educated.
Mrs. Spencer and the two older daughters
rae useful members of the Christian Church.
Mr. Spencer is a straight Republican in
politics, and takes an active interest in all
public affairs.
He is a prominent member of John L.
Douglas Post, No. 592, in which he served
for two terms as Quartermaster, and one
term as Officer of the Day. He is an An-
cient Odd Fellow, to which order he has
belonged for a number of years.
Any one who has read thus far in the life
of this noble, upright man, will not be at a
loss to make deductions in keeping with his
exemplary character. Unaided, he has at-
tained to prominence and acquired a com-
fortable income for himself and family,
while his •numerous generous qualities ap-
peal successfully to the hearts of his country-
men.
,ENRY CADY, of Huntsville, came to
this county in 1840. His grandfather,
Reuben Cady, has been written up in
the biography of M. E. Cady. His father
was Horace Cady, and he married also a
210
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Miss Cady, but no relation. Mr. Horace
Cady was a farmer, and emigrated to New
York State, settling near Rochester. Here
they stayed until 1840, when they came to
Illinois, settled in Camden, and the father
purchased 120 acres of land. He later re-
sided tor four years near Farmington, Fulton
county, then returned to Schuyler county and
passed the remaining years of his life on the
farm on which he first settled. He died
January, 1851. His wife died .November,
1870. They had ten children, namely: Heze-
kiah, died in Sacramento, California; Dane-
ford, now in Gamden township; Elizabeth,
now Mrs. I. G. Cady, of Camden township;
Lucia married Perry Anderson, and is now
dead; Henry; Reuben died in Camden town-
ship; Orin died at Memphis, Tennessee, while
in the army; Fhilinda married Cyrus Ander-
son, of Huntsville township; Emeline, now
Mrs. Richard Mead, of Rushville. This
large family have commanded the respect and
esteem of every one wherever any of them
have gone.
Henry Cady was born in Otsego county,
New York, December 3, 1828. He came
with the family to Illinois, and learned the
blacksmith's trade in 1849. He started a
shop in 1854 and continued it for six years.
He then settled where he now resides and
purchased land, but still continued his trade
until 1870, when he discontinued the black-
smith shop and devoted himself to farming.
He now owns 320 acres of land, on which he
has made many valuable improvements. He
follows stock-raising and has produced some
very fine cattle. He has been Supervisor
one term, and Road Commissioner still an-
other term.
He was married in 1855, to Emeline Plunk-
ett, of Camden township. They have had
eight children: Adelia, now Mrs. Edwin
Elliott; Amelia, died in childhood; Amanda,
now Mrs. Greeley Clark; Frank, died at
eighteen; Everett is at home; Mary is also
at home, and the youngest child is Stowell
R. Mr. Cady is a Democrat in politics, and
the family are members of the Christian
Church. Mr. Cady is a man who has made
his property himself, and has been a man of
good habits all his life.
E. JONES, prominently connected for
the last twelve years, as division
0 road master between Bushnell, Illinois,
and St. Louis, Missouri, of the St. Louis di-
vision of the Qtiincy Railroad, with headquar-
ters at Eeardstown, was born on a farm near
Baldwinsville, New York, February 11, 1847-
He was there reared and educated, becoming
early acquainted with hard work. At the
age of sixteen, he enlisted in the Scott's Nine
Hundred Cavalry, but before he reached the
front he was overtaken by his father, and
compelled to return home. In 1863, he en-
listed in Nine Hundred of New York State
Militia, and served until July, 1864, when he
enlisted in Company A, One Hundred and
Eighty-fifth New York Regiment Volunteer
Infantry, Colonel Jennings and Captain O. K.
Howard, commanding, and this regiment was
assigned to First Division of the Fifth Army
Corps. He fought as a brave soldier at
Hatcher's Run, Petersburg, Weldon 'and
Quaker roads and Five Forks; was in the pur-
suit of Lee, and was at Lee's surrender at
Appomattox, where his company lost their
First Lieutenant, the last man killed of the
Army of the Potomac, and, later, he partici-
pated in the grand review at Washington
District of Columbia. He had many narrow
escapes from capture and wounds, especially
SCHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
211
while serving as a scout for General Chamber-
lain, and for the period of nine months his
was one of the fighting regiments of the war.
He was one of the first to obtain a piece of
the famous apple tree at Appomattox Court
House, where Lee held his last consultation
with his staff and decided to surrender. He
is honestly proud of his military record, and
was honorably discharged June 11, 1865.
His connection with the Chicago, Burling-
ton &Qnincy Railroad system began in 1867>
and after a period of two years' service with
the bridge department, with headquarters at
Gralesburg, he helped in the construction of
the large railroad bridges over the Mississippi
river at Burlington, Quincy and Hannibal,
Missouri. He was also engaged between
Hannibal and Moberly, Missouri. Later he
was assistant track layer for the new road,
then known as the Hannibal and Naples, now
part of the "Wabash system. All these years
he has proven himself a good man, and his
promotion has been won by his own efforts,
He helped build what is known as the Louis-
iana branch of the Q. system, and after the
completion of that road he became section
foreman, and later extra gang foreman, which
is on line of regular promotion, and after nine
years was promoted to assistant road master
of the St. Louis division, with headquarters
at Beardstown. Two years later he became
roadmaster from Bushnell to St. Louis. He
now has control of 136 miles of track, with
two yards, thus putting hini over a large
number of men. Since May, 1880, he has
been the Q. road- master, and has* achieved
a just prominence by his indomitable energy
and devotion to the interests of the company.
He is a good citizen, and a leader in all local
and public matters.
For several years he has been a working
member of McLane Post, No. 97, G. A. R.,
of Beardstown, of which he is now Past Com-
mander. He is also a member of the Beards-
town Lodge, K. of P.", No. 207, and was a
charter member and the first Chancelor Com-
mander, serving for three terms, and is now
Deputy Grand Master of the district, and has
taken an active part in all its work, and he is a
member of the orders of Woodmen and Work-
men. He is also active in local politics, is
Chairman of the Republican County Central
Committee, and has been a member of the
Board of Education. He belongs to the Road-
masters' Association of America, is an ex- Vice
President of it, and is a member of the Execu-
tive Board.
He was married in Quincy, Illinois, to
Almira E. Stedman, of Pike county, formerly
of Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania. She was only
twelve years old when her parents came to
Illinois, and she grew up in Pike county.
Their living children are: Bertha, Anna, Al-
thea, Ray and Almira Edrie.
DWARD F. HACKMAN, a farmer of
section 26, township 17, range 12, was
born at his father's home, in this county,
November 28, 1857. He is the second son
and fifth child. His parents were John Fred-
erick and Inglehei t (Meyer) Hackman, natives
of Hanover, Germany, coining of pure Ger-
man ancestry. They came to America in
1835, with their respective families. They
grew up, were married in Cass county, and
soon afterward settled on a farm in Indian
Creek precinct, and later, they came to Arenz-
ville precinct, where they purchased their
present home. They bought from time to
time, and made improvements, and now have a
beautiful home. (For further particulars, with
regard to ancestry, see biography of Will-
iam Hackman.)
212
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OAS8,
Edward was reared on his father's farm and
remained there until he was twenty-five years
old. He has since tilled his own farm. He
has resided on the farm lie now owns for
eleven years, and last year, 1890, he bought
it. It is a fine farm, and he has made many
improvements upon it. It contains 240 acres.
He was married here to Amelia Jokish, an
accomplished young lady, born and reared in
the county. Since her marriage, she has been
a devoted wife and mother. (For family his-
tory, see biography of C. G. Jokisch.) Mr.
and Mrs. Hackman are the parents of five
children: Elmer, Orville E., Cora M., Mor-
ton H., and Earl R. All are bright, smart
children. Mr. and Mrs. Hackman are mem-
bers of the Emanuel Methodist Episcopal
Church, of which Mr. Hackman has been
Steward for five years. He is a Republican
in politics, and is very prominent in politics.
Mr. John Frederick and wife have lived
honored lives in the county, and their sons
and daughters are a credit to them. The
father aud sons are all strong Republicans,
and the former is seventy-five years of age,
but he is in poor health, and for the past ten
years has been retired from active business.
He was one of the first members of the
Emanuel Methodist Episcopal Church of this
place. His wife is also a member of the
same, and is seventy-two years of age. They
have eight children living: Wilhelmenia,
widow of Henry Winkle, residing in Beards-
town, mother of three bright daughters ; Her-
man; Sophia, wife of M. L. Korse, a hardware
dealer of Beatrice, Nebraska; Matilda is at
home keeping house for her parents ; Edward ;
Sarah, wife of Philip Jokisch; Henry, of the
firm of Korse & Hackman, hardware dealers
at Beatrice, Nebraska.
Herman Hackman is a prominent young
farmer and stock-raiser, yet single, of section
30, township 17, range 11. He manages his
father's old homestead of 319 acres, and has
run it on his own account for the past ten
years. He was born on this farm, May 6,
1850, and was reared and received his first
education in the county; later he attended a
commercial school in St. Louis. He has
always followed the vocation of farming,
and is a hard-working young man. He, like
his father and brothers, is a staunch Repub-
lican in politics, and a Methodist in religion.
R. RICHARD HOMER MEAD is a
native of Schuyler county, born in
Huntsville, January 16, 1847, being a
son of Andrew J. and Mary (Briscoe) Mead.
He was educated in Huntsville. When he
was sixteen years old he enlisted in Company
K, Eighth Iowa Cavalry, at Camp Roberts,
Davenport, Iowa. From there they went to
Nashville, Tennessee, and were on duty in
the mountains during the winter of 1863-'64.
In the spring they were on the left wing of
General McCook's cavalry, with Sherman's
army on liis advance on Atlanta, participating
in the engagements of that campaign, besides
other engagements. There was fighting every
day for 100 days. They then returned north,
and were the first forces to oppose Hood's
crossing the Tennessee river. They retreated
before Hood's advance to Duck river, where
they prevented his advance until the battle
of Franklin, in which they participated, also
in the battle of Nashville, when they pur-
sued Hood's army to the Tennessee river. In
the spring of 1865 they were in Wilson's
cavalry, and fought two engagements in the
mountains in Alabama after the war was
over, not having received notice of the sign-
ing of the terms of the surrender. They
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
213
next were sent in pursuit of Jeff. Davis, to
Macon, Georgia, where he was captured. Mr.
Mead was then mustered out, August 28,
1865. He was taken prisoner on McCook's
raid in the rear of Atlanta, but escaped in a
few hours. One half of his company died at
Andersonville prison. After the war he re-
turned to Illinois and resumed the study of
medicine, which he had commenced in the
office of his father. In November, 1865, he
entered the medical college at Keokuk, Iowa,
graduating with the class of 1867. He then
located at Huntsville, and practiced with his
father until 1872, when he went to Texas and
spent five years with the I. & G. N. Railroad
Company. In 1878 and 1879 he attended
the St. Louis Medical College, and then re-
sumed practice at Huntsville, and continued
until 1884. Dr. Mead had thus received a
good medical education, but his literary edu-
cation was limited to the schools of Hunts-
ville; however, he applied to the Civil Service
•Commissioner for examination, and passed in
the class of Burlington, Iowa, receiving an
appointment as Pension Clerk at Washing-
ton, District of Columbia, August 18, 1884,
being the fifteenth man from Illinois who
passed the examination. March 2, 1885, he
became a permanent member of class 1, and
in October of the same year he was promoted
to class 2. April 24, 1886, he was detailed
to the field as special examiner, and worked
in Maine, New Hampshire and New York.
December 28, 1886, he resigned his position,
but being an honorably discharged soldier he
can re-enter the service at any date, without
an examination. He returned to Huntsville,
where he resumed his practice, and where he
has remained ever since. He usually spends
the winter months in the Southern States.
Dr. Mead has had a large practice, and
has always attended to his patients re-
gardless of weather, bad roads or illness.
He was married October 3, 1889, to Mary,
daughter of James N. and Martha (Parrish)
Ward, and they have one child, _ Clara
Briscoe.
Dr. Mead has voted the Democratic ticket
for years, but now supports the People's
party. He is a member of the Huntsville
Lodge, No. 465, A. F. & A. M.; Augusta
Chapter, No. 78, R. A. M., and Almoner
Commandery, No. 32, K. T., also of Cyclone
Lodge, No. 635, I. O. O. F., of which he is
one of the organizers. He attended the Na-
tional Columbian Medical Association at
Washington, District of Columbia, in 1884--
'85-'86. He is very active in G. A. R. mat-
ters, is a member of George A. Brown Post,
No. 417, of the Department of Illinois, and
always attends the annual National Encamp-
ment.
ILLIAM T. TREADWAY came to
Cass county (then Morgan) with his
parents in 1829. He was the son of
Edward and Elizabeth (Anderson) Treadway,
natives of Maryland, raised near Baltimore.
They moved from there after marriage, to
Hamilton county, Ohio, and from there to
this county. The family is English-Scotch.
They had eight children, of whom the sub-
ject was the fourth; only three are living,
and he is the oldest. They are Edward,
Owens and Elizabeth. The parents died here
and are interred in the Monroe cemetery.
William was born in Hamilton county,
Ohio, August 22, 1819, hence was ten years
old when he became a resident of Cass county.
Sixty-three years of his life have been spent
in this county, forty-one of them on his
present farm. He was educated in the sub-
scription schools, grew to manhood a farmer
214
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
and followed that occupation all his life. Pie
is now enjoying the fruit of his early indus-
try, and is living a retired life. During his
residence in this county Mr.. Tread way has
witnessed a wonderful transformation from a
wilderness to a populous and prosperous
community. His farm in this precinct was
partly improved when he bought it, and this
was his first real estate in the county, though
he spent about twenty-one years here before
this purchase. He is a Democrat in politics,
and has held the various county and precinct
offices. He owns 290 acres of tillable land,
has a good house and fair improvements.
His farming is divided between grain and
stock-raising. The Treadway family has
always been noted as a robust race, always
enjoying long lives, and have been repre-
sented in America for six generations.
He was married in this county, in 1850, to
Mary McHenry, who has borne him nine
children, all living: Jacob, Margaret, Mary,
Nancy, James, John, Louisa, Joseph and
Jefferson. Two daughters and one son are
unmarried. The others are all married and
are farmers, except Joseph, who is in the
agricultural business at Virginia City. Mrs.
Treadway died in 1879, and her husband is
still "unmarried.
,LEXANDER D. SIX, M. D., one of
the successful surgeons and physicians
of Versailles, was born in Morgan
county, now Scott, in 1828. His father,
David Six, was born in Tennessee, in 1799,
and his father, John Six, was a native of the
Shenandoah valley, Virginia, and his grand-
father, the great-great-grandfather of the Doc-
tor, was banished from Germany on account
of his tendency toward mutiny, and settled in
this country, where he founded the family of
Six on American soil. The offence for which
he was exiled from his native land was a
small one, it being the infringement of the
game laws with regard to hunting rabbits.
His grandson, John, took a very active part
in the Revolutionary war, and though a youth
was one of the prison guards at Yorktown.
His wife was Mary Dnvall, of Pennsylvania,
and they were married in the State where he
was following his trade of carpenter and
joiner. After marriage they removed to
Tennessee, where their seven sons were born.
This gentleman was a typical frontiersman
and hunter, and was a pioneer of Tennessee,
Kentucky and Illinois. The father of our
subject, David, and his brother, John, were
the pioneers of that family to Illinois, com-
ing in the springof 1823, landing near Spring-
field in June, making the journey with pack
horses and bringing their families with them,
David having two children, while his brother
had but one. In a year or two they came to
the western part of Morgan county, and their
parents and brothers followed to Illinois a
couple of years afterward, making the jour-
ney with covered wagons. The entire party
was very poor, having nothing but their out-
fits and their willing hands, ready to engage
in whatever offered itself. John Six had a
family as follows: Abraham Six, died in Scott
county, aged sixty-seven, leaving three sons
and two daughters; Daniel, died in the same
county, about the same age, leaving eight or
nine children to mourn his death; John, the
next, and his family are all buried, he dying
in 1857, aged sixty-seven; Jacob, moved to
Arkansas and died at an advanced age, leav-
ing a large family; David, father of subject;
Isaac, farmer of Scott county, where he died
about the same age as his other brothers;
William died at the same age; Mary, wife of
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
215
James Taylor, of Scott county, a farmer, and
they had a medium family; Elizabeth, wife of
William Parker, died in Arkansas, leaving a
large family; Catherine is still living with
her daughter, in Missouri, aged ninety years,
and is in fair health of mind and body; she
had live children; Nancy, wife of Simon
Taylor, died when about seventy, leaving
twelve or thirteen children. These children
were all fanners, or the wives of farmers, and
they all crossed the plains to Illinois. The
father and mother of the subject lived on a
farm of 140 acres, near Mount Sterling, where
the father died, aged fifty-nine years, leaving
eleven living children and one deceased
daughter of five years. The name of the
children were: Nancy, wife of a Mr. Green, of
California, has a large family; Martha, died
in Missouri, aged forty-eight, leaving the
nine children she had born to her husband,
George Scott; Daniel, a farmer of Mount
Sterling, has a family of two daughters and
the same number of sons; Abraham, a farmer
two miles east of Mount Sterling, has seven
children; Alexander D., subject; Mary, died,
aged forty-eight, in California, near Los An-
geles, being the wife of Irving Carter, by
whom she had six children; Isabella died
when five years old ; William died near Mount
Sterling on the homestead, aged fifty-four,
leaving a wife and two daughters; Eliza-
beth, now Mrs. William Bowen, of Knox
county, Missouri, has six daughters; Cynthia,
widow of W. A. Sieles, lives on her farm in
Missouri with her seven children; Oliver P.
and James K. are both bachelors on the home
farm. This family is among the earliest of
the settlers, and the Six prairie in Mount
Sterling is named after them.
The Doctor was reared to farm life and
received his primary education in the log
Bchoolhouses, with the puncheon floors and
slab seats, without backs. The school that
he attended, principally, was held in Mount
Sterling. He left the subscription school
at eighteen and went for a year to the Mount
Sterling Academy when he was twenty-two,
tion school of the neighborhood held in the log
After this he taught school for four years,
reading medicine all this time. lie finished
his medical course in Rush Medical College,
Chicago, graduating in the class of 1859,
beginning his practice at Mount Pleasant.
He went to Colorado in 1860 and two years
later made an exploring trip through Idaho
and Montana. He spent two years in Colo-
rado and four years in Montana, and was one
of the nineteen who discovered the gold mines
in the last named State, at Big Hole, not long
before the discovery of the Bannock mines.
He was interested in these and other mines
during the four years he spent in this State,
but returned home, across the plains, by
stage, a journey of 2,200 miles, an easier
journey than the trip out, which was made
with ox teams.
The Doctor bought his present farm of 400
acres about 1873, of J. P. Hambaugh for
$9,000, with no buildings but the old log-
cabin. He built his farm house in 1875 and
his barns in 1880 and 1889, one being 36 by
40 and the other 36 by 48. His farm is a
grain and stock one, he raising wheat, corn
and hay, feeding his stock at home. At
times he has as many as forty-two head of
horses, which he raises from colts. He has
built a warehouse on his own land, at Perry
Spring Station, where they ship a great deal
of grain and stock.
This gentleman was married, in Lee town-
ship, to Elizabeth Osborn, still living. They
have three living children, but have buried
one daughter, Jessie, aged nine years. She
was a lovely child and her untimely death
216
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
cast a gloom over the entire household. The
living children are: Charles, aged twenty -
four; Fred EL, twenty-two; and Mattie, the
pet of the household, aged eight. The son 6
are both regular farmers, and are now con-
ducting the stock farm. Both have received
a good business education, and are still single,
residing at home. The little daughter is a
sweet child and tills, to some extent, the ach-
ing void left by her departed sister.
The Doctor still practices, but only pursued
his profession exclusively for about two
years. He was of a great deal of use in the
mines, where his professional skill was often
called into play, at one time being blown up
from a premature discharge of a blast of
powder; the Doctor was injured, and it was
some time before he recovered, having nar-
rowly escaped death. This gentleman is a
member of no secret society or creed, and
believes in Democracy, but is hardly within
party lines. He and his family are highly
respected.
EVI DICK, one of the most prominent
citizens of this section, was born in
Simpson county, Kentucky, February
17, 1815, son of Peter and Christina (Shutt)
Dick. Peter Dick was born in one of the
Carolinas, and reared to farm life. He came
to Illinois in the fall of 1829, bringing his
wife and eight children all the way from
Simpson county, Kentucky, where he had set-
tled at a very early day. The journey lasted
about twenty-two days, and they settled in
Sangamon county, where they raised one
crop, and then, in the winter of 1831, re-
moved to near the present home of our sub-
ject, buying 160 acres of partly improved
land, nine or ten acres being broken, and a
small log house erected on the land. In this
cabin they lived for two years, until Peter
rebuilt it, and in the remodeled house this
esteemed gentleman ended his days, aged
seventy years. His wife was born in the
same county as himself, and died on the old
farm, aged sixty-eight. These two had eight
children, five yet living. Peter Dick was a
son of John and Dick, also natives of
one of the Carolinas, who died in Kentucky,
when very old. Subject's mother was a
daughter of Henry and Polly Shutt, natives
of Germany, who came to Illinois at an early
day, dying here when very old. The entire
family, on both sides, pursued farming to a
great extent. Peter Dick and wife were
very poor when they came to Illinois, and so
were unable to provide for their children,
who were forced to take care of themselves.
Our subject was no exception to this rule,
and everything he has was earned by himself.
He remained on the farm, working with his
father until his marriage. His education
was received at the district and subscription
schools. After his marriage, Mr. Dick set-
tled in a log cabin, about 18 x 20, in which
he lived until 1852, when he moved into his
present fine house. The fine home and farm
now owned by Mr. Dick presents a great
contrast to the wild prairie found by his
father and mother when they came to this
region in search of fortunes. "Wild deer and
game of many kinds abounded. Mr. Dick is
inclined to think, however, that pioneer life
had its pleasures as well as trials, as he says
that the people were much more sociable in
those days than now.
Mr. Dick was married the first time to
Emmatiah Leeper, in 1839. This lady was
born in Kentucky, and was a daughter of
Robert and Mary Leeper. Mrs Dick
died on the farm where he now lives, aged
about thirty-five years; by this wife he
SCHLTYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
217
had nine children, three now living, namely:
Amos, married to Matilda Armstrong, two
children; Robert L. married Amanda Sutton,
three children; Martha A. married Alonzo
Sutton, five children. Mr. Dick was mar-
ried a second time, to Mary Morgan, born in
Kentucky, died on the old home farm, aged
fifty-three. She bore him two children,
Eliza C. and George L.. the latter now in
Oregon. The former married N. B. Orr, of
Delaware county, Iowa, born in 1856, son of
Thomas and Caroline Orr, and they have
three children.
Mr. Dick's fine farm of 300 acres is man-
aged by his son-in-law, Mr. Orr, who carries
on a mixed farming, and waving fields of
grain now occupy the prairie where, half a
century ago, deer were found in flocks of sev-
enty-five.
Mr. Dick, like his father before him, is a
stanch Democrat, and cast his first vote for
Martin Van Buren. Mr. Dick and his
father helped build the first church and
schoolhouse in the section, and has taken a
deep interest in church and school matters
ever since. He arid his family are all church
attendants and worthy, good people.
W. TAYLOR, a prominent
farmer of Brooklyn township, and an
honored pioneer of the county, was
born in Trumbull county, Ohio, in February,
1824, a son of Alexander and Betsey (Scott)
Taylor, natives of Pennsylvania; the father
died at the age of fifty-five years, and the
mother died at the advanced age of eighty
years, at Burlington, Iowa. The paternal
grandfather, Matthew Taylor, was born in
the north of Ireland, of English parents.
He emigrated to the United States in 1772,
and settled in Pennsylvania; he died in
Huntingdon county, at the age of ninety-
seven years. His wife, whose maiden name
was Mcllheny, was born in Ireland, of Scotch-
Irish ancestors; she lived to be ninety-five
years old. Alexander Taylor came to Ohio
in 1810, and cleared a farm out of the heart
of the forest. His wife, Betsey Scott, was a
daughter of Nehemiah and Mary (Wick)
Scott; her father was a native of Long
Island, and was a descendant of Scotch an-
cestry, and the mother of Washington county,
Pennsylvania; both died in Trumbull county,
Ohio. The Taylor family have been promi-
nent in the affairs of both church and State,
possessing great intelligence and culture.
Henry W. Taylor received superior edu-
cational advantages, and at the age of nine-
teen years began teaching school ; he followed
this profession two years, and then took a
course of law in a private school. After his
graduation he engaged in practice, but in a
short time the California gold fever swept
this country, and lie determined to go to the
Pacific coast. He made the journey over-
land with four yoke of oxen, and was on the
way from the 1st of April until October 22.
He remained four years, and was engaged in
mining during that time.
He was married June 8, 1853, to Miss
Cornelia Manlove, a native of Rushville,
Schuyler county, Illinois, and a daughter of
Jonathan D. and Sophronia (Chadsey) Man-
love. Mrs. Taylor's father was born in North
Carolina, came to Illinois in an early day, and
was married in Schuyler county in 1826.
(This was the third marriage in the county.)
Mr. and Mrs. Taylor have three children
living: Marian H. married T. D. Lewis, and
has three children; Ida M. is at home; Fan-
nette married Dr. J. E. Camp, and is the
mother of three children.
213
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP GASS,
After his marriage Mr. Taylor lived in
Rushville township, and was engaged in
operating a lumber-yard and building a plank
road until 1857, when he sold his entire
possessions and removed to Brooklyn town-
ship. He developed a farm of 900 acres out
of prairie and timber land, made many valu-
able improvements, and has one of the best
places in the county. He and his wife are
members of the Presbyterian Church, of
which he is an Elder. Politically he affiliates
with the Republican party; his first vote was
cast for Zachary Taylor, but at the formation
of the Republican party he gave his allegi-
sance to that organization, and cast hip
snffracre for J. C. Fremont. He was Justice
O
of the Peace for sixteen years, was Super-
visor for two terms, and has served on the
school board. In connection with his large
agricultural interests, Mr. Taylor has carried
on a mercantile business since before the
war, purchasing his first stock in February,
1861. He makes a specialty of raising fine,
blooded stock, and has done much to elevate
the standard in this section. He is a self-
made man, and a citizen in whom Schuyler
county takes just pride.
fAMES D. THOMPSON, one of the suc-
cessful farmers of Woodstock township,
is entitled to the space that has been
accorded him in this history of Schuyler
county, and following is a brief outline of
his career. He is a native of Crawford
county, Pennsylvania, born March 30, 1823,
a son of William and Mary (Peterson)
Thompson. The paternal grandfather, Will-
iam Thompson, Sr., was born in Ireland, and
when a boy crossed the seas to try his for-
tunes in the New World. He was a carpen-
ter by trade, and followed his vocation all
his life; he and his wife attained the good
old age of three-score and ten years. Will-
iam Thompson, Jr., was a native of the Key-
stone State, and resided there until 1837,
when he came to Illinois; he was a mill-
wright by trade, and worked at that occupa-
tion several years. Two years after coming
to this State he purchased land in Brown
county, on which he settled the 14th day of
May. In the fall of the same year his death
occurred, at the age of fifty-four years and
seven months; he left a wife and six chil-
dren. The family then rented land for a
period of eight years, and at the end of that
time located on the tract purchased by the
father. The mother died in Brown county,
at the age of eighty-six years. Her parents,
James and Elizabeth (Abbott) Peterson, were
of English and German descent, and died in
Pennsylvania, at the ages of ninety-one and
ninety years respectively. James D. Thomp-
son is one of a family of ten children, five of
whom are living. He remained under his
parents' roof until he was married; this
event occurred April 3, 1856, when he was
united to Miss Margaret E. Grosclaude, a
native of France, born April 27, 1830. Her
parents, James F. and Catharine E. (Jonte)
Grosclande, emigrated to the United States
in 1833, and located in Woodstock township,
Schuyler county, Illinois; he died here Sep-
tember 30, 1878, at the age of seventy-four
years, and she September 15, 1878. at seventy-
two years; they reared a family of eleven
children. Mrs. Thompson's paternal grand-
parents died in 1878, the grandfather Sep-
tember 30, and the grandmother September
16. Peter J. Jonte, the maternal grand-
father, was born in February, 1776, and died
October 2, 1846; his wife, Susan Landon,
was born March 25, 1774, and died June 7,
1842.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
219
Mr. and Mrs. Thompson are the parents of
six children: Mary E. is married, and the
mother of three children; William J. is mar-
ried, and has six children; Jefferson E. is
married, and has three children; Emily L. is
married, and the mother of a family of three;
Charles W. is married; and Lorena M. is at
home.
Mr. Thompson has been prominently con-
nected with the agricultural interests of the
county, and owns about 300 acres of choice
land; he has been School Director for twenty-
three years, and has held other local offices,
always discharging his duties with a fidelity
that won the entire confidence of his con-
stituency. Politically he affiliates with the
Democratic party.
[R. GEORGE W. CRUM, farmer and
physician, town 17, range 11, section
35, post office Arenzville, was born on
the homestead adjoining. (See sketch of
James Crnm.) Dr. Crum began his educa-
tion in the district schools. From there he
went to the Illinois College at Jacksonville
for one year, and then attended two years at
the State Normal School at Normal, Illinois.
He then attended three years the Illinois
Wesley an College, receiving the degrees of
B. A. and M. A. from that popular institu-
tion. From there he went to Adrian, Michi-
gan, to complete his scientific course. He
received the degree of B. S. at Adrian, and
completed a full classical course at the Wes-
leyan College. He studied medicine under
private tutors during his vacations, and then
attended the St. Louis Medical College, re-
ceiving the degree of M. D. in 1874. His
close application to study had undermined
his health, and he felt obliged to retire to the
farm to recuperate. On completing his pro-
fessional course he entered upon the duties
imposed by the office of hospital physician,
but this was terminated by failing health.
He intends to resume practice during the
coming year.
He was married August 21, 1878, to Mol-
lie E., daughter of Dr. David Malone, now
deceased. Mrs. Crum was born in Posey
county, Indiana. They have two children,
Cora and Olga, eleven and thirteen years old.
The Doctor is not an aggressive politician.
He owns a farm of 160 acres of well-
improved land, adjoining that of his father.
Mrs. Crum is a lady of fine literary attain-
ments, a graduate of the Athenaeum College
at Jacksonville, Illinois. Her only brother
is a physician there. Her sisters, Alice,
Emma and Rosa, all married into representa-
tive and prominent families. Alice was the
wife of William Morrison, and died in Iowa;
Emma became the wife of Robert McCurdy,
of Princeton, Indiana; and Rosa married
Elijah Needham, of Virginia, Illinois. She
is not now living. Mrs. Crum is a member
of the Christian Church, and her husband is
a member of the 1. O. O. F. and the A. O.
U. W. They are very worthy people.
fAMES H1LES, general farmer and stock
raiser of Beardstown, was born in Salem
county, New Jersey, January 4, 1822
His father, John, was a native of the same
place, was there engaged as a truck raiser,
and afterward ran a large farm in Manning-
ton township, and still later was engaged in
farming and truck-raising near Bridgeport.
He died at the age of ninety-six, after lead-
ing a quiet, peaceable life. His wife's name
was Sarah Chrispen, also born in Salem
220
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF C'ASS,
county. She came of an old Quaker family.
Her own mother and a sister were speakers
among Friends for many years. She and
her husband, however, adhered very closely
to the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which
they were working members. She died at
the age of ninety.
James grew up in New Jersey, and was
married March 7, 1844, and about this time
commenced farming in Marion county, and
followed it for about nine years; then he
was a butcher in Woodtown two years. He
came here in 1856; first he engaged as a
butcher and farmer at Brighton, Illinois, for
two years, and then went to Greenfield. While
at those towns he furnished the meat for the
workmen on what is now the Quincy railroad,
while it was building. He followed that
business there for three years. He was a
poor man when he reached here, but has since
acquired a good property. It is now thirty-
one years since he came to Cass county, en-
gaging first in farming. He has been very
successful, because of a progressive nature,
and because he understood the nature of the
soil. He soon began the growing of sweet
potatoes and watermelons, and this has oc-
cupied most of his time for twenty-five years.
He raises from 2,000 to 2,500 bushels an-
nually, and a large number of melons. He
is very well known, and is respected as a
hard worker and a good citizen. His place
consists of fifty-nine acres, where he has
lived but a few years.
He was married in Woodtown, New Jersey,
to Sarah Kidd, who was born and reared in
Salem county, born in 1818. Her parents,
Joseph and Jane Kidd, lived and died on the
old farm in Salem county, New Jersey,
members of the Presbyterian Church. Mr.
and Mrs. Hiles have had ten children, among
whom were two sets of twins, who died when
young. The three living children are:
Elizabeth, wife of Thomas Reeves, farmer
and gardener, near Beardstown; James, a
farmer in Cass county, and Charles, a farmer
and trucker, near Beardstown. Mr. and Mrs.
Hiles are good people: both have been active
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church
for more than fifty years. Mr. Hiles has
never been a chewer or smoker of tobacco,
has never been intoxicated, nor has he ever
used a profane word. He has been a life-
long Democrat.
EORGE S. CAMPBELL was born in
Missouri township, Brown county, Illi-
nois, April 12, 1857. His father, Will-
iam O. F. Campbell, was born in Logan
county, Kentucky, in 1815, and his father,
Owen Campbell, was a native of Orange
county, North Carolina, while his father,
John Campbell, came from Ireland to Amer-
ica in Colonial times, and served in the Revo-
lutionary war. The grandfather of our subject
went to Kentucky with his parents when
quite young. He was married to Mary, the
daughter of William Clark, a native of North
Carolina, and a soldier in the Revolutionary
war. Owen Campbell resided in Logan
county until his death, during the war of
1812. He greatly opposed England and was
killed during a dispute relating to the great
measures which were then attracting the at-
tention of everyone. He left a farm of sixty-
two acres. The father of our subject resided
in Kentucky until 1835, when he emigrated
to Illinois, and settled on that part of Schuy-
ler county now. included in Brown county.
He had a tract of land in what is now Mis-
souri township, but at that time they were
included in Schuyler county. Here he re-
SGBUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
221
sided until his death in 1891. His wife,
whose maiden name was Caroline Stubble-
field, was born in Kentucky, in 1819, and
died in 1870. He was a firm member of the
Cumberland Presbyterian Church, but after
coming to Illinois he united with the Chris-
tian Church, and served as an Elder seven
years; and also preached. He was a great
bible student, and a Democrat in politics. He
also served as Justice of the Peace for seven
years.
George S. Campbell was educated at the
Mt. Sterling schools. He lived with his
father until 1872. At that time he began to
learn the printer's trade in the office of the
Gazette of Mt. Sterling, and this has been
his business ever since. He has worked at
his trade in different places, and in 1878
purchased the Examiner, a weekly paper
devoted to the interests of the people in gen-
eral, and the Democratic party in particular.
He was married, in 1886, to Miss Alta M.
Larkin, born in Brown county, daughter of
John and Mary Larkin. They have had two
children, Earl and Elsie. Mr. Campbell is a
Democrat in politics, and is a member of Jeph.
tha Lodge, No. 100, 1. O. O. F., and also the
Encampment of the I. O. O. F., the I. O. M.
A. and Modern Woodmen.
fOHN W. SEAMAN, an old represent-
ative citizen and successful stock raiser,
was born in Jefferson -county, Virginia(
six miles north of Harper's Ferry. Septem-
ber 21, 1820. His father, Joseph, was also
a native of Jefferson county, and was en-
gaged there for years as a boatman on the
Shenandoah and Potomac rivers, and kept a
public inn for some time. His parents, who
lived and died there, were American born,
but of German ancestry, the father being in
16
the Revolutionary war. Joseph J. was a
soldier in a Virginia regiment, was in
many engagements, and for some time
was stationed at Baltimore, Maryland. His
wife was Nancy Deaver, who was born and
reared in Jefferson county, and came of
similar ancestry as her husband. After
the birth of their children, of whom our
subject is the youngest, Joseph Seaman
and wife, in the spring of 1882, came West,
taking a boat at Wheeling, and came down
the Ohio, and up the Mississippi and Illinois
rivers, and landed at Beardstown when it
was a hamlet of a few houses. There the
family lived for some years, Mr. Seaman fol-
lowing the trade of carpenter. He later
went to Frederick, Schuyler county, and there
died when sixty years of age. His wife died
the next day, at about the same age. They
had many acquaintances among the pio-
neers of Cass county.
John ia the only surviving member of the
family that came from Virginia to Illinois,
He came herein 1832, found it new and un-
broken, and has lived to note the many
changes that have taken place during the past
thirty years. He reached here about the time
the Indians left the county, and hence has
been closely connected with all pioneer his-
tory. He has seen the county settled, all the
roads laid out and built, all the school houses
built, all the railroads and all the other im-
provements made that have made this the
garden spot of Cass county. His farm of
about 500 acres, highly improved and well
stocked, is located in section 16, township
18, range 11 west. He can boast of the
character of his soil, except 100 acres on a
sand ridge, and sixty-five acres in the bluffs.
He purchased the place in 1852, and its
present substantial condition is due to his
perseverance and industry.
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS8,
He was married in this county, to Mary E.
Thompson, born in New York, in 1828. She
came to this county with her parents, George
B. and Hannah Thompson, late in the '30s.
Both lived and died in the county, Mr.
Thompson being a farmer, and at one time a
merchant in Beardstown. Mr. and Mrs.
Thompson were quite well known as pioneer
settlers of this county, the former dying in
Beardstown, about seventy years of age, and
the latter in 1850. Mrs. Seaman was one of
five children. A brother, Seth Thompson,
now at the soldier's home atQuincy, Illinois,
and Mrs. Seaman, are the only remaining
members of the family.
Mr. and Mrs. Seaman are members of no
church, but are good, moral people, and are
beloved by all who knew them. He is not
an office seeker, but is a decided Democrat in
politics.
They are the parents of eleven children,
four of whom are dead: Frank, Harriet,
Charles and an infant. Those living are:
John, a farmer on the old homestead, mar-
ried Ida Kruse; George, a machinist living
in Cass county, married Susie Keiket; Fred,
at home helping on the farm ; Hannah Hea-
ton, living in Washington, on a farm ; Cora,
wife of James Heaton, also lives in Wash-
ington; Anna S. Pearn, near Virginia, Illi-
nois; and Bertha S. Hale, of Springfield,
Illinois.
The entire family are excellent people, and
excellent representatives of Cass county.
^ZARIAH LEWIS, a prosperous and
influential farmer of Cass county, Illi-
nois, residing in township 18, range 9
west, was born in Washington county, Ken-
tucky, March 15, 1813, and is a son of Will-
iam and Elizabeth (Burns) Lewis. The Lewis
branch of the family is of Welsh ancestry,
while that of Burns descended from German
ancestry. The father of our subject par-
ticipated in the war of 1812, for which he
also received a pension and a soldier's war-
rant, which were contined to his widow. He
was born in Virginia, and accompanied his
parents to Kentucky at an early day. He
continued to reside in the latter State until
1828, and then, with his wife and seven chil-
dren, started for Illinois, at that time the ex-
treme frontier. They made the journey with
a two-wheeled cart, which was drawn by a
pair of small oxen, preceded by horses. They
were four weeks on the journey, and most of
the family came on foot. They were among
the very earliest settlers of Illinois, the
country being then wild and abounding with
game. On their arrival in Morgan (now Cass)
county, they had only fifty cents between
them ; and all who were able went out to work
by the day and month — worked on farms,
split rails, and did whatever they found to do.
The honest, hard-working father was finally
enabled to enter forty acres of Government
land, in Mason county, where he built a small
cabin, in which he resided until his death in
1844, at the age of fifty-five years. His de-
voted wife survived him many years, dying
at the age of seventy-eight years, on the
original forty acres which she had assisted
in reclaiming from a wilderness. By her
careful management she had accumulated a
nice little property. She was the mother of
eleven children, of whom, as far as known,
five now survive.
The subject of this sketch attended a sub-
scription school for a short time in his youth,
but owing to his father's limited means and
the scarcity of schools he had but few educa-
tional opportunities. He continued to reside
at home until his marriage, working on farms
SO SUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
223
in his vicinity by the day and month. After
his marriage, he settled on a farm in the
eastern part of Cass county, which he rented
and worked on shares by the month, where
he continued for four or five years. He then
bought forty acres of fertile farming land, on
which he built a log cabin, 16 x 16 feet, into
which he and his family moved. Here he
continued to live and industriously improved
his farm, for two years. At the eud of this
time, he sold out and again rented land, on
which he lived for about five years. He
then bought forty more acres of partly im-
proved land, which he continued to work for
seven or eight years, when he again sold out
and bought 110 acres in the immediate
vicinity. On this latter place, he continued
to live until 1856, at which time he pur-
chased his present farm. Here he now has
120 acres, which he has carefully cultivated
to mixed farming, besides which he has made
a specialty of stock-raising, having now some
very tine specimens of cattle. By unremit-
ting industry, able management and careful
economy, he has prospered, and is now vir-
tually retired from active business, and is en-
joying in comfort the fruits of his early toil.
Mr. Lewis first was married in February,
1832, to Miss Sarah Graham, an intelligent
lady, who was an orphan, and a native of
Green county, Kentucky. By this marriage,
there were seven children, five of whom are
yet living: the elder, Elizabeth, is married and
has seven children and ten grandchildren;
Nancy Jane W. is married and has eleven
children and sixteen grandchildren; Mary A.
married, has four children and two grandchil-
dren ; Caroline, married, has five children and
one grandchild; Kilbourn, married, has eight
children. The devoted wife and mother died
in 1863, aged forty-six years, leaving her fam-
ily and many friends to mourn her loss.
October 4, 1864, Mr. Lewis was again
married, his second wife being Mary E. Clark,
an estimable lady, who was born in Marietta,
Ohio, August 28, 1823. Her parents were
John S. and Mary E. (Pearse) Clark, both
natives of Ohio. Grandfather Pearse was a
brave soldier in the Revolutionary war, and
drew a pension for his services in that
struggle. Her father was born in Cincin-
nati, and was an old sailor and river boat-
man. In 1826 he brought a boat load of
salt to Illinois, landing at Beardstown. Thence
he proceeded to Morgan county, where he
settled on a farm, on which he continued to
live until three years previous to his death.
He then sold out and bought property in
town, where he resided, retired from business
pursuits, until his death, at the age of seventy-
three years. He was a very energetic man
and was popular among his associates, being
widely known throughout this State. His
wife died at the same place as her husband,
aged sixty-five years. She was an intelligent
woman of kindly impulses, and much beloved
by those who knew her. They were the pa-
rents of fourteen children, of whom, as far as
known, three or four now survive. By the
second marriage Mr. A. Lewis has one son,
Charles, born July 4, 1868, who is now married
and has one child.
Whatever success has blessed Mr. Lewis'
efforts is entirely due to his own persistence
and intelligence, and he richly deserves the
prosperity which he now enjoys.
ORMAN PARSONS, now retired and
living quietly at his home at the corner
of Fifth and Washington streets, is one
of the old settlers, having come here in 1854.
He was born in Hartford, Connecticut, No-
vember 6, 1811, and was a child only a few
234
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
years old when his parents, Moses andElsiby
(Pease) Parsons, with a colony of twenty
families, during the war of 1812, came over-
land with teams to Geauga county, Ohio.
They arrived in June, 1814, and made a set-
tlement in the heavy timber of that new, un-
broken country, surrounded by Indians and
plenty of game. He there lived until the
country was well improved, when he died
some years ago at the advanced age of eighty-
seven years. His wife had died some five
years before. They were Methodists, and the
father and seven sons were all Republicans.
Norman Parsons served with his State
militia, went through all the promotions from
First Lieutenant to Colonel of his regiment.
He was one of the organizers of the G. A. R.
at Beardstown.
After his arrival in Beardstown he became
a member of the firm of Fischer & Parsons,
wagon manufacturers, who did business for
two years. A company was then established
known as Putnam & Parsons, doing a general
tombstone business. This continued for two
years, and at this time Mr. Parsons bought a
stock of goods at Falls City, Nebraska, where
he lived for one year, and then returned to
this county, where he secured and began to
improve 175 acres of land near Beardstown.
Here he continued until 1861, when he en-
listed in the Third Illinois Cavalry and was
soon after made Sergeant of Company C. He
served three years in the army of the West.
At Germantown, Tennessee, he veteranized
and was made First Sergeant of Company F.
of Third Illinois Cavalry, re-organized, and
served until the fall of Richmond. He
returned to St. Louis, Missouri, with his
regiment in 1865, and later was sent to Fort
Snelling, Minnesota, to protect the whites
against the Indians. He was honorably dis-
charged at St. Paul, Minnesota, June 20,
1865. He was in all the great battles of his
division of the army, and had many narrow
escapes, and at one time was surrounded by
General Forrest's men and made his escape
only by his military tactics. He was a man
of daring and bravery. He returned to
Beardstown in 1865, made a trip to Nebraska
on horseback, and spent some time there look-
ing after his real-estate interests.
He was appointed Postmaster of this place
by President Grantin his first term, and held
it for eighteen years consecutively, and had
in the meantime served as Justice of the
Peace. He was one of the organizers of the
Republican party in Geauga county, Ohio,
and was vice-president of the first anti-slavery
society organized in that section.
He was first married in Ohio, to Amanda F.
King, who died in 1852, aged thirty-four.
She left two sons: Melbourne, living in
Beardstown, and William; both of these gen-
tlemen made very fine records indeed in the
war of the rebellion. Mr. Parsons was mar-
ried a second time to Mrs. Catherine Saun-
ders. She has three children by a former
marriage, namely: John, a mercantile book-
keeper; George, who was a member of Bat-
tery B, Second Illinois Light Artillery, in the
late war; and Elva J., a lady of superior
talent, and a teacher in the high school, and
is now the wife of Mr. Saunders.
QUIRE JAMES M. WATKINS, a
popular Justice of the Peace and one of
the most prosperous farmers of Cass
county, Illinois, residing in township 18,
range 9, was born in Richmond precinct,
same county, February 5, 1839.
His parents were Elijah and Lydia A.
(Montgomery) Watkins, both natives of Ken-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN OOUNTIE8.
225
tucky, the former born in Green county, in
1797, and the latter a native of Hart county.
His father's parents were Samuel and Mary
(McClure) Watkins, the former a native of
Wales and the latter of Maryland. Samuel
Watkins came to America when a very young
man and settled in Maryland, where he was
married, and whence he removed to Ken-
tucky. He was a prominent pioneer of the
latter State, in which he made his home for
many years, and where he died at the age of
eighty-five years. His wife also died in that
State, aged sixty-five or seventy years. They
were the parents of twelve children, eleven of
whom survive. Two of these, Lewie and
Hank, were brave and efficient soldiers in the
war of 1812. The mother of this subject was
a daughter of Simpson and Salie (Gum)
Montgomery. She was one of five children,
two of whom were half brothers. Her father
was of Scottish descent, his parents never com-
ing to America, and her people were mostly
farmers. Her father was a boatman, and lost
his life by being struck on the head with a
gun.
The father of the subject of this notice re-
sided at home until he attained the age of
nineteen. He then worked for a while by the
day and month in Kentucky until he had ac-
cumulated some means, and when, about the
year 1833-'34, he emigrated with his wife to
Illinois, at that time the frontier of civiliza-
tion. They came overland with one wagon,
drawn by oxen, and brought some stock.
They first located in Wayne county, but
shortly afterward removed to Menard county,
where he continued to live until 1838, when
he sold out and came to Cass county. Here
he first rented land for five or six years, then
bought eighty acres, a few of which were
broken, and the place having an old log
house on it. This house served as their home
for about a year, when it was replaced by a
better one. The father was an exceedingly
energetic man, and his success in this new
country was a foregone conclusion. He
added, from time to time, to his original pur-
chase, until he possessed 300 acres of choice
farming land, 160 of which was received from
the Government. His death occurred on the
old homestead in 1884, to the great sorrow
of many friends, who esteemed him for his
ability, industry and uprightness of character.
He and his worthy wife were earnest and
useful members of the Primitive Baptist
Church, and he helped to build the first
church in his locality. He displayed his
usual activity in church and all good work,
and acted as a Deacon for many years.
The subject of this sketch was reared to
farm work and attended subscription school
during the winters, working on his father's
farm in the summer. Owing to his busy
life, his education was limited, and he is es-
sentially a self-educated and self-made man.
Extensive reading, supplemented by excellent
judgment and an active mind, have combined
to render himself successful in life and a
leader among men. He lived at home until
after his marriage, and the following year
moved to his father-in-law's farm, on which
he remained until the next year. He then
bought twenty-five acres, a few of which were
broken, and built on it a box house, 16 x 18
feet. He and his family lived in this house
for twelve or fourteen years, when he erected
his present substantial and comfortable home.
He has lived on the same place ever since,
which now contains 120 acres, devoted to
mixed farming, and is one of the finest farms
in the connty.
He was married June 14, 1859, to Miss
Nancy Jane Lewis, an estimable lady and a
daughter of Azariah and Sarah Lewis, a
226
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP GA8S,
sketch of whom appears in this work. She
was born April 4, 1842. They have eleven
children, as follows: Sarah E., born March 10,
1860, married H. Speulda, and they have
seven children; they live in South Dakota;
Charles L., born October 16, 1861, married
Susan McNeil, a native of this county; they
have three children; Simpson Lee, born
November 13, 1863, married Ida Taylor, and
lives in Chandlerville; William B., born De-
cember 28, 1867, married Belle Miller, and
they have two children; he lives in this
neighborhood; Laura, born December 15,
1865, married James Cooper, and they have
three children; John R., born March 29,
1870, married Dora Lucas, and they have
one child; Azariah, born August 20, 1872.
Stella M., born December 19, 1874; Miamia
B., born June 16, 1877; Josephine, born
August 28, 1880; Casper, born June 25,
1884. All of Mr. Watkins' children have
had educational advantages.
Mr. "Watkins is an old Andrew Johnson
Democrat, and cast his first vote for Stephen
A. Douglas. With the exception of his vote
cast for General Weaver for President, he
has voted a straight Democratic ticket ever
since. Acknowledging his ability, his con-
stituents have sought the advantage of his
judgment and experience by electing him to
various local offices. He went from the
school room to the position of school director,
in which capacity he has served ever since.
He has held the responsible position of
Justice of the Peace for twenty years, dis-
charging his duties with justice and impar-
tiality.
His wife is a faithful member of the Prim-
itive Baptist Church, and, both by her in-
influence and means, contributes to its sup-
port.
Mr. Watkins' life is a brilliant example of
what may be accomplished by intelligent and
persistent effort, which not only insure ma-
terial prosperity but also crown their vota-
ries with honor and happiness.
f
DAM P. SEASLY, a progressive and
enterprising young farmer of Oakland
township, was born in Carroll county,
Maryland, in 1860. His father, Adam Seasly,
now a resident of Adams county, Pennsyl-
vania, is a native of Germany, but emigrated
to America when a young man; he was
reared to the life of a farmer, and also mas-
tered the blacksmith's trade in his own
country. After arriving in this country he
went directly to Pennsylvania, and there was
married to Elizabeth Cook, a daughter of
Benjamin Cook; she died in early woman-
hood in Pennsylvania, leaving two sons and
a daughter: Mary, Adam P-. and George;
Mary died in infancy, and George lived only
a few years. At the age of three years Adam
P. was taken by Henry Riffle, and under his
care was reared to manhood.
In the spring of 1869 Mr. Riffle came from
Pennsylvania to Illinois, and located at Ver-
mont, Fulton county; he was a plasterer by
trade, and followed that calling in connec-
tion with farming. Mr. Riffle had no chil-
dren of his own, but adopted a son and
daughter, for whom he carefully provided.
Adam P. Seasly, the son, was given a good
education, and was taught the printer's trade.
Mr. Seasly was married in 1881, to Miss
Rebecca E. Kost, of Fulton county, Illinois,
a daughter of John and Catherine Kost,
natives of Pennsylvania. Mr. Kost is a car-
penter and farmer, and in 1850 he emigrated
to Illinois and settled in Fulton county. He
is now one of the wealthiest resident laud
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
227
owners in this section, but is retired from
active business pursuits. Mr. Seasly engaged
in agricultural pursuits in Fulton county,
which he continued until 1885, when he re-
moved to his present farm of eighty acres;
he rents an additional eighty acres, and is
carrying on a successful business. To him
and his wife have been born three children:
Ross H., Edgar and Ruth.
Politically our subject affiliates with the
Democratic party; he has served as School
Trustee, and has always been a liberal sup-
porter of home industries and enterprises.
fHOMAS P. PARROTT, an intelligent
and public-spirited citizen of Buena
Vista township, is a pioneer of 1831,
since which time his interests have been
identified with those of his favorite county.
He is a native of Kentucky, having been born
in Glasgow, that State, on September 3, 1825.
His father, Josiah Parrott, was a native of
Maryland, having been born in Talbot county,
that State, on July 20, 1800. He had no
school advantages, but acquired an excellent
business education in Glasgow, Kentucky, to
which place he early removed. He was pos-
sessed of unusual financial ability, and had a
remarkable aptitude for mercantile pursuits.
In time he became the owner of three stores,
one at Glasgow, one at Thompsonville, and
another at Gainesboro, Tennessee. He was
married in Kentucky, to Nancy G. Bransford,
a native of Rockingham, Virginia, in which
place she was born on July 27, 1807. She
was a daughter of Thomas Bransford, a promi-
nent citizen of that place.
In 1830 Mr. Parrott came to Rushville,
Illinois, which was then a new and sparsely
settled country, and opened a store at that
place. He had at that time $60,000 and a
large stock of goods. After starting his store,
he returned to Kentucky, and in the spring
of the following year, 1831, he removed his
family to Rushville, where he continued in
business for more than forty years, being the
oldest merchant of that place. He also
started several other stores at the same time,
in different towns, one at Beardstown, and
another at Princeton, while he had still
another at Pulaski. All were general stores
and all carried large stocks of goods. He
possessed very great energy and excellent
financial ability, and was eminently success-
ful in business. He invested largely in land,
and became the owner of thousands of acres
of the richest land of Schuyler county. He
voted with the Whig party, and later with
the Republican, but never desired to hold
office. He was a member of the Masonic
fraternity, being one of the charter members
of the lodge in Rushville. He was a promi-
nent nlember of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, of which he was a liberal supporter.
He helped to build the first Methodist church
in RuShville, and contributed toward the
erection of the present handsome edifice.
Mr. Parrott's first wife died on July 26,
1835, leaving four children to the care of her
husband, and many friends to mourn her loss.
She was a woman of intelligence and many
charms of character, a faithful wife and fond
mother, and was much lamented by all who
knew her. The children were: Thomas P.,
subject of our sketch; James H., now a real-
estate man of Omaha, Nebraska; John B.,
who died in Buena Vista, unmarried; and
Susan, who died unmarried.
Mr. Parrott was subsequently married
again, his second wife being Catharine Scripps,
a native of Missouri. They had twelve chil-
dren: George, deceased; Maria, who married
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
Colonel William McAlister, and died in
Rushville; Lydia, married; Sarah, who mar-
ried Albert Clark, and died -in Kearney, Ne-
braska; Josiah, a traveling salesman; Catha-
rine, deceased; Charley, a resident of Lincoln,
Nebraska, and was for many years a banker
in Omaha; Walter, a wholesale dealer in
hats, caps and notions, in Chicago; Frank,
deceased; Marcus, a resident of Omaha;
Ellen, deceased; and Lewis, a real-estate man
of Omaha, Nebraska.
The father died at his home, surrounded
by his family and friends, on May 29, 1881,
aged eighty-one years, much lamented as a
faithful friend and fond husband and father.
The subject of our sketch was but a mere
boy when the family came to Rusliville in
1831. He attended school in Kushville, and
when young began to assist in the duties
about his father's store, and when grown, be-
came a partner. The confinement of indoor
work, however, did not agree with his health,
and consequently, during the war he located on
a farm in JBuena Vista township. He is now
the owner of 320 acres of highly cultivated
land. Besides his farming interests, he is
largely engaged in stock-raising, being a
breeder of shorthorn and red-polled cattle,
and of Morgan and Clyde horses, and has
some of the finest specimens of the various
breeds to be found in the country.
On January 25, 1848, he was married to
Sarah Wright, a daughter of E. M. and Sarah
Wright. She was born in Syracuse, New
York. Their happy married life was doomed
to be of short duration, for, after little more
than a year, on November 12, 1849, his wife
died, leaving to his care one child, Sarah G.,
now the wife of Insco Marine, and resides at
Beatrice, Nebraska.
On October 10, 1860, our subject was mar-
ried again, his second wife being Emma
Window, born in Macomb, Illinois, a daugh-
ter of Rev. William H. Window. Her fa-
ther was a Methodist Episcopal minister,
widely and favorably known in Illinois.
They had eight children, two sons and six
daughters: Susan, wife of E. H. Lugg, of
Warsaw, Illinois; William; Grace; Harry;
Catharine; Ida; Blanche and Margaret. The
faithful wife and devoted mother died on
July 22, 1890, much mourned by her family
and friends. April 13, 1892, Harry married
Miss Carrie McConnick, of Buena Vista.
Our subject affiliates with the Republicans
in politics, and though averse to office has,
at the earnest solicitation of his numerous
friends, served in some local positions of
trust, to the entire satisfaction of his con-
stituents. He is, like his father before him,
a liberal supporter of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, which denomination has found in
him an earnest and sympathetic friend.
Of high integrity and morality, of rare
ability and warm impulses, he enjoys the
confidence of his fellow citizens, and the es-
teem of his family and a host of friends.
(ASPER ROHN, a general farmer in
sections 32 and 33, range 12, township
18, Beardstown precinct, has a well
improved tract which has been his farm for
twenty-one years. He was born on a part of
the farm which he now owns, September 23,
1842. His parents were Henry and Elizabeth
(Longore) Rohn. They both came to America
and were married after landing in St. Louis,
and later came to Beardstown (for further
history, seehistory of J. Henry Rohn, this
book). They were very early settlers, having
come to the county three years after the In-
dians had left the State.
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
229
Mr. Casper Rohn has been a hard-working
man, has been moderately successful, and has
made his way in the world by his own efforts.
He was married first to Mary Jockissh, of
Cass county, Illinois, and residedin thisconnty
until her death in 1876, at the age of twenty-
five years. She was a good, kind wife and
mother, and left her husband four children:
Lizzie Eveland, living in Fulton county, Illi-
nois; Clara, at present in Jacksonville, Illi-
nois; Philip is at home on the farua, and
George, who lives at Boody, Illinois. Mr.
Rohn was married a second time in this
county, to Delia Dunn, born in Morgan
county, daughter of an old settler. Her
father now lives in Missouri, but her mother
died there some years ago. Mr. and Mrs.
Rohn are the parents of six children: Lulu,
Walter, Frank, Charles, Samuel and Ruth.
They are associated with the people of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, and Mr. Rohn
is an ardent Republican. Mr. Rohn is an
honest, peaceable, home loving German citi-
zen, and he and his worthy wife are greatly
esteemed by their hosts of friends.
DANIEL STEPHENS has been closely
identified with the history of Schuyler
county, Illinois, since 1836, and it is
fitting that his name should appear in this
volume. He was born in Davidson county,
North Carolina, April 4, 1819, a son of Alex-
ander Stephens, who died in 1825; the mother
of our subject, whose maiden name was Mary
Dealy, was a native of New Jersey; she was
married a second time in Illinois, spend-
ing the last of her life in Bainbridge
township. Daniel Stephens, in early life,
became inured to the hard labor of a
farm ; he made the most of his opportunities
to secure an education, but as there were no
free schools and his father was in limited cir-
cumstances, the advantages offered him were
very few. He lived in North Carolina until
1836, when he emigrated to the West, and
settled in Illinois; the entire journey was
made overland with teams, and the country
reached was little better than a wilderness.
Mr. Stephens settled in that portion of Schuy-
ler county which is now included in Brown
county, but he had no means to invest in
land, and so was obliged to work for wages;
he received $12 a month, and from this small
snm saved enough to make a beginning. In
1841 he settled on a tract of patent land that
is now a part of his farm, and three years
later he bought eighty acres, for which he
paid $170; this place was covered with tim-
ber and brush, and in the heart of the forest
he erected a cabin that afforded protection
and shelter; he courageously undertook the
task of placing the land under cultivation,
and as he prospered he invested in other
lands, until he now owns 572 acres, lying in
Bainbridge and Woodstock townships.
Mr. Stephens was married January 26,
1840, to Rebecca Kimbel, a native of Simp-
son county, Kentucky, and a daughter of
Samuel and Elizabeth Kimbel. Of this
union were born seven children: George W.,
William M., David, Samuel, John R., Saman-
tha Jane and Olive.
George W. Stephens has been three times
married, his present wife being Ann Irvin;
they have seven children: William M. has
been married twice, Martha J. Eason being
the second wife; he has eight children; David
married Martha Landreth, and has a family
of seven children; Samuel married Cornelia
Persinger, and has four children ; John mar-
ried Mary J. Macombs, and has one child;
Samantha J. is the wife of Richard Black,
230
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
and has three children; Olive married L. F.
Nooner, and is the mother of four children.
Mr. Stephens has thirty-five grandchildren
and three great-grandchildren.
lOBERTB. McMASTER was born in
Highland county, Ohio, February 3,
1827, a. son of David McMaster, who
was born in county Down, Ireland. The pa-
ternal grandfather, John McMaster, was a
native of Ireland, of Scotch ancestry. He
emigrated to America in 1807, and settled in
Rockbridge county, Virginia, where he lived
until 1818. He removed to Ohio in that
year, and located in Highland county. He
bought a tract of heavily timbered land, built
a log cabin in the midst of the forest, and re-
sided there until his death. He married Jen-
nie McKee, of County Down, Ireland; she
died on the farm in Highland county, the
mother of four children: James, David, Ar-
thur and Robert. David McMaster, the
father of our subject, was a lad of twelve
years when his parents crossed the sea to
America. He was- married in Virginia, and
lived there until 1816, when he removed to
Kentucky; at the end of one year he went to
Highland county, Ohio, where he was among
the pioneers; he bought a tract of timber land,
erected the characteristic log cabin with a
mud-and-stick chimney, and began the task of
clearing a farm. Cincinnati was the nearest
market-town, sixty miles distant, wild game
was abundant, and the mother carded, spun
and wove the cloth with which her children
were dressed. In 1836 Mr. McMaster sold
this farm and came to Illinois, accompanied
by his wife and six children; they made the
journey in a four-horse wagon, camping on
the way. He first located in Fulton county,
and in 1838 came to Schuyler county, and
rented until he bought land in Rushville
township, where he resided until his death in
1866. His wife's maiden name was Elizabeth
Wardlaw, a native of Rockbridge county,
Virginia, and a daughter of William and
Mary Wardlaw, natives of Scotland. They
reared a family of six children: Mary C ,
William W., John M., Robert B., Jane C.
and Sarah A.
A lad of nine years, Robert B. McMaster
came to Illinois, and well remembers many
incidents of the journey and the trials and
privations to which they were subject on the
frontier. He attended the pioneer schools,
and received a training which fitted him for
the ordinary duties of life. He remained
with his parents until 1850, and in March of
that year started for the Golden State. He
took the overland route, and accomplished
that perilous journey without accident or dis-
aster. He arrived in California in July, and
at once engaged in mining; he continued this
industry until 1852, when he returned to Illi-
nois. He bought land included in the tract
he now owns on section twenty-two, Rush-
ville township, and has been one of the most
progressive and prosperous farmers of the
county. He was actively engaged in agricul-
tural pursuits until 1884:, when he purchased
property in and adjoining Rushville, and
erected a handsome residence which he now
occupies.
Mr. McMaster was married in 1853, to
Rachel Quinn, and they had a family of three
children: Curtis died at the age of twenty-
eight years; Jennie died in infancy; Mary
married Marshall Finch, and has two sons,
Robert and Wade T. Mrs. McMaster was
born in Hardin county, Kentucky, November
14, 1836, a daughter of Thomas Quinn, a
native of Virginia. He married Nancy Ken-
nedy, a native of Hardin county, Kentucky,
SCHV7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
231
and a daughter of Peter and Rachel (Colvon)
Kennedy. In 1837 they moved to Illinois
with their family of eight children, and
settled in Schuyler county; the father died
in 1844, but the mother survived until 1886,
in her eighty-fifth year.
? HENRY ROHN, farmer and stock-
raiser, living on the old homestead in
3 township 18, range 12, of the precinct
of Beardstown, was born at the same place,
September 20, 1837. He is the eldest mem-
ber of the family. The father, Henry, was a
native of Hesse-Darmstadt. Henry Rohn,
Sr., had grown up, but was yet single, when
he came to the United States with his brother
John, and after a long, tedious passage, they
landed in New Orleans, and from there pro-
ceeded to St. Louis. Here he stopped and
married the girl who had come with him
from the same province. Her name was
Elizabeth Longore, and they soon came to
Cass county and entered, in the year 1837,
Government land. They added to it from
time to time until he owned 1,300 acres,
made by him and his thrifty wife. He was
$105 in debt when he landed in Beardstown,
having to borrow money to come there. He
continued on this same land, improving it
until his death in 1891. He was then nearly
eighty-six years of age. He was a well-
known pioneer, a successful farmer, a good
neighbor and husband, and an active member
of the Methodist Episcopal Chnrch. His
wife is yet living, aged eighty-one years,
smart and active, making her home with her
son William, and is still an active member of
the Methodist Episcopal Church.
. J. Henry has lived on the farm he now
owns all his lifetime. It consists of 820
acres, and of this 500 acres are under the
plow, with good farm buildings. He has
owned the old homestead for fifteen years.
He was married in this county to Malinda
Wagle, born in Brown county, in 1840. Her
father was Jephtha "Wagle, of Madison county,
Kentucky, who was married there and came
to Brown county as an early settler, and later
moved on a farm near Arenzville, and there
lived and died. His wife is yet surviving, at
the age of eighty years, making her home in
this county. Her maiden name was Phoabe
Todd, and she was a relativeof Mrs. Abraham
Lincoln. Mr. and Mrs. Rohn are the parents
of four children: Albert and Louis H. are
both at home helping on the farm, and Carrie
and Nettie are twins, and both are bright and
intelligent children. The whole family are
Methodists, and are good types of German
citizens. Mr. Rohn is a stanch Republican.
fOHN A. YOUNG, one of the most
prominent and prosperous agriculturists
of Schuyler county, resides on section
21, Buena Vista township. The following
space will be devoted to a brief biography of
which he is the subject. He was born in
Schuyler county, on the farm which he now
occupies, June 14, 1832, a son of John
Young, a native of Ireland; the paternal
grandparents were John and Margaret Young.
John Young emigrated to America when a
young man, and stopped for a time in Phila-
delphia; thence he continued his journey to
the West, and after locating in Rushville he
sent for his parents; they left their native
land, crossed the sea, and made a home in
the new world; they now reside in Buena
•Vista township, at a good old age. There
were born to them three sons and two daugh-
232
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OAS8,
ters: John, William K., Alexander, Mar-
garet and Elizabeth. The father of John A.
Young was married at Rushville to a daugh-
ter of Hugh McCreary, a native of Ireland,
who came to America aboard the same ship
as her husband, and it was on this voyage
that they met. He died in early life, the
date being February 8, 1835; he was a
farmer, and had entered land in Buena Vista
township; the wife died June 14, 1883; they
had two children: James M. died in infancy;
John A. is the only surviving member of the
family. During his boyhood days he lived
with his mother and relatives; from early
childhood he was self-sustaining, working
for his board; he attended school until six-
teen years of age, and then settled with his
mother on the homestead that had been en-
tered by the father. In 1852 he went to
Caliiornia, making the journey overland,
and remained on the Pacific coast six years;
he was engaged in mercantile and agricult-
ural pursuits, and was reasonably successful.
He returned via the Isthmus and New York
city; he made a visit to relatives in Philadel-
phia, and then came to his old home. Here
he resumed agricultural pursuits, making
many improvements in the way of erecting
buildings; his mother resided with him until
her death.
The homestead originally consisted of 130
acres, twenty acres of which Mr. Young sold
to raise the money to go to California. He
•<' now owns 580 acres in one body, well stocked,
and in a high state of cultivation. He gives
especial attention to the breeding of live-
stock, and has a fine herd of short-horns, and
some horses of excellent pedigree.
Mr. Young was united in marriage Oc-
tober 13, 1869, to Miss Mary L. Clark, a
daughter of Rev. John Clark; she was born'
in Schnyler county, Illinois, April 1, 1847,
and died May 15, 1878; she was the mother
of four children; Carl C., born August 9,
1870, is in the employ of the Illinois Steel
Company; Anna F., born August 3, 1872, is
a student at De Pauw University, Green-
castle, Indiana; Sarah E., born August 23,
1874, and James H., December 10, 1876.
Mr. Young was married a second time,
November 24, 1881, to Miss Elizabeth De
Witt, a daughter of James and Ellen (Little)
DeWitt; she was born at Littleton, Schuyler
county, May 22, 1855; five children were
born of this union: one died in infancy;
Mary was born September 19, 1882; John
D., April 5, 1884; D wight M., September
28, 1885; Ellen L., April 16, 1888. Mrs.
Young is a consistent member of the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church.
In addition to the business interests al-
ready mentioned, Mr. Young has invest-
ments in real estate in Duluth and other
points; he is also a stockholder in the Bank
of Rushville, and is one of the directors of
the same. Politically he is identified with
the Republican party ; he has been Supervisor
of his township, but his private affairs have
so taken his time that public office has not
been sought. He is a man of broad intelli-
gence, and the strictly honorable methods he
has employed in his business career has won
him the entire confidence and respect of the
community.
A. BERRY, foreman of the black-
smith shops of the Rock Island and
* St. Louis division of the Chicago,
Burlington & Quincy railroad, located at
Beardstown, was born in Medina, Ohio,
February 12, 1852. He came when five
years of age to Aurora, Illinois, with his par-
ents. He grew up there and received a com-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
233
mon school education and learned his trade.
His father, Thomas E. Berry, had come from
England to Medina, Ohio, there learned the
carpenter's trade and was married to Anna
Pierce, who was also of English birth. In
1857, Thomas Berry, wife and four children,
settled in Aurora, where he still lives, aged
seventy-three years, and is still hearty
enough to work at his trade. His wife died
in 1887. They were both members of the
Congregational Church.
Mr. Berry came here from Aurora and
was for one year foreman of the Chicago
division of the Chicago, Burlington &
Quincy railroad. He has been twenty-six
years with this company and has never lost a
month's time, nor been suspended. He won
his promotion by attending strictly to busi-
ness.
He was married in Aurora, to Ella Irwin,
who was born, reared and educated in the
same place. She was the daughter of Jerry
Irwin, a prominent and successful tailor of
Aurora, who died in 1881. His wife still
lives in Aurora. They were both Roman
Catholics. Mr. and Mrs. Berry have one
child, Maude. He is a member of the Masonic
order. He is a sound Republican, but not an
office-seeker.
?OSEPH GIFFORD, a well-to-do and
highly esteemed farmer of Versailles
township, Brown county, Illinois, where
he has lived for twenty years, was born in
Cambria county, Pennsylvania, in December,
1833.
His parents, Joseph and Sarah (Davis)
Giftbrd, were both natives of the Keystone
State, where his father was born in 1802.
His paternal grandfather, also named Joseph,
was of English parentage, and is thought to
have been born in England. He was a pros-
perous farmer in Huntingdon. county, Penn-
sylvania, and left, at his death, a good estate
to his family, consisting of five sons and four
daughters, all of whom became heads of
families, some attaining a great age. One
son was more than ninety years of age when
last heard from, and, if still living, as is quite
probable, he is nearly a hundred. The father
of the subject of this sketch moved from
Pennsylvania directly to Brown county, Illi-
nois, in 1856, and rented land near the village
of Cooperstown, where he resided for thirteen
years, until his death in 1869, at the age of
sixty-seven years. He left a widow and five
children, four sons and one daughter: David,
a successful farmer in Iowa; Joseph, of this
sketch; John and Isaac, both prosperous
farmers of Nebraska; and Jemima, who
married Manuel Whited, and died in Ne-
braska, aged forty-two years, leaving five
children.
The subject of this sketch was reared to
hard labor, and had but few educational
advantages. Before he was eleven years old,
he worked in the Sligo Pig Iron Works, in
Clarion county, Pennsylvania. When eigh-
teen years of age, he commenced life for him-
self, and what little education he possesses
has been gleaned by the dusty, toilsome way-
side of life. Fortunately his parents dowered
him with an unclouded intelligence and a
robust constitution, and inculcated in him a
love of truth and integrity, and trained him
to habits of industry and economy.
He was married in his twenty-first year, to
Lucinda Hovis, of Venango county, Pennsyl-
vania, August 3, 1854, and continued to live
in the Keystone State until the fall of 1868,
when they removed to Brown county, Illi-
nois. They made the journey overland with
234
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
a team, bringing six children with them .
They were four weeks en route, and, the
weather being propitious, their journey was a
continual pleasure trip and picnic. They
camped in their tent and covered wagon at
night, and cooked their meals by the way.
Arriving in Brown comity, Illinois, they
located on forty acres of their present farm
for which they paid $650. There were no
buildings on the place at the time, and only
fifteen acres of it were cleared. They had
brought but little means with them, and went
in debt $ 450, since when they have purchased
forty more acres, are out of debt, and have
most of the farm well improved.
Prior to coming to Illinois, in September,
1862, Mr. Gifford went as a volunteer in
Company E, Sixteenth Pennsylvania Cavalry,
from Franklin, Pennsylvania. He was on
duty all of the time from his enlistment un-
til his discharge at Lynchburg, Virginia,
June 17, 1865, except when he was sick in
the hospital with typhoid pneumonia, from
June 4 to August 16, 1863. He was in some
forty-six engagements, some of which were
hotly contested. Among these was the bat-
tle of Hatcher's Run, which he thinks was
worse than that of the " Bull Pen." His last
year of service was spent under the command
of General Phil. Sheridan.
Mr. and Mrs. Giiford have had ten chil-
dren, nine of whom survive: Sarah, married
George Green, .and died, aged twenty-five
years, leaving two sons; Ernest, a prosperous
farmer of Elkhorn township, married Alice
Lewis, and has two children; Maggie married
Morgan Grady, a successful fanner of Pike
county, Illinois; Laura married Frank Sellers,
a well-to-do farmer of Iowa, and has one
daughter; Ida married George B. Alexander,
and has two children; Julia married John
Orr, a progressive farmer of Cooperstown
township; Hattie married William Tolle, an
estimable laboring man of Versailles town-
ship, and has one son; Mattie and Mollie,
twin sisters, are intelligent and active young
ladies, who relieve their mother of much of
the household work; Joseph W., the youngest
ayouth of sixteen, is at home, and does much
of the hard labor on the farm. Mr. Gifford,
who has toiled hard for many years, is taking
a needed rest whenever he can do so.
In politics Mr. Gifford is Democratic, and
has been honored by his constituents several
times with public office. Besides minor
positions of trust, he has served two terms as
Justice of the Peace, and was re-elected for
the third term, but declined to qualify, think-
ing he had done his share of such service.
Religiously he and his worthy wife are
earnest and useful members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church, to which they have belonged
many years.
Mr. Gifford's history would serve as an
example for many poor, young men, starting
in life. A careful analysis of his prosperity
would be found to consist in intelligent and
persistent effort, supplemented by upright-
ness of dealing, careful economy and uniform
courtesy in all the various walks of life.
ILLIAM G. MOHLMANN, pro-
prietor of the furniture and under-
taking establishment at the corner of
Main and Jefferson streets, was born in the
city of Beardstown, July 10, 1866. His
father, William, was born in Prussia and was
the son of Henry, who was also a Prussian.
He grew up there and learned the trade of
cabinet maker. He married a Prussian lady
of good family, and after most of their chil-
dren were born, and when their sou William
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
235
was thirteen years old, in 1849. came to the
United States. He finally settled in Beards-
town and established a business, which was
managed by Henry Mohlmann until his
death in 1881, at the age of seventy-eight
years. It was afterward carried on by Will-
iam Mohlinann until his death in 1891. He
was a good business man, a public-spirited
citizen and one that did much for the city.
His wife, as well as mother, is still living,
the latter being about eighty years of age.
The mother of William G. was named
Lydia Lohmann, a Prussian. She was yet
young when she came with her parents
to the United States, and her mother is still
living, smart, bright and active. The whole
family were identified with the Lutheran
Church.
William G. Mohlmann is the second of
seven children. He grew up and obtained a
practical education, and learned his business
by growing up in it. He afterward took a
course in the College of Embalming in Chi-
cago. The business was established by the
grandfather, Henry, in 1858. Until 1876
most of the goods were manufactured by the
firm. At that time William F. became sole
proprietor, and in 1891 William G. became
half owner, and after the death of his father
the sole proprietor. Theconvenient building
now in use was recently built by the present
owner. It was completed in July, 1891. Mr.
Mohlmann occupies a double store, basement
and first and second floors, 50 x 80 feet, all
stocked with goods.
He was married in Virginia, February 18,
1892, to Miss Rose Leggett of North Caro-
lina. Mr. and Mrs. Mohlmann are young so-
ciety people of Beardstown. Mr. Mohlmann
is a member of the blue lodge and chapter, A.
F. & A. M. of Beardstown and Rushville, and
Commandery No. 56, and Senior Deacon in
blue lodge and Royal Arch Captain in
chapter. He is no office-seeker, but is a
Democrat in politics. He is yet a young
man, but full of business and is bound to
succeed.
1LLIAM HACKMAN, a practical
German farmer and stock raiser of
section 30, township 17, range 11,
is the owner of a good farm where he lives.
He was born in Hanover, near the city of
Osnabriick, in 1820, September 13th. He
was the third son born to John E. and Ma-
ria (Struve) Hackman, natives of Hanover,
who came of pure German blood. After his
marriage he settled down in his native land
as a farmer, on a small scale, and here all the
children were born, but later in life Mr.
Hackman sold out all his interests in his
native land and set sail from Bremen for the
United States, with his wife and family. Af-
ter a voyage of seven weeks and two days,
they landed at Castle Garden, coming on at
once to Illinois via Albany, New York, Buf-
falo, across Lake Erie, landing at Cleveland,
across the canal, down the Ohio to Cairo, up
the Mississippi river to St. Louis, and thence
up the Illinois river to Beardstown, in
June, 1835. The father purchased 120
acres in township 12, range 11, but before
they were settled he sickened and died. He
had procured the deed, so his family had the
farm. He was only fifty-eight years of age
and had been in the country but a few,
months. The widow mother moved on the
farm with her children, and they began their
life as farmers in a new country. Some years
later she went to live with her only daughter,
Mary Bushman, of Beardstown, where she
died when seventy-two years of age. She
236
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OA88,
lived to see her children all well married and
settled in life. Mrs. Hackman joined the
Methodist Church in this county and died
in that faith. Her husband was a Lutheran.
William and a brother Fred are the only
surviving children, the latter also being a
farmer at Arenzville. William grew to man-
hood in this county. He is now the owner of
two fine farms of 320 acres in all, both having
a complete set of farm buildings on them,
built by Mr. Hackman. The land is in a fine
condition and yields good crops.
He was married in this county to Eliza-
beth Meyer, born in Germany, in 1828. She
was a small child when brought to America
by her parents. They made their first settle-
ment on the farm now owned by Mr. Hack-
man. It was on this farm that Mr. and Mrs.
Meyer both lived, and died when they were
thirty years old. They were Lutherans in
religion. Mrs. Hackman is one of seven
children, of whom she and a sister, Mrs. Fred
Hackman, of this county, and a brother,
Henry, a retired farmer of Oregon, are the
only surviving members. The next year,
July, 1835, after they came to America, Mr.
and Mrs. Meyer died, and Mrs. Hackman
was reared by a Mrs. Freeman Skinner. She
has been a true, good wife to a devoted hus-
band for the past forty-five years.
Mr. and Mrs. Hackman are the parents of
six children: one, Matilda, died when young;
one, William E., died when twenty- two;
and Loulisa, after her marriage to George
Keoneke, to whom she bore five children.
The living children are, Louis; Lucinda, wife
ofTheo. Heierman, afarmer in Morgan county,
Illinois; and they have one child.
Mr. and Mrs. Hackraan are regarded as be-
ing among the good, kind and hospitable
old settlers of the county. They are upright,
Christian people, being members of the Eman-
uel Methodist Episcopal Church, two miles
from Arenzville. Mr. Hackman and son are
sound Democrats in politics.
Mr. Louis Hackman is now the manager
of his father's old homestead, and he is con-
ducting it in a way that reflects great credit
on him. He is a hard-working man, and
thoroughly understands his business, as the
fine condition of his fields testify. He was
married to Amelia Kors of this county, and
they are the parents of three as bright little
ones as any one need care to see. Mr. Louis
Hackman has been County Commissioner for
the past nine years.
The whole family are just the kind of peo-
ple that make Cass county so prosperous, and
if there were more like this worthy German
and his son, the prosperity of the State would
be greatly increased. .
fUDGE JOHN A. ARENZ, now retired
from active life and living at his pleas-
ant home on the corner of Sixth and
State Streets, was born on the river Ehine,
near Cologne, in 1810, October 28. He is
the only member of the family that came to
this country now living, His parents lived
near Cologne, Germany, and the father,
Francis, died there when past ninety years
of age; he was a prominent and successful
man and was an officer in the army of his
country, and received a pension for some
years before his death. His wife lived to be
an old lady over seventy-five years old.
Mr. Arenz came to this country in 1835,
on a sailing vessel from Bremen. He landed
in Baltimore city and another brother fol-
lowed Mr. Arenz to this country, and he
SCHUXLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
237
died in this State some twelve years ago,
leaving a family. Mr. Arenz had been care-
fully educated in civil engineering and other
branches ; was one of the corps of men that
measured the State of Prussia. He was the
principal of a public school, and was given a
license to practice as an attorney at law. He
was admitted to the bar about the time he
was elected County Judge. Mr. Arenz had
followed his brother Francis to this country,
he having come some time before, being the
first member of the family that left the old
world for the new. Our subject came to this
county in 1835, and the State was still un-
settled in great part. His brother's was the
only frame house for miles around and wild
game of every kind abounded. There were
no railroads and but few wagon roads.
The people were kind and good hearted.
Mr. Arenz had come to the State from
Baltimore, crossing the mountains to Wheel-
ing, "West Virginia, coming down the Ohio
river to St. Louis on a boat, It took fourteen
days to make the trip, the boat often sticking
on sand bars. After landing in St. Louis he
came to Cass county, and after some time he
and his brother Francis laid out the town of
Aren^ville in the southern part of Cass
county. There they estsblished a saw mill,
gristmill and general store, and ran it for
some time successfully. Later Francis died
and Mr. Arenz came to Beardstown and has
since made it his home. Francis died in
Jacksonville, in 1856, in the prime of life,
and was considered one of the foremost men
of the State. He was one of the State Board
of Agriculture and was a Director of the
same. He also organized the local board of
Cass county, which has continued ever since.
The State Board passed commendable resolu-
tions on the death of Mr. Francis Arenz, for
his earnest, hard work.
17
Mr. John Arenz became prominent as soon
as he came to the county and was soon
elected Justice of the Peace, and has held
other local offices. He was elected to the
office of Probate Judge, being the second
elected in the county. He held the office
for many years. He was elected first Mayor
of Beardstown, in 1850, and has filled the
office twice, subsequently. He has been city
Alderman and Treasurer, and served for
many years. He has been an admirer of
the principles of his party, Eepublican.
He was a Whig until the' dissolution of that
party and he then ardently espoused the
cause of the new party from the time of its
organization. He has always been regarded
as a representative man.
He was married, in Beardstown, to Mary
Miller, of Kentucky, and she died at her
home in this city in 1886, aged seventy years.
She was the daughter of Captain William
Miller, of Kentucky, a soldier in the Black
Hawk war, having served as Captain of a com-
pany from Jacksonville, lllionis, where he was
a pioneer, but later he came to Beardstown,
where he died at an advanced age. He was
a prominent man. Judge Arenz and wife
had three children; Francis W. died when
young; Maria L., wife of Philip Kuhl, a
merchant of this city, who have two children;
and Anna, wife of Omer S. Spring, of Peoria,
Illinois, a wholesale grocer and confectioner;
they have one daughter, Mary L.
CARLES J. NORBURY, one of the
old and best known men of Cass county,
was born in Philadelphia, May 22,
1812. His father, Joseph B., was a native
of Northumberland, Pennsylvania, grew up
and obtained his education in Phila-
238
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS 8,
delphia, became an attorney, and was so en-
gaged until his death at sixty years of age.
He was a well known citizen of that city.
His mother, Rebecca Frick, was born in
Northumberland county, coming of German
parents, and died a consistent member of
the Dutch Eeformed Church.
Mr. Norbury, after obtaining his early edu-
cation, became a clerk in a wholesale house in
Philadelphia. In the spring of 1836 he came
to Beardstown via Pittsburg, the Ohio,
Mississippi and Illinois rivers. He has since
been a resident of this place. He first began
as a clerk for William Eassett, who was a
dealer in flour and dry goods and agent for
the steamboats on the rivers. After this Mr.
Norbury was associated with several gentle-
men, and later entered into business relations
with George Plahn, which continued until
1884, when Mr. Norbury retired from active
business. In these years he had become one
of the best known men of the county, re-
spected for his honesty and as one who was
a friend in need. He never accumulated a
large fortune, but possesses a modest com-
petence.
He was married in Beardstown, in 183,9, to
Elizabeth Spence of Tennessee, born October
16, 1822. She was the daughter of Rev,
Thomas Spence, a prominent Methodist min-
ister of Tennessee, who came to Illinois in the
early thirties, having been a pioneer minister
in the early history of the State. Mr. and
Mrs. Norbury are working members of the
Congregational Church. He is not an office
seeker, but has always been a "Whig and a
Republican, voting first for William H.
Harrison and last for his grandson. Having
always lived a temperate life, notwithstand-
ing his age, he has a clear eye and sound
faculties. He and his wife are the parents
of thirteen children, nine of whom are living.
Those living are: Rebecca, widow of D. H.
Flickwin and living in Beardstown; Jennie,
now wife of Judge S. P. Dale, Canon City,
Colorado; William remains at home; Paralee,
the wife of O. K. Ruechler, lives in Jackson-
ville, Illinois; Arthur also lives at Jackson-
ville; Elizabeth resides in Denver; Anna,
wife of William D. Epler, resides in Beards-
town; Frank is a physician in charge of the
male annex of the insane asylum at Jackson-
ville; Mamie is the wife of G. B. Hegardt,
assistant United States Engineer at Fort
Stephens, Oregon. He built the Government
jetties at the mouth of the Columbia river.
fOHN L. BENNETT, born in McDon-
ough county, Illinois, December 13, 1832,
is the son of Isaac Bennett, born in North
Carolina, May 22, 1808. He married in
White county, Tennessee, Mary Lynch, April
8, 1834. She was the daughter of Charles and
Mary Lynch. The latter was born August
7, 1814. Her parents, who were farmers,
reared eight children, the father dying in
Tennessee, at the age of forty-live, her mother
in Hancock county, Illinois, aged eighty-four
years. Grandfather Bennett died in Ken-
tucky in 1831, and his wife in Hancock
county at the age of eighty years. She came
to Illinois in 1834, her son, Isaac, coming
with her. They first settled in McDonough
county, coming from Tennessee in ox carts,
taking about eight weeks to the trip. They
were in humble circumstances, and lived in
McDonough county for two years, and then
went from there to Hancock county, where
they took up a claim of 160 acres of wild land
with no improvements. They built a rude
log cabin, in which they lived and reared
most of the children. He made a good farm
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES,
239
of this, for which he paid and took a deed in
1838. They had eleven children: John L.,
the second, is a farmer and stock grower of
Hiar township, McDouough county; Mary
Jane was the wife of Fhilo McPeigh, who
died and left two children ; Norelan is a large
farmer of Hancock county, and has three
children ; Barbary Ann was the wife of George
Bradly, and died, leaving four children;
Rufus, a farmer of Hancock county, Illinois;
Lorinda, killed by a kick from a horse at the
age of eleven; Zilpha died at fourteen; Jere-
miah, a wealthy ranchman and stock-grower
of Texas; Lucinda, wife of William Duncan,
died leaving five children; Phoabe is married
and resides in St. Louis, and has two children.
John L. Bennett had very limited oppor-
tunities for obtaining an education: could
barely read when a young man. He had to
begin hard work when but a child, plowing
corn when only eleven years old. He has
worked very hard all his life until very re-
cently. He was and is still a very rugged
and strong man, and could endure anything
and everything, even the ague which shook
him while a lad.
He was married at twenty-one and soon
left home. His wife was Elizabeth Carder,
born in Indiana, where she was reared,
daughter of Cooper B. Carder, of South Caro-
lina, who came to Illinois in 1839. Her
mother was a Miss Dudney, of Tennessee.
Mr. and Mrs. Carder came to Illinois in,
1839, where the latter died in 1853, leaving
Elizabeth to care for the home. Mrs. Ben-
nett's father, nearly eighty years of age, is
living with her on the farm, of 180 acres.
Mr. and Mrs. Bennett have had a hard
struggle to get this farm. They worked
rented lands for some years and then bought
their first land in 1864, fifty-five acres of
timber for $700, paying one-half down. This
was in Hancock county, and they sold this
and bought where they now are. They have
owned as much as 230 acres since. Mr. Ben-
nett has done general farming all these years,
and for the past few years lias owned stock
horses. He stands three fine stallions, two
of them full blood, imported Clydesdale. He
keeps from fifteen to twenty head of horses,
some cattle and many hogs. Turns off as
high as forty horses.
They have had twelve children, have buried
two daughters and three sons; four died in
infancy and early childhood. Eliza Ann, the
first born, married Samuel Reeves, and died
at thirty years of age. Those living are:
Mary M., wife of William Neff, farmer in
Hancock county, with two children; Charles
Edward married Allie Buck, a farmer; John
M. married Nancy White, resides with his
parents and is running the home farm; Henry
is single and has a tonsorial establishment in
Chicago; Edgar is married to a Miss Swanson
and resides in Chicago; Otto, in Hancock
county; Homer, still a child, is at home. Mr.
Bennett is a straight Democrat. He and his
wife are highly respected by all who know
them.
HRISTIAN DUPES, of the firm of
Dupes & Blohm, dealers in general
merchandise and farm implements, was
born in Monroe precinct, Cass county, where
he has always lived. He was reared and edu-
cated in his native county as a farmer. He
is the son of David Dupes, a native of Penn-
sylvania, who came to Illinois when a young
man early in the forties. He was married,
in 1844, in Schuyler county, to Katie Neat-
hamer, a native of Pennsylvania, who was
reared in her native State. She came when
young to Schuyler county, Illinois, and was
240
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
married to Mr. Dupes at the early age of
fourteen. After their marriage Mr. Dupes
began their married life on a farm, but in
1845 he moved to Cass county, and they set-
tled in Monroe precinct, where he afterward
owned 300 acres in this county and 160 in
Ottawa county, Kansas. He continued to
live in Monroe precinct until his death, on
section 26, township 18, range 11, in 1888.
He was then seventy-three years of age, and
had been a successful farmer, a good citizen
and a stanch Democrat. His wife still survives
him, living at the old homestead, at the age
of sixty-two years. She is the mother of six
sons and three daughters still living, and two
sons deceased.
Christian is the eldest child, and has never
married. He was engaged as a farmer for
many years, and was very successful, owning
some very valuable property in the village of
Bluff Springs. His present business was
established in October, 1888, under the pres-
ent firm name, but recently Mr. Dupes sold
the store to A. W. Blohm, but retains the
realty. After the first year they increased
their capital and capacity to double its origi-
nal size, and are now doing a large and lucra-
tive business.
He is independent in politics, and is an
ambitious young man, still in the prime of
life, being only a little over forty years of
age. He is a good citizen and a reliable
business man. He is the Assistant Post-
master of the place, L. A. Jones being the
Postmaster.
fLAVJUS C. PRICE, one of the oldest
of the native born settlers of Mount
Sterling, was born December 12, 1838.
His father, William D. Price, was born in
Kentucky, near Leesburg, July 17, 1817.
Grandfather of subject, William D. Price,
was born in Virginia, and removed from
there to Kentucky, being one of the pioneers
of that state. He spent his last years at
Lexington. He served in the war of 1812,
and was taken prisoner by the British.
Father of subject was reared in Kentucky,
and came from there to Illinois about 1833,
and located in that part of Schuyler county
now included in Brown county. He entered
a tract of Government land on section 2,
built a log house, and at once commenced to
improve a farm. He was a resident there
till his death, which occurred in 1848. The
maiden name of mother of our subject was
Eliza A. Taylor. She was born in Fayette
county, Kentucky, October 17, 1817, daugh-
er of John and Elizabeth Taylor. Her par-
ents came from Kentucky to Morgan county
in 1832, and thence to Brown county in
1834. Mother of subject died February 1,
1871.
Subject was reared and educated in his
native township. When his parents settled
here, and for years afterward, the country was
but little improved, and deer, turkeys,
wolves and other game abounded. He at-
tended the pioneer schools. These were
taught in a log house, the seats made of
slabs, one side hewn smooth, and wooden
pins for legs. There were no desks, but
holes bored in the wall, pins inserted, and a
plank laid on them served as a desk for the
larger pupils.
He continued to reside with his mother on
the farm till 1862, when, August 8, he en-
listed in Company D, One Hundred and
Nineteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry. The
regiment was organized at Quincy, in Octo-
ber, and was one of the most active regi-
ments in the army. He was with the regi-
ment in all its various marches, campaigns
SOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
241
and battles. The most important battles
were the siege and capture of Fort de Rus-
sey, Pleasant Hill, Yellow Bayou, Nashville,
Tennessee, and Forts Spanish and Blakely.
He was discharged with the regiment and
returned home, and resumed farming till
1882, on the lot where he now resides in
section 1, Mount Sterling.
He was married May 10, 1861, to Narcis-
sa Wilson. She was born in Brown county,
Illinois, daughter of James L. Wilson. She
died August 9, 1886. He was again mar-
ried on October 23, 1887, to Miss Nancy
Sullivan; she was born in Scotland county,
Missouri. He has one child living by first
marriage, Julia E., and by second marriage,
one daughter, Calista. Julia E. married
Wm. Jones, of Scott county, and has one
daughter, Ethel.
Our subject is a Republican in politics.
He and his wife are both members of the
Christian Church, as also was his first wife.
VENRY C. KEIL, a large and very suc-
cessful dealer in all kinds of hardware,
stoves and tinware, was born in Hesse-
Darmstadt, Germany, November 7, 1848.
He grew up, attained his education and
learned his trade of tinner in his native
country. His father, Johauas Keil, is yet
living in Germany at his old home, and is
seventy years of age. He has been all his
life a farmer. He had married a Miss Eliza-
beth Moell, a native of his own province.
She died at the age of sixty years. She and
her husband had belonged all their lives to
the German Lutheran Church.
Henry Keil is the eldest of four children.
After coming to this country and locating in
Beardstown in 1867, he went back by way of
Hamburg, Germany, in 1873; he returned to
Beardstown in the spring of 1874, and has
since lived here. He followed the tinner's trade
for some time. He began business for him-
self in 1876, and has from that time on been
increasing his stock and his trade. He car-
ries a full line of first-class goods in a fine
brick store of his own building, which he
erected on Main street in 1890. He is a live
man, full of business, and one who works for
the best interest of his city and county. He
has been a stockholder in the First National
bank since it was started, first as a private
bank in 1877, and later a national bank in
1887.
He was married in Beardstown, to Sophia
Weis. She was born at Hamilton Station,
Cass county, and was there raised and edu-
cated. She is the daughter of John and
Catherine Weis, who both died on their old
farm in Cass county. They were pioneers in
Cass county, having come about 1840. Mr.
and Mrs. Keil are members of the Lutheran
Church, as were their parents. They have
three smart children: Alma, Arthur and Ed-
win, all still at home.
Mr. Keil is a Republican in politics, has
been Alderman of the city for several terms,
and is a fine man in every way.
ifCHABOD PERRY, one of the early set-
|l tiers of this county, residing in Mount
^ Sterling, was born in Clai borne county,
Tennessee, July 18, 1815. His father, Ed-
mond Perry, was a native of North Carolina
and served in the war of 1812, receiving a
land warrant for 160 acres; but it is not
known that this was ever located. His
father came from the same State, and re-
moved from there to Claiborne, Tennessee,
where he purchased land and carried on
fanning until 1831, when he came to Illinois
24S
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
He spent his last years in Brown county.
The maiden name of his wife was Rebecca
Yarberry, also a native of North Carolina.
She died in Brown county, also. Their son,
Edinond, was a natural mechanic, but never
learned a trade, and as he was very fond of
hunting, he put in a good deal of time in
that way. He resided in Tennessee until
1831, when, with his parents and others and
wife and ten children, he emigrated to Illi-
nois, and after four weeks overland travel
landed in Morgan county. He rented a log
cabin, three quarters of a mile from Jackson-
ville, and there spent the winter, and in the
spring of 1832 came to that part of Schuyler
that has been included in Brown county.
He settled on a tract of vacant land in what
is now Cooperstown township, and at once
built a log cabin in the usual manner of
the settlers, with rough hewn logs and
puncheon floor. He lived in that place for
about a year when he found out that he had
built his house on the wrong land. He then
moved to the adjoining quarter and put up a
log cabin there, and later purchased this
land, paying therefor $200, mostly in prop-
erty. It was military land. This included
the southwest quarter of section thirty, and
he turned his attention to the improvement of
the land, and resided in this locality until
his death. The maiden name of his wife
was Rachel Bridges, daughter of William
and Sarah Bridges, who moved from Tennes-
see to Missouri in 1831, -and spent the rest
of their days there.
Ichabod was sixteen years old when he
came to Illinois with his parents. The
country was sparsely settled and but little
improvement has been made anywhere.
For some years the people lived on the pro-
duce of their farms and on the wild game
that abounded in the forests. His mother
used to card, spin and weave, and dressed her
children in homespun made by her own
hands. The father, being a skilled hunter,
used to kill a great many deer. He dressed
the skins, and in the winter the boys used to
wear pants made of that material. Ichabod
received his early education in the public
schools of Tennessee. These were taught
on the subscription plan, each family paying
according to the number of children sent.
He made the best of his opportunities, and
in later years has improved his mind by ex-
tensive reading. He remained with his par-
ents until he was twenty one and then began
life for himself. In 1836 he went to the
Territory of Iowa. At the time of his mar-
riage he located on wild land in section 24,
of Mount Sterling township, which he oc-
cupied for fifty-three years. He bought
other tracts of land at various times, and at
one time was the owner of 800 acres. He
has assisted each of his children to homes,
and now lives with his daughter, Mrs. Ward.
In 1838, he married Martha Bell, born in
Kentucky, January 1, 1818, daughter of
Robert and Jennie Bell. She died January
7, 1892. He has four children living:
Oliver H., married to Martha McMillian;
Lewis C,, married first to Columbia Sharon,
and for his present wife, Julia Dennis;
Ethan Allen, married Delia Sharon; and
Mary, married to William Ward. Mr. Ferry
is an ardent supporter of Republican princi-
ples. In 1846, etc., when he was a Democrat,
he was Justice of the Peace two terms.
f RAN KLIN A. HAMMER, of the firm
of Beatty & Hammer, dealers in all
kinds of hardware and farmers' imple-
ments, was born on the banks of the Shenan-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
243
doah river, in Buckingham county, Virginia,
April 10, 1829. He is the son of John
Hammer, who, with two other brothers, had
corne from Germany prior to the Revolution.
The family was started in this country by
the grandfather of Mr. Franklin Hammer,
who settled in Virginia, and lived and died
there at an advanced old age. His son grew
to manhood in Virginia, and participated in
the war of 1812. After that war was over
he moved to the Shenandoah valley and
farmed in Rockingham county for some
years, when he went to Morgan county, Illi-
nois, and started his life in that State as a
general mechanic and blacksmith and wagon-
maker. In 1843, he removed to Beardstown
and opened up a livery stable and hotel,
which he ran until 1848, when he sold out
and bought a farm six miles from Beards-
town, and lived on it for some years, farm-
ing and improving it to a great extent. At
the end of that time he again moved to
Beardstown, and died at the age of eighty, in
1868. He was a good man and citizen and
well known pioneer. He was a Methodist
in religion, and a Democrat in politics. He
married in his native county, Miss Elizabeth
Marica, of Virginia. She died on the farm
in Cass county, at the age of forty-six. She
was a member of the Lutheran Church. He
was married a second time, to Cynthia Dai-
ton. She died on the farm in Cass county,
without issue, when quite old.
Franklin is the only surviving member of
his father's three children. He came to the
State of Illinois in 1835, when but a small
boy, with his parents, settling in Arcadia,
Morgan county, Illinois; and later, in 1843,
the family came to Beardstown, and his father
settled on a farm in Cass county. Onr sub-
ject returned to Beardstown and was con-
nected for many years in the livery business,
buying and selling horses and preparing
them for fancy roadsters. He was a true ad-
mirer of the noble, intelligent animal, and
his judgment in regard to the worth of a
horse was very good. In the old days he
could drive four-in-hand as well as a western
stage driver. He still retains his fondness
for them, and has all his old power of judg-
ing them. In 1874, he sold out his livery
and horse business, except as a breeder of the
Hambletonian horses, that he continued until
1877, when he became president of the old
Cass County Bank. He continued in this
capacity until 1883, when he resigned in or-
der to enter into a partnership with Mr.
Beattyj he buying the stock of Mr. Rearick.
He had been a stockholder in the Cass county
bank ever since its organization in 1866. It
had been previously an insurance business.
The present firm of Beatty & Hammer is
noted for the full line df reliable goods they
carry. They are located on Main street. Mr.
Hammer has always taken an active part in
all the affairs of the town. He has made ju-
dicial investments in various ways, and has
made considerable money.
Mr. Hammer was married in Cass county,
to Miss Margaret A. Lee, of the same county
of Cass. Her parents, Caleb and Matilda
(Higgins) Lee, were natives of Maryland, and
after marriage came, in 1828, to Cass county,
Illinois, and settled there. He was a farmer,
and spent the remainder of his life on the
farm that he purchased upon coming to the
county.
Mrs. Hammer is the youngest of four
children, and all were born in Cass county.
She and her husband are the parents of two
children living: John, in business with his
father; and Nellie, wife of Charles Ireland,
a conductor on the Ohio & Mississippi rail-
road. Mr. Hammer is a Democrat in pol-
244
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
itics, and he and his wife are members of the
Congregational Church. He has been the
Treasurer and Assessor of the county
term.
one
flLLlAM T. ADAMS was born in
Logan county, Kentucky, March 7,
1831. His father, Benjamin Adams,
was born in Maryland, and his father was
also from Maryland. He was also a farmer,
who left Maryland for Kentucky about 1.815,
settled in Logan county and resided on his
farm until his death. His wife's name was
Sarah Bell, and she also died in Logan county.
Benjamin Adams was about ten years old
when his parents moved to Kentucky, and
there he was reared, married and lived until
1830, when he came to Illinois and settled in
what is now Brown county. He was accom-
panied by his wife and three children. He
made the entire journey by team, making it
in three weeks. He rented land a mile north
of Mount Sterling for one year, and then
bought timber land in sections 2 and 3 of the
same township. ' Heat once built a log cabin,
making a comfortable home, although he had
to hew the logs and build it himself. He
lived upon the same farm until his death in
1873. His wife's name was Perneta Clark,
born in Logan county, Kentucky, whose father,
Abner, came from North Carolina, an early
settler of Logan county, where he lived until
1835. He then sold out and came to Illinois,
and bought in what is now Missouri town-
ship, improved his farm and resided there
until his death. His wife's name was Nancy
Gorham, of Kentucky. The mother of our
subject is still living at the old home, aged
eighty-six. He was two years old when he
came with his parents to Illinois. Of course,
in those days the people were obliged to live
on game, fish and the product of their land.
He. as many other pioneer buys, went to school
in a log hut with seats of slabs. Holes in
the side of the building served for windows.
He resided with his father until his marriage,
when he settled on the farm where he now
resides.
He married, September 21, 1854, Ann
Eliza Buvinger, of Martinsburg, Virginia,
born November 15, 1853. Her father was
born in Maryland, and her grandfather in
Germany. The latter located in Baltimore
when he came to America, and continued
there until his death. The father of Mrs.
Adams was a hatter. He went when a young
man to Virginia, and there married Margaret
McCormick, and in 1834 moved to Cham-
paign county, Ohio, and in 1852 came to
Illinois. He purchased a home in Mount
Sterling, and here resided until his death.
Mr. and Mrs. Adams have four living chil-
dren: Charles B., who married Sarah Briggs;
Sarah, married to William Briggs; Thomas,
married to Julia Harris; and William E.
S. NICHOLSON, editor of the Beards-
town Illinoian, was born in Oldham,
Lancashire, England, in 1832. The
family left Liverpool on the anniversary of
the Queen's marriage, and, like so many emi-
grants, had a slow passage to New Orleans,
thence up the Mississippi river, settling at
last, after a journey of eleven weeks with teams,
at Jacksonville. In 1850 the family settled
on improved lands near Beardstown. They
farmed this land. Part of the family moved
to Home, Peoria county, where the father died,
aged seventy-three years, four months and
twenty-eight days. He had been a good,
quiet citizen. The war of the Rebellion
changed his politics and he became a decided
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
245
Republican in his old age. His wife, for-
merly Miss Mary Needham, died February 9,
1881. She had been a good, kind wife and
mother, and both she and her husband
were consistent members of the Methodist
Church, having been so connected for thirty-
live years.
The subject of our sketch commenced life
here as an office boy at the office of a paper
of which he later became the proprietor and
editor. The history of journalism in Beards-
town began as early as 1834, when F. Arenz,
the brother of Judge Arenz, became the editor
of the Beardstown Chronicle and Illinoian,
a kind of land advertiser. The next paper
was started by Judge Emmons in 1845, and
this was later owned by C. D. Dickinson,
and he was followed by J. M. Sherman. Soon
after it became the property of B. C. Drake,
who ran it under the name of the Central
Illinoian, When the war broke out the of-
fice was closed and the editor enlisted. -The
paper was re-organized by R. S. Mitchell, the
property becoming owned by a stock company.
Following the election of 1863 it became the
property of L. W. Reavis, who continued to
be the owner until 1866. The next year the
paper was the property of A. J. M iller and was
edited by Judge Emmons, and in 1877 Mr.
Nicholson became the manager and pro-
prietor. He was his own editor, and except
for a short interval in 1883, has continued to
run it successfully as a semi-weekly, under
the name of the Illinoian. He is a thorough
and practical newspaper man and the columns
display his ability. His paper is run in the
interests of the Republican party, and he has
taken hold of all matters that tend toward
reform. He has always been agreat admirer
of Abraham Lincoln and relates Mr. Lincoln's
early experiences here with an especial pride
and enthusiasm.
He was married in this city, in 1860, to
Miss J. D. C. Harris, who came from Eng-
land with her parents when a young woman.
She died herein 1873, leaving four children,
of whom but one is still living, Charles B., a
member of the firm of Merry & Nicholson
of St. Louis, Missouri. Mr. Nicholson was
married for the second time, in this city, to
Miss E. J. Buck. She was born, reared and
educated in Cass county, and she has been a
good wife and mother, and is an intelligent
lady. Her one child is a son named Edgar
E., a bright lad of twelve years. Mr. and
Mrs. Nicholson are members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church. He is a Republican in
every sense. He has frequently been a dele-
gate to the State and District Conventions
and once a member of the State Central Com-
mittee.
ILLIAM W. GLAZE was born Feb-
ruary 18, 1825, in Scioto county,
Ohio. His father, Jacob Glaze, was
born in the same county, but his father was a
native of Virginia, although he died in Scioto.
Mr. Glaze, Sr., was a farmer all his life, and
died in the county where his entire life was
spent, in 1844. His wife was a member of
the Reardin family, a native of the same
county as her husband, and she lived until
1891. She left three children living.
William Glaze moved to Brown county in
1856, by team, with his family. Here he has
remained ever since on the land he bought
when he came to the county. He built a
house when he brought his family, as the
old one-story house that was on the place
when he bought it burned down. Times were
hard after his arrival in Illinois. The banks
of the State were in bad repute and money
was scarce. Mr. Glaze had a great deal of
246
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA88,
difficulty in paying his taxes the first year.
He served as Supervisor two terms.
He married Miss Elizabeth M. Coleman, a
native of Scioto county. They have six child-
dren; May J., Maggie F., Carrie F., Julia H.,
Thomas H. and A. J. Mr. Glaze has been a
member of the I. O. O. F. for twenty-six
years and has filled all the important offices
in the order. He once represented the order
at the Grand Lodge. Two of his children live
at home.
iHARLES BOCKEMEIER, general
farmer and stock-raiser, was born in
Prussia, not far from the river Rhine,
August 16, 1835. His father, Charles, lived
and died in Prussia, a blacksmith by trade.
His wife came to the United States six
months after his death, joining her sons in
Cass county, dying at the age of eighty-two.
She and her husband were life-long members
of the Lutheran Church. Charles was a young
single man when in 1854 he set out for the
United States. He took the usual route via
New Orleans, Mississippi, Ohio and Illinois
rivers, to Beardstown, and joined his brother
Casper, who had come here two years before.
He has been in the county for more than
thirty years, and what he now owns he has
made by his own efforts. He has owned his
present place for fourteen years. It consists
of 160 acres, some well improved, and some
very fine pasture land. He is at present
Commissioner of road district No. 3, of
Cass county.
He was first married to Miss Barbara
Gemming, of Germany, who came to the
United States when a young woman. At her
death she left three children: Mrs. Anna
Flamme, of Pekin, Illinois; Mrs. Lena Her-
ety, wife of a railroad employe", and Mrs.
Emma Nortrup, of Scott county, Illinois.
He was married a second time, near Beards-
town, to Mrs. Loise Wubker; her maiden
name was Loise Schewe. She was born in
Prussia, came here when a young woman,
was first married in Cass county, to Henry
Wubker, and by that marriage had seven
children. Mr. and Mrs. Bockemeier have
two sons, Charles and William. They attend
the Lutheran Church, and are highly re-
spected members of it. Mr. Bockemeier is
a sound Democrat and an excellent man.
HOMAS I. McDANNOLD, an exten-
sive farmer of Pea Ridge township,
was born in Bath county, Kentucky,
July 5, 1826. His father, John, was born in
Montgomery county, Kentucky, in 1797, and
his father, Reuben, was born in Culpeper
county, Virginia, in 1750; and his father,
Alexander, was born near Aberdeen, Scot-
land, coming to America in colonial times,
and settled in Culpeper county, Virginia,
where he spent the rest of his days. Reuben
emigrated to Kentucky at an early day,
secured a large tract of land, which he im-
proved with slave labor, and resided there
until 1834, then sold out and emigrated to
Pike county, Missouri, settled near Clarks-
ville, bought a farm and resided there until
his death in 1854. John learned the trade
of tanner and conducted the business in
Owensville, Kentucky, and in connection
with it engaged in the mercantile business.
He resided there itntil his death in 1834.
He was a Whig in politics, and served several
years as Sheriff of the county. In 1834 the
mother of our subject emigrated to Illinois,
making the journey in a two horse wagon.
She located at Springfield, where two brothers
lived. Her father gave her some land, a part
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
247
of which is now included in the land in
Springfield and the rest at Buffalo Heart
Grove. She married a second time, and lived
near Springfield for a season, and then moved
to Jacksonville and spent her last days there.
Thomas was in his eighth year when they
came to Illinois, and remembers many of the
incidents of the journey. At that time Van-
dalia was the capital of the State, and Spring-
field was only a village of 2,000 inhabitants.
There was no railroad in Illinois, and St.
Louis and Beardstown were the nearest mar-
kets for supplies. He went to school at
Springfield, and resided there until 1844, and
then went to his grandfather's in Pike county,
Missouri. He remained with his grandfather
one year, and in 1845 came to Mount Ster-
ling, and in the next year, in company with
his brother-in-law, General Singleton, pur-
chased a tract of land in Missouri township,
which he occupied two years, and in 1848
purchased the place where he now resides.
He is well known as a practical and success-
ful farmer, and has purchased land at different
times, and now owns some 400 acres. His
improvements rank with the best in the
county.
He was married in March, 1849, to Mary
Elizabeth Means, born in Lewis county, Ken-
tucky, January 1, 1828. Her father, Major
John Means, was born in the same county,
and his father, John Means, born in Penn-
sylvania, went from there to Kentucky with
his family and was one of the pioneers of
Lewis county. The removal was made with
pack-horses. He secured a tract of land on
which he engaged in farming, and on which
he remained until his death. His wife's
name was Elizabeth Elton, born near Phila-
delphia, and she died in Lewis county, at the
age of ninety-six. The father of Mrs. Mc-
Dannold learned the trade of a blacksmith,
which he followed in Lewis county until
1835, and then with his wife and three chil-
dren came to Illinois. He settled in that
part of Schuyler county now included in
Mount Sterling, and bought a tract of land
one mile east of the city, and remained there
until his death in 1863. The name of his
wife was Martha Parker, born in Culpeper,
Virginia, and died in Mount Sterling in
1884. Mr. and Mrs. McDannold have four
living children: John J., Thomas R., George
R. and Clara L. They are members of the
Presbyterian Church. Mr. McDannold was
formerly a Whig, but has been a stanch Re-
publican ever since the formation of the
party. For seventeen years he has been
director on the County Agricultural Board,
and for six years has been its vice-president.
EORGE W. WILLIAMS was born in
Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, March
17, 1826. He was the son of Thomas
and Margaret (Young) Williams. The former
was a native of New York, and died in St.
Louis, Missouri, when George was about four
years old. Mrs. Williams was born in Penn-
sylvania, and died in Brown county, at the
home of her son, aged seventy-eight.
George W. Williams was bound out to the
trade of saddler at the age of eight, and re-
mained there until he was seventeen, working
for his board and clothes. At the expiration
of his apprenticeship, he hired out at ten dol-
lars a month, and worked for six months be-
fore he went to St. Louis, and worked under
instructions for two years, and then traveled
for two years. In 1849 he started a shop in
St. Charles, Missouri, and continued there
until the next year, when he started for Mt.
Sterling. He remained there only one sum-
mer, and then opened a shop in Versailles.
248
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
In 1852 he sold out and crossed the plains to
California with a team of oxen. He engaged
in mining at Michigan Bar, and followed it
for several months, when the city was burned.
He then went to the mines, but that fall
opened a shop in Red Bluff, and managed it
until 1858. He then returned by way of
New Orleans to Versailles, and again opened
a shop. In a year or two he went on a farm,
which he had bought previously, of 240 acres,
partly improved. He built a log cabin 16 by
18 feet and lived there until 1863, when he
built a two-story frame house and various
farm buildings. Mr. Williams retired from
farm work in the spring of 1891, and bought
a nice house with twelve acres surrounding it
in Mt. Sterling, just out of the city limits.
He has been Assessor and School Director.
He is a strong Democrat, though he cast his
first vote for Taylor.
Mr. Williams was married in Versailles,
Illinois, October 11, 1858, to Miss Juliet
Boss, of Kentucky. She was the daughter of
Richard Ross. Mr. Ross is still living, but
his wife is dead. Mr. and Mrs. Williams have
four children yet living, three being dead.
Those Btill living are: Frank, married and
having a bag works at the old home; Lydia,
married; Charley and Edith are at home.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Williams are very esti-
mable people, and are very influential among
their large circle of friends.
ilLLIAM B. MANLOVE was born
in Schuyler county, December 28,
1830, near the town of Rushville-
He is the son of Jonathan and Charity (Bo.
denhamer) Manlove. The former was a far-
mer of North Carolina, and came to this
county in the fall of 1830, traveling over
laud all the way, and settled near Rushville,
where he stayed the first winter. The next
spring he went south and settled near Sugar
Grove; and in 1834, he sold and moved to
Birminghan township, and bought a farm
where our subject still lives, of eighty acres.
He put up a log house, in which the family
lived. During the building of this house
the father died, at the age of twenty- eight,
leaving a wife and three children, of whom
William was the eldest. The mother wove
cloth for a living, and kept the old farm, and
later married a second time, dying at the
home of her son, William. William Manlove,
Sr., was of English descent. The family were
all farmers as well as can be ascertained. They
left North Carolina on account of slavery.
William stayed at home until he was nine-
teen years old, assisting his mother and at-
tending school in winter. After he became
nineteen, he engaged to work for a neighbor
at 50 cents a day, but worked for him only
two months, and then went to his first free
school, the other being a subscription school.
He worked out by the month for a year, and
then returned home, and buying out the heirs
settled there. He had one yoke of oxen at
that time.
He was married in 1853, to Miss Abigail
Swisegood, who was born in North Carolina,
and came with her parents to Illinois in 1846,
being the daughter of John and Elizabeth
Swisegood. She was one of six children, five
yet living.
At his marriage he had only a small farm,
but by dint of hard labor he has increased it
to 900 acres of as fine land as there is in the
county. He commenced work, plowing corn
at 25 cents a day, taking his pay in bread and
meat, which he carried to his mother who
hired him out. He never went into debt for
anything, but by great economy and much
SCHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
249
self-denial he succeeded in buying some land,
and afterward stock. He feeds two or three
cars of cattle and hogs, and has always been
a man devoted to his home.
He voted the first time for Fillmore and the
Kepublican ticket ever since, as his father
was an old-line Whig. The whole family are
considered good, honest people, and highly re-
spected by everybody, making no pretensions.
He built his present home in 1865, and was
visited by the soldiers returning from the war.
All of his land is in this township, and 600
acres of it is highly cultivated. He had six
children, five living, namely: Eli, the eldest,
is deceased; Laura A., John J., Isabell V.,
Tad J. and Em berry J. A grandson, William,
a son of his oldest son, lives with them.
(EORGE I. FIELDS was born in Wythe
county, Virginia, May 16, 1837. His
father, John D. Fields, was born in Rap-
pahannock county, Virginia. His grandfather
was a native of Scotland and came to this
country at an early date and settled near
Richmond, Virginia. Here he died at the
advanced age of 100 years. Mr. John D.
Fields was a brick mason and a farmer. He
attended to his trade and had his sons work
the farm. He lived on his farm until his
death in October, 1868, when he was ninety-
six years old. He was a Sergeant in the war
of 1812, and made a fine record in the naval
service, especially at Norfolk, Virginia. He
was honorably discharged. He received his
land warrant for 160 acres, which he sold.
His wife's name was Nancy E. Williams, a
native of Culpeper county, Virginia. She
died in Wythe county, Virginia, after a
happy married life of sixty years, Mr. and
Mrs. John D. Fields had seven children,
three of whom are still living.
Mr. George I. Fields is the youngest of
the family. He left his home in 1867 and
settled in Versailles, Brown county, Illinois.
Until that time he had been a farmer, but
from then until 1884 he was engaged in
milling. Since then he has engaged in news-
paper work as editor and publisher of the
Versailles Enterprise.
He was married to Ellen P. McWane
April 16, 1865. She was born in Nelson
county, Virginia, and is still spared to her
family. They have had nine children, six of
whom are still living, namely: Maggie V.
Nancy E., Emma J., Addie D., Louie and
Stella May.
Mr. Fields has been elected Tax Collector
for the township seven times. He is a Re-
publican in politics and is the Chaplain of the
blue lodge, A. F. & A. M. He connected
himself with the Methodist Episcopal Church
in 1870, and has been a Class-leader and ex-
horter most of the time. Mr. and Mrs. Fields
are worthy members of society and are greatly
esteemed by their host of warm friends.
HOMAS RYAN, Supervisor of Buena
Vista township, resides on section 20,
Schuyler county, Illinois. He was
born October 20, 1845, and raised in this
county. His parents were Charles and Mar-
garet (Strong) Ryan. His father was born
in Ohio, but removed with his parents to
Frederick, Illinois, where he married, and
settled in Buena Vista township in 1833.
He was a brickmaker, and burnt the first
brick ever made in Rushville. He also
worked at the shoemaker's trade. He finally
located on land in section 21, where he im-
250
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF C'ASS,
proved this farm of 120 acres, besides which
he owned 320 acres more. He erected
good substantial buildings on this place and
otherwise improved and cultivated the land.
Here he resided until the time of his death,
•which occurred January 9, 1891. His wife,
mother of our subject, died December 16,
1879. They had eight children, five sons
and three daughters: John, deceased; George,
now residing in Texas (Grapevine); Cathar-
ine, wife of Thomas Armstrong; Louisa, wife
of Alexander Young; Charles, deceased;
Thomas, the subject of our sketch; William;
and Margaret E., wife of Thomas Stoughel.
The subject of our sketch was reared on
the home farm, and received his education at
the country schools of that district, residing
at home until he was twenty-three years of
age. In 1868, he was married to Ellen
Shields, daughter of Joshua and Julia (Fut-
ler) Shields. She was born in Ohio, June 16,
1847. Her parents were natives of Pennsyl-
vania and New York, who came to Illinois
in 1857, locating in Rushville. Mr. Shields
served in the late civil war, being a member
of the One Hundred and Nineteenth Regi-
ment, and died while in the army. His wife,
mother of Mrs. Ryan, is still living, in Can-
ton, Illinois.
Mr. and Mrs. Ryan have had twelve chil-
dren, eight of whom are living, the latter be-
ing Martin, Josie, Homer, Minnie, Herman,
Clarence, Lula and Lena, the last two being
twins.
Mr. Ryan is one of the most successful
farmers of the county, owning 160 acres of
highly improved and cultivated land, devoted
to mixed husbandry. He has a comfortable
home and large barns for his grain and stock,
besides other modern improvements.
Politically, he affiliates with the Demo-
cratic party, and has been honored by his con-
stituents by being elected to the office of
Supervisor of his township.
He is a respected member of the commun-
ity on account of his many admirable traits of
character, and has the good will of a large
circle of acquaintances.
ENRY D. RITTER was born August 6,
1819, son of Michael and Barbara E.
(Schafer) Ritter. The former was born
in 1795, being of German ancestry. By
occupation he was a stone mason, and in
1812 he went to the German and French war
and served as a soldier for nineteen or twenty
years, and was an officer at the time of his
death, at the age of fifty-one years. He was
the son of Reinhart Ritter, who were natives
of the same place. They were farmers. Sub-
ject's mother was born in Germany in 1796,
and died when about sixty-five. Her parents
lived to be very old people.
Henry was one of seven children, two of
whom are living, and he is the eldest. He
remained at home until he was twenty-five
years old and worked as a clerk. He sailed
in the Mentor for America from Bremen,
Prussia, and arrived in New York after a
voyage of six weeks. Here he remained for
eighteen months, engaged in painting and the
manufacture of parasols and umbrellas. From
there he went to Virginia and followed the
business of painting houses for three years,
when he married and came to Ohio, settling
in Fayette county, where he bought a house
and four acres of land, and there lived until
1854, when he sold and came to Illinois in
the fall, settling where he now lives. Here
he bought 120 acres of land, which he im-
proved, and in the same winter he added
eighty acres to the farm. There was a log
SCHUYLER AJf£> BHOWN COUNTIES.
251
house on the land in which they lived until
1861, when he built his present house. He
later bought 120 acres, and then eighty acres
more, making in all 400 acres. He rents al-
most all of his land, and has practically re-
tired from active business. Mr. Hitter has
always been a Democrat, and has tilled nearly
every office in the county. He was School
Trustee and Assessor for twenty years, Jus-
tice of the Peace for twelve years, Constable
and Coroner four years, Sheriff two years,
Commissioner two years, Supervisor eight
years, and was chairman of the Board of Su-
pervisors for a time, and he is considered one
of the most prominent men in the county.
He was married April 24, 1848, by Rev.
William N. Scott, near Petersburg, Hardy
county, Virginia, to Miss Lucinda E. Hall,
born in Virginia on the south side of Blue
Ridge mountains, April 13, 1823. She was
a daughter of James and Judy (Taylor) Hall.
James Hall was a native of Virginia, and fol-
lowed farming. When Mrs. Ritter was three
years old the family moved to Rockingham
county, Virginia, where they lived several .
years and then moved to Hardy county, and
bought a farm, on which he erected a log
house, where he lived a year or two, and then
built a new and better hewn-log house in
another neighborhood, about a mile from the
first one. Here he spent the remainder of
his life, dying at the advanced age of one
hundred and two years, on his birthday. He
was the father of eighteen children, seven
boys by his first wife and eleven children by
the second one, Judy Taylor. Seven of the
latter are still living. One of the sons,
Henry, by the latter marriage, was starved to
death in one of the prisons of Richmond,
Virginia, during the war of the Rebellion.
Mrs. Judy Hall was a native of Virginia,
and a daughter of George Taylor. She died
in Hardy county, aged seventy years. Mrs.
Ritter and her brother went to school in the
old subscription schools where the parents
paid according to the number of children
sent; and Mr. Hall had so many children he
could not afford to send more than two or
three at a time. Mrs. Ritter remembers
her first teacher, a Mr. Nick Hawk, who
managed to keep school the entire year in
a log house with benches of slabs, without
backs. Their slates and pencils were pieces
of soapstone and slate that they could find
in the neighborhood of the school.
Mr. and Mrs. Ritter have had eleven chil-
dren, nine yet living: Mary E., married Cal-
vin Hill; Judy V. married Henry C. Hill,
seven children, six yet living; Justina C.
married Calvin S. Hill, eight living children;
Calvin Z. married Viola Weatherby; George
W. married Sylvina Weatherby, one child;
Douglas J., at home with his father at work
on the farm; Elisa Jane, married William H.
McDaniel, five children; James H. S. mar-
ried Mattie Shelton, four children ; Franklin
W. living at home; Martha O. and Martha
Ann died when small.
Mr. Ritter is a member of A. F. & A. M.
Lodge, No. 108, at Versailies, and the Mere-
dosia Chapter and Council, No. 56, and also
of I. O. O. F., Irene Lodge, No. 72. of Ver-
sailles, and Encampment of I. O. O. F.
He follows general mixed farming and is a
well educated man, being educated in Ger-
many.
,ENKY F. WITTE, a practical farmer
and stock-raiser, lives on a good farm
in section 3, township 18, range 11,
where he owns 120 acres of tine prairie land
and forty acres of timber. He bought this
252
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF .CAS8,
land in 1862 and has since been successful
as a farmer. He was born in Harford, Men-
den, Westphalia, Prussia, Germany, on
August 9, 1824. He is the son of Fred and
Minnie (Isserman) Witte, natives of Prussia,
Germany, where they married and began life
as farmers. There, too, all the family was
born, and in 1855 the parents, with three
children, set out for this country, taking
passage on a sailing vessel, the Berker, from
Bremen, leaving September 8, 1856, and
landed in New Orleans after a voyage of nine
weeks and two days. From there they came
up to Beardstown on a steamer, landing here
November 24, 1855. Here the parents lived
and died, the father when about seventy
years old and the mother when ten years
younger. They were members all their lives
of the Lutheran Church.
Henry had two brothers and a sister that
finally came to this country, Henry being
the only one now living. He was a single
man when he made the voyage and worked
for two years in the Park House and brick
yards in Beardstown.
In 1856 he was married in Beardstown to
Minnie Vette, born near the birthplace of
her husband. Her mother had died in Ger-
many, and her father, Fred Vette, followed
his daughter to the United States and spent
his last years, dying in Cass county when
nearly eighty years old. He and his wife
were life-long members of the Lutheran
Church. Mrs. Witte had come to the United
States when a young woman, in 1855, on the
same vessel that brought her future husband.
They were married about eighteen months
after landing. They have lived and labored
to build up a good home. They have reared
a large and intelligent family of eight chil-
dren, two deceased, Carrie and Edward, aged
eight years and one month, respectively.
Those living are: William H., a farmer in
Arenzville, married Sophia Roegge of this
county; Bertha, wife of Ed. Krohe, in
Hickory precinct; Anna, wife of Frank
Lebknecher, farmer in this county; Mariah,
wife of Albert Krohe of Hickory precinct;
Lizzie, wife of William Roegge, a farmer
near Arenzville; and Minnie, who is still at
home and cares for her parents. She is an
intelligent and accomplished young lady and
is greatly beloved by her parents. The entire
family are members of the German Lutheran
Church, and Mr. Witte is a stanch Re-
publican.
When Mr. Witte was a young man he
traveled extensively in Germany, and was in
the regular German army from 1845 to 1847,
but was not in the Revolution of 1848. He
and his family are highly respected by all
who know them.
HOMAS KNIGHT was born in Corn-
wall county, near Land's End, England,
August 14, 1836. His father, Thomas
Knight, was also born in Cornwall, of Cor-
nish parents, and followed the trade of cooper
until he came to this country in 1846. He
first settled in Meredosia and then came into
Cass county, where the family has since made
their home. The father had brought a little
money with him and was able to buy forty
acres of land. He became a farmer, which
business was entirely new to him. He was
very industrious and had good judgment and
all the family became well off. The father
died there, after having increased his property
to 264 acres. His wife survived him some
years, and died when past four-score years.
She was remarkable for being a very beautiful
old lady and a very consistent member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church.
UBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
253
Mr. Knight is one of a family of six, of
which all are still living. He is one of the
wealthy and influential ruen of Beardstown,
and is now living at the corner of Eleventh
and Washington streets, where he recently
purchased a fine home, and has lived here
ever since he retired from active life on his
farm. He has been a successful farmer aud
stock-raiser in Hickory precinct. He was a
progressive farmer and kept up with the
times. His possessions amount to 520 acres,
most of it under the plow and suppled with
the finest improvements. As he was only
ten years of age when he reached Cass County,
he is one of the oldest settlers of the county.
Mr. Knight was married in Beardstown, to
Emma Dunn of Cornwall, England, where
she was reared. She came to Illinois with
her brothers when yet a young girl and set-
tled in Cass county, where she and her brother
John still reside. Mr. and Mrs. Knight
have six children. Robert, who married
Delia Thiveaght, daughter of a farmer of
Monroe, Illinois; Minnie married Fayette
Post, a railroad conductor on the Ohio &
Mississippi, living in Beardstown; Myrtle
married L. W. Berry, train dispatcher on the
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy railroad; Al-
bert and Eddie are at home, as is also the
youngest, Clarence Lloyd. Mrs. Knight and
some of the children are members of the
Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Knight,
since he became of age, has become a
Democrat, and his party elected him to the
office of County Commissioner. He is a
strong local worker for his party.
lICH ARD WATSON MILLS, one of the
leading attorneys of Cass county, Illi-
nois, was born in Jacksonville, Morgan
county, this State, August 3, 1844.
18
His father, Chesley Mills, was born near
Lebanon, Tennessee, son of James Mills, a
native of the eastern shores of Maryland,
James Mills was born during Revolutionary
times, a son of John Mills, who lost his life
in the Revolutionary war, and in Maryland he
was reared. When a young man he went to
Tennessee, married the daughter of Isaac
Lindsey, located a few miles from the Her-
mitage, and resided there until 1808. That
year he removed to the Territory of Missouri
and located three miles from Hannibal, being
one of the earliest settlers there. He im-
proved a large farm and resided on it till the
time of his death. Isaac Lindsey, his father-
in-law, was a resident of Eastern Maryland at
the breaking out of the Revolutionary war.
He was loyal to the crown, but preferred
not to fight on either side; so he sought the
furtherest bqunds of civilization, taking up
his abode in the wilderness eight miles from
the Hermitage. At that time the Indians
were numerous and often there was trouble
with them. For a long time the settlers all
lived in block houses. He improved a farm
in the locality which is still known as Lind-
sey's Bluff, and resided there till his death.
Chesley Mills learned the trade of plasterer
and bricklayer, which he followed till his
death, in 1844. He married Harriet Cadwell>
a native of Edwardsville, Madison county,
Illinois, born on January 10, 1814, daugh-
ter of Dr. George Cad well. Dr. Cad well was
born and reared in Vermont, and in 1799
went to Kentucky with his father-in-law,
Matthew Lyon. He objected strenuously to
the institution of slavery, and in 1804 came to
the Territory of Illinois, becoming one of the
original settlers of Madison county. He re-
sided there till 1820, when he went to Mor-
gan county with his wife and children, mak-
ing the journey with flatboats via the Missis-
254
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
sippi and Illinois rivers to Naples. He
located near Lynnville, being the first physi-
cian to settle in Morgan county, and continued
practice there till the time of his death. The
maiden name of his wife, grandmother of the
subject of our sketch, was Parmelia Lyon.
She was born in Vermont. Her father,
Matthew Lyon, was born in Ireland, of Scotch
ancestry, and when a young man came to
America and located in Vermont, where he
married the daughter of Governor Chitten-
den, the first governor of Vermont. He took
part in the Revolutionary war and attained
the rank of General. After the war, he repre-
sented Vermont two terms in Congress. He
was the first victim uuder the Sedition Act,
the charge being that of speaking disrespect-
fully of John Adams, the President of the
United States. He was sentenced to six
months' imprisonment and fined $1,000;
served his time in jail and paid his fine. In
1799, he emigrated to Kentucky and located
in Lyon county, which is named in honor of
him. He founded the town of Eddy ville, the
county seat of Lyon county, and became a
prominent and wealthy man. He was a slave
owner and trader, While residing, there he
was sent as a representative to Congress. He
removed from Kentucky to the Territory of
Arkansas, was among the pioneers of Helena,
and soon after his arrival there was sent as
delegate to Congress. He died in Arkansas
about 1825'.
The mother of our subject now resides in
Jacksonville. She reared five children:
Thomas, spent his last years in Dakota;
Emily, married Thomas W. Jones, of Ritchie,
Will county, Illinois; Martha, married Henry
Demarest; George, resides in San Francisco,
California, and is a member of the Judson
Manufacturing Company of Oakland.
Richard W. Mills received his early educa-
tion in the district schools. He was in his
seventeenth year when the war broke out, and
he enlisted in Company B, Tenth Illinois
Volunteer Infantry, and went with the com-
pany to Cairo. He was there rejected on ac-
count of his age, and returned home. He had
been at home, however, only a few days when
he again enlisted, this time in Company F,
Nineteenth Illinois Volnnteer Infantry, and
was accepted. He went South with his regi-
ment and remained with it till after his term
of service had expired. He participated in the
battles of Stone River and Mission Ridge, and
was in the reserve at Chickamauga. After
his return home he received an academic edu-
cation at Jacksonville, after which he taught
school four years. During that time he com-
menced the study of law with Judge Cyrus
Epler, and in May, 1870, was admitted to the
bar. He practiced with Judge Epler till
1871, and January 6 of that year he came to
Virginia, where he has since been engaged
in a successful law practice.
February 4, 1873, he married Matilda A.
Tate, a native of Cass county, Illinois, and a
daughter of Dr. Harvey Tate. She died
March 26, 1884. His second marriage was
consummated November 29, 1889, with Nellie
W. Epler, a native of Cass county, her parents
being William and Jennie Epler.
Mr. Mills is a member of Virginia Lodge,
No. 544, A. F. & A. M.; Clark Chapter, No.
29, R. A.M.; Hospitaller Commandery, No.
31, K. T. Politically, he has always affilia-
ted with and been an ardent and efficient
worker in the Republican party. He has
served as Master in Chancery.
Mrs. Mills' father, William Epler, a resi-
dent of the city of Virginia, was born in what
is now Princeton precinct, Cass county, Illi-
nois, April 15, 1835. His father, John Ep
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
255
ler, was born in that part of Lancaster now
included in Dauphin county, Pennsylvania,
April 15, 1795. His father, the great-grand-
father of Mrs. Mills, Abram Epler, was born
in the same locality. His father, great-great-
grandfather of Mrs. Mills, John Epler, was
born in Germany, and was reared there to
young manhood, and in 1734, with his brother
Peter, came to America. They located near
Reading, Berks county, Pennsylvania. They
were Lutherans and established a church of
that denomination there. Peter's descendants
removed to Northumberland county; John's
removed to that part of Lancaster now in-
cluded in Dauplin county in 1768. He pur-
chased a tract of land there, which he occupied
till his death in 1782. A natural bowlder
marks his resting place, upon which is in-
scribed a shield, his name and the date of his
death. The farm which he owned is now in
possession of his great-great-grandson. He
reared three sons and one daughter.
Abram Epler was reared and married ' in
Pennsylvania, and resided there till 1798.
Then, with his wife arid three children, he re-
moved to Kentucky, making the journey
across the mountains with teams, down the
Ohio river on flatboats to the Falls of the
Ohio, landing at the site of the present city of
Louisville. He remained there two years;
then crossed the river into Northwest Terri-
tory, and located in what is now included in
Clark county, Indiana. There he erected a
log cabin in the wilderness. In 1807 he
built a stone house there, which is still stand-
ing, it being the oldest stone house, in a good
state of preservation, in the State of Indiana.
He resided there until 1832, when he came
to Illinois. He died in Case county in 1837.
The maiden name of his wife was Anna Old-
weiler. She was born in Lancaster county>
Pennsylvania, October 26, 1768, and died at
the home of her son George, May 3, 1847.
There were eleven children born to them, all
of whom reached adult years: Elizabeth Nor-
ris, John, Nancy Austin, Abram, Catherine,
Blizard, Jacob, David, Sarah Weir, Isaac,
George, Mary Short.
John Epler, grandfather of Mrs. Mills,
was but three years old when his parents
moved to Kentucky, and five years old when
they moved to the Northwest Territory. There
he was reared and married. He resided in
Clark county till 1831, when with his wife
and six children, he came to Illinois; made
the journey with teams, and after three weeks'
travel landed in Cass county. He bought a
tract of land on which he engaged in farm-
ing and was very successful in his operations.
From time to time he purchased other lands
until he became the owner of 1.200 acres in
Cass and Morgan counties. He spent the
last years of his life in Virginia and died
May 25, 1876. The maiden name of his wife
was Sarah Beggs. She was born in what is
now Clark county, Indiana, April 28, 1800.
Her father, Charles Beggs, was born in Rock-
ingham county, Virginia, October 30, 1775,
and his father, Thomas Beggs, was born in
the same county. He took part in the Rev-
olutionary war and died in the service.
Charles Beta's was reared and married in Vir-
DO
ginia, and resided there till 1798, when he
moved to Kentucky. In 1799 he removed to
the Northwest Territory and settled in that
part now included in Clark county, Indiana.
He served in the war of 1812, and fought
with Harrison at the battle of Tippecanoe;
was an old Whig, and personal friend of Gen-
eral Harrison; served in both the Indiana
Territorial and State Legislatures; resided in
Clark county till 1829. In 1829 he came to
Illinois and was one of the pioneers of Mor-
gan county. He bought a tract of land and
M
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
resided on it till his death, October 21, 1869. j
The maiden name of his wife was Martha
Trnmbo. She was born in Rockingham
county. Virginia, March 16, 1778, and died
May 12, 1811. Four of her children grew to
maturity: Elizabeth, Sarah, Mary and George.
The grandmother of Mrs. Mills died January
11, 1882. Twelve of her children were reared:
Charles, Abram, Cyrus, Mary A. Barrett,
Sarah Fairbank, Elizabeth Hall, John M.,
William, David. Myron L., Ellen Prince, and
Albert G.
William Epler, father of Mrs. Mills, was
reared in his native county, and received his
early education in the pioneer schools here,
and subsequently attended Illinois College,
Jacksonville. He has been prominently iden-
tified with the business interests of Virginia
many years. The maiden name of Mrs. Ep-
ler, wife of William Epler, was Jane Abigail
Woodman. She was born at Paw Paw. Mich-
igan, March 6, 1838. From a genealogical
record of the Woodman family, compiled by
Jabez H. Woodman, we learn that there were
two brothers. Edward and Archalaus Wood-
man, natives of Christian Malford, a parish in
Wiltshire, England, came to America in 1635,
and settled in Newbury, Massachusetts. There
descendants are numerous and are scattered
in various parts of the United States. It
seems from this that Mrs. Mills is a descend- |
ant of Edward. The second in line was his
son Edward, the third in line his son Archa-
lans, the next in line Archalaus' son Joseph,
born May 4, 1714. He married Bridget Wil-
ley in 1762. He died in Wheelock, Vermont,
November, 1807. His son John, great grand-
father of Mrs. Mills, married Sarah Foy. He
died at Lyndon, Vermont, December 6, 1853,
aged ninety years. His son. David Wood-
man, grandfather of Mrs. Mills, was born in
New England, July 27, 1793. He removed
from New England to New York State, thence
to Michigan, and from there to Oketo, Kan-
sas, where his death occurred August 28, 1892,
aged ninety-nine years and one month. His
wife, grandmother of Mrs. Mills, was Abigail
Gray. The mother of Mrs. Mills died in the
State of Nebraska, October 2, 1863, in the
twenty-sixth year of her age. Mr. Epler,
father of Mrs. Mills, now has a piece copied
from an English history, that was published
in 1615, that gave an account of the trial and
burning at the stake at Lewis, in Sussex,
England, of Richard Woodman, June 22,
1557, on account of his religious convictions.
He was tried before the Bishops of Chiches-
terand Winchester. He was very tenacious
of his opinions, as are said to be some of the
Woodmans of the present day. The parents
of Mrs. Mil's were married at the home of the
bride's brother-in-law, Colonel John B. Cul-
ver, at Dnlnth, Minnesota, April 12, 1859.
At that time Dnlnth was an Indian trading
post, and they were the first white settlers
ever married there. Mr. Epler was there in
the employ of the United States Government
as a civil engineer.
^.IRAM JAQDES was born in Schoharie
connty, New York, August 17, 1814.
He was the son of Jesse and Maria
(Boice) Jaques. They both died in New
York. They had twelve children, but only
one or two are living. Hiram remained at
home with his parents until their death, when
he worked by the month nntil the spring of
1837, when he came to Illinois by the Ohio,
Mississippi and Illinois rivers, with one of
his brothers and two neighbors. They first
built a mill race, working it by day, month or
job for two years, and then took an interest
SCHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
257
in a saw and grist1 mill, and later bought it
all and 200 acres of land.
Mr. Jaques was married in 1838jjr 1839,
to Nancy Reeves of Kentucky, where her
father and mother were early settlers. They
had very few neighbors, but there was an
abundance of wild game. Mr. Jaques has
lived on the farm he first purchased ever
since his marriage, except two or three years.
He first built a log house in which they lived
until the present one was built.
They have had nine children, four of whom
are yet living: Louisa, wife of Dr. Scanland
(see sketch); Alma, married, and has one
child; he served four years during the late
war, was wounded three times, and now re-
sides at Colorado Springs; Nephi Jaques
served in the Tenth Illinois Cavalry two
years and has since died, leaving two children ;
Rachel, who married Mr. Scanland, and
has three children living; George, married,
and has two children ;Walace W., married.
Mr. Jaques has always been an Andrew
Jackson Democrat, and now votes the People's
ticket, as he is now a member of that party,
although he voted for Andrew Jackson. He
has been engaged in general farming all his
life, and he and his wife are greatly respected
by all who know them.
(EORGE D. UTTER, a prosperous farmer
and stock-raiser of Frederick, Schuyler
county, Illinois, was born in that place
on November 13, 1846, the youngest child of
John and Charlotte (Brines) Utter. Both of
his parents were natives of Allegany county,
New York, where the father was born No-
vember 11, 1810, and the mother April 11,
1807. In 1815, when five years of age, his
father came to Palmyra, Illinois, where his
youth and earl}' manhood were spent. He
was there married to Charlotte Brines, De-
cember 5, 1834, and in 1839 removed with
his wife and family to Schuyler county, same
State, settling on the Rushville road, near
1 'leasant View. There he and his worthy wife
spent their remaining days, rearing six chil-
dren, two boys and four girls, of whom two
boys and one girl now survive. October 15,
1887, the family were called 'upon to mourn
the loss of the devoted wife and mother, who
had unselfishly watched over their interests
for so many years. On February 14, of the
following year, the honest, hard-working
father also departed this life, as if unable to
endure separation from his beloved com-
panion. Both of these worthy people enjoyed
the esteem of their entire community.
George, whose name heads this biography,
was the baby of the family, and now weighs
240 pounds, which shows what Illinois can
produce under favorable circumstances. He
was trained to farm life and educated in the
public schools of his native county, and now
resides within one mile of his birthplace.
By industry, economy and careful manage-
ment, he has accumulated a competence for
himself and family. He owns an excellent
farm of 240 acres, which was originally pur-
chased by his father, and is numbered among
the successful farmers of Schuyler county.
March 14, 1867, he was married in Schuy-
ler county, to Miss Priscilla J. Ward, who
was born in Bainbridge, that county, April
10, 1848. Her parents, Apollos and Jane
(Bramble) Ward, were among the first settlers
of Schuyler county. Her father was a native
of Hamilton county, Ohio, where he was born
July 29, 1805. Her mother was born Feb-
ruary 23, 1815, and their marriage occurred
June 23, 1835. Her mother still survives,
and is universally respected.
258
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GA88,
Mr. and Mrs. Utter have seven children:
Arthur Frank, born January 9, 1868, married
Clara Bradman February 27, 1889, and lives
on a farm near by; Albert Marion, born Oc-
tober 29, 1870; Alice May, born September
4, 1873; Pnlaski, born November 30, 1876;
Amy Florence, born January 10, 1880; Mary
Viola, born October 21, 1883; and Cora
Minnie, born October 30, 1889. All of these
are under the parental roof, and form a typi-
cal happy family.
Politically, Mr. Utter affiliates with the
Democratic party. Religiously, he and his
wife are prominent members of the Method-
ist Episcopal Church South.
Mr. Utter's prosperity is due to his per-
sistent efforts and honorable dealings in all
the walks of life. He is one of the repre-
sentative men of his county, and deservedly
enjoys the esteem of his fellow men.
f RAN KLIN L. A NGIER, chief clerk of
the Locomotive and Car Department of
the St. Louis Division of the Chicago,
Burlington and Quincy Railroad, was born in
Vermont at Waterbury, where he was reared
until twelve years of age. He was the son
of Aaron Angier of New Hampshire. His
father was American of French ancestry.
Aaron was a Baptist clergyman and married
in Vermont, Miss Eliza Luther. She came
of good family of Scotch descent. After
marrying, Rev. Mr. Angier continued his
work in the church of his faith until 1850,
when he moved to New York State, and after
four years moved to Illinois in 1854. He
died a few months after his arrival in this
State, in Bureau county, while yet in active
work, being then only forty-seven. He was
a hard-working, logical preacher, fluent talker
and a worthy citizen. His wife survived him
until 1863, and then died at the age of fifty-
four. They had ten children.
When Franklin Angier was twelve they
removed to Elbridge, New York, and here he
was educated until he was sixteen, when the
family removed to Illinois, where he has
since resided. Except three years in the
army, he has been engaged in clerical work.
He enlisted from Geneva, Illinois, in Sep-
tember, 1861, in Company B, Fifty-second
Illinois Volunteer Infantry, Captain E. A.
Bowen and Colonel Wilson in command.
The latter named official did not retain his
command very long, but was succeeded by
Colonel T. W. Sweeny. The regiment was in
the Fifteenth Army Corps of the Army of
the Tennessee. They fought their first battles
at Fort Donelson, Shiloh and siege of Cor-
inth and battle of Corinth under General
Rosecrans, and in October, 1863, Mr. Angier
was discharged, and in May, 1864, re-enlisted
and joined Company G, One Hundred and
Thirty-ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry,
remaining until expiration of service, Octo-
ber 28, 1864. They were garrisoned at Cairo,
Illinois. He served in the capacity of
First Lieutenant all the time he was in the
One Hundred and Thirty-ninth Regiment.
After coming to this State Mr. Angier
lived in Bureau county for a short time, and
was married there to Adaline Smith, born in
Rochester, New York, in 1838, but was reared
in Illinois, where her parents had moved when
she was young. Her father, Alonzo Smith,
was a farmer and died in Bureau county in
1865, when in middle life. His wife is still
living and resides with her daughter Mrs.
Angier. She is eighty-four. She has been
a worthy member of the Baptist Church for
years.
SGHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
?59
Mr. and Mrs. Angler are members of the
Baptist Church. Mr. Angier is a Republi-
can in politics, and a Master Mason, being a
member of Cass Lodge, No. 23, and Clarke
Chapter, No. 29, of Beardstown. He has been
Master and is now Secretary of the lodge.
Is a member of McLane Post, No. 97, Grand
Army of the Republic.
They have seven children: Mary, wife of
C. E. Sperry, a painter of Aurora, Illinois;
Frank is a clerk under his father and married
Maude Foster; Florence is at home; Carl and
Earl (twins), and Charles and Dana are all
four at home. They all have received the
advantage of a good education and are refined,
intelligent young people.
JRED KROHE was born in Cass county,
September 30, 1849, and was reared in
Beardstown, which has been his home.
He is the son of Fred Krohe, Sr., who was
born in Saxony, Germany, May 8, 1809, and
who died November, 1880, in Beardstown.
He was a young man when with his parents
he came to the United States. He married
in Cincinnati, Sophia Hoverkluf, who was
born in Hanover, Germany, in 1816, and died
March 20, 1888. She had come with her
parents to the United States to Cass county,
both dying there. She had a family of six
children, of whom three are living.
Mr. Krohe is a man who has devoted his
time to his business and the amassing of a
fortune. He has now retired and is living in
Beardstown, and is living on the corner of
Washington and Third streets. He has made
a fortune and owns some very valuable prop-
erty, and is owner of the opera-house block
and some fine property in the county. He
has lived in this county all his life, except
three years in Omaha, Nebraska, where he
has some property interests.
He was married in Beardstown, to Elizabeth
Stock of Cass county, a native of the same
ounty. She was born February, 1846. She
cwas reared and educated in this county and
is the daughter of Henry and Elizabeth Stock,
natives of Prussia. Mr. and Mrs. Stock, were
wealthy and well-known members of the county,
and were members of the Lutheran Church.
Mrs. Krohe died at St. Louis, May 9, 1892;
she was a good and worthy woman, who had
always lived in Cass county and was associ-
ated with its history. Since her death Mr.
Krbhe has lived in his home at Beardstown.
HOMAS H. CARTER was born in
Little York, York county, Pennsyl-
vania, October 11, 1823. His-father,
Bushnell Carter, a native of Connecticut,
came when a young man to Pennsylvania,
where he married Julia L. Barber, an esti-
mable lady. He was an educated man, a suc-
cessful lawyer, and died in early manhood.
After the death of his mother our subject was
taken by his father to an uncle in Connecti-
cut, and there he grew to manhood. When
twenty years of age he became a school
teacher, and so continued until 1847, when
he went to Canfield, Ohio, where he began
the study of law under Judge Newton. He
was admitted to the bar in 1852, after grad-
uating from Ballston, New York. About
this time, with a young wife, he made his way
to Beardstown, and engaged in partnership
in a general law business with a cousin, Car-
ter Van Vleck, who had come here some years
before. In later years he was connected in a
legal way with Henry Philips, of Virginia, Illi-
nois, but after some years he had sole charge
260
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GASH,
of the business himself. He became well-
known through the State as one of the legal
lights of the day, and has figured in it promi-
nently. He has amassed a good farm prop-
erty in Missouri, which is still in the family.
He was not a politician, but he had been City
Attorney of Beardstown, and from 1858 to
1861 he was Postmaster of the place. He
was held in high esteem for his upright char-
acter and good qualities. He was a Demo-
crat, a Master Mason, a good moral man and
a great lover of home.
He was married to Miss Maria L. Peck,
in Warren, Litchfield county, Connecticut,
where he was reared. She was born in the
same place December 13, 1825, and was a
daughter of Phineas and Phoebe (Taylor)
Peck, both of Litchfield. Mr. Peck was a
farmer and purchased the old Peck home-
stead, which is yet in the family. His death
occurred July 11, 1870, at the age of seventy-
seven. He was a strong, active man, and both
he and his wife were members of the Con-
gregational Church, as are also their children.
Mr. and Mrs. Carter had one son, Augustine
P., now chief clerk of Superintendent John-
son of the Montana Central Railroad of
Helena, Montana. He married Miss Frances
B. Henderson, of Monmouth, a daughter of
Colonel Henderson, a prominent man of
Warren county. Mr. and Mrs. Augustine
Carter and wife have one bright daughter,
Marcia P., named for her grandmother.
Mr. Carter died while in Peoria, Illinois,
for treatment, on March 19, 1886, leaving to
his many friends a memory most pleasing to
cherish.
IEORGE HENRY EIFERT settled in
Schuyler county, January 13, 1857.
He was born in Hesse-Darmstadt, Ger-
many, February 11, 1823. He had five broth-
ers and two sisters; the former all came to
the United States, where the brother, John,
died in Schuyler county; George also died
there, while Ludwig died in this county;
Valentine went away during the civil war,
and was never heard from again.
George was the youngest, but his father
died when only forty-one years old, so he had
to work very hard, as there were nine small
children left. He came to the United States
and first stopped in Maryland with a Dunkard
preacher two years, when the minister sent
him to Ohio. He went to Preble county,
Ohio, and in 1854 he sent to Germany for
Margaret Roth. She came to America from
Hesse- Darmstadt in 1826, June 21, all by
herself. When she arrived in Ohio she and
Mr. Eifert were married. In 1855 they came
to Illinois and rented land in Schuyler county,
which was but little improved. Here he
passed his remaining years. Before his
death he became the owner of 417 acres of
land and put up tine buildings on the land,
and he also raised stock. His death oc-
curred November 17, 1884. His wife is still
living on the homestead. They had four
children: George, Charles W. and two who
died in infancy. Mr. Eifert was a Democrat
in politics, a Methodist in religion, and was
an earnest, good man, dying happy and
satisfied.
When he was married he borrowed $50,
and that was all he had. When he came to
Illinois he was worse off yet, as he then had
only $20. He purchased a stove and wash-
tub, and they began housekeeping without a
chair, table, knife or fork, and slept on the
floor a whole month before they could afford
to buy a bedstead, but they worked hard
and prospered.
George Eifert is the elder son of George and
Margaret Eifert. He was born in Preble
8CHUTLKR AND BROWN COUNTIES.
261
county, Ohio, August 6, 1856. The family
came to Illinois, and he has since resided here,
where he has followed farming.
He was married, November 17, 1878, to
Sarah Hale, daughter of William and Mar-
garet Hale (see sketch). She was born in
Schuyler county, Illinois, in 1858. They
have two children: Carl and Warren. Mr.
Eifert has part of the old homestead, where
he follows stock-raising. He is a Democrat
in politics and a member of the Methodist
Church South. He and his wife are highly
respected citizens of their section, and are
admired by every one who knows them.
| APTAIN SYLVESTER D. NOKES was
born in Franklin county, New York,
February 11, 1835. His father was
John Nokes, born March 20, 1809, and his
grandfather was Jacob Nokes, of New Eng-
land. He was a farmer who died at an ad-
vanced age in Brown county, Illinois, and his
wife's name was Mary — , who bore him
seven children. She died in Brown county
about ten years after her husband, aged
eighty years. John Nokes came West from
New York in 1842, and settled in Brown
county on 160 acres of new land, it being
part of his present farm. He brought his
wife and six children with him in a covered
wagon. He rented for several years and then
built a hewed-log house. Much of his land
was prairie of the most productive kind. He
resided on this farm about twenty years.
The Captain was a volunteer in the One
Hundred and Nineteenth Illinois Infantry,
Company E, enlisting August 9, 1862. He
went as Second Lieutenant, and was mustered
out as Captain, to which post he was pro-
moted in 1864, in the place of Captain Mun-
ford, resigned. He was absent from his com-
mand on account of a gunshot wound in the
thigh received on the Red river. He was all
through that campaign, was in the two days'
tight before Nashville, Tennessee, and in the
charge on Fort Blakely. He has sixty acres
of orchard land, apples, peaches and grapes.
He keeps ten to twelve horses, fifteen to
twenty head of cattle and fattens about fifty
hogs per year. His orchards return him the
best interest on his money. He built their
fine brick farm house in 1881. The school-
ing of the Captain is limited, but he is well
informed and a great reader.
He was married about the age of twenty,
to Anna J. Dodd, who was nearly sixteen.
She was the daughter of William and Julia
Ann Richardson Dodd. Her father was of
Green county, Illinois, and her mother of
Bradenburg, Kentucky.
The living children of Captain and Mrs.
JS'okesare: Mrs. Carrie Bradney, living in
Missouri; Mrs. Mary V. Wright, at home;
Oscar E., living at the Mounds; Birdie May,
a young lady at home; Irwin Grant; and
Jessie.
The Captain has been a Republican, but
now is an Alliance man. He is justly proud
of his war record.
R. SIDNEY W. SCANLAND was
born in Carroll county, Kentucky,
October 13, 1834. He was the son of
Thomas B. and Agnes W. (Searcy) Scanland,
who were also born in Kentucky. Thomas
followed the trade of cooper when a young
man, and was married at the age of twenty-
six, in Kentucky. In 1840 he came to Illi-
nois. He settled first in Elkhorn township,
and lived there two years on his first farm.
262
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
He built a frame house, but in 1842 he
bought in section 16 120 acres, and still
later bought more land, until he had acquired
nearly 400 acres. He improved his farm,
built several houses and barns, and died Octo-
ber 14, 1885, aged seventy-seven years, re-
spected by all who knew him. He was the
son of William Scanland, a native of Ken-
tucky. William had come to Illinois in 1846,
and settled in Pike county, where he and his
wife lived and died very old people. They
spent their last days in Pittsfield, Illinois.
Our subject's mother was born in Carroll
county, Kentucky, May 3, 1812, and died in
Versailles, January 20, 1888, at the home of
her daughter, Mrs. Susan McCoy. Her par-
ents died when very old people in Kentucky.
Sidney was one of six children: four are
yet living. One brother, George, was taken
prisoner in the late war, and died five months
later at Macon, Georgia. Our subject is the
only professional man in the family now liv-
ing, but some of his father's brothers were
prominent physicians. He remained at home
until eighteen years of age, attending school,
and after that taught school for some time,
and during this time was obliged to board
around among the neighbors, as they did in
those times. During the years of his teaching
he was educating himself, and when about
twenty-six years of age, began to study medi-
cine. After marriage, in 1860, he settled on
the old farm where he had always lived, and
in December, 1863, he enlisted in Company
K, Tenth Illinois Cavalry, and remained in the
service until January, 1866.
Before this time he had attended lectures at
Rush Medical College. After the war he set-
tled in Chambersburg, Pike county, and prac-
ticed for seven years. He then came to this
county, taught school one winter, then bought
a little farm in 1875, and has practiced medi-
cine ever since. He has 100 acres of the old
homestead and takes life very easy. He has
taken an active part in everything that has
taken place in the county, and has contributed
time and money to advance the interests of the
People's party. He is a prominent member
of the G. A. E. in Isaac McNeil Post, also
a lecturer in the Farmers' Alliance, and Presi-
dent of an Anti-horse-thief Association.
He was married to Louisa L. Jaques of
this county (seesketch of Hiram and Nancy
Jaques). They have four children: Sidney
H., George A. and Birdie C. are in Califor-
nia; and Florence Z. is the wife of Oscar
McCoy still living at home.
Dr. Sidney W. Scanland has always been a
representative man of Elkhorn township; has
twice been elected Justice of the Peace, and is
at present acting as Notary Public.
EV. JAMES DE WITT was born at
Hope, Warren county, New Jersey, No-
vember 5, 1817, a son of James and
Anna (Coates) De Witt; the father was born
in Sussex county, New Jersey, and about the
year 1842 emigrated to Michigan; he located
on a farm in Oakland county, and there passed
the remainder of his days; he died at the age
of eighty-six years; the mother was also a na-
tive of New Jersey, and died in Michigan,
at the age of seventy years. They reared a
family of eight children, seven of whom are
living: one son was a merchant, another a
tanner, and a third was a millwright, but
they are now engaged in agricultural pursuits.
James De Witt, Jr., remained at home with
his parents until he was thirteen years of
age, and then began clerking for an older
brother; at the end of two years he secured a
position as clerk in a general store, and three
SCIIUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
years later he went to Pennsylvania, where
he was employed as a clerk by his brother.
In the spring of 1838, he left the Keystone
State, and came by rail, canal and river, to
St. Louis; the journey was continued by
water to Warsaw, where he disembarked, and
from that point he walked to Schuyler county.
The first summer of his residence here he
clerked for Dr. Benjamin V. Teel, and then
returned to New Jersey, where he spent the
summer of 1839, and in the fall of 1839 he
came again to this county and secured a po-
sition with the firm of Wilson & Greer, which
he held until 1842.
Mr. De Witt was united in marriage, Jan-
nary 25, 1842, to Miss Ellen Little, a native
of Columbia, Lancaster county, Pennsylvania;
she died in this county at the age of sixty-
one years; seven children were born of this
union, six of whom are living: James L. is
married and has three children ; John M. is
married and has three children ; George W. ;
Elizabeth is married and the mother of four
children; Cyrus L. is married; William A. is
the youngest. Mrs. De Witt was a daughter
of James and Rebecca Little, natives of Ire-
land, who emigrated to the United States in
1801, and died in Schuyler county, Illinois,
the father, at the age of seventy, and the
mother at eighty-four years of age. Mr.
De Witt was married a second time, October
3, 1883, to Mrs. Catharine H. (Pittinger)
Waddell. She was born in Hancock county.
West Virginia, April 30, 1837, a daughter of
Nicholas and Elizabeth (Matthewson) Pit-
tinger, natives of Ohio and Pennsylvania re-
spectively; the father died at the age of sev-
enty-two years, and the mother at eighty-five;
they removed to Illinois in 1838, and settled
in Fulton county, where they resided two
years, thence they came to Schuyler county,
and here passed the last days of their life;
the Matthewson family is of Irish descent.
Mrs. De Witt's first marriage was to Will-
iam Waddell, and of this union was born one
child, Clementine. Mr. Waddell died in
Fulton county, Illinois, at the age of thirty-
three years.
After his first marriage, Mr. De Witt set-
tled in Rushville, and clerked for his father-
in-law until 1844, when he engaged in busi-
ness for himself, his partner being Mr.
Greer; he conducted the business with differ-
ent partners until 1850, when he sold out and
removed to Littleton township, where he
and his brother-in-law conducted a general
store for four years; the firm was then
changed, Mr. De Witt retaining his interest
for another period of four years; the old
firm then resumed business, and in 1862 he
sold out. He now resides on the farm which
was given his wife by her father, and devotes
much of his time to agriculture; he has added
to the original tract, and built the residence
they now occupy.
Mr. DeWitt received his elementary edu-
cation in the district school, but it was
through his own efforts that his advanced
studies were carried on; he was under theo-
logical instruction only one year, but during
that time made great attainment. For more
than fifty years he has been a local minister
in the Methodist Episcopal Church, and
during that half century he has accomplished
much work for the Master. He has per-
formed the marriage ceremony 130 times,
and has as often been called to administer
the last sad rites of burial. In the affairs
of the State, as well as of the church, he has
taken a prominent part; he has been Post-
master, Collector, and Deputy Marshal, to
take the census of one-half of the county, in
1870; and in 1874-'75, he was a member of
the State Legislature from Schuyler county,
264
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
representing the people with great credit to
himself and to their best and highest inter-
ests. Politically, he adheres to the princi-
ples of the Republican party. In all the
walks of life he has borne himself with that
dignity and rectitude worthy of his calling,
and has made a record that will bear the
scrutiny of ages.
&ANCY P. SECKMAN was born in
Harrison county, Kentucky, August 18,
1814. Her father, James Taylor, and
her mother, Katie Bishop, were both born in
Maryland, near Snow Hill. They went to
Kentucky, when young, were married there,
and were well-to-do farmers. They moved
to Illinois in the fall of 1832, when this
daughter was nineteen years old. They
brought ten children with them in a prairie
schooner, being twenty-one days on the route.
They hired a man to bring them with his
five-horse team, and they brought three
horses and saddles of their own. They had
a most delightful time, a continual picnic of
twenty-one days, from the time they left the
old Kentucky home until they arrived at
grandfather Taylor's in Morgan county. They
bought 160 acres in what is now Scott county,
and this they made their permanent home.
They had two more children in Illinois,
making twelve in all, and all but two grew
to adult age, Mrs. Seckman being the eldest.
The mother died at the age of sixty- five, on
the farm in Scott county; the father lived
many years after, but finally passed away at
the ripe old age of eighty-five years, leaving
a tine estate to the ten remaining children.
Mrs. Seckman had very little schooling in
the every-day school, as they were then
termed. She was married in her twenty-
second year to Jonathan W. Seckman, born
near Chillicothe, Ohio, in 1810. His father
was William Seckman. and his mother, Su-
san Wright, both from farmer families of
Ohio. They came to Illinois after this son
came. Jonathan came here a poor young
man, and began working for the low wages
of those times. He drove teams and bioke
prairie, and worked and earned and saved,
until in his thirtieth year he had two horses,
six oxen, and several head of horned cattle,
and some hogs. He was married to our sub-
ject, March 31, 1844, and began domestic
life on an island in Menard county, on lands
his father owned. They purchased forty
acres in 1842, in Cooperstown township, near
the present home of Mrs. Seckman. He
traded a good house and his l&st horse for it.
He worked out by the day and paid for the
use of a six-horse team, with which he tilled
the land for the first crop. Their life on the
island for the three years they were there,
was a living death from fever and ague, and
when they left for Brown county they were
reduced in means, having but $40. They
bought a log house on an adjoining claim,
which they moved on their small farm. The
timber was large and dense on this land, and
he built his old house on and over several
large stumps. They moved into this abode,
January 1, 1842, and in about two years he
bought eighty acres adjoining. In 1865, they
built the present commodious frame house
in which Mrs. Seckman now resides. Here
he died, August 8, 1885, aged seventy- five,
leaving his widow with seven living chil-
dren. They had buried one daughter when
an infant, and one son, John William, aged
twenty-eight. He left a wife and son. Mr.
Seckman owned at hie death 720 acres of
land, and several lots in Mount Sterling.
These lands are well-stocked and well-
SCHUTLSB AND SHOWN COUNTIES.
265
improved. He was well and favorably known
in this section. His life of toil was not only
successful financially, but he left a good
record to his devoted wife. His father had
been a preacher among the United Brethren,
and he also left a large estate to a large and
honorable posterity.
The names of Mrs. Seckman's living chil-
dren are: James R., a farmer of Nebraska,
has five children; Kittie J., wife of William
Shultz, of Nebraska, has twelve children;
Charles H., farmer on part of the old home-
stead, has six children; George D., also a
farmer on the homestead, ten children; Jon-
athan, farmer in Brown county, eight chil-
dren ; Joseph L., also on the homestead, seven
children; Archie, also on the homestead, in
the house with his mother, four children.
Mrs. Seckman says that she is a monu-
ment of God's mercy and love. She has had
great health and strength during life, has
worked hard in the house and field, has helped
make fence, stack grain, and has done every-
thing in the house from rocking the cradle
to spinning and weaving. She is now as
strong and vigorous as ever, and her mind is
as strong as ever, and in every respect she is
a remarkable old lady.
iARIUS N. WALKER, ex-Judge of
Cass county, Illinois, and a resident of
Virginia, is a native of the Old Do-
minion, born in Fauquier county, February
16, 1834. Of his life and ancestry we re-
cord the following facts:
Solomon Walker, junior and senior, father
and grandfather of the Judge, were also Vir-
ginians by birth, and the former was a na-
tive of Fauquier county. The latter suffered
privations and hardships in the various cam-
paigns of the Revolutionary war, being in
the service seven years, and never fully re-
covered his health afterward. He spent his
last years in Culpeper county, Virginia.
The maiden name of Grandmother Walker
was Frances Taylor. Her father was a na-
tive of England, and when but a small
boy was kidnaped by sailors, brought to
America and bound out until twenty-one
years of age. He spent his last years in the
State of Virginia. Solomon Walker, Jr.,
learned the trade of tanner, and followed his
trade in connection with farming in Fau-
qnier county, remaining a resident of that
place until 1855. Then he sold his inter-
ests there and came to Illinois, locating in
Virginia precinct, Cass county, on a farm he
purchased a mile and a half east of the present
courthouse site. He engaged in agricult-
ure and remained a resident there till
after the death of his wife. He spent his
last years at the home of his son, Judge
Walker, where he died, in 1889, in the
eighty -sixth year of his age. His wife,
Emma Wilkins, was born in Prince William
county, Virginia, daughter of Thomas Wil-
kins. She died on the home farm in 1879.
Nine of her children reached adult years.
Judge Walker was reared and educated in
his native State, and when a mere boy he
commenced to assist his father in the tanyard
and on the farm. He is a natural mechanic,
and while a resident of Virginia worked a
portion of the time at the millwright trade.
He came to Cass county with his parents in
1855, and lived at home until he was twenty-
three years old; was then employed at farm-
ing and carpenter work. April 15, 1862, he
started with others for Oregon. They went
by rail to St. Joseph, at that time the ter-
minus of the railroad, and thence by boat to
26G
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
Sonora, ' Missouri. There they equipped
themselves with ox -teams and provisions,
and on the 12th of May started on their
journey across the plains, arriving at the
present site of Baker City, Oregon, August
23. He remained at Auburn, near Baker
City, till February, when he went to Placer-
ville, Idaho Territory, and engaged in min-
ing, remaining there until the fall of 1864.
Then he went to San Francisco, and from
there went to New York, via Panama;
thence to Cass county, Illinois. Soon after-
ward he bought a farm in Virginia precinct,
which he sold the following fall, came to Vir-
ginia and engaged in work at the carpenter's
trade. In the fall of 1868 he purchased a tin
and stove store, and carried on that business
until 1873, when he was elected Police
Magistrate of Virginia, and devoted his at-
tention to the duties of that office. In 1880
he visited the Rocky mountains. He went
as far as Western on the railroad and thence
by stage to Leadville, Colorado. Five months
later he returned to Virginia and has since
resided there.
Judge Walker was married in the fall of
1861, to Elizabeth Adams, who was born in
Morgan county, Illinois, daughter of Will-
iam and Mildred (Bryant) Adams. She died
in 1873. In January, 1876, he married
Martha E. Clark, a native of Schuyler
county, Illinois, her parents being Thomas
and Annie Clark. He has two children liv-
ing by his first marriage: Emma E. and
John L.
Politically, the Judge has always affiliated
with the Democratic party. He served as
Police Magistrate from 1873 to 1882; has
also served as Alderman and Mayor. In
1882 he was elected County Judge, was re-
elected in 1886, and served two full terms.
He is a member of Saxon Lodge, No. 68, I.
O. O. F., and Washington Lodge of Mutual
Aid. Mrs. Walker is a member of the
Presbyterian Church, while the Judge is a
Baptist.
ILLIAM T. TYSON, a widely and
favorably known citizen of Bain-
bridge township, Schuyler county,
Illinois, an honored veteran of the late war,
and one of the most prosperous farmers of
the State, is a worthy representative of a
prominent family of distinguished patriots,
who sealed their devotion to their country
long before she became a distinct nation, and
who, by their united and continued efforts,
have contributed in no small measure to her
steady advancement to her present glorious
position among the countries of the world.
Zephaniah Tyson, the distinguished grand-
father of the subject of this sketch, was born
in Virginia in 1771, and was thus by birth
placed on the arena of the most stirring
events of that age. It is not surprising,
therefore, that he should have developed that
surprising precocity which the time itself
tended to foster. Born of patriots, breathing
the air of patriotism, and drinking in those
noble sentiments which have filled the hearts
of heroes since the world began, he early put
by the pastimes of youth, assuming with ease
and pleasure the responsibilities and cares of
a man and a soldier. At the age of nineteen
years he enlisted in the Indian war. and
served under that able and celebrated patriot,
General Wayne. Again, in the war of 1812,
he was still found fighting under the starry
flag; and later took part in the battle of
Tippecanoe, under General Harrison. Amidst
all these warlike engagements, he found time
to cultivate the friendship, of the little god of
SCRUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
267
love, who directed his shafts from behind the
bright glances of Miss Margaret De Long, an
amiable and intelligent Virginian, and a de-
scendant of an old and esteemed family of that
State. In 1830, he removed to Illinois, which
was then a new and sparsely settled country,
where he settled on a farm on the southeast
quarter of section 3, township 1 north, range
1 west of the fourth principal meridian,
where he continued to live until his death in
1849, at the age of seventy-eight years, uni-
versally and sincerely lamented.
George Tj'son, an able son of a great
father, was born in 1807, on the Muskingum
river, in Ohio. In those times, the young
apparently matured much earlier than in our
present indolent age, for we find this youth
leaving home and starting in pursuit of his
fortune long before he was fully grown. He
went to Cincinnati, where he found work, and
where he soon afterward purchased a flat-boat,
with which he commenced trading and traf-
ficking with the natives on the Ohio river.
In 1829, he married Miss Lucinda Bellamy,
a native of Culpeper county, Virginia. Soon
afterward he sold his flat-boat, and with the
proceeds purchased a team, with which the
young couple made the trip overland from a
point on the Ohio river to Schuyler county,
Illinois, where they settled on a farm in the
southeast quarter of section 11, township 1
north, range 1 west. Fortune smiled on their
industrious efforts, and in time Mr. Tyson
accumulated considerable property, having
480 acres of choice agricultural land, besides
owning a steam saw and grist mill. In 1866,
he went West and has never been heard from
since. The faithful wife and devoted mother
survived her husband's probable death ten
years, expiring September 10, 1876, in her
sixty-seventh year, leaving a bereaved family
and many friends to mourn her loss.
William T. Tyson, the subject of this no-
tice, was born April 2, 1841, in a log house,
situated forty rods from his present large and
comfortable residence. His early life was
spent on the home farm, and he attended the
country schools of his vicinity, where he re-
ceived a good common-school education,
sufficient to enable him to teach several
schools in his township. At the age of six-
teen, he accompanied his parents to Moniteau
county, Missouri, where his father bought a
farm of 160 acres on the Pacific railroad,
and ran a woodyard in connection with his
farm, there being an abundance of excellent
timber on the land. In the fall of 1858,
young William accompanied his parents to
Henry county, Missouri, where his father
bought 300 acres of excellent prairie land, on
the west half of the southeast quarter of the
southwest quarter of section 21, in township
43, of range 28. Here the family continued
to reside until the breaking out of the Civil
war, when the mother and younger children
returned to the old homestead in Illinois. It
was then that young William displayed that
patriotism for which his family was famous,
by raising the first flag ever hoisted in the
county after the nomination of Abraham
Lincoln. He raised a pole fifty feet high, to
which was attached a flag fourteen by twenty-
one feet, with a rail resting on the top of the
pole. He was several times ordered to take it
down, but as often refused to do so.
This sentiment of love for his country cul-
minated in his enlistment in the United
States service as a private in Company D,
Cass County Regiment of Cavalry, Missouri
Home Guards, on June 27, 1861, to serve
three years, or during the war; and was dis-
charged at Harrisonville, Missouri, February
28, 1862, by reason of General Order No.
25, paragraph three, Headquarters Depart-
268
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
ment of Missouri, December 14, 1861. He
participated in several engagements, the most
important of which were Farkersville and
Harrisonville, Missouri, July 18 and 19,
1861. He was selected for Second Lieuten-
ant of the company, and lacked but a few
votes of being elected. He was one of the
soldiers who helped to guard the first wagon
train of provisions to Lyon's army, after the
battle ot Wilson's creek, Missouri. Soon
after his discharge, he started for Illinois,
and was obliged to cross the entire State of
Missouri from west to east at a very danger-
ous time of the war.
On August 12, 1862, Mr. Tyson re-en-
listed in the army as a private in Company
D, 115th Regiment, Illinois Volunteers, for
three years'or during the war. During his
service he did his full share of marching,
fighting, scouting, picketing, digging and
suffering, as well as participating in the for-
aging and picnicking, of which Uncle Sam's
boys are generally believed to have had a large
amount. During this term of service he took
part in a number of prominent engagements.
He was in the battle of Franklin and Harpeth
river, April 10, 1863. He was in Rosecrans'
campaign from Murfreesboro to Tullahoma,
Tennessee, from June 23 to 30, 1863. He
participated in the battle of Chickamauga,
September 18, 19 and 20, 1863; and was in
the Dalton raid, under General Palmer, from
February 21 to 27, 1864. He was also in
the charge on Tunnel Hill, Georgia, May 7,
1864, and took part in the battle of Resaca,
May 15 and 16, 1864.
He was one of that brave little band of
forty-two men who formed Company D,
under Captain Hymer's command, who held
their own against such fearful odds at Buz-
zard's Roost gap, Georgia. They were sta-
tioned at the block house at that point, in
. I uly, 1864, where on August 15, they were
attackedjby Wheeler's cavalry; but Company
D opened such a fire of shot on the attacking
party that the cavalry were obliged to retire.
Again, on October 13, Hood's army of 40,-
000 came to the block house and opened tire
on the inmates with musketry and artillery,
133 cannon balls being fired at the fort. This
little band of Spartans, however, held the at-
tacking party in check for ten hours, when
they were finally forced to surrender. In
this engagement, five were killed, six wounded
and thirty-seven taken prisoners. The pris-
oners, among whom was the subject of this
sketch, were marched to Cahaba, Alabama,
where they were confined for ten days in
Castle Morgan, which was named in honor of
the daring Confederate raider, John Morgan.
Owing to the crowded condition of the pris-
on, they were sent to Millen, Georgia,
where they were when General Sherman sent
General Kilpatrick's Cavalry, on November
22, to rescue them if possible. The preced-
ing evening, however, they were loaded on
the cars and sent to Savannah, and thence on
down the coast to Thomasville, Georgia, and
from there across the country to Anderson-
ville. In this famous, or rather infamous,
prison, Mr. Tyson was confined for three
months: at the end of that time he was sent
to Vicksburg, where he was paroled, ex-
changed, and loaded on the Henry Ames, one
of those magnificent floating palaces for
which the lower Mississippi was famous in
ante-bellum days. He was in this way trans-
ferred to St. Louis, and there paid off, and
given a thirty days' furlough to go home. At
the expiration of this time he returned to
Springfield, Illinois, where he received his
final pay and discharge, on June 14, 1865.
As typical of the appreciation in which Mr.
Tyson was held by his commanders, may be
SG SUTLER AND BHOWN COUNTIES.
26»
mentioned the remark of Captain Hjnner,
who said to him: " 1 know you were one of
my best soldiers, and were always in the line
of duty." Mr. Tyson was on detached ser-
vice in the Signal Corps, at "Wartrace, Ten-
nessee; and while stationed at Tullahoma,
that State, was headquarter clerk for General
Jesse H. Moore. While in Kentucky, Mr.
Tyson was a guest of the great Kentucky
statesman, Cassius M. Clay, at that time ab-
sent in Russia, but whose absence was amply
compensated for by the cordiality and hos-
pitality of Mrs. Clay, her daughter and
daughter-in-law, with whom he had the pleas-
ure of dining.
By the spring of 1867, Mr. Tyson had
saved up $500, with which he purchased 160
acres of land in section 11, township 1 north,
range 1 west. This event foreshadowed an-
other, which transpired in the fall of the same
year, and which was but the fulfilling of the
saw, to provide a cage before getting the
bird. He was married November 10, 1867,
to Miss Sarah J. Scott, an estimable lady, and
a resident of Schuyler county, Illinois. Their
happy married life, however, was destined to
be of short duration, for on February 22,
1878, the faithful wife and mother expired
at home, in the midst of her family and
friends. She was widely known and greatly
beloved on account of her practical Christian
virtues and kind heart. They had four chil-
dren: Jesse C., Laura, Leora and Stella, the
latter of whom died in infancy; there are
now two grandchildren.
In 1880, Mr. Tyson was appointed Census
Enumerator forBainbridgetownship,to which
position he was reappointed on May 20, 1890.
He is in very comfortable circumstances, and
owns as fine a farm as there is in the country,
which is provided with good improvements
and is moderately and well stocked.
18
In politics he has always been a Republi-
can, and is opposed to oppression in any
form.
A duty done is always a source of pleasure
and pride to the one performing it. This is
essentially true at all times and at all places,
but how much more so must it be when the
performance involves danger and perhaps
death; when, as in the late war, the cham-
pions of justice and freedom were baptized
with fire and with blood. It is then that
duty assumes her heaven-born spirit, and
pours into the heart the balm of unspeakable
joy and that peace which passetk under-
standing.
DWARD N. TREADWAY, a farmer
of Beardstown, was born in Hamilton
county, Ohio, February 23, 1825. His
father was Edward Treadway, a native of
Maryland, of English stock. He grew up as
a farmer in Maryland, and married Elizabeth
Anderson, who was reared and educated in
Hartford county, Maryland. She came of
Scotch ancestry. He and his wife moved to,
Hamilton county in 1816, and later came to
Illinois, into Cass county, and settled in what
is known as the Monroe precinct. This was in
182,9. The wife died about two years after
the family settled in this county, being then
only in middle life. Her husband spent his
last days with his children, and died in 1859,
being then about seventy-five years of age.
He and his wife were recognized as very early
pioneers of the county.
Mr. Treadway has lived in this precinct
since he was ten years of age, and has become
known as one of the old settlers. He is a
farmer on the same land which he went upon
when he became of age. It is in sections 29
270
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
and 30, and consists of 160 acres, and is known
as the Sangatnon bottoms. It is all improved
He also owns 120 acres of timber land which
is very valuable.
He was married in this county, to Sarah
Phelps, of North Carolina, the daughter of
William and Margaret (Measles) Phelps, who
were born, reared and married in North Car-
olina. They came North with their family
and settled in the precinct of Beardstown.
Mr. Phelps is yet living, a hale, hearty old
gentleman, but Mrs. Phelps died some years
ago.
Mr. and Mrs. Treadway attend the Method-
ist Episcopal Church in this city, and are
worthy, good citizens with a host of friends.
They are the parents of five living children:
Martha Predshaw, now living on a farm in
this county; William, at home assisting his
father; Hans, living in McDonough county,;
Anna and Bertha at home. Mr. Treadway is
a consistent Democrat.
[ILLIAM H. COLE MAN, general
farmer and stock-raiser, running the
large cattle farm of 320 acres, and
also owner of nearly 600 acres in the precinct
of Philadelphia, all in Cass county, has lived
in the county for thirty-two years, has always
been engaged as a farmer and has always been
quite successful. He began here as a poor
man, and worked for
a month for the
first four years, and after that began to farm
on the Calef farm, which he has since run as
a renter, and out of his savings he has pur-
chased the large farm of 600 acres which he
also runs on his own account, in connection
•with his rented farm, making nearly 1,000
acres that are under his control. He has been
a hard-working man and has made all he has
since he came to this county in 1860.
He was born in Westphalia at Menden, in
Prussia, Germany, in 1840. He was reared in
his native country, and after he came to this
county he attended the public schools through
the kindness of his benefactor, S. L. Calef,
whose place he has worked on since 1860.
He reveres this kind gentleman and his wife
as he would his parents, and his long resi-
dence on their farm show what their opinion
is of his honesty and faithfulness.
Mr. Coleman is the son of Gotlieb Coleman
(spelled in the German Kuhlmanu), and the
latter came to the United States in 1870.
He made his home with his son, William, un-
til his death in 1886. He was then eighty-two
years of age. He was a good old man and a,n
active member of the Lutheran Church. He
had married a German lady who lived and
died in her native country, being only thirty-
two years of age. Her maiden name was
Mary Markman. She left six children at her
death, of which William and a brother Henry,
now a married farmer in Virginia precinct,
this county, are all that are now living. Will-
iam and his brother Henry came to the
United States when young and single, coming
in the spring of 1860 from Bremen, Germany,
to New Orleans in a sailing vessel, Mary
Margaret, with 636 passengers on board.
After a thirty-nine days' voyage, they landed
in New Orleans and came up the Mississippi
river on a steamer to St. Louis, and from there
to Beardstown, where they have both ;vince
lived, and have become good and successful
farmers and reliable German citizens.
William was married in this county to
Nancy McLin, born in Morgan county, where
she was reared and educated. She has lost
her parents, the mother dying in Morgan
county, at the age of forty, the father in Cass
county, aged sixty years, having always been
a farmer by occupation.
SCIIDTLSR AND BROWN COUNTIES.
271
Mr. and Mrs. Coleman are the parents of
five children, yet living; four are deceased;
those living are: Ellen M., wife of Perry
Davis, a farmer of Virginia; Charles E., at
home helping on the farm; Edgar, John and
Arthur, all at home on the farm.
Mrs. Coleman is a member of the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church, and Mr. Coleman is a
sound Republican. He has been very active in
local politics, and once run for County Com-
missioner, running ahead of his ticket several
hundred votes. He and his wife are good,
hard-working people and are justly entitled
to the success they have attained.
[IDNEY J. HOOD, of the firm of Al-
lard & Hood, publishers and editors of
The Evening Star and The Star of the
West of Beardstown, was born in Spring
Green, Sauk county, Wisconsin, October 10,
1864. He was reared and educated at that
place and acquired aknowledgeof the carpenter
and mason trades, but later went into the
newspaper business. His father, Captain
Thomas R. Hood, came from Pennsylvania to
Wisconsin when a small child with his par-
ents, Moses and Sarah Hood, natives of Penn-
sylvania, but who died in Wisconsin.
Thomas R. Hood grew up as a farmer and
carpenter, and when the war broke out heen-
liste'l in the Sixth Wisconsin Regiment Light
Artillery as a volunteer and served three and
one half years, and was honqrably discharged
as Captain of his company. He had led his
men through the battles of Corinth, Shiloh
and other active engagements, and was much
beloved by the members of his company. He
had married Eliza A. Seiders, daughter o
Joseph and Elizabeth (Keifer) Seiders. They
had come West at a very early day, settling
in Sauk county on Government land, and the
same on which Joseph Seiders and wife lived
and where Mr. Seiders died, a very old man,
in the spring of 1888. His wife, who is yet
living, at the age of eighty, is yet very active
and interested in her surroundings. She and
her husband were members of the United
Brethren Church.
Our subject is the second of three children,
and since his thirteenth year he has supported
himself. At the age of seventeen years he
began work at his native home at Spring
Green on a paper known as the Weekly
Home News. He has always regarded these
early days in Spring Green as the palmy days
of his life as well as of his newspaper work.
In 1889 he came to Arenzville, Cass county,
Illinois, and started the Aremville Argus, and
at the same time the Chapin Boomerang, and
ran the papers for about sixteen months, when
he sold out and came to Beardstown, where he
has since lived. For some time, also, he was
a worker on the Laramie (Wyoming) Sen-
tinel, Bill Nye's old "first love." The first
issue of the Daily Star took place March 7,
1892; present firm was started February 24,
1892. Both the daily and weekly papers are
very prosperous. Mr. Hood is a very ener-
getic man, and being a practical printer under-
stands thoroughly the management of a news-
paper.
Mr. Hood is still unmarried. He is an
ardent Republican.
AD ALLARD, the present Postmaster of
Beardstown, and editor and proprietor
of the Star of the West, was born in
Virginia, Illinois, August 31, 1854. His
father was Dr. L. S. Allard, one of the pioneer
physicians and druggists of Cass county, and
272
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
was one of the most forcible political writers
of Central Illinois. He started and conducted
for many years the Cass County Courier and
was an active worker in politics. He served
his country in the war of the Rebellion, enter-
ing it as a Captain and corning out a Colonel;
also in the Mexican war as a Lieutenant. He
is a Republican and is now a resident of Hot
Springs, Arkansas. His mother was a Miss
Sarah F. Payne, of Lexington, Kentucky, and
is yet living. The complete history of Beards-
town could not be given without a brief men-
tion of the paper known as the Weekly Star of
the West, a strong Republican paper, and the
Evening Star, which is neutral. The ener-
getic editor and proprietor, whose name heads
this article, is entitled to the credit of making
a success of a daily in so small a city and a
weekly paper which is read by an intelligent
public throughout a wide territory. The
daily Star is but one year old, but has already
won the confidence of the people. The
Weekly Star has had an existence since 1888,
and is now one of the leading Republican
sheets of the West. It has just moved into
elegant new quarters on Main street, with
editorial and counting room on the ground
floor. The editor handles every subject ably
and without fear or favor; he is a practical
newspaper man, a strong and forcible writer;
and his life from the time he was fourteen has
been spent in newspaper work. He began work
in his father's office in Virginia, Illinois,
from whom in 1872 he leased it. Young
Allard ran this paper for some time and then
took a partner named Mat. Summers, chang-
ing the name of the paper to the Virginia
Gazette. His health failing he went to Ar-
kansas and took charge of the Fort Smith
New J?ra, then the property of the United
States Marshal of Western Arkansas and the
Indian Territory, which was the oldest and
first Republican paper of the State. Two
years after he went to Hot Springs, where
for six years he ran a paper called the Daily
News. There he lost his wife and soon after
closed out his interests and went to Kansas
thence he returned to Cass county, where he
has made some grand strides forward, not only
as a newpsaper man but as a local politician.
His mode of handling the tariff question has at-
tracted attention, and at the late State Con-
vention, at which he was a delegate, he was
one of the committee selected to draft the
platform, which was accepted without a
change or objection. He is the present
treasurer of the Illinois Republican Press As-
sociation, and is a leading member of the K.of
P., Beardstown Lodge, No. 207. It is worthy
of remark that he is a newspaper man who
neither drinks, smokes nor chews.
He was first married to Libbie Peak, who
died at Hot Springs, Arkansas. He was
married a second time May 20, 1890, to Miss
Annie Jockisch, a well known young lady of
Beardstown, who was reared and educated in
this city, and is especially skilled in music.
Her father is William Jockisch, a retired
farmer and one of the directors of the Fourth
National Bank. Beardstown society would
not be complete without them.
'OSEPH BRIAR, one of the old settlers
of Hickory precinct, Cass county, Illi-
nois, was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsyl-
vania, February 3, 1823, son of James Briar,
a native of Ireland. His grandparents were
born in Ireland, of Scotch ancestry, and spent
their entire lives in their native land. James
Briar was reared and married in Ireland and
came to America about 1815. He first lived
in New York city and afterward in Phila-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
273
delphia, Baltimore and Pittsburg. He was a
contractor on Government works, and while
in New York city was engaged in building
lighthouses in New York harbor. Subse-
quently he was one of the contractors on the
building of the State prison at Alleghany. In
the fall of 1836 he came to Illinois. He
spent the winter at Beardstown, during which
time he looked around fora location suitable
for a home, and in the spring entered a tract
of Government land in the Sangamon river
bottoms. As there were no improvements
on his land, he rented an improved farm east
of Virginia, and a part of the family settled
on that farm while the rest took up their
abode on the land he had entered, and at once
began its improvement. He resided on this
place until his death, February 22, 1844.
The maiden name of his wife was Mary
Davis. She was born in Ireland, and died on
the home farm. They reared nine children.
Joseph Briar was thirteen years old when
he came to Illinois with his parents. There
were no railroads in this State at that time)
and their removal was made via the Ohio,
Mississippi and Illinois rivers, landing at
Beardstown November 19. Beardstown was
then a small place, but was the market and
depot for supplies for many miles around.
Central Illinois was sparsely settled and
much of the land still owned by the Govern-
ment, while in the northern part the surveys
were yet incomplete. Deer, wild turkeys,
prairie chickens, and other game abounded.
He resided with his parents till attaining his
majority, when he settled on the farm he now
owns and occupies. This place is located on
section 4, township 18, range 10, and includes
122^ acres of the best of Sangamon river
bottom land. He has erected a nice set of
frame buildings and enjoys all the comforts
of a pleasant home.
In 1847 Mr. Briar married Mary A. Harris,
a native of England, who came with her
parents to Cass county when she was a girl.
She died in 1853, and the following year he
married Eliza Smith, a native of New York
State. There are two children living by the
first marriage: Martha J. and Emily D. Of
the seven children born by his present wife,
four are living; Joseph, Harry, Frank and
Annie. Lillie, Bertie and Effie are deceased.
Mr. and Mrs. Briar are members of the
Cumberland Presbyterian Church.
,ENRY C. KORTE, general farmer of
section 4> township 17, range 11, was
born in Kurhessen, Germany, January
2, 1840. He grew up at home, and in 1855
came to this country with his parents and
three children. They set sail from Bremen,
Hanover, on a sailing vessel, landing after an
eight weeks' voyage on the vessel Oldenburg
in Baltimore, and from there by railroad to
Springfield, Illinois, and from there by
wagon to Beardstown, Cass county. The
father, Conrad, started a blacksmith shop,
that being the trade he learned in Germany
and carried it on for twenty years, dying at
the age of seventy-six. He was a good worthy
citizen and a member of the Lutheran Church.
H6 was a Democrat in politics. His wife
survived him about ten years and died at the
age of seventy-two. She was also a Lutheran.
Her maiden name was Christina Meyer.
Henry, a sister, Mrs. Sophia Krohe, and a
half sister, Mrs. Catherine Fischer, are the
surviving members of the family.
Mr. Henry Korte began here as a poor
man and worked as a farm laborer, beginning
for himself in 1863, having been in the
county since 1856. He purchased his first
274
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF C'ASS,
land in 1889. He lias a fine farm in the' sec-
tion where he lives.
He was married in this county to Wilhel-
inina Krohe, born, reared and educated in
Cass county, near the farm where she now
lives. She is the daughter of August and
Christine (Jokisch) Krohe, natives of Ger-
many who had come to America when young
and single, and were married in Cass county,
where they made their home, the mother dy-
ing in 1889, aged over seventy. Mr. Krohe
is still living in this county and is eighty
years old. He and his family were always
Lutherans and Mr. Krohe continues in the
faith of his youth.
Mrs. Korte is one of seven children, being
the third, and has been a good and faithful
wife and mother. She has borne her hus-
band four children: Albert H., married Mary
Hessler of this county, and they live on Mr.
Henry Korte's farm; Arthur G., single and
a farmer on his own account, living at home;
Edward, at home assisting his father; and
Amelia, at home.
Mr. and Mrs. Korte, with their family, are
Lutherans, and Mr. Korte and his sons are all
Democrats. They are worthy good people.
i^ENRY W. MEYER, a successful farm-
er and stock raiser of section 7, town-
ship 18, range 11, was born near Arenz-
ville, this county, in 1853, December 26.
He is the younger of the children, Fred and
Catherine Meyer, the latter now deceased
and the former yet living (see biography).
Henry is the only one of the family who was
born in the county. He was reared and
educated in his native county. He has a
farm of 133 acres, all well stocked. He has
farmed it on his own account for thir-
teen years. He has spent his entire life
in this county, as a farmer on his lather's
homestead. He also has sixty acres in
another part of the county, of which part
is under the plow.
He was married in this county, near where
he now lives, to Minnie Kloker, of Cass
county, born March 6, 1858. She was
reared and educated in her native county,
where she spent the remainder of her short
life, dying atherhomeatthe age of thirty-four,
June 28, 1891. She was a good wife and
mother, and her loss was deeply felt not only
by her sorrowing family, but by all who
knew her. She had been a member of the
Lutheran Church since early girlhood. She
was the mother of four children: Irvin E.,
Fred W., Lewis W., Rudolph J.; and they are
all deceased excepting the youngest. Be-
sides, the parents have adopted a girl, named
Nora M. Mr. Meyer has reason to be
proud of his children and his record here in
the county, where he has always been a good,
true citizen, a faithful member of the Lu-
theran Church and a staunch Republican.
ENRY J. SCHROEDER, one of the
old and well known contractors and
builders of Beardstown, was born in
the kingdom of Hanover, Germany, in 1833.
His father, Fred Schroeder, had always been
a farmer, and he died when about 74 years of
age, at Beardstown, and his wife died some
time later, aged seventy-eight. The family
came to the United States in 1844, and came
straight to Beardstown upon landing in New
Orleans. They came by the usual route up
the Mississippi river to St. Louis, and from
there up the Illinois river to their destina-
tion. Henry was a boy of eleven when he
SGHUYLEB AND BROWN COUNTIES.
275
came to this city, and has since made it his
home. He grew up, learning the trade of
carpenter, and worked as journeyman for a
time, and later was with his father-in-law,
Henry Mohlman, in his substantial planing
mill for some years. It was the first busi-
ness of the kind in the city, and the firm was
successful in doing work for a large territory
and for all the lumber yards of the city.
The railroads that came into the city inter-
fered with the business, and Mr. Schroeder
sold out his interest and launched into the
flour-mill business; but a change in the mak-
ing of flour came about, and to change from
buhr to roller process required large outlays:
so Mr. Schroeder traded his mill off for a
farm and went back to his trade as a carpen-
ter and a contractor. He has since followed
his trade»and has built many of the houses
and public buildings of Beardstown.
Among some of the buildings that he has
constructed are the Park house, leading
hotel of the city, opera house and many oth-
ers that all bear testimony to the skill of the
contractor and builder. He has dealt ex-
tensively in real estate, and has an interest in
the Mohlmau and Schroeder block, one of the
best in the city. He also owns one of the
argest and best two-and-one-half-story brick
houses in the city. He has been a leading
worker in local matters and a truly good citi-
zen. For many years he has been a Demo-
crat in politics, and his party once made him
Alderman of the city. He has retired, to a
certain extent, from active business and now
enjoys the fruit of his labors. His sons
succeed him: so there is no necessity for him
to exert himself in regard to his business
interests.
Mr. Schroeder was the first child that his
parents had. He was followed by four sis-
ters, but no brothers. The family were
Lutherans, as are most of the German fami-
lies, and were noted for their thrift and hon-
esty. He has only one sister living, Jeanie
"Walch, of Leavenworth. Kansas.
He was married in Beardstown, to Miss
Anna Mohlman, born in one of the .Rhine
provinces, Germany, in 1841, a daughter of
Henry Mohlman, and when young she came
to this country with her parents, and has
since resided here. She is an intelligent
woman, a good, kind wife, mother and neigh-
bor. Mr. and Mrs. Schroeder have seven
children, namely: Edward, a contractor of
Beardstown, married to Mrs. Annie Balse-
mier; Dilla, wife of Charles Heinzes, of
Beardstown ; Henry G., a trimmer by trade,
with Mr. Henry Keil, a hardware merchant
of this city, and married to Miss Mene Wip-
ker; George, at home, a carpenter; Rhoda,
Walter and Edith: the last three named are
all at home. Mr. Schroeder has a married
daughter, Sarah, wife of Charles Kreke, a
furniture dealer of this city. She is a child
by a former marriage to Miss Dora Chris-
tiana, now deceased.
Mr. and Mrs. Schroeder are members of
the Fourth Street Lutheran Church, and are
liberal supporters of the same, of which Mr.
Schroeder used to be a Trustee.
NDREW SCHAAD, who for many
years has been identified with the agri-
cultural interests of Cass county, Illi-
nois, and who is a resident of Hickory pre-
cinct, was born in Hesse- Darmstadt, January
4, 1836.
John Schaad, his father, was a son of John
Schaad, and both passed their lives and died
in Germany, the former in 1852. Grand-
father Schaad was all his life engaged in agri-
276
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP CASS,
cultural pursuits. His son, John, became a
civil engineer, and was engaged in surveying
for canals, railroads and turnpikes. His wife,
nee Katherine Hamel. was born in the same
locality as her husband, she being the daugh-
ter of Christian Hamel. She came to Amer-
ica in 1853, the year following Mr. Schaad's
death, and spent her last years in Cass county,
Illinois. She reared four children: Thomas,
Charles, Andrew and Mary. Thomas and
Charles both married and reared families, and
spent their last years in Cass county. Mary
is the wife of Henry Walter, and lives in
Arenzville.
The subject of our sketch attended school
in Hesse- Darmstadt until 1853, when he
accompanied other members of the family to
America. They set sail from Havre de Grace
September 15, 1853, on the sailing vessel
Farera, and landed at New Orleans after a
voyage of forty-five days. There was cholera
on board the vessel, which rendered the voyage
an unpleasant one. From New Orleans they
came north by river to Beardstown. Andrew
and his brothers rented land and farmed to-
gether, being successful in their operations.
Subsequently Andrew and Charles bought a
tract of land on sections 6 arid 7, township 18,
range 10, and farmed together a few years.
The former has been a resident of what is
now Hickory precinct since 1858, and is now
the owner of 320 acres of land, 177 acres of
which are the finest tillable land, located on
sections 6, 7, and 8, township 18, range 10.
He has erected a nice set of frame buildings,
and is comfortably situated to enjoy life.
In 1866 Mr. Schaad married Miss Miza Tay-
lor, a native of Scotland, and a daughter of
Neill Taylor. He and his wife are the parents
of three children Robert, Kate and Maud.
Politically Mr. Schaad is a stanch Repub-
lican. He is a member of the County Cen-
tral Committee, Highway Committee in Dis-
trict No. 2, and has served as a member of
his District School Board for thirteen years.
Both he and his wife are members of the
Cumberland Presbyterian Church.
AVID D. WILSON, a popular and suc-
cessful business man of Virginia, Cass
county, Illinois, dates his birth in Old-
ham, Lancashire, England, November 23,
1841. His father, James Wilson, was born
in the same shire, his parents having passed
their lives in England. James Wilson and
his brother, Thomas, and three sisters, were
the only members of the family who came to
America. Thomas settled in Cass county in
1841, and has since made his home here.
James Wilson was reared and married in
Oldham, and was there employed in a cotton
factory till 1842, in the spring of which year
he sailed for America, embarking at Liver-
pool and landing at New Orleans. He came
up the Mississippi and Illinois rivers into
Illinois, and located in Cass county. He
subsequently moved to Jacksonville, and five
years later to Springfield, his death occurring
at the latter place in 1850. His wife was,
before her marriage, Miss Amelia Taylor, and
she, too, was a native of Lancashire. Her
death occurred in Cass county a few months
after their arrival in this county.
After the death of his father, David D.
was taken in charge by a family in Sangamon
county, and with them he lived until be was
fourteen. From that time he cared for him-
self. He found employment with his bro-
ther-in-law till 1860, and at that time com-
menced to learn the trade of carpenter. His
employer soon emigrated to Iowa, and in 1861
young Wilson turned his attention to the trade
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
277
of printer, at which he worked in the office of
the Jacksonville Journal.
In 1862 he enlisted in the One Hundred
and First Illinois Eegiment Volunteer Infan-
try, and was in the State service one month.
When the regiment was mustered in, he was
rejected on account of a crippled hand. In
1864 he enlisted in Company B, One Hun-
dred and Thirty-third Regiment Illinois
Volunteer Infantry, this time being accepted.
He served till the term of his enlistment ex-
pired, when he was honorably discharged.
He then went to Nashville, Tennessee, ex-
pecting to work at his trade, but was taken
sick and soon afterward returned to Illinois.
After his recovery he farmed in Morgan
county one year. Then he worked at his
trade in Jacksonville for a time. In 1875 he
came to Virginia, being employed in the office
of the Gazette from March till July of that
year. Next we find him engaged in the
grocery business, which he still continues, and
in which he has been eminently successful.
He began with a small stock of goods, his
natural business ability secured him a good
trade, and he is now ranked with the success-
ful business men of the town.
Mr. Wilson is a man of family. He was
married, in 1866, to Martha Taylor, a native
of Morgan county, Illinois, and their union
has been blessed by the birth of four children :
Mamie, Ella G., Herbert S. and Mabel.
He and his wife are members of the Chris-
tian Church. Politically he is a Republican,
favoring prohibition.
IEORGE KUHL was born in Hesse-
Darmstadt, Germany, in 1807. His
parents, Christian and Elizabeth (Ganz)
Kuhl, were very old when they died, the father
at the age of eighty- three, the mother at the
age of eighty-five and one-half years. They
were members of the Lutheran Church.
When George was yet a young man he em-
barked for America in the ship Baltimore in
1833. After a voyage of eight weeks he
landed in Baltimore and went from there to
Richmond, Virginia, and followed his trade
of baker. He soon left that city, however,
and came to Beardstown, Illinois. He was
the first of his family to venture across the
ocean, but was later joined by his parents and
other brothers and sisters. He is the eldest
of a large family that comes of good German
stock. His youngest brother is a Lutheran
clergyman of Carthage, Illinois, and he and
George Kuhl are all that are left of the
family.
When Mr. Kuhl came to Beardstown in
1835 he had but twenty-five cents in his
pocket. The city was then very small, and
the country was new. He began his business
career in Beardstown as a baker. He soon
gained a footing and found a sale for his
wares, both in the little town and on the
boats that were on the river. He made
money and after twelve years established a
large grocery store. Later he made it a
general store, and added to it all the time un-
til he became a large pork packer and grain
dealer. Those were the times to make money,
and during the war times he was one of the
largest dealers on the Illinois river. He had
two large grain houses that were destroyed
by tire, and he lost some $4,000 in a paper
mill. This made no difference to Mr. Kuhl's
business enterprise. In spite of his losses he
has made a large amount of money, and he
now enjoys it in a beautiful home that he
erected, that cost him some $15,000 when
completed. It is furnished with every mod-
ern improvement. He has always had the
278
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
best interests of the city at heart, and has
done everything he could toward building it
up. He lias been a hard worker, and is the
best kind of a citizen, and one that has a good
deal of influence with all classes not only in
the city but all over the county. He has
been a leader in all tending to improve the
city. He was one of the originators, and is
one of the principal supporters of the Ger-
man Church, and has contributed liberally to
its support. His party (Republican) has
rewarded his faithful services by making him
Alderman of the city. He is a very temper-
ate man and one that scorns anything mean
or low. He has now retired from business,
and is taking a merited rest, but he still takes
a strong and deep interest in all that occurs
in the city's history.
He was married for the first time to Chris-
tanna Belger, who was born in Saxony and
came to this country when young in 1836.
She died at Beardstown when about thirty
years of age. She left four children, one of
whom is dead. Mrs. Lizzie Rearick died
after her marriage. The three living ones are:
William P., who is in the grocery business,
married Mary Shepherd; George S., a dry-
goods merchant, married Julia Buck; Philip,
a successful dry-goods merchant of Beards-
town, married Mamie L. Arenz. Mr. Kuhl
was married for the second time in this city
to Mary E. Hemininghouse, nee Mashmeier.
She was a German by birth and came to the
United States with her parents in 1834.
Landing in New York city they came by
water route to Beardstown. Ten days after
their arrival her father died, and her mother
died some six months later. Mrs. Mary
Kuhl was first married iu her native country
to the Rev. William Hemminghouse. He
had charge of a German Lutheran mission;
after some ten years he became a Methodist,
and was a missionary through the West. He
died when he was forty years old. He left
six children, all dead but two daughters:
Minnie, wife of George Schultheis ; Henrietta,
wife of Chris Kuhl. By their marriage Mr.
and Mrs. Kuhl have four children: Louis, a
clerk for Philip Kuhl in Beardstown, and
married to Emma McVey, now deceased;
Henry E., a clerk in Nashville, Illinois, mar-
ried Allie Means; Mary, a teacher in the High
School of Springfield, and she is an accom-
plished lady, and a graduate in English and
German; Lydia, wife of Rev. M. D. Horn-
beck, a minister of the Methodist Church.
fAMES B. MOORE, a soldier in the late
war, was born in Newark, Delaware,
November 26, 1819. His father, John,
was born in the same place, October 9, 1791,
and his grandfather, Archibald, was a native
of Jamestown, Virginia. The great-grand-
father of our subject was born in Ireland, of
Scotch ancestry, and came to America and
settled in Virginia, where he spent his last
years. Archibald moved from Virginia to
Newark, Delaware, bought land from Joseph
Eagle, and there spent his last years as a far-
mer. The farm is still owned by his descend-
ants. The name of his wife was probably
McDonald, and as far as known, she spent
her entire life in Newcastle county. John
always followed agricultural pursuits, and the
house where he was born was his home
throughout his entire life. His wife was Mary
Webb Temple of Chester county, Pennsyl-
vania, whose father, Samuel, was born in the
same locality, and whose grandfather, Caleb,
was also a native of Pennsylvania. He was
a Magistrate for several years under King
James. He was an extensive land owner,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
279
owning the land, including Chad's Ford and
Burningham in Chester county, where the
battle of Brandywine was fought. He spent
his last years in Chester county, was a Quaker,
and reared his family in the same faith. The
grandfather of our subject was an extensive
farmer and stock-raiser, and spent his last days
in Chester county. His wife was Elizabeth
Clements. The mother of James died near
Newark, Delaware, October 1883, aged
eighty-three.
James was reared and educated in Newark,
attending school quite steadily until twenty
years of age, when he engaged in farming for
five years. He then became a merchant for
one year, bat sold out and turned his atten-
tion to the study of law in the office of John
M. Clayton, and in 1848 was admitted to the
bar, and the same year came to Mt. Sterling.
He practiced here until his enlistment, July
15, 1861, in Company G, Third Illinois Cav-
alry, and served eight months. He was hon-
orably discharged on account of disability
incurred in the service. He then accepted
the position of Provost Marshal of the Ninth
Illinois District, and served in that capacity
two and one-half years. On account of fail-
ing eyesight, he resigned and returned home.
Although not totally blind, he is so nearly so
as to incapacitate him for the practice of his
profession, and he lives retired in his pleasant
home he has built in Mt. Sterling.
He married Cordelia Merritt on September
8, 1851. She was born in Naples, Illinois.
Her father, Joseph, was born in Sussex
county, Delaware, July 16, 1803. When he
was eight years old his parents went to Ohio.
The removal was made with two horses at-
tached to a cart. They located in Pickaway
county, where they lived until 1828, and then
moved to Illinois, and were among the first
settlers of Morgan county. Later they bought
land in Pea Ridge township, lived there
until 1850, when they came to Mt. Sterling,
where they continued to reside for the re-
mainder of their days. Mr. Merritt died in
1890. His wife died in Mt. Sterling in 1875.
She was Rebecca Drew and was born in
Ohio.
Mr. and Mrs. Moore have had ten children:
Joseph, James B., Kate, Will, Eugene, Annie,
Sladie, Lottie, Jennie and George. Mr. Moore
has been a member of the Republican party
since its formation. Mr. and Mrs. Moore
are among the best people of Pea Ridge and
are greatly respected by all who know them-
fACKSON HIGGINS, of Brooklyn, Illi-
nois, was born in Morgan county, Ohio,
in 1832. His father, Daniel, was born
in Green county, Pennsylvania, January 20,
1807, and his father, Joseph, was born near
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and was engaged
in farming. He was born in 1777. and died
in 1840, marrying Polly Henderson, and
raising a family of twelve children. He was
drafted into the war of 1812, but sent a sub-
stitute. Daniel was married February 28,
1828, in Green county, Pennsylvania, to
Sarah Brewer. They moved from there to
Morgan county, Ohio, about 1830. In the
fall of 1838, they came to Illinois with a small
horse and wagon, bringing four small children,
being twenty-six days on the road. There
were six families in the party. The trip was
a pleasant one, and the winter following was
mild. They found the grass very tall, gone
to seed, all kinds of game, and very recent
marks of the buffalo remaining. Agues and
fevers were universal.
Mr. Higgins is the oldest resident in this
part of Schuyler county. He took up eighty
280
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
acres of school lands, and soon obtained a deed,
which he has held until he came to live with
his son. He was a tailor by profession, hav-
ing learned his trade in Waynesburg, Penn-
sylvania, when a young man, having worked
at it much of the time. In those early days
the wives carded, spun and wove wool and
flax, and Mr. Higgins in his trade, served
the neighborhood well. His wife died, No-
vember, 1880, aged seventy-four years, leav-
ing four living children, ten having been
born. Mr. Higgins, in his eighty-sixth year,
is bright and active.
Jackson has been a farmer all his life. He
started on forty acres, and has from time to
time added to it until his farm is now 227
acres, all fenced and more than one-half under
the plow. There is some timber and large
pasturage.
He was married in 1858, to Sarah, daughter
of William and Polly, (Fowler) Burnett of
England, but who have been residents here
for many years. They have two sons, William
Harrison, married, residing on the home farm,
and John R., married, and also on the farm,
They are all Democrats and Methodists. Mr.
Higgins has been Justice of the Peace for
four years and has served the county as Road
Commissioner.
MILLER was born in Fayette
county, Pennsylvania, March 27, 1837.
He was the son of Warwick and Mary
(More) Miller of the same place. He was
the sou of William and Rebecca Miller, both
of whom died at a good old age. Mr. Will-
iam's mother was the daughter of Aaron and
Mary (Hanney) More, who were natives of
Pennsylvania, where they spent their lives
and died at a good old age. Warwick was
one of nine children, seven of whom are still
living, and his wife is one of six children,
one of whom alone survives.
Aaron Miller is one of seven children, all
living. He remained at home until twenty-
eight years of age, having spent his time in
attending school, farming and wagoning.
After his marriage Mr. Miller lived in Penn-
sylvania on his father's farm, but in 1869 he
came to Illinois and bought eighty acres of
land, later adding to it 360 acres. He has
been a general mixed farmer and very suc-
cessful.
He was married January 6, 1866, to Mar-
tha Robinson, born in 1836, daughter of
William and Elizabeth (More) Robinson.
The Robinson ancestors came from Ireland.
Elizabeth More was born in Fayette county,
Pennsylvania, and died there, aged fifty-seven
years. She was a daughter of Colonel More,
who was in the war of 1812. The Mores
were of Scotch descent and first settled in
Maryland, and all were honest mechanics or
farmers. Mr. and Mrs. Miller have three
children, Robert W. and Ruth, living at home,
and Mary, a teacher of music, all graduates
of the Plymouth school. Mr. and Mrs. Mil-
ler are members of the Congregational Church
of Plymouth. Mr. Miller is a Republican
and voted for Abraham Lincoln for his firet
term.
ON. ROBERT BROWN was born at
Rushville, Schuyler county, Illinois,
October 19, 1835, a son of John and
Jane (Beckett) Brown; the father was a na-
tive of Fayette county, Kentucky, and emi-
grated to this State about 1831, settling at
Rushville; he was a carpenter by occupation,
and followed t'his calling until his death at
the age of fifty-eight years; the mother was
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
281
born in Bourbon county, Kentucky, and died
in this county at the age of sixty-six years;
they had born to them a family of ten chil-
dren, five of whom are living. Robert Brown
remained at home until he was thirty-one
years of age, when he was married. At the
age of twenty-four he was practically at the
head of a large family, but he early developed
remarkable business ability, and was quite
equal to the cares that devolved upon him.
He was united to Miss Mary M. S. Hoff-
man, October 31, 1866. She was born in
Woodstock township, Schuyler county, Illi-
nois, September 7, 1845, a daughter of Sam-
uel and Margaret 0. (Narding) Hoffman:
Samuel Hoffman was a native of Berks
county, Pennsylvania, and emigrated to Illi-
nois in 18384 and here spent the remainder
of his life; he was a soldier in the Mexican
war, and died of a fever contracted in the ser-
vice, at the age of twenty-eight years; he was
a sou of Joseph and Mary (Meyers) Hoffman,
natives of Pennsylvania; Margaret C. Nard-
ing was born in France, October 26, 1822,
and emigrated with her parents to America
in 1823; they first settled at Cincinnati,
Ohio, and in 1839 came -to Illinois and lo-
cated in Woodstock township, Schuyler
county. Mr. and Mrs. Brown have had born
to them five children, four of whom are liv-
ing: Robert W., born October 26, 1868;
Lilly J., born April 28, 1870; Herman H.,
born June 14, 1875; Edward 0., born Au-
gust 24, 1880.
After his marriage Mr. Brown bought
eighty acres of land, a portion of the farm he
now owns; as his means increased he invested
in land, and now has 400 acres in a body in
Woodstock township. In 1881 he replaced
the old log house which had been a home for
so many years with a modern structure, and
he has made many valuable improvements
upon the place; he does a general farming
business, but makes a specialty of high grades
of blooded stock.
Politically, Mr. Brown was identified with
the Democratic party, but was elected to the
State Senate by Democrats and Grangers by
a majority of 1,476; he served four years,
giving entire satisfaction to his constituency;
he was a member of several important com-
mittees, and always showed a wise considera-
tion of the subject in question. He was a
member of the School Board for fiteen years,
and has favored elevating the educational
standards, and has filled the office of Super-
visor. He is a member of the Masonic fra-
ternity, and belongs to the State Grange. In
addition to the business interests mentioned,
Mr. Brown is a stockholder in the Bank of
Rushville. He is a man of excellent business
ability, his judgment carrying great weight.
He has accumulated his property through his
own unaided efforts, and he is in every way
worthy of the esteem in which he is held.
fOHN F. ROBINSON, County Clerk of
Cass county, is one of the prominent and
influential men of the county. He is
eminently a self-made man. Beginning life
a poor boy, he has worked his way up to his
present position of wealth and influence, being
now classed with the leading citizens of his
county. A review of his life gives the fol-
lowing facts:
John F. Robinson was born in Crawford
county, Ohio, May 31, 1851. His father,
Andrew D. Robinson, was a native of the
same State, and a son of James Robinson,
one of the pioneers of Ohio. Andrew D.
was quite young when his father died, and
he was reared by his mother. He married
in Ohio, and resided there till 1852. That
282
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
year, leaving his wife with her parents, he
started for California, making the journey
with teams across the plains. At that time
there were no white settlers between the
Missouri river and California, except the
Mormons. ^After his arrival in the Golden
State, he engaged in packing provisions to
the mines, and subsequently assisted in
operating the first threshing-machine in that
State. He remained there till 1856, when
he returned East via the Isthmus route, and
located in Linn county, Iowa, on a rented
farm between Marion and Cedar Rapids. A
year later he bought a partially improved
farm in Spring Grove, two miles and a half
west of Paris, where he lived till 1887.
Leaving his son James in charge of the farm,
he then removed to Center Point, where he
now lives retired. The maiden name of his
first wife, mother of John F., was Elizabeth
E. Wachtel. She was born in Ohio, aud her
death occurred in Iowa, in 1865. The
maiden name of his second wife was Eva L.
Putney. He reared five children by his first
wife, and of those born to his second wife
three are living.
The subject of our sketch was an infant
when his father went to California. In 1854,
when he was three years old, he was taken
by his mother and her parents to Iowa,
making the journey with a horse and buggy.
Iowa at that time was thinly settled, and
there were no railroads in the State for two
years afterward. Young Robinson attended
the common schools, and advanced his edu-
cation by attendance at the State University.
In 1871 he came to Cass county, Illinois, to
seek his fortune, landing here with no capital
save a willing hand and a determination to
succeed in life. He found employment on
the farm, working by the month in summer,
and during the winter of 1871-'72 he at-
tended school in Chandlerville. The follow-
ing ten years he taught school a part of each
year. In 1874, he made his first purchase of
real estate — a farm of 120 acres in Rich-
mond precinct. Since, then he has been an
extensive and successful dealer in both farm
and city property. He now owns four farms
in Cass county, and a half interest in five
other farms here. He is also interested in
farm land in Clarke county, Iowa, and has
city property in Kansas City, Missouri, and
Eureka Springs, Arkansas.
In March, 1873, Mr. Robinson married
Caroline (Houghton) Davis, who died April
19, 1874, leaving one child, Ada L. In
August, 1879, he was united in marriage
with Mary J. Witty, by whom he has two
children, Lavina E. and Lee E.
Politically, he has always affiliated with
the Democratic party. He cast his first vote
for Horace Greeley. While teaching school
he devoted a portion of his spare time to the
study of law.
In 1882, Mr. Robinson was elected to the
office of County Clerk of Cass county, for
the legal term; was re-elected in 1886, and
again in 1890.
Fraternally, Mr. Robinson is associated
with Virginia lodge, No. 544, A. F. & A. M. ;
Clark Chapter, No. 9, R. A. M.; Hospitaller
Commandery, No. 32, K. T. ; Ashland Lodge,
No. 341, 1. O. O. F.; and Virginia Camp,
M. W. A.
ENRY W. KROHE was born at Beards-
town, Illinois, November 27, 1841, and
died suddenly at his home in that city,
of heart failure, December 19, 1889. He
grew up here, and in 1862, when just about
of age, he started for Calfornia, with an uncle
and aunt. Going to New York, they took a
SCHU1LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
283
steamer to Aspinwall, crossed the Isthmus of
Panama, and was landed by a Pacific steamer
at the city of San Francisco, where Mr. Krone
remained for some time. Later, he went to
Portland, Oregon, Umatillia, Vancouver Is-
land, etc., and thence up to British Columbia,
and back again into California. He was
amongst the Cherokee Indians, whose lan-
guage he learned to speak well. He spent
four years as a miner, and had a varied ex-
perience, making and losing money.
In 1866, he returned to Beardstown, and
shortly afterward he went in partnership
with his brother-in-law, George Schneider,
into the saloon business, and together built
the opera-house block, in 1873; but when it
was nearly completed it was blown down by
a terrible storm, July 4, 1873. It was re-
built by them the same year. About eight
years ago, Mr. Krohe sold his share of the
opera-house block to his brother, Fred Krohe,
who is still the proprietor of the same, with
his brother-in-law, George Schneider, now of
Omaha, Nebraska.
In 1869, he engaged in the manufacture of
mineral arid soda water, in which business he
continued until the time of his death. He
was well known as a hard-working business
man. He built several nice dwelling houses,
which became the property of his widow.
He was married at Jacksonville, Illinois,
February 11, 1875, to Miss Bertha A. Eber-
wein, a native of Cass county, born Decem-
ber 2, 1846, daughter of J. C. H. and Maria
Eberwein, who were born in Germany, and
came to the United States when very young.
Mrs. Eberwein died in 1847, leaving two lit-
tle girls, Caroline and Bertha, both having
good homes at the time they were married.
Mr. Krohe and wife were reared in the
faith of the Lutheran Church. He was a
genial and pleasant man, a Democrat in poli-
tics, but not an office seeker. He leaves no
children, but a widow, to mourn his early
death; and Beardstown lost one of its best
citizens when Mr. Krohe died.
ERIC E. CADY resides at Camden,
and is numbered among the respected
pioneers of Schuyler county. He was
born in Tolland county, Connecticut, Jan-
uary 22, 1828, being a son of Isaac F. and
Sarah (Chapman) Cady, natives of Connec-
ticut. Isaac F. Cady in early lite learned the
trade of a carpenter, and, being a natural me-
chanic, also worked at the blacksmith trade.
He could make anything in iron or other
work in his line.
He first married Clarissa Hunt, who died,
leaving seven children, five girls and two
boys. He then married Sarah Chapman, and
after two children had been born, he with
his family came to Illinois, in 1835, via canal,
Lake Erie and canal, to the Ohio river, where
he purchased a boat, and came to Quincy,
Illinois, and in the fall of 1835 he settled in
Camden township, where he entered several
hundred acres of land, and resided there
till his death, which occurred in 1847, aged
seventy-two years, six months and two days.
By his first marriage there were seven chil-
dren, namely: Isaac G., H. H. Franklin, An-
geline, Caroline, Etnaline, Adaline and Mary
Ann. By his second marriage, he had Fran-
cis E. and Meric E. The mother of our sub-
ject, by former marriage to I. A. Jones, had
five children; Austin, Alonzo, Revilo, Charles
W., and one died young. All the children
were born in Connecticut, and the parents
and fifteen children came to Illinois. The
mother of our subject died aged eighty-one
years.
Meric E. Cady was reared on the farm, and
being a natural mechanic he worked some-
284
BIOGRAPHICAL RB'VIEW OF OASS,
what in that line. In 1850, he crossed the
plains to California, where he' worked in the
mines for one year, and then went on a ranch.
In 1853, he came home via the Isthmus and
New Orleans, and took 124 head of cattle
and thirteen head of horses across the plains
to California, and remained there till 1855,
when he returned home via New York.
He was successful while in California, and
on his return home he resumed farming, till
1882, becoming the owner of 268 acres, on
which he made many improvements. When
he removed to Camden village, he built a
store, and with his son engaged in general
mercantile business, and so continued ten
years; since then he has lived a retired life.
He sold his farm in 1891, and purchased an-
other of 130 acres, in Camden township.
In March, 1856, he married Eliza A. Mel-
vin. She was born in Maine, in the town of
Reidfield, 1835, daughter of John and Eunice
Melvin, who settled in Schuyler county, in
1851. Our subject continued farming till
1882.
Mr. and Mrs, Cady have three children
living, and one dead. Everett F. is a farmer
in Camden township; Charles "W. died at the
age of nineteen years; Eugenia and Addie.
In politics, Mr. Cady is a Democrat, and has
held local offices.
Mr, and Mrs. Cady are members of the
Christian Church. Mr. Cady is a Royal
Arch Mason, being the Master of the Cam-
den Lodge, No. 648, A. F. & A. M., a posi-
tion he has held for several terms.
fOHN UNLA.ND, of Beardstown, a prac-
tical farmer and stock-raiser, was born
in Hanover, Germany, July 30, 1833.
He was young when he came to this country
with his father, Rev. Casper H. Unland. The
latter grew up a farmer, was well educated
and became early in life interested in religion
and while yet a young man began to exhort
and preach experimental religion. For this
he was persecuted by the State church. He
married Maria Calres in Hanover, and, after
the birth of eight children, to better their
condition they set out for the United States.
They left on a sailing vessel October 20,
1844, and landed in New Orleans after a
journey of eleven weeks. They landed in
Beardstown in the latter part of January,
1845, which was very remarkable, as the river
is usually frozen at that time. They settled
near Bluff Springs, on what is now known as
the Tom Clark farm. After five years Mr.
Unland sold, and purchased land five miles
northwest of Arenzville, where he lived and
died at the age of eighty-one years, his death
occuring March 8, 1890. He was prominent
in Cass county as a fanner and Methodist
preacher, a good, noble man, a Republican,
and the only one of his family who came to
this country.
John is the second child of a family of
thirteen, of whom nine are married and all
have families. He remained at home until
he became of age and was married in this
county to Elizabeth Christinaner, born in
Germany. She came with her parents when
but three years old to Beardstown. Her
father, Yost Christinaner, died at the age of
eighty, and her mother died about the age of
eighty, also. The name of the latter was
Gustling. She and her husband were mem-
bers of the Methodist Church and old settlers
and good people of Cass county. Mrs. Un-
land was carefully reared by good parents.
She is the mother of seven living children:
George married Nancy Henners and is a far-
mer in Morgan county; Lucinda, a widow
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
285
with two children, lives with her father; Mary
Higginson lives near Philadelphia, Cass
county; and Nattie, Frank, Henry and Will-
iam (the twins) live at home.
Mr. Unland has lived in this county since
1845 and has been one of its good citizens.
He lias lived on the farm, except three years,
and he has put in all the improvements. He
purchased it in June, 1860, and settled there
in 1861. He has 200 acres in section 17,
township 18, range 11, and his good farm
buildings and fine improvements show that
he thoroughly understands his business. He
and his wife are both active members of the
Methodist Church, of which Mr. Unland has
been Class-leader since his twentieth year.
He is a licensed exhorter. He is a sound
Republican, but no office seeker.
f HOMAS R. VAN DEVENTER, a pros-
perous farmer and stock-raiser and es-
teemed citizen of Brown county, Illi-
nois, for the past fifty-five years a resident
of section 15, Versailles township, was born
in Fayette county, Ohio, in 1819.
His parents were Jacob and Jane (Rogers)
Van Deven,ter, the former a native of old
Virginia, and the latter of Paris, Kentucky.
His father's parents were Jacob aqd Mary
(Slater) Van Deventer, the former born in
Holland in 1743, and the latter a native of
Glasgow, Scotland. The young Hollander
was a powder-maker by trade, and came to
America in early manhood. He was married
in New Jersey, on the Delaware river, and
soon after went to Virginia, where he and
his young wife located on a farm, which was
situated on the south branch of the Potomac
river. He engaged in farming, and having
an excellent water-power in the river,
20
also manufactured gun-powder. It was in
the latter capacity that he rendered signal
service to the patriots at the time of the
Revolutionary war, providing them with
powder with which to blaze their way into
independence. He served for a short time
in the regular army in that memorable con-
flict, and participated in the battles of York-
town and Valley Forge. He was also a mem-
ber of the Home. Guards, although he did
not take part in the engagement in which
they distinguished themselves for bravery
and efficiency. This worthy patriot and his
wife were the parents of eight children, five
sons and three daughters: William; Isaac;
Jacob; Peter; Cornelius; Sarah, who mar-
ried Jacob Judy; Mary, wife of George Tim-
mons; and Peggy, wife of Daniel Timmons
brother of George. The mother of this fam-
ily died, aged eighty years, while the father
expired four years later. They had met
with many financial losses, and left only a
small estate in worldly goods, although a
rich heritage of honor and good deeds fol-
lowed and influenced their children through
life. Some of this family were of small
stature, like the gentleman whose name heads
this notice, but the majority of them, both
men and woman, were large, erect and finely
formed. Sarah was six feet tall, while Jacob,
the father of the subject of this sketch, was a
veritable giant, standing six feet six inches
in his socks and weighing 240 pounds.
Although possessing great strength and un-
daunted courage, he was most peaceable and
kind. He was twice married. His first
wife was Magdalene Buffenbarger, a member
of a wealthy Ohio family. She died early,
leaving two children — a son, Jethero, and a
daughter, Elizabeth. The former now lives
in Versailles, Illinois; and the latter resides
in Indiana. Late in the fall of 1815 the
286
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
father remarried, his second wife being the
mother of the subject of this biography. A
short time afterward, he and his brother,
with their families, six persons in each
household, came from Fayette county, Ohio,
to Schuyler, now Brown county, Illinois. This
journey of more' than 400 miles was made in
.three weeks, with two large covered wagons
and eight horses, foar animals under sad-
dle. The father of our subject brought some
means with him, realized from the sale of
his farm in Ohio. He first settled in Schny-
ler, now Brown county.
Eight years earlier Cornelius Van Deven-
ter visited the Illinois bottom^, where he se-
cured a claim. Five acres of this he fenced
and planted to corn and pumpkins, and after
completing their cultivation returned to his
family. On his return in the fall, great was
his surprise to find his crop intact, not an ear
of corn or a pumpkin being missing.
The stalwart and much beloved pioneer,
Jacob Van Deventer, died in 1833, aged
fifty-three years, leaving a bereaved family
and many sorrowing friends. His worthy
wife survived him nine years, dying aged
about forty-eight years. They were the par-
ents of six boys and two girls, to- wit: T. R.,
J. F., H. D., and B. B., boys; girls, Caroline
and Duan; one child, Pembrook Berbeck
Van Deventer, died when small; the others
were the subject of this notice, J. F.,
H. D. and B. B. In 1838, she bought
fifty-three acres of heavily timbered land,
which had a small enclosure cleared, in the
center of which was a hewed-log house, for
which she paid f 600. This forms part of
the present large farm of the subject of this
sketch. He and his brothers formerly owned
this farm of 800 acres in partnership, but
J. F. Van Deventer, of Mount Sterling, now
owns another farm of 2,200 acres near by,
which he is farming on a large scale. Their
specialty is stock-raising, including horses,
cattle and hogs. On the land cultivated by
our subject and his other brother, there is
now a substantial farm residence, which
they erected in 1866, besides which there are
large barns and an excellent granary, which
they built in 1880, all of which are models of
their kind. They breed and raise from fifty
to sixty head of dehorned short horn cattle
annually, and have fed each year, for some
thirty-five years, about 250 head, which they
ship to market, together with many which
they buy to sell. They now own ninety
head of horses, and breed and raise ten to
twelve head a year, most of which are draft
horses, but some are for the saddle. They
send to market from 200 to 300 hogs a
year, beside shipping of their own stock from
eight to ten car loads annually. Thus will
be seen what a prominent part they take in
the development of this country, which re-
sults in their own prosperity and provides
work for numerous attendants.
In politics, Mr. Van Deventer affiliates
with the Republican party, the principles of
which he has endorsed for many years.
Notwithstanding his marvelous achieve-
ments in life, we have yet to Chronicle the
most wonderful feat of his existence, namely,
his abstaining from matrimony. How he
has escaped the wiles of the fair sex is truly
phenomenal, unless we revert to his other
superior accomplishments. However, we
will not congratulate him yet, remembering
he will not be free from danger until he has
left this mundane sphere.
His early educational opportunities were
limited, but he inherited a clear and strong in-
tellect, as well as superior physical strength,
and, by much reading and reflection, has over
come these early disadvantages. Besides being
SO SUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
287
one of the most successful of men tinacially, lie
enjoys, by reason of his integrity of char-
acter and uniform courtesy, the universal
friendship of his fellow men.
ULLIAM A. BROKER was born in
.Lippe-Detmold, Germany, March 19,
1837. He was a boy of eleven years
of age when his parents, Samuel and Sophia
(Haupfer) Broker crossed the Atlantic in
the spring of 1849, to New Orleans, and
thence up the Mississippi river to St. Louis.
This was during the year of the great cholera
epidemic in that city, and within a few days
the father and three of the children died, the
mother and William having it severely, but
recovering. When they were able to leave,
the mother and her four small children
moved to a farm near Watertown, Wisconsin.
About one year later the mother died of
cholera inorbns, she being then fifty years of
age. Mr. and Mrs. Broker had always been
members of the German Reformed Church.
Mr. William Broker is the youngest of
the children yet living. He is now pattern-
maker for the St. Louis division of the Quincy
railroad, which is located at Beardstown. He
has been a resident of the same city since
1851. He was only fourteen years old when
he arrived at Beardstown,, and learned the
trade of a practical carpenter mechanic under
C. A. Bushman. After learning his trade he
worked on his own account, and later became
a carpenter fof the old Rockford company.
In 1869, when the railroad was bought up
by the Quincy company, he became their
pattern-maker in 1879. He has ever since
been regarded as a good, reliable workman,
and a true, straightforward man, and his long
association with the railroad com pan}' is a
recommendation of him as a citizen.
He was married in Beardstown to Miss
Dorothea Kratz, who was born in Hesse-
Darmstadt, Germany, in 1844, and was
twelve years of age when her parents emi-
grated to this country. They have seven
children: Frank, living at home, is a ma-
chinist; Sophia and Katie are at home, they
having been well educated in the high school
of the city; William is learning the ma-
chinist trade; Minnie, Amelia and Samuel
are at home. Mr. and Mrs. Broker attend
the Lutheran Church, Mr. Broker is a Re-
publican, and a member of the A. 0. U. W.
He is highly respected by all.
§AMES N. RIGG, of the firm of Rigg &
Smith, merchants of Camden, one of the
well-known pioneers of Brown county,
settled in 1869 at Camden. He was born in
Anderson county, Kentucky, January 18,
1826, being a son of Richard and Margaret
(Utterback) Rigg, natives of Virginia. Each
removed with their respective families to
Kentucky, where they were married. In
1831 they emigrated to Illinois and settled
in what is now Brown county, but was then
a part of Schuyler. Mr. Richard Rigg pur-
chased land near Mount Sterling, and entered
land, and then became the owner of 400 acres
of land on which he made many improve-
ments. His death occurred in 1879, aged
eighty-four years. His wife died in 1877,
aged eighty-four years. They were members
of the Baptist Church, of which Mr. Rigg
was a Deacon. He had already made money
when he started farming in Illinois, and
added to his fortune in this State. He and
his wife had three sons and four daughters:
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Elizabeth, married to John B. Anumos, de-
ceased; Susan A., married to J. P. Singleton,
of Mount Sterling; Eliza married James A.
Parker, who died in Brown -county; James
N.; Peter, a farmer; and John J. died in
Brown county. By a former marriage Rich-
ard had two children, William T. and Sarah.
James was only five years of age when the
family came to Illinois. He was reared on
the farm and resided there until he grew to
manhood, attending school in the log school-
houses of the section, where the teaching was
as rude as the furniture. After his marriage
James purchased a farm in Brown county,
and continued on it until he came to Camden
in 1869, when he sold hjs farm of 160 acres
and with his father-in-law, Willis Watts, en-
gaged in general merchandising in Camden,
under the firm name of Watts & Rigg, and
continued business for ten years. Mr. Rigg
continued alone some ye^rs, until J881, when
the cyclone passed through the town; his
store and dwelling-house were badly injured,
and his family were badly hurt. He subse-
quently associated with his son-in-law in
business, under the firm name of Rigg &
Donnell. This firm continued two years.
At the end of that time his present partner
purchased an interest in the business, and the
name was changed to Rigg & Smith.
He was married in 1849, to Emily 1.
Watts, daughter of Willis Watts. (For fam-
ily history see history of Dr. B. P. Watts.)
Mr. and Mrs. Rigg have five children: John
J., of Keokuk, Iowa; Richard W. is a physi-
cian of Pulaski, Illinois; Francis M. is in
the insurance business at Quincy, Illinois;
Olie married John Donnell, a farmer of
Iowa; and Gertrude, at home.
In politics he is a Democrat. He has
been Supervisor of Camden township, until
he declined to accept the ofiice, and during
this time was chairman of the Board of Su-
pervisors of Schuyler county for four con-
secutive years. He has held many of the
offices of the township. He has been Justice
of the Peace for seven years, and been promi-
nent in local politics, frequently having been
a delegate of the county and district conven-
tions. Mr. Rigg is a member of the Baptist
Church, and his wife of the Christian Church.
He has devoted his attention to merchandise,
and is one of the oldest merchants in the
county. He and his wife are respected
throughout the county, where they are well
known,, and Mr. Rigg is regarded as a reli-
able, honest business man.
ILLIAM L. ALEXANDER, ofsec-
tion 30, Huntsville township, set-
tled in the county in 1861. He was
born in Russell county, Virginia, December
19, 1836. His parents were William and
Mary (McReynolds) Alexander. The grand-
father of our subject was John Alexander,
born in the north of Ireland. He came to the
United States, where he settled and pursued
farming. He married and reared a large
family. His son William was born in 1802
and was a farmer, marrying in Virginia. In
1840 he came to Illinois and settled in Adams
county, North East township, where he became
the owner of 400 acres of land on which he
made good improvements. He died in 1887,
his wife having died a few years previously.
They were members of the Presbyterian
Church and the father was a Democrat in poli-
tics. He waspoorwhen he settled in Illinois,
owning only a horse and wagon. They had
thirteen children, all of whom attained their
majority: Nancy, John, Mary, Rachel, Mar-
garet, William L., Davis, Daniel, Mitchell,
Martha, Samuel, Robert Wilson and Rebecca.
80HUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
William L. was reared on the farm. In
1862 he enlisted in Company I, Eighty-
fourth Illinois Infantry, and served until the
close of the war. He was in the battles of
Perry ville, Kentucky, Stone river and Chicka-
inauga, Tennessee, and the Atlanta Campaign.
He returned with General Thomas and par-
ticipated in the fight at Franklin and Nash-
ville. He was mustered out at Camp Har-
ker, Tennessee. He was a non-commissioned
officer. At the battle of Kenesaw Mountain
he received a gunshot wound in the head, for
which he now receives a pension.
After the war he returned to Schuyler
county, where he owned sixty acres of land,
purchased in 1864. He has since pursued
farming and now owns 541 acres of land and
has two good sets of farm buildings. In ad-
dition to his farming he has raised stock and
dealt in the same. Since 1889 he has rented
all his land.
He was married in 1861 to Eachel J. Berry,
daughter of Basil and Sarah Derry. She was
born in Adams county, near Quincy. Mr.
and Mrs. Alexander have four children: Mar-
tha A., wife of "William H. Naylor, resides in
Baxter Springs, Kansas; Edward died, aged
nineteen; Emma, wife of Edward Straub of
Galesburg, Illinois; Keely L. is at home. In
politics Mr. Alexander is a Democrat and
has been a member of the School Board. His
wife is an earnest Christian lady, but not a
member of any sect. Mr. Alexander has made
his property and is a well-to-do man, richly
deserving the respect in which he is held by
all who know him.
(ROVE CONINGHAM, deceased, was a
native of New York city, born Decem-
ber 27, 1816. His father, Grove Con-
ingham, Senior, was born in Londonderry,
Ireland, about 1766. He emigrated to New
York city at an early age and married Betsy
Baldwin, of Putnam county, New York.
They had nine children, of whom the subject
of this sketch was the eighth. The father died
in December, 1831, in New York city. His
wife survived him thirty-eight years.
Our subject received his education in New
York and -at the age of sixteen came to Schuy-
ler county, Illinois. In 1843 he returned to
his native city and lived there for three years,
then returned to Illinois and settled in Schuy-
ler county in 1851. He made a trip to Cali-
fornia in 1851 and remained for two years
employed in the custom house. This was his
business and had been from his youth, as he
had been associated with his father in the
same for years. In 1853 he returned to his
old home in Frederick and settled there.
There he resided until his death in 1891, Feb-
ruary 21. Mr. Coningham was a business
man for many years as a member of the firm
of Farwell & Company, which lasted from
1855 to 1870. He was a stanch Republican
in politics and an ardent supporter of the war
and a friend of the soldiers. For two years
after the dissolution of the firm of Farwell &
Company he served as steamboat agent, and
subsequently as Tax Collector, and held other
positions of trust and responsibility. In 1866
he was appointed Postmaster at Frederick,
which position he held for over twenty years.
Mr. Coningham was a man of sterling worth
and integrity. He was of a jovial disposition
that made him friends wherever he was. He
was noted for his firm adherence to the right
whatever the cost might be. He was a
worthy communicant of the Episcopal
Church.
He was married in Frederick, Illinois, to
Sarah H. Beal, in 1856. She is the daughter
of Jesse O. and Sarah (Vail) Beal, born in
290
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Cosliocton county, Ohio, March 21, 1836.
Her father came of German ancestry, and her
mother traces her genealogy back to the Vails
who came to Plymouth. Of a family of nine
only three are now living. Her brother Fos-
ter was a soldier in the Mexican war and is
buried on Mexican soil. Samuel now resides
in Frederick, a farmer; Julia resides in De-
Witt, Iowa, and Mrs. Coningham is the
third living one of that once large family.
Mr. and Mrs. Coningham had seven child-
ren, namely: Charlie, married, and lives in
St. Louis, a telegraph operator; Grove, un-
married, located at San Francisco, in the in-
surance business; Jesse is employed in the
registry department of the St. Louis post-
office, a position he has held for eight years;
Betsy, now Mrs. Moses, resides in Pueblo,
Colorado; Grant, the yongest, named for the
noted general, is married, employed in a saw
mill and resides with his mother. Mrs. Con-
ingham is a worthy member of the Christian
Church, and has always been respected and
liked by her large circle of friends.
fOHN S. DODGE, one of the most prom-
inent farmers of Littleton township,
Schuyler county, Illinois, was born in
Bloomington, McLean county, this State,
March 14, 1837. His parents, Solomon and
Betsey (Springer) Dodge, were both natives
of Ohio, his father being a carder and tiller
by trade. His mother's ancestors were
originally from Cork, Ireland. In 1833, his
parents came by way of the Ohio and Missis-
sippi rivers to Bloomington, Illinois, where
our subject was born in his father's hotel,
which was the first in that town, called the
Caravansary. His father retired about twenty-
five years before his death, he being ninety-
one years of age and his wife seventy-two'
when they died at the home of their son, the
subject of our sketch. His godfather, Israel
Dodge, was from Scotland, and died in Mari-
etta, Ohio, aged seventy-five years.
Our subject came to this county in 1846,
and bought the farm on which he at present
resides, which he has since much improved
by the erection of a substantial residence
and barns, and has the land well cultivated.
He is one of ten children, five of whom are
now living, two boys and three girls. He is
the only farmer, all the others being mer-
chants and mechanics.
Mr. Dodge remained at home until he was
eighteen years of age, attending district
school and helping his father. He then
herded cattle for a couple of years, after
which he worked around at different places
until he was twenty-one years of age. He
was, at the end of this time, married to Miss
Emily Hoyt, on December 24, 1855, anative
of Detroit, Michigan, where she was born
November 2, 1836. Their happy married life
was doomed to be of short duration, for three
years later his wife died in Wahpeton, Min-
nesota, aged twenty-two years. She was an
intelligent woman, with many charms of per-
son and character, and was much regretted by
all who knew her. Her people were from
New York State.
Mr. Dodge, after about eight years, mar-
ried Miss Uachel Moore, on January 11,
1866, who was born in Buena Vista town-
ship, this county, June 15, 1838. Her par-
ents, Thomas and Mary Moore, were pioneers
of this county, and highly respected people.
They are now both dead, her mother surviving
her father by several years. She was one of
twelve children, nine of whom are now living.
After his marriage Mr. Dodge rented a
farm in this county, which he cultivated until
SQHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
291
the time of the war; when, on February 1,
1862, he enlisted in Company I, Sixty-second
Illinois Infantry, under Captain Joseph Mc-
Lean, and served for three years and four
months in the army, and was on detached
duty for two months. He was sick in 1864
and was in the regimental hospital. In 1865,
on May 2, he was honorably discharged at
Smithfield. Mr. Dodge and D. Wheat are
the only ones left in Springfield township,
who were members of that company.
After the war Mr. Dodge bought his pres-
ent farm, which at that time was unimproved
and had only a log house on it. It hardly
resembles the same farm now, for he has
erected a substantial residence, besides com-
modious barns for his grain and stock, be-
sides other modern conveniences for the
facilitating of agricultural pursuits. He has
bought eighty more acres of land, making his
present possessions 240 acres, all of which is
under a good state of cultivation. Besides
his farming interests, he is largely interested
in stock-raising, making a specialty of cattle,
in which he is very successful.
Our subject and wife have had eight chil-
dren, six of whom still survive: Avey E.,
born in this county, was educated at Bush-
nell College, and studied music atShenandoah,
Iowa, and is now teaching music; Homer P.is
at home; he was educated at Bushnell College;
Fannie T. is at home, and was also educated
at Bushnell College; Adda A.; Ruby J. and
True; the last three are living a home with
their parents.
Mr. Dodge is at present a Republican, al-
though he went to war as a Douglas Demo-
crat; after that international struggle he
voted with the Republicans. His first vote
was cast for John C. Fremont. His con-
stituents have seen fit to honor him with
public office, and he has served as Assessor
and Commissioner of Highways, in which
capacity he has rendered eminent satisfaction
to all. He is a member of George Brown
Post, of Brooklyn, also of No. 320, G. A. R.,
and affiliates with the A. F. & A. M., No.
766, of Littleton, of all which societies he is
a prominent and esteemed member.
Of superior ability, high integrity and
morality, he also adds the gentler virtues of
sociability and amiability, thus commanding
the respect and affection of all alike.
ILLIAM BADER, proprietor of the
village of that name, was born in
Preble county, Ohio, in 1826. His
parents were Jeremiah and Sarah (Thompson)
Bader. The father was a native of Germany,
and the mother of Pennsylvania. They had
eleven children, of whom eight are now liv-
ing, namely: Mary, now Mrs. Hopkins, re-
siding in Mason county; Sarah A., now Mrs.
Gibbs, residing in Hancock county; Rosanna,
now Mrs. Bleeker, of Pasadena, California;
Margaretta, now Mrs. Doane; Jeremiah died
when seventeen; John L., now residing in
Kansas; Benjamin F., residing at Vermont,
Illinois; Henry O., residing on a farm near
Bader. The family moved from Ohio to Broom-
ing township, Schuyler county, in 1846, and
the parents both died on a farm near what is
now known as Baders.
The early life of our subject was passed on
the farm, and later he learned engineering
and operated a saw and grist mill for many
years. He then went into the lumber busi-
ness in Ohio, where he conducted a mill before
he removed to Illinois, he not coming until
1857. Here he continued his business in the
lumber mill, and accumulated a large for-
tune. He and* his wife have been enjoying
292
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OAS8,
tsorne of their money by spending a year in
California, on account of her failing health.
He was married November 9, 1856, in
.Randolph county, Indiana, to Miss Mercy A.
Hunt, a daughter of Eev. William Hunt, of
the Methodist Episcopal Church, a pioneer of
Randolph county, Indiana, although he was a
native of Kentucky.
Mr. and Mrs. Bader have no children of
their own, but they have reared two as their
own; the first one died, but the present one
is still living, and is a young lady of seven-
teen. Mr. Bader is extensively engaged in
the grain business, and owns 160 acres of
land, a warehouse, several residences and two-
thirds of a brick building in Baders. His wife
is a member of the Christian Church and he
is a member of the Masonic fraternity and of
I. O. O. F. He is a Democrat in politics and
has served three terms as a member of the
Board of Supervisors of his county. He has
been School Treasurer for fifteen or sixteen
years, and has held various positions of trust
arid responsibility.
[AMU EL M. SCHRODER, a rising
young business man of Oakland town-
ship, and one of the most progressive
agriculturists of Schuyler county, was born
in McDonough county, Illinois, in 1860, on
the 27th day of April. His father, Nicholas
Schroder, was a native of Germany, but emi-
grated to America with his mother when a
lad of eleven years, in 1837; his father, John
Schroder, died in the Fatherland about the
year 1830, leaving a widow and three sons in
very humble circumstances; the names of the
sons are Christopher, Carson and Nicholas.
They sailed from Bremen to New York, land-
ing after a voyage of six weeks; they came
direct to Pennsylvania, and from there to
Schijyler county, and settled on a tract of
Government land which the brave mother and
stanch, energetic sons converted into a farm
of great fertility and value. Nicholas went
to California, taking the overland route; he
mined for seven years, meeting with fair suc-
cess, and then returned to Illinois, purchasing
a farm of 160 acres in McDonough county.
He was married in 1858 to Lucinda Phillips,
a daughter of Samuel and Amy Philips, who
were settlers in Illinois as early as 1840; they
had a family of two daughters and a son:
Amy Ann, wife of John W. Danners; Ada
L., wife of Robert Robertson; and Samuel
M., the son, is the subject' of this notice. The
parents came to Schuyler county in 1864, and
purchased 220 acres of land in Oakland town-
ship, on which they lived until 1889, when
they went to Vermont; here they bought a
home in which they are now living in quiet
enjoyment of the reward of their labors.
Samuel M. Schroder was reared to the life
of a farmer, and received his education in the
common schools. His opportunities were
somewhat limited, but this lack has been
more than overbalanced by wide reading and
clear thinking upon all the topics of the day.
Mr. Schroder was united in marriage, in
1880, to Miss Sarah E. Smith, a native of
Fulton county, Illinois, and a daughter of
John and Rebecca (Barcus) Smith, natives of
Pennsylvania and Illinois, respectively. Mr.
and Mrs. Schroder have buried an infant
daughter, and have three children living:
Harry W. was born December 22, 1882;
Cleveland B. was born March 3, 1884; and
Maud, November 2, 1889.
Mr. Schroder first settled on eighty acres
of land, and has since bought the eighty acres
adjoining it; he also owned 280 acres in
Schuyler and McDonough counties, which he
SGHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
293
recently sold at a handsome profit, after cul-
tivating it four years. He does a general farm-
ing business, making a specialty of corn and
wheat in the cereal line, and cattle, horses and
hogs in live-stock. He has represented the
people of his township in various local offices,
and has always been a stanch supporter of
home interests and home industries. He was
elected vice-president of the J. Wershon Bank
in June, 1892, and is a stockholder of this
corporation. He is possessed of excellent
business qualifications, and has met with
marked success in all his undertakings. Al-
ways employing the most honorable methods,
he has the highest regard and esteem of the
entire community.
fHOMAS WILSON, President of the
Schuyler County Bank, and a leading
financier and business man of Rush-
ville, Illinois, was born near Five-Mile Town,
in county Tyrone, Ireland, in March, 1812.
Both his grandfather, Thomas, and father,
Thomas, were natives of the same county.
They were of well-known and esteemed
Scotch ancestry, who were sturdy, rugged
farmers, and passed their entire lives in their
native land. His father was reared to man-
hood in his native county, where he married
Jane Greer, also a native of the Emerald
Isle. They resided in Ireland until 1843,
when they commenced the long journey to
America. Unfortunately the wife and mother
died in England while en route, leaving six
children and a bereaved husband. These
children were: William, Thomas, Joseph,
George, Jane and Robert, all of whom came
to America, except George, and located in
Illinois. The father settled first in Schuyler
county, Illinois, where he remained four
years, after which he removed to Hancock
county, locating near Nauvoo, where he re-
sided until death. He was an intelligent,
pious, good man, and was greatly esteemed
by all who knew him.
The subject of this sketch was reared and
educated in Ireland, where he continued to
live until 1832, when, at the age of twenty
years, he emigrated to America, sailing from
Derry in the sail vessel William Ewing. He
landed in Philadelphia after a tempestuous
voyage of seven weeks, a stranger in a strange
land. He found employment in the City of
Brotherly Love, at the weaving trade, and
continued to operate a loom until the fall of
the year of his arrival. He then removed to
Lancaster county, that State, where he ob-
tained employment on the farm of his uncle,
James Little. He continued there until 1834,
when he removed to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania,
securing employment on a farm near that
city. Three years later he went to Illinois,
going via the Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois
rivers, to Rushville, Schuyler county. At
that early period the country was sparsely
settled, and some of the land was still owned
by the Government. Rude log houses dotted
the country. At that time Rushville was an
insignificant village, with nothing like its
present pretentious appearance. Mr. Wilson
immediately engaged in merchandising in a
small way, buying his goods in St. Louis and
transporting them by way of the river in
summer and by wagon in winter. His busi-
ness gradually increased until he became, in
time, a prominent merchant of the town.
Since 1872 he has been interested in bank-
ing, and upon the organization of the Schuy-
ler County Bank he was elected its president,
bringing to this position unusual financial
ability and extended experience.
294
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
He was married September 18, 1834, in
Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, to Miss Susan Clark,
an estimable lady, a native of Lancaster
county, that State, and a daughter of John
and Eleanor (Greer) Clark. They have three
children: Anne Jane, wife of James P. Clark;
John; and Lorinda, wife of John T. Sweeney.
Eleanor and Sarah Elisa are deceased.
Eleanor died in December, 1860, after finish-
ing her education at Monticello in 1857; and
Sarah died in February, 1883, leaving three
children; she was the wife of Hiram Graff.
Mr. and Mrs. Wilson are earnest and
useful members of the Methodist Church,
and are prohibitionists in principle. They
are worthy people, and enjoy the esteem of
the entire community.
DUNCAN EEID was born in Forfarshire,
Scotland, August 12, 1809, son of Will-
iam and Grace (McKenzie) Reid. His
parents were natives of Scotland, and passed
their lives there. Reared and educated in
his native land, Duncan Keid then learned
the trade of tailor. On account of ill health,
however, he sought out-door employment,
turning his attention to the stone-mason's
trade. He resided in Scotland till 1855.
.October 10, 1839, he married Jane Wilkie,
who was born in Fifeshire, Scotland, Novem-
ber 19,^.818, daughter of William and En-
phemia (Gaul) Wilkie. Their union was
blessed by the birth of six children: Will-
iam, Jean, Susan, Margaret, Stuart and Dun-
can. Mrs. Eeid and her two oldest children
are members of the Cumberland Presbyterian
Church, her son being a ruling Elder in the
church. Miss Susan Reid is a teacher in the
Kensington school, Chicago.
In 1855, accompanied by his wife and four
children, he came to America, setting sail
from Liverpool in May in the Aurora, and
landing at New York after a voyage of five
weeks. He came directly to Illinois and set-
tled in Cass county. For six years he culti-
vated rented land, and during that time, by
his energy and good management, not only
supported his family but also laid by a snug
little sum. He then purchased the property
on which his family now reside, it being at
that time a tract of wild land, covered with
timber and brush. Here he built his cabin,
which served as the family home until further
prosperity enabled him to erect a comfortable
frame residence. His death occurred here on
the 14th of April, 1883. Mr. Reid was a
self-made man, and one who was held in high
esteem by all who knew him.
HARLES F. JOHNSON, practical
farmer and truck-raiser of Beardstown,
was born in Salem county, New Jersey,
April 7, 1863. He lived in his native State
until thirteen, when his parents came to Cass
county, settling in Beardstown. The father,
Chalkley Johnson, followed his trade as a
carpenter until February, 1884, when be and
all their children, but one, Charles, went to
Sedgwick county, Kansas, and settled on a
farm, where the father and mother both live.
The latter's maiden name was Luwesia Lip-
pencott. Both were natives of Salem county,
New Jersey, where they were reared, mar-
ried and all their children were born. They
had four, of whom our subject is the young-
est, and of whom three are yet living, —
Charles and two sisters, Mrs. Mary McKen-
nel, of Sedgwick county, Kansas, and Mrs.
Ella Crater, now living in Beardstown.
SGHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
295
Mr. Johnson has a tine farm of 238 acres,
most of it located in township 18, range 11.
He has owned it for four years, having man-
aged it on his own account for two years pre-
viously. Since he bought it he has made
considerable improvement in the buildings.
When he was twenty-one years of age he be-
gan to raise truck, making a specialty of
sweet potatoes. He has been a hard worker
and is very successful in everything he
undertakes. He has made his large property
by his own efforts.
He was married in this county, to Amelia
Shuman, born in Hagener Station,- Cass
county, in 1866. She was reared and edu-
cated here, and is a good wdman. She is
the daughter of John Shuman, who was a
native of Germany, coming to America when
a young man and settling in Cass county,
where he spent his last days as a farmer,
dying in 1888, aged sixty-eight. He was a
good man and a member of the German
Methodist Episcopal Church. He was a
Democrat in politics. His wife died in 1867,
after the birth of five children, of whom Mrs.
Johnson is the youngest. All the other chil-
dren are now married. Mrs. Shuman was
born in Germany, and her maiden name was
Kate Loeb. She was a good wife and mother,
and a member of the German Methodist Epis-
copal Church.
Mr. Johnson and wife have three children,
- — -Viola, Gurtre and Nettie. They are mem-
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and
Mr. Johnson is a Republican in politics. They
are worthy, good people.
^NTON RINK, a successful brewer of
Beardstown, was born on the river
Rhine, August 9, 1833. He is the
only member of his family now living in this
country. His mother died in Germany
when he was only two years of age. In 1850,
and after his father's second marriage, he
left the old country, and after a long and
weary trip finally settled in Perry county,
Missouri, where the father died four years
later. His wife married a second time,
and continued to live in Perry county until
her death in 1890.
Mr. Rink came here from Missouri after
he had spent ten years on a farm and had
made some money to put into a business.
He then was poor, but is now very wealthy,
and has become so by his own efforts, and has
been a real benefit to the town in which he
lives. He arrived in 1864 and purchased
a part in the brewery run under the name of
A. Rink & Co. In 1867 he built a large
brick brewery, with a capacity of 5,000 bar-
rels per annum. The business has been suc-
cessful, being represented on the road by
himself and son in a commercial way. He
is also a wholesale liquor dealer, running
other places of business in the city. He is a
stockholder, a promoter and original director
of the First State Bank of Beardstown. He
has been interested in all local matters af-
fecting the good of the city ever since he
came here, including the building of a wagon
bridge across the Illinois river. He has been
City Treasurer, and is a Democrat in politics.
Mr. Rink, a sincere man,, has not only been
ambitious, but is also successful in earning a
good reputation for ability, honesty, .jndustry
and executiveness.
He was married, in 1865, to Margaret
Schultz, who was born in the same province
and near her husband in Bavaria, Germany,
and came, when twelve years of age to Me-
nard county, Illinois. Her parents lived and
died in Germany. They were members of
the Catholic Church. Mr. and Mrs. Rink
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
were the parents of eight children, five of
whom are living: John and Arail assist their
father in his business; Jessie is a teacher of
music and has been well educated; Clara,
now at home, was educated at Quiucy, Illi-
nois; and Arthur is in the deaf and dumb in-
stitute at Jacksonville, he being a deaf mute-
Mr, and Mrs. Rink and family are members
of the Catholic Church and take an interest
in social matters.
fOHN H. BLACK, a prominent citizen
of Woodstock township, is a representa-
tive of one of the earliest families of
Schuyler county, and is entitled to a space in
this history. He was born in Woodstock
township, August 2, 1842. His father,
James P. Black, was a native of Mecklen burgh
county, North Carolina, a son of Richard S.
Black (see sketch of Isaac Black). James P.
Black removed to Indiana at the age of four-
teen years, and resided there until 1826.
Then, with his bride, he carne to Illinois; the
" wedding journey " was accomplished with
a yoke of oxen, the bridegroom walking
most of the distance. He located in Wood-
stock township, and there entered a tract of
Government land which he began to improve.
It was in this year that the county was or-
ganized; there were few white settlers. In-
dians were numerous, and the frontier was
not far removed toward the setting 'sun.
Mrs. Black's maiden name was Mary Pad-
gett; she was born in Kentucky, a daughter
of John and Eleanor Padgett, and died on
the home farm in 1851. Our subject, John
H. Black, received his education in the com-
mon schools of Woodstock township, and at
the Western Seminary, Rushville. At the
age of nineteen years he began teaching in
Woodstock township, and was actively en-
gaged in educational labors for more than
twenty years.
In 1867 he removed to Richfield, Adams
county, and there purchased a home in
which he lived for a few years; his next
change was to Quincy, where he bought city
property, and thence he removed to Camp
Point, where he lived five years; at the ex-
piration of that period he returned to Quincy
and made his home there until 1878, when
he sold out and bought the farm he now oc-
cupies on section 12, Woodstock township.
Mr. Black was united in marriage in 1862,
to Telitha Parke, a native of Brown county,
Illinois, and a* daughter of Oliver H. F. and
Mary (Logsdon) Parke, natives of Kentucky,
and pioneers of Brown county, Illinois. Of
this union five children have been born:
Mary, Nettie, John R., Lelia and J. Charles.
The father and mother are members of the
Church of God. Mr. Black has held various
offices of trust, and has represented Woodstock
township on the county Board of Supervisors
for three terms. For twelve years he was
Superintendent of Schools in Adams county,
and did much to elevate the educational
standard. He is a man of rare force and
uprightness of character, and has the re-
spect and confidence of the entire com-
munity.
jARQUIS L. CRUM, of township
17 north, range 10, section 32, was
born about two and one half miles
from his present location, January 16, 1851.
His parents were James and Christina (Ream)
Crum. The father was born in Indiana, in
1806. His mother came from Ohio, and
married in this county, in 1833. The father
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
397
came to the county in 1832, the mother with
her parents, who settled in this neighborhood.
The father was of German descent, and was
the father of twelve children. His wife died
May 1, 1878, and the father has since mar-
ried again, and resides on the old homestead.
Marquis was educated in the public schools,
and then attended the State Normal school
for two years, and the Illinois Wesleyan
University four years, graduating in the
scientific course in 1874, receiving the de-
gree of B. S., and three years later the de-
gree of M. S. was conferred upon him.
Being in very poor health at this time, he re-
sumed farming, and this has proven so benefi-
cial, under the favorable circumstances sur-
rounding him, that he has continued to fol-
low it.
He was married, March 30, 1875, to Fan-
nie Stubbleh'eld, of Funk's Grove, McLean
county, born there September 17, 1853.
They became acquainted while attending the
university, which she attended about three
years. Her family are old settlers in that
county. Mr. and Mrs. Crum have four chil-
dren: Edith, the eldest, now sixteen, has
been attending the Illinois College at Jack-
sonville, and expects to complete a conree in
one of the higher institutes of learning;
Arthur E. and Oral C. are bright boys; and
Rena F., now three years old, is the pet of
the family. Mr. Crum owns a farm of 700
acres, principally devoted to stock. He breeds
shorthorn cattle, and uses the Percheron-
Norman horses, his father-in-law being an
importer of this breed of horses in Bloom -
ington. He also owns a stock farm of 240
acres near Kirksville, Missouri, and usually
buys his stock in Missouri and ships here.
They are members of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church, and Mr. Crum belongs to the
A. O. U. W. He is a Democrat. He has
been associated with the Farmers' Alliance,
and was the State president of it for eighteen
months. He declined a re-election. He
was a delegate from Illinois to the national
convention at Ocala, Florida, and Mr. Crum
describes this trip as the finest he ever made.
He has three nice tenement houses on his
extensive farm where his employees reside.
He hires four or five men by the year, usually
married men, and furnishes them with house,
fuel and garden.
fOSEPH MESERVEY, of Elkhorn town-
ship, was born here, June 22, 1841. He
is the son of Joseph and Eliza Meservey.
Joseph was the son of Nathaniel, both of
Vermont. He spent his life there and died
when nearly ninety years of age. Joseph
followed the business of shipping horses for
nine years, and then went into a distillery,
and then sold out and catne to this State at
an early date.
He continued at home until his mar-
riage, worked with his father, and attended
the subscription school when able. When
he married he had a little farm, and after-
ward he bought more land. Pie now owns
760 acres, which he earned himself. He
carries $10,000 life insurance. He runs a
large quarry by machinery. This is a new
industry, and will employ fully thirty men,
and the machinery will require an outlay of
nearly $8,000. He is a Republican in poli-
tics, and voted first for Abraham Lincoln.
He was married, June 15, 1865, to Mel-
vina Jane Wilson, born in Pike county, Illi-
nois. (See sketch of George Wilson for
history of Mrs. Meservey's family). Mr.
and Mrs. Meservey have nine children: Clara
M., Warren R., George O., Maggie B., El-
298
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASH,
wood, Lorena E., Herbert H., Herman H.,
and Amy A. Warren R. married Cora V.
Moore, of Brown county, and has two chil-
dren: Estel V. and Nina.
The family belong to the Methodist Epis-
copal Church, and the daughters are mem-
bers of the Epworth League. They are a
family that commands the respect and esteem
of their host of friends.
LOUIS F. KLOKER, a practical and
extensive farmer, occupying his fine
farm in section 30, township 17, range
11, was born in Beardstown, May 20, 1836.
Here he was reared and educated and has
always been a resident. His father was Louis
Kloker, Sr., a native of Hanover, Germany,
belonging to an old German family. He
had been a wagon maker, the only son of his
father's family, and after growing up, about
1832, he came to the United States on a
sailing vessel. After a voyage of thirteen
weeks he landed in New Orleans, and came
on to Beardstown, via the Mississippi river.
He began work as a mechanic, and died about
1839. He was known as a hard-working
young man of good habits, and was a mem-
ber of the Lutheran Church. He left two
sons, our subject and a brother Henry, who
died when thirteen years of age. He mar-
ried Mary Raube, also a native of Hanover,
who had come to America in the same ves-
sel with Mr. Kloker. They married soon
after landing in Beardstown. She is the only
member of her family in this country. After
the death of her husband, Mrs. Kloker was
married again to Fred Wedeking, who had
come on the same vessel and at the same
time as Mr. Kloker. After her second mar-
riage they lived in Beardstown until 1844,
when they settled on a farm southeast of
Beardstown, and there Mrs. Wedeking died,
December 25, 1857, aged forty-two. Mr.
Wedeking died there also in 1887, aged
seventy-six. He and his wife were good
Lutherans, and very honest people.
After the death of his father, Louis was
carefully reared by his mother and step-
father, and since their death he has been
taking care of himself. Mr. Kloker form-
erly lived in township 17, range 12. He has
made the most of his property by his own
efforts, and now owns 280 acres, which is
highly, improved, and has upon it good farm
buildings. He also owns forty acres in tim-
ber land.
He was married in this county to Mrs.
Minnie Yost, nee Soheide. She was born
in Prussia, in 1833, and came to Cass county,
Illinois, with her mother. Her father died
in Germany, in the prime of life. After
they had come to this country they first set-
tled in St. Louis, and there Miss Soheide was
first married. She outlived all her hus-
bands, and died at the home of her daughter,
Mrs. Kloker, May 20, 1888. She was born
February 8, 1794, and hence was ninety-four
years of age: she was a strong, stout wo-
man all her life. She and her people were
Lutherans.
Mr. and Mrs. Kloker are working mem-
bers of the St. Peter's Lutheran Church, near
Arenzville, of which lie has been Trustee for
some years. For thirty years he has been
active in school work in the township. In
politics he is a Republican. They are par-
ents of six children: Henry, farming on the
home place; John A., a farmer in this
county; Edward, also a farmer in this county;
Lena, wife of William F. Duval, a farmer of
this county; Herman and Fred are at home
on the farm.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
299
Mrs. Kloker had three children by a for-
mer marriage with Ernest F. Yost, formerly
a successful farmer of this county, and a na-
tive of Germany. They are: Mary, wife of
Ernest J. Boes, now of Beardstown; Louisa,
wife of Henry H. Meyer, a family in this
county; and Minnie, deceased, dying at the
age of thirty-two, after her marriage with
Henry W. Meyer.
fOHN SANDIDGE, one of the most intel-
ligent and prosperous farmers of Oak-
land township, Schuyler county, was
born in the State of Kentucky in 1829. His
father, Daniel Sandidge, was a native of Vir-
ginia, born in 1804; there he married Pa-
melia Tate, born in the same place in 1803.
The paternal grandfather of our subject, John
Sandidge was a Virginian by birth ; he married
a native of Virginia, and in an early day re-
moved to Kentucky, settling in Lincoln
county, he became a wealthy planter, owning
a large number of slaves. They had a family
of nine sous and four daughters: Daniel, Clay-
ton, Joshua, James, Larkin, John, Wyatt,
Madison, Pullum, Emily, Patience, Amanda^
and Leanta; all grew to adult age and had
families excepting Emily, who died in early
childhood. The father met with death by
accident, his team running away and throw-
ing him from the carriage. He was an octo-
genarian, and his wife died seven years later,
nearly eighty years old. The eldest son,
Daniel Sandidge, removed from Kentucky to
Illinois in 1831, bringing his wife and five
children; they first located at Canton, and
removed thence to Industry township, Mc-
Donough county; here Mr. Sandidge took up
160 acres of Government land which he im-
proved for two years, selling it at the end of
that time; he moved to Eldorado township
and bought a claim to 160 acres, on which he
lived until 1840; he again sold, and pur-
chased another tract of the same number of
acres, and lived on this until 1850, when he
sold and bought 160 acres in Oakland town-
ship, Schuyler county.
His wife died in Eldorado township, at the
age of forty-two years, leaving a family of
ten children. He married a second time, the
union being to Cynthia Phillips, who bore
him a daughter and son. He died in 1882,
aged seventy-eight years; the wife died in
June, 1891, at the age of eighty-four years.
The surviving members of this family are
named as follows: Lucy J., John, Mrs. Jonah
Lindsey, Harriet, wife of Elisha Goruch, Mrs.
Nathan Lindsey, Daniel, Charles, Larkin,
Ellen, wife of Mike McCarty.
John Sandidge, our worthy subject, was
reared to the life of a farmer, but in his
twenty-first year left home and went to Cali-
fornia; the trip across the plains proved a
very enjoyable as well as novel one, and he
spent ten years in the Golden State, engaged
in mining and raising live-stock. In 1860
he returned to Illinois via the Isthmus, re-
mained one month, and then went back to
California. In 1871 he came home via the
Union Pacific route, the object of this visit
being to claim his bride.
He was married November 19, 1871, to
Miss Emma Stockton, and they returned to
California by rail. It proved a pleasant
trip for her, and Mr. Sandidge sold his inter-
ests there, and came back to Illinois in 1873.
He has lived much of his time since 1873 in
Vermont, Illinois, where he owns a pleasant
home. He bought a farm of 400 acres re-
cently, and owns 200 acres in McDonough
county. Mr. and Mrs. Sandidge have one son
and a daughter: John F. is nineteen and Ida
300
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
Leah is fifteen; both are receiving excellent
educational advantages. The son has a de-
cided taste for agriculture, and intends mak-
ing that his life occupation. .Mr. Sandidge
had the severe misfortune of losing his sight
in 1882, the cause being brought about by
his becoming overheated.
Mrs. Stockton, mother of Mrs. Sandidge, is
now eighty-five years of age, but is bright
and vigorous; she is a native of Fayette
county, Pennsylvania, but came to Illinois in
1839; she was married to Daniel Stockton in
1842; he died in January, 1883, aged eighty-
three years. She well remembers the first
steamer of the Ohio river, named the Adven-
ture, and relates many interesting anecdotes
of early days.
Mr. Sandidge is a Prohibitionist, but in
former days was a Democrat, casting his vote
for Horace Greeley, whom he esteemed one of
the greatest men and most gifted writers.
He carries on a general farming business, but
makes a specialty of raising live-stock, giving
his preference to short-horn cattle. He plants
from forty to seventy acres of corn, gathering
as high as eighty bushels to the acre; he sows
from thirty to seventy acres of wheat, but one
of his practices is the rotation of crops, and
he seeds to clover every third year. He is a
man of good, sound judgment, and has
made a marked success of every industry to
which he has turned his attention.
(OLUMJBUS T. WALKER, of Virginia
precinct, is a native of Fauqnier county,
Virginia, born May 12, 1838. His par-
ents were Solomon and Emma (Wilkins)
Walker. Both were natives of Virginia,
father born in 1804, and the mother four
years later. They removed to Cass county,
Illinois, in 1855, and located on a farm near
Virginia; here they both died, the mother in
1881, and the father in 1890. They had
nine children: William W., Darius N., Peter
L., Columbus T.s Mary F., Churchill A.,
David T., Jennie E. and James T.
Columbus T. was nineteen years old when
he came to this county, and has resided here
ever since. He attended the schools in this
precinct after arriving in the county. He
first learned the tanner trade, and also learned
to be a leather dresser, but did not follow the
business after leaving Virginia. He has been
a farmer all his life. He has a farm of 100
acres, on which he has excellent improve-
ments. He is a Republican in politics,
although all his brothers are Democrats. He
has held all the township offices, and has been
School Director for fifteen years, also Road
Commissioner and Judge of Election, etc. He
is a member of the Presbyterian Church, of
which he is a Deacon, having held that office
for twenty years. He is a member of the
I. O. O. F., and has been since 1859, and now
is a Past Grand of Saxon Lodge, No. 68.
He was married in Cass county, February
8, 1866, to Emma J. Angier, a native of Cass
county, born October 10, 1846. Her parents
were Addison G. and Annie E. (Wilson)
Angier of Ohio. They were among the ear-
liest settlers in Cass county: mother is still
living in the county, but father died April?,
1890.
Mrs. Walker died March 16, 1889, leaving
seven children. She was aged forty-two at
her death. The children are: Ella G., born
December, 1865, married Edward Tink, and
died in 1892, leaving two children; Edward
A., born in December, 1868, married and re-
sides in Kansas City; Hattie M., born May,
1871, married Charles Etchison, and resides in
Virginia precinct; Louie F., born August,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
301
1875; Charles H., born April, 1878; George
R., born April, 1881, and Dollie, born March,
1884. He married for his second wife, Mrs.
Leona Walker. She was a native of Cass
county, and the daughter of George and Per-
melia (Freeman) Arenat. Mrs. Walker is a
member of the Christian Church.
Mr. Walker is a man of representative
type, — a distinction among his fellows at-
tained by his honest, straightforward busi-
ness methods and fine social qualities. His
successes in life justly merit for him the ap-
probation of business associates and compet-
itors, and from the same source he receives
warm sympathy for the late reverses which
in a degree have temporarily checked his
usual flourishing condition.
fOHN F. HUSS, general farmer and
stock raiser in section 1, township 17,
range 11, has entire charge of his fath-
er's homestead of more than 300 acres of fine
land, under good improvement. The build-
ings are large and comfortable, and the place
is well stocked. Mr. Huss has had the place
under his personal control for nearly three
years, and has shown himself to be a very
successful farmer. He was born in this
county, May 27, 1866. He was reared and
has always lived on the farm where he was
born. He received his educatiqn in, the
country schools. He is the fourth son of
Christian Huss, who was born in Germany
of German parentage, and came to the United
States alone. Mr. Huss, Sr.. emigrated to
this country in the '50s, settling in Beards-
town. He purchased two other farms before
he obtained his present homestead. The lat-
ter he conducted himself, until the spring of
1889. He is now about sixty years of age,
hale and hearty, has made all of his large
property since he has come to this country.
He is a member of the Lutheran Church,
and a stanch Democrat. (For further family
history, see biography of C. J. Huss.)
Our subject is one of nine children, seven
of whom are still living. Mr. Huss, of this
notice, was married in this county to Miss
Minnie Buck, born in this county, in 1868,
daughter of Jasper J. Buck. (See biography
of Mr. Buck for history.) She has no
family, is a very smart, intelligent woman,
and is one of the kind women of the commu-
nity, and is so known everywhere. She and
her husband are popular young people, and
highly respected by all their neighbors. Mr,
Huss takes quite an interest in local politics,
and it may be predicted that he will be
elected by the Democratic party to fill many
of the offices of the county.
LFRED, M. THOMPSON, a farmer
and stock raiser of township 17 north,
range 11 we.st, section 3,6, Virginia
post office, was born on the farm where he
now lives, February 27, 1850. His parents
were Oswell and Elizabeth (Henderson)
Thompson. Both, were born near Chillicothe,
Ohio, the. father in 1806, and the mother,
September 22, 1813. They came to Illinois
with their parents in the same year, 1827.
The father's parents located on the farm
which Alfred now owns, and the mother's
people located near Arcadia, Illinois. They
were married here, in 1829. They had eight
children: Ada, wife of I. J. Swibling, a well-
to-do farmer and stock raiser near Ashland,
Illinois; Mrs. Mary J. Black, the eldest, re-
sides in Virginia; she has been married twice,
her first husband being Mace Skiles; W.
302
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
Howard resides in Jacksonville, Illinois, and
runs a feed and sale stable; he also owns a
fine tract of land near that of the subject;
Sarah Ellen married Jacob Epler, who died
Boon after, and she married Mr. Andrew App;
her home is now at Seattle, Washington,
where she married her second husband ; she is
now in Europe; Alfred; David; Albert and
Abigail; the two latter deceased, the former in
childhood, the latter in middle life, leaving a
family. The youngest of the family is the
first child mentioned, Ada.
Alfred was reared and educated in his na-
tive county, and at the State Normal School,
which he attended two years. He returned
home and resumed farming.
He was married in this county, September
10, 1872, to Meranda L. Payne, daughter of
W. B. and Esther (Stevenson) Payne, natives
of Kentucky, where Mrs. Thompson was born
June 25, 1854. They have had five children:
Howard, born in 1876, died in 1883, from
scarlet fever; David, born in 1878, at home;
Nellie died at the age of three months; Edith,
born in 1881, at home; Everett, born in
North Dakota, and died in infancy.
In the spring of 1888, Mr. Thompson
leased his farm and went to Bismarck, North
Dakota, for the purpose of recuperating his
health. There he remained seven years, re-
turning in a greatly improved condition. He
again took possession of the farm upon
which he was born, and still operates it with
hired assistance. He owns a fine farm of
part timber and part prairie, upon which he
has made many improvements. He lives in
the house in which he was born, which is in
a good condition and is a building that does
credit to the neighborhood.
Mr. Thompson is a Democrat in politics,
and has been School Director and Road Com-
missioner. Served one year as County As-
sessor of Burley county, North Dakota, re-
signing that office when he decided to return
to Illinois, two years ago. He and his wife
are members of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, in which he takes a deep interest,
and also in the Sunday-school work, and he
subscribes liberally to the support of same.
The Thompson family were among the first
settlers in the county. Few indeed can go
back as they, in their residence here. The
family were of German origin, though long
since established in America.
Mr. Thompson owns 800 acres of land in
Burley, North Dakota, which he rents, has
320 acres of wheat on it this year (1892), he
furnishing the seed and receiving one-half of
the threshed grain.
EORGE GREEK was born near Five-
mile town, county Tyrone, Ireland, Au-
gust 1, 1814. His father was also a
native of Ireland and was named Robert.
The grandfather, George Greer, it is thought,
was born on the same farm, and all were of
Scotch ancestry. The grandfather was a
farmer by occupation, and was also a promi-
nent contractor of public works and improve-
ments. He passed away in his native county.
His wife, whose maiden name was Jane Mar-
tin. was born in county Fermanagh, and was
also of Scotch stock. Both were members of
the Methodist Church. The grandfather was
an eccentric but able man, with independent
views, and erected a stone church in his own
yard.
The father of our subject was also a farmer
and a successful contractor and spent his en-
tire life on the farm where he was born. His
wife was Catherine Lendrum, who was born
in the same locality, and was the daughter of
SGHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
303
John and Elizabeth (Erskine) Lendmm, also
of the same county and also of Scotch de-
scent. The Erskines were very prominent
people, not only in Ireland but in England
also, where they were connected by ties of
blood with nobility and royalty, and boasted
a coat of arms, a tnotto, and an honored
name. Both the parents of our subject were
Methodists. The mother came to America
at the age of forty-six years, and passed her
last days at her home in Rushville. She
reared a large family of thirteen children as
follows: George, John, Elizabeth, Jane,
Joseph, James, Robert, Eleanor, Erskine,
Lendrum, Lucinda, Andrew and Alexander.
All the members of this family were born in
Ireland, and our subject was the first to cross
the ocean, sailing from Derry on the 14th of
April, 1832, in the vessel William Ewing, and
landing in Philadelphia on the 7th of June.
When our subject reached Philadelphia he
was a stranger and in limited circumstances.
He soon found employment in that city, but
the cholera broke out with great violence,
whereupon he went to Lancaster county and
engaged in farming, and there resided until
the 13th of February, 1836, when he went by
stage to Pittsburg, thence down the Ohio by
the steamer Ben Bolt (her first trip), and up
the Mississippi and Illinois rivers to Beards-
town. Soon afterward he located at Rnsh-
ville, and for some time was engaged in ex-
ploring the surrounding country. In the fall
of 1836 he returned to Pennsylvania, and in
July, 1837, again came to Rushville, where
he has since resided. For many years he was
a successful merchant and was associated in
business with Thomas Wilson, but is now re-
tired. He has been one of the most substantial
and upright of Rushville's business men.
On the 6th of April, 1837, he was united
in marriage to Miss Ann J. Clark, a native
of Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. Her par-
ents were John and Eleanor (Greer) 'Clark.
Mr. and Mrs. Greer have two children living,
Susanna and Almira D. The former is the
wife of Henry Brown, and has three living
children: Olie, Eleanor and Lynn; Alm'ira
is the wife of Edwin P. McClure, and has
two children, George H. and Margaret M.
Mr. and Mrs. Greer are Methodists, and he is
a straight Republican.
?ESSE WIGHT, farmer of township 17,
range 10 west, Little Indian post office,
was born in Delaware county, New York,
February 13, 1828. His parents were Har-
vey and Judith (Jenkins) Wight — father borji
in New Jersey and the mother near Bunker
Hill, Massachusetts. Both died the same
week in New York State. Of a family of
twelve, Jesse was the second youngest. The
family has been scattered, some to Michigan,
others to Pennsylvania and one to Illinois.
Jesse came to Beardstown on May 1, 1846,
and hired out to work on a farm in this pre-
cinct, where he continued to work in that
way for four or five years. He then rented
land for several years, and abou^ thirty years
ago purchased his first real estate in Illinois.
He was raised and educated in New York,
and left there at twenty-two. Mr. Wight, by
industry and economy, has accumulated a
snug property, where he now lives in com-
parative ease. He owns a fine farm of 107
acres in a good state of cultivation, and raises
grain and stock. Mr. Wight has never seen
any of his father's relations, and hence knows
but little of his fami^'s genealogy.
He was married here in 1851, to Margaret
Taylor, of Montgomery county, Ohio, who
was born in 1826. Mr. and Mrs. Wight have
304
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
eight children: Abigail, the eldest, married
Taylor Berry, and lives in Morgan comity;
"William is a farmer and lives in Nebraska,
where also lives John I.; Amos Harvey lives
on his father's farm; Lizzie J. Parker is
now a widow and resides at home with her
father; Mollie is still unmarried and lives at
home. Mr. and Mrs. Wight are members of
the Presbyterian Church, and Mr. Wight is
a member of the Republican party. He has
held various positions of trust in the pre-
cinct.
Amos Harvey, the youngest son of the
above, now managing his father's farm, was
born in this precinct, February 14, 1859.
He grew to manhood on the farm and at-
tended the public schools. He was a farmer one
year in Dakota and was otherwise employed
there for one year. He was also one season
in Nebraska, herding cattle and running a
threshing machine.
He was married, January 15, 1891, to
Ollie Gilpin, born in Morgan county, Illinois,
June 9, 1871. Her parents were James and
Becky Gilpin. Her father was a soldier dur-
ing the late war and is a pensioner. Mr. and
Mrs. Wight have one child, Nettie May, born
January 9, 1892. Mrs. Wight died at their
home August 24, 1892. Mr. Wight is a
member of the I. 0. O. F., and in politics is
a Republican.
| AMUEL E. ELLIS, a citizen of Little-
ton township, is so closely identified
with the history of Schuyler county that
this volume would not be complete were an
outline of his career omitted from its pages.
He was born in Oakland township, Schuyler
county, Illinois, April 30, 1846, a son of
James and Nancy (Harmon) Ellis.
James Ellis was a native of Mason county,
Kentucky, a son of Elijah and Phoebe (Pay-
ton) Ellis, natives of Virginia; his parents
emigrated to Kentucky at an early day and
engaged in agricultural pursuits; later they
came to Illinois, where they passed the re-
maider of their days; both lived to be eighty-
four years of age. Their son, James, was
reared to the occupation of a farmer, and in
1844 he came to Illinois and settled on the
land where Samuel E. was born; he purchased
a quarter section for $1,200, and undertook
the task of placing it under cultivation ; there
were few improvements, and the dwelling was
a small log-cabin; this furnished them shelter
four years, when a frame building was erected,
in which Mr. Ellis lived until he passed from
this life at the age of seventy-seven years.
Politically he supported the Republican
party, and took an active part in local affairs;
he was Assessor and Collector, and a member
of the School Board for many years. He was
one of the leading members of the Christian
Church, and did the work of a pioneer in the
cause of Christianity. He and Simon Doyle
were Trustees of the society. Mr. Ellis was
twice married:' his first wife, Nancy Harmon,
bore him seven children, of whom Samuel E.
is the youngest; she was born in Bracken
county, Kentucky, and died in Schuyler
county, Illinois, at the age of thirty-four
years. Her parents, Samuel and Elizabeth
Harmon, were natives of Kentucky, and
passed their lives in the Blue-grass State.
The Harmon family is of German descent,
and the Ellis family is of Scotch lineage.
Samuel E. Ellis had superior educational
advantages in. his youth, and made the most
of his opportunities; he attended the district
school, and was a student at Abingdon Col-
lege, Knox county, Illinois, after which he
entered the teacher's profession, which he
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
305
followed for more than twenty years. He
was united in marriage to one of his pupils,
March 12, 1874; her maiden name was Julia
E. Jones, a native of this county, and a daugh-
ter of James W. and Harriet E. Jones; her
parents removed from Ohio to Illinois in
1854, and settled in Schuyler county at
Pleasant View; the father died at the age of
fifty- nine years, but the mother still survives;
they had born to them a family of ten chil-
dren, only three of whom are living. The
father and a son, George W., were soldiers in
the late war, and died of disease contracted
while in the service.
Mr. Ellis enlisted in Company K, One
Hundred and Thirty-seventh Illinois Volun-
teer Infantry, in 1864, and re-enlisted in
February, 1865, in Company 1, One Hundred
and Fifty-fifth Illinois Volunteer Infantry.
Although the period of his service was com-
paratively short he was in many important
engagements, and at Memphis lost an ear; he
receives a small pension, which is totally
inadequate, in consideration of the injury
received.
The family of Mr. and Mrs. Ellis consists
of eight children: Jessie H., Lulu M., Laura
G., Emma Z., Fannie L., Anna Belle, Ida M.
and Carrie B.; Virgil died in infancy. The
parents are members of the Christian Church,
and since 1867 Mr. Ellis has been an Elder
of the same; for twelve years he has been
superintendent of the Sabbath-school. He
and Simon Doyle were the principals and
furnished most of the money to build the
Christian Church in 1871-'72 He is a
member of Colonel Horney Post, G. A. R.,
and has been an active worker in the organ-
ization for years; he belongs to Lodge No.
24, I. O. O. F. Politically he adheres to the
principles of the Republican party, and cast
his first vote for General Grant's first term.
He was once elected Justice of the Peace, but
did not serve.
In 1888 he purchased the farm on which
he now lives with his family; the tract con-
tains over 200 acres, and is one of the most
desirable in the township. Of late years Mr.
Ellis has abandoned the profession of teach-
ing, having made an admirable record as an
educator. He now devotes his time to agri-
cultural pursuits, and is meeting with gratify-
ing success.
|ILLIAM T. PRICE, a progressive
*arraer °^ Virginia precinct, Cass
county, Illinois, was born in Mor-
gan county, same State, November 6, 1840.
His parents wereAdam and Susan (Ros-
enberger) Price, both of German descent,
and natives of Rockingham county, Virginia,
where they lived to maturity and were mar-
ried. In 1833 they removed to Morgan
county, Illinois, where the father entered
and improved a large tract of Government
land. In 1852 they moved to Virginia
precinct, Cass county, where they settled on
a farm on which they passed the remainder
of their lives. The greatly esteemed and la-
mented father passed away February 1, 1875,
his worthy wife surviving him until Septem-
ber, 1881. They, with five infant children,
are interred in Bethlehem cemetery, the
ground of which was donated by them for a
public burial place. They were both devout
Christians, who rendered valuable service for
many years to the Methodist Episcopal
Church, in which the father filled, at differ-
ent times, all the offices ever conferred on
lay members. "Uncle Adam," as he was
familiarly known, was a person of marked
individuality and strong convictions, whose
306
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA88,
sterling integrity and earnest advocacy of all
principles of justice won for him many
friends where he was so well known. Of
their twelve children, seven attained ma-
turity, six now living (1892). John W., the
eldest son, is a large landowner in Wilson
county, Kansas. He married Maria Ganse,
an estimable lady, and both are prominent
in church and social circles. William T.,
whose name heads this biography, is the
next in order of birth; Anna Eliza married
James V. Rawlings, a prosperous farmer of
Virginia precinct; Adam C. is a successful
farmer of Douglas county, Illinois; Mary E.
married Charles E. Strickler, of Sibley, Iowa;
Amanda J., unmarried, resides in Virginia;
and Sarah E., the youngest, married Alfred
Griffin, of Nokomis, Illinois, and died in
1885.
i lie snlvj' ct of this sketch spent his boy-
hood and early manhood on his father's farm
and obtained a rudimentary education in the
public schools. Amid these rural, peaceful
scenes, he passed his time in the companion-
ship of parents and friends until he attained
his majority, when this happy state was
rudely broken by the discordant notes of
war. With youthful enthusiasm and patriot-
ism, he enlisted in Company D, One Hun-
dred and Fourteenth Illinois Volunteer In-
fantry for three years. He participated,
with his command in the siege of Vicksburg
and in many of the numerous battles which
occurred in and around that almost invulner-
able stronghold. In the engagement at
Guntown, Mississippi, his regiment suffered
severely, many being killed or wounded,
while the remainder, including the subject
of this notice, were captured and incarcer-
ated in the prison at Andersonville, where Mr.
Price was confined four months. He was
eventually transferred to Millen, Georgia,
via Savannah, that State; and, a month later,
was sent to Florence, South Carolina, arriv-
ing there November 28, and remaining there
until February of the following year. He
was then sent, with other prisoners, to
Richmond, Virginia, there paroled and sent
North, and on arriving in St. Louis was
granted thirty days' furlough. When in
prison, Mr. Price gladly exchanged a valu-
able watch for an old, ragged blanket, consid-
ering it one of the best trades of his life.
He was in the prison at Andersonville when
five comrades were hung for stealing from
their mates, whom they murdered to con-
ceal their theft. A court, organized from
among the prisoners, passed sentence on
them and witnessed the execution. It was
also while he was in prison that the ''Provi-
dence" spring burst forth, originating as if
by magic and yielding to the famishing
prisoners an abundant supply of cold water
of clearest crystal.
On the expiration of his furlough, he re-
turned to Montgomery, Alabama, and three
weeks later the war closed and he returned
to his home, resuming the duties which had
been interrupted three years before.
On December 29, 1870, he was married to
Augusta R., daughter of William and Eliza-
beth (Clutch) Marshall, pioneers of Cass
county, James Marshall, her grandfather,
having located in the county as early as
1825. Her father was of Scotch descent;
while her mother was of Welsh ancestry,
who emigrated to America in Colonial times,
was in Waynesville, Ohio, and reared a
Quakeress. Her father entered and im-
proved the land on which Mr. Price's house
now stands, while the beautiful, towering,
maple trees which adorn the place are at-
tractive memorials of his taste and enterprise,
being planted half a century ago by his
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
307
hands. This was his home until death,
when his widow and three children removed
to Jacksonville, this State, where Mrs. Price
was married. Her mother remained there
until her death in 1874. In 1883, Mr.
Price was called upon to mourn the death of
his wife, which occurred on the old home-
stead.
tural pursuits.
ex perience, Mr. Price has followed agricul-
With the exception of his three years' war
Politically he affiliates with the Republi-
can party. Religiously, he is an earnest
member of the Methodist Episcopal church,
and contributes liberally to the advancement
of that and all other worthy objects.
fAMES A. DAVIS, farmer and stock-
grower, post office, Virginia, Illinois,
was born one and one-half miles south
of Ashland, Cass county, Illinois. Octo-
ber 29, 1824. His parents, James and
Elizabeth (Foster) Davis came to Cass county
in 1822. The father settled on Indian creek,
where he improved a little farm, which he
afterward lost by another man " entering him
out." He was born in Kentucky in 1796,
coming here from Monroe county, and died,
March 6, 1856, in this county. Mother was
born in Cumberland county, Tennessee, in
1800, and is still living. She resides with
her son George, who owns the old homestead
in township 17, range 11. She was the
mother of fourteen children, eight of whom
are still living. Mr. and Mrs. Davis, Sr,
moved from Ashland to the place where the
mother now lives, when James, Jr., was four
years old. Here he grew to manhood, was
taught in the subscription schools of that
day and was reared a farmer. At twenty
years of age he learned the house carpenter
trade which he followed until seven years
ago. He worked five years in Beardstown,
afterward returned to his home neighborhood,
where he worked fifteen years inside five
miles of his home, and was never out of
a job.
He was married in Beardstown in 1S49, to
Martha A., daughter of Philip Schaeffer, a
farmer who had come from Montgomery,
Ohio, in 1832. Her birth was September
16, 1830. Mr. Davis has witnessed a won-
derful development in Cass county during
his sixty-eight years' residence here. His
first memory of the country is as a vast wilder-
ness, the settlers few and far between, with
only occasionally a horse-power mill where
the farmers had their grists ground by turns,
often remaining all day to get one sack of
corn ground. Mr. Davis has seen men reap-
ing wheat on ground which is now covered
with heavy timber, the early settlers prefer-
ring to clear up the timber land, some of
which has since gone back to its primitive
state. Mr. and Mrs. Davis have six children :
Minerva, wife of Richard Way, residing in
dass county; Valentine, residing in Butler
county, Nebraska, a farmer: Sarah Ellen,
who wedded A. C. Robinson, living near
Virginia, Illinois; James Philo, residing
three miles south of Virginia; Cyrus Ed-
ward resides six miles east of the same place,
and Charles L., a farmer living in Douglas
county, Illinois. On July 21, 1884/ Mr.
Davis suffered the loss of his estimable wife,
to whom he had been married thirty-eight
years. A glowing tribute to her memory, as
a lady of great worth, appears in a clipping
in the local paper, in which appears the ac-
tion of the I. O. O. F. lodge in the premises,
of which she and her husband were valued
members. She was a worthy member of the
80S
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Union Baptist Church. Mr. Davis was mar
ried to his second wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Smith,
March 16, 1887. Her maiden name was
Thompson, and she was born in Ohio in 1840,
They are both members of the Union Bap-
tist Church, in Virginia, and takes an active
interest in Sunday-school and church work.
He is a member of Saxon Lodge, No. 68,
I. O. O. F., and of Advance Encampment,
both located at Virginia. He has held vari-
ous official positions in this town. He voted
the Democrat ticket until the nomination of
Tilden, when he voted the Greenback ticket
for several years, but is now a Prohibitionist
and has always advocated temperance and
sobriety, and the legal control of the liquor
traffic. He joined the Sons of Temperance
in 1849, and has worked for the cause all his
life. He uses neither tobacco nor liquor, and
is one of the representative men of Cass
county, and his family is one of the first
established here.
WILLIAM I. LARASH, editor and
proprietor of the Rnshville Citizen,
a weekly newspaper devoted to the
interests of the people, is a native of Penn-
sylvania, born at Allentown, Lehigh county,
October 2, 1851. His father, Isaac Larash, was
also a native of the Keystone State, and his
grandfather was descended from the French
Huguenots; the latter was a planter by -oc
cupation, and passed his life in Pennsylvania;
the father learned the tailor's trade, and car-
ried on that business at Catasauqua, Penn-
sylvania; thence he removed to Illinois in
1852, and followed his trade in this State for
several years. He finally purchased a farm
in Spring Lake township, Tazewell county,
and still resides there. He married Esther
Ann Kildare, a native of Pennsylvania, who
still survives. They are the parents of nine
children: John, Elizabeth, Lucinda, William
1., Mary, Charles, George, I., Addie M. and
Walter. Our subject was the infant when
the family began their life upon the frontier.
He was reared and educated in Pekin, Taze-
well county, and at the age of fourteen years
went to learn the printer's trade; he served
an apprenticeship of two years in the Repub-
lican office, never losing a half day's time.
In 1869 he went to Omaha, and there found
employment in a job and commercial print-
ing office; this occupied him four or five
months, and then he made a journey to the
plains on a buffalo hunt. He was next lo-
cated in Nebraska, where he followed his trade
for a time; thence he went to St. Louis, and
then home. He devoted some time to agri-
culture, and afterwards returned to his trade;
he was on the Peoria Review until the paper
changed hands. Then, with three other prin-
ters and two editors, one of whom was R. J.
Burdette, he assisted in the founding of a
paper which was named the Peoria Evening
Review; an injunction was served upon them,
and the name was changed to the Peoria In-
junction. Mr. Larash was connected with
with this paper a short time, and then was in
different cities until 1875, when he came to
Rushville, and took charge of the Citizen of-
fice. In 1879 he purchased the entire outfit
with the good will of the paper, and has
since managed its publication. He has a job-
office in connection, and has won a wide pat-
ronage.
Mr. Larash was married March 21, 1878, to
Emilia Ann Horney who was born in Little-
ton township, Schuyler county, Illinois, July
16, 1857, a daughter of Lenodias and Jane
(Crawford) Horney. To them three children
have been born: Lenodias H., Lizzie H. and
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
309
Winnie J. Politically, Mr. Larash affiliates
with the Republican party, and was a delegate
to the State Convention in 1880. He is a
member of linshville Lodge, No. 9, A. F. &
A. M., Rushville Chapter, No. 184, R. A. M.,
and to Rushville Commandery, No. 56, K. T.
He and his wife are earnest members of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, joining that so-
ciety in 1877, since which time he has been a
Class-leader.
^ILLIAM A. WAY, farmer and stock-
grower, section 6, range 10, township
17, post office, Virginia, was born
in Morgan county, Illinois, October 5, 1842
He was the son of Jesse and Melinda (Guin)
Way, early settlers in Morgan county. The
father came to the county in 1832, and has
been a resident of either Morgan or Cass
county ever since, and now resides in Vir-
ginia city. The mother died in Virginia in
1880, leaving six children: Elizabeth, the
eldest, married T. H. Williams and died in
Nebraska; Mary died when twelve years of
age; Richard is a farmer, residing in Cass
county, Virginia precinct; Stephen is the
same, and John died at the age of twenty-six
years.
William attended the public schools and
then learned the carpenter trade, inter-
mingled with farming. He enlisted August
11, 1862, in Company I, One Hundred and
Fifteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and was
assigned to duty in the army of the Cumber-
land. A few days after the battle of Chick-
amanga, while on a scouting expidition,
composed of details from the different regi-
ments, he was taken prisoner with several
others. He was sent to Richmond, via
Atlanta, and was kept there about six weeks,
quartered in the Smith building, near Libby
prison. He was then taken to Danville,
Virginia, kept there five months, and then
to Andersonville, where he remained about
eight months. From there he was sent to
Charleston, and on from there to Florence. At
this place he was paroled December 7, 1864,
after fourteen months and thirteen days im-
prisonment. To say that he suffered a thou-
sand deaths during this long confinement is
no exaggeration. He was attacked with
scurvy while in Andersonville and suffered
greatly from that cause. Even to this day
his limbs are scarred and measurably de-
formed. After this he was sent to Annapolis,
Maryland, and then home, remaining there
three months under treatment. He rejoined
the regiment at Shield Mill, and remained
there until the end of the war. He was dis-
charged June 11, 1865, and returned to Vir-
ginia, Illinois.
He was married December 24, 1868, in
Cass county, to Hattie Davis, daughter of
Julia Ann and Edward Davis, old settlers of
Cass connty. Mr. and Mrs. Way have four
children: Lenora married D. J. Parkison, a
railroad employe; Walter, Linnie and John
L. are all under the parental roof.
Mr. Way's grandfather was a soldier in the
war of 1812. Mr. Way is independent in
politics, voting for men rather than for par-
ties. He is one of the men that a grateful
country would delight to honor.
ET E R R I G G, a prominent farmer of
Missouri township, Brown county, is a
native of Anderson county, Kentucky,
having been born there, March 11, 1830. His
grandfather, also Peter, came from England
310
BIOGRAPHICAL MS! VIEW OF .CASS,
and settled in Virginia when it was yet a
colony of Great Britain, serving in the Revo-
lutionary war. He resided on the banks of the
Potomac river for many years, but finally re-
moved, at an early period, to Bourbon county,
Kentucky, and later resided twenty years in
Anderson county, Kentucky. From there
he removed to Shelby county. Kentucky,
where he died. He reared an interesting fam-
ily of six children, of whom Richard Watson,
father of our subject, was the second. Richard
was born in Virginia in 1789, and grew to
manhood in that State, but was married in
Anderson county, Kentucky, to Elizabeth
George, a native of Kentucky. Her father
came from the Carolinas. This marriage
ceremony took place in the early part of 1812.
Mrs. Rigg died, and in the fall of 1830 Mr.
Rigg married Peggy Utterback. By his first
marriage he had two children: William T.,
an honored citizen of Missouri township; and
Sarah, who married Henry Ausmus, bntdied
April 17, 1852. By the second marriage lie
had seven children: Elizabeth, wife of John
B. Ausmus, of Texas; Susan, wife of Joshua
P. Singleton, of Missouri township; Eliza J.
married James M. Parker and died August
13, 1855; James N. (see sketch;) Margaret,
wife of Abner Cogburu, of Hancock county;
our subject; and John, who died November
24, 1852.
In the fall of 1831 Mr. Rigg moved from
Kentucky to Illinois, first stopping in Morgan
county. He then settled in Schuyler county,
in that part which is now in Brown connty,
on section 20, Missouri township. Here he
improved a farm, where he resided until his
death, October 23, 1869.
Mr. Peter Rigg was reared on a farm un-
til manhood and remained at home until his
marriage in 1852, when he was united to
Mary E. Clark, daughter of William A. Clark.
She was born in Logan county, Kentucky,
March 7, 1833.
Mr. Rigg continued to reside on the home-
stead, of which he became owner. He now
has 190 acres of land and carries on mixed
farming, to which he has given his entire
attention.
Mr. and Mrs. Rigg have had nine children,
three of whom grew up. They are: William
C., born December 14, 1863, married Febru-
ary 4, 1890, to Nettie Miller, and they have
one daughter, Myrtle, born in 1891; Melissa
born August 22, 1871, married March 15,
1892, to Eldred Yowell, resides in Monroe
county, Missouri; Richard W., born July 8,
1874.
Mr. Rigg is a stanch Democrat in politics
and has served his township as School Treas-
urer and Commissioner of Highways.
He is an old regular Baptist in religion.
He has been a hard-working man all his life
and richly deserves all the prosperity that he
now enjoys.
.ENRY C. KROHE, a practical farmer
living on a fine farm, a part of the old,
Jokisch homestead, was born in Beards-
town March 3, 1848. This farm was secured by
Henry's grandfather and consists of sixty acres,
all well improved with good farm buildings.
Mr. Krohe also owns twenty acres more. He
has lived on this farm for many years and
also operates many other lands. He is the
third son of seven children. He obtained
his education in the public schools. His
father, August Krohe, a native of Germany,
was the son of Godfred and Rosena Krohe,
and the family all left Germany in 1835 and
after a trip of some months landed in New
Orleans, and some weeks later in Beardstown.
SOHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
311
They obtained land in the valley of Bluff
Springs and here the grandparents died when
past eighty. They were well known people
and good Lutherans. August Krohe came
here as a young man with his parents as above
noted. He became of age here and a farmer,
and is now living at home, having retired
from active work. He was married here, to
Christiana Jokisch, who came to this country
on the same vessel as her husband. She was
a worthy wife for more than fifty years and
died in April, 1889.
Mr. Henry C. Krohe was married, near his
present residence, to Christina Menge a na-
tive of Germany, born in 1852. She was
only one year old when her parents came to
Cass county in 1853. Here the father died
fourteen years ago, but the mother is still
living. They have always been Lutherans, as
are Mr. and Mrs. Krohe of this notice. Mr.
Krohe is a Democrat, but has never been an
office holder. They have six children: Ber-
tha C., Lydia 8., Rosa A., Felix J. A., Paul-
ina W. and Matilda L.
They are excellent people and are con-
nected with some of the best famlies of
Beardstown.
fOHN B. WETZEL, of section 5, Brown-
ing township, was born within three
miles of his present home, July 7, 1843.
His parents, Christopher and Sarah (Cook)
Wetzel, came to Fulton county, Illinois, in
1836, settling on the farm where the father now
lives. He was born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania,
in 1813, and in the same year his mother was
born in Augusta county, Virginia. The lat-
ter died in Fulton county, Illinois, March,
1889. The Wetzel and Cook families were
both of German origin.
Mr. Wetzel received his education in the
public schools of the district and grew to
manhood on the farm and has always been a
farmer. He owns 282 acres of land in sec-
tions 4 and 5, Browning township. This
land is highly improved, his residence,
erected in 1888, being a very handsome build-
ing of modern architecture. On his south
farm he also has a good residence, comfort-
able surroundings, and he takes pride in his
fine stock, and usually purchases from the
stock yards in Chicago such cattle as he de-
sires to feed; he also deals in hogs. He mar-
kets fruit by the car-load. The entire family
are members of the United Brethren denom-
ination and all are active in Sunday-school
and church work. He has been a Class-leader
and a Sunday-school superintendent for many
years.
He was married in Astoria, in December,
1866, to Amanda E. Bryan of Virginia, whose
parents, Thomas and Emeline (Lutz) Bryan,
removed to Fulton county about 1853. Mr.
and Mrs. Wetzel have three children, all liv-
ing; Nettie F., Willard P. and Ina J., the
first two living on the old Wetzel homestead.
Ina J. is the wife of William Dean, a farmer,
The two daughters have enjoyed the advan-
tages of two years' attendance at the Rush-
ville Normal School taking this after their
public-school course, but do not care to
teach. Mr. Wetzel is a Republican and has
served as member of the County Central
Committee. He is active and energetic in
political work.
AMUEL DE COUNTER, one of the
largest land-owners in Woodstock town-
ship, was born in Brown county, Illi-
nois, October 4, 1827, a son of Peter Freder-
312
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Off CASS,
ick and Nancy (Scounts) De Counter. They
were married in 1824, near Boon's Lick, Mis-
souri. The father was a native of France,
and emigrated to the United States in 1820;
five years later he came to Brown county, and
the following year brought his family here;
he bought land which he converted into a
fertile farm, residing upon it until his death
at the age of eighty-four years; his wife also
died in the county, at an advanced age; she
was a Virginian by birth. Two children
were born to them : a daughter, now deceased,
and the subject of this sketch. Samuel re-
mained at home until he was twelve years old,
and then his father married Mary Manser,
who died ten years later.
Samuel engaged in driving a peddling
wagon until he was twenty-five, and then
began his career as a farmer. He has been
twice married; his first union was to Miss
Catharine Miller, a native of Summit county,
Ohio; she died in Brown conn ty at the age
of thirty-one years, leaving three children.
Frederick is married and the father of five
children ; Morris L. is married and has seven
children ; Emma is married and the mother of
seven children. Mr. De Counter was married
a second time in 1860, to Mas Harriet Stubbs,
who was born in Floyd county, May 17, 1826,
and was the mother of two children. Her
parents, William and Jane (Gailey) Clark,
father a native of Kentucky and the mother
of Pennsylvania, emigrated to Illinois in
1852, and died in this State at an advanced
age; they have ten children, two of whom are
now living. By his second marriage Mr.
De Counter had one daughter, who died at the
age of twenty-one years, leaving one boy,
Clarence Southey.
Politically, he adheres to the principles of
the Democratic party, but takes no active in-
terest in the movements of that body. He
has been one of the most energetic and en-
terprising of farmers, and has amassed a
handsome estate. He has always pursued
strictly honorable methods, and has an envi-
able reputation wherever his name is known.
HOMAS J. CRUM, of Virginia, Illi-
nois, was born within one mile of his
present residence, July 9, 1835. He
is the eldest living son of James and Chris-
tina (Ream) Crum. (Parental history is
given in the history of James Crum else-
where in this book.)
Thomas was raised to manhood on a farm
and attended the subscription schools of the
neighborhood. He has always lived on the
farm given him by his father upon attaining
his majority. To this he has added until he
now has 450 acres in this farm, besides 800
acres of land in Burleigh county, North Dako-
ta. He has been a resident here for over fifty
years and has witnessed wonderful changes
in the country. He remembers very well
when there was but very little improved land
near him. He is a Democrat in politics.
He was married March, 1857, to Miss
Sarah A. Henderson, daughter of William
and Lucinda Henderson, who were among the
early settlers in this, then Morgan county.
She was the eldest of twelve children, seven
of whom are now living. The mother died
in Morgan county and the father in Henry
county.
Mr. and Mrs. Crum have had eleven chil-
dren, nine of whom are still living, namely;
Charles, married, operating the Dakota farm;
Theresa M., wife of Edward D. Sommers,
resides at Colorado Springs, Colorado; Oscar
M. is in the publishing business at Jackson-
ville, Illinois; William S., wholesale grocer
SG SUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
313
in Joliet, Illinois; Ollie, now Mrs. Strong,
resides at Winfield, Kansas, husband a farm-
er; Eben Ross, Mary L., Henry Obed, and
Thomas Austin are still at home. A pair of
twins died in infancy. The family are mem-
bers of the Protestant Methodist church.
Mr. Crum is an Ancient Odd Fellow,
lodge having surrendered its charter dur-
ing the late war. The Crum family is quite
extensively represented in this county, where
they are well and favorably known citizens
who have by their industry accumulated a
comfortable property. The aged father, now
in his eighty-sixth year, is one of the solid
landmarks of early pioneer days in Cass
county.
§EWIS CASS CAMPBELL, a prominent
and esteemed resident of Camden village,
Illinois, was born on a farm in Camden
township, February 23, 1851. His father,
John Milton Campbell, was born in Harrison
county, Kentucky, March 30, 1807, and was
a son of James and Jane (Campbell) Camp-
bell, natives of Scott county, Kentucky.
Both of the grandfathers of John Milton
Campbell bore the name of Campbell and
were born in Scotland, but emigrated to
America and died in the Colonies in the de-
cade of 1700. John Milton's maternal grand-
mother was a Cellers. His maternal uncle,
Lindsey Campbell, married a widow by the
name of Graham. Her son, Furgerson Gra-
ham, died in Schuyler county, Illinois, at the
residence of his son-in-law, Singleton Wright,
deeply lamented for his many sterling quali-
ities of character. William Campbell, an
own cousin of John Milton Campbell, on his
father's side, married a sister of Furgerson
Graham. John Milton's father, James
Campbell, was a skilled mechanic, who passed
nearly all of his life in Kentucky, and died in
Pendleton county, that State, aged eighty-six
years. He was twice married, having by the
first marriage five children, and one child by
his second. John Milton was the oldest of
the family, and his early life was spent on his
father's farm. He received a fair education,
and, under the instruction of his father, be-
came a good mechanic. He afterward taught
school and worked at his trade. He was mar-
ried in Kentucky, to Ann Lake, and, in 1832,
came to Illinois to look over the country.
Being favorably impressed, he removed to
the latter State in November, 1835. He en-
tered and settled on land located on the
southwest quarter of section eight, in Camden
township, Schuyler county, where he im-
proved a farm. His health failing in 1845
he passed a few years in the South, afterward
returning to his farm. His first wife died in
Kentucky, leaving one child, Thomas J. In
1850, Mr. Campbell was again married, his
second wife being Miss Mary A. E. Aldrich,
of Putnam county, Indiana, born June 8,
1826. She was a daughter of Samuel and
Elizabeth (Strupp) Aldrich, natives of North
Carolina, of English and German ancestry,
respectively. She accompanied her sister to
Illinois in 1847, and lived in Schuyler
county. John Campbell died December 20,
1880, sincerely mourned by all who knew
him. A Democratic in politics, he took an
active part in all local affairs of importance.
He frequently held office, being elected at
various times to all positions in the gift of
the county; he served one term as County
Surveyor, and for many years as Deputy Sur-
veyor. He was the clerk of his party, and,
being a fine penman, the records of the county
are remarkable for their neatness and legibil-
ity. He was a devout member of the Chris-
3H
BIOGRAPUWA^ US VIEW OP CASS,
tian Ad ventist Church. His worthy wife sur-
vives him and resides in Camden. She also
is an earnest and useful member of the
church to which her husband belonged. This
estimable couple were the parents of four
children: Lewis, Stephen, James I. and
Emma J.
Lewis was reared a farmer and educated in
Camden township. After his marriage he
resided ou the farm of his father-in-law, but
upon the death of his wife he returned to his
mother's farm and managed it for some years,
until 1885, when he married again and
settled in Camden village and opened a hotel.
He also engaged in farming and the carpen-
ter trade, putting up some of the best build-
ings in the county, outside of Rushville. He
afterward sold the hotel and devoted his at-
tention to his trade. He has 240 acres of
land and some valuable property in Cauaden
village. Hard as Mr. Campbell has worked,
it is nothing to the privations that his father
had to endure. He was the pioneer school
teacher of the county, and besides pursuing
that occupation he made maple sugar and
split rails to get the money with which to
enter his land and purchase saddle-bags to
carry his surveying tools in. What farmer
of to-day has to endure such hardships?
He was married to Alice Callison in 1875,
the daughter of John L. and Eliza (Smith)
Callison. She was born in 1857, and died
April, 1879. Mr. Campbell was again mar-
ried in 1885, his second wife being Alice L.
Irvin, a native of Littleton township and a
daughter of Osburn and Martha Irvin. They
have had one child, Paul Irvin, born July 26,
1891.
Mr. Campbell is independent in politics,
being a supporter of the Farmers' Alliance,
and has tilled the office of Town Clerk. He
is a member of Camden Lodge, No. 648, A.
F. & A. M., of which he is Senior Warden.
He is also correspondent for the Rushville
Times, editing the Carnden department. He
was for many years an active member of the
Patrons of Husbandry.
,ONKAD MAYKEIS, of Beardstown,
was born in Hesse-Darmstadt in 1842.
His parents lived and died in the same
place. He was given a common German
schooling and when fifteen years of age came
to this country and came on at once to
Beardstown, Illinois, having left a sister,
Sophia, in New York city, who had been the
first of the family to cross the ocean. Sophia
has been employed by the same family for the
last forty years. Their family is represented
by two other sisters, Caroline and Mary and
brother John. Mr. Mayreis came here in
1857, learned the trade of boot and shoe
maker and followed it until 1861. He then
enlisted in Company K, Fourteenth Illinois
Volunteers, Captain Reynolds in command,
the regiment being known as the Springfield
regiment, Colonel Palmer (ex-Governor) in
command. Mr. Mayreis served with his regi-
meut as Corporal of his company for two
years and three months, in the Army of the
Tennessee, and fought in the battles of Fort
Donelson, Pittsburg Landing, Corinth, siege
of Pittsburg and other minor engagements.
He escaped unhurt and received honorable
discharge at Vicksburg, Tennessee, and on
his return to Beardstown engaged in the boot
and shoe business from 1864 to 1886 and in
the meantime superintended work on a farm,
which he has improved and owns in Cass
county. He started his present business of
dealer in wines and liquors, in 1885, at the
corner of Main and Washington streets and
SCHUYLER AND BltOWN COUNTIES.
has since connected with it a well kept cafe.
He is also agent for the Anheuser-Busch
Brewing Company of St. Louis at this place.
He was married in this city to Miss Auna
Mooman,who was born at Bielefeld, Germany,
in 1844 and came with her parents when she
was two years of age to the United States.
The family settled at Beardstown where Mr.
and Mrs. Mooman both died, being consist-
ent members of the Lutheran Church. Mr.
Mayreis is the father of seven children:
Frank, a partner in his father's business;
Edward, who runs the restaurant; Conrad, at
present running the farm; Minnie, wife of E.
B/ink; Henry, who is at an institute in St.
Louis; Louis is at home in the public school;
and Maria is also at home. Mr. Mayreis is
a sound Republican in politics and has taken
an active part in local matters, having an in-
terest in the advancement of the city and
county. Mr. and Mrs. Mayreis are leaders
among their people and their children have
all received a good education. They are all
highly respected and admired by their large
circle of friends.
fUDGE HERMANN C. SCHULTZ, a
highly respected citizen of Schuyler
county, Illinois, is an American by
adoption, his birth-place being Prussia, Ger-
many; the date, October 2, 1832. His father,
Johannes Schultz, was a native of the same
country, and was engaged in the sugar refin-
ing business: he married Elizabeth Felech, a
native ot'Germany, who survived him many
years; she emigrated to America in 1852, and
spent the last days of her life in Texas; he
died in 1846, and she passed away in 1858.
Hermann Schultz was reared and educated in
his native land, and at the age of fifteen years
went to learn the baker's trade; having served
an apprenticeship of three years, he worked
as a journeyman in different cities for two
years; at the end of that time hs sailed from
Hamburg for America, and after a voyage of
two months, arrived in Galveston, Texas. He
was employed with various occupations in
that State until 1857, and in that year came
to Schuyler county, Illinois. He rented land
until 1862, and in August of that year he
enlisted in the One Hundred and Eighth Illi-
nois Volunteer Infantry, and served until the
declaration of peace. He participated in the
battles of Vicksburg and Arkansas Post, was
at the siege and capture of Vicksburg, and
also took part in the engagement at Spanish
Fort. He was mustered in as a private, but
was discharged as First Sergeant, in August,
1865. He then returned to his home and
resumed his agricultural pursuits, which he
continued until he was elected to the office of
Judge of the Probate Court, of Schnvler
county.
In 1854, Judge Schultz was united in mar-
riage to Anna Heidenreich, a native of Saxe-
Weimar, and a daughter of Adam Heiden-
reich; the father emigrated to the United
States with his family, in 1851, and in 1857
he came to Schuyler county, Illinois, where
he passed his last days. Judge and Mrs.
Schultz are the parents of nine children: Her-
mann H., Charles S., Julius C., Gallic, Laura,
Emma, Ferdinand, Nellie and Peter. Charles
S., Laura and Nellie are deceased. The Judge
and his wife are members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church, and he is also a member
of Schuyler Lodge, No. 209, K. of P., and of
Astoria Lodge, No. 100, A. F. & A. M.
Politically, he affiliates with the Democratic
party, and is an ardent supporter of its prin-
ciples. He has served twenty years as Jus-
tice of the Peace, and ten years as a member
316
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Off CA88,
of the County Board of Supervisors. He
was elected to his present office in 1890, and
has discharged the duties devolving upon
him with a wisdom and justice that have
dispelled all doubt as to his ability. He has
been a liberal contributor to all movements
tending to advance the county's interests, and
is numbered among her most loyal citizens.
ANTHONY CLARK, the
subject of this brief sketch, was born
in Logan county, Kentucky, Febru-
ary 16, 1811. His ancestors were residents
of North and South Carolina, his father
having been born in Orange county, North
Carolina, August, 1770, his early home being
not far from Guilford Court House, and he
could hear the cannon during the battle at
that place. He often referred to that inci-
dent in later life. After the battle a division
of the British army encamped near his moth-
er's house, for several days. His mother was
unprotected as her husband had died when
Thomas, the father of subject, was five years
old. Thomas was reared in North Carolina,
and, braving the dangers of the wilderness,
he crossed to Kentucky, settling in Logan
county, about 1795. Here he married Mary
Anthony, daughter of Philip Anthony, pio-
neer of Kentucky. Here Thomas Clark
lived until the fall of 1839, when he came to
Illinois, and settled in Missouri township,
where he died in 1847.
W. A. Clark was one of a family of thir-
teen children, being the third. His boyhood
was passed in Logan county, Kentucky, where
he attended the schools of seventy years ago,
which were only provided with benches of
split logs, heated by a fire-place, and lighted
by windows of greased paper. This gentle-
man was- married, April, 1832, to Mehala
Roberts, daughter of John Roberts. She
was born in Maryland, but reared in Wash-
ington county, Virginia.
Mr. and Mrs. Clark resided in Logan
county, Kentucky, until 1837, and three
children were born to them there. They then
came to Illinois, and rented land for one
year, then entered eighty acres in Pea Ridge
township, but five years later settled in Mis-
souri township, on section 17, and with his
two sons became the owner of 600 acres of
fine land in the aforesaid section. Mr. Clark
was a member of the Presbyterian Church,
having joined it in 1833. He voted for
Henry Clay, but afterward became a Demo-
crat in politics. Mr. Clark was a poor man
when he came to Illinois, but by his earnest
endeavors and hard work he managed to
accumulate a large fortune.
John Thomas Clark, the son of the above
mentioned gentleman, is one of the prosper-
ous farmers of Missouri township, residing
on section 17. He was born in Pea Ridge
township, June 12, 1844. The family re-
moved to Missouri township about 1850,
settling on section 17, where the father accu-
mulated a large farm, dying December 16,
1890, while his wife died June 10, 1875.
John is one of five children, namely: Mary
E., wife of Peter Rigg; Sarah J., wife of
J. M. Parker; Martha, wife of T. B. Ans-
mus, of Camp Point; William N.; and John,
who is the youngest of the family. He was
reared on the home farm until he attained
his majority, when he became a partner with
his father. They bought land and carried on
farming, cultivating about 300 acres of land.
John now owns 255 acres of land, on which
he has a tine class of farm buildings. He
carries on farming and deals in stock.
8CHU7LBR AND BROWN COUNTIES.
317
Mr. Clark was married, October 24, 1870,
to Amanda Carter, daughter of John B. and
Elizabeth (Bell) Carter, born in Brown
county, January 3, 1851. John B. Carter,
the father of Mrs. Clark, was born in Tennes-
see, and was a son of Joeeph Carter. They
came to Illinois in 1830, and first stopped in
Brown county, but Joseph Carter later re-
moved to McDonough county, where he
died. His son John grew to manhood, and
was married in Brown county, and had one
child, but it died in infancy. He later married
Elizabeth Bell, and settled in Lee township,
Brown county. He then removed to Clayton,
Adams county, where he enlisted, and was
mustered into service in the Eighty- fourth
Illinois Volunteer Infantry, Company I, serv-
ing three years. After the war he resided in
Brown county, until 1869, when he removed
to Crawford county, Kansas, where he died
in 1872. His wife also died, in Kansas, in
1883. He and his wife had seven children, of
whom Mrs. Clark was the eldest.
Mr. and Mrs. Clark have three children:
Daisy, Arthur A. and Oliver B. Mr. Clark
is a strong Democrat, and a member of the
Masonic fraternity. He and his charming
wife are among the most prominent people of
their township, and enjoy the respect of all
who knew them.
|LIAS D. LEACH, M. D., deceased, for
many years one of the prominent citi-
' zens of Rushville and a leading member
of the medical profession, was born near
Youngstown, Ohio, March 26, 1823, a son of
Benjamin and Hannah (Raynor) Leach, pio-
neers of Mahoning county, Ohio. His father
died when he was two years old, BO that as
he advanced in years he was obliged to make
22
all the opportunities that he enjoyed; when
he had received a sufficient education he en-
gaged in teaching, and soon turned his atten-
tion to the study of medicine; his leisure
time was fully occupied in this pursuit, and
he finally entered the office of Dr. Packard,
of West Greenville, Pennsylvania. In 1844
he became a student in the Medical Depart-
ment of the Western Reserve College at
Cleveland, Ohio. He studied and taught al-
ternately, securing the means with which to
carry on his own education, and had the
gratification of receiving a diploma in 1848.
Dr. Leach came directly to Illinois, and for
a short time practiced in Virginia, Cass
county; thence he removed to Frederick,
Schuyler county, where he resided until 1853.
In that year he came to Rushville, and em-
barked in mercantile trade, as a member of
the firm of Little, Ray & Co.; this relation-
ship continued until 1863, when the Doctor
withdrew, and devoted his entire time to his
private interests and professional duties until
1880; he then returned to commercial circles
and continued in business until 1890, when
he was obliged to retire on account of ill
health; he died in September of that year.
He was three times married, his third wife,
the mother of his children, being Harriet J.
Paterson; she was born in Russell county,
Kentucky, a daughter of Jonathan Paterson,
whose history will be found on another page
of this volume. Dr. Leach was united to her
in marriage December 4, 1856, and to them
three children were born, two of whom sur-
vive: Warren and Lawrence W. The former
married Molly McCreary, and they have two
children, Mark and Nina. Junius F., the
oldest child, was born March 21, 1858, and
died October 9, 1887. Dr. Leach was reared
to the faith of the Christian Church, to
which he always adhered. Politically he was
318
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA38,
identified with the Democratic party, and
served his county in the capacity of Treasurer;
he was a capable official and discharged his
duties with a fidelity that won him the confi-
dence of the people regardless of party ties.
In all the walks of life he was true to the
trusts resting with him, and in his death the
county lost a citizen of great worth and high
merit.
jtUAR E. MAIN was born on the farm
he now owns, section 16, township 18,
range 11 west, Cass county, March 30,
1849. He was reared and educated in this
county, and has a fine and well improved
farm of 167 acres, and forty acres in timber,
and has a fine home in this county also. His
grandfather was Joshua, who was born, lived
and died in Wellington township, Connecti-
cut. He died at about the age of ninety,
coming of English parents and was a promi-
nent farmer in his township. His wife's
name was Jerusha Lee, who lived and died in
Connecticut. They were good religious peo-
ple, and raised a large family. The father of
our subject, Loderick L. Main, was born near
Stafford Springs, Connecticut, in 1796, grew
up to the carpenter'! trac'e> an<^ later was a
seaman for a few years. After that he came
to Ohio, settling near Burton, and there
married Ann E. Beard, of New York State.
In 1837 they came to Illinois, and settled on
a farm now owned by our subject, Zuar Main,
east of Beardstown. Here Mrs. Main died,
in the prime of life, in 1838, leaving several
children: Amos B., Lucy Ann, Curtis, Lewis
and Myron. Mr. Main married a second
time, in Cass county, Sarah Calef, born near
Lebanon, New Hampshire, and came when a
young woman with her sister to Cass, and
was married in 1840 to Mr. Loderick Lee
Main. Her death occurred October 25,
1873, at the age of sixty-six. Mr. Main,
(Loderick Lee) died at the same place in
1883. He was one of the well known set-
tlers of this countyf and he and his wife were
strong Methodists. Our subject is one of
five children. Zuar E. Main (fourth child),
Ann E., Luther, Mary, Daniel L. (fifth
child).
He was married in this county to Ellen Mc-
Kean, born and reared in the county. Her par-
ents were John and Nancy (Childress) McKean,
natives of West Virginia. They were mar-
ried at Charlestown, West Virginia, and
started on a wedding tour to the West, early
in the '30s, settling in Monroe precinct, Cass
county. On this they lived and died, he at
the age of sixty-two and she forty-seven.
They were well-known good people. Mc-
Kean was a native of Pennsylvania, and was
reared in Ohio and married in West Virginia.
He was the father of nine children, of whom
six are yet living.
Mrs. Main is a smart, intelligent mother of
three children; two are deceased, — Mintaand
Lucas A. Miss Minnie, a bright young lady
and a good girl, is the only child living. Mr.
and Mrs. Main attend the Methodist Episco-
pal Church, and Mr. Main is a sound Repub-
lican. He is a member of the order of Masons
and of the A. O. U. W., and is a very good
citizen.
fASPER J. BUCK, deceased, was one of
the good farmers and citizens of Arenz-
O
ville. He was the youngest of thirteen
v O
children. His father, Jasper Buck, was born
in Bertie county, North Carolina, in 1792;
removed to Cass county, Illinois, about 1825
or '30, where he died in 1846; his mother,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
319
Sophia Buck, survived her husband ten years,
dying in 1856. Of the twelve brothers and
sisters of the subject of this sketch, four
only survive at this writing (1892), viz.;
Sarah, wife of Conrad Reining; John H. ;
Albert; and Betsy, wife of Richard Davis.
Jasper J., whose name heads this biog-
raphy, was married to Miss Mary A. Mor-
rison, February 27, 1862. They have four
children: Josephine, born January 5, 1863,
wife of William J. Kircher; John A., born
September 4, 1864; Elizabeth M., born
December 12,1868, wife of John Huss; and
Edward A., born October 8, 1873.
In 1864, Mr. Buck enlisted as a soldier,
but as his two children were young, and his
wife sickly, he withdrew and employed a
substitute.
He was known as a good and true man,
and was loved and respected by all. He was
identified with no church organization,
though he was a professed Christian. He
was a member of the I. O. O. F. and in poli-
tics was a Democrat of the Jacksonian type.
After a long, painful illness, he died Sep-
tember 25, 1883, leaving a wife and four
children to mourn his loss. Since his death
Mrs. Buck has had the management of the
farm of eighty acres, left her by her husband.
She has raised her family of four children,
two of whom are married and doing for
themselves; two, John and Edward, are at
home. She is a true Christian woman, and a
v)sef\il member of the Presbyterian Church.
IEORGE RITCHEA, deceased, was one
of the honored pioneers who braved all
the dangers and privations of the front-
ier, and labored earnestly and indefatigably to
to prepare the way for the march of prog-
ress and the advancing steps of civilization.
He was a native of Montgomery county, Ohio,
born near Dayton, February 19, 1814, a son
of James Ritchea; his father was born in the
north of Ireland, but emigrated to the
United States, and was an early settler of
Montgomery county; there he passed the re-
mainder of his life. His son, George
Ritchea, came to Illinois at an early day, and
located in Schuyler county; the journey was
made overland, as there were then no rail-
roads; the products of the farm were
shipped down the river, and all commerce was
carried on in the most primitive style.
Mr- Ritchea engaged in the lumber busi-
ness, rafting his stock for market down the
river; later he embarked in the mercantile
trade at Rushville, being one of the earliest
merchants in the county. After his mar-
riage he settled on a farm four miles from
Rushville, and engaged in agriculture until
his death, March 5, 1887. He was united
to I|Ucinda Walker, a native of Hardinsburgh,
Kentucky, and a daughter of Henry and
Elizabeth Walker. To them were born live
children, two of whom now survive: Francis
P. and Anna Rate; Mary E. died January
10, 1888, aged forty-three years; George D.
died in November, 1888, aged thirty-five
years. Francis P. owns and occupies a farm
joining the old homestead; Anna Kate, the
surviving daughter, owns the homestead.
She received a good education at Abingdon
College, and also took a course at the Gem
City Business College. At the age of six-
teen years she began teaching, and has fol-
lowed this profession ifi Illinois and Colo-
rado, meeting with marked success and mak-
ing an enviable reputation among educators
of the West. Mr. and Mrs. Ritchea were
worthy and consistent members of the Chris-
tian Church. Politically he affiliated with
320
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
the Republican party, and was a stanch sup-
porter of its principles. He was a man of
excellent business ability, and although he
began the struggle of life single-handed and
alone, having no capital excepting that with
which nature had provided him, he amassed
a considerable amount of property. He em-
ployed the highest and most correct business
methods, and had an enviable reputation as a
man of integrity and honor.
§OHN H. HAGENER, of the firm of
Hagener & Bros., was born January 7,
1850, in Beardstown, where he has lived
all his life. His father, William Hagener,
was born in the kingdom of Hanover, Ger-
many, and in 1841 he crossed to St. Louis,
and upon his arrival he married Eleanora
Peters, who had come over on the same ves-
sel from the same province that he had.
Shortly after their marriage they went to
Beardstown, and here resided until Mr. Ha-
gener's death, which event occurred in the
fifty-eighth year of his life. Mr. and Mrs.
Hagener were leaders among their class, and
Mr. Hagener was instrumental in the build-
ing of the Lutheran Church, and he and his
wife were among the first members of it. Mr.
Hagener purchased a piece of land in 1842,
which has become very valuable since that
time. He followed his trade of mechanic,
and later began contracting and building, and
in 1861 entered into the lumber business.
He continued the latter business until the
time of his death. He was a good and influ-
ential man, and his loss was felt by all who
knew him. His wife is still living at the age
of seventy-three, but is very feeble.
Mr. John Hagener is in a business that
was established in 1875, and he and his
brother do a large and thriving business in
the lumber and house-furnishing supply
trade, and also a large grain buying and sel-
ling business. They have a large mill and
their elevator has a capacity of 50,000 bush-
els. They are doing a 300,000- bushel-grain
business. They have warehouses at Concord,
Arenzville, Browning and Hagener, and
they keep local agents at the places men-
tioned. Their milling trade is well repre-
sented in the two leading brands of flour
known as Best Patent and Four Leaf. Part
of their goods are shipped to Europe. Both
brothers are stockholders and directors in
the First National Bank of Beardstown, and
John Hagener is the vice-president, and has
occupied that position ever since the bank
was organized, in 1887. The bank is cap-
italized at $50,000 with a surplus of $20,000,
and J. H. Harris is the president, and Thomas
K. Condit occupies the position of cashier.
Mr. John Hagener is a School Trustee and a
Director in the Mutual Loan and Savings
Association. He is a Republican in politics
and is a hard-working, industrious citizen,
ready to promote anything tending to the
improvement and development of his town.
He married Miss Kate Pappmeier, of
Beardstown. She was born and reared in
Beardstown, and her father is in the store of
Pappmeier & Sons. Mr. and Mrs. Hagener
are leaders in their society, and are Lutherans
in religious beliefs. They have five children,
all of whom are living at home: Nora, Fred
R., Emma, Lewis and Arthur.
fRANK ANDERSON, a widely and fa-
vorably known citizen of Schnyler
county, is Superintendent of the poor
farm of that county, in which capacity he has
8OHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
821
served since March 1, 1891. He was born in
Schuyler county, in Huntsville township, on
May 15, 1836, and has lived in that vicinity
ever since. His parents were William and
Prudence (Wallingsford) Anderson, both na-
tives of Kentucky, who were married in their
native State, coining to Illinois in 1835, and
locating in Huntsville township, where they
cleared and improved a farm of 64:0 acres.
On his property he built a substantial and
comfortable residence, besides barns for grain
and stock, and added many other modern im-
provements, the land being under a good
state of cultivation. He died in August, 1887,
aged eighty-seven years. His wife still sur-
vives at the age of eighty- five years, sup-
ported and comforted by her kind and loving
children.
The paternal grandparents of our subject,
Andrew Anderson and wife, were natives of
Kentucky, who removed to Schuyler county^
Illinois," in an early day, locating near Rush-
ville, where the grandmother died. The
grandfather died in Camdeu township. They
had eight children, six sons and two daugh-
ters: William, father of our subject; John;
Jeremiah, Riley, Jackson and Ferry, and two
daughters.
The parents of our subject had ten chil-
dren, of whom seven arrived at maturity.
Cyrus died in Huntsville township, Illinois;
Andrew, died in Huntsville township; Jane
married Danforth Cady, and now resides in
Camdeii township; Vincent resides in Hunts-
ville township; our subject comes next in
order; John died in Camden township; and
Sarah, now Mrs. Samuel McCadann, of Cam-
deu township.
Our subject was reared on a farm in Hunts-
ville township, and on January 1, 1858, was
married to Harriet Kniss, daughter of Samuel
and Polly Kniss, and a native of Indiana.
After his marriage he resided with his wife
on a part of the homestead, where he pursued
his trade of blacksmithing, and also conducted
a farm. He resided here until he took charge
of the County Poor farm. He owns 171
acres of well improved land in Huntsville
township, which is under a good state of cul-
tivation. The poor farm contains 310 acres
of land in section 26, of Buena Vista town-
ship, there now being thirty-one inmates of
the home. This farm almost pays expenses,
being well conducted under the able manage-
ment of the subject of our sketch and his
estimable wife.
Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have three chil-
dren-: Isabel, wife of Henry Powell, of Hunts-
ville township; Millie and Fred.
Mr. Anderson affiliates with the Demo-
cratic party, though taking no active interest
in politics aside from desiring the advance-
ment and welfare of his native county and
State. Socially he is a member of Camden
Lodge, No. 648, A. F. & A. M.
Sober and intelligent, honest and industri-
ous, kind and obliging, he has gained the good
will of his fellow citizens and the affectionate
regard of a host of friends.
§AMES M. AGNEW, a liberal-minded
and progressive citizen of Littleton
township, Schuyler county, Illinois, was
born in Erie county, Pennsylvania, December
24, 1825. His parents were George and
Esther (Sleight) Agnew, both natives of New
York State and Genesee county. They went
to Pennsylvania in an early day, where they
followed farming until 1849, when they re-
moved to Illinois, then a new country and
very sparsely settled. They located in Rush-
ville, where they resided until their death,
322
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
his father living to be seventy- two years of
age, and his mother sixty-eight. His grand-
parents lived in New York State, and lived
to be very old people, his grandfather being
Samuel Agnew.
The subject of our sketch was one of nine
children, of whom three are living. He
lived at home until twenty-one years of age,
when he removed with his parents to Illinois
in 1849, working by the month until he was
married. He was married on June 12, 1851,
to Miss May J. Bunnell, who was born in the
same place as our subject. Their happy
married life was, however, of short duration,
his wife dying in Rushville, aged twenty-five
years.
He was married a second time on April
27, 1853, his second wife being Delilah
Hodgson, a native of Indiana. They had
five children, four of whom are now living,
viz.: Millard F., single; Oral M., married,
and has one child; James E., married to Miss
Edgar; Ralph D., now in Kansas. His
second wife died, aged forty years, leaving to
him the care of their children. She was
much regretted by a large circle of friends,
being a faithful wife and fond mother.
Mr. Agnew was married some years later
to Mrs. Louisa Ham, who was born in Indi-
ana. They have one child, Jessie, now living
at home.
After his first marriage Mr. Agnew rented
land near Rushville, on which he lived for a
couple of years. He then rented another
piece, on which he remained for three years,
when he again moved, remaining four years
in the last place, when he removed to Little-
ton township, where he rented land for five
years, at the end of which time he purchased
a farm of 160 acres of wild land. This he
has improved by the erection of buildings,
and has the land well cultivated. He has a
comfortable home and other modern im-
provements. His land is devoted to mixed
husbandry, in which he is very successful.
Mr. Agnew has been a Republican ever
since the organization of that party. His
first presidential vote was cast for General
W. H. Harrison. He and family are mem-
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, to
the support of which denomination he is
a liberal contributor. Honest, intelligent,
moral, liberal and progressive, Mr. Agnew
enjoys the good will of the community, and
the esteem of a large number of friends.
fOSEPH PENCE, of township 17, 7 north,
range 10 west, section 18, was born in
Rockingham county, Virginia, March
10, 1814. His parents were John and Mary
(Smith) Pence, both being natives of, Vir-
ginia. They had three sons and five daugh-
ters; Mr. Pence, of this sketch, is the only
survivor. One brother died in Davis county,
Iowa, and two sisters also died in the same
place. The other three sisters died in Cass
county, Illinois, and the remaining brother
in Scott county, Illinois. The parents both
died in Rockingham county, Virginia, the
father in June, and the mother in September,
1834.
Mr. Joseph Pence was married in Page
county, Virginia, in 1837, to Sarah A. Sam-
uels, of the same county, born in 1812. After
marriage the young couple went to Kentucky
and remained until 1838, when they removed
to Morgan county, Illinois. From there they
went to Cass county, Illinois, where they
have since resided. Mr. Pence bought 205
acres of land, which he has greatly im-
proved. Mrs. Pence died in 1878, and her
husband still mourns her loss. Mr. Pence
SOHUTLEH AND BROWN COUNTIES.
323
has always been a Democrat and has held the
various offices in his township, and was a
member of the I. O. O. F.
Mrs. Pence bore her husband six children,
namely: Joseph W., a farmer in Iowa, is a
widower with nine children; Sarah Ellen, a
widow who keeps house for her father. The
other children are dead. The daughter mar-
ried Thomas D. Chapman, who was born
near Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, January 27,
1842, and was a soldier in Company I, One
Hundred and Fifteenth Illinois Infantry,
serving three years and three months. He
returned home somewhat broken in health,
and never entirely recovered, dying August
5, 1885. He left four children and a widow
to mourn his loss. The children were: Louie,
now Mrs. P. H. Caldwell; Charles F., Albert
B. and Joseph H. are all at home with their
grandfather, the first named being a member
of the Sons of Veterans. Mrs. Chapman
was born on the farm on which she now re-
sides, and has always lived there. She is a
member of the Providence Presbyterian
Church. Her husband was a member of the
Masonic order.
iBNER A. CLARK of section 31, Cam-
den township, is one of the pioneers of
1835, born in Logan county, Kentucky,
February 6, 1823. His father, Abner Clark,
was born in North Carolina. He removed
to Kentucky when a young man and became
a farmer. He married Nancy Gorum, of
Kentucky. In 1835 he came to Illinois and
settled in what is now Missouri township,
Brown county. He entered land and resided
there until January, 1847, when his wife
died, and in consequence he moved to Schuy-
ler county and lived with a son until his
death in August, 1849. He had entered
considerable land, and at his death still
owned 240 acres of land. He had been
a Whig in politics and Presbyterian in
religion for many years prior to his death.
He had ten children: Calvin, born May 30,
1805, died March 14, 1880; Perneta, born
December 10, 1806; "William, born March 1,
1809, died March 7, 1855; Harrison, born
February 15, 1811, died March 18, 1883;
Inetta, born August 26, 1813. died June 1,
1838; Terlina, born October 26, 1815, died
January 15, 1890; Delila, born October 26,
1815; Catherine, born June 19, 1818, died
June 7, 1841; Francis A., born September
11, 1820; and Abner A., born February 6,
1823.
Abner was reared dn the farm and attended
such schools as the newly settled locality
offered. After the death of his mother he
resided with a brother until 1847, when he
settled where he now resides, on 160 acres of
land. H6 began housekeeping in a log cabin,
which in time was supplanted by the present
residence, which is a comfortable frame struct-
ure. He now owns 440 acres of land. His
home contains 320 acres, he having added to
the original 160. He has been a stock- raiser
as well as a farmer, but now has all his land
rented.
He was married, May 27, 1847, to Elizabeth
J. Sims, daughter of David and Sarah E.
Sims. She was born in Sangamon county,
Illinois, February 6, 1832. Mr. and Mrs.
Clark have had five children, namely: Francis
M., born in 1849, died February 25, 1853;
Luticia, born 1851, died March 8, 1853;
Nancy P., born in 1852, married Daniel M.
McCaskill of Brown county, two children,
Carrie and Roy A.; Levi G., born 1857,
married Lizzie R. Bond April 20, 1880, her
death occurring November 13, 1882; was
324
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
married to Amauda Cady, daughter of Henry
Cady, resides in Schuyler county, three chil-
dren: Asa A., Alta and Frank F.; Fred D.,
born 1868, resides at home.
Mr. Clark is a Republican in politics and
a Baptist in religion, being Moderator of the
society. He and his wife are respected by
all who know them.
lOBERT NELSON McFARLAND, the
oldest settler of Brown county, is now
residing in Versailles. He was born in
Harrison county, Kentucky, April 1, 1818.
His father, William McFarland was born in
the same county. There is little known of
his grandfather except that he spent his last
years in Harrison, Kentucky. His father
was reared and married in Ohio, but resided
in Kentucky until 1819, when his nearest
neighbor was ten miles distant. He next
moved to Green county, Ohio, and was one
of the earliest settlers there. He lived there
until 1822, when, with his wife and four
children he made the journey to Illinois,
cooking and camping by the way. He located
in Sangamon and died there. At the time
of their location there, this county was
sparsely settled. The greater portion was
owned by the Government. Springfield was
but a hamlet, the capital of the State then
being Vandalia.
His mother continued to live in Sanga-
mon county until 1824. She accompanied
her sister and her sister's husband, Cornelius
Van Deventer, whom she afterward married,
to what is now Brown county, where she
resided until her death.
Mr. McFarland was six years old when he
came to Brown county, and remembers well
many of the incidents of its settlement.
At that time their nearest neighbors, the
Indians, were more numerous than the white
people.
When Mr. Van Deventer came he laid
claim to a tract of Government »land, two
and one half miles east of the present site of
Versailles, and there built a log cabin in
which was taught the first school in Brown
county, Hannah Burbank being the teacher.
For some years after they came here there
were no mills convenient, and during one
winter the family subsisted almost entirely
on lye hominy. In time there was a mill,
operated by horse-power, introduced into the
county, and Mr. McFarland used to go, in
common with others, and during the long
ride would subsist on parched corn, wild game
and wild honey. There were no railroads,
no steamers on the Illinois river and no
markets.
Of course our subject was reared to agri-
cultural pursuits. His first farm was a tract
of 100 acres, which he occupied until 1865,
when he sold and purchased a farm of 210
acres, and at the present time he is living re-
tired in the pleasant village of Versailles.
He was married December 81, 1839, to
Margaret W. McFarland, who died in 1879,
leaving four living children: Lucinda Van
Deventer; Mary Whitehead; Robert N.. who
married Ann Augusta Van Deventer; and
Louis, who is still single.
fOHN D. HORTON, one of the progres-
sive and enterprising farmers of Littleton
township, was born in Schuyler county,
Illinois, September 21, 1845, a son of Lewis
and Priscilla (Christman) Horton. His
father was a native of Luzerne county,
Pennsylvania, and there grew to be mature
SCHUYLER AMD BROWN COUNTIES.
325
years; he drove a stage until 1842, when he
made a trip to Illinois, coming via the rivers
to La Grange; he settled on the farm now
occupied by our subject, purchasing the
tract of 160 acres for $350; he erected a log
house which was a comfortable home until
1866, when the present structure was built.
In 1852 he crossed the plains to California,
returning in 1856 by way of New York city;
he was accompanied by his son Fred, who
afterward went to Texas, where he died.
His life was devoted to the pursuit of agri-
culture; in politics he was a Democrat until'
1856 when he cast his suffrage for Lincoln,
but he was not actively interested in the
movements of the party. His wife died in
Schuyler county at the age of eighty-six
years; before his death she made a trip to
California, visiting a daughter residing there.
John D. Horton is one of a family of ten
children, four of whom are living. He was
first married September 2, 1869, to Miss
Mary E. Foster, of Schuyler county, who
died July 8, 1870. He was again united in
marriage February 17, 1875, to Miss Eliza-
beth Nichols. She is also a native of this
county, born in Littleton township, July 18,
1856, a daughter of Reuben and Elizabeth
(Agnew) Nichols. (See sketch of James
(Agnew.)
Mr. and Mrs. Horton are the parents of
four children, all of whom are living: Lewis
R., born February 24, 1879; Warren, born
March 22, 1881; Craig C., born May 14,
1884, and Jessie C., born January 17, 1890.
Mr. Horton received his education in the
common school at Rushville and remained
under the parental roof until his marriage;
after this event he settled on the homestead,
and has since that time been engaged in agri-
culture. Politically he is identified with
the Republican party; he has represented the
people of his township ' in various local of-
fices, discharging his duties with much abili-
ty and admirable' fidelity. His wife has
been for many years a member of the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church. They are both peo-
ple of great stability of character and enjoy
the respect of all who know them. Their
ancestors for generations have been men and
women of brave hearts and undaunted cour-
age, have served in the wars of the country,
and have been reliable, industrious and pros-
perous citizens of the Republic which they
aided iu founding.
fOHN S. STUTSMAN, an honored
pioneer of Schuyler county, has been
closely identified with its history for
*/ «/
many years, and it is fitting that a sketch of
his life should appear in these pages. He
was born in Dubois county, Indiana, April
10, 1827, a son of Alexander D. and Rhoda
(Seybold) Stutsman. Alexander D. Stutsman
was a native of Kentucky, a son of Jacob and
Mary (Berkey) Stutsman, natives of Pennsyl-
vania; his father died in Dubois county, In-
diana, at the age of eighty years; the mother
died in the same place, aged seventy years.
The Stutsman family is of German origin,
the great-grandfather of our subject having
emigrated from the fatherland to America.
Both Mr. and Mrs. John S. Stutsman had an-
cestors that served in the wars of the Revo-
lution and 1812. Rhoda Seybold, the mother
of John S. Stutsman, was born in Georgia,
and was one of a family of seven children ;
she became the mother of a family of eleven,
eight of whom are living. The father died
on the old homestead, now occupied by his
son, at the age of seventy-eight years. He
was one of the early pioneers of the State,
326
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF C ASS,
emigrating to Schuyler county in 1834, and
bravely bore the privations of life on the
frontier that the way might be paved for the
coming of an advanced civilization. He was
accompanied by his wife and five children,
and made the journey with a four-horse
wagon; he purchased a farm of 148 acres,
partially improved; for twelve years the
family lived in a log cabin that had been built
before their coming; this was in time re-
placed by one of black-walnut logs, which was
the home of the parents until death. The
mother lived to be eighty years old. John S.
remained under the parental roof until he was
twenty-three years of age; he attended the
district school, and although his opportunities
were meager he laid the foundation of a
thorough education, and has since come to be
recognized as an authority on all historical
subjects. Many were the evenings he read
to his mother by the light of the nickering
candle, as she sewed upon clothing, either for
her own or the neighbor's boys.
Mr. Stutsman was united in marriage, March
21, 1850, to Miss Sarah Howell, who was
born in Monroe county, Indiana, January 24,
1831.. Her parents, Jonathan and Nancy
(Grilham) Howell, emigrated to Indiana in
1822, and thence to Brown county, Illinois,
in 1838, where they passed the remainder of
their lives; the father died at the age of
sixty-nine, and the mother at the age of
eighty years. They reared a family of ten
children, live of whom survive. They had
three sons in the Union army in the late war,
two of whom died in the service of their
country.
Mrs. Howell's parents were natives of
North Carolina, as were also Mr. Howells.
Mr. and Mrs. Stutsman have had born to them
a family of ten children, six of whom are de-
ceased; those living are named as follows:
Nancy J. is married and the mother of seven
children; Mary E. is at home; Robert W. is
married and has two children; John E. is on
the old homestead; Mary has taught school
very successfully for several years. The
family are members of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church South, and are actively engaged
in the good work of this society.
After his marriage Mr. Stutsman lived near
his present residence for three years, and
then purchased the property he still owns;
he first occupied a log cabin, which he replaced
in time with a substantial brick structure.
His first tract consisted of forty acres of wild
land, to which he added as his means would
permit,until he now has 195 acres. He does
a general farming business, and is more
than ordinarily successful and prosperous. It
is entirely through his own efforts that he has
accumulated his property, as he had no capital
excepting that with which nature had endowed
him.
Politically, he affiliates with the Demo-
cratic party, which he has represented in
various positions of trust and honor. He was
County Treasurer four years from 1886 to
1890, has been Supervisor seven years, and
Township School Treasurer twenty-seven
years, holding the latter position at present;
he has for many years been a member of the
School Board. He is one of the most widely
known men in the county, and none is held
in higher esteem.
IBERTY G. PERSINGER, one of the
most prominent farmers of Woodstock
township, was born in Alleghany county,
Virginia, June 6, 1831, a son of Allen and
Paulina (Peters) Persinger. Allen Persinger
was a native of Virginia, born in Alleghany
SGHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
327
county, and resided there until he was twenty-
three years of age. He then emigrated to
Illinois, accompanied by his wife and one
child; the journey was made from Virginia
in a one-horse wagon, and when he arrived
his capital amounted to $25 in cash. He
went to work with a will, and began the task
of placing a tract of wild land under cultiva-
tion. He afterward sold this, and entered
eighty acres on another section; to this he
added as his means increased, until at one
time he owned several hundred acres. He
built a log cabin in which he lived four years>
and then erected another one of more preten-
tious size, in which he died at the age of sev-
enty-four years; his wife passed her last days
in the same house. Politically, he was closely
identified with the early history of the county
and State; he held many local offices, and
represented his county in the Illinois State
Legislature. Liberty G. Persinger, who is
named for the old Revolutionary General,
Liberty Green, remained with his parents
until he was twenty-one years of age. He was
then married to Elizabeth Tharpe, a native of
Illinois, and a daughter of Jonathan and
Anna Tharpe, who were born in North Car-
olina and were early settlers of Schuyler
county. To Mr. and Mrs. Persinger have
been born eleven children, ten of whom are
living; all are married: William L. has five
children; Paulina has five children; Anna C.
has three children ; Cornelia J. is the mother
of three children ; Naomi has two children;
Louis M. is the father of two children; Allen
J. has a family of two children; Elmer E.
and Edward have no children; Estella is the
mother of one child.
After his marriage, Mr. Persinger rented
the land which he now owns; he lived in a
little log cabin for a year, and then erected
another in which he resided eight years; he
then built his present home. He lias 300
acres under good cultivation, 111 of which
he inherited from his father's estate. He
carries on a general farming business, and has
met with more than ordinary success. The
land was originally heavily timbered, and
has required no small amount of energy
and labor to reduce it to a state of culti-
vation.
Mrs. Persinger is a consistent member of
the Methodist Episcopal Church. Our sub-
ject takes no active interest in politics further
than to discharge his duty as a citizen by
casting his suffrage, which is with the Re-
publican party. He is a man of superior
business qualifications and unquestioned
honor and integrity.
,ATHAN SUTTON, one of the most
prominent citizens of his county was
born in Sussex county, New Jersey,
January 22, 1819, son of Benjamin and
Elizabeth (Robe) Sutton, the former of the
same place as his son, where he kept a store
for many years, but sold out in 1823 and
went to Washtenaw county, Michigan, where
he took up land to the amount of 160 acres
and improved it. He then sold it to his
father, also Nathan, who was born in the
same county and State as his son and grand-
son. This gentleman died Michigan when
about seventy-five years of age. His wife,
subject's grandmother, was Sarah Sutton and
she died on the farm when about seventy-six.
The entire family were farmers by occupa-
tion. Mr. Nathan Sutton, Sr., was a
teamster in the war of 1812. Benjamin
Sutton arrived in Illinois July 29, 1833, and
settled near the present home of subject,
where he entered and bought land to such an
extent that he had 2,200 acres at his death,
338
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
being one of the largest land-owners in
central Illinois. He died in October, 1837,
aged about forty-five and his wife, who was
born in the same place as her husband, died
on the old farm, aged about forty-seven.
The Sutton family were of English descent,
the Robes of German ancestry. Our subject
was one of nine children, five of whom are
yet living, and his father was one of six chil-
dren. His mother's people never came West,_
but died in New Jersey, when very old: they
were farmers. The Sutton family figured
largely in the politics of Michigan, several
of them serving as Justices of the Peace
one was a member of the State Legislature,
while another served as Mayor of Ann
Arbor, Michigan. The prominence of Benja-
min Sutton was not confined to Michigan
by any means, as he was one of the most
prominent men of his county, in Illinois. He
erected the first gristmill in the locality and
in order that the children of the section
should have the benefit of the subscription
schools he paid one half of the teacher's fees
for five months. This family did not come
West in the moneyless condition that so many
were in, as they had nearly $7,000 in cash be-
sides personal effects which had been brought
across the country in wagons, the only means
of transportation in those days. Mr. Sutton,
Sr., was a Deacon in the Baptist Church
and for a time Clerk, and a member of the
order of A. F. & A. M.
Our subject remained upon the home farm
until his marriage, when he rented for a year
and then bought seventy-five acres of wild
land, on which he built a log house 16 x 18
feet, in which he and his wife lived until he
built his present house, in 1856. Mr. Sutton
kept adding to his farm until he now has 500
acres of fine land and has given each of his
children a fine farm.
A son of Nathan Sutton enlisted in the
late war, and while in service he was captured
and sent to Andersonville, where he remained
five months. His health was so impared by
confinement that he was obliged to be in the
St. Louis hospital, but with these exceptions
he served throughout the entire war. One
of his brothers was in the same company for
one year, responding to the last call for men.
Mr. Sutton was married August 4, 1842,
to Miss Elizabeth A. Lemar, born in Mason
county, Kentucky, July 9, 1822, daughter of
Richard and Elizabeth H. (Merrell) Lemar.
The former was a native of New Jersey, who
came from Kentucky, which had been his
home for some years, to Illinois, in 1840,
and after marrying a second time settled in
Petersburg, Illinois, where he bought eighty
acres of land, five miles from present home of
subject. His first wife died when her daugh-
ter, Mrs. Sutton, was thirteen months old.
The family was of French descent. The
mother of Mrs. Sutton was a daughter of
Andrew and Elizabeth (Hyde) Merrell and
and the Hyde family were the legal heirs to
a large estate in England, but which they
have never been able to obtain, although they
have sufficient proof to establish their claim
to it. Mrs. Sutton one of five children, two
yet living and also two half sisters are still
living. Mr. and Mrs. Sutton have had eight
children, as follows: William Sylvester, born
April 21, 1844, married Mary E. Severs
three children: Alonzo, born September 9,
1846, married Miss Martha Dick (see sketch
of LeviDick); John H., born August 21,
1848, married Hannah Ogden, deceased; mar-
ried second time Mary 1. Garder, two chil-
dren; David L., born July 28, 1850; Win-
field S., born August 19, 1852, married
Levina Samuels by whom he had six children,
and after her death he married Lucretia Lynn
SCHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
329
by whom lie had four children; Clara J.,
born October 14, 1854, married Joshua
Conyers, and has five living children, one de-
ceased; Benjamin R., born March 24, 1857,
married Jennie Morgan, has three children,
Stella, Ernest and Ella, the oldest one having
died in infancy and another, also an infant, is
deceased; and Ella E., born September 8,
1858, married James Odgen, two children.
Mr. Button is an ardent Republican, having
been an old-line Whig, casting his first vote
for General "William H. Harrison. Mr. and
Mrs. Sntton, with their family are members
of the Baptist Church, in which Mr. Sutton
has been a Deacon for many years. This is
a brief sketch of one of the most prominent
families in the county, and we regret that
space forbids a more extended notice of such
a well known and influential family.
C. MEYER, a successful brick
and tile manufacturer and ice dealer of
Beardstown, Illinois, was born in West-
phalia, Prussia, September 20, 1835. His
parents were Henry C. and E. (Hildabrandt)
Meyer. His father was an efficient soldier
for fifteen years under the general command
of the first Emperor William, when they
were both young men. His father partici-
pated in many active engagements, and was
highly respected by his superior officers. In
1843, the family emigrated to the United
States, arriving, after a voyage of fifteen weeks,
in New Orleans, from which place they were
nearly as long in reaching Evansville, In-
diana, by the Mississippi and Ohio rivers.
They settled in Knox county, Indiana, where,
in 1857, the devoted wife and mother died.
Some years later, the father came to Beards-
town to visit his son, who had gone to that
place some time before. He subsequently
died at his son's home in 1878, at the age of
seventy years. He was a man of sterling
qualities of mind and heart, and enjoyed,
with his wife, the heartfelt esteem of all
who knew them. Both parents were
devout members of the Evangelical church.
The subject of this sketch came to Beards-
town in 1857, when a poor, young man, hav-
ing at that time only $5 in his pocket. He
commenced, in a primitive manner, to work at
his present business, moulding brick with his
hands, which was then the usual way. He
was thus employed when the Civil war broke
out, and in 1861 he volunteered his services
to the Government, but the quota having
been filled he was not accepted. He pur-
chased his first land in that year, near Arenz-
ville. By unremitting industry and careful
economy, he gradually accumulated means,
which he invested in the best improvements
obtainable for the manufacture of brick and
tile, besides branching out in other direc-
tions. He now makes about 1,000,000 brick
and many thousand rods of tile annually, be-
ing the largest manufacturer in that line in
his county. He is also extensively engaged
in the ice business, which he lias successfuly
conducted for the past twenty years, his ice
houses now having a capacity of 12,000 tons.
He hasgradually added tohis first purchase of
land, until he now owns 1,000 acres of choice
realty in Cass county; 900 of which are well
improved and cultivated, and 300 being under
his own management.
He was married about 1862, to Miss
Mollie Boy, who was born and raised near
Arenzville, of which vicinity her people were
early and respected pioneers. Both of her
parents are now dead. Mr. and Mrs. Meyer
have had eight children, seven of whom sur-
vive: Louis, who married Tilla Piehler;
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Elizabeth, wife of A. E. Cameron, a success-
ful jeweler of Beardstown; Albert, assisting
his father at home; Lydia, wife of Charles
Lebkucher, a properous farmer of this county;
Mollie, Herold and Adalaide, living at home.
Politically, Mr. Meyer supports the issues
of the Democratic party, and, while being no
office seeker, takes an interest in all local and
public affairs of importance.
Both he and his worthy wife are useful
members of the Fourth Evangelical Lutheran
Church.
Mr. Meyer has not attained his success
without earnest and persistent endeavor;
wholly unaided, he has, by industry and
economy, acquired his present prosperity;
while by upright dealings and uniform court-
esy he has secured the universal esteem of
his fellow men.
. ARTHUR A. LEEPER, attorney
at law, Virginia, Illinois, was born at
Chandlerville, Cass county, this State,
August 21, 1855, son of William D. Leeper,
a native of Edmonson county, Kentucky.
Rev. Robert Leeper, grandfather of Hon.
Arthur A. Leeper, is supposed to have
been a native of Kentucky. He removed
from that State to Illinois in 1829, and en-
tered a tract of Government land, a portion
of which is now included in the village of
Chandlerville, being one of the first settlers
there. He at once built a log house, and be-
gan the improvement of his land. He erected
the first gristmill ever built in that locality.
He operated the mill, superintended the im-
provement of his land, and resided there
until his death.
William D. Leeper was twelve years old
when his parents moved to Illinois. The
greater portion of the State was at that time
unsettled, and deer, wild turkeys and other
game were plentiful in this vicinity. It was
long before the railroads entered this section
of the country, and for many years Beards-
town was the market and depot for supplies
for miles around. He entered a tract of Gov-
ernment land that joined his father's farm on
the east, located on it at the time of his mar-
riage, and passed his life there, dying in 1866.
The maiden name of his first wife, mother of
the subject of our sketch, was Mary Runyan.
She was born in Kentucky, and died in 1857.
His second wife, previously Maria Hermeyer,
was born in Germany.
In the public schools of Chandlerville,
Arthur A. received his early education. At
the age of sixteen he entered Eureka College,
and graduated with the class of 1874. He
then entered the law department of Iowa
University, graduating in 1875. Returning
to Chandlerville, he opened an office and
practiced his profession there until the fall
of 1876, when he came to Virginia, where
he has since practiced.
September 18, 1878, he married Eva Howe,
a native of Ohio, and a daughter of Rufus
and Eva (Miller) Howe. They have two chil-
dren: Mabel and Alice.
Politically, Mr. Leeper is a Democrat. He
cast his first vote for Samuel J. Tilden. In
1876, he was elected State's Attorney for
Cass county, and tilled that position until
1880. He has served as City Attorney three
years, and was School Director three years.
In 1885 he was the nominee of his party for
member of the House of Representatives.
This was the time of the memorable contest
which finally resulted in the election of John
A. Logan to the United States Senate. The
Republicans made a still hunt in this cam-
paign, and Mr. Leeper was defeated. He
SGHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
331
was re-nominated, however, in 1888, for
State Senator, and was elected, serving
through two sessions. He was one of the
101 who voted continually for John M.
Palmer. Among the various committees on
which he served, we mention the following:
Special Drainage, Insurance and Judiciary,
Highways and Bridges, Judicial Department,
Corporations, Canals and Rivers, Labor and
Manufactures, Rules, State Charities, License
and Miscellaneous, and County and Town-
ship organizations. He faithfully performed
the duties of his responsible position, his
efficient work being recognized and highly
appreciated by his constituents. He was
re-nominated for Senator in April, 1892.
Fraternally, he is a member of Virginia
Lodge, No. 554, A. F. & A. M., and Saxon
Lodge, No. 68, I. O. G. T.
£ILLIAM K. SHUPE, one of the most
intelligent and enterprising agricult-
urists of Woodstock township, is a
native of the State of Virginia and a son of
Peter and Sarah (Wright) Shupe; the date of
his birth is October 9, 1824. The father was
also born in Virginia and emigrated to this
county in 1843; later he went to Iowa, and
died there in his fifty-fourth year; his wife
was born in Virginia and died in Iowa; they
had born to them a family of fifteen children,
six of whom are now living. The family is
of German lineage, the first ancestors in this
country emigrating previous to the war of
the Revolution. William K. remained at
home until he was twenty years of age, and
then worked at the cooper's trade several
years. He was united in marriage October
19, 1846, to Miss Mary A. Hoffman, a native
of Ohio and a daughter of Joseph and Mary
A. (Myers) Hoffman ; her parents removed to
this county about 1837, and here passed the
rest of their lives; they reared a family of
eight children, five of whom are living. Mr.
and Mrs. Shupe are the parents of six chil-
dren: Samuel L. is married and has one son;
Sarah A. is married and the mother of four
children; George H. is married and has eight
children; Mary F. is married and the mother
of four children ; Martha M. is married and
has five children; William J. married and
his wife died leaving two children.
After his marriage Mr. Shupe settled on
the farm he now occupies; he has 120 acres,
which he has improved and brought to a high
state of cultivation. For many years he lived
in a little log cabin, but in 1862 erected his
present comfortable dwelling. He carries on
a general farming business, manages all
branches with much wisdom, and reaps the
reward of success.
Peter Shupe, father of William K., was in
the war of 1812, and several members of the
family participated in the late Civil war.
Formerly Mr. Shupe was identified with the
Democratic party, but now casts his suffrage
for the man rather than the party. He has
been Assessor for a number of years, and has
held other positions of trust and responsi-
bility. He has given attention to the matter
of public education, and has served on the
school board. He is now practically retired
from active business pursuits, the care and
management of the farm being in the hands
of the younger son.
The first years our subject spent in this
section of country were fraught with trials
and hardships, such only as are possible in a
new and undeveloped community. The jour-
ney from the East was made overland; the
funds of the family being exhausted, they
stopped and the sons split 1,000 rails
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA3S,
to secure money to continue the trip which
consumed two months. Mr. Shupe is a self-
made man in every sense of the word: he has
never received financial aid, and his present
property has been accumulated entirely
through his own efforts. It was through the
influence of Mormon preachers that the father
was induced to come to the West, and two
of his sons pushed their way to Salt Lake,
and pitched their tents on the present site of
Salt Lake City, July 24, 1847; one of them
still lives there, and celebrates the twenty-
fourth day of July. Mr. Shupe is a man
who is fully posted upon current events, is a
wide reader, and thoroughly loyal to the in-
terests of his county and State.
?AMES D. MATTHEW was born near
the present site of Columbus, Franklin
county, Ohio, in 1813, November 24.
His father, Simon Matthew, was born in
Fauquier county, Virginia, and his father,
Nathan Matthew, was, as far as is known, born
in the same State. The great-grandfather of
subject, Edward Matthew, was born in Wales
and came to America, settling in Virginia in
colonial times. He was a miller by trade,
and his son was also a miller, and he erected
a mill in Virginia during the Revolutionary
war. He resided in Virginia until about
1817, when he went to Washington county,
Indiana, and was a resident there until his
death. His son was reared in Virginia and
went to Ohio when he was twenty-six years
of age. He settled in Franklin county and
was one of the first settlers there. He as-
sisted in cutting the logs to build the peni-
tentiary at Columbus. In 1818 he emigrated
to Indiana, settling in Washington county,
which was a heavily timbered country at that
time. He rented a tract of timber land ten
miles west of Salem, and erected a log house
in the wilderness. There were no railroads
in the State at that time, and the nearest
market was fifty miles away. He lived in
Indiana until 1832, and during that time
cleared quite a tract of his land. In 1832 he
sold that and came to Illinois, settling ten
miles southeast of Springfield, where he re-
sided until his death. The maiden name of
his first wife, the mother of our subject, was
Ann Dearderff, born near New Castle, of
German ancestry. She died in Sangamon
county, after the arrival of the family.
James came with his parents to Sangamon
county, Illinois, and was nineteen the day he
reached there. At that time the capitol of
the State was Vandalia, Springfield being
but a hamlet, and the nearest market for farm-
ers in Sangamon county was St. Louis or
Beardstown. He resided there until 1838,
and then came to Cass county. He had
visited this section and entered forty acres of
land in 1837, in section 32, township 18, and
forty more acres in section 19 of the same
township. In 1838 he built a hewed-log
cabin and commenced at once to clear the
land. At that time deer and other kinds of
wild game supplied the table with meat.
Wheat sold from thirty to forty cents a bushel,
and corn for ten cents a bushel. The wife
dressed the children in homespun of her own
raising, carding and weaving. He added to
his farm until it is now about 365 acres, the
greater part improved.
He was married March 27, 1834, to Dorcas
Hamilton, born in Virginia, daughter of
Pressley and Susana Hamilton. Mr. and
Mrs. Matthew have had the following chil-
dren: Simon P.,' Ann, Charles, Jane Ruth,
Rodney, Nettie, Henry L. and Lincoln.
LIBRARY
OF THE
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
SCHUTLEK AND BROWN COUNTIES.
833
Mr. Matthew was a member of the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church, as is his wife. He
was a Whig and Republican, and was a good
and honorable man. He died April 7, 1892,
at his home. Thus one of the oldest settlers
and a man respected for his sterling integrity
has passed away, and the family and large
circle of friends and acquaintances are left
mourning. He died a firm believer in the
Christian religion. His aged wife of fifty-
six years, standing, still occupies the old home
where they settled in 1838. They celebrated
their golden wedding March 27, 1884. They
were married in Indiana.
DYSON is the editor and pro-
prietor of the Rushville Times, a
weekly paper devoted to the interests
of the Democratic party. It is ably edited
and well conducted, and reflects great credit
upon the management. Mr. Dyson is an
American citizen by adoption, his native
land being England; he was born in Lancas-
tershire, July 28, 1838, a son of James Dy-
son, a native of the same country; there the
father was reared and married, his wife's
maiden name being Hannah Wilson. He
was employed in the cotton-mills until 1841,
when accompanied by his wife and four chil-
dren, he emigrated to America: they sailed
from Liverpool and landed at the port of
New Orleans after a stormy voyage of nearly
three months; they continued their journey
to Illinois, and located at Rushville, where
Mr. Dyson died a few months later. A few
years after her husband's death, Mrs. Dyson
married Thomas Hampton, and still lives in
Rushville. Edwin Dyson was a child of
three years when the family arrived in Schuy-
ler county, Illinois. Here he was reared and
23
educated, and at the age of sixteen years
began to learn the printer's trade. He was
first in the office of the Schuyler Democrat,
and served there nearly three years; he then
worked in Rushville as a journeyman until
1864, when he went to St. Louis; he was in
the office of the Republican of that city for
four years. At the end of that time he re-
turned to Schuyler county, and purchased the
Rushville Times, which he has since edited.
He has made the Times one of the leading
papers of the military tract, having a circula-
tion far above the average of county papers.
In connection with the publication of the
paper he runs a job printing office which
turns out work of a very high class.
Mr. Dyson was married in 1861, to Mary
F. Irvin, who was born near Danville, Ken-
tucky, and of this union three children have
been born: Jennie L., Orean E. and Howard
F. Our subject has been prominently iden-
tified with the political movements of the
Democratic party in this county aside from
his editorship of their organ. He has been
County Treasurer two terms, and wasamem.
ber of the Board several years, and has served
as a delegate to the various county, district
and State conventions. He belongs to Rush-
ville Lodge, No. 9, A. F. & A. M.
fOEN ELLIOTT, a retired farmer, living
at the corner of Jackson and Seventh
streets in Beardstown, Illinois, was born
in county Antrim, Ireland, November, 1820.
He came of Scotch ancestry, of a very old
family of pure blood, not mixed with Irish by
marriage. He is the son of William Elliott
of the same place, a farmer and a keeper of a
public inn, who lived and died in that county
at the age of forty years. His grandfather was
834
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
David Elliott, a farmer of Scotland, who died
when quite old. William Elliott was married
to an Antrim lady of Scotch blood, whose name
was Mary Thompson. She was the daughter
of Robert and Mattie (Richie) Thompson, who
were county Antrim farmers, and there Ro-
bert Thompson spent his last years, but his
wife came with her son at an early day to
Virginia, Cass county, Illinois.
John Elliott came of a large family, grew
up in his native county, learned the tailor
trade and afterward with his mother and
brothers, in 1841, came to America and joined
other brothers in Connecticut. In 1845 the
mother and son came on to Cass county.
Some worked the farm, and others followed
their trade. The mother made her horn
with her children until her death, which oc-
curred in 1877, aged eighty-four. She was a
noble-hearted woman and had done much to
help and encourage her children. She was a
member of the Presbyterian Church, a great
student of Scotch history and literatim;, a
tine reader of the Scotch dialect and a writer
of some local repute. She also composed
some music, which has been considered very
tine. She is remembered as a noble, gener-
ous woman.
He lived for some years in Beardstown
working at his trade and with the money he
made and saved, with his brother, David, he
bought 160 acres of land near Virginia, later
sold it and then purchased the 160 acres that
became his home until his retirement. His
farm, the scene of his labors, lies near the city
of Beardstown. The land is highly improved
and has good buildings, and as he now enjoys
the comforts of life he can remember that
they have been obtained by his own efforts.
He was married the first time in Connecti-
cut, to Margaret Frey of Ireland, who came
to the United States in 1841, and after forty-
eight years of married life left a bereaved
husband, in 1890. The living children are:
William W., of San Francisco, California;
Thomas F., of Jewell county, Kansas; George
W. of Holliday, Kansas; Robert S. of St. Louis,
Missouri; Lucy A., wife of John Thompson,
of Jewell county, Kansas; and David H., now
running his father's farm. Mr. Elliott was
married a second time in this county, to Mrs.
Ann E. Johnson, formerly, Hiles. She was
born in .New Jersey, December 12, 1823. She
and her first husband came to Macoupin
county in 1856, and he died there.
Mr. and Mrs. Elliott are members of the
Congregational Church. Mr. Elliott is a Re-
publican in politics and was a "Whig.
1LLIAM McKEE, one of the oldest
and most prominent citizens of
Schuyler county, was born in Craw-
ford county, Indiana, January 22, 1813, a son
of William McKee, who was a native of Ken-
tucky. The paternal grandfather, James Mc-
Kee, emigrated to Kentucky during the war
of the Revolution, and thence removed to In-
diana, where he passed the remainder of his
days. William McKee, Sr., was reared in the
Blue-grass State, and there was married; he
removed to Indiana when it was yet a Terri-
tory, and was a pioneer of Crawford county.
He purchased land and made it his home
until 1826, when, accompanied by his wife
and ten children, he removed to Illinois. The
journey was made by teams, which was not
devoid of interest. Mr. McKee had visited
this section the year previous, making the
trip on horseback; he purchased a land war-
rant which called for 160 acres; paying there-
for $100; on his return to Indiana he stopped
at Springfield and cleared his title at the
SCEUfLBR AND BROWN COUNTIES.
335
Government office. It was, indeed, a courage-
ous heart that looked at such a future calmly;
the country was thinly settled, the poles of
the Indian wigwams still stood in the ground,
market towns were far distant and provisions
were high. Mr. McKee erected a double log
cabin, using wooden pegs instead of nails; the
door was constructed of puncheons, and was
furnished with the historic latch-string.
James Vance built the first horse-mill
operated with a rawhide band. This was
built when the subject of this sketch came to
the county. Calvin Hobart built one in- the
fall of 1836, then William McKee, father of
our subject, built a horse-mill in 1828, it
being the third in that section of the country.
People came to the mill from as far north as
Rock Island.
Mrs. McKee manufactnred cloth from the
flax and cotton that her husband raised,
with which to clothe the family. Mrs. Mc-
Kee's maiden name was Cassie Frakes; she
was a native of Pennsylvania, and a daughter
of Henry and Hannah Frakes; her death
occurred at the house of her daughter, which
is situated close to the old home farm.
The subject of this sketch was thirteen
years and four months old when he came to
Illinois; on the journey he drove a four-
horse team with a jerk line. He has a vivid
recollection of many of the experiences which
fall only to the lot of the pioneer. He re-
mained in this State until 1839, and .then
started on a missionary tour among the In-
dians in the far West; he crossed the plains
to Oregon, and spent one year among the
savages; at the end of twelve months he re-
turned to Illinois and resumed farming, con-
tinuing this occupation until 1847; then he
again crossed the plains to Oregon, and dur-
ing that year the Indians attacked the mis-
sion twenty-five miles from Walla Walla and
murdered Dr. Whitman and others; he
•volunteered to assist in subduing the red-
skins, and was six months in the service. He
was in Oregon until 1849, and then went to
California; he was suffering from ill-health,
and his funds were limited compared with
the extremely high price of provisions, ftonr
selling as high as $2.50 a pound. In 1852
he returned to his home and located on the
old homestead which he now occupies.
Mr. McKee was married in 1853, to Sarah
C. Wilmot, a native of Steuben county, New
York. Mrs. McKee was educated in the
pioneer schools and at the age of twenty be-
gan to teach. Only one of the directors who
examined her could read and write; she re-
ceived for her services the magnificent sum
of $2.50 a week- Mr. and Mrs. McKee are
the parents of five daughters: Amanda, wife
of Henry Hite, died in February, 1882, leav-
ing an infant son, Archie M., who is being
reared by his grandparents; Mary C., died
in infancy; Ida S., wife of Samuel D. Wheel-
house, died in April, 1880; Bertha, wife of
Cyrus L. DeWitt; and Meta, who died in
October, 1889, aged fourteen years.
Politically Mr. McKee affiliates with the
Democratic party, although in former times
he was a Whig. He is a man of wide ex-
perience, having passed through all the
phases of life on the frontier. He has always
been loyal to the interests of Schuyler county,
and has the entire confidence and respect of
his fellow-men.
fACOB RITCHEY, an honored pioneer,
resides on section 12, Buena Vista town-
ship, and was born in Dayton, Mont-
gomery county, Ohio, on December 5, 1821.
When but two years of age his mother died,
336
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
and live years later he had the misfortune to
lose his father. There were six children,
five sons and one daughter. The oldest,
John, died in Schuyler county, Illinois;
George F. died in Rnshville, in the same
State; Charles is now residing in Rushville;
William G. died in Schuyler county; Susan
married Jasper Fatten, and died in Ohio;
our subject was next in birth to the youngest,
and on her death-bed his mother gave him to
her brother, Jacob Sawyer, with whom he re-
mained five years. He then accompanied his
brother George to Illinois, living with him
until he grew to manhood. He attended
school but little, as his time was engaged in
hard work on the farm. When twenty years
of age he was hired by a widow to work her
farm on shares, which he did for one year.
Later, his brother George married the widow,
and our subject rented his brother's former
farm, which he tilled until 1845, when he
rented eighty acres of William McKee, which
he cultivated for himself. While thus en-
gaged, he met Clara Ann, daughter of the
owner of this land, and their acquaintance
ripening into mutual affection, they were
married in 1849, when his father-in-law pre-
sented to him the eighty acres he had been
tilling, and on which he and his wife still
reside. He has made substantial improve-
ments on his land, in the way of buildings,
having a comfortable home and barns for his
grain and stock, besides other modern appli-
ances, to facilitate the sowing, harvesting and
garnering the products of the farm. Besides
this eighty acres, which is under a good state
of cultivation, he has purchased 167 acres
more in Rushville township, which he is also
farming.
Mr. and Mrs. Ritcheyhave seven children:
William Thomas, residing in Rushville town-
ship; Charles R., residing in Camden town-
ship; James, residing in Huntsville township;
Georgia Ann, living at home; Susan C., wife
of F. E. Moore; living in Cowley county,
Kansas; Amanda and Mary, living at home.
Mr. Ritchey is a member of the Republi-
can party, but takes no active part in politics
other than desiring the advancement and
welfare of the community. He is not a mem-
ber of any civic or religious society, but is lib-
eral in his views. He is a thoroughly honest
and industrious man, a good neighbor, kind
husband and indulgent father, and enjoys
the esteem of the community and the affection
of his family and friends.
H.ARLES A. SCHAEFFER, County
Superintendent of Schools of Cass
county, is thoroughly identified with
the educational interests of this county, and is
as popular as he is well known. A resume
of his life is herewith presented.
Mr. Schaeffer was born in what is now
Bluff Spring precinct, Cass county, Illinois,
May 24, 1855. His father, Calvin S. Schaef-
fer, was born in Monroe precinct, same
county, son of Phillip Schaeffer, a native of
Ohio. Phillip Schaeffer's father, John Schaef-
fer, was, it is supposed, a native of Pennsyl-
vania, and the family are descended from
German ancestry. John Schaeffer removed
to Ohio at an early day and was one of the
pioneer settlers of that State. He continued
his way westward in 1818 and took up his
abode in Cass county, Illinois, where he
passed his life. He and his worthy com-
panion reared six sons and six daughters.
Phillip Schaeffer was reared and married in
in Ohio, and moved from there to Illinois,
becoming one of the first settlers of what is
now Monroe precinct, Cass county. Here
SCHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
337
he entered a tract of Government land and
on it erected a cabin which served as the
family home for a number of years. Subse-
quently he built a frame dwelling. At that
time Beardstown, Jacksonville and Spring-
field were the principal markets in this part
of the country. There were no gristmills in
this vicinity, and on his farm he erected a
mill that he operated by horse power. People
came for many miles to get their corn ground
here. On this place he made his home until
the time of his death, in 1854. The maiden
name of his wife was Highly Carver. She
was born in Ohio, of English descent. Her
death occurred at the home place in 1880.
The names of their six children are Wash-
ington, Valentine W., Calvin S., Cyrus J.,
Martha A. and Elizabeth. Calvin S. was
reared on the farm and remained with his
parents until his marriage, soon after which
he moved to Petersburg and was engaged
in farming there for a time. He then came
back to Monroe Precinct and leased a part of
his father's estate, built a log house, aad
lived there about ten years. From there he
moved to his present farm, which includes a
part of his father-in-law's homestead in Hick-
ory precinct. His wife was before her mar-
riage Miss Mary Schafer, she being a daugh-
ter of Christopher and Rachel (Emerick)
Shafer. Calvin S. Schaeffer and his wife
reared six children, viz.: Charles A.; George
W.; Winters L.; William D.; Eachel A.;
and Jennie.
Charles A. Schaeffer received his early
education in the district schools, afterward
attending the Virginia High School and the
State Normal School at Normal, Illinois.
At the age of twenty-two he commenced
teaching, and taught and attended school for
nine years. On the thirty-first anniversary
of his birth he received the nomination for
County Superintendent of Schools, and was
elected at the ensuing election. Four years
later he was nominated by acclamation, and
elected by a largely increased majority. In
November, 1890, he bought an interest in
the Virginia Enquirer, in company with his
cousin, William A. S. Schaeffer (since de-
ceased), and soon afterward bought the re-
maining interest. He was then sole pro-
prietor of this paper until September, 1891,
at which time he sold the entire interest in
said paper to F. E. Downing.
Mr. Schaeffer was married, in 1882, to
Nellie M. Garner, a native of Oregon pre-
cinct, Cass county, Illinois, a daughter of
William S. and Nancy M. (Crews) Garner.
Two children have been born to them: Ledrn
G. and Edna Belle.
Mr. Schaeffer's political views are in har-
mony with Democratic principles. He cast
his first vote for Samuel J. Tilden. Frater-
nally, he is associated with Virginia Lodge,
Nq. 544, A. F. & A. M.; Saxon Lodge, No.
68, I. O. O. F.; and Virginia Camp, M.
W. A.
,111AM BENNETT BAXTER, an intel-
ligent and progressive farmer and stock-
raiser of township 17-9, near Ashland,
Illinois, was born and reared in Jefferson
county, Indiana.
His parents were William and Jane (Kerr)
Baxter, both natives of Ohio, his father hav-
ing been born in Dayton. His father's
father was a native of Ireland, who came to
America and settled in Pittsburg, Pennsyl-
vania, where he married a German lady,
named Rebecca Riddle. Mr. Baxter's ma-
ternal grandfather was Josiah Kerr, a native
ot Scotland. Thus he is ol Irish, German
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS 8,
and Scotch ancestry, three of the most intel-
ligent and progressive nationalities on the
face of the earth, and he wonld be a sad
renegade were he not likewise constituted.
His parents had ten sons and two daughters)
of whom the subject of this sketch was the
sixth in order of birth. James Riddle, the,
eldest brother, is an attorney of Bloom field
Greene county, Indiana; Josiah Kerr is a
retired physician of Sharpsville, Indiana;
Daniel Thomas, a mechanic, died in early
manhood, leaving a wife and two children^
all now deceased; Oliver H. P. was one of
the first white settlers in Pueblo, Colorado,
where he engaged in mining and speculating
in cattle, in which occupations he has been
very successful, having accumulated a fortune
of great wealth. He is now retired from
active business, and spends most of his time
in traveling, has been twice to Europe, and
last summer was in Alaska. William Alex-
ander died in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1877;
the next in order is the subject of this sketch;
George W. is a resident of Indianapolis, In-
diana; Hayden Hayes is in the cattle busi-
ness, near Pueblo, Colorado; Edward Arthur
is in the livery and undertaking business in
Sangamon county, Illinois; Leonidas Napo-
leon is farming the old Indiana homestead;
Havanna Siloam married Robert Williams, a
merchant of Madison, Indiana; Irena Hazel-
tine died in early childhood. In 1854 the
family -were called upon to mourn the loss of
the devoted wife and mother, whose life had
been one of self-abnegation and subservience
to her family's welfare. The father afterward
married her sister, and to this union one son,
Virgil, was born, who died in 1861. The
father died in August, 1861, and was interred
by the side of his first wife, near the old
home in Indiana. He was a prominent man
in his community and was very popular among
his associates, always heading every movement
for the moral and material improvement of
his locality. The second wife lives on the
old homestead. She is a lady of much cul-
ture and refinement, and is universally be-
loved.
The subject of this sketch was educated in
Indiana, and was reared to farm life, and in
the peaceful pursuits of rural and home life
spent his earlier days. This happy routine
was interrupted by civil discord, which rent
the country, and on July 14, 1861, he en-
listed at Madison, Indiana, in Company K,
Twenty-second Indiana Infantry. He par-
ticipated in the Missouri campaign, the first
encounter taking place at Glasgow, that State,
where Major Tanner was killed ; and also took
part in the fight at Blackwater, where the
Union forces took 1,300 of the enemy prison-
ers. Thence he accompanied his regiment,
under the supervision of General Fremont
to Springfield, Missouri. General Hunter
superseding General Fremont, they were re-
turned to their old quarters, under the imme-
diate command of General Curtis, with whom
they marched to Springfield and thence to the
battle at Pea Ridge, where the right flank
suffered severely. Thence they went to Cor-
inth, Mississippi, where they participated in
the siege of Corinth, after which they returned
to luka, that State, going from there to Flor-
ence, Alabama, and back again to Louisville,
marching 400 miles in August and September,
1862. After this they went to Perry ville, Ken-
tucky, where there was an engagement, in
which Mr. Baxter was shot through the left
knee, lying on the battlefield all night after
being wounded. There were thirty-five men
in his company on going into battle, and on
emerging there were but eight unharmed, ten
having been killed, thirteen wounded and four
taken prisoners. Mr. Baxter was sent to the
8CHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
839
hospital at Louisville, where he remained from
October 8, 1862, to February of the following
year. He rejoined his regiment at Mur-
freesboro, Tennessee, and there received his
commission as First Lieutenant, being pro-
moted from Duty Sergeant to that rank. In
the absence of the captain, who had been
wounded, Mr. Baxter at once assumed com-
mand of the company. His regiment re-
mained in Murfreesboro until June, and then
went on the Tullahoma campaign, following
the enemy as far as Chattanooga, and par-
ticipated in the historic battle of Chicka-
mauga. It then fell back to Chattanooga,
and engaged for a time in building fortifica-
tions. It next took part in the sanguinary
battle- of Missionary Ridge, at which it was
in Sheridan's division, and fought in the
center. The following morning it started on
a forced inarch for Knoxville, to relieve Burn-
side, who was surrounded by Longstreet.
During this rapid march, the regiment was
short of rations and had no tents. It was
encamped on Strawberry Plains for six weeks,
while the ground, the greater part of the time,
was covered with snow. At this place the
regiment re-enlisted for three years, and then
returned to Chattanooga, after which the men
were given a veteran furlough. At the ex-
piration of their leave of absence, they re-
joined their command at Chattanooga, whence
they started with General Sherman on his
memorable march to the sea, the Twenty-
second Indiana being in the advance brigade.
The enemy were met in force at Tunnel Hill
and Rocky Face Ridge, and next at Resaca,
Georgia, whence the Union forces proceeded
to Snake Creek Gap, where Mr. Baxter's di-
vision was separated from the main army,
and sent, under General Jefferson C. Davis,
via Rome, Georgia. Here an engagement
was fought, at which Mr. Baxter was again
wounded in the left leg, the same as before.
He remained about a month in Rome, when
he secured a leave of absence for forty days,
finally reporting to the officer's hospital, in
Cincinnati, where the board of examiners
ordered his discharge, General Slemmer
being the chief of the board. On being
discharged, August 29, 1864, he was granted
$8.50 a month, that being half of a first
lieutenant's pension.
In February, 1865, Mr. Baxter assisted in
raising a company for the One Hundred and
Forty-eighth Indiana Regiment, of which
company he became First Lieutenant and af-
terward Captain. This regiment was sent to
Columbia, Tennessee, where it did patrol duty
until September 6, 1865, when it was mus-
tered out of service.
Mr. Baxter then returned to his home in
Indiana, and was subsequently employed for
a time in the railroad business in Indianapo-
lis. December 15, 1866, he reached Jack-
sonville, Illinois, near which place he taught
school two years; later, he taught school for
another two years at Literberry, same State.
He was afterward engaged in selling goods
in the latter place, where he acted at various
times as railroad agent, Postmaster and Jus-
tice of the Peace, his residence there extend-
ing over a period of nine years.
In 1876 he was married, and included the
Centennial Exposition in his wedding tour,
visiting in old Virginia and spending a week
in Washington city. Miss Lydia Ellen Crum
was the lady of his choice, a daughter of
Abram A. and Sarah (Buchanan) Crnm, old
and highly respected residents of the vicinity
of Literberry, Illinois, where they still reside.
Mr. and Mrs. Baxter have two sons, — Albert,
born October 9, 1880, and William Abram,
born September 18, 1887.
340
BIOGRAPHIC 'AL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
In 1881, Mr. Baxter sold ohut is mercan-
tile interests in Literberry and removed to
his present farm, five miles west of Ashland,
where his father-in-law had given him $20,-
000 worth of land. He owns a farm of 760
acres on the garden spot of Illinois, and, as
for that matter, of the world, inasmuch as
there is no more fertile country on the globe
than that included in the Prairie State. This
season (1892), he has 260 acres of corn, 180
of wheat, and eighty of oats, the balance being
meadow and pasture land. He has here a
substantial farm residence, neatly and com-
fortably arranged; large barns for his grain
and stock; and many other valuable improve-
ments.
Mr. Baxter is a stanch Republican and
takes an active interest in political matters.
He has been a candidate for various offices,
but his party being in the minority he was
never elected, yet succeeded in helping to
hold the party organization together.
He belongs to the G. A. R. and was the
first commander of John L. Douglas Post,
.No. 591, at Ashland, having served two terms
in that capacity.
Seven of Mr. Baxter s brothers were in the
army, no two of whom were in the same regi-
ment, and all returned home, and still sur-
vive. Dr. Josiah was a Surgeon in the army ;
and Hayden was taken prisoner, stripped of
his clothing and other valuables, paroled and
turned loose, walking all the way home from
Arkansas Post. Of this family there were
one Surgeon, two Captains one Lieutenant,
and three privates in the service. The sub-
ject of this sketch received three commissions,
two as First Lieutenant, and one as Captain,
all from the hands of the famous war Gover-
nor Oliver P. Morton. Mr. Baxter received
two wounds at the hands of the rebels, which
compelled him to spend some eight months in
the hospital. During the total period of
three years and eight months he served two
years in command of his company; and, while
he was one of the youngest soldiers in it, he
thinks he did his part.
Had this family lived in Napoleon's time,
they would have been greatly honored, inas-
much as he valued families only in proportion
to the number of sons contributed to the in-
satiable monster of war. It is the disadvan-
tage of republican forms of government,
that they bestow no special privileges for
services rendered by their inhabitants other
than the universal gratitude of millions living
and unborn, which is supplemented, in the
breasts of those champions of liberty in the
late war, by a deep sense of duty done, which
soothes the wounded spirit and begets a peace
which passeth understanding.
fREDERICK C. LANG, a self-made man
and one of the prominent merchants of
Virginia, Illinois, belongs to that race
of people — the Germans — noted this world
over for their energy and thrift. By his own
well-directed efforts he has risen to a position
of prosperity, and at the same time has won the
confidence and respect of all with whom he
has had dealings, being now classed with the
substantial business men and highly respected
citizens of Virginia. It is with pleasure
that we present the following facts in regard
to his life and ancestry.
Frederick C. Lang was born on the river
Tech, village of Omden, in the Kingdom of
Wiirttemburg, Germany, September 7, 1848.
His father, Christopher Frederick Lang, was
born in the same locality. His grandparents,
as far as known, spent their entire lives in
Wiirttemburg. Christopher F. Lang was
SGHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
341
reared and educated in his native land and
there served an apprenticeship to the trade of
a weaver, weaving at that time being chiefly
done on the hand loom. He followed that
trade in Germany till 1855, in the early part
of which year lie set sail from Havre de
Grace, with his wife and three children, and
landed in America in March, after a voyage
of nearly three months. He went direct to
Indianapolis, where he was employed at va-
rious kinds of work. Finally he secured a
position as porter in a wholesale drug store,
and was thus engaged for a number of years.
He resided in Indianapolis until his death, in
1887. The maiden name of his first wife,
mother of Frederick C., was Mary Liebrich.
She was also a native of Wiirttemburg. She
reared three children: Frederick 0., George
and Mary.
Mr. Lang, being only six years old when
he came to America, remembers little of
any other save his adopted country. He
was educated in the public schools of Indian-
apolis, was reared to habits of industry, and at
the age of fifteen was apprenticed to Jacob
Yoegtle, a tinsmith, of Indianapolis, and served
four years. He did "jour" work in Indian-
apolis one year, after which he went to Jack-
sonville, Illinois, and was employed in the
same kind of work six years. He was very
industrious, saved his money, and in 1874
came to Virginia and began busines for him-
self. He first opened a stock of stoves and
tinware, and in 1885 added hardware. He
now carries a full line of shelf hardware,
stoves, tinware, etc. In connection with his
store he also conducts a repair shop, having
first-class machinery for doing all kinds of
job work, tin roofing and the like.
In 1877 Mr. Lang was united in marriage
with Mary Tendick, a native of Jacksonville,
Illinois, and a daughter of Deidrich and Sib-
ilia Tendick, natives of Germany. They
have four children: George, Clara, Flora and
Willie.
Mr. and Mrs. Lang are members of the
Presbyterian Church. Politically, he is a
Republican.
R. GEORGE A. BYRNS was born in
Cincinnati, Ohio, September 30, 1829.
His father, John, was born in Pennsyl-
vania, and his father, Michael, was born in
Ireland, of Scotch ancestry. He came to
America a young man and followed his trade
of paper maker, and he met his death in 1825,
by an accident in the mill in which he was
working. John learned the same trade, fol-
lowed the trade in Cincinnati for a few years
and then began clerking on a steamboat run-
ning on the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. In
a very early day he came to Illinois as a mem-
ber of a surveying party and assisted in mak-
ing surveys in the middle of the State. In
1840 he emigrated thither with his family and
settled four miles north of Mt. Sterling,
bought a farm and followed farming until
1849. He then started with others for Cal-
ifornia, and after six months' travel with ox
teams, landed there safely. He engaged
there in mining for seven years and then re-
turned to Mt. Sterling and lived retired until
his death, in 1865. He was a soldier in the
war of 1812. His wife was Harriet E.
Hobbs, born in Scott county, Kentucky,
daughter of Joseph Hobbs. She still lives in
Mt. Sterling at the advanced age of eighty-six
years.
George was in his eleventh year when he
came to Illinois with his parents. He re-
ceived his early education in the schoools of
Cincinnati, advanced by attendance in the
342
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS 8,
schools of Brown county, Illinois. At the
age of eighteen he began teaching, and three
years later began the study of medicine. In
the winter of 1851-'52 he attended, lectures
at Rush Medical College. He then com-
menced practice at Cooperstown. In 1854
he returned to Rush Medical College and
graduated in the class of 1855, then resumed
practice at Cooperstown until 1862. In No-
vember of that year he entered the United
States service as Assistant Surgeon of the One
Hundred and Nineteenth Illinois Infantry,
continuing in service until after the close of
the war, participating in all the marches and
campaigns of his regiment. He was honor-
ably discharged and returned home and was
in active practice at Cooperstown, with the
exception of two years, 1866 to 1868, when
he was in Mt. Sterling, until 1891, when he
came to Mt. Sterling and has practiced here
since.
He married in 1854, Cynthia A. Henry,
born in Cooperstown, Brown county, Illinois.
She was the daughter of Orris M. Henry, one
of the pioneers of Brown county, and for
many years one of the most extensive busi-
ness men. Dr. and Mrs. Byrns have seven
living children: John H., Robert A., Elmer,
Susan, Candace, Kate and Hattie. "William,
the second son, died at the age of thirty-
three years. The Doctor is a member of
Isaac McNeil Post, No. 289, G. A. R., and of
Hardin Lodge, No. 44, A. F. & A. M.
iBNER LEGRAND NOBLE has been
for many years prominently identified
with the history of Schuyler county,
and is entitled to the following space in this
volume. He is a native of Madison county,
Kentucky, born June 12, 1822, a son of Will-
iam Noble of Lexington, Kentucky; the fa-
ther was born, reared and married in the Blue-
grass State, and there learned the trade of
house painting, which he pursued many
years. He resided in Kentucky until 1835,
and then with his wife and six children re-
moved to Illinois; they made the journey
with teams, camping along the way. Mr.
Noble located in what is now Bainbridge
township, where he purchased a tract of tim-
ber land; a tew acres had been cleared and a
two-story house had been built of hewn logs;
here he lived several years, and finally sold
the place and purchased another near by, on
which he lived until death. He married
Eleanor Ransom of Virginia, and a daughter
of Ignatius Ransom, also a Virginian by
birth. Abner Legrand Noble was a lad of
twelve years when he came with his parents
to Illinois, and remembers well many of the
privations and hardships endured by the fam-
ily. He received a limited education, and
in early youth began to assist his father on
the farm. He has been for years an exten-
sive reader, and has made up for the deficien-
cies of his early training. He remained with
his parents until attaining his majority; he
then learned the cooper's trade, and opened a
shop in Rushville, manufacturing and selling
to the trade for several years; he was com-
pelled to close out the business on account of
ill health.
In 1847, Mr. Noble was elected Constable,
and for more than thirty-five years attended
to the collections of this office; during this
time he served three terms as Deputy Sheriff,
one term as County Clerk, and one and a
half terms as a member of the County Board
of Supervisors. He was a very efficient offi-
cer, and gave entire satisfaction to the public.
He was married October 28, 1845, to
Catherine Serrot, a native of Ohio, and a
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
343
daughter of Peter and Nancy (Patton) Serrot.
Of this union four children were born, two
of whom survive: Phoebe Jackson, Dora and
Ruth Tetrick; the only son, William H.,
died at the age of eighteen years; Mary J.,
the oldest, married William D. Sperry: her
death occurred in 1890. Mr. and Mrs. No-
ble are members of the Methodist Episcopal
Church. In early days Mr. Noble was a
member of the Whig party, and cast his suf-
frage for Lincoln ; latterly he has voted with
the Democratic party. For some time he has
held the office of Police Magistrate.
ANDREW CUNNINGHAM, of town-
ship 17, range 9, section 6, Virginia
post office, Illinois, was born near Edin-
borough, Scotland, December 17, 1806. His
parents were James and Marion (Wright)
Cunningham, natives of Scotland, where they
lived and died. His father was a baker and
miller by occupation and owned and operated
a flouring mill in the village of Bonnington,
a suburb of Edinborough. They had eight
children: Archibald, John, Charles, Georgef
Andrew, Margaret, Jeanette and Mary, now
Mrs. Russell, living at Edinborough. The
eldest brother died in Scotland. Charles, who
was British Consul to Russia and died at Gal-
atz, on the Black sea. John and George died
in Cass county, Illinois, leaving families.
Margaret was Mrs. Blair and died in Edin-
borough. Jeanette became Mrs. Shaen and
died in England.
Mr. Cunningham was educated in his own
country, where he learned the baker trade, and
sailed for America March 14, 1834. He
was married in Canada, in 1836, to Ellen
Allen, who was also born in Scotland, in 1812.
She died in 1880. In 1835 he came to Cass
county to look up a location and in the be-
ginning of 1837 settled on his present farm.
He entered about 700 acres of land, to
which he has since added by purchase until
he owns about 1,000 acres all, adjoining
his present home. On locating here he
started a tannery on his farm and followed
that business until after the war. He has
since superintended his large estate and taken
life more easily. He is a literary man, keeps
himself surrounded with newspapers and
books and has a valuable library where he
spends most of his time. Mr. and Mrs. Cun-
ningham have five children: William went
into the army in 1862 in the Third Illinois
Cavalry, Company C, and died at Helena,
Arkansas, Decmber 12, following; Andrew
died in infancy; Margaret married Dr. Al-
fred S. Dodds of Andrew county, Missouri;
James A. lives with his father and superin-
tends the farms; Florence married a lawyer,
A. G. Jones, at Mt. Pulaski, Illinois. She
attends the college at Lincoln, Illinois, but
Margaret finished her education in England.
The boys all had good school education. An-
drew afterward attended a business college at
Chicago. Mr. Cunningham is a Unitarian
in religious belief, a Republican in politics
and was a Whig before the organization of
the Republican party. His first presidental
vote was cast for Clay. He has been a School
Trustee and Director. Both he and his son
James are mechanically inclined. He has
given a portion of his leisure time to sculpt-
ure, having now on exhibition two very fine
ideal images of Venus and Hercules, besides
other articles of animal sculpture.
James Cunningham settled in Charlestown,
South Carolina, previous to the breaking out
of the Revolutionary war. He at first served
in the militia, under King George, and sub-
844
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
seqnently joined with the Colonial forces,
with which he remained during hostilities.
Mr. Wright, the father of Marion Wright,
also served in the war with the mother
country.
?OSHUA HEDGCOCK was born in
Schuyler county, Illinois, February 2,
1843, onthe place where he now resides, a
son of John and Temperance Hedgcock. He
received his education at the public schools,
remaining at home until August, 1862, when
he enlisted, at the age of twenty, as a private
in Company G, Seventy-second .Regiment
Illinois Volunteers, Captain H. D. French
commanding the company. His was the first
Board of Trade regiment made up in Chicago,
commanded by Colonel F. A. Starring. He
was in the battles of Champion Hills, Big
Black, Benton, Mississippi; siege of Vicks-
burg; Columbia and Spring Hill, Tennessee;
Nashville, December, 1864, and Spanish Fort,
Alabama, in April, 1865. He was discharged
as Second Sergeant at the close of the war,
with the record of which he is justly proud.
He returned home in August, 1865, and
lived with his father until his death, May 20,
1877, aged seventy-four years, and now occu-
pies the old Spring Hill home of seventy-
eight and one- half acres, which his father first
bought and settled on in this country. He
has now 230 acres.
Joshua was married first January 9, 1870,
to Miss Susan E. Glover, born in Hancock
county, and died here January 9, 1872, aged
twenty-six years. She left one son, who sur-
vived her eight months. Joshua was mar-
ried for the second time, to Miss Anna M.
Totten, April 10, 1879, who was born in
Adams county, September 26, 1854, and by
this marriage there are six children. Mr.
and Mrs. Hedgcock attend the Methodist
Protestant Church. He is a member of Post
No. 302, G. A. K., at Augusta, Illinois; has
been Assessor of his township. His first
vote was cast while home on furlough, for
Lincoln, and every president he has since
voted for has been elected, except one.
EORGE W. McCOY, an extensive
farmer of Mt. Sterling, Illinois, was
born in Adams county, Ohio, January
1, 1831. His father, Samuel McCoy, was
born in Cecil county, Maryland, in 1796.
The grandfather of our subject, Alexander
McCoy, was born in Ireland, of Scotch an-
cestry. His parents were poor and he com-
menced very early to earn his own living,
being brought up to work in a factory. He
was a lad in his 'teens when he came to
America and located in Maryland, where his
parents who had preceded him to America
were then living. He learned the cooper's
trade, which he followed for some time. He
was twice married but lost both of his wives
before coming to Ohio. After the death of
his second wife he removed with his children
\
to Ohio and lived in that State some years,
and then spent his last years in Brown
county. The father of our subject died in
1882, in the eighty-fif th year of his age. He
was about eighteen years old when he went
to Ohio. He was very industrious, saved
his earnings and finally purchased land in
Adams county. He then turned his atten-
tion to agricultural pursuits but still fol-
lowed his trade a portion of each year. He
resided inAdams county until 1839, and then
sold his farm there and came to Illinois. He
was accompanied by his wife and three chil-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
345
dren, and the entire journey was made over-
land. After about fifteen days' travel they
landed in Brown county. He purchased a
tract of land near Versailles, and there de-
voted his time to farming. He was a resi-
dent of Brown county until his death, which
occurred as before stated.
The maiden name of the mother of our
subject was Sarah Pilston. She was born in
in Virginia, a daughter of William and
Easter Pilston. She died in Ohio in 1834.
The subject of this writing was in his
ninth year when he came to Illinois with his
parents. At that time the country was wild
and deer, wild turkeys, and other game were
quite plentiful. Farming was conducted in
the most primitive manner. All the grass
was cut with a scythe, and the grain was
either cut with a reap hook or a cradle and
trampled out with horses or with a flail.
There were no fanning-mills, and in order to
clean the grain one man would take it in a
seive and hold it high and two others would
stand by with a sheet with which they fanned
the air and in that manner separated the
grain from the chaff.
Mr. McCoy remained with his father until
nineteen years of age, then commenced farm-
ing on rented land. When he attained his
majority his father gave him $250, and with
that and his earnings he had enough to pay
cash on 120 acres of land, which is now in-
cluded in the farm he now occupies. The
whole price of the farm was $680, and he
paid six per cent, interest on the balance.
He lived in a log cabin and in that humble
abode himself and wife commenced house-
keeping. They occupied that dwelling about
eighteen months and then built a brick
house. Since that time he has erected a
commodious frame house and other build-
ings, planted fruit and shade trees and
placed the land in a high state of cultivation.
He has been very successful as a farmer and
has purchased other land at different times
and is now the owner of about 500 acres, all
in Brown county.
The marriage of Mr. McCoy took place
January 27, 1853, to Sarah Harper. She
was born in Ohio, August 29, 1835, and was
the daughter of Elder James Harper. Mrs. .
McCoy died November 2, 1868, and Mr.
McCoy subsequently married Lucinda, a
sister of his former wife, October 28, 1869.
She was born in Brown county, Illinois,
April 17, 1847, and died May 7, 'l890. He
was married to Laura J. Putman, October
28, 1891. She was born in Ohio, August 7,
1841. Her father, William Putman, was
born in Bourbon county, Kentucky, October
16, 1797, and was the son of Zachariah and
Winnifred (Collins) Putman. The parents
of Mrs. McCoy moved to Ohio and resided
in Champaign county for some years, com-
ing from there to Illinois in 1841, at
which time the father purchased a farm in
Mt. Sterling township, which he occupied
until his death, July 24, 1880. Mr. McCoy
has five children by his first marriage: Elvira,
Mahala, Mary Jane, Turner and Martha. Of
his second marriage there are William and
Arthur. Mr. and Mrs. McCoy are members
of the Primitive Baptist Church and are
good pious people. In politics he affiiliates
with the Democratic party. He has served
long as Supervisor and has been Chairman of
the Board.
fOHN DIRREEN, ex-Sheriff of Cass
county, was born in Virginia precinct,
Cass county, Illinois, July 29, 1840.
He is one of the representative men of his
346
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASH,
county, and as such merits biographical men-
tion in this work. Briefly given, a review
of his life is as follows:
While tradition says that the Dirreen fam-
ily originated in France, their ancestry is
traced back only to the grandfather of John
Dirreen, who was born in Ireland. Three of
his children came from the Emerald Isle to
America, and located as follows: John set-
tled in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he was a
customhouse official upwards of forty years,
at the end of that time retiring on half-pay.
He died there, aged ninety-three years.
Michael bought a farm in New York State,
and still resides on it. Edward Dirreen was
born iu county Callan, Ireland, and was
there reared. He came to America when a
young man and settled in Philadelphia,
where he married. He subsequently moved
to St. Louis, and from there came to Cass
county, Illinois, about 1835, settling in Vir-
ginia precinct. Here he entered a tract of
Government land, four miles from the site of
the present courthouse, and built the log
cabin in which the subject of our sketch was
born. At that time the country was thinly
settled and deer and wild turkey were plenty
in this region. The whistle of the locomo-
tive had not sounded here, and Beardstowu
was the market seat for the surrounding
country. In 1855 he sold his farm and
bought another in the same locality, where
he resided until his death. His widow, whose
maiden name was Jane Henphey, still re-
sides on the old homestead. They were the
parents of seven children: Catherine, Eliza,
Alice, John, Richard, Edward and Michael.
Eliza and Eichard are deceased.
John Dirreen received his education in
the primitive log schoolhouses of his native
county. As soon as he was old enough he
assisted his father on the farm, remaining
under the parental roof until he was twenty-
one. He was then employed for three years
by others, at the end of which time he en-
gaged in farming on his own account. In
the fall of 1877, on account of the ill health
of his wife, he went to Texas, remaining there
till January, 1878, when he returned to Illi-
nois. That spring he was made a Deputy
Sheriff, and has been connected with the
office of Sheriff continuously since. In 1886
he was elected Sheriff, and served one term,
which is the limit prescribed by law. At
the expiration of his term he was again ap-
pointed deputy, which position he still holds.
Mr. Dirreen was married in 1871, to
Mary Cunningham, a native of Kentucky,
and a daughter of George and Maria (Lind-
sey) Cunningham, natives of Scotland and
Kentucky respectively. Mrs. Dirreen died
in February, 1878, and in November, 1886,
he married Alice Burrows. By his first wife
he has one daughter, Josephine, and by the
second, a son, Edward.
Mr. Dirreen is a member of Virginia
Lodge, A. O. U. W.
1LLIAM JOCKISCH, a retired
farmer, of Beardstown, was born in
Liepsic, Saxony, Germany, in 1829.
His parents, Carl G. and Eliza (Jacob) Jock-
isch, were born in Saxony. Mr. Jockisch,
Sr., was a farmer and distiller for some years
before he and his family embarked for the
United States in 1834. They went to New
Orleans, and then worked their way up the
Mississippi river to St. Louis, and there the
mother died at the birth of her tenth child.
Mr. Jockisch was left with his small children
to make the rest of the trip alone. He
stopped in Cass county for some time, and
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
347
then was married a second time to Mrs.
Christina Long, of Germany. Mr. Jockisch
died in this county, and his wife followed
him some ten years later. They were at first
Lutherans, and later Methodists.
William Jockisch is the youngest but one
of nine children that grew to maturity. Two
of his brothers are in the same county. He
began farming at an early age, and by his
good management has amassed a small for-
tune, which he now enjoys in retirement in
his comfortable and pleasant home on the
corner of Sixth and Edwards streets. He
owns 300 acres of good, tillable land, be-
sides other lands which lie southwest of
Beardstown. The building of the railroad
has aided him greatly in making his fortune,
as much of the land he owned was increased
by the building of the road.
He was married to Elizabeth Rohn, of
Beardstown, Illinois. She was bom in 1839,
in Beardstown, and lived there till 1855.
She was the daughter of John and Catharine
(Stier) Rohn, of Hesse- Darmstadt. They
came to the northwest, early in life, and were
married in Beardstown. Mrs. Rohn is still
living, and is nearly eighty-nine years of
age. Mr. Rohn was a plasterer by trade, and
was the proprietor of the ferry at Beardstown
at the time of his death. He was a Repub-
lican in politics, and a Lutheran in religion.
Mrs. Jockisch is the eldest of four children.
Mr. and Mrs. Jockisch have had seven chil-
dren, two of whom are dead, Mary A. and
Rosena A. Those living are: Elizabeth, now
the wife of J. T. Brines, a farmer in Schuyler
county; J. Victor, at home, and clerking for
Phil Kuhl; Anna A., now Mrs. Cad Allard
(see biography); Rosa, now Mrs. Dr. J. C.
Henny, of Beardstown, the leading dentist;
Rudolph, deputy clerk in the post office of
Beardstown. The children have all been
well educated. They are all members of the
Methodist Church, of which Mr. Jockisch
has been Trustee for four years, and a mem-
ber of the building committee of the new
church that has just been erected.
Mr. Jockisch is one of the promoters and
a director of the First National Bank of
Beardstown, as well as one of the heaviest
stockholders in the same. He was appointed
Public Administrator in and for the county
of Cass September 13, 1892. He is a worthy
citizen of this thriving place, and as he has
lived in the county since his fourth year, and
in the town for the last twenty years, he is
one of the pioneers of the place and is a pio-
neer of whom Illinois may well be proud.
>ENRY VENT RES was born in Smith
county, Tennessee, January 25, 1812.
His parents, Asa and Nancy (Wake-
field) Ventres, were of Welsh and English
ancestry respectively. The former was born
December 24, 1793, and the latter was boru
about the same time. Soon after the war of
1812, in which he was a soldier, he located
in St. Glair county, Illinois, where he died
about 1818.
Henry was the eldest of a family of four
children, three of whom are still living. He
learned the brick- making trade in early man-
hood, and worked at that and brick-laying up
to the time he came to Illinois, and has
engaged in it since coming to this State.
Coining to Illinois at such an early date, the
family have witnessed a wonderful growth in
the country. The Black Hawk band was
located on Rock river, and frequently infested
the settlers. Mr. Ventres has held the vari-
ous township offices, and given satisfaction
in every one. He settled on his present
348
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF. C ASS,
farm in 1834, and is one of the oldest settlers
of the county. There was only an occasional
log cabin in the county. The land which he
took up was a military tract, which he pur-
chased, consisting of 160 acres of land, to
which he has added forty acres since.
He was married in Monroe county, Ken-
tucky, to Miss Elizabeth Jones, January 27,
1833. In 1883 they celebrated their golden
wedding, and are looking forward to the cele-
bration of a diamond one. They have had
nine children, of whom five are still living,
namely: William C., a miller and merchant,
located in Kansas; Ophelia, now Mrs. A. R.
Marshall, of Gove county, Kansas: her hus-
band is a farmer and stock-raiser; Sarah,
now Mrs. T. Shippy, of Plymouth, Illinois:
her husband is a teacher by profession; Lucy
A., now Mrs. Beck, of Pueblo, Colorado: her
husband is a merchant; Walter Maro resides
on a farm adjoining his father's: he married
Miss Maggie Diamond. Mr. and Mrs. Ven-
ters have been consistent members of the
Christian Church for sixty years. Mr. Ven-
ters has been a life-long Democrat, but is
disgusted with both the old parties. He has
been a man of exemplary habits, not using
any kind of intoxicants or tobacco in any
form. Mr. and Mrs. Venters are comfort-
ably situated, and are enjoying the fruits of
their early labors.
}RS. SALLIE (BRYANT) LUT-
TERELL, of section 9, Browning
township, was born in Virginia in
1792. She is the oldest person in Schuyler
county, and there are very few in the State
who can boast of being 100 years old. Should
she live until the 25th of June she will be
100 years old. She came to Sehuyler county
in 1830, and has been a resident of the county
ever since. Her husband, Shelton Lutterell,
was a soldier in the war of 1812, and fought
at the battle of Horse Bud and various other
points. They were married November 13,
1813, and their married life lasted for sixty-
nine years, four months and seventeen days,
when Mr. Lutterell died, in the house where
his widow still resides. He was born May
12, 1794. They were among the first settlers
of Browning township, where Mr. Lutterell
owned a farm. Mrs. Luttereli's parents were
natives of Patrick county, Virginia. Mrs.
Lutterell raised a family of twelve children,
and she has survived all but three of them, —
Sarah Skiles, Nancy Wright and Oil ie Thorn-
ton. Mrs. Lutterell has lived with her daugh-
ter, Mrs. Thornton, since the death of her
husband. Mr. Thornton, the husband of her
daughter, was born in Jackson county, Ten-
nessee, September 10, 1819, and he was the
son of Felix and Celetha (Holly) Thornton.
They were born and reared to maturity in
Raleigh, North Carolina, but came to this
county iu 1829, and located on a farm near
Mr. Luttereli's. They had five sons and the
•r
same number of daughters, but only five of
them are living. Mr. Thornton was married
in Browning township, June 23, 1844, to
Miss Ollie Lutterell. They have eight chil-
dren, but only four are living: William I.,
deceased; Sarah C., wife of John Flemmiug,
and lives in Browning village; Delilah J.,
deceased; Patsy Ann, wife of David Stead-
man, and lives in Browning township; Mar-
tha Ellen married William Thornton, and
lives in the same place; John A. lives in
Browning. Two children died in infancy.
A grandson, Chester R., lives with his grand-
mother.
Mrs. Luttereli's father was a John Bryant,
and was the son of another John Bryant.
SCHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
349
Her mother was Judy Wentfrey. She is a
member of the Christian Church, as are Mr.
and Mrs. Thornton, and she has been one for
fifty years. Mr. Thornton has been a resi-
dent of the township for sixty-three years,
and he has seen many wonderful changes
take place in the county. He has traveled
in the States of Kentucky, Iowa, Missouri,
Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana and Illinois.
He has always been a farmer by occupation.
He is a Democrat in politics, and his sons
are Democrats in their political views.
JVERTON PARKE, a substantial farmer
and influential citizen of Woodstock
township, Schuyler county, Illinois, was
born in Brown county, of the same State,
October 8, 1841. His parents were Perry and
Mary (Logsdon) Parke. (See sketch of Perry
and Joseph Logsdon for history of the Logs-
dons.) They were both natives of Kentucky,
and came to Illinois at an early day, and still
reside in "Woodstock township, near the home
of our subject.
The subject of our sketch was reared on the
home farm and attended the country schools
of his district during the winters. He re*
maiued at home until he was twenty years of
age, assisting his father and going to school,
when, on August 11, 1862, he enlisted in
Company D, One Hundred and Fifteenth
Illinois Infantry, serving in the Civil war un-
til its close, with the exception of a few
weeks, during which he was in the hospital
at Louisville, Kentucky. With the excep-
tion of these few weeks he served with his
regiment through every skirmish and battle
until the great conflict was over. After the
war he returned to his home in Schuyler
county, where he rented a farm for a year,
24
when, in the fall of 1866, he was married to
Miss Rosanna C. Reddick. She was a native
of Woodstock township, Schuyler county,
Illinois, where she was born April 25, 1851,
her parents being pioneers and prominent
people of this county, viz. : John J. and Mary
(Clark) Reddick. (See sketch of John Clark
for history of Clark family.) John J. Red-
dick was a son of Jonathan Reddick, and
came to this county with his parents when
he was only about one or two years of age.
His parents came from Kentucky about 1830
and located in Schuyler county, being among
the earliest settlers of that county, where they
resided until their death. They were among
the most prominent and successful agricult-
urists of their vicinity, and highly respected
by all who knew them. It is on their home-
stead that our subject now resides, which is
one of the finest farms in the country, well
improved with substantial house and large
barns for grain and stock, while the land is
highly cultivated, and supplied with all the
modern machinery and appliances for the
sowing and harvesting of their products. But,
immediately after his marriage, Mr. Parke
had no such splendid home, living for several
years on a part of his father's farm, which he
rented. He and his wife resided here until
the death of her parents, since when they
have lived in the present home, which through
the energy and enterprise of our subject has
been greatly improved, and which comprises,
at the present writing, more than 300 acres
of the finest agricultural land in the country.
Mr. and Mrs. Parke have had eleven chil-
dren, five of whom are now living, viz.: John
E., Maggie A., Elizabeth, Nettie C. and
Rosanna C.
Politically Mr. Parke is a Republican, and
ever since his first vote for General U. S.
Grant he has voted the straight Republican
350
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF .CASS,
ticket. Pie is a member of the Gr. A. R.
Post at Rushville, Illinois. He and his
estimable wife are members of the church,
for the cause of which they are earnest
workers, as, indeed, they are in every worthy
cause. Both are ardently interested in the
advancement and welfare of their county and
the country at large, and both enjoy alike the
respect and esteem of the community in
which they live.
FRANCIS MARION STOUT, a large
land-owner of Mount Sterling, was born
near Georgetown, Scott county, Ken-
tucky, January 29, 1823. His ancestors were
English, his great-grandfather coming from
England, settling in New Jersey at a very
early date. His grandfather, Eli Stout, came
from New Jersey to Kentucky at the begin-
ning of the present century. He journeyed
down the Ohio river, exposed to considerable
danger from the Indians, on the banks of the
stream. He was a pioneer of Fayette county,
Kentucky, and died in Owen county, same
State. Isaac Stout, father of subject, was
boru in Scott county, Kentucky, where he
was reared, educated and married. The
latter event occurred when he led to the
altar Miss Lydia Baxter, native of the same
State. He died in Leesburg, Harrison county,
Kentucky, of cholera, in 1833, his wife hav-
ing died a few days previous.
Francis M. Stout was the oldest of four
children, and was only ten years old when his
parents died. He was reared by his paternal
grandfather and grew to manhood in Scott
county, Kentucky, and in Owen county
where he attended the subscription schools,
and high schools, at Owenton, Kentucky. In
1844 he came to Illinois, landing in Brown
county in June of that year. Pie first taught
school a few years and then began the pot-
tery business, in Ripley, in which he con-
tinued for over thirty years. He also em-
barked in mercantile pursuits and continued
in that busines for about the same length of
time. He has now retired from these pur-
suits and resides on his fine farm in Ripley,
where he is a large landowner.
Mr. Stout was married, the first time to
Margaret Alexander, native of Tennessee,
and this event took place December, 1846.
This wife died, September, 1851, and in
January, 1853, he married Nancy C. Alex-
ander, a sister of his first wife, who has proven
herself a good, faithful wife.
Mr. Stout cast his first vote for Zachary
Taylor, and has been a Republican since the
formation of the party. He is a devout fol-
lower of the teachings of Alexander Camp-
bell.
This gentleman is a representative citizen
of this part of the great State of Illinois,
and he enjoys the respect and esteem of all
his neighbors and friends.
fOSEPH L. COSNER, one of the lead,
ing merchants of Virginia, was born on
a farm in Philadelphia precinct, Cass
county, Illinois, June 26, 1855. Of his life
and ancestry we record the following facts:
Thomas Jefferson Cosner, his father, was
born in Lincoln county, North Carolina, July
31, 1815, son of Henry Cosner, who is sup-
posed to have been a native of the same State.
The latter was a blacksmith by trade, at which
he worked in Lincoln county till about 1830,
when he went to Indiana, being accompanied
by his wife and six children, camping along
the way and being six weeks in making the
SGHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
351
journey. He became one of the early settlers
of Monroe county; bought a claim and en.
tered a tract of Government land two and
one-half miles west of Mt. Tabor. There was
a log house on the place and a garden spot
cleared. He worked at his trade, devoted
his spare time to the improvement of his land,
and lived there until his death. The maiden
name of his first wife, grandmother of Joseph
L., was Elizabeth Isahower. She was born in
North Carolina, and died in Monroe county,
Indiana. She reared seven children, viz.:
Elizabeth, Sally, Joseph, Thomas J., Andrew,
Lewis and Maria. Thomas J. was fifteen
years old when his parents moved to Indiana,
and he remained there with his father till
1836, when, in company with his brother-in-
law, Martin Goble, he came to Illinois, mak-
ing the journey by team. Here he was em-
ployed at farm work, first receiving $9 per
month, and later $13. He continued to
work for one man, Jacob Epler, the greater
part of the time for a dozen years. He then
purchased 120 acres of raw prairie land, built
a small frame dwelling, and commenced
housekeeping. He was successful as a farmer,
bought other lands, and is now the owner
of 436 acres, all in township 17. He erected
a good set of frame buildings on his farm,
and continued his residence there, with the
exception of short periods spent in Virginia,
until 1887, when he removed to Virginia, and
now lives retired. He was married in 1850,
to Emily (Stevenson) Beard, who was born
one mile from Lexington, Fayette county,
Kentucky, December 20, 1827. Her father,
Thomas Stevenson, is supposed to have been
a native of the same county, his father having
been a pioneer of Fayette county, where he
spent his last years. Thomas Stevenson spent
his life on a farm, and died near Lexington
in 1831. The maiden name of his wife was
Lucy Wyatt, she being a native of Kentucky
and a daughter of Walter Wyatt. Her father
was a Virginian by birth. He was one of the
pioneers of Fayette county, and from there,
in 1835, moved to Illinois, settlingon Indian
creek in Morgan county, where he bought
land, improved a farm, and resided there till
his death. The maiden name of his wife was
Julia Bliss. She, too, was a native of Vir-
ginia, and died in Morgan county, Illinois.
After the death of Mr. Wyatt she was mar-
ried to John Creel, and came to Illinois in
1837, settling ten miles northeast of Jackson-
ville, where t>he resided till her death. The
mother of our subject was ten years old when
she came to Illinois with her parents, and re-
members well the incidents of the overland
journey and of pioneer life here. She assisted
her mother in the household duties when
quite young, and learned to card, spin and
weave. After the death of her mother she
went to live with her sister, with whom she
made her home until her seventeenth year,
when she was married to Maston Beard. He
was a farmer of Morgan county, and died
there. The parents of Mrs. Cosner are both
members of the Methodist Episcopal Cliurch,
They reared seven children, viz.: John T.and
Jacob deceased; Henry, Joseph L., Lucy,
George and Mollie.
Joseph L. Cosner was reared on a farm.
He attended the district school a portion of
each year, and subsequently advanced his edu-
cation by a two years' course at Virginia.
In 1874 he commenced his mercantile career
as a clerk in the store of William B. Payne,
and clerked five years. In 1879 he started
for the gold fields of Colorado; prospected
and mined about a year; had little success in
finding gold, and returned home and engaged
in farming. A year later he formed a part-
nership with J. J. Bergen, with whom he was
352
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Off GASS,
associated in the mercantile business three
years, after which the partnership dissolved.
He then bought out the firm of Bergslesser &
Jones, and has since conducted business
alone. He carries an extensive stock of dry
goods, clothing, hats, boots and shoes, fancy
goods, etc., and does a large business.
Mr. Cosner has an inherent love for fine
horses, and, in company with his brother
George, is engaged in breeding the same.
He was married June 26, 1888, to Mary
Gale Armentrout, who was born in Rood-
house, Illinois, daughter of Adam C. and
S. E. Armentrout. She departed this life
January 8, 1892, at the age of twenty-five
years, six months and twenty-two days. Mrs.
Cosner was a member of the Methodist Epis-
copal Church.
[jARTHA J. HARBISON, the esti-
mable lady whose biography it is our
pleasure to present to our readers,
was born in Greenbriar county, Virginia,
November 29, 1844, daughter of John and
Emily (Milliner.) Mason. The former born in
Virginia, came West in 1853, by wagon and
boat, landing at Keoknk, Iowa. There he
obtained teams and went to Mount Pleasant,
where he only remained a short time, and
then came to Illinois, by team, settling where
his daughter now lives. He bought 120
acres of wild timber land, on which he built
a log-house, and there the family lived for
many years, then sold and then rented and
finally removed to Kansas, where he now re-
sides. The subject's mother died in Mis-
souri, when about seventy years of age, hav-
ing been a native of Virginia, also. All the
family on both sides were farmers, as far as
can be discovered, except one member of the
family, who operated a woolen mill in Vir-
ginia. Mrs. Harbison's grandfather, Milli-
ner, was in the war of 1812.
Our subject remained at home until her
marriage, which occurred September 23,
1863. After marriage her husband settled
on the farm where she now resides in a fine
brick residence that her husband built prior
to his death, which occurred August 28,
1890. Mr. Harbison was born September 5,
1837, brother of Moses Harbison (see sketch).
Mr. and Mrs. Harbison had four children,
one of whom they lost, a daughter, Dolly, at
the age of one year and six months. The
living ones are: John W., born August 16,
1864, at home renting the old farm, married
to Maggie Smith, in 1889. She was born
February 26, 1871, daughter of Henry and
Elizabeth (Lindsay) Smith. They have one
child, James, born October 10, 1890. Mrs.
Harbison's second child, Ella M., was born
July 9, 1867, and married Frank Wood,
February, 1890, have one girl, Lena, born
March 8, 1891. The third child, Ida F.,
was born February 24, 1870, and she married
Fred Lippert, and they have one child, Ernest
E., born March 16, 1891.
Mr. and Mrs. Harbison were members of
the Christian Church and all the family are
church people. The son, James, is a strong
Democrat. This lady is one of the best
known and well liked in the county and well
deserves a place in these pages.
LANCASTER was born on a
farm twelve miles north of George-
town, Kentucky, June 14, 1842. His
father, Lewis Lancaster, was a native of same
locality, and his grandfather, Reuben Lancas-
ter, for whom the subject of our sketch was
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
353
named, was born in the State of Virginia,
was reared and married in the Old Dominion
and from there removed to Kentucky, locat-
ing in Scott county, where he purchased a
tract of timber land, and out of the wilder-
ness developed a tine farm. At the time of
his settlement on it there were no railroads in
Kentucky, and Cincinnati, sixty miles dis-
tant, was the nearest market and depot
for supplies. Lewis Lancaster was reared to
agricultural pursuits. After reaching his
majority he bought a tract of partially cleared
land near the old home, and at the time of
his death, which occurred in September, 1852,
had amassed quite a fortune in lands and
negroes. His wife, Jane Mallory, was born
in Scott county, Kentucky, the daughter of
Charles and Mary Mallory, and died in Au-
gust, 1852, about one month prior to the
death of her husband, leaving seven children:
Eliza, John, Bettie, Reuben, Thomas, James
and Sylvester.
After the death of his parents, the subject
of our sketch lived with an uncle, Abram
Mallory, one year after that with another
uncle, Green Mallory, three years. He then
chose as his guardian Aaron Dills, of Har-
rison county, Kentucky, with whom he lived
until September, 1861, when he enlisted as a
private in Company B, Sixth Kentucky Cav-
alry, in the service of the Union. In 1864,
he was commissioned Captain of his com-
pany, and remained in command until after
the close of the war. He participated in the
battles of Chickamauga, Mission Ridge,
siege of Atlanta and all of the principal en-
gagements of the Army of the Cumberland
After the surrender of Lee, he was detached
with his company to capture Jefferson Davis,
and was only five miles distant when the rebel
chieftain was captured, and saw him taken
into Macon, Georgia, a prisoner. Captain
Lancaster was honorably discharged with his
regiment at Louisville, Kentucky, in Septem-
ber, 1865, and returned to his home in Har-
rison county, Kentucky. In February, 1866,
he came to Cass county, Illinois, and engaged
in farming near Ashland, continuing there
till December, 1874, when he was appointed
Deputy by Sheriff William Epler, and con-
tinued as such till December, 1876, the
expiration of Mr. Epler's term of office.
From that time till February, 1890, he was
engaged in the livery business. In 1890, he
received the appointment of Postmaster, at
Virginia, which position he now holds.
In March, 1880, Captain Lancaster mar-
ried Miss Sue Heaton, a native of Cass
county, Illinois, and a daughter of John and
Mary J. Heatori. They have two children,
Earl and Iva.
Politically, he has always been a stanch
Republican. He is a member of Dawning
Post, No. 321, G. A. R., Department of Illi-
nois. Mrs. Lancaster is a member of the
Christian Church.
HOMAS JONES, a retired farmer of
Schuyler county, residing at Rushville,
was born in Herefordshire, England,
October 7, 1825. His father, John Jones,
was a native of Radnorshire, Wales, and
when a young man removed thence to Here-
fordshire, England, where he was married.
He remained there until 1850, when he emi-
grated to America; for a few months he lived
in Pennsylvania, and thence came to Illinois
and located in Brown county; he purchased
forty acres of land near Mount Sterling, and
for a number of years was engaged in agri-
cultural pursuits; later he moved to Mount
Sterling, and died there, in the ninetieth year
354
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GA8S,
of his age. His first wife, the mother of the
subject of this notice, was Lydia Trull, a na-
tive of Herefordshire, England; she died in
Brown county, Illinois, having reared a fam-
ily of four children, —Eliza, Thomas, John
and William, — all of whom emigrated to the
United States. Thomas Jones was reared in
Herefordshire, and at the age of sixteen years
went to learn the carpenter's trade, serving
an apprenticeship ot three years. In 1850
he crossed the sea to America with his fam-
ily; they sailed from Liverpool in March, on
the vessel William Eathbun, and landed at
New York city after a voyage of two months.
Mr. Jones went directly to Newcastle, Penn-
sylvania. His means were exhausted, in fact
were worse than exhausted, as he had bor-
rowed the money for his passage to America.
He worked at his trade in this place until the
following year, and then came to Illinois; he
traveled by stage and canal to Pittsburg, and
thence via the Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois
rivers to Meredosia, and thence by team to
Mount Sterling. He purchased eighty acres
of land in Brown county, the greater portion
of which was heavily timbered; there he be-
gan his career as a farmer, and has met with
more than ordinary success; he rented a
a house for a time, but finally built on his
own place, and as his means increased made
additional investments in land until he is now
the proprietor of 430 acres; he also owns a
residence in Eushville, built after a modern
style of architecture and surrounded by beau-
tiful grounds. Here Mr. Jones lives a re-
tired life, having earned the repose due his
years.
He has been three times married: In Here-
fordshire, England, at the age of twenty-two
years, he was united to Jane Preece, a native
of that shire; she died March 27, 1871. The
second wife was Minerva Gillenwaters, of
Schnyler county, Illinois, a daughter of Joel
and Margaret Gillenwaters, pioneers of the
county; she died January 3, 1890. In Sep-
tember, 1890, he was united to Ann J, (Nail)
Ford, who was born in Rushville township,
July 24, 1835, a daughter of Gabriel Nail.
Mr. Jones has eleven children living: by the
first marriage were born ; America J., wife of
Henry Bartlett; Elmina A., wife of Henry
Henhoff; Henry Clay; Walter W.; Thomas
P.; Orvilla A.; Susan W. and Lilly May; the
children of the second union are, Robert W.,
John P. and Margaret M. Mrs. Jones has
one child by her first marriage, George Will-
iam Tutt. Mr. Jones was reared to the faith
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, but in
later life he joined the Presbyterian Church.
In early days he was a Whig, but for many
years past he has affiliated with the Demo-
cratic party.
Gabriel Nail, father of Mrs. Jones, was
born in Scott county, Kentucky, December
23, 1811, a son of Lewis Nail, a native of
Virginia, who was a pioneer of Scott county,
Kentucky. Her grandfather purchased land
nine miles west of Georgetown, and there
passed the remainder of his days; his wife's
maiden name was Jane Nail, also a Virginian
by birth. Gabriel Nail emigrated from
Scott couuty, Kentucky, to Illinois, in 1835,
and engaged in agricultural pursuits; he
owned different tracts of land, and was very
successful; in 1887 he retired from active pur-
suits and carne to Rushville to live. He was
married in 1834, to Catherine Curtis, who
was born in Harrison county, Kentucky,
April 25, 1818. Four children were born to
them: Ann, Drusilla, Marietta and William
F. They have twenty-six grandchildren and
six great-grandchildren. Mrs. Jones has been
married three times; her first husband was
George W. Tutt, a native of Kentucky; he
SGHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
355
died in 1852; the second marriage was to
Jared P. Ford, a native of Indiana, who came
to Illinois in 1857; he died in 1881. Mr.
and Mrs. Nail are consistent and worthy
members of the Missionary Baptist Church.
^ENRY S. SAVAGE was born in Mor-
gan county, Illinois, April 22, 1824.
His father, John Savage, was a native
of New York State. He emigrated from
there to Illinois, making the journey with
teams, and becoming one of the first settlers
of Morgan county. He located at Diamond
Grove, near Jacksonville, and worked at the
trade of carpenter for some time. He built
the first frame house ever erected in Jackson-
ville. From Morgan he came to Cass county,
and settled six miles south west of the present
site of Virginia. Here he bought a tract of
land, built a log house, and subsequently a
frame one, and passed the rest of his life on
this farm. In politics he was a Whig until
the organization of the Republican party,
when he identified himself with it. He
served as Sheriff of the county. His wife,
Elizabeth Smith, daughter of Guy Smith,
Esq., was a native of New York. She died
on the home farm. The names of their
seven children are as follows: Ernily, wife of
Hon. John W. Pratt; Spencer; George;
Henry; Harriet, wife of O. J; Silverthorn;
John W. ; and Charles W.
Henry S. was reared and educated in Cass
county. He remained on the farm till he
was sixteen, when he engaged in clerking in
Virginia. He clerked here some years
and was then employed in the same capacity
in Beardstown. He subsequently purchased
a farm south of Virginia, and devoted his
time to farming, residing thereat the time of
his death, March 29, 1865, meeting death by
accident, having been thrown from a horse.
Like his father, he was first a Whig and after-
ward a Republican.
January 10, 1844, he married Sarah
Frances Ward, who was born in Scott county,
Kentucky, August 8, 1828. Her father,
Jacob Ward, was born in Kentucky in 1800,
his parents being natives of Virginia and
pioneers of Scott county, Kentucky. Grand-
mother Ward died in Scott county, and
grandfather Ward afterward moved to Mis-
souri, where he spent his last years. Jacob
Ward was reared and married in Kentucky,
and came to Illinois in 1830, making the
journey overland with teams. He located
near the present site of Arcadia, where he
engaged in farming for a short time, after
which he moved into the village of Arcadia
and opened a dry-goods and grocery store, at
the same time operating a blacksmith and
wagon shop and conducting a hotel. Indeed,
he was the proprietor of the greater portion
of the business there. A number of years
later he moved to Cass county, and bought a
farm three miles south of the city of Vir-
ginia. From this he subsequently moved to
a farm on the State road, near Virginia, and
was a resident there at the time of his death.
He was a prominent and influential man.
He served as Associate Judge of the county,
having been elected in 1851. The maiden
name of his wife was Eliza J. Stevenson.
She was born in Kentucky, in 1807, spent
her last years in Cass county, Illinois, and
died on the farm near Virginia.
Mrs. Savage was small when her parents
moved to Illinois. She remembers well the
incidents of their pioneer life here, and
vividly describes the primitive log school
houses with their rude furnishings. She
resided with her parents till her marriage,
356
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP C ASS,
and for some years past has occupied a beauti-
ful home in Virginia. She has live children
living, viz.: Charles W., Edward E., Lewis
L., Ella Belle and Henry S. Charles W.
married Kittie Kelly and has live children;
Louise, Bertha May, Harriet, Katie and
Chase. Edward E. married Alice Heaton
and has four children: Henry H., Walter W.,
Bessie and Zella. Lewis L. married Emma
L. Stribling and has five children: Ada F.,
Charles J., Fred D., Lewis L. and Tom.
Ella Belle is the wife of Henry W. Collins,
her children being G. Ward and Elizabeth.
Mr. and Mrs. Savage both joined the
Christian Church before their marriage.
jEV. FATHEE MERSCHER, the pop-
ular and efficient pastor of St. Augus-
tine's Catholic Church, Ashland, Illi-
nois, was born in Clinton county, this State,
December 4, 1853. His parents were natives
of Hanover, Germany, who came to America
in 1845, landing in New Orleans, in January
of that year. From there they came to Clin-
ton county, Illinois, where they located on a
farm which the Rev. Merscher's lather con-
tinued to conduct until about 1882, when he
removed toNodaway county, Missouri, where
he lived until his death, ten years later, Jan-
uary 14, 1892. It may be truly said of him
that he inherited all of the good qualities
for which the inhabitants of the Fatherland
are noted, being thoroughly industrious, hon-
est, intelligent, and extremely kind-hearted,
in consequence of which he was universally
esteemed by his associates, who greatly la-
mented his death. Three years previous to
his death, the family were called upon to
mourn the loss of the devoted wife and
mother, who expired February 2, 1889. Her
devout spirit, loving heart, and rare Chris-
tian virtues, deeply impressed all who knew
her, and she enjoyed the esteem of a wide
circle of acquaintances and friends. The
only brother of the subject of this sketch, B.
Henry Merscher, died six months after his
mother's death, August 24, 1889, in the same
place, Nodaway, county.
Our subject, whose Christian name is John
William, obtained his elementary education
in the public schools of Clinton county. He
then went to St. Joseph's College, atTeutop-
olis, Illinois, entering in 1866, and attend-
ing four years. After this, he attended St.
Francis' Seminary, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin,
graduating at that noted institution in 1876.
While at this latter center of learning, he
enjoyed the tutorage of some of the most
distinguished men of the Catholic world,
among whom were the late lamented Bishop
Flasch, of LaCrosse, and Archbishop Katzer,
of Milwaukee.
Thus fully equipped, both by instruction
and example, he began his ministerial duties
in January 12, 1877, at Olney, Illinois, and
conducted the services in three churches in
that vicinity, at Olney, Stringtown and
Bridgeport, continuing in their charge until
February, 1884. He was then transferred
to Petersburg, of the same State, and con-
ducted services there and at Ashland, with
his residence at the former place. In 1885,
these churches were placed in separate juris-
dictions, and Father Merscher removed to
Ashland, where he has since remained, hav-
ing taken charge of the church in February,
1884. Here he has everything to encourage
him in his work, a beautiful church and an
attractive parsonage, of modern architectural
design, both of which are handsomely finished
and neatly furnished. He has charge of a
large and intelligent congregation, number-
SCHUTLER AND BUOWN COUNTIES.
357
ing some eighty-five or ninety families,
among whom lie has many sincere friends
and well wishers.
Thus pleasantly situated, and in the steady
pursuance of the path of duty as spread out
before him, his time is usefully and happily
passed, finding in good works a companion-
ship for his otherwise lonely life.
WILLIAM H. BRACKEN KIDGE.
The subject of this sketch was born
in Washington county, Ohio, Novem-
ber 28, 1835. His father, William, was born
in Scotland, in 1805, and came from his na-
tive land to Illinois, in 1829, when twenty-
four years of age. He was a farmer, and was
married to Margaret Harvey, who died, Feb-
ruary 11, 1845, leaving our subject, the only
child. She was a native of Scotland, and
made a good, faithful wife the short time she
lived. Her husband was married a second
time, to Ellen Reid, of Virginia, by whom he
had three children.
W. H. was reared on the farm, and like
hundreds of other farmer boys he received a
common-school education. At the age of
twenty-two he entered a store in Missouri, as
a clerk, where he remained four years, and
then came to Versailles, May, 1861. Here
he volunteered in defense of his country,
August, 1862, entering the One Hundred and
Nineteenth Illinois Infantry, Company D, as
a Second Lieutenant, being honorably dis-
charged after two years and four months of
service, on account of failing health. He
then returned to Versailles and resumed his
clerking, after he had recovered his health.
Mr. Brackenridge was married, October,
1865, to Amanda 0. Vandeventer, daughter
of Jethro Vandeventer and Jane Olford,
natives of Virginia.
Mr. Brackenridge began the mercantile
business for himself, in 1866, and has con-
tinued doing a thriving business most of the
time since. In 1884, he was elected to the
Legislature, and was one of the immortal
103 who supported John A. Logan, whom he
admired extremely and whose memory he re-
veres. It is hardly necessary to add that
Mr. Brackenridge has been a Republican of
the first order, main tain ing the principles of
that party through thick and thin. He is a
member of the Masonic fraternity, being a
Blue Lodge Mason. He and his estimable
wife are highly respected and esteemed
throughout Versailles.
HRISTIAN DUCHARDT was born in
Hesse- Darmstadt, Germany, June 25,
1818. Both his parents and grandpar-
ents were natives of that country and passed
their lives there. His father, Karl Duchardt,
was a butcher by trade and carried on that
business. Of his eight children, four came
came to America, viz.: John, who settled
in Beardstown and died there; Christian;
William, a resident of Beardstown; and Mary
who was married and died in that place.
Christian Duchardt attended school until
he was seventeen years of age, at which time
he came to America; sailed from Hamburg
in September, 1836, on the Franklin, and six
weeks later landed at New York, from whence
he came direct to Beardstown, Illinois, land-
ing here a poor boy. The journey from New
York to this place was made via the Hudson
river, Erie canal, the lakes and canal, and the
Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois rivers. At
that time Beardstown was a small place and
358
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Cass county was sparsely settled, much of the
land being owned by the Government and for
sale at f 1.25 per acre.
Mr. Duchardt worked at his trade, that of
butcher, until his marriage, when he bought
eighty acres of land, in section 22, township
18, range 10, covered at the time of purchase
with a growth of brush. He bought a log
cabin in Virginia, moved it to this place, and
commenced at once the work of clearing and
improving his farm, and here he has since
lived. He has bought other land at differ-
ent times, prosperity has rewarded his efforts
and he is now regarded as one of the substan-
tial men of his vicinity. Nor has his whole
time and attention been given to making
money. He devotes much time to reading
and is well posted on the general topics of the
day; is public-spirited and generous, always
supporting those measures that tend to ad-
vance the best interests of the community
where he lives.
In 1846 Mr. Duchardt married Mary A.
Nellsch, a native of Wittenberg, Germany.
They have two children, John and Lizzie.
John was born February 28, 1851. He has
the management of the home farm. Lizzie
was married March 21, 1882, to William
Needham, and has one child, Mary Ann.
Mr. and Mrs. Duchardt and their daughter,
Mrs. Needham, are members of the Method-
ist Episcopal Church.
|AUL P. PHILIPPI, one of the leading
and successful young farmers of Cass
county, lives on a farm consisting of
200 acres on sections 8 and 5, township 17,
range 11, where he was born October 16,
1854. He was reared here by good parents
and educated in the public schools and at a
German institute in St. Louis. He has al-
ways been a farmer and also very industrious,
and as he is yet a young man the prospect
looks very bright for him. He is the young-
est of a family of ten children, five yet living.
One, Louisa, wife of John E. Fuhr, a farmer
of Christian county, Missouri. The eldest,
Mrs. Annie Bohema, is now deceased, and one
brother, Victor, fought through the Rebellion
for over four years as a private volunteer.
He was never wounded or captured, but had
a sunstroke in battle and is now dead, leaving
a wife and eight children. Herman, a farmer
in this county, married Mary Winhold;
Bertha is the wife of Ferdinand Winhold, a
farmer in this county; Armeda now lives
with Paul. Bertha Amelia died when small,
and Charles died aged 24.
The father, Pompeius Philippi, was a native
of Hamburg, being the eldest of the family
of whom the mother and all the children
came to the United States, the father having
died in Germany. Pompeius Philippi was
th'e inventor of several improvements, which
were patented. The last patent issued to him
was dated January 24, 1882, for what is now
the leading automatic straw-stacker. The
family left April 24, 1834, and after a jour-
ney of sixty-two days landed in New York.
The mother had her three sons, Pompeius,
Julius and Victor and her one daughter,
Louisa. From New York they came to Cin-
cinnati, Ohio, and later joined the twin
brothers, Csesar and Alexander, at Hamilton,
where they had settled when they came over
some time before. The family all came
West in 1834. Caesar went to New Or-
leans, where he was married and where he has
since lived, being a book-keeper in the Con-
sumers' Ice Company. He is now eighty
years old. The other living children are Dr.
Julius, who is a widower with two sons and
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
359
is eighty-four years old, and is yet smart
and active. Another brother, Alexander, is
now eighty years old, is married and in St.
Louis. The family is remarkable for its
health and activity. They all are free-
thinkers. One brother, Victor, noted for civil
engineering, died in year 1842. Tne mother
died when an old lady at Arenzville.
The father of our subject was a faithful
man. He was married in Germany to Caro-
line Richelman of Hamburg, Germany. She
was a very beloved woman in all respects,
who came with her husband to the United
States in 1834 and afterward lived in Cass
county. Here she and her husband improved
a large farm of 200 acres, now owned by our
subject and named Fair View. Here the
father and mother died, the former in 1887
and the latter eleven months later. The
father was eighty-one years old at death.
They had been married fifty-four years and
the wife was seventy-seven years old at her
death. They were good people and
Freethinkers. Mr. Philippi was a Re-
publican, but not an office seeker. They
were recognized as pioneers who helped build
up the county.
Our subject and brothers are all Republi-
cans in politics. He has never married and
is a reliable good farmer of the county.
JJSRAEL HILL, one of the pioneer farmers
fl of Oakland township, was born in Indi-
^ ana, in 1827, a son of Ishmael Hill, a native
of North Carolina, born in October, 1808;
when the latter was a child of seven years he
was taken to Tennessee, where he lived until
a youth of seventeen. The paternal grand-
father, Ephraim Hill, was a prosperous
farmer and distiller in Tennessee. He re-
moved to Indiana about 1825, and here his
son, Ishmael, was married to Miss Elizabeth
Wright, a native of Kentucky and a daugh-
ter of William and Catherine (Rusher)
Wright. This young couple emigrated to
Illinois in 1828 with their infant son, Israel;
they made the journey overland in the early
spring, and came directly to Rushville where
they settled on a squatter's claim of 160
acres, eight miles north of the village.
Some years later Mr. Hill bought a farm of
one hundred and twenty acres in Oakland
township. It was wild and heavily tim-
bered, but he went to work with a will, and,
assisted by his son, succeeded in making one
of the most desirable farms in this section.
He resided here until 1878, when he sold
the farm to his son, and bought another
tract south of Macomb in McDonough
county, where he spent the last years of
his life. His wife died in 1875, leaving
him with a family of eight children; they
buried two infant sons; the names of the
other children are as follows: Rhoda, Mary,
Sarah, Martha, Margaret, Millie A. and
Nancy; all are married and have families.
Mr. Hill is the only son.
He was married April 4, 1850, to Miss
Louisiana Pemberton, a daughter of Thomas
Pembertou of Kentucky; the mother's maiden
name was Deborah Moore, and she was a
daughter of Ephraim Moore, also of Ken-
tucky. Mr. and Mrs. Hill have had a family
of ten children, two of whom died in in-
fancy; Minerva J., wife of Thomas Schroder,
died at the age of twenty-one years, leaving
one daughter; Amanda is now the wife of
Thomas Schroder; Eliza married A. J.
Heaton; Columbia A. is at home; Deborah,
wife of George W. Young; Cora and John
are at home; J. N. married a Miss Smith,
and they have three children, Wilmar, aged
360
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OA8S,
six years, Myrtle, aged four, and Roscoe,
aged thirteen months. Mr. Hill bought 120
acres in 1858, to which he added 80 acres in
1871; in 1878 he purchased his father's
farm and later added eighty-six acres to the
original purchase of 120 acres. inNovember,
1891, he bought a home in Vermont, where
he lives retired from active life.
He has served his town as Supervisor sev-
eral terms, and has held other minor offices.
He was in his early days a Whig, but now
affiliates with the Democratic party. He
has been very successful in business, and
from a small beginning he has accumulated
a large estate; he owns 415 acres of good
jand, well improved, and by a life of honor
and integrity has attracted to himself a large
number of warm friends, and has won the
confidence of the entire community.
flELDS E. DAVIS, who has been for
many years identified with the leading
farmers of Schuyler county, is a native
of the State of Tennessee, born in Greene
county, in 1827, a son of Paul Davis; the
paternal grandfather was Fields Davis. Paul
Davis was reared in Tennesseee, and there
married Sarah Huff, a daughter of Elias
Huff. In 1827, accompanied by his wife and
child he emigrated to Illinois, and located in
what is now Rushville township. He re-
mained here a few months and went to In-
diana, and lived near New Albany until 1837,
and then returned to Schuyler county, and
rented land on which he passed the last days
of his life. Elias Huff removed from Ten-
nessee to Illinois in 1827, and settled in
Schuyler county; after a few years he re-
moved to McDonough county, Illinois,
where he died. Mrs. Sarah H. Davis died in
Hancock county, Illinois. Fields E. Davis
was an infant when his parents first pene-
trated the wilds of Schuyler county, and was
a lad of ten when they returned to the State.
He received his education in the pioneer
schools, and has a vivid recollection of the
puncheon floors, puncheon seats and punch-
eon desks, the finishings and furnishings be-
ing of almost the same pattern. He re-
mained under the parental roof until he was
seventeen years old, when he went to learn
the cooper trade; this he followed until 1846,
when he enlisted in the Mexican war. He
soon fell ill, and was discharged on account
of disability; he was in Texas at this time,
but returned to his home, and resumed his
former occupation. This he pursued until
1851, when he took a trip to the Territory of
Minnesota, going via the river to St. Paul
which was then a rather straggling village.
He returned in the .autumn of the same year,
worked at his trade, and in the spring of
1855, started for California. This long and
weary journey was made across the plains
with ox teams, when there were no settle-
ments between the Missouri river and the
Pacific coast, excepting the military posts
and the Mormons at Salt Lake. He started in
March, and reached the Golden State in the
following August. He first engaged in min-
ing, the all-absorbing occupation, and after-
ward followed farming. In 1857 he returned
to the East, coming via the Isthmus of Pan-
ama. He worked at his trade for two years,
and then purchased a farm consisting of 160
acres; this he has by industry and toil brought
to high state of cultivation, and he has made
many valuable improvements; he has erected
good, substantial buildings, all conveniently
arranged for farming purposes. He is a
thoroughly self-made man, and it is through
SCHUYLER AND BHQWN COUNTIES.
361
bis own efforts that he has arisen to a pos-
ition of financial independence.
Mr. Davis was united in marriage April 1,
1860, to Miss Lydia E. Smith, a native of
Schuyler county, Illinois, and a daughter of
Jonathan and Nancy Smith, whose history
appears elsewhere in this work. Eight chil-
dren have been born of this union : Charles J.,
Mary, Virginia E., William, Margaret, Sam-
uel, Fanny and John. Mr. Davis is a con-
sistent member of the Missionary Baptist
Church, and is highly respected by the cit-
izens of his county.
PHOMAS M. REDFIELD was born in
Cayuga county, New York, August
27, 1816. His father was Richard
Redfield, born in Connecticut in 1768. He
was a blacksmith all his life. He had but
one brother, Reuben. Richard was married
twice and Thomas was a child of the second
marriage. His mother's name was Mrs. Lucy
Brown, nee Main, daughter of Thomas and
Lucy (Taylor) Main, of Connecticut, where
she was born. Mr. Redfield had one brother,
Charles, who died young, and a sister, Mrs.
Charles Hulett, the mother of ten children
who died in Brown county, aged forty-six:
only two of these now survive. The father
and mother of Thomas came to Illinois from
Indiana with a hired team and wagon in the
fall of 1830. They lived about a year at
Rushville, where in 1827 he had bought eight
lots. He sold these off and moved fire miles
southwest of Rushville and cleared up a farm
on school lands. They moved from these
lands to a new place in La Grange, then in
Schuyler, but now in Brown. In 1836 they
came to Brooklyn and obtained forty acres of
Government land,
Thomas lived at home until he was married,
in 1839, to Mary Pyle, daughter of Nicholas
and Mary Pyle, who came from Kentucky to
Illinois about 1832. Mr. Redfield began
married life on a farm of forty acres about
one mile northeast of the village site, and in
1852 he moved to the village where they
lived until 1869, when they sold the home
and moved to his present place, September 15.
He bought 120 acres of land at $3 an acre.
Mr. Redfield lost his wife February 17, 1884.
She was in her sixty-sixth year and left five
living children. They buried four, Nancy,
an infant; Lucy; Mrs. George W. Logan,
who died in early married life, and her infant
with her; and Melissa, who was Mrs. Daniel
Gross; she was first married to George A.
Brown, who was Lieutenant of Company A,
Seventy-eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry,
and was killed during the war. Her second
husband was also a soldier in the army. She
died in 1873, aged about thirty-three, leaving
live children. Sarah, Mrs. John Krieble, died
at the age of twenty-seven, leaving two chil-
dren. The living children are: Ovandea, at
home with her father; George, in McDonough
county; Lovisa D. Camp, a widow. Mr.
Redfield has been School Director, a life-long
Republican and he is a Universalist. Mary,
another of his daughters, now Mrs. Logan,
lives in Sacramento, California; and Thomas,
Jr., lives on part of the farm. Mr. Redfield
has twenty-five grandchildren and four great-
grandchildren.
ILLIAM H. BURNSIDE, one of the
most substantial farmers in Schuy-
ler county, resides on section 29,
Buena Vista township. He was born in
Bainbridge township, this State, on July 3,
363
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF .CASS,
1848, his parents being Thomas and Sarah
J. (Henry) Burnside, natives of Ireland and
Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, respectively. The
father of our subject was born in Ireland in
1816, coining to the United States when sev-
enteen years of age. He was one of a family
of six children, three sons and three daugh-
ters, named William, James, Thomas, Mary,
Lillie and Margaret. On arriving in the
United States, he went to Pittsburg, Penn-
sylvania, where he worked at the trade of
cabinet-maker, afterward going into business
for himself in that city, but later lost every-
thing, and in 1843 came to Illinois, a poor
man. He worked for a time at his trade in
Enshville, this State, and afterward engaged
in farming, in which he was very successful,
eventually becoming the owner of 345 acres
of land, highly improved with good house and
barns, the land being well cultivated and de-
voted to mixed farming. He died in 1876,
his wife dying a few months previous. They
had seven children: Lillie, who married
Washington Lawler, of Woodstock township;
William H., the subject of our sketch; Sarah,
who resides on the homestead; James, also a
resident of the homestead; Thomas, living in
Buena Vista township; Robert, a resident of
Bainbridge township; and Margaret, living
on the homestead.
The subject of our sketch was reared on a
farm, and attended the country schools. He
resided at home until 1883, when he located
on the farm on which he now resides. This
land he purchased in 1882, which then com-
prised 320 acres, to which he has since added
fifty acres more, making altogether 370 acres
of well impros-ed land, which he now owns.
He has erected good buildings, a residence
and barns for grain and stock and other mod-
ern improvements, and has put his land un-
der a high state of cultivation. Besides
agriculture, he also raises stock, principally
short-horn cattle, in which latter pursuit he
is very successful.
He affiliates with the Republican party,
but is riot an office-seeker, taking only such
interest as all good citizens feel in the ad-
vancement and welfare of their native county
and State.
Beginning life with only such means as
his father could spare from the care and
support of a large family, he has by economy
and thrift become one of the largest land-
owners and stock-raisers of the county.
Honest in dealings, courteous in manners
and cordial to all. he enjoys the respect and
esteem of the community and has a host of
warm personal friends.
LFRED M. SMITH, a well-known citi-
zen and an honored veteran of the late
war, now residing in Ashland, Illinois,
was 'born in Brown county, Ohio, June 30,
1849. His parents were Wesley and Mary
M. (Moore) Smith, both natives of Ohio, the
former of Chillicothe and the latter of Fees-
burgh. They had nine children, five now
living: Margaret C., wife of Charles Wig-
gins, resides in Ashland; James Monroe
served four years and three months in the
Union army, enlisting in the Twenty-third
Kentucky Regiment, and participated in all
the principal engagements in which the
Twenty-fourth Corps took part; he died, un-
married, of smallpox, in Hamilton county,
Ohio, in 1876. John Wesley served in the
Fifty-fourth Kentucky (Union) Regiment, is
married, and lives in Tallula, Menard county,
Illinois; the next in order of birth is the
subject of this sketch; William Henry is
married, and is a Methodist Episcopal minis-
SCHUTLKH AM> BROW A COUNTIES.
863
terin Akron, Ohio; Alice Virginia married
John K. Hull, and lives in Bracken county,
Kentucky; Mary, Joseph and Eliza died in
childhood. In 1858, the parents removed to
Kentucky, where the father died in 1861,
leaving a large family of children to the care
of the mother. She afterward married Sove-
reign Greene, who also died in Kentucky.
She then removed with her children to Fred-
erick, Illinois, where she married Martin
Bridgman, surviving her marriage only about
a year, dying in Frederick in 1874.
The subject of this sketch was but nine
years of age when his parents moved from
Ohio to Kentucky, at that time a new and
sparsely settled county. He was reared on a
farm, and followed that vocation until the
breaking out of the war. Those happy, peace-
ful days, spent in rural scenes and homely
duties and pastimes, were interrupted by his
enlisting, at the age of sixteen years and seven
months, in Company K, One Hundred and
Ninety-sixth Ohio Infantry, for the period of
one year, which he served in full, being un-
der the command of General Hancock, in the
Second Army Corps. He took the measles
while in Camp Chase, Ohio, and was dis-
charged from the hospital to accompany his
regiment to the front, when he took cold, and
the disease settled in his eyes and lungs, de-
stroying the sight of his right eye, severely
injuring the other, and superinducing neu-
ralgia, from, which he greatly suffered. He
now receives a pension for these disabilities.
On September 11, 1865, he was honorably
discharged at Baltimore, Maryland, where-
upon he returned to his widowed mother in
Pendleton county, Kentucky, where he ex-
perienced some exciting scenes, caused by the
return of the disbanded rebel army of that
vicinity. It was while he was at home that
his mother became a widow a second time.
after which Mr. Smith accompanied her to
Frederick, Illinois, where she spent the rest
of her life. She is now buried in the Messer
cemetery, near Frederick.
Mr. Smith was married in Springfield,
Illinois, April 1, 1878, to Miss Anna Ratliff,
an estimable lady, and a native of Morgan
county, Illinois. She is a daughter of Rich-
ard and Mary (Bridgman) Ratliff, both of
whom had been previously married, the father
having one son and three daughters: Lucy
J., Mary Ellen, Isaac Wesley, and Lucretia.
The mother was formerly married to a Mr.
Houston, to which union three children were
born: llezekiah, Isaac and William Thomas.
All of these children of both marriages are
now living, except Lucy J., and all are
married. To the marriage of Mrs. Smith's
parents, four children were born, of whom
she is the eldest: Anna Nancy J., now Mrs.
E. T. Welch, resides in Amarillo, Texas;
Mary M., married James Allen, of Ashland,
Illinois; James Albert, unmarried, is a
farmer. The mother still lives, at the age of
seventy-one years, and is comfortably situated
in Ashland. The father, Hezekiah Bridgman,
was a prominent citizen and esteemed pio-
neer of Morgan county, Illinois, who died in
Concord, that county, in 1884. He was
was widely known throughout this vicinity
and was deeply mourned by a large com-
munity.
Since the war, Mr. Smith has been in rather
poor health. Thinking a change might prove
beneficial, he traveled through the South for
two years, visiting Texas, New Mexico, Mis-
sissippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee,
Georgia and Alabama. Some of the time he
is able to work, while often he is incapacitated
for active pursuits.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith have five children:
Jessie, Clarence, Randolph, Mary Alice,
3C4
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
William Ellsworth and Ada Belle, all at home
with their parents. Miss Jessie Smith is
particularly intelligent and active. She is
now at that age commonly known as " sweet
sixteen," and is attending the high school in
Ashland, hoping some day to become a
teacher. She is an earnest member of the
Christian Church, and takes an active part in
church and Sunday-school work, never having
missed a session of Sunday-school for two
years. Mrs. Smith is also a most devoted
and useful member of the same church.
Mr. Smith is Democratic in his political
affiliations, and takes a deep interest in the
affairs of his State and county.
He is a member of Dick Johnson Post,
No. 381, of Tallula, Illinois, and of the
Brotherhood of United Friends, as well as of
the I. O. O. F.
Having followed his career thus far, which
has been most honorable, it is reasonable to
prognosticate a fitting close, as, surrounded
by sympathetic friends, to whom his many
sterling qualities have endeared him, and
vindicated at the tribunal of his own search-
ing conscience, he peacefully pursues his
pathway through life.
(REGORY WAGNER, JE., farmer and
resident of Mt. Sterling township, was
born in Owen county, Indiana, March
24, 1853. His father, Gregory, was born at
Baden, Germany, February 24, 1820, and
his father was also born in Baden, where he
learned the trade of a weaver and there fol-
lowed it. He came to America about 1827,
accompanied by his wife and six children. He
lived in New York, Philadelphia and Pitts-
burg, where he worked in the iron works for
some years. From there he went to Co-
shocton county, Ohio and was one of the
early settlers there. He continued on the
land he then bought until his death in 1837.
This was occasioned by the bite of a rattle-
snake. His wife's name was Magdaline Ril-
ing, also of Baden. After her husband's
death she came to Brown county and died
here about 1862. Gregory, Sr., was seven
years old when he came to America. While
the family lived at Pittsburg he worked in
the iron works and after their removal to Ohio
he assisted his father on the farm. He in-
herited a part of his father's land and bongth
forty acres more from his brother and lived
there until 1851. He then moved to Indi-
ana, traded his farm in Ohio for land in Owen
township, Indiana, remained there two years,
then sold and came to Illinois, and settled in
Mt. Sterling township, buying land in sections
1 and 2. There was only a log cabin on the
place, but he shortly began improving; later
he bought another tract and engaged in farm-
ing until 1878, when he moved to Mt. Ster-
ling, where he now resides. He was married
November 18, 1840, to Miss Agatha Lash,
born in Alsace, Germany, February 5, 1821.
Her father was a carpenter of Baden, who
came to America in 1827 with his wife and
six children. The parents of our subject
have ten living children.
Gregory, Jr., was but an infant wheu he
came to Illinois with his parents. He began
when very young to help on the farm, was
reared to habits of industry, received the
benefits of thedistrict schools, and continued to
reside with his parents until twenty-one,
since when he has been engaged in farming
and threshing on his own responsibility. He
now owns and occupies a portion of the old
homestead, where he has erected a good set of
frame buildings and has otherwise improved
the place.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
365
He was married January 15, 1878, to Miss
Mary Factor of Ohio, daughter of Benjamin
Factor, she being one of eleven children. The
family are highly regarded members of St.
Mary's Roman Catholic Church. He is a
Democrat and the whole family is greatly re-
spected. Mr. and Mrs. Wagner have seven
children, — four sons and three daughters.
H. DUNN, dealer in all kinds of hard-
ware, stoves and gardening imple-
ments, in Beardstown, was born in
this county. He attended school at home
and in Jacksonville College. His father,
Luke Dunn, was a native of Cornwall, En-
gland. He followed the business of farrier.
He married Elizabeth Jasper, of the same
place, and soon after, late in the '40s, they
reached the United States and settled on the
Sangamon bottom^ in Cass county, Illinois,
upon unbroken land. After making some
improvements, he sold the land and took up
more land, and still later moved into the. city
of Beardstown, retiring from active labors.
Mr. Dunn still lives, being sixty-eight years
of age, but his wife died in 189(2, at the age
of sixty-six years. She was a good wife,
mother and neighbor, of Christian spirit, and
a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Mr. Dnnn is an, active politician, and has
been County Commissioner twjce, and has
held other local offices. He is a well-known,
good citizen.
Our subject is the eldest son and second
child of seven children, all yet living. He
was for some time engaged in farming, and
was also at one time a clerk for Colonel B.
G. Wheeler & Co., of Missouri. His present
business was established by an old settler,
Abner Foster. Except for six months, when
25
Mr. Dunn had associated with M. T. Dunn,
Mr. Dunn has been the sole proprietor since
1882. He is a live young man, and is sure
of making his business succeed.
He was married in this county, to Miss
Lizzie Miller, who was born, reared and edu-
cated and taught school in this same county.
Her father, E. P. Miller, was born in Ken-
tucky, but married in Beardstown. Mr.
Miller was engaged in the livery business
when he died in 1884. He was born in
1818; was a sound Republican, but not an
office-seeker. His wife, born in Illinois, is
yet living and is quite an old lady. Mrs.
Dunn is a bright, intelligent lady, and the
mother of two children, Edna and E. Miller.
She is a me,mb,er of the Methodist Church.
ILLIAM CAMPBELL was born in
county Tyrone, Ireland, April 18,
1818, on the same farm on which his
father, Archibald Campbell, and his grand-
father, William Campbell, were born. This
fa^in was. owned by his grandfather, who
passed his entire life on it. William Camp-
bell, Sr., was. a member of the Episcopal
Church, and in that faith reared his family.
Archibald Campbell, like his father, spent his
whole life on the farm on which he was born.
He lived to the ripe old age of eighty-nine
years. The maiden name of his wife was
Elizabeth Stewart, she being a native of the
same vicinity, and a daughter of James
Stewart, who was a native of Ireland and a
descendant of Scotch ancestry. Mrs. Camp-
bell died in Ireland, aged seventy-eight
years. The names of their six children are:
Mary, William, Catherine, James, Archie
and Ann. James and Archie are deceased.
Mary is the wife of Samuel Shaw, and re-
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA3S,
sides in Dixon, Illinois. Catherine married
Hugh Gibney, and lives in Canada. Ann
still makes her home in Tyrone, Ireland.
William Campbell, the subject of our
sketch, was reared and educated in Ireland,
and as soon as he was old enough aided in
the farm work. In 1840, bidding farewell
to the Emerald Isle, he sailed from London-
derry, May 10, and landed at New York
after a voyage of thirty-one days. From
New York he came direct to Illinois, making
the journey via water, rail and stage, to
Pittsburg, and thence by way of the Ohio,
Mississippi and Illinois rivers to Beardstown.
Then he came by team to the vicinity where
he now lives. At that time Cass county was
sparsely settled, some of the land still being
owned by the Government. He spent a few
months with his brother-in-law, Samuel
Shaw, and at this time was taken sick with
ague. Seeking a change of climate, he went
to St. Louis and took charge of a livery
stable, remaining there three years. At the
end of that time he came back to Cass county
and bought a farm three miles and a half
west of Virginia. This farm, consisting of
100 acres, he purchased for $5 per acre, a
log house and stable and fifty acres under
cultivation comprising the improvements on
it. Five years later he sold out at an ad-
vance, and bought the farm on which he now
resides, two miles west of Virginia. The
improvements on this place at the time of
purchase were a log house with a frame addi-
tion, and a frame stable. He has since re-
placed them with a good set of frame build-
ings, has purchased other lands at different
times, and is now the owner of upwards of
1,000 acres in Cass county.
Mr. Campbell was married in 1845, Octo-
ber 10, to Mary D. Sudbrink, daughter of
Frederick and Catherine Sudbrink. She was
born in Germany, and came with her parents
to America when young. Their four children
are Henry I., Alfred, Emma Ann and Edwin.
Mr. and Mrs. Campbell are members of
the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Po-
litically he affiliates with the Democratic
party. He has served as a member of the
Board of County Commissioners.
R. ARCH1BLE R. ALLEN located in
Huntsville in 1882. He was born in
Bainbridge township, Schuyler county,
Illinois, September 22, 1851, being a son of
William J. and Mary G. (Edmondstun) Allen,
natives of North Carolina and Indiana. The
father of our subject was reared in Indiana
and in 1844 came to Illinois and settled in
Bainbridge \vhere he married; and in 1852.
Having som.e land in Missouri, he left his wife
and children with her parents and went to
that State. From there he went to Oregon
and later to California, where he died. His
wife died in Adams county, Illinois. They
had two sons, Archible and James E.
Archible is the older, and resided with his
grandfather in Schuyler county; but when he
was ten years old he removed to Adams
county. In 1869. after the death of his
mother, he went to Fandon, McDonough
county, where he lived with an uncle, Colonel
Samuel Wilson, and attended school. In
1874, he commenced the study of medicine
with Dr. N. E. Wilson. He subsequently
attended college at Keoknk, graduating in
1886. He located in practice at Huntsville.
He was married in May, 1882, to Maggie
R., daughter of Marshall and Rebecca Spon-
denburg) Wells. She was born in Brown
county, Illinois, January 8, 1870. They have
one child, Bessie May.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
367
The Doctor was in the drug trade from
1874 to 1876, at Birmingham, Illinois. He
was quite successful at it.
Dr. Allen is a stanch Republican in poli-
tics and a member of the Hunts ville Lodge,
No. 465, A. F. & A. M., and Cyclo,ne Lodge,
I. O. (). F. He and his wife are among the
best people of that section, and are highly
respected by their large circle of friends.
IEORGE CONOVER, of the firm of
Petefish, Skiles & Co., bankers, Vir-
ginia, Illinois, was born in Princeton
precinct, Cass county, this State, September
11, 1846. Of his life and ancestry we pre-
sent the following facts:
Dominions Conover, great-grandfather of
George Conover, was born in Holland and
came to America in Colonial times, settling
in New Jersey, where his son, Levi, was born.
The latter served in a cavalry regiment for
five years during the Revolutionary war. In
In 1790 he moved to Kentucky and settled
near Lexington. Five years later he moved
to Adair county, where he spent the residue
of his life. The maiden name of his second
wife, grandmother of our subject, was Jane
Galbraith Turnbow. Their son, Levi Con-
over, Jr., was born in Adair county, Ken-
tucky, and was there reared to manhood. At
the age of twenty- two years he came to Cass
county, Illinois, arriving here without any
means other than the horse he had ridden.
He found employment of various kinds, earn-
ing his first money by splitting rails at fifty
cents per hundred. In 1834 he went to
Galena and worked in the mines of that
vicinity till fall. He then returned and went
to the territory of Iowa, where he took a
squatter's claim to Government land. He
came back to Illinois and spent the winter,
and in the spring returned to Iowa, in com-
pany with a friend, making the journey with
oxen and wagon. He at once began the
work of improving his claim, and soon had
his log cabin built. In 1836 he returned to
Illinois, married Elizabeth Petetish, and took
his bride to their frontier home. In 1837,
while they were on a visit to Cass county,
this State, Mrs. Conover died, and soon after
her death Mr, Conover sold his Iowa claim
and settled in Cass county. In 1841 he
the Peter Conover homestead, on which he
was engaged in farming for some years. From
there he moved to the town of Virginia, where
he spent the last years of his life. The maiden
name of his second wife, mother of George,
was Phoebe A. Rosenberger. Her father,
John Rosenberger, was born of German
parents.
George Conover was reared on his father's
farm, attending the district schools a portion
of each year. He advanced his education by
one term at Beardstown high school and one
term at Wesleyan University at Blooming-
ton, after which he entered Bryant and Strat-
ten's Business College at Chicago. After
his marriage he located on a farm, owned by
his father, two miles and a half southeast of
Virginia, which farm his father deeded to
him soon afterward. He continued to reside
there till 1876, when he came to Virginia to
accept the position of book-keeper in the
bank of Petefish, Skiles & Co. The same
year he became a partner, and so remains, and
since 1884 has been cashier. He still owns
his farm.
In February, 1870, he married Virginia
Lee Bone, a native of Rock Creek, Sangamon
county, Illinois, daughter of William and
Farinda (Osborn) Bone. To them have been
born four children: William B., Ernest B.,
George B. and Virginia Louise.
368
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF G ASS,
Politically Mr. Conover affiliates with the
Democratic party. He has served two terms
as Mayor and six years as a member of the
Board of Education. Though not a third
party man, he is a prohibitionist in prin-
ciple. He was elected Mayor on the tem-
perance issue, and it was during his first term
that the saloons were closed in Virginia.
They have since remained closed. He is a
director in the Virginia Building and Loan
Association.
IHARLES M. TINNEY was born in
Marion, Grant county, Indiana, Nov-
ember 11, 1852. His father, John M.
Tiuney, was born in Washington county,
Kentucky, son of Nathaniel Tinney, a native
of Virginia and a soldier of the Revolution-
ary war. Grandfather Tinney moved to
Kentucky about 1800, and became one of
the pioneer farmers of Washington county.
He was by trade an architect and builder, but
he spent his last years on the farm, and died
in his Kentucky home. Grandfather Tinney's
maiden name was Caroline Marshall. She
was a native of Virginia; spent her last days
and died in Tazewell county, Illinois. John
M. Tinney was reared in Kentucky and
learned the trade of tailor in Cincinnati.
He carried on business in that city fora time,
and from there went to Dayton, Ohio. In
1859 he moved to Pekin, Illinois, where he
engaged in hotel-keeping. He continued his
residence at that place until the time of his
death. His widow, a native of Dayton, Ohio,
was before her marriage Miss Sarah Kaugh-
man. She now makes her home with her
children.
Charles M. Tinney was reared and educated
in Pekin, Illinois, being a graduate of the
high school of that place. He also attended
college one year at Oskaloosa, Iowa. After
that he studied law in the office of W. D.
Maus, of Pekin, being admitted to the bar in
1873. He then commenced the practice of
his profession in Virginia, where he has since
resided. He conducted a law practice until
1880, when he bought the office and good
will of the Virginia Gazette, a weekly paper.
He has since had charge of this paper, and in
connection with it has a job printing office.
Politically he is a Republican.
Mr. Tinney was married in November,
1886, to Annie E. Craft, a native of Penn-
sylvania and a daughter of J. B. and Phebe
(Dunanay) Craft.
HRISTIAN PILGER, a live man and
old citizen of Beardstown, was born in
Waldeck, Prussia, in 1836, and came
of a good old German family. His father,
Fred Pilger, was at one time city Mayor, as
had been his father and grandfather before
him. The same office is now held by one of
the sons in the town of Berich, where the
family has lived. The father and mother of
our subject, were good Lutherans and lived
and died in their native country. They had
a family of eleven children, five of whom
came came to this country, three of whom
are yet living. He came to Beardstown in
June, 1855, a young man twenty years of
age. He was engaged as a bench tailor for
some years, when in 1873, he, with Henry
Garm started in business as merchant tailors.
He enlisted in August, 1862, in Company
A, One Hundred and Fourteenth Illinois
Volunteer Infantry, Captain John M. John-
son and Colonel James W. Judy, command-
ing. He was engaged in the battles of
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
369
Vicksburg, Jackson, Mississippi, Nashville,
thence down to New Orleans, across the Gulf
of Mexico to Mobile, and was in all the bat-
tles of that section. In all this military
duty our subject escaped wounds or capture,
but twice suffered sunstroke. He was Cor-
poral of his company when discharged,
August 13, 1865. Since his return he has
been a live member of the place. In 1882,
Mr. Pilger's business was carried on for two
years under the name of Pilger & Huge, at
which time Mr. Pilger assumed sole charge
of the business until 1889. Mr. Pilger is
now engaged in the real-estate business, is a
Notary Public, and carries a number of lines
of insurance. He is agent for the Equitable
Building & Loan Society, of Peoria, and is
City Clerk of Beardstown. He has been
very successful in life, and has amassed a
good property in this city. The spot on
which his office now stands was formerly the
old house site of Mr. Thomas Beard, who
first settled here, established the ferry, and
later laid out the town. Mr. Pilger was for
years the proprietor of the Pilger block on
the corner of State and Main streets. He is
a worker for the Boys in Blue, and is a char-
ter member • of the McLane Post, G. A. R.,
No. 97, of Beardstown, was its first Quarter-
master, and has held the position nearly ever
since. The Sons of Veterans of this place
also named their camp in his honor. He has
been for many years a member of Case Lodge,
No. 25, A. F. & A. M., and has taken an act-
ive part in it.
He was married in this city to Miss Mar-
garet Schuman, born in Baden, Germany,
and came to this country when eighteen years
of age. Her parents also came to Beards-
town and died here consistent members of
the Lutheran Church. Mr. and Mrs. Pilger
are parents of but one daughter, an accom-
plished young lady, a leader in social circles
and now the wife of William F. Stanley,
foreman in the paint shop of the Chicago,
Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company of
this city.
RYSON M. BLACKBURN was born in
Ohio, on the line between Butler and
Hamilton counties in 1828. His father
was James Blackburn, of the same place,
born in 1805, and his father, Bryson Black-
burn, came to Ohio from Pennsylvania at an
early day, with his wife. Three brothers
had preceded him-, and the oldest of the fam-
ily had been killed by the Indians in the same
State. The latte'r left a family. One of the re-
maining brothers sought to avenge the blood
of his brother, named Patterson Blackburn.
He was finally lost in the West, after having
been in the Lewis • and Clark expedition.
James Blackburn, the father of our subject,
was one of three children. His brother,
Hamilton, and his sister, Polly, who mar-
ried John MattBon, a nephew of William
Henry Harrison. The mother of our subject
was Neppie Sparks, of Maryland, though
born in Kentucky. She was a daughter of
Matthew and Prudence (Con way) Sparks.
They were farmers who came to Schuyler
county in 1830, when Rushville was a very
small hamlet. Mr. Blackburn was a tanner
and currier, who started a small tannery and
soon built up a good business, which he sold
out in a few years at a handsome profit. He
again embarked in business with a partner
who proved a rascal and bankrupted him.
He then started anew by taking up eighty
acres of land near Plymouth. This was mili-
tary land, and after making a home and im-
provements here he found that his title was
370
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
not good; so lost it. Having studied medicine
under the then famous Dr. Thomas, of Cin-
cinnati, he began practicing and soon had a
large practice. In 1835-'36 the cholera
became epidemic, and he returned to Rush-
ville, against the wishes of his wife and chil-
dren, to assist the sick.
Mr. Blackburn was one of eleven children:
Robert, Bryson, Prudence, Orville, John,
Amanda, Amelia, Ann and Thomas: the other
two died in infancy. Mr. Blackburn had but
a limited district schooling, but he endeavored
to improve himself and tanght school one
winter. He has followed farming and car-
pentering all his life, for which he had a
patural talent.
He was married in Huntsville, Illinois, in
1852, to Susan Brnmlield Overstreet, a
daughter of Buckley and Nancy Overstreet.
Her parents came from Kentucky and Vir-
ginia. She was born in Kentucky in 1829,
and came to Illinois in 1836. Her parents
died in Huntsville, he aged sixty-eight, and
she seventy years.
Mr. and Mrs. Blackburn have buried four
children in early childhood. They have six
still living: Kate, wife of Warren Whitson, of
Brooklyn; Frances A., a maiden at home;
Fred W. married Sophia Wells and resides
near Brooklyn, on a farm of 500 acres; Nep-
pie, wife of Elmer Brown, resides at Brook-
lyn; Mary M., the wife of George Kruter,
lives in McDonough county; and R. H. is a
young man at home.
Mr. Blackburn bought his present house
and farm in 1854. He has 110 acres of very
fertile land. He considers himself a poor
financier, although an industrious man. He
voted with the Democrats until the Civil
war, and did not vote for president until
Hayes. He is a stanch Prohibitionist now.
He has served the town in some of the minor
offices. He and his wife are members of the
Methodist Church, and are well known and
and influential citizens.
ICHARD J. OSBORN, of Lee town-
ship, was born in Adams county, Illinois,
November 2, 1838. His father, David
N., was born in Connecticut in 1806, and his
father died in early life. David learned the
shoemaker trade, and worked at it many years
in the East. He married Martha Stafford, of
Maryland, in Ohio, whither he had come by
degrees, working at his trade as he went from
town to town, always in a westerly direction.
They came with one child to Adams county,
Illinois, in 1837. They possessed some
means and bought 160 acres of unimproved
land, on which they built a small log house,
and in which Richard was born. They re-
sided in Adams county fourteen years, and
then sold and came to Lee township, Brown
county.
When they built their first home the near-
est neighbors were five miles, and Mr. Osborn
had never seen them, but that did not pre-
vent them from coming to help him. When
they reached Lee township, they bought 160
acres of prairie and eighty of timber. They
paid $2,400 for these lands, which included
a cabin and seventy-two acres broken. This
was his life-long home, though he died at
Mound Station in 1883, in his seventy-eighth
year. He left a widow and six children. She
still survives|him,makingher home with Rich-
ard. The latter has been reared to farm life,
and obtained only a fair amount of schooling.
After Mr. Osborn married he settled here,
where he has 198 acres of prairie land and
forty of timber. He grows a mixed crop, —
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
371
corn, wheat and grass. He keeps about fif-
teen head of horses and thirty of cattle. He
turns off about seventy hogs a year, and lias
a small dairy in operation. He bought his
first eighty acres in 1879, and has added to
it from time to time. In 1860 he went to
Denver, Colorado, and on to the gold mines
forty miles west. He went with an ox team
over the plains and followed mining in com-
pany with one other. While there he met
with a sad accident, by which he lost his left
hand and his left eye. It was caused by an
accidental discharge of powder, February 11,
1861, hence his trip was not a financial suc-
cess.
He was married in 1882 to Ella Long, of
Brown county, Illinois. She was the daugh-
ter of Andrew and Elizabeth (Buxton) Long.
They are both natives of Illinois and farmers
of this township. Mr. and Mrs. Osborn have
two daughters, Edith M. and Alta P. Mrs.
Osborn is a member of the Methodist Epis-
copal Church. Mr. Osborn is a Republican,
first, last and all the time. He is School
Treasurer of Lee township, and has been Town
Clerk. He and his wife are worthy people,
and are highly esteemed by all who know
them.
jAVID DODDS was born in county
Down, Ireland, January 15, 1829, a
son of John Dodds, a native of the
same county and a descendant of Scotch an-
cestors; the father was a farmer by occupa-
tion, and spent his entire life in his own
country ; he died in 1863. The mother of
our subject was Martha McElroy Dodds, a
native of the same county as her husband,
and a daughter of John McElroy, of Scotch
extraction; she died in 1866, in county Down.
They had a family of thirteen children, eleven
of whom grew to maturity, and five of whom
came to America; Betty, Sallie, Ann, Mar-
tha, John, William, James, Samuel, Robert,
Thomas and David; John, James, Samuel,
Thomas and David came to the United States.
Our subject was reared and educated in the
county of his birth, and in his youth began
to assist on the home farm. He remained
with his parents until 1851, when he bade
farewell to home and friends and native land,
and sailed across the seas to the New World ;
the voyage consumed five weeks, and after
landing at New York he continued his jour-
ney to Ohio, and located in Mahoning county.
He remained there, working by the month,
for more than eight years, and then came to
Schuyler county and settled in Bainbridge
township.
When the great Civil war arose, Mr. Dodds
espoused the cause of his adopted country,
and August 5, 1861, enlisted in Company G,
Twenty-eighth Illinois Volunteer Infantry.
He was with his regiment until April, 1866,
and participated in the capture of Forts Hy-
man and Henry, and in the engagements at
Shilohj Grand Gulf, Champion Hills, the
Hatchie, Vicksburg, Forts Beauregard and
Blakely and Spanish Fort, and some others of
less note. He was honorably discharged, and
returned to his home, where he resumed farm-
ing. In 1867 he bought the land he now oc-
cupies.
Mr; Dodds was married in 1874, to Mrs.
Martha Herron Collister, a native of county
Down, and a daughter of James and Nancy
(Murray) Herron. Mrs. Dodds was first
married in Ireland, to Joseph Collister; they
emigrated to America in 1856, and the fol-
lowing year came to Schuyler county. Mr.
Collister became a member of Company D,
One Hundred and Fifteenth Illinois Volun-
373
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA3S,
teer Infantry, and after the war settled in
Bainbridge township, where he lived until
his death, in 1873; they had one daughter,
Maggie, who married Thomas Suddith.
Mr. and Mrs. Dodds were both reared to
the faith of the Presbyterian Church. Mr.
Dodds is a member of the Republican party,
and is an ardent supporter of its principles;
he belongs to Colonel Henry Post, No. 131,
G. A. R.
IAMUEL H. PETEFISH was born in
Rockingham county, Virginia, April
30, 1824, son of Jacob Petefish, a na-
tive of the same State. His grandfather,
Christian Petefish, was born in Germany.
When a young man, Christian Petefish en-
tered the army. He came to America as a
Hessian soldier during the time of the Revo-
lutionary war. His sympathies, however,
were not with the British Government, and
after the battle of Princeton he joined the
Colonial ranks and fought for independence
until peace was declared. He then settled in
Virginia, where he reared his family and
spent the remainder of his life.
Jacob Petetish was reared and married in
the Old Dominion, and resided there until
1835. That year, with his wife and eight
children, he started for Illinois. They made
the journey with a four-horse team, brought
their cooking utensils along, cooked and
camped on the way, and arrived in what is
now Cass county in October. Mr. Petefish
purchased a tract of land in what is now Vir-
ginia precinct, engaged in farming, and re-
sided here till the time of his death, in 1849.
The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth
Price, she, too, being a native of Virginia.
Her death occurred in 1854. They reared a
family of eleven children. The names of
the sons are as follows: William, Jacob, Sam-
uel H., John A., Andrew J. and Thomas B.
Andrew J. was a soldier in the late war, and
died in the service. Of the daughters we re-
cord that Mary wedded Reuben Fultz; Sarah
married Robert Maxtield ; Elizabeth was the
wife of'Levi Conover; Ellen married Joseph
Crum ; and Diana became the wife of Daniel
Short.
Samuel H. Petefish was eleven years old
when he came to Illinois with his parents,
and has witnessed almost the entire growth
and development of the county. At the time
they settled here, much of the land was
owned by the Government; it was many
years before the whistle of the locomotive
sounded in Cass county; the people lived
chiefly on wild game and the products of
their own land. The pioneer wives and
mothers cooked by fireplaces, they dressed
their families in homespun manufactured by
their own hands, and many were the hard-
ships and privations they endured. In the
primitive log schoolhouses, with their rude
furnishings, the children of these pioneer
families conned their lessons in the three R'fc.
The subject of our sketch attended school
in the winter and worked on the farm in sum-
mer. When he was twenty-one his father
gave him and his brother, Jacob, a tract of
unimproved land, upon which they com-
menced life as independent farmers. The
father furnished them a team and they at
once set about the improvement of their land.
A year later they made a contract with a
neighbor for 350 acres of land near by, the
greater portion of it being improved. The
contract price was $3,500. They were to
take possession one year later, at which time
they were to pay $1,000, and then yearly
payments of $500, with interest at six per
SCHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
373
cent. After farming together three years'
they divided their land. Samuel H. was
very successful, made his payments as they
became due, and continued farming till 1857,
when he rented his land and went to the Ter-
ritory of Kansas, going via the Illinois, Mis-
sissippi and Missouri rivers. He resided in
Leavenworth and Atchison about one year,
and in April, 1858, returned to Cass county.
In 1859 he located on his farm, and there
resided, engaged in agricultural pursuits, un-
til 1867, since which time he has made his
home in Virginia. He is still, however, in-
terested in agricultural pursuits, being now
one of the largest land-owners in the county,
owning upwards of 1,500 acres.
The business career of Mr. Petefish has
been a remarkably successful one. He first
became interested in banking in 1864, being
one of the original stockholders in the Farm-
ers' National Bank. In 1870, the firm of
Petefish, Skiles & Co. was formed, which
firm has since conducted a banking business
in Virginia. He is also a member of the
firm of Petefish, Skiles & Mertz, of Chandler-
ville, this company having been formed in
February, 1881; the firm of Skiles, Rearich
& Co., bankers of Ashland, established there
in August, 1881; the firm of Bloomfield,
Skiles & Co., Mount Sterling; and is a stock-
holder in the Schuyler County Bank, of Rush-
ville. He is the owner of several business
blocks in Virginia, and it was he who platted
and named the addition to Virginia, known
as Grand Villa. Besides his farms in Cass
county, he owns 200 acres of fine farming
land in Crawford county, Iowa, also 778 acres
in Decatur county, Iowa.
Politically, Mr. Petefish was for many
years a Democrat. At present he is a Pro-
hibitionist in principle and practice, and
votes with that party.
Mr. Petefish is a man of family. March
18, 1848, he wedded Nancy M. Hudson,
daughter of Peter and Melinda (Huffman)
Hudson. They have two children living,
Mary E., wife of E. D. C. Woodward of Vir-
ginia, and Louis A. Such is an epitome of
the life of one of Virginia's most prominent
and popular citizens.
ILLIAM STEVENSON, of township
17, range 10, section 26, Little In-
dian post office is an honored pioneer
of Cass county. He was born in Scott county,
Kentucky, December 2, 1813, a son of James
and Mary (Elliott) Stevenson, the former a
native of Ohio, and the latter of Kentucky.
To them were born nine children, of whom
three are living at this writing (1892), viz.:
Sarah, now Mrs. W. A. Bennett, of Spring-
field; Louisa, wife of Mr. Anthony Boston j
residing near Jacksonville, Illinois; and Will-
iam of this notice. Those deceased are
Wesley, Eliza J., Harriet, James, Robert and
Augustus. In 1829, Mrs. Stevenson died,
and the same year Mr. Stevenson brought his
family of children to Illinois, settling in
Morgan county, on the three-mile strip that
afterward became a part of Cass county.
Our subject spent his boyhood in his native
State, and there received such educational ad-
vantages as the common schools of the time
afforded, which was supplemented by a few
months' schooling after coming to Illinois.
While a resident of Kentucky he was well
acquainted with that somewhat noted soldier
and philanthropist, Colonel Richard Johnson,
who claimed the honor of having slain the
celebrated Indian chief and warrior, Tecumseh,
at the battle of Moraviantown in 1814.
William Stevenson was reared on a farm
and farming has been his occupation all
874
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
through life. On February 11, 1836, he was
united in marriage to Miss Frances, daughter
of William and Rachel (Roe) Berry, who
came from Virginia to Cass county in 1832,
and settled on a farm near the Stevenson
homestead.
Mr. and Mrs. Stevenson were the parents
of seven children, four of whom are still liv-
ing: Mary Eliza, died in 1838; Thomas, in
1839; Rachel hecame the wife of William
E. Martin, and died in 1879; Robert Roe,
married Mary J. Scott, and resides in Jack-
sonville, Illinois; Sarah Cornelia is the wife
of John J. Bergati, a prosperous merchant of
Virginia city, Illinois; Joseph B. wedded
Dora Vandeventer, and lives in Springfield,
Illinois; and Charles married Mary Epler,
and resides on the home farm. Mr. and
Mrs. Stevenson also reared two orphan chil-
dren.
In 1884, when in his seventy-first year,
Mr. Stevenson contested for the prize of a
gold-headed cane offered by the county fair
association for horse-back riding, which he
won, and shows with a commendable pride.
On February 11, 1886, Mr. and Mrs.
Stevenson celebrated the fiftieth anniversary
of their married life, which joyous event was
participated in by all the living relations.
Many handsome and valuable testimonials of
affection were presented to them on this oc-
casion by their admiring friends.
Mrs. Stevenson died at her home July 13,
1891, after a happy married life of fifty-five
years, being in the eighty-eighth year of her age.
She was a woman possessing many excellen-
cies of character, a faithful wife, loving
mother, kind neighbor, and devout Christian,
whose many acts of kindness endeared her to
a large circle of friends. By reason of a ro-
bust constitution and good habits she attained
nearly fourscore years, and passed away as
peacefully as the coming dawn, in the full
consciousness of an immortality beyond the
grave.
Mr. Stevenson has been a resident of Cass
county for sixty-three years, and has resided
on the same section of land since 1829. He
has not only witnessed the wonderful change
in the country but has actively participated
in transforming the wilderness and unbroken
prairie into fertile farms. Every enterprise
for the material or moral advancement of the
community has received his cordial support.
He and his family are Presbyterians, and
have contributed liberally in support of the
church. He was a Whig until the forma-
tion of the Republican party, when he joined
that organization and has since supported its
principles. He has never sought public of-
fice, preferring the quiet pursuits of farm
life. By honest industry he has been success-
ful in acquiring a handsome competence. He
has assisted his children to good starts in life
and still owns a fine farm of 375 acres, which
which is supplied with good bnildings and
all modern conveniences. In addition to his
duties of superintending his farm, he was
until recently agent for the Jacksonville
Southeastern Railroad which runs through
his farm, on which Little Indian station is lo-
cated. He was for twenty-four years agent
for the Wabash, Peoria, Pekin & Jackson-
ville and the Jacksonville & Southeastern
Railroad Companies, but resigned that posi-
tion in August, 1892.
: •• .
fOHN LISTMANN, of the firm of Rup-
pel & Listmann, extensive dealers in
boots and shoes, located at 108 State
street, Beardstown, Illinois, was born in
Frischborn, Kreis Lanterbach, Hesse-Darm-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
375
stadt, Germany, October 26, 1853, and grew
up in his native place, and passed a full
course in the public, schools. In 1867 he
and a sister with their parents started from
Bremen for America, lauding in New York
city after a safe trip on the steamship At-
lanta. The little family came on and made
a settlement at Springfield, Illinois, where an
elder son and two daughters had preceded
them. The family settled at the capital for
some time and then the parents located near
Burlington, Iowa, where they both died, at
the age of about sixty-seven and sixty-eight
years respectively. The father who was a
native of Hesse- Darmstadt and tiller of the
soil died in the fall of 1878; and the mother,
whose maiden name was Wienold, lived a
few months after her husband's death; then
she too died, in the early part of the year
1879.
Our subject is the youngest of a large
family of whom but four are living. He con-
tinued to perfect his education, principally
by self-study, and succeeded in attaining the
ability to speak and write both the German
and English with fluency. He learned the
trade of shoemaker and formed a partnership
in February, 1879, with Adam Ruppel, also
a practical boot and shoemaker by trade, and
these two gentlemen have carried on the busi-
ness successfully ever since. . Mr. Listmann
had been in the employ of H. Fayart, Spring-
field, Illinois, and Ruppel Bros, and Adam
Rupple, Beardstown, for some time before
entering into the partnership above referred
to. He is a stockholder in several building
and loan associations, and is identified with
the growth of the city. He has a host of
friends. He is a Republican in politics and
is an active member of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church (Fourth Street), and was a
delegate to the General Synod of the
Lutheran Church, when it held its session at
Altoona, Pennsylvania, in 1881. Mr. and
Mrs. Listmann take great interest in the
social and religious work of their church.
He was married in Beardstown, to Marie
Lammers, October 20, 1881. She was born,
reared and educated in Beardstown. She
was the daughter of Alexander and Henrietta
(Christianer) Lammers, natives of Prussia
and Hanover, Germany. They were married
in Beardstown. They are now both deceased
Mr. Lammers died in February, 1879, and
was eighty years of age.
Mr. and Mrs. Lislmann have three chil-
dren, Cora, Alice and Phoebe.
[SWELL SKILES, capitalist, Virginia,
Illinois, was born in Ross county, Ohio,
October 26, 1828. His father, Harmon
Skiles, a native of Pennsylvania, went to
Ohio when a young man and settled on Picka-
way Plains, being one of the early settlers of
that section of the country. In those days
many of the more extensive farmers had dis-
tilleries on their farms, and made their own
corn into whiskey, it being much more easily
transported to the distant markets in that way.
Mr. Skiles had a large distillery on his farm.
He removed from Pickaway Plains to Wash-
ington Court House, where he died in 1851.
He was twice married. His first wife, nee
Mary Thompson, died in January, 1829,
leaving two sons, Ignatius and Oswell. By
his second wife he had two daughters, Elea-
nor and Susan. Oswell Thompson, grand-
father of the subject of our sketch, was one
of the pioneer settlers of Pickaway Plains.
In 1827, he started westward and came to
Cass county, Illinois. He located on North
876
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Prairie, where he secured a farm and resided
until his death.
Oswell Skiles was an infant when his
mother died, and he was reared by a family
named Smith. Mr. Smith was a poor man,
had ten children of his own, and lived on a
rented farm. In addition to his farming
operations he also had a contract to carry the
mails between Washington Court House and
Columbus, a distance of thirty-seven miles,
and to Chillicothe, twenty-five miles. As soon
as he was large enough, young Skiles com-
menced to earn his living by assisting on the
farm, and when about fifteen years old he
carried the mail, making the journey on horse-
back. They used to make two trips a week
to Columbus. Many of the streams were
not bridged, and during high water he had
either to swim his horse or wait until the
water subsided. When he was about twenty
years old he began to learn the trade of
harnessmaker. He continued work at that
trade, in Ohio, until the fall of 1851, when
he came to Illinois, making the journey with
a horse and buggy, to Springfield. He rode
on the cars from there to Jacksonville, that
being the first railroad he had ever seen.
He landed in Jacksonville with $5 in his
pocket; hired a horse and rode to Arcadia,
from which place he walked to the home of
his uncle, Oswell Thompson, having sent the
horse back. On his arrival at his uncle's he
received $100 which he had inherited from
his grandfather's estate, and with that he
bought a horse, saddle and bridle. Thus
equipped, he made the journey on horseback
the following winter to Iowa, where he joined
another uncle residing in Louisa county, for
whom he worked about one year. Then he
returned to Cass county, and in April, 1853,
started for California. A man named Welch
had fitted out a train of ox teams, and Mr.
Skiles paid him $75 to carry his provisions,
clothing, etc., and he assisted in driving the
oxen and loose stock. They crossed the
Illinois river at Beardstown, on the 6th of
April, and continued their way westward
over rivers, plains and mountains, arriving in
the Sacramento valley in October. At that
time there were no white settlers between the
Missouri river and California, except the
Mormons at Salt Lake, and the country
abounded in game of all kinds. Mr. Skiles
had only about $2 left when he reached
California. He engaged to work for Mr.
Welch on his ranch for $75 per month
and board, and the two lived together in a
cabin, keeping bach. Mr. Skiles was soon
taken sick, however, and had to seek quarters
where he could receive better attention,
and for which he had to pay $9 per
week. With the first money he earned after
his recovery, he paid his board. He remained
with Mr. Welch about one year, and then
went to Forbestown, Butte county, where he
bought an interest in a mining claim, for
which he paid $100. He was successful in
his mining operations that winter. In the
spring he sold out and went to Sierra county,
prospected for a time, and then for some
months was engaged in preparing a tunnel
for deep diggings. The winter was very
severe, the snow falling to the depth of ten
feet. In the spring he engaged in mining,
being thus occupied there for two years, at
the end of which time he sold his interest for
$1,000. He then worked by the day about
three months, for $5 per day. Next we
find him in the Sacramento valley, engaged
in farming and stock raising, he having pur-
chased an interest in a claim to a tract of
Government land near Marysville. In 1858
he took passage on the steamer Oregon and
went to Victoria; but, instead of being en-
SCBUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
377
couraging, the reports from the mines in the
British possessions were the opposite, and
consequently he returned to his ranch, where
he remained till 1862. Then, with four
yoke of oxen he started to take a load of flour
to Virginia City, Nevada. On his arrival
there, he sold his load and engaged in draw-
ing cord wood to the qnartz mill, receiving
$15 per cord. In the fall he returned to his
ranch and spent the winter, and the follow-
ing spring went back to Virginia City. The
next autumn he took a load of shakes to
Austin, Reese river, 150 miles distant from
Virginia City, selling them for $150 per
1,000. He spent the winter there, and in the
spring sold his oxen and wagon, and started
on his return East. He journeyed by stage,
via Austin and Salt Lake City, to Atchison,
Kansas, thence by steamer and rail to Jack-
sonville, arriving at his uncle Oswell Thomp-
son's on the 4th of July, 1864. His suc-
cess in California was not unlike that of
many others who sought their fortunes in the
Golden State — sometimes successful and at
other times in hard luck. On his arrival in
Cass county, he had about $1,000. He
formed a partnership with his brother Igna-
tius, and engaged in buying and shipping
stock, in which he was very successfully en-
gaged for a number of years. For the past
few years, however, lie has devoted his atten-
tion to banking and farming. He is a mem-
ber of the firm of Petefish, Skiles & Co., of
Virginia; of Skiles, Rearick & Co., of Ash-
land; and of Mertz, Skiles & Co., of Chand-
lerville; and Bloomfield, Skiles & Co., of
Mt. Sterling. He owns farms in different
parts of Cass county, some of which he rents
and some of which he superintends.
Mr. Skiles has been twice married. In
July, 1870, he wedded Miss Ann Conover, a
native of Cass county, Illinois, a sister of
George Conover (a sketch of whom appears
elsewhere in this volume). She died in 1877,
and in 1879 he married Eliza J. Epler. He
has one child living, by his first marriage,
Lee Harmon, who is in the bank at Chand-
lerville. The children of his present wife
are Louis Oswell and Stella.
Politically, Mr. Skiles is a Republican. He
and his wife are members of the Presby-
terian Church.
HILIP JOKISCH, a practical young
farmer, living on a beautiful farm of
140 acres almost all highly improved,
and the same supplied with good farm build-
ings, was born on the Jokisch homestead
belonging to his father, Charles G., in this
township January 26, 1854. He was
reared and educated in his native county.
When arrived at manhood's estate he began
farming on his own account. He is the
second son and third child of his father,
Charles Jokisch (see his biography). Mr.
Philip Jokisch had but limited opportunities
for acquiring an education, but is a bright,
intelligent man, and has been very prosper-
ous. His present farm has been improved
by him and lies in the valley of the Illinois
river. He has owned this tine farm about
ten years and in that time has built the nice
residence they occupy. The laud has ad-
vanced in value since he bought it, and is
now very valuable, and he has made his money
by hard work.
He was married in this county, near Arenz-
ville, to Miss Sarah Hackman, born in this
county on her father's old hotuestead, near
Arenzville, October 28, 1869. She was care-
fully reared by good parents and received a
good education in the schools of the section,
378
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
and at those of Jacksonville, Illinois. She
is the fifth child and fourth daughter of Fred
and Minnie M. (Meyer) Hackinan, natives of
Hanover, Germany. They grew up in that
country, but came to this country when young
and single, and were afterward married in
Cass county where they began their married
life near Arenzville. Here they accumulated
a fine property of 400 acres of land. They
are still living there and now enjoy the fruits
of their labors. Mr. Hack man is not in good
health, but Mrs. Hackman is as well as one
of her age and after her life of hard work
could expect to be. They are members of
the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Mr. and Mrs. Jokisch are members of the
German Methodist Episcopal Church. He is
a Republican in politics. They are the par-
ents of four children: Oswell, Orin P., Yiola
E. and Verna M. Mr. and Mrs. Jokisch are
good, reliable fanners, and are highly re-
spected by all who know them.
§EWIS T. BARRY, a prominent and es-
teemed citizen of Mount Sterling, Illi-
nois, was born in Tippecanoe county,
Indiana, on a farm four miles northeast of
La Fayette, September 29, 1827.
His parents were John and Priscilla
(Richards) Barry, the former a native of
Pennsylvania. His father removed to Ohio
in an early day, where he married his first
wife, and continued to reside in Scioto valley,
that State, until her death. He then removed
to Kentucky, where he was again married, his
second wife being the widow of Mr. Reynolds
and became the mother of the subject of this
sketch. About 1826, he and his wife re-
moved to Indiana, at that time the frontier of
civilization. They were pioneers of Tippe-
canoe county, that State, where the Indians
were then more numerous than the whites.
The father here secured a large tract of Gov-
ern ment land and built a log house, in the
construction of which no sawed lumber was
used. The floor was of puncheon and the
roof was covered with rived boards, held in
place by weight poles, while the chimney
was made of earth and sticks, called in -those
days a " cat-and-stick chimney." Both par-
ents resided here until their death, the
mother expiring in 1830 and his father in
1836. They both enjoyed the universal es-
teem of their community and were widely
and sincerely lamented.
Thus the subject of this sketch was left an
orphan at the tender age of nine years, and
early became self-supporting. He attended
a pioneer subscription school which was
taught in a log house, the furniture being of
the most primitive kind. Rough slabs, sup-
ported by wooden pins for legs, formed the
seats, which had neither backs nor desks;
holes burned in the wall, on which a plank was
laid, served as a desk for larger scholars to
write on. The country was without rail-
roads or canals for many years, and La Fay-
ette was the nearest market. People used to
team wheat to Chicago, a distance of about
150 miles. He thus continued to live on
the home farm and attended school until he
attained the age of eighteen years. He then
commenced to clerk in Carroll county, Indi-
ana, where he remained for about five years.
After this, he engaged in tanning and the
manufacture of boots, shoes and harness, at
which business he continued four years. At
the end of this time, he sold out, and for a
couple of years served as Deputy County
Auditor, after which he did bookkeeping in
Delphi, Carroll county. In 1861, he came
to Mount Sterling, where he engaged in the
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
379
boot and shoe business, besides which, for
some years, he made harnesses and saddles.
Hs is still engaged in the boot and shoe trade,
and is the only exclusive dealer in that line in
the city, being one of the few successful
merchants of the place.
He was married in Delphi, Indiana, in
1850, to Ann L. Richardson, an estimable
lady, a native of Carroll county, that State,
and a daughter of John Richardson, a highly
respected citizen. To this union five chil-
dren were born, all living: A. Priscilla, wife
of E. W. Reid, a prosperous resident of Los
Angeles, California; Ellen E., wife of Isaiah
Price, living in Springfield; Kate L., wife of
William Mumford, of Pittstield, who have
one son, named Barry; John H. and Bert.
Mr. Barry is a member of Hardin Lodge,
No. 44, A. F. & A. M., and in politics sup-
ports the issues of the Democratic party.
Whatever success Mr. Barry has achieved
in life has not been acquired without effort,
as might be inferred. On the contrary, his
prosperity and popularity is directly traceable
to his unremitting energy and careful super-
vision of all the details of his various occu-
pations, and to his uniform integrity and
courtesy, thus deservedly attaining success
and esteem.
CAPTAIN JOHN HEATON, a retired
farmer residing in Virginia, Cass
county, Illinois, was born in Wigan,
Lancashire county, England, January 1, 1810.
Dennis Heaton, his father, and Bartley
Heaton, his grandfather, were also natives of
Wigan, the family as far as known being of
English ancestry. Grandfather Heaton was
a Colonel in the Life Guards. He spent his
whole life in England. Dennis Heaton was
engaged in the mercantile business in Wigan,
where he died about 1816. The maiden name
of his wife was Kate Bartley, and she, too,
was a native of Wigan. After the death of
Mr. Heaton she married James Richardson.
Her death occurred in Yorkshire about 1852.
By her first husband she had nine children,
all of whom reached adult years; by her
second husband she reared four children.
The subject of our sketch was reared in
Manchester. He was six years old when his
father died, and from the time he was seven
he earned his own living. From his seventh
year till his thirteenth he worked in a cotton
factory, after which he began learning the
trade of tin and coppersmith with Mr. Moon
in Oldham street, Manchester, with whom
he worked seven years. He now has a kettle
which he made in 1827 and presented to his
mother. At the time of his marriage she
gave it back to him, and it has been in daily
use in his family ever since.
At the age of twenty-one Mr. Heaton en-
listed in the Thirty sixth Begiment of In-
fantry, and was soon transferred to the Fifty-
ninth Regiment, and marched across Ireland
to Dublin, joining the regiment at Port Aa
Bella Barracks, and served two years and
eight mouths. He was in different parts of
Ireland ten months and then made a forced
march to Oldham, England, to quell a riot
there; thence to Liverpool, where he embarked
for Gibraltar, a year later to Malta, then to
Carfew, and from there back to Gibraltar,
where his discharge and that of nineteen
others was purchased, supposed to have been
by the Spanish Government. He then be-
came a member of Shaw's brigade for the
Spanish army during the war between Don
Carlos and the Queen; was commissioned
Captain of the Light Company and com-
manded that company in the different
380
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASK,
marches, battles, etc., incident to that war.
He served a little more than seven years.
When peace was declared Captain Heaton
was honorably discharged and returned to
Manchester. There he began business on
his own account as a tin and copper smith,
remaining thus occupied until 1850. That
year he came to America, sailing from Liver-
pool on the 27th of May and landing in
Quebec after a voyage of seven weeks and
three days. His father-in-law was at that
time living four miles from Streetsville, On-
tario. He joined him, and from there visited
the Queen's Bush, a tract of timber land set
aside for the soldiers. Not caring to have a
farm in the wilderness, he came to the
United States. After residing in St. Louis a
few weeks, he sought a home in Cass county,
Illinois, taking up his abode seven miles from
Virginia, where he entered a tract of Govern-
ment land. He erected a log house and com-
menced at once to improve his land. This
was before the coming of the railroad and
when Beardstown was the principal market
for this section of the country. Deer and
various kinds of wild game were plenty here.
Captain Heaton improved fifty acres of land,
and in 1854 sold it to John Fravey. He
then moved to Beardstown in order to give
his children the benefit of schools. He was
employed by Horace Billings in his pork
house for a time, and later was in the em-
ploy of Mr. Crea and Henry Chatsey.
While a resident of that place he was sent
for from Brooklyn, New York, to superintend
a pork-packing establishment there for a
Mr. Arris. He remained in Brooklyn one
season. In 1863 he went to Decatur, Illi-
nois, and established a packing house for Mr.
Plato. He subsequently purchased a farm
of Major Arnold, in Monroe precinct, and re-
sided on it till 1870. The following two
years he lived in Beardstown. His next move
was to Virginia. He bought property on
Gospel Hill, built a house, and resided
there till 1884. He then rented that place,
and bought and moved to his present home.
Captain Heaton was married at Bolton,
Lancashire, England, November 2, 1840, to
Mary J. Fullerton. She was born in the
Tower of London, February 29, 1820, daugh-
ter of Major James Fullerton, a native of
England. When a young man, her father
enlisted in the Seventh Battalion, and was
commissioned Major. He was in command
of the tower at the time of her birth. He
served in the army about twenty-two years,
after which he was retired on half pay. He
then emigrated to Canada, and settled twenty
miles from Toronto, Ontario, where he
bought a farm and resided till his death.
The maiden name of his wife was Martha
Glen. She was born in England and died
in Canada.
To Captain Heaton and his wife eleven
children have been born, viz.: Noble John,
who was married by W. R. Whitehead to
Flavila Yaple, December 24, 1873, and has
three children, Charlie, Alford and Noble
John; Catharine, who was married by R. C.
H. Heimerling to Charles Caldwell, Decem-
ber 12, 1860, and has seven children, Pat-
rick, John, Emma, Jennie, who became the
wife of James Mead, of Virginia; Lizzie,
Katie and Edward; Edward, who lost his
life in a railroad accident on the Central
Pacific Railroad ; James, who was married in
November, 1873, to Cora Seaman, has one
child, Florence; Mary Jane, who was mar-
ried by Benjamin Williams to W. B. Will-
iams, August 7, 1871, and has two children,
Eddie and Henry; William, who was mar-
ried by John W. Shay to Hannah E. Sea-
man, November 10, 1875, and has five chil-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
381
dren, Mary, John, Willard, George and
Eva; Charles, who was married January 5,
1885, to Sadie Bohman; Susan, who was
married by John W. Allen to Reuben Lan-
caster, March 11, 1880, and has two chil-
dren, Earl and Iva; Alice, who was married
by John W. Allen to Edward E. Savage,
May 10, 1877, and has four children, Henry,
Walter, Bessie and Zella; Martha, who was
married by J. E. Roach to Richard H.
Payne, November 20, 1884, and has four
children, Carey, Inis, Hazel and Irine; and
Thomas, who is unmarried. They have
twenty-nine grandchildren and three great-
grandchildren.
The Captain and his worthy companion
are devout members of the Catholic Church.
The sword which this veteran carried in
Spain he has presented to his son, Noble
John, who values it beyond price.
Such is a brief record of one of Virginia's
pioneers and highly respected citizens.
WILLIAM L. DEMAREE is a native
of Rushville township, having been
born there June 7, 1858, and while a
young man is a successful farmer, and one
who enjoys the confidence and the respect °f
his friends and neighbors. His father, Lud:
well H. Demaree, was born in Mercer county,
Kentucky, and his grandfather spent the last
years of his life in that State. Ludwell
Demaree, after marrying in Kentucky, a lady
by the name of Martha J. Yankee, of Wash-
ington county, that State, removed to Illi-
nois in 1857, buying a farm in section 16,
Rushville township, where he lived until his
death, in 1872. He was one of the founders
of the Methodist Episcopal Church South, in
this county, and spared neither time nor
ae
means for its advancement. His wife sur-
vived him by sixteen years. Six of her eight
children are living, viz.: Belle, married to
Leonidas Scott; Laura, inarried to Alexander
Acheson; William L.; John H.; Nora, mar-
ried to J. C. Harrison ; and George L.
William L. Demaree received his educa-
tion in the schools of his native town. Ap-
preciating the importance and value of a good
education, he sought to improve every oppor-
tunity. He was but fourteen years of age
when his father died, and he continued as be-
fore to reside at the home place, only leaving
it at the time of his marriage, in 1883. This
event took place very happily in that year, to
Rebecca Hamilton, daughter of a worthy and
esteemed couple, John and Margaret Hamil-
ton, and he then settled upon the farm where
he now resides. In 1891, Mr. Demaree
added to his possessions by buying another
farm in section 22, Rushville township, so
that he now owns 460 acres of land, all in
the township named. He carries on general
farming and stock raising.
Mr. and Mrs. Demaree ha, ve two, children,
D,wight E. and W-illiam P. They are earnest
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church
South, Mr. Demaree being the builder of the
McTyeire chapel in 1890. In politics, Mr.
Demaree is a Democrat.
•i*
HRISTIAN KUHLMANN, one of the
substantial farmers and highly respected
citizens of Monroe precinct, Cass county,
Illinois, was born in the kingdom of Eilstad,
Germany, in April, 1827. His parents were
natives of Hanover, and passed their lives
there. When Christian was three years old
his father died, leaving a wife and three
children.
383
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
Mr. Kuhlmann attended school until he
was fourteen, when he began to earn his own
living, working by the year on a farm. The
first year he received only $3 and his board.
In 1851 he came to America. Setting sail
from Bremen in April in the sailing vessel
Capanica, he landed at New York after a
voyage of forty-two days. He there found
employment in a sugar refinery at $26 per
month, and thus earned the money to pay
his way to the West. In 1852 he came to
Illinois, coming via the Hudson river to
Albany, Erie canal to Buffalo, the lakes to
Cleveland, canal to Portsmouth, and the Ohio
and Mississippi rivers to St. Louis. He found
employment on a farm in St. Louis county,
and remained there till 1854. That year he
came to Cass county and was employed at
farm work by the month. He was very in-
dustrious, saved his earnings, and in the
course of time rented land and began farming
on his own account. In 1864 he made his
first purchase of land, 160 acres, located on
section 26, township 18, range 11. There
was a log cabin on the place, into which the
family moved, and he at once began to make
further improvements on the land. Prosper-
ity attended his well-directed efforts, and as
the years rolled by he added to his original
purchase and erected suitable farm buildings.
His home farm now contains 375 acres, and
he also owns another farm, 437 acres, in the
ame township. Besides these Mrs. Kuhl-
mann has a farm of 120 acree. Mr. Kuhl-
mann is indeed a self-made man. His life
and achievements serve well to illustrate
what a poor young man with ambition, good
judgment and plenty of energy can accom-
plish in this free land of ours.
In 1855 Mr. Kuhlmaun was married in
Cass county, to Mary Middlebusher, also a
native of Hanover. She came to America
with her parents. Their union has resulted
in the birth of two sons, George H. and John
H. The younger resides with his parents.
George H. is engaged in farming on his own
account. He married Miss Kate A. Hem-
inghaus, a native of Morgan county, Illi-
nois, daughter of German parents. They
have three children: Christian, Adelia and
Lydia.
The Kuhlmann family are members of the
Lutheran Church at Beardstown.
EMETRIUS H. ALLEN, a prominent
citizen of Versailles, was born in Adams
county, this State, in 1855. His father,
James, was born, in New Jersey in 1819, and
he came to this State when a young man, in
1838. His wife was Mary Holten, born May
2, 1825. She died in 1875, having borne
her husband nine children, two of whom died
in infancy; those who lived to maturity were:
Mary C., wife of Jeremiah Stuart; William
M., farmer of Missouri, has six children;
John, residing with subject; D. H., subject;
Amanda, wife of Stephen Smith; Stephen
A. D., farm laborer of this township; George
resides on the farm with his brother, has but
one son.
Our subject's father had but limited
schooling, being obliged to work on the farm
his father purchased, for many years. He
enlisted in the Fiftieth Illinois Infantry,
serving two years, when he was discharged
on account of sickness, but was home only a
few weeks when he re-enlisted in the cavalry
service, serving in all some four years and a
half, being mustered out at St. Louis at the
close of the war. Although not very well
educated, he was an able and zealous minister
of the Baptist Church.
SO SUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
383
Our subject was one of the good sons one
so seldom sees, remaining at home, assisting
with the farm and caring for the little ones,
and has never ceased to look after their
welfare.
He was married January 3, 1878, to Miss
Julia Hall, of the same place, daughter of
Elijah and Susan (Cousin) Hall, Virginia
farmers, who came to Illinois about 1830,
being then very poor, but then they had 240
acres of good land and other valuable prop-
erty. Five of their children are still living.
The father died when seventy years old, and
the mother when she was eighty years old, in
1884.
Mr. and Mrs. Allen have buried one son,
Charles L. an infant, and one daughter, May
Allen, born September, 1880. Mr. Allen is
a Democrat, and has served as School Di-
rector for something over one term. He is
a Deacon in the Baptist Church.
Mr. Allen carries on general farming on
his wife's fifty-acre farm, raising wheat and
corn, the former yielding about sixteen
bushels to the acre, the latter forty to fifty.
Mr. and Mrs. Allen are highly respected
young people of their township, and enjoy
life on their beautiful farm, which is kept in
beautiful order by the care of Mr. Allen.
'HOMAS S. HOWELL, one of the old-
est settlers now residing in Schuyler
county, Illinois, was born in Guilford
county, North Carolina, February 16, 1825.
His grandfather, John Howell, was a native
of Wales, and but little of his history is
k^iown; he was a farmer by occupation, and
emigrated to America, spending his last days
in Guilford county, North Carolina. His
son, John Howell, Jr., the father of Thomas
S., was born and reared in North Carolina,
and there learned the cabinet-maker's trade,
which he followed until 1829; then, accom-
panied by his wife and five children, he un-
dertook the overland trip to Illinois, and
after eight weeks of travel he arrived in
Schuyler county. It had not been long since
the first settlers penetrated these wilds, and
there were consequently few improvements.
Indians still lingered about, and wild game
was plentiful. Mr. Howell bought a tract of
timber land in Woodstock township, and
erected a cabin that was the pride of the
community, from the fact that it had a shingle
roof; the floor was made of puncheons, aud
the door of heavy oak boards hung on wooden
hinges. There were no railroads, and no
steamers plying the Illinois river. Mr. How-
ell followed his trade in connection with his
agricultural pursuits, and lived here until his
death, August 10, 1833. His wife's maiden
name was Sally Manlove, a native of G-uilford
county, North Carolina, and a daughter of
William Manlove; after he* husband's death
she was married a second time, to Stephen
Frasier; her death occurred May 1, 1843.
She was the mother of seven children: Aman-
da, Oscar C., William M., Thomas S., Jona-
than M., John H. and Jacob.
Thomas S. Howell was a child of four
years when his parents came to Illinois, but
well remembers many of the incidents and
experiences peculiar to pioneer life. His fa-
ther kept sheep and raised flax, and from the
wool and flax the mother spun, carded and
wove the cloth from which the family ward-
robe was supplied. He remained with his
mother during her lifetime. The first ven-
ture he made in business was threshing 100
bushels of wheat, the agreement being that
he was to receive therefor one-tenth of the
wheat; lie worked three days to pay for three
384
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
barrels in which to ship the wheat to St.
Louis, the whole transaction netting him $3.
With this capital he was married, and settled
on the home farm ; he had inherited twenty-
five acres, and he rented the balance of the
other heirs, and there began his career as a
farmer. In due time he was enabled to pur-
chase this tract.
In March, 1865, he enlisted in Company
D, One Hundred and Fifteenth Illinois Vol-
unteer Infantry, and in June, of that year,
was transferred to the Twenty-first Illinois,
serving until December 16, of the same
year; he was honorably discharged at San
Antonio, Texas. He resided on the home-
stead in Woodstock township until 1875,
when he sold this place and purchased the
Newbury farm, which consists of 220 acres
on section 28, Bainbridge township.
Mr. Howell was married May 14, 1843, to
Sarah C. Newbury, who was born in Wash-
ington county, Ohio, a daughter of Joseph
and Margaret Newbury, natives of New York
and Virginia respectively, and pioneers of
Washington county, Ohio, and Schuyler
county, Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Howell have
eight children living: John E., Austin D.,
Oscar C., Hattie A., William, Loraiu C.,
Dora and T. Edgar. Our subject is a stanch
supporter of the principles of the Republican
party, and is a man who has the respect and
confidence of all who know him.
[1LLIAM LUCAS, a farmer of Lee
township, was born in Mount Ster-
ling, June 17, 1837. His father,
Daniel, was born in Butler county, Ohio,
March 21, 1810, and his father was a native
of Virginia, of English ancestry. He was a
lad of sixteen when the Revolutionary war
was declared, and served six years in it.
Soon after he emigrated to Kentucky, and
was one of the first settlers of that State, and
from there went on to Butler county, Ohio,
and settled there as a pioneer in 1796 and re-
sided in that county until his death in 1836.
His son, Daniel Robins, was the youngest of
a large family, was reared to agricultural
pursuits, but obtained a good education for
those days and by teaching earned enough to
educate himself in medicine. He removed
from Ohio to Crawtbrdsville, Indiana, and
from there to Brown county, Illinois, in 1836,
and was one of the pioneers. He practiced
medicine through Brown and Adams counties
until his death, January 26, 1884. In
1843 he settled in Lee township, where he
bought land and in addition to his practice
superintended his farm. He married Sarah
Ann Keith, of Kentucky, who died March 22,
1890, aged seventy-two -years. They had
twelve children: William, Newton, Martha
Ann, Mary Elizabeth, Dr. George Washing-
ton, John Harding, Ethan Allen, Helen,
Daniel Webster, Benjamin Franklin and
James Edward. Nine are living and three
died young.
William remained on the farm until he
was thirty-one years of age. He and his
brother went to Texas for a herd of cattle in
1866. They bought 600 head at $20 a head.
They drove them through to Illinois, crossed
the Red river, April 22, and reached Quincy,
September 20. The adventure proved a
financial disaster. From 1872 to 1876 he
and his brother, Newton, were at Memphis,
Missouri, in the grain and hay business. In
this he was successful, and now owns 632
acres of land, and is a stock farmer, growing
the ordinary crops of this section. He keeps
from fifty to a hundred head of cattle, and
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
38o
owns some of the pure-blood registered stock.
He often raises as many as 250 hogs.
He was first married January 2, 1866, to
Margaret Miller, who died July 7, 1866, of
quick consumption in consequence of an ex-
posure while swimming a stream on horse-
back. He was again married in 1884, to A.
E. Lierly, daughter of William R. Lierly,
minister of the Dunkard Church. They
have one daughter: Sarah Ann, born Feb-
ruary 17, 1890.
fOHN H. GOODELL, formerly a pros-
perous farmer of Cass county, Illinois,
now an enterprising lumber merchant of
Chandlerville, was born in Windham county,
Connecticut, April 15, 1832.
The Goodelis were of French ancestry, who
settled in Connecticut in an early day. The
paternal grandmother of the subject of this
sketch was a descendant of the Holbrook
family, who were also old and respected
residents of tire Nutmeg State; while his
paternal grandfather was a captain in the
Revolutionary war, in which he distinguished
himself for bravery and efficiency. The par-
ents of our subject were Horace and Lucy
(Rickard) Goodell, both natives of Connecti-
cut, of which State his mother's ancestors
were also early settlers. The father of our
subject was reared on a farm in Windham
county, the same State, where he and his wife
continued to reside until 1837. He then
sold out, and with his wife and three children
removed to Illinois, making the journey by
land and water. Arriving on the frontier he
rented land for a number of years, which he
farmed, finally buying forty acres of wild
land, to which he subsequently added, until
it now contains eighty acres. On this he
erected a substantial farm house, where he
continued to reside until his death in May,
1886, at the age of eighty-four years. His
wife also died in the year 1868, on the home-
stead, aged fifty-nine years. This worthy
couple were the parents of seven children, all
sons, two of whom now survive, the subject
of this sketch and a brother, Charles C.
Goodell, the latter now residing on the old
homestead.
John H. Goodell lived at home until he
was twenty years of age, working on the farm
until he was eighteen, and attended the dis-
trict school of that vicinity. When eighteen
he learned the carpenter's trade, at which he
commenced to work at twenty, continuing in
that vocation for ten years.
At this time war was declared and Mr.
Goodell enlisted in August, 1862, in Com-
pany A, One Hundred and Fourteenth Illi-
nois, under Captain Johnson, and served
until the close of the war, being a part of the
time on detached duty. He was in the hos-
pital in Memphis for two months in 1864.
He was mustered out of the army in Vicks-
burg, Mississippi, at the close of the war, and
received his discharge in Springfield, Illinois.
He then returned to Jacksonville, Illinois,
where he worked at his trade for about two
years, after which he came to Chandlerville,
and bought the farm on which he now lives.
He and his wife together now own 235 acres,
which is devoted to mixed farming. In 1876,
Mr. Goodell started a lumber-yard in Chand-
lerville, which he has continued to operate
successfully ever since, having, by upright
dealing and uniform courtesy, built up a large
trade in the town and surrounding country.
Mr. Goodell was first married February 27,
1853, to Miss Helen E. Cotton, an intelligent
lady, and a native of Franklin county, New
York. She was a daughter of Gideon C. and
386
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Miss (Sperry) Cotton, natives of New Eng-
land, who removed to New York State, where
they died. Mr. Goodell's marriage was des-
tined to be of short duration, as ten years
later, July 4, 1863, his wife expired at
their home in Chandlerville, leaving many
sorrowing friends.
On December 28, 1865, Mr. Goodell was
married to his present wife, Miss Harriet A.
Sewall, an estimable lady who was born April
14, 1838, in the county were she now resides.
Her father was born in Angusta, Maine, and
was a son of General Henry Sewall, a Major
in the Revolutionary war, who was afterward
made a Major-General of the Eighth Division
of the State militia. He died in his native
State, at the advanced age ofjninety-four years.
His brother, Jotham Sewall, was a prominent
home missionary of Maine, and died in that
State at the age of ninety-one years. All
the family lived to a great age, and many of
the name were prominent ministers of the
gospel. On account of his father's promi-
nence and services to the country, his son,
father of Mrs. Goodell, obtained a lucrative
position in Washington, but on his way thither
he was shipwrecked on Long Island sound in
extreme cold weather, and, on seeing a woman
on board suffering for want of more'clothes,
took off his coat and gave it to her to save her
life. Then, to keep from freezing and the
ship from sinking, he had to work the ship
pnmp so long that he froze his hands and was
rendered unable to write and fill the office.
Then after a long illness he went, at the age
of twenty-one, to Virginia, where he taught
school, having received a liberal education
for boys in those days. It was while thus
engaged that he met and married his wife in
Virginia, which was then a part of Maryland.
His wife was a native of Nanjamoy, Mary-
land, and was a daughter of Samuel and
Catharine Tolliver (Hoe) Middleton. The
Middletons were of English ancestry, and
early settlers of America. Both families
were prominent in business and social affairs
of the State, and many of their relatives were
accomplished literary men, while others were
distinguished in the law and other profes-
sions. Some of the descendants took an act-
ive and prominent part in the Confederate
army. Soon after his marriage, about 1829,
Mr. Sewall removed to Illinois, then a new
and sparsely settled country. They settled
in Jacksonville, where Mr. Sewall taught
school and entered 640 acres of land in Cass
county. He taught school for about two or
three years, when he moved on his farm,
where he continued to reside until his death.
He was a very devout man and did much
good in this new country. He was an active
worker in Sunday-school and church matters,
acting for years as superintendent of the
former as long as he lived, and was instru-
mental in building the first church in the
community, of which he was the first Elder.
He did more to build up both of these insti-
tutions in the early day than any other man
in the community. Storms or cold weather
never deterred him from his duty. To make
sure of prompt attendance he would take his
kindling wood with him, and his wife her
broom, and ride three miles to the village
church, then used as a schoolhouse; and while
he made the fire she would sweep and clean
up the house before the people of the village
had started out.
He and his worthy wife had six children,
three of whom are now living. He was uni-
versally beloved and respected, and was greatly
lamented when he died on his farm, in 1846,
aged about forty-nine years. His devoted
wife survived him many years, dying at our
subject's home at the advanced age of eighty
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
387
years. What has been said of her husband
would apply equally to her, both having led
in all good and charitable works, and was al-
ways noted for bravery and presence of mind.
Mr. and Mrs. Groodell have six children:
Lucy, born May 28, 1868; Lida, born Febru-
ary 2, 1871; William S., born September 16,
1872; John, born March 1, 1875; Andrew J.,
born March 11, 1877; and Susie, born Febru-
ary 27, 1880.
Mr. Goodell now belongs to the Prohibition
party in politics, previous to which he was a
Democrat, with the exception of the years
1856 and 1860, when he voted the Republi-
can ticket. He is a member of the Good
Templar's Lodge, No. 357. For thirty-five
years he has been a Deacon in the church, and
he is active in Sunday-school work, having
taught the largest Bible class of the older
scholars in the Sabbath-school for over thirty
years. His worthy wife aids him in all good
work. She belongs to the Women's Chris-
tian Temperance Union and other ladies'
societies, and the whole family are church
attendants. They are, in fact, of that class
of which it was said they " are the salt of the
earth," adding savor to the works of the
world.
fOHN C. FL1NN, a prominent farmer
and successful stock-raiser of township
17, range 9, section 24, near Ashland,
Illinois, was born in Morgan county, this
State, August 28, 1842. His parents were
Royal and Lovicia (Hall) Flinn, his paternal
grandfather having come from Ireland. His
father was a native of North Carolina, and
when twelve years of age went to Kentucky,
from which State he came to Morgan county,
Illinois, about 1828. Here he purchased
land, which he industriously improved,
making it a valuable farm, on which he
lived a number of years. He was a soldier
in the Black Hawk war, and also in the
Mexican war, serving efficiently in both.
He died at Prentiss, Morgan county, Illinois,
January 27, 1892, in his ninetieth year, his
having been a remarkably active career, of
unusual longevity. The devoted wife and
mother still survives at the old homestead,
where she is a helpless invalid from rheuma-
tism, being the recipient of the most solicit-
ous care of her children and the deepest re-
gard of a host of friends. This worthy couple
were the parents of six sons and four daugh-
ters, four of the former now deceased. Those
surviving are: Francis M., now living in
Prentiss, Morgan county, this State; Thomas,
a resident of Waverly, in the same county;
and the four sisters, three of whom live in
Morgan county, and one in Macoupin county,
Illinois, all being married and having fami-
lies. Two sons by a former marriage of the
father still survive, one son having died.
The subject of this sketch attended the
subscription schools of Morgan county, and
was reared to farm life. At the age of six-
teen years he went to southwestern Missouri,
where he followed agricultural pursuits, re-
turning to Morgan county in 1862. It was
while in Missouri in the early part of the
war that he was importuned to unite his for-
tunes with the Southern cause, but declined
to do so, and returned to the North to avoid
conscription. Since then he has continued
farming pursuits in Morgan and Cass coun-
ties, having resided on his present place for
nine years. This farm contains 170 acres of
choice land, which is principally devoted to
grain, besides which some very fine stock is
raised. By good management and energy
this farm has been very profitable, and he
j has accumulated a handsome competence.
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
Mr. Flinn was married in southwestern
Missouri, to Miss Hannah Willis, an intelli-
gent lady, and a native of Kentucky, in
which State her parents were also born, who
emigrated to Missouri when their daughter
was a child. To this union have been born
ten children, three sons and seven daughters:
Ophelia, the oldest, married J. J. Higginson,
a prominent merchant of Philadelphia, Illi-
nois; Annie is the wife of L. P. Fisher, a
farmer, near Jacksonville, this State; Luella
and Alice are teachers in the public schools
of this county; Jennie, Oscar, Frank, Leila
and Stella (twins), and Earle. The twin
daughters, now budding into beautiful
womanhood, are so near alike that it puzzles
their acquaintances to distinguish them. All
except those who are married are under the
parental roof, and each and every one of them
is intelligent and progressive, being alto-
gether a most interesting family, whom it is
a pleasure to meet. All of the young people
are interested in educational work. The son,
Frank, has in view a course in the Gem City
Commercial College for the coming winter,
while the young ladies who are not already
teachers are fitting themselves to become
such. Numerous good books and periodicals
are taken and read with avidity, and fully
appreciated by their keen intellects. What-
ever disappointments may be in store for
Mr. Flinn in agricultural pursuits and pecu-
niary matters, will be amply compensated for
by the charming family with which he is
surrounded.
Mr. Flinn is Democratic in his political
affiliations and takes a deep interest in all
public affairs of importance.
Mrs. Flinn and five of the daughters are
members of the Christian Church, to which
they render much assistance.
Whatever gifts Dame Fortune has be-
stowed upon Mr. Flinn have not been volun-
tarily given, but have been wrested from her
by perseverance and honest toil, and he
richly deserves his present prosperity and
happiness.
EOKGE WAGNER, a successful farmer,
was born in Hesse-Cassel, in 1825. He
had lost his mother when a child, and
was brought up by his grandfather. His
father came to this country in 1844, but
George would not come along, as he did not
like his stepmother. In 1848 he was drafted
into the army, and after serving two years he
came to the United States, but had helped
fight five hard battles. He did not like such
a dangerous life, and came away, as did many
others at that period.
His father, after corning to America, en-
gaged as a piano-maker in New York, in
which business he had made much money in
Germany. George never joined his father
in this country, but came on West to try his
fortune in Cass county.
He was married in this county in a short
time, to Mary Deer, a German lady, who
died in 1862, leaving five children. Mr.
Wagner was a second time married, to Cath-
erine Dietrich, born in Hesse-Cassel, who
came to America in her youth. She has
been a most devoted wife, and the mother of
six children, three of whom are married and
three of whom are yet at home.
Mr. Wagner has lived in the county since
1850. He first purchased land at 25 cents
an acre, and sold it after some improvement,
and purchased his present home. He now
owns in section 4, township 17, range 11,
100 acres of improved land, and has good
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
389
farm buildings. He has forty acres of tim-
ber land on section 3, township 17, range 11.
He purchased the home in 1868, and settled
on it in 1870. He was Road Supervisor
three terms.
Mr. and Mrs. Wagner are good and well-
known people in the county. He is a
Republican, and both are upright, honest
people.
P. COLT, a leading member of
commercial circles in Schuyler county,
has resided here since 1843, and is en-
titled to the following space in this history
of the pioneers of the State and county. He
was born in Erie county, Pennsylvania, Feb-
ruary 2, 1828, a son of Alexander and Lucy
(Childs) Colt, natives of Pennsylvania and
Massachusetts respectively. The maternal
grandfather, Alexander Colt, Sr., emigrated
to America from Ireland, accompanied by his
wife and children ; one brother, Judas Colt,
also came to this country and settled in New
York State. Alexander Colt, Jr., was the
youngest of a large family; he grew to ma-
turity in Erie county, and was married there.
In 1843 he removed to Illinois, and settled
on a farm near Rushville, Schuyler county,
where he and his wife passed the remainder
of their days. They reared a family of fif-
teen children, thirteen of whom lived to ma-
ture years. Dow P. Colt was the second
born, and is the oldest of the family now liv-
ing. When he first came to this State, he
was employed in a tannery, and also assisted
his father on the farm. At the age of nine-
teen years he learned the broom-maker's trade,
which he followed fourteen years. Having
accumulated some means, he embarked in the
grocery trade and carried on a thriving busi-
ness until 1870. During the next five years
he sold musical instruments, and from 1875
to 1889 he was engaged in the lumber trade.
In the latter year he again took up the gro-
cery business, which he has since continued
without interruption.
Mr. Colt was united in marriage, June 2,
O ' '
1853, to Miss Ellen Kuhn, a daughter of
John and Harriet (White) Kuhn; she was
born in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania.
To them have been born four children: Alice
F., wife of George Bissel, Lucy E., Anna 13.,
wife of James Montieth, and William W. In
his political convictions Mr. Colt is allied
with the Republican party; he has held the
office^of member of the village Board, but has
not been an office seeker.
He was reared amidst Democratic influ-
ences, bnt after the war his father and
brothers became Republicans. During the
great civil conflict five of his brothers fought
for the nation's flag, the youngest being but
fifteen years of age: he enlisted, but was re-
jected on account of defective vision and
hearing. He is not a member of any civic or
religious societies at the present time, al-
though for many years he was connected
with the I. O. O. F.
fACOB ZIMMERMAN, born in section
26, Pike county, Illinois, son of George
Zimmerman (see his sketch in this book),
remained at home until he enlisted, Au-
gust 10, 1862, in Company B, Ninety-ninth
Illinois Infantry, Captain Mathews, com-
manding officer. He remained in service un-
til the close of the war, when he was mustered
out at Baton Rouge and discharged at Spring-
field, Illinois. He was with the company in
390
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CABS,
all their engagements, notwithstanding he
was in the hospital for a short time.
He was married in 1864, to Mary L. Win-
ters, born in 1849. After his marriage he
resided in Elkhorn, in the first frame house
built in that place. He later built his present
house, in which the family have lived for ten
years. He first owned 157 acres, but has
now about 146 acres in this county.
Mr. Zimmerman and wife have been mem-
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church for a
number of years. He is a member of the
People's party, and was a member of the
Greenback party some years ago. He is no
office seeker, and has had but little time to
attend to the local politics.
Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman have had the
following children: Frank O., married, was
born in 1868; Edwin, born in 1871; Minnie
P., born in 1873; Mark T., born in 1877; and
Jessie W., born in 1884. Minnie P. and
Frank O. attended Chadock College at Quincy,
Illinois, for a term of six months.
Edwin R. is an artist. The children are
all temperate, having never tasted any intoxi-
cating drink in their lives, have never used
any profane language, and are strictly honest.
Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman are good, reli-
able citizens, and are highly respected by
their host of friends.
lICHARD M1LNER an old settler of
Beardstown, was born near Preston,
Lancashire, England, thirty miles
from Liverpool. He learned the trade of
wagonmaker and when young he came to the
United States. He was the only one of the
family that came to the United States. His
parents lived and died in Lancashire, En-
gland, the mother when Richard was six years
old, the father, Thomas, a life-long farmer,
when he was eighty-four years old. He and
his wife were ardent Congregationalists.
Richard was the eldest of a large family of
brothers and half brothers, and left home for
Canada in 1842, but he staid there only fif-
teen months and then came to Jacksonville,
Illinois, and followed his trade. At Beards-
town he was married to Hannah Wood, of
Oldham, Yorkshire, England. She came to
the United States in 1844, when young, with
her father, John Wood. He died at Beards-
town, Cass county, at the house of his daugh-
ter, Mrs. Milner, aged eighty-six.
Mr. Milner came to Beardstown in 1849,
and began here as a wagonmaker and black-
smith for some years. He formed a partner-
ship with Amasa Hill, and afterward with
John Rose, soon after the Chicago, Burling-
ton & Quincy Railroad began to build a line,
and he became one of the bridge building
force, and he continued building them for
seven years, until the bridge for the Q. road
was built at Beardstown, when he was made
bridge-tender, some twenty years ago. He
has retained the position ever since. Later
he was made the Government river gauger of
of the river at Beardstown, and also was ap-
pointed to make observations on the weather
and rainfall each day. This position also he
has held since its establishment in Beards-
town, in 1885.-
Mr. and Mrs. Milner had nine children,
five of whom still live: Rebecca, wife of
Samuel Wroe, of Nodaway county, Missouri,
a farmer and cattle dealer; Thomas W., a
railroad station master of Denison (now
Leavenworth), Kansas; Nannie died one and
one-half years after marriage, without issue,
at the age of eighteen years ;Mary is at home,
although she was a school teacher for some
time; Rosa, wife of Henry Baujan (see biog-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
391
raphy); Maggie is single and at home; Mrs.
Milner is a respected member of the Method-
ist Church and is esteemed by all who know
her. Mrs. Milner is the youngest of a large
family, nearly all of whom are dead.
lOBERT ATEN was born in West Vir-
ginia in 1818, in what was then Brooke
county of the old Dominion, a son of
William and Jane (Anderson) Aten; his
mother died in 1834, leaving a family of
seven children. William Aten was a pros-
perous farmer, and was noted throughout the
country for the excellent grade ot horses he
kept. He was married a second time to
Catherine Wycoff, who bore him four chil-
dren. He died in 1866, leaving an estate of
fair value. Five of the children are still liv_
ing: Robert, the subject of this biographica
sketch; William, a resident of Fulton county ;l
Mary, wife of William K. McClurg; Nancy
Lester, a widow residing in McDonough
county, Illinois; and Martha Beale, a widow
in West Virginia; Aaron H., died in Mc-
Donough county, Illinois, at the age of
eighty -two years; John C., died in Fulton
county; Richard died in the same county; he
was a pioneer of Illinois, coming in 1840, ac-
companied by Richard Aten. The latter re-
turned to Virginia in 1842, and was back and
forth until 1854, when he settled here per-
manently.
He was married in 1850 to Sarah Beale, a
daughter of Benjamin Beal and a member of
the prominent families of Virginia; she died
one year later, to a day, leaving a daughter
who died in infancy. Mr. Aten was married
again in 1852 to Mary Jane Allison, who be-
longed to a well-known family. Of this
union were born nine children, all of whom
are living: Nancy L., now Mrs. Morris;
Henry C., W. A. F., Eobert Burns, Sarah,
wife of Thomas Ashwood; James Grant,
Daniel Webster, Flora Ann and John Q.
Mr. Aten's first purchase of land was
eighty acres, for which he paid $600, he soon
added another tract for' which he paid $1,100,
and at one time owned 700 acres; he has dis-
posed of all but 400 acres. He carried on a
general agricultural business. He makes a
specialty of raising live-stock, and ships from
two to three car-loads of hogs and as many
cattle during the year. He began life with
a small capital, but this was strongly sup-
plemented with will and determination to
succeed, and has arisen to a position of finan-
cial independence. Politically he has af-
filiated with the Whigs and then the Repub-
licans. He and his wife are members of the
Presbyterian Church, and give liberal support
to the cause of Christianity. They have lived
a useful life, and have borne their share of
the burden assumed by the pioneers in their
undertaking to redeem the wild prairie and
bring it to a high state of cultivation, making
of Illinois one of the leading agricultural
States of the Union.
ETH C. C R A M P T O N, of section 9,
Browning township, was born on the
farm on which he now lives, January
28, 1864, His father was born in Hartford,
Connecticut, in 1797, came to Illinois in
1820, settled on the old homestead about
1835, went to California in 1844, and en-
gaged in mining for two years, being reason-
ably successful. He returned from California
in 1846 and resumed farming in Browning
township. He was married the third time
in 1858, to Mrs. Elizabeth Mitchell, whose
392
BIOGRAPHICAL RE VIM W OF CASS,
maiden name was Davis. The father died
when Seth was but eight years old. He at-
tended the public schools of that district, and
at the age of twenty-one entered a telegraph
office at Baders, where he learned the busi-
ness and became a practical operator. He
continued at this business at various points
on the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy rail-
road for live years, when failing health com-
pelled him to make a change. He came back
to the home farm, put in a crop, continued
businsss in the telegraph office, but with the
opening of the spring of 1892 he became a
full-fledged farmer.
He was married July 7, 1886, in Rushville,
to Miss Mary E. Frome, born in this town-
ship, October 8, 1863. Her parents were
Abram and Nancy Frome; the former died
suddenly of heart disease, and the mother
married John Ebbert, and lives on an adjoin-
ing farm. They have two living children,
Meade Horace and Orpha Dot. Mr. Cramp-
ton is a Democrat. He belongs to the Brush-
ington Valley Relief Association, a beneficial
order.
The Crampton family were among the
very early settlers of Browning township,
coming here when the country was a wilder-
ness.
fILLIAM H. LEE was born on a farm
adjoining his present home, August,
1850. His father, William Lee was
born in the State of North Carolina, October
9, 1816. In 1827 the family moved to
Tennessee and the next year came to Mor-
gan county, Illinois, where they lived until
1830, when they came to Brown county and
entered Govenment land on which William
Lee, Sr., lived until he died. He was about
fifteen years old when they settled on the
farm and died here, January 26, 1884, after a
painful and lingering illness. During his
fifty years in this county he had been a most
useful and influential citizen, tilling places of
trust and honor with fairness and discretion
to all the fellow townsmen. He was a
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church
and his life was filled with deeds that testified
that he practiced as well as preached. He was
greatly missed by all who knew him, espe-
cially his wife and children. His remains
were interred on the farm where he had lived
and worked for so long. His wife was Mary
A. Thomas of Switzerland county, Indiana.
She is the daughter of George and Elizabeth
(Jackson) Thomas, the former from Ohio and
the latter from Maryland. They were mar-
ried in Ohio and removed to Indiana, where
their daughter was born. In 1830 they re-
moved to Scott county, Illinois. They and
their nine children made the journey with
teams, and after their arrival in Scott county
another child was born to them. Five years
later they came to what is now Pea Ridge, in
Brown County.
The marriage license was the first issued
in Brown county. The mother of Mrs. Lee
died at their farm home at the age of forty-
nine years and left her husband and ten liv-
ing children. He was again married, and
died at the age of sixty-five years, in Iowa.
Mrs. Lee, Sr., began married life on eighty
acres, their first purchase, near the present
home of their son. To this they added 105
acres, making 185 in all. They had five chil-
dren, one of whom died.
William Lee, our subject, was reared to
farm life and has followed the same life ever
since. He was fairly educated for the times.
Mr. William Lee has been carrying on
farming and stock-raising, giving special at-
8CHDYLEK AND BROWN COUNTIES.
893
tention to the breeding of some fine road
stock of horses. He has some fine young
stock and fillies, four good mares and has re-
cently bought a fine young stallion of the
Wilkes stock. This is a very promising two-
year-old and he hopes to stock his farm with
good roadsters. He keeps about 100 sheep
of the Shropshire and Merino graded stock
and turns off twenty or thirty porkers a year.
Mr. Lee had some experience in his youth
in merchandising in his father's employ at
Mount Sterling, and later as a clerk at the
same place, but his health failing he turned
his hand to what he was fitted by nature to
do and has made a success of it, although he
has the natural ability to fill any commercial
position in any city.
He was married in Mt. Sterling, December,
1877, to Miss Jennie Hanna, daughter of F.
M. and Sarah (Hobbs) Hanna, residents of
Mt. Sterling. They began life on the farm
on which they now reside of 150 acres. They
have buried one little son, Frank, and have
now four children: Mary, in her thirteenth
year, a bright child with musical talent which
is being cultivated; George A., a bright child
of ten; Freddie, five, and William, a Christ-
mas gift of the year 1889. Both Mr. Lee
and his wife are highly esteemed by all who
know them and they are very influential
among their large circle of friends.
,.e
es-
^ILLIAM W. WARD, a highly
teemed and prosperous retired farmer
of township 17 north, range 9 west,
near Philadelphia, Illinois, was born in Scott
county, Kentucky, June 36, 1822. He was
the younger of two children born to William
A. and Nancy (Wirt) Ward, the other being
his sister Catharine, now Mrs, Hancock, who
resides in her native county, in Kentucky.
The families on both maternal and paternal
sides were Southerners for manj' generations
back. Mr. Ward's father was a native of
Kentucky, while his mother was a Virginian
by birth, and they were married in Scott
county, Kentucky, about 1819. The mother
died in Kentucky a number of years ago,
while the father expired in Arcadia, Illinois.
The subject pf this sketch came to Cass
county, Illinois, in 1844, but afterward re-
turned to his home in Kentucky, whence he
returned to Illinois permanently in 1848,
locating on a farm, where he lived until
twenty-five years ago, when he removed to
his present location. The last farm comprises
177^ acres, most of which is under a high
state of cultivation, and all of it tillable
land. He has, besides this, considerable
valuable personal property, and owns an at-
tractive residence in Virginia, this State. He
has gained all this by honest and toilsome
efforts, and is highly deserving of his good
fortune.
In 1851, he was married to Miss Sarah M.
Turner, an estimable lady, who was born in
Cass county, Illinois, in 1834. She is a
daughter of Edward W. Turner, a native of
Kentucky, and an honored pioneer of Cass
county.
To this union eight children have been
born, four of whom are now living. America
E., the eldest, now Mrs. Long, resides in Vir-
ginia, and has had four children, two of whom
are deceased; Edward Williams is married;
Alice Catharine, born September 22, 1858,
married James Whalan, and resides with her
father on the old homestead. Mr. Whalan
was born in Keokuk, Iowa, November 15,
1855, and was married in Jacksonville, Illi-
nois, in 1874. Mr. and Mrs. Whalan have
two children; Mary Margaret, born in Cass
394
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
county, June 5, 1875, an intelligent and
amiable young lady, who holds a diploma of
graduation, which she received from the pub-
lic school iu this district; James Edward,
born April 22, 1877, is at home, as is also
Miss Margaret. Mr. Ward has another
daughter, Emma Josephine, who married
Joseph Tread way, who was born in Harford
county, Maryland, December 29, 1851, and
is a prosperous farmer and lives in Sugar
Grove, Cass county, Illinois. They have
eight children, the eldest of whom is four-
teen years old at this writing. Those of Mr.
Ward's children now departed this life, are
Louisa Jane, who married Henry DeGroot, and
who died at Mr. Ward's house February 7,
1891, leaving one child; three of his children
died in infancy, unnamed. February 13, 1876,
the family were called upon to mourn the loss
of the devoted wife and mother, who was
belosred by everyone on account of her fer-
vent Christian character. She and the chil-
dren deceased were at first interred in the pri-
vate cemetery on the farm, but the remains
have since been removed to the cemetery in '
Ashland, Illinois. Since her mother's death,
Mrs. Whalan has kept house for Mr. Ward,
both before and since her marriage, thus
greatly alleviating the force of this crushing
affliction.
Politically, Mr. Ward affiliates with the
Democratic party, to which he has belonged
for many years. Socially, he is an ardent
advocate of the temperance cause, and has
been for many years an active member of the
I. O. G. T. Mr. Ward is an earnest and use-
ful member of the Baptist Church, as was
also his wife. Mrs. Whalan and her daughter,
Margaret, belong to the Methodist Episcopal
Church.
It is seldom that we have to chronicle a
more blameless life than that just written.
Intelligent and well informed, yet modest
and retiring; energetic and progressive, yet
mindful of the rights of others; industrious,
persevering and highly moral, we have a
combination which insures true success in
life, which many others would do well to
copy, and verify in their daily life work.
K. D. W. OWENS was born in Lewis
county, Kentucky, August 16, 1845.
His father, Lewis, was born in the
same county, and his father, Aaron, was born
in Fauquier county, Virginia, and removed
from there to Kentucky when a young man.
He settled in Lewis county, bought land,
raised a family and spent the rest of his days
there. The maiden name of his wife was
Dorotha Hathaway. Lewis was reared on a
farm, where he learned the trade of black-
smith which he continued in connection
with his farming. He removed from Ken-
tucky to Kansas in 1877, and settled in La-
bette county, dying there in 1881. His wife,
Nancy Owens, was born in Mason county,
Kentucky. Her father was born in Fau-
quier county, Virginia, and moved from
there to Mason county, Kentucky. She re-
moved with her husband to Lewis county,
where she died in 1869. She reared eight
children, of whom Dr. Owens was the
seventh. He was raised in his native
county, received his early education in the
log schoolhouse, assisting his father on the
farm until 1864. He enlisted in March of
that year in Company K, Sixteenth Ken-
tucky Federal Infantry, and joined the regi-
ment at Louisville. He was with Sherman
in the Atlanta campaign and participated in
some of the battles en route to the seizure
of that city. After that he was with Thomas
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
395
in pursuit of Hood and fought in the battles
of Columbia, Franklin and Nashville. In
January, 1865, he took passage on a steamer
bound for Cincinnati, and from thence to
Washington, District of Columbia, from
there to Alexandria, and on to Fort Fisher,
North Carolina, and thence to Wilmington.
The regiment participated in the capture of
Fort Anderson, Town Creek and Wilmington,
and then was marched to Goldsboro, where
Sherman's men soon joined them. After
much marching and counter marching they
were placed on garrison duty near Greens-
boro, and there remained until July, 1865,
when they were mustered out of service, and
discharged at Louisville, Kentucky, and Mr.
Owens returned home in August.
He commenced the study of medicine in
1863. After his return he continued it and
also resumed farming, and in 1878 he grad-
uated from the College of Physicians and
Surgeons at Keokuk, Iowa, and commenced
practice at Hersman, Illinois, where he has
been in practice ever since. He united with
the Regular Primitive Baptist Church in
1870, and was licensed to preach and was or-
dained to the ministry at Rock Creek
Church, Hancock county, Illinois, in June,
1873. and that was his first pastorate. He
remained there until 1878 when he came to
Hersman and was associated with Elder
James Harper in the pastorate at Mt. Gilead
Church, and when the elder died he suc-
ceeded him, and in addition to this has sup-
plied the congregation at Camp Creek Church
for the past eight years.
He married, in 1867. Nanna M. Boggs,
daughter of Joseph and Rachel (Means)
Boggs, of Lewis county, Kentucky. He is a
member of the Alumni Association of the Col-
lege of Physicians and Surgeons, of Keokuk,
Iowa, and is at this time its first vice-
president. He is also a member of the Board
of Examining Surgeons of Mt. Sterling, Illi-
nois. He is a very successful physician and
a useful citizen. His influence for good is
felt in the community.
§EWIS E. KROHE, an intelligent and
enterprising citizen of Bainbridge town-
ship, Schuyler county, Illinois, was born
in Cass county on May 18, 1837, and re-
moved to Schuyler county March 13, 1859,
and has lived here ever since. His father,
August Krohe, was a native of Saxony, Ger-
many, and was a son of Frederick Christian
Krohe, also a native of Saxony, and a weaver
by trade. His father followed the weaver
trade in his native country until 1833, when
he emigrated to America, making the voyage
across the ocean in seven weeks, and landing
at New Orleans, Louisiana. From there he
came direct to Beardstown, Illinois, being a
week coming from St. Louis to the former
place, a distance made now in two hours.
There were at that time but two houses in
Beardstown, and the surrounding country
was sparsely settled and deer and wild turkey,
quail, prairie chicken, and other game
abounded in profusion. He bought a tract
of land near Virginia, which was mostly
covered with timber, the rest being wild
prairie land. There was a log cabin on the
land when he bought it, and in this he took
up his abode, beginning the life of a pioneer.
He soon met and married Christiana Jockish,
daughter of Gotlieb Jockish. She was a na-
tive of Saxony, where she was born, and
came to America with her father. After his
marriage, August Krohe went to live on his
farm, but afterward bought land near Bluff
Springs, where he resided many years, until
396
BIOGRAPHICAL RRVIBW OF CASS,
he finally returned to his old home on the
farm, where he now lives. They had seven
children: August, Lewis, Mena, Louisa,
Henry, Julia and Amelia. In April, 1889,
the faithful wife and fond mother died, leav-
ing many friends to mourn her loss. She
was a woman of intelligence and generous
impulses, and highly esteemed by all who
knew her.
Our subject was reared and educated in
his native county, that of Cass, and resided
with his parents until the time of his mar-
riage, which occurred on March 13, 1859, to
Marie Sophia Korte. She was a native of Hes-
se-Cassel, Germany, in which place she was
born November 14, 1841, her parents being
John Conrad and Christiana (Myer) Korte.
Her father was also born in Hesse- Cassel,
Germany, where he was reared and after-
ward married. He followed the trade of
blacksmithing in his native land until 1857,
when with his wife and three children he
sailed from Bremen, Germany, for America,
landing in Baltimore. Maryland, in August,
after a voyage of fifty-eight days. From
there he came directly to Illinois, spending
a few months in Casa county, and moving
thence to Schnyler county, where he worked
at his trade, in Bainbridge, until his death,
where his wife also died. They reared three
children: Henry, Mrs. Krohe and George.
After his marriage, the subject of our
sketch rented some land in Schuyler county,
which he farmed for five years. He then
made his first purchase of land, since when he
has from time to time made other purchases,
until he now owns upward of 700 acres. This
is under a good state of cultivation, with a
commodious home, besides other modern con-
veniences to faciliate agricultural pursuits.
Hie home is situated on an attractive site on
the bluffs, from which he has an uninterrupted
view for miles around, extending across the
river to Cass county. He has a large or-
chard. He is acknowledged to be one of the
most substantial farmers in this locality. All
his property he has accumulated by industry
and economy.
Mr. and Mrs. Krohe have seven children
living, viz.: Amelia, wife of Jacob Logsdon;
Frank, Louisa, Julia, Edward, Emma and
Minnie; William died at the age of thirty-
one, andAdolph died in infancy.
Mr. Krohe is a Democrat in politics, but
takes no active interest in political matters,
other than desiring the advancement and wel-
fare of his country. He and his wife are
members of the Lutheran Church, and have
contributed liberally towards its support.
Intelligent and able, industrious and fru-
gal, enterprising and progressive, he has bent
circumstances to his will, until from nothing
he now stands among the first inhabitants of
his community, looked up to and esteemed
by all who know him.
§OHN H. DEPPE; an old settler and
well known and retired carpenter of
Beardstown, was born in Hanover, in
1832, August 29. His parents were Casper
and Elizabeth (Recor) Deppe, natives of
Hanover, and of good German stock. After
their marriage and the birth of their chil-
dren, Mr. and Mrs. Deppe came to the
United States, in the fall of 1842, in a sailing
vessel of three masts. After a journey of
seven weeks and three days they landed in
New Orleans. After a three weeks' trip on a
Mississippi river steamer they landed in St.
Louis in January, 1843. After some time
in the city they went to Missouri, and they
went to Beardstown from there. Casper was
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
397
a carpenter, having learned his trade in Ger-
many, and he began working at it for $7 a
month for some months. Later he received
seventy-five cents a day. This seemed big
wages to him. After overcoming many hard-
ships and troubles he succeeded in obtaining
a foothold in life. He then entered into
contracting and building, and as he was a
good workman he had many friends in the
city. Later in life he purchased land in In-
dian creek precinct, Cass county, and there
lived for a time and then came back to Beards-
town. Here he spent the remainder of his
days in retirement and quiet. He died in
1889, February 28. He was then eighty-
four years of age. His wife died in 1884, at
the age of eighty-six. They were well known
old settlers of this city and had a host of
friends by whom they were missed. They
were active members of the Sixth street
Lutheran Church, which they helped organize
and build up. Mr. Deppe was a Democrat.
Mr. John Deppe was the only son of the
family. He had two sisters, but one died,
and the other married Charles Kobelenz, and
they are both living in Beardstown. Mr.
Deppe has always been a hard-working man,
and for eighteen years before his retirement
from active life was employed in the car
shops of the Quincy Railroad at this place
doing work as a car builder and woodworker.
He learned his trade under his father. Ex-
cepting three years, when he engaged in
farming, he has always lived in Beardstown
and has been successful in whatever he at-
tempted. He bought a farm in Indian Creek
precinct of 160 acres, nearly all of which is
improved.
He was married in this city to Miss Annie
Morman. She was born in Ingra, Prussia,
in 1835. She died at her home in this city,
May 3, 1883. She was one of the good
27
worthy women of the city, and was the daugh-
ter of German parents, who lived and died
in Prussia. Mrs. Deppe came to America
in early girlhood. She was a worthy mem-
ber of the Sixth Street Lutheran Church. Mr,
and Mrs. Deppe were the parents of eleven
children, seven of whom are now living,
namely: Louis, tinner by trade, who mar-
ried Louisa Dieckhous; Gustav, of the dry -
goods firm of Deppe Bros.; William, of the
same firm; Lydia is at home; Robert H. is a
barber of the city; Herman C., a tailor by
trade; and Conrad J. at home. The children
are young men and women that any one
would be proud of, and Mr. Deppe is a father
to be envied. He is a Democrat in politics.
§ACOB H. SN Y DER, an extensive farmer
of Brown comity, was born about four
miles from Duncannon, Perry county,
Pennsylvania, June 10, 1831. His father,
Jacob Snyder, was born in Germany, and his
father, George Snyder, was also a native of
Germany, who emigrated with his family to
America about 1814, locating in Pennsylva-
nia. Here he spent his last years in Perry
cour(ty. His son was twelve years old when
he came to America, with his parents. He
was reared to agricultural pursuits and fol-
lowed farming in Perry county until 1837,
when he removed to Ohio. He and his
family made the entire journey overland with
teams. He purchased a tract of land in
Preble county, which he improved, and on
which he resided until his death, in 1858.
His wife was named Elizabeth Young, born
in Pennsylvania, of German parents. She
died on the home farm in Preble county, in
1867.
398
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA88,
Jacob was six years old when he moved to
Preble county with his parents, and there he
was reared and educated. He began when
very young to assist on the farm, remaining
with his parents until he attained his major-
ity, and then began life for himself on rented
land. He continued to rent land in Ohio,
until 1865. and then came to Illinois, and
bought land in Woodstock township, Schuy-
ler county, and lived there until 1872. He
then bought land in Cooperstown township.
He also bought other land at different times,
and at the present time owns 740 acres in the
same township. He resided there until 1891,
when he bought the farm where he now re-
sides. This is a well improved farm of
eighty-six acres, on the Rushville road, two
miles east of the Mt. Sterling courthouse.
In 1860, he married Margaret Rush, born
in Preble county, Ohio. Her father, Cor-
nelius Rush, was born in Virginia, and his
father, John Rush, was also a native of Vir-
ginia, and he emigrated from there to Ohio,
being a pioneer of Preble countv. From
there he went to Indiana, and spent his last
years near Logansport. Father of Mrs. Sny-
der was married in Preble county, resided
there a few years, then moved to Cass county,
Indiana, and was quite an early settler there.
He purchased a tract of timber land and
built a log house and resided there until
his death in 1857. His wife was named
Barbara Brower. She was born in Virginia,
daughter of Daniel and Sarah (Flora) Brower.
She now lives with her daughter, Mrs. Sny-
der, and has done so since the death of her
husband.
Mr. and Mrs. Snyder have nine children
living. They are: Joseph F., John B., Ida
N., Cora (r., Luella B., Angeline A., Charles
H., Olive E. and Arthur L. Mr. and Mrs.
Snyder are members of the Christian Church.
Mr. Snyder is a Republican in politics, and
both he and his wife have hosts of friends
by whom they are admired and respected.
He was a Union soldier in the late war.
in
§OHN J. BROWNING was born
Woodstock township, Schuyler county,
Illinois, July 4. 1857, a son of James
H. and Sarah E. (Hall) Browning. The pa-
ternal grandparents, Abner and Nancy Brown-
ing, were natives of Virginia, but passed
their last days in Hancock county, Illinois,
dying at the ages of eighty-two and seventy-
eight years. James H. was born in Vir-
ginia, May 8, 1818, and was but four years
of age when his parents moved to Kentucky;
there he was reared to agricultural pursuits
until he was sixteen years of age, when he
came to Rushville, Schuyler comity, Illinois.
In 1834, he purchased a portion of the land
on which John J. Browning now resides;
there he lived until his death, which occur-
red August 19, 1883. His wife, Sarah E.
(Hall) Browning, was born September 28,
1831, in Wayne county, Kentucky, and died
February 28,1883; she was one of a family
of ten children, and the father was one of
eight. Politically he adhered to the princi-
ples of the Democratic party; for twenty
years he was Justice of the Peace, and he
held the office of Supervisor at the time of
his death. He was prominently connected
with the political history of the county, and
for many years was a preacher in the Chris-
tian Church. He was married to the mother
of our subject, September 7, 1856.
Mr. Browning was, himself, united in mar-
riage December 25, 1884, to Miss Mary
Sweeney, who was born in Jefferson county,
Missouri, March 25, 1858 ; her parents, Michael
SCHUYLER AND BHOWN COUNTIES.
399
and Margaret (Gavin) Sweeney, were natives
of county Galway, Ireland, and emigrated to
America, first settling in New York State;
later they removed to Missouri, and there Mr.
Sweeney was engaged in farming until 1861;
in that year he came to Schuyler county,
where he now resides. Mr. and Mrs. Brown-
ing are the parents of three children: Pearl
B., born October 23, 1885; Alta M., born
July 27, 1888; and Lizzie M., born February
27, 1891. Until 1884 Mr. Browning resided
on the home farm ; he then purchased a tract
of land, which with the inheritance from
his father covers 300 acres; the land
is under excellent cultivation, and in all
branches of husbandry he has been success-
ful. Politically he supports the issues of the
Democratic party, but takes no active inter-
est in the movements of that body.
.BRAHAM LINCOLN MARSHALL,
of Lee township, was born on his pres-
ent farm in 1861. His father, James
Marshall, was born in Tennessee in 1819, and
his father, William Marshall, came to Illinois
in 1832. He died in Cass county, at a great
age. having reared fifteen children, of whom
James was the youngest. All have passed
away. James Marshall was a volunteer
from Lee township in the One Hundred
and Nineteenth Illinois Infantry, Company
E. He enlisted in August* 1861, and died
in the hospital at Memphis, Tennessee, of
a fever, December, 1863. He left a widow
and five children. His wife's name was
Martha A- Horn, born in Alabama. Her
father died when she was about two'years old,
and she was reared by her mother, her step-
father, Elisha Brown, and her uncle, George
Criswell, of Morgan county, Illinois. She
was married in Missouri, in 1844. They
settled here in 1856, on sixty-two acres, to
which he added until now the farm is more
than 176 acres, of which thirty-five acres is
good timber.
The Marshall brothers now own this fine
home farm jointly, subject to the mother's
life lease. They grow corn, wheat, hay and
oats, have from fourteen to twenty horses,
ten to twenty head of cattle and turn off from
ten to forty hogs, annually. They believe in
a rotation of crops and plenty of crops. They
have as fine meadow land as there is in the
State. An immense barn was built between
1871 and 1888, with ample room for every-
thing. They have a snug farm house, fin-
ished and rebuilt in 1889.
Mr. A. L. Marshall was married in Janu-
ary, 1889, to Mary B. Williams, daughter of
Thomas and Lucinda (Beam) Williams, he of
Ohio and she of Vermont. Mrs. Marshall
was born in Clayton, Adams county, and
there her mother died, in 1877, in the prime
of life. Her father resides in Clayton, Illi-
nois. Mr. and Mrs. Marshall have one little
son, named Benjamin Harrison, and Mr.
Marshall is a very loyal, ardent Republican.
[ONRAD HERZBERGER,nowdeceased
having died at his home in township
19. range 11, March 9, 1882, was born
near Frankfort, Germany, November 9, 1831.
He came of good and respectable German
families, his parents having lived and died
in Hesse-Darmstadt, and they had been re-
spected members of the Lutheran Church.
Conrad was the only member of his family
to come to the United States. He came to
America when twenty years old, via New
400
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
York city; from there he went to Pittsburg,
Pennsylvania, and worked for nine years in a
tannery. He afterward made two trips back
to his native country. He came to this
county in 1860, began as a renter, afterward
purchased his farm in section 32, and this
remained his home during- the rest of his
active life. Before he died he owned 281
acres of well improved land. He was a good,
hard-working man, a prominent citizen, a
successful and practical farmer and one with
a host of friends in the county. He was
not a politician, bat he was a Republican and
a worthy member of the Lutheran Church.
He had obtained a good education in Ger-
many as a practical surveyor and book-
keeper.
He was married in Morgan county, Illi-
nois, to Caroline Dorr. She came to Amer-
ica in 1852, and was the daughter of Lewis
and Mary (Retiz) Dorr. These parents
settled first at Jacksonville, Illinois, and there
the father is still living, being seventy-three
years of age. He has been a farmer all his
life. His wife died at her home in Morgan
county, at the age of fifty-six. They were
both highly respected members of the Lu-
theran Church. Mrs. Herzberger, widow of
our subject, is the eldest of six children.
Since the death of her husband she has man-
aged the farm with wonderful success, re-
ceiving assistance from her children. She is
a smart and accomplished lady, interested in
everything of importance in the county. She
and her children are all members of the
Griggs chapel of the Methodist Episcopal
Church. The children areas follows: Amelia,
wife of Henry Doerr, a farmer of this town-
ship; Tillie, wife of William Huppe, a farm-
er of this county; Lewis, conducting his
mother's farm, and has successfully managed
her affairs although yet a young man; John
William assists his brother; Elva L. remains
at home; and Clarence. The children all
bid fair to continue a comfort to their wid-
owed mother and a credit to the memory of
their honest father.
,ERMAN H. KORSMEYER, a practi-
cal farmer of section 19, township 17,
range 12, has been a resident of this
farm since 1851, making some very fine im-
provements in the buildings and on the land.
He first purchased 120 acres, the same being
his homestead, and has since added to the
original farm until he now owns about 600
acres and nearly one-third of that atnount is
under the plow. He has also engaged in
raising stock of the best grades. He came to
this county in 1848 and has since made Cass
county his home, beginning here as a poor
boy working by the month. He later rented
land until he purchased his homestead.
Mr. Korsmeyer was born in the kingdom
of Hanover, Germany, September 29, 1831.
He is the eldest son and child of the family.
His parents were John H. and Anna M.
(Lovecamp) Korsmeyer, who were both born
and reared in Hanovei% coming of good Ger-
man stock. Our subject, when yet a young
man, set out for America alone, taking pas-
sage in August, 1848, on the sailing vessel
Agnes, which landed him in New Orleans
after a sixty days' passage. He then came
by steamer to St. Louis, and thence to Beards-
town. In 1851 the parents, with their other
two children, Fred and Anna, set sail from
Germany also, and reached Beardstown that
same year. They began farming some miles
southwest of Beardstown, the father and
his eldest son living together, where the
father died in 1860. Our subject's mother
8CHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
401
died in the same place in 1870. She was
born in the early part of the present century.
She and her husband had always been mem-
bers of the Lutheran Church.
Mr. Korsmeyer was married in this county,
to Miss Anna M. E. Kuipenberg. She was
born in Hanover and was the daughter of
Frederick and Maria Knipenberg, who came
to the United States as a family in 1848, and
settled on a farm in Cass county. Mr. Knip-
enberg was a carpenter by trade. He and his
wife continued to reside here until their
death, which occurred when they were old
people. They were consistent members of
the Lutheran Church.
Mrs. Korsmeyer was young when she came
to this country, and she lived with her par-
ents until her marriage. She is a good, true
woman, and is highly regarded all through
her township. She and her husband are'
members of the German Lutheran Church,
and he is a Republican in his political faith
He and his wife are the parents of seven
children, all living: John H., remaining at
home, assisting his father, married to Minnie
Boes; Louisa became the wife of Henry Bus-
cher, a farmer in Morgan county; William^
a farmer in the same county, married Mary
Rogge; Lena M., wife of Herman Rogge, a
farmer of Cass county; Henry is a mechanic
now at home with his father, but a graduate of
Pearson Institute, of La Porte, Indiana; Anna
AV., at present with her sister, Mrs. Buscher,
of Morgan county; and Sophia, at home.
Mr. Korsmeyer and his wife are highly
respected citizens of this county.
k,ENRY W. HE A TON, a well-known
farmer of Oakland township, has been
prominently identified with the agri-
cultural interests of this section of Illinois
for the past thirty-seven years. He was born
in Bucks county, Pennsylvania, March 9,
1830. His father, Jeffrey Heaton, was a na-
tive of England, born in 1807, but at the age
of eight years was brought across the sea to
America; he was one of a family of four sons
and four daughters. He learned the weaver's
trade, of which his father was a master, and
followed this vocation several years; he fi-
nally abandoned it, however, to take up farm-
ing in Ohio, whither he had removed in
1836; he rented land in Jefferson county
until 1849, and then went to Fulton county,
Illinois, making the trip via the Ohio and
Illinois rivers. In 1850 he purchased eighty
acres, on which he located and there passed
the remainder of his days; he died in Jan-
uary, 1858; he left a widow and ten children,
of whom our subject is the eldest; the mother
still survives, at the age of eighty-four years;
she is living in Oakland township with her
son, Thomas. One son, Simon, was killed in
battle in the war of the Rebellion ; he was
twenty-nine years of age, and left a wife, one
son and a daughter. Henry W. Heaton was
was a youth of fifteen years when his father
began farming in Ohio; at the age of twenty-
one he began the search for his own fortune.
Four years later he was united in marriage
to Miss Rebecca B. Patterson, of this county
and township, a daughter of Hugh and Ellen
Patterson, natives of Ohio and Pennsylvania
respectively. Mr. and Mrs. Heaton lived in
Astoria township, Fulton county, where they
rented land until 1862; in that year they
bought a farm on which they lived until
1866, when they sold the place and came to
Schuyler county. They bought the old
homestead, a tract of 140 acres, on which
they have since lived. They buried one
daughter, at the age of two years, named
Ellen; they now have eight sons and three
402
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP OASS,
daughters; the eldest is thirty-three and the
youngest is eleven years of age. Their names
are as follows: William H.; Franklin EL;
Sant'ordW.; Andrew J.; James; Lewis E.;
Cornelius, Albert, Florence R., wife of Syl-
vester France; Sarah Ann, wife of George
Beghtol; and Rosa.
In politics Mr. Heaton votes for the man
best suited, in his estimation, for the office
in question, but favors the principles of the
Democratic party. He carries on a general
farming business, raising grain and live-
stock. He began lite without capital, except
that with which nature had endowed him,
and by industry and wise management has
accumulated a competence for coming age.
The parents of Mrs. Heaton are both de-
ceased, the father at the age of seventy, and
the mother at seventy-two years of age.
iDOLPH KALLASCH, a prominent
farmer of Elkhorn township in Brown
county, is a native of Germany, having
been born iu that country, February 16,
1840. He is the son of Frederick and Fred-
rica (Kuntz) Kallasch, natives of the same
country, who, in 1852 came to America in a
sailing vessel, making the voyage in six
weeks and landing iu Quebec, where they
remained but a short time, coming from
there to Chicago, by the lakes and railroad.
From that great city they came to this coun-
ty and settled near where the subject now
lives, buying ninety acres of land, partly im-
proved, on which had been erected a little
log cabin. This cabin they replaced later by
a frame house and here died both the father
and the mother, when about seventy-six and
fifty-six, respectively. They were the par-
ents of seven children, two yet living. The
The father was a carpenter by trade and a
stanch Democrat in political faith. Both
he and his good wife were earnest Christians,
both in life and teachings.
Under the guidance of these good parents
our subject remained until 1862, when his
country called him from the peaceful occu-
pation of a farmer and he enlisted in Com-
pany B, Ninety-ninth Illinois Infantry, Cap-
tain Fee in command, in which he remained
all through the war, being mustered out at
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and discharged at
Springfield. From there he returned home.
After his return home he was married,
about Christmas, to Miss Mary Lipkaman,
born in Pike county, Illinois, daughter of
i rederick and Barbara Lipkaman, who came
to this country from Germany at a very
early day, renting in Pike county, in the
'80s. The father died when about seven-
ty-six, but his wife still lives, on the old
farm. The family principally carried on
farming, but a few were mechanics. Mr.
and Mrs. Kallasch have had seven children,
five yet living, namely; Henry, married
Minnie Wood, has one boy; Louis, at home
running the old farm for his father; Harvey,
is also at home; Emma, married Andrew
Kelinlein, and they have one child; and
Anna, at home.
After his marriage our subject bought
seventy acres just across from his father's
farm, later adding eighty more acres, 108
acres of which he sold to his son Henry.
He first lived in an old log cabin, but now
has as fine a house as there is in the county.
This gentleman is a stanch Republican,
casting his first vote for General Grant. He
and his estimable wife are members of the
Lutheran Church, attending at Perry post
office, Pike county, where they are regarded
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
403
as highly respected members of that body.
They have always been church members
since reaching years of maturity and lead
good, earnest lives. Mr. Kallasch has al-
ways carried on general farming, at which
he has been very successful and can be said
to be one of the leading influential men of
the township.
5ARCELLUS M, CLEEK, resident of
Camden, dating from September,
1836, he was born in Boone county,
Kentucky, August 27, 1829. His father,
Benjamin Cleek, was also born in Kentucky
in 1800, and his father John Cleek was a na-
tive of Germany, where he married, and came
to America, settling at Big Boone Springs^
Boone county, Kentucky, where he was one of
the pioneers. He engaged in the manufact-
ure of salt and there passed his remaining
days, dying at the age of eighty years. He
had eight children: John, Benjamin, Jacob,
Esau, Sarah, Margaret, Eliza and one other.
Benjamin Cleek was the second child and he
was raised a farmer, marrying in 1826 Mar-
tha Harris of Lexington, Kentucky, daughter
of Richard Harris of the same State, who
•was killed in the Black Hawk war. In 1812
the father with his wife and four children
came by boat to Frederick, Illinois, and from
there to Rushville, settling on section 7,
Camden township, where he purchased 160
acres of land and also entered about as much
more. In 1844 the season was very wet and
the following year there was so much sick-
ness that he became dissatisfied with the
country and so returned to his native State,
although he did not sell his land. He re-
mained in Kentucky seven years and then re-
turned to Illinois, settling on his land where
he died in 1867. His wife died in 1873.
They had eleven children: John, deceased;
Marcellus; M. M.; Samuel, deceased; Ben-
jamin, farmer on part of the old home farm;
Jacob of Camden; Richard, also on part of
the old farm; Mary, deceased, wife of J. J.
Yocum; Elizabeth, wife of Henry Price of
Huntsville; Lovina, wife of J. J. Yocum of
Chariton county, Missouri; Ann, wife of J.
H. Hendricks of Camden township; and Mar-
tha, wife of Levi Welty, also of Camden
township.
Marcellus lived with his parents and on
the return from Kentucky pursued the trade
of carpenter, which he had learned in Ken-
tucky. He did not return to Illinois until
1854. He continued his trade for four years,
when he engaged in farming, purchasing 160
acres, which he farmed until 1861, when he
resumed his trade, but also carried on his
farm.
In 1884 he removed to Kansas and located
in Kiowa county; where he pre-empted 160
acres of land and also purchased 160 more.
He worked his farms for two years and then
returned to Camden. He owns 185 acres of
land in Camden township and 160 acres in
Kansas, also valuable property in Camden,
all of which he and his wife accumulated.
He was married in 1863, to Lydia A.
Welly, daughter of Jacob and Mary Welly,
born in Highland county, Ohio, in 1814. Mr.
and Mrs. Cleek have eight children, six
of whom are still living: Manora, deceased;
James, on his father's farm; William, on sec-
tion 6; Charles, in Camden; Emma, married
Presley Price of Huntsville, Schuyler county,
Illinois; Alma married G. Alters of Hunts-
ville township: Sadie, deceased; and Clara,
at home.
Mr. Cleek is a Democrat in politics. He
has been Supervisor and during his term the
404
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
courthouse was built. He has held nearly all
the minor offices in the township. He is a
member of the Christian Church and is one
of the lirst members in Camden.
^EEMANH. ROGGE, a successful
farmer of section 19, township 17,
range 11, was born in Hanover, Ger-
many, September 30, 1843. He is the young-
est son of the family, one sister of which yet
lives in Germany. The other members are
four brothers now living in this country.
The father, Fred, was a native of Hanover,
Germany, and there died an old man, eighty-
five years of age. He was a farmer and a
butcher. His wife, whose maiden name was
Anna Strube, died after her husband, but at
a younger age. She and her husband
passed their entire lives in Hanover and were
members of the Lutheran Church.
Herman was a butcher by trade, and he en-
gaged in that business until he came to Amer-
ica in the spring of 1867 from Bremen to
New York city. He went to Peoria, Illinois,
and thence down the Illinois river to Beards-
town, where four brothers had preceded him,
and he was the last to leave for this country.
They are all living and are prosperous citi-
zens. He began here as a day laborer and
worked in this way for a year, then started
for himself, and in 1877 located on his present
farm. He has improved it in a wonderful
degree and owns 160 acres. It is now a fine
farm.
He was married in Cass county, to Mary
Schnelle, born in Beardstown, Illinois, Sep-
tember 26, 1854. She has since lived in this
county and is an intelligent wife and mother.
She is the daughter of Charles and Mary
(Goestereng) Schnelle, natives of Prussia,
where they were reared and married, coming
to the United States in the '40s, and their
father, who wag a carpenter died in 1862,
aged forty -one years. He is a good, prosper-
ous German. His wife, who yet lives, resides
with her daughter, Mrs. Rogge, and she is now
seventy-one years old. She has been a mem-
ber of the Lutheran Church all her life and
the same was true of her husband. Mrs.
Rogge is the elder of three daughters born
to her parents.
Mr. and Mrs. Rogge are the parents of
seven children: John H., Charles G., Henry
F., Louis W., Lena M., Aurelia T. and Theo.
H ; and they are all at home. Mr. Rogge and
his wife are Lutherans and Mr. Rogge is a
Democrat, has been School Trustee for fif-
teen years and Road Commissioner for five
years. He is a public-spirited man and a
good citizen.
APTA1N WILLIAM N. MUMFORD
of Mound Station, Illinois, was born in
Nova Scotia, January 24, 1824. His
father, William, was a farmer of that country
who lived and died there, having reared nine
children. The mother of these was Jane
McHattie, of Scotch parentage. The grand-
father of the subject was George Mumford of
Rhode Island, who died at an advanced age
in Nova Scotia.
The Captain grew up a farmer boy with
only the common schooling of the period.
In his twenty-third year he left home and
came to New York city, and from there
went on to Alpine depot on the Baltimore
& Ohio in Morgan county, West Virginia,
where he taught in the public schools. He
had experience in his own neighborhood and
after that as assistant in a grammar school
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
405
at Halifax. After closing his three months'
term in Morgan county he engaged in a
general store as salesman. Fie brought lit-
'
tie money with him, hoping to improve his
financial condition. He remained two years
in the store, then went to St. Louis and on
to Mount Pleasant, Illinois, where he en-
gaged as clerk for S. C. Raymond. While
here he was married to Mary Jane Davis,
daughter of John and Charlotte (Sears)
Davis, both natives of Illinois. In 1861
they moved to Mound Station, then just
started, the railroad being just completed.
He clerked here until August, 1862, when he
enlisted in Company E, One Hundred and
Ninteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, being
unanimously chosen Captain. In September
his regiment was organized. Colonel Kinney
commanding. The Captain remained on
duty for two years, when he was discharged
for physical disability at Memphis, Tennes-
see, and came home to his wife and two little
boys at this place. He and his family went
on a visit to his Nova Scotia home, but be-
fore he reached there his father had died,
aged eighty-two years. A striking coinci-
dence in this family is that six of his fa-
ther's brothers and sisters, including himself,
died at the age of eighty-two years. The
mother died at the age of eighty-four years.
They have three children, Augustus, now
practicing physician at Kendall, Minnesota;
William, a lawyer at Pittsfield, Illinois, and
Charlotte, a wife of J. W. Moore, now resid-
ing in Chicago, conducting a stock and
commission business. The Captain was Post-
master here under Presidents Arthur and
Harrison, but as he is in failing health his
step-daughter, Mrs. Deering, acts for him.
He buried his first wife June 16, 1868, and
was married April 4, 1869, to Mrs. .Rebecca
Poe, the widow of T. J. Poe and the daugh-
ter of the Rev. Granville Bond, a Methodist
preacher, well and favorably known in this
county. Mrs. Mumford was the widow of
T. J. Poe. The Captain is an Episcopalian,
but both his wives attended the Methodist
Episcopal Church of which the present wife
has been an active member for fifty years.
Mrs. Mnmford has three children of her own
and all the family relations are most harmo-
nious and affectionate. A better citizen,
neighbor, father or husband could not be
found.
INTSON ANDERSON of section 13,
Huntsville township, came here in
1835. He was born in Clermont
county, Ohio, in 1833. His father, William
Anderson, was born in Mason county, May
14, 1800. He was a son of Andrew Ander-
son, who was born in Virginia and was of
Irish descent. The family has resided in
America for several generations. William
Anderson was reared a farmer, and married
in Kentucky in 1824, a Miss Prudence Wal-
lansford, born in Kentucky, August 15, 1806.
They migrated to Ohio in 1832, and resided
there at Cincinnati, and in Clermont county,
for three years and then came to Illinois and
located in Schuyler county. In the spring
of 1836 Mr. Anderson purchased a claim on
section 13, in which is now Huntsville, and
here he passed the remaining years of his
life. He entered land and purchased more,
until his real estate possessions amounted to
600 acres. He was a cautious man and never
went into debt. He was a hard-working man,
and in those days when the sickle was used
to cut grain, he was an expert in the use of
the same, and still continued to use the hook
after the cradle came into use. He died
406
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP (1AS8,
August 16, 1887. His wife is still living
and is a member of the Christian Church.
The two came with about $200 in capital,
and in the time they lived in Illinois became
rich and influential people. They had ten
children, seven of whom grew up, namely:
Jane Cady, Cyrus, Andrew, Vintson, Frank,
Sarah Mcliatten and John.
Subject was two years old when the family
settled in Schuyler county, and he resided at
home until he attained his majority. His
school advantages were limited. At the age
of twenty-one he went to Fort Snelling, Min-
nesota, and broke prairie and engaged as
cook to a gang of men who were cutting hay
for the Government. At that date Min-
neapolis consisted of a sawmill and a few
houses. He remained in Minnesota about
six months and then returned to Illinois and
engaged in making brooms at Clayton, Adams
county, Illinois. He followed this business
four years and then removed to Brown county,
but after a few years residence there, removed
to Schuyler county and settled where he now
resides on laud entered by his father. He
has a farm of 105 acres. He is a Democrat
in politics, and has been Road Commissioner
for many years. He has filled that office with
great credit to himself.
He was married in 1858 to Jane McDonald
of Brown county, born October 15, 1840,
daughter of John B. and Sarah C. (Orr) Mc-
Donald. The former was born in county
Antrim, Ireland, and came to the United
States when a young man, and resided in the
Southern States for a short time, but finally
settled in Brown county in 1833, and soon
after married Sarah C. Orr, who was the
daughter of Mr. G. Orr, a settler of Brown
county in 1831. She was born in Tennessee
in 1810. Mr. and Mrs. McDonald had four
children, all of whom are now married and
well settled.
Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have had seven
children : Carrie, wife of William Nelson of
Huntsville township; Cora, at home; Will-
iam J. died in infancy; Frank C. at home;
Pearl at home; Myrtle died at the age of four;
and Nina E., at home.
Mr. and Mrs. Anderson are members of
the Christian Church. Mr. Anderson is a
member of Camden Lodge, No. 648, A. F. &
A. M., in which he is the Junior Warden.
HOMAS BARTON was born in Brown
county, Illinois, October 15, 1839.
His father, Thomas, was born in Ken-
tucky, in 1809, and died in Brown county in
1878, aged seventy years. His lather was
David Barton, who was born in Maryland,
and taken to Kentucky when but a lad. He
was a teamster when a young man, and later
a landholder. His wife was Elizabeth Marsh.
They reared five children, Thomas being the
second child. The mother of these children
died, and the father married again and had
five more children. The mother of our sub-
ject was named Clarissa Ingles, of Bourbon
county, Kentucky, daughter of James Ingles,
a large planter and distiller, largely engaged
in the manufacture of Bourbon whisky.
Thomas came direct to Brown county upon
reaching Illinois in 1835. He brought his
wife and daughter with him. He bought
eighty acres of land at the Government
price. They began life in a log cabin. They
received their Government deed in 1837, and
Mr. Barton was appointed Justice of the
Peace. Sixteen children were born to them,
many of them dying in infancy, but six of
SGHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
407
them growing to adult age; three of them
are now living. The father and mother now
rest in the Huffman graveyard.
Thomas had very limited school advantages,
barely learning to read and write. He left
his home at twenty-one, and enlisted August
8, 1862, in the Eighty-fourth Illinois Infan-
try, Company D. He was very soon pro-
moted to he Second Sergeant. He was on
duty and at his post every day during his
term of nearly three years. He received
slight wounds in his left hand and right
shoulder, both flesh wounds. He was mus-
tered out at Camp Harker on June 8, and
discharged at Camp Butler in Illinois, June
17. He returned to civil life in Brown
county in broken health, and paid large doc-
tor bills for six months.
He was married April 30, 1866, to Matil-
da, daughter of Jacob and Margaret ^Briggle)
Fry, both of Ohio, coming to Illinois in
1840. He died on the farm in middle age,
and left his widow with eight children. His
wife survived him and died when about sixty
years old. Mrs. Thomas Barton died Octo-
ber 24, 1890, leaving eight children: Charles
W., farmer of this county; Nina, prepared
at Rushville Normal School for teaching;
Edna lias had the same advantages; Idalla
and Charlotte are prepared to teach; Law-
rence Arthur is at home, going to school;
James Edgar is a rugged farmer lad, and
Jessie H., a bright lass for her years. Mr.
Barton is giving his children a good educa-
tion, and inculcating habits of honesty and
industry.
Mr. Barton voted for Lincoln and Grant,
but has since been a reformer. Religiously
he is free, and does his own thinking for
himself, regardless of consequences. He was
a candidate for the State Senate in 1888, and
for Congress in 1890, on the reform ticket,
and is the People's party candidate for the
State Senate. He began life barefooted, and
owns now 390 acres of good farming land,
worth $40 an acre. He built his barns in
1884, and his house which he lives in was
built on the ruin of the first. He does a
diversified farming, mostly grain. He also
raises a number of cattle and sheep, and
yearly turns off from forty to fifty hogs.
EORGE W. LUCAS was born in Lee
township, near Mount Sterling, in June,
1845. His father was a native of But-
ler county, Ohio, named Daniel R. Lucas,
born in 1810. His father, John Lucas, was
a native of Virginia, a soldier of the Revolu-
tionary war, and emigrated to Ohio, where
he died at an advanced age, having reared a
large family, of whom our subject's father
was the youngest. He was reared on the
farm to that kind of life, and was educated
in the English branches. After he reached
manhood he obtained a medical education by
his own efforts. He came to Mount Sterling
when quite young, from Crawfordsville, In-
diana, and began the practice of medicine.
He bought 160 acres of land two and one-
half miles southwest of Mounds, and sold it
in 1851, three years after he had bought it.
From there he went to Texas. Prior to this
he and his brother-in-law, Dr. King, practiced
medicine together in Clayton, Adams county.
He remained in Texas only one summer, and
then returned to Lee^township and bought a
farm of 160 acres one and one-half miles
south of this village, on which he settled and
where he died in 1884. He bought other
lands, amounting in all to over 1,000 acres.
He died January 26, 1884. He began life
408
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
without any money, but the handsome estate
he left at his death was worth at least $30,-
000. His wife was Sarah Ann Keith, of
Kentucky, to whom he was married in 1836.
They had twelve children, of whom nine are
still living, and all are married except one.
Mrs. Lucas died in 1890, six years after her
husband.
His son, George W., followed his father in
the choice of a profession, and graduated
from the College of Physicians and Surgeons
at Keokuk in 1878, and began his practice
in the fall of the same year. The Doctor
takes a great interest in the affairs of his
State and county. In 1862, although only a
boy of seventeen, he enlisted in the Third
Missouri Cavalry, and served three years
without receiving any wounds, although his
health was impaired by the hardships of
camp life. His bravery was rewarded by a
medal from Congress. He is a member of
the G. A. R., the R. K. McCoy Post, No.
311, of Clayton, Illinois. He has never
sought after public office, but is the candi-
date of the Republicans in this district for
the State Senate.
He was married in 1872, to Miss Josephine
L. Kilby, daughter of C. G. and Leora E.
(Hubbell) Kilby. They were from Cleve-
land, Ohio, her native State. They came to
Illinois in 1870, but after four years returned
to Ohio. Mrs. Lucas is one of four children,
namely: Mrs. Lncas, Mary G. Kilby, Wilford
H. Kilby and Amelia A. The father died in
1889, at the age of sixty-eight, but his wife
is still living at her home in Ohio, at the age
of sixty-three. The maternal grandmother
was Annis Bell, and she lived to the age of
ninety-three, not dying until 1881. Mrs.
Lucas' maternal grandparents were Solytnan
and Lucinda Hubbell. Mr. Hubbell was a
lineal descendant of one James Hnbbell, who
came to America in the early days of the set-
tlement of Massachusetts, and came to Ohio
in a very early day, locating near Cleveland,
where he lived until his death, which occurred
in OctobeV, 1874. Lucinda Hubbell still
lives with her daughter, Mrs. Kilby, aged
eighty- three. The paternal grandfather was
William Kilby, a farmer of Massachusetts,
who died at eighty-six.
Dr. and Mrs. Lucas have the following
children: Charles H., Lena L., Mary Ethel
and George D., aged nineteen, thirteen,
eleven and nine, respectively. The oldest
son is at the Normal School at Valparaiso,
Indiana, in his second term, and is very pro-
ficient in his studies. Dr. Lucas has a good
practice and his skill is depended upon by all
the best people in the township and surround-
ing country.
ILLIAM M. WYATT, a prosperous
retired farmer and esteemed pioneer
of Cass county, Illinois, was born in
Fayette county, Kentucky, February 22, 1828.
His parents were James and Sarah (Steven-
son) Wyatt, both of whom were natives of
Kentucky, and who came to Morgan county,
Illinois, in 1830, and located on a farm, on
what is known as Golden Prairie. The
paternal grandfather of the subject of this
sketch, a Virginian by birth, had previously
emigrated to Morgan county, in 1828. James
Wyatt and wife were the parents of four
children, three sons and one daughter, only
two of whom are now living. John, the
eldest son, died in Cass county about
ten years ago; he was married and left three
sons and one daughter, one now in Kansas,
two in Cass county and one in Braden, Illi-
nois, the sons being farmers by occupation;
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
409
our subject was the second child ; Elizabeth,
the third, married Hugh Sheridan, and died
in Lincoln, Logan county, Illinois, leaving a
family of one son and two daughters; Wal-
ter, the eldest of the children, died in youth.
The subject of this sketch was but two
years of age when his parents removed from
Kentucky to Morgan county, Illinois, and he
vividly remembers the experiences of those
early pioneer days, which were calculated to
test man's endurance and cultivate his powers
of invention. The habitation of the family
was the primitive log cabin, cooking being
done over an open fire-place, while all baking
was done in a kettle-shaped oven, on the lid of
which coals were placed. "Wheat bread was
unknown for many years, and finally became
a treat for Sunday morning. When wheat
was first raised, it was cut with a reap hook
and disengaged from the straw by the tread-
ing of horses, afterward being separated from
the chaff by being thrown to the wind. It
was first bolted by machines which were run
by hand, the first mill erected, being fifteen
miles distant, which was run by wind power,
operated by an ox. Corn was plowed with a
wooden-moldboard plow, drawn by an ox
with an ox harness. The whole neighbor-
hood would turn out to assist in raising log
buildings, and it never occurred to any one to
expect pay for the most valuable services,
money being unknown.
Surrounded by these peaceful, rural scenes,
and in the pursuance of these primitive duties
and pastimes, passed the youth and early
manhood of the subject of this sketch.
April 26, 1851, he and an estimable young
lady of his neigborhood were united in mar-
riage, commencing life with few earthly pos-
sessions but with unbounded faith in each
other and the future. The year preceding
this momentous event, Mr. Wyatt had raised
a small crop of wheat on a portion of his
father's land, and hauling a load of this to
Beardstown, he procured a marriage license
and other necessaries. He was married on
Sunday, and on Monday they and their friends
had dinner at his father's house. Tuesday,
having but one horse, he mounted and taking
his wife up behind him moved with all their
belongings to his brother's house, where they
boarded until their cabin was ready for oc-
cupancy. The two brothers plowed the little
farm of forty acres, for which Mr. Wyatt had
gone in debt, and, together, erected the cabin.
Mr. Wyatt's young wife dropped the corn on
eighty acres of land, dropping a row every
third round of the plow. By 1855, the little
home was paid for, while they had a snug
little sum of $900 ahead.
In 1850, Mr. O. B. Nance, our subject's
father-in-law, had removed to Texas, where
he pre-empted a large tract of land, and be-
ing desirous of having his daughter near him
he offered to bestow a quarter section of land
on Mr. Wyatt, if he would remove to that
State. Accordingly, they went to the Lone
Star State, but, not liking the country there,
returned to their little Illinois home, where
he commenced working his farm with renewed
energy. He erected a new fence around it
by working up the fallen timber on his
father's land, making 100 rails a day and
bringing a load home in the evening. At
night, he would cut corn until ten o'clock,
and this experience was repeated day after
day for a long time. Heretofore, he had not
increased his possessions in land, but as his
means accumulated, he bought another forty
acres, and in time became the owner of 260
acres of as choice agricultural land as is to be
found in the county, which he still retains.
About eight years ago, he retired from active
work on the farm, and located in Ashland.
410
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
investing his surplus means in stock in the
Ashland Bank, and he and his worthy wife
are enjoying in comfort the means which
their early industry accumulated.
They have had four children, three now
living: John Harding, the eldest, died aged
sixteen years; Fannie married Mr. Thomp-
son, a retired farmer of Virginia, Illinois;
Alice married Mr. Struble, a prominent
farmer and merchant of Newmansville, the
same State; James J., who received an ex-
cellent education in Jacksonville, Illinois, has
been connected with the Ashland Bank, as a
stockholder and official, for eleven years, from
which he receives a good salary. He married
Miss Bertha Lohman, a highly esteemed resi-
dent oi Ashland, and they have one child.
The entire family are earnest and useful,
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church
Mr. Wyatt is a man of strong and consci-
entious convictions, as is evidenced in his
political views. He was formerly a Republi-
can, bnt five years ago joined the Prohibition
party, for which he works with his usual
energy.
Few men more fully deserves their pros-
perity and happiness than Mr. Wyatt, who
has acquired all by the exercise of intelligent
and persistent effort.
JING KEKLEY was born in Sumner
county, Tennessee, September 25, 1814.
His father, William, was born in South
Carolina in 1785. When three years of age
he was taken to Tennessee by his father, who
was also William and who died on his small
farm in Tennessee, at the advanced age of
ninety-three years. King has heard his
grandfather tell how he crawled under the
barn in South Carolina to hide their small
store of silver coin during the Revolution.
His son was a soldier for three months in the
war of 1812 and received a land warrant of
forty acres for this service. He married Jane
Carr of Tennessee, whose father, King Carr,
was a native of Virginia. They reared to
adult age eleven children and buried two in
infancy. The mother died at the age qf
seventy years and the father lived to be an
octogenarian. Both are sleeping side by side
on the old farm which is still in the family.
Mr. Kerley went to school only until he
was ten years of age, learned to read and
write, but had no instruction in numbers.
He remained on his father's farm until his
'majority and was a volunteer in the Seminole
war with his brother, John. When he re-
turned home he was married, March 9,
1837, to Elizabeth Brown of Sunnier county,
Tennessee. They had grown up together.
She was the daughter of John and Elizabeth
(Ball) Brown. Mr. and Mrs. Kerley began
their married life on his brother's farm, but
within a year they bought and settled on a
farm of their own. Mr. Kerley was in the
Seminole war, in which he received a gunshot
wound in his thigh. In 1846 Mr. Kerley
voluteered in the Mexican war as a private,
and was made Second Lieutenant which posi-
tion he held during his twelve months' ser-
vice. After his return home he was elected
to the Legislature in August, 1847, and next
he ran for the State Senate against a promi-
nent man, but was defeated although he ran
ahead of his ticket. The first railroad charter
was passed during his term ot office. In 1851
he left there and by teams he moved his fam-
ily to Brown county on his present farm in
section 17. His wife's family had come to Illi-
nois fourteen years earlier. Mr. Kerley bought
eighty acres of land for $1,000, and by a tax
title another eighty, which cost him $100 for
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
411
the patent. He left his family and returned
to Tennessee, sold out his farm there and re-
turned to Illinois in February to find his wife
dead and buried ! She died, as did her father
father, stepmother and five others of the
family, of ship fever, which had been brought
by a returned Californian. Mr. Kerley went
on his farm with his three children, but in
December, 1853, he married Amanda J. Pell,
a daughter of Henry Pell, whose wife was a
King. They had eight children. There are
four sons of this family still living, one son
of the first wife. The stepmother was a real
mother to his children, a dearly beloved
woman who died January 16, 1891, in her
sixty-sixth year. Pleasant Hart Kerley his
oldest son, lives at Camp Point, Illinois;
Bobert is a farmer in Adams county; James
N. lives in Oakland, California; Edgar is a
farmer near home; and so is the last son,
John.
Mr. Kerley was elected to the State
Legislature in 1856 and introduced the bill
for the railroads running through this
county. He was re-elected in 1858 and
again in 1864. When he lived in Tennessee
he held the office of Sheriff and had to dis-
charge the unpleasant duty of executing a
convict. He was Supervisor in 1864 and re-
elected some fifteen times and several times
was chairman of the board. He was the first
Assessor for Lee township and held that office
for five years. He has been a Democrat and
is well named King, as he is a king among
jokers. He has retired from active farming
and lives with his youngest son on his 200-
acre farm. He has been very successful and
though nearly seventy-eight years of age is
in good health, with the exception of some
trouble with his eyesight. Nature has done
more for this man than for many of those
known to fame. He takes a daily walk to
Mound Station and is a very interesting com-
panion as his memory is phenomenal. There
is probably no one who can relate in a more
interesting manner more incidents of an
eventful life than can this well preserved old
gentleman. It is the wish of his friends that
he may long continue with them.
RS. MARY F. RAVENSCROFT,
is the widow of the late Ashford D.
Ravenscroft, and is a native of Ver-
sailles, Woodtbrd county, Kentucky. Her
father was Henry Casteen of Virginia, and
her mother was Lucinda* (Peters) Casteen,
also of Woodtbrd county. The parents of our
subject came to Illinois in May, 1832, when
she was but a small child and the long trip
was made by water. The first home of the
family was on land one mile north of Ver-
sailles, on which her father had secured a claim
in 1830, when he came through on horseback,
and bought the improvements of a squatter
settler. They moved into the small, crude,
log cabin which this settler had built, and
here they lived for a short time until her
father could build a good two-story frame
house. There were then in the family four
daughters and one son, and two daughters
and one son were born here in Illinois, mak-
ing a family of eight children. The mother
of Mrs. Ravenscroft died April 16, 1839, and
the children she left were: Louisa, who died
in the bloom of maidenhood; John h. Cas-
teen, who was for many years a merchant of
Versailles and died here September 29, 1887,
at the age of sixty-five years; Mary, of this
sketch; Martha, residing in Versailles with
her sister, Mrs. Julia Bond, widow of the late
Dr. John Bond; Catherine, who died at the
age of seventeen years; Elizabeth, who died
412
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP CA8S,
at the age of four years; and William who
died in infancy, soon after his mother. The
father was again married, to Elizabeth Hew-
ett, of Springfield, Illinois, a native of Ver-
sailles, Kentucky. By this union there were
three children, one son dying in infancy.
Thomas Henry died in Versailles, June 27,
1892, aged forty-nine years; and Joseph, a
resident of Versailles but now viewing the
wonders of Montana. He has a wife and
four children. Henry Casteen died April
14, 1854, aged sixty- five years.
The marriage of our subject took place
November 21, 1841, to A. D. Ravenscroft.
He was born near the north branch of the
Potomac river in Hampshire county, Vir-
ginia, at Romney June 22, 1808, and died in
Versailles, Illinois, April 19, 1872, in his
sixty-fourth year.
Ashford I). Ravenscroft was the son of
James and Charlotte (Dowden) Ravenscroft.
His paternal ancestry was of English descent
and were old settlers of the Old Dominion.
His maternal ancestors were an old family in
Virginia. He had one sister and four
brothers, and was reared in Virginia, where
he had a common-school education, and he
had a good business education. Being a
bright and brainy man he became a strong,
influential business man, developing the
characteristics of the statesman and leader
among men. He left his native place at the
age of twenty-four years and went to Hills-
boro, Ohio, in 1832. and while here was
elected Sheriff. During his four year's resi-
dence he made a trip to Illinois and soon
moved to this State, coming in 1836. This
county was a part of Schuyler county and the
town of Versailles was only projected, but
was attracting attention; so with a limited
capital of about $1,000, the savings of his own
labor, he decided to embark in the mercantile
trade here. In the winter of 1836-'37, he built
a small frame building of two rooms for a
store, which he tilled with a stock of goods
in the following June. This was the first
store in Versailles and still stands, a relic of
pioneer times and primitive Versailles. To
the first rooms he built an addition and to
this home he brought his bride, and they
lived here in happiness some time. Soon
competitors came aud with varying success,
but Mr. Ravenscroft was steadily succeeding,
and by his business qualities he built up a
prosperous business in his line and became
an owner of a part of the town site. Stimu-
lated by .the growth of the place, perhaps, or
more by his genial manner and upright deal-
ing, he gained the confidence and friendship of
the people of this section and built up a trade
which made him a wealthy man in the course
of many years of merchandising The first
entry on his books was made June 25, 1837,
and the large piles of his account books corded
up in the library of his handsome residence,
where he lived until death, show something
of the volume of his trade in his thirty-five
years in business here. The last few years
of his life he was afflicted with rheumatism,
but was confined to his couch but a short
time and up to the time of his death he was
around looking after his business. But the
summons of that stern Sheriff came suddenly
on the 19th of April, 1872. A vast concourse
of people at his obsequies testified to the large
circle of friends and admirers. It is said to
have been the largest funeral in this pleasant
little hamlet of Illinois. Mr. Ravenscroft
was endowed by nature with more than com-
mon energy and talent, and would have been
successful in almost any calling in life, es-
pecially as a statesman or in a judicial line.
He was one of the few great men in his own
home and domestic relations. To his devoted
SCBUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
413
wife and daughter still at home, this was an
overwhelming sorrow, and his memory is
most sacredly cherished by them and his other
surviving children.
Mr. and Mrs. Ravenscroft had five children,
one son and four daughters: Mattie Charlotte
died at the age of four years, May 15, 1856.
The surviving are: William Henry, a resi-
dent of Versailles; Lucinda J. is the wife of
Thomas H. Graves of Versailles; Lydia A. is
the wife of William Yates of Pike county,
Illinois, and Virginia C. Ravenscroft.
fOHN W. DANIEL, an intelligent and
progressive farmer of Ashland, Cass
county, Illinois, and an honored veteran
ot the late war, was born in Morgan county,
this State, January 12, 1839.
His parents were Joseph and Jemima
(Stiltz) Daniel, both of whom were natives
of Tennessee, in which State they were mar-
ried and where their eldest child, Somers T.,
was born. They had four sons and four
daughters, the youngest of whom was a man
full grown, when the father died, that being
the first death in the family. Somers T. died
in mature life, leaving a wife and one son;
Mary J. went to California in 1849,, and has
never been heard from since; she was un-
married; James M., a miller by tra.de, lives
in Kansas, is a widower and has a family;
Eliza Ann married Mr. Hpdgson, and is now
deceased; Ellen is the wife of John Goodall,
a prosperous farmer of Kansas; Lavinia,
wife of John May, a well-to-do farmer, lives
in Arkansas; Joseph is married, and lives in
Montana, where he is a miner by occupation.
The subject of this sketch attended the
subscription schools of Morgan county, and
was reared to farm life. Thus passed his
28
boyhood and early manhood, when the coun-
try was shaken to its foundations by the
bloody carnage of civil war. Leaving his
home, young Mr. Daniel enlisted, August 7,
1862, in Company K, One Hundred and
First Illinois Infantry. He was assigned to
duty at Cairo, Illinois, for a month, at the end
of which time he was transferred to the
Sixteenth Corps, accompanying his regiment
to Holly Springs, Mississippi, where Mr.
Daniel participated in his first engagement.
A portion of the regiment was taken prison-
ers, the remainder being detached to do duty
as a guard at General Grant's headquarters.
Among the latter was Company K, which ac-
companied General Grant to Vicksburg,
After the capture of that city, the portion of
the regiment which had been captured was
exchanged, and the regiment went to Union
City, Tennessee, thence to Louisville, KGUT
tucky, and from there, to Bridgeport, Ala-
bama, whence they went to Chattanooga,
Tennessee, where they took part in the bat-
tle of Missionary Ridge with the Twentieth
Army Corps. This brave company made
the. memorable winter march to Knoxville,
during which they were without sufficient
food, and their shoes being worn out they
might have been tracked by blood from their
bruised and bleeding feet. Mr. Daniel par-
ticipated with his regiment in all the battles
from Chattanooga to Atlanta, Georgia, being
100 days under fire. From Atlanta he accom-
panied General Sherman in his march to
the sea, and thence through the Carolinas,
north to Washington City, where he par-
ticipated in the grand review. In June,
1865, he was mustered out of service at
Springfield, Illinois.
Mr. Daniel then returned to his boyhood
home in Morgan county, where he was mar-
ried in September, 1866, to Miss Lutheria
414
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
Hubbard, an estimable lady and a native of
Illinois. To this union two children were
born, Edward Grant and Lorenzo Cass, both
living and unmarried, and botlr employed as
telegraph operators. Mr. Daniel's wife died,
and he was afterward married to Zilpah Car-
ter, a native of Morgan county. They had
three children: Elizabeth E., Charles O. and
Daisy, all living at home.
Mr. Daniel owns a small fruit farm in the
suburbs of Ashland, and deals quite exten-
sively in poultry, from th.e proceeds of which,
and his pension, he lives yery comfortably.
He is a stanch Republican in politics; and
belongs to John Douglas Post, No. 592,
G. A. R. He and his wprthy wife are earn-
est and iiseful members of the Missionary
Baptist Church.
Thus in brief is given the few most promi-
nent facts of a modest and useful life, which
although not blazoned abroad is yet as well
lived and important as that of the trumpeted
heroes of the war. His duty done, he rests
by his fireside in peace and happiness, the
recipient of the good wishes of his neighbors,
the affection of his family, and the gratitude
of his country.
RS. RACHEL D. MARTIN was
born in Redstone county, Pennsyl-
vania, November 20, 1810. Her
father was Isaac Turner and her mother,
Sarah Minton, and she was born in New Jer-
sey and he in Germany. They were farmers,
who moved to Ohio in an early day, in 1815,
and located on the little Miami near the
junction of the east fork. Mrs. Martin was
one of a family of ten children. The family
settled on 160 acres of partially improved
jand and came down the Ohio on a flat-boat
from Wheeling and landed at Cincinnati, and
brought their teams and household goods.
They worked hard and at their death they
had the farm all paid for with improvements.
The father died at the age of fifty-eight years
and his wife some years later. Mrs. Martin
and her sister, Sirena, the wife of Abel Light,
a farmer in Kansas, are still living. The sub-
ject of this sketch is eighty-two years old and
her sister is eighty, both active, well preserved
women. The most of the family died in
youth or early childhood.
Matthias Turner was a farmer in this val-
ley and died at the age of thirty-two years in
1852. His brother, Michael, was a farmer
on the old homestead, and had many farms
in the county of Hamilton in Ohio. He died
at the age of eighty years, in 1890. He had
a family of seven children, and the six who
survived him have good farms. He never
went to school in his childhood with the ex-
ception of two years in Ohio, in summer, as
they could not provide shoes and clothing in
the winter.
When in her seventeenth year Rachel went
to school eight weeks and learned to read and
write, the reader being the New Testament
In her nineteenth year she was married, April
12, 1829, to John Martin, who was born in
Ohio, March 2, 1794. His father was Joseph
Martin, and his mother was Rebecca (Giebeh
Martin. Joseph Martin was a farmer, and
was born in Wales and died in Ohio at a ripe
old age, nearly eighty. His wife lived but a
few months. They had nineteen children,
two dying in infancy and one son at the age
of nine years. Sixteen of these children
came to adult life and became heads of fami-
lies and the youngest had but one child.
Mrs. Martin and her husband commenced
domestic life on a rented farm in Hamilton
county, Ohio. They owned a small farm
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
415
there, which they sold and came to Illinois,
in March, 1837, bringing five children. They
made the trip to Meredosia by steamboat, and
settled on eighty acres in the Illinois bottoms.
They sold this place to Mrs. Martin's brother,
Matthias, and then bought 160 acres, of which
the present home is a part. The beloved
father died September 23, 1854, at the age of
sixty-one, and then the farm was divided.
He left his widow with a comfortable prop-
erty. He owned at one time 860 acres, and
360 was swamp and bottom land that was
overflowed. He came first out here on horse-
back from Cincinnati with Benjamii} Speery,
and the choice of land he made was poor, hav-
ing been deceived by soiqe of the settlers,
who had come before him. When they came
they brought their wagons and horses, one of
the latter outliving his master. Mr. Martin
was a stock- raiser and breeder, and was one
of the leading ones of his time. He raised
cattle, horses, hogs and sheep, and clothed
themselves with the wool of the sheep and
the flax which they raised. Mrs. Martin has
been a heroine in hard work all her life, and is.
still the most important one on the place. She
is bright in mind and strong in body. Of her
children: Robert died at the age of tpn years,
August, 1846; Isaac died in November, 1862;
he was a volunteer in Company D, One
Hundred and Nineteenth Illinois Volunteers,
and died in the hospital at Quincy; he left
a widow and two sons; John Edward died
October 25, 1883, aged twenty-two, and Sarah,
the wife of James P. Craig, died in 1866, at
the age of thirty-three, leaving one son and
one daughter; Michael E. Martin died June
2, 1878, and left his widow, whose maiden
name was Francis E. Hume, and one child,
who died in infancy. She is with her aged
mother-in-law. The living of the family are;
Joseph Martin, a farmer of Ohio, and has
four living children: William 13. Martin; M.
V. Martin, a farmer near by on a part of the
old farm. He has six children living and two
deceased. John G. Martin, named for his
father, is residing on the old farm, and has
four children : Rachel F. J., the youngest of
the family, is the wife of John E. Taylor,
and has eight children. Mrs. Martin is a
Baptist. Mr, Martin is a Democrat, while
his sons are reformers.
fQHN HENDERSON DAVIS, of sec-
tion 29, Huntsville, is numbered among
the substantial farmers of Schuyler
county, where he has resided since 1854.
He was born in Rutherford county, Tennes-
see, September 15, 1819, being a son of John
and Mary (Bishop) Davis. John, Jr., was
but a small boy when his father died. He
was one of three children: John; James M.,
residing in Carthage, Missouri; and Polly,
now Mrs. John Lomax.
When John was eight years old the mother
and other children came to Illinois and first
settled in Green county, near Whitehall, and
later moved to Morgan county, near Jackson-
ville. From there they went to Winchester,
Scott county, and from there to Brown
county, settling in Pea Ridge township,
where the mother died. John was reared on
the farm in Brown county and bought a farm
in Brown county, where he resided until 1854,
when he settled where he now resides. He
purchased at first land that was entirely un-
cultivated, but now has 300 acres of as good
land in as fine condition as any in the county.
On this farm are excellent farm buildings.
He has farmed and dealt in live stock for
many years.
416
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
He was married in Brown county to Maria
Beckam, born in Ohio, daughter of George
and Abigail Beckam. She died in 1867,
leaving ten children, namely: William H.,
and youngest sister, Cornelia, residing in
Pratt county, Illinois; John W., married, re-
sides in Huntsville township; James M.,
married and residing in Huntsville; Minerva,
married to Newton Binkley, and resides in
Hancock county; Emily, married to Luther
Benson, of Harper county, Kansas; Louisa,
married to John Swoap, of Adams county;
Nancy, wife of William Adams, residing in
Adams county; Charles H., at home; next, one
that died in infancy; Alexander, married,
and is living in Carroll county, Missouri.
Mr. Davis is a Democrat in politics, but
has never wanted office. He is a man who
has made his own wa,y in the world and has
done it successfully and gained the respect
and esteem of every one wh,o knows him.
fAMES CUNNINGHAM, a prosperous
farmer and stockman of township 17
north, range 9 west, living near Phila-
delphia, Illinois, was born near Edinburgh,
Scotland, May 10, 1825. He comes of a
family of sturdy, honest yoernanry, whose an-
cestors have been of that bold, upright class
which has infused new energy into the slug-
gish veins of his country. His paternal
grandfather was a baker in the British army,
during the Revolutionary war. The parents
of the subject of this sketch were John and
Ellen (Taylor) Cunningham, both of them
natives of bonny Scotland. In 1832, the
first great sorrow fell upon the little family,
when the devoted mother died, leaving six
small children to the care of the bereaved fa-
ther. Soon afterward, the father went alone
to the United States, and worked for about
three years, at his trade of a miller, in Os-
wego and Buffalo, New York. He then re-
turned to his native country, where he was soon
afterward remarried; and in 1836, together
with his wife and six children, he again emi-
grated to the United States. After a voyage
of live weeks they arrived in New York city,
whence they went up the Hudson river to
the Erie canal, via which they arrived at Buf-
falo, New York. Thence they went by lake
to Cleveland, Ohio, whence they staged across
the country to the Ohio river, and then, by
boat uown to St. Louis and up the Illinois
river, taveling all the time from May 10
until July 4, when they arrived at Beards-
town, Cass county, Illinois, after an entire
journey of fifty-five days, across an ocean and
half-way across the American continent. In
Cass county, near Virginia, his father pur-
chased a small farm, on which he erected a
log cabin, in which he and his family resided,
in pioneer fashion, until his father's death,
two years later, in October, 1838. His fa-
ther was a man of great uprightness of char-
acter, generous-hearted and cordial in man-
ner, and left many friends and well wishers
to mourn his untimely death.
Two of the six children who accompanied
their parents to America have since died.
Six children were by the first marriage and
two by the second. Of the first family, Mar-
garet was the eldest, who married Martin
Hoagland, and died in middle life, near
Jacksonville, Illinois, leaving a family; Jean-
nette married Robert Taylor, a Scotchman
by birth and a well-to-do farmer in the San-
gatnon valley; the third in order of birth is
the subject of this sketch; Thomas, married,
is a farmer near Virginia, Illinois; Archibald,
married, died at Sugar Grove some twenty
years ago, leaving one child; John is a farmer
80HUYLER AND BMOWN COUNTIES.
417
in Missouri; Marian, now Mrs. Jacobs, is
the sole survivor of the second famjly, the
other child having died in infancy.
The subject of this notice landed in Amer-
ica on his eleventh birthday,, and accompan-
ied his parents to the little farm in Cass
county, Illinois. Here he continued his edu-
cation at the subscription schools of his dis-
trict, having previously attended school in his
native country. His father's death, however,
put an end to all further leisure for self-cult-
ure, and a year after this sad event our sub-
ject was bound out to a neighbor, Stephen
Lee, by whom he was reared to manhood.
He then worked for a number of years in a
steam saw and grist mill in Sugar Grove, in
which he, later, bought a half interest, and
finally purchased the entire property. This
he continued to operate, in connection with
his farm, for seven or eight years, when, in
1866, he sold his mill and bought his pres-
ent farm, where he has since resided. Tbis
consists of 280 acres of choice agricultural
land, owned by Mr. Cunningham and his
son, who also operate eighty acres of leased
land. This land is usually devoted to grain,
but a great many hogs are also grown for
market.
In October, 1856, Mr. Cunningham mar-
ried Miss Sarah Elizabeth Hopkins, a native
of Indiana, who came to Illinois witb her
parents, Henry and Elizabeth Hopkins, when
she was only two years of age. Mr. and
Mrs. Cunningham have two children: Henry,
born in July, 1857, is unmarried, and man-
ages his father's farm ; Dorotha Ellen, born
in October, 1858, married F. C. Fox, a pros-
perous farmer and cattle feeder, who lives
near by.
Mr. Cunningham was originally a Whig
in politics, but has been a Republican since
the organization of that party. His con-
stituents have shown their appreciation of his
worth by electing him to the position of
Trustee of his township, which office he has
held for twenty-four years, serving with in-
tegrity and ability.
Mrs. Cunningham is an earnest and useful
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
and although Mr. Cunningham is a non- pro-
fessor of religion yet he gives liberally of his
means to the support of the gospel and
other religious and benevolent movements.
Thus, unaided, Mr. Cunningham has at-
tained, by his industry and honesty, not only
a competence for himself and family, but
has been able to donate to others less for-
tunate than himself, all of which has en-
deared him to his community and left his
impress on many an honest heart.
ENRY GREVE, a successful manufact-
urer and dealer in tobacco and cigars,
doing business on Main street in Beards-
town, Illinois, was born in Hanover, in the
town of Wittlage, May 20, 1844. He grew
up, obtained his German education and
learned his trade before he came to the Uni-
ted States, which he reached in September,
1866. He1 was the second of the family to
come to this country, his brother Anton
having preceded him. His parents lived and
died in their native country. They were
members of the German Lutheran Church
all their lives. He worked at his trade in
New York city for some time before he came
to Beardstown. After his arrival here, April
2, 1867, he at once began as a cigarmaker.
He associated his brother Anton with him in
1876 as a partner, and they did business to-
gether until 1880, since which time he has
been continuing alone. He has a good,
418
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
substantial trade, doing quite an extensive
business and giving employment to several
hundred workmen. He has accumulated
considerable means, owns a good home and
two business houses.
He was married in this city, to Miss Anna
M. Keller, from Hanover, Germany, who came
over in the same vessel with her husband.
She has had two brothers and one sister settle
iii this city since her arrival. Her parents
are both dead. She has been a good wife
and mother. She and her husband attend
the Lutheran Church, and have nine children:
Lizzie, Carrie, Henry A., John F. W., Anna,
Fred, William, Emma and Hilda. They
have all been educated in the public and pa-
rochial schools of Beardstown. Mr. Greve
is a member of the A. O. U. W., of the Ger-
man order, of Beardstown Lodge, of Prussia,
No. 21, and is a trustee. He is a Democrat
in politics, and is a very reliable man in every
way,
5SAAC M. STRIBLING, one of the most
extensive and successful farmers of Illi-
nois, a popular and influential citizen of
Yirginia, was born in Logan county, Ken-
tucky, January 13, 1821.
His parents were Benjamin and Nancy
(Washburn) Stribling, both natives of Vir-
ginia. His paternal grandparents were
Thomas and Elizabeth (Ayres) Stribling,
also natives of the Old Dominion, who emi-
grated to Logan county, Kentucky, in a very
early day. There his grandfather purchased
a tract of timber land, seven miles from Rus-
sellville, which he improved and where he
continued to reside until his death. The
grandmother survived her husband, and ac-
companied her son, father of the subject of
this sketch, to Illinois, and died at his home.
The father of the subject of this notice was
married in Kentucky, and resided there until
1827, when he removed, with his wife and
two children, to Illinois. The journey was
made overland with a team, and they brought
provisions and cooking utensils with them,
and camped and cooked by the way. He first
located in Morgan county, where he bought
a tract of land, on which he and his family
resided for three years. In 1830 he sold out
and came to Cass county, settling a mile and
a half northwest of the present site of Vir-
ginia, he and his family being among the
earliest settlers of the county. He bought
eighty acres and entered 720 acres of Gov-
ernment land. On that which he bought
there was a small house, the sides and roof
of which were covered with split boards,
while the floor was made of puncheon. The
chimney was made of earth and sticks, known
in those days as a " cat-and-stick" chimney.
He at once commenced to improve his land,
and resided there some years, after which he
removed to land which he had purchased on
the Sangamon river bottoms. He remained
there a few years, eventually moving to
Beardstown, and finally to Virginia. In the
latter place he bought a comfortable home,
and spent his last years retired from active
business. His first wife, mother of the sub-
ject of this notice, was a daughter of Philip
Washburn, and she died on the home farm in
1846. Three of her children attained matu-
rity; Benjamin F. died on the old homestead;
and Thomas, the youngest son, now resides in
California.
Isaac M., whose name heads this memoir,
was six years old when his parents removed
to Illinois, and he has a vivid recollection of
the overland journey and subsequent pioneer
life. Central Illinois was then very sparsely
SOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
419
settled, while northern Illinois was uninhab-
ited except by Indians. There were 110 rail-
roads for many years, and the people lived on
the products of their farms and wild game,
which abounded in great profusion, such as
deer, turkeys, prairie chickens, geese and
ducks. His father used to raise flax and cot-
ton, which his mother would card, while he
and his brothers would spin it, after which it
was woven in a hand-loom. All cooking was
done by a fireplace, while the method of
farming was quite different from that now
employed. Grass was mown by hand and
grain was cut with a sickle or cradle. As
soon as he was large enough, our subject as-
sisted his father in the improvement of the
land, attending school as opportunity afforded.
The schools were supported by subscriptions,
each family paying according to the number
of scholars sent. The schoolhouse was of
logs, and the benches were made of rough
slabs. Fifty cents a day in trade was the
price of labor.
Mr. Stribling remained at home until he
attained his majority, after which he earned
his first money by mowing ten acres of land,
receiving for it $1 an acre. His father gave
him a tract of wild land, on which he com-
menced work for himself. Most of it was
raw prairie, and he immediately set about
preparing the land for cultivation. He built
on it a small house, in which, after marriage,
he and his wife commenced life. He resided
there for ten years and then moved to his
present home. He now owns 2,000 acres of
choice farming land, 160 of which is in Me-
nard county, and the remainder in Cass
county. His property consists of the best in
those localities, for which he paid the highest
price demanded for agricultural lands. None
of it is rented, but the whole is under his
supervision. His principal business is rais-
ing and feeding stock, his various farms
being well supplied with a high grade of
shorthorn cattle, well-bred hogs, and draft
and trotting horses.
He was first married in 1843, to Margaret
BeggSj an intelligent lady, and a native of
Virginia, daughter of Charles Beggs. By
this union there are five surviving children:
Joan, James, Thomas, Kate, Henry C. and
Lou M. The family were called upon to
mourn the loss of the devoted wife and mother,
whose life had been one of continued exertion
in their interest.
Mr. Stribling was married a second time, to
Maria Carr, an estimable lady, a native of
Cass county, this State, and a daughter of
David and Julia Carr. By this marriage
there are eight children: Emma, Carrie, Nel-
lia, William B.; Hattie, Frank, George and
Howard.
Mr. Stribling is pre-eminently a self-made
man, and has; by good judgment, steady in-
dustry, economy and integrity, attained his
present pheno'nlerial prosperity and acquire
the universal good will of his fellow men.
UCINDA J. VAN DE VENTER. —This
estimable lady is the widow of Barnett
B. Vandeventer, is a native of Brown
county, this State, and is the daughter of
John W. and Margaret (Brown) Reid, both
natives of Tennessee, who came to Illinois
when single. Here they met each other and
after acquaintance were married. John Reid
was the son of James C. Reid, of Ten-
nessee, who came to Illinois at a very early
date, about 1827 or 1829, settling on a mill
site on McKee's creek, about two and one-
half miles west of Versailles, where he laid
claim to one quarter section. There is no
420
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
doubt but that James Held came from Scot-
land, he having married a Miss Nancy Cam-
eron, of Irish descent, a lady of noble ancestry.
Mr. James Reid erected a water-power mill,
having preferred a mill site to the more fertile
acres of the county, when he took up his
claim. This mill was a great success and
proved a boon to the settlers who could have
their grain ground here, without traveling so
far to obtain a little meal or feed. Mr. and
Mrs. Reid had eleven children, all of whom
lived to maturity. Their son, Mrs. Vande-
venter's father, had seven children, of whom
Mrs. Vandeventer was the eldest. Four of
of this family are still living, namely: Wil-
son, County Clerk of Mt. Sterling, married
Margaret Bell Vandeventer; Martha, wife of
Orlando CaBteen, residents of Anthony, Kan-
sas, where they live with their two daugh-
ters, and where he is County Treasurer of
that county; Luzena, wife of Frank Martin,
of Kansas; and Mrs. Vandeventer.
The last named lady was married, Novem-
ber 18, 1866. to Barnett Vandeventer, brother
of Thomas Vandeventer. He died March
17, 1886, leaving his faithful wife to mourn
his loss. She is sustained in her great be-
reavement by her loving children who are as
follows: Fred R., aged twenty-four; O. J., in
his twenty-third year; Horace, in his twenty-
first year; and Dora, eighteen. They have all
been well educated, and incline toward agri-
cultural and domestic pursuits. These young
people are all at home and are a great com-
fort to their widowed mother, who bears her
affliction with Christiau resignation and pa-
tience. She and her lamented husband were
members of the Methodist Church, as were
most of Mr. Vandeventers family. This gen-
tleman was only fifty-three years old at the
time of his death, yet he left a fine estate, in
connection with the estate of the Vandeven-
ter brothers, in which he had a third interest.
Mrs. Vandeventer and her interesting
family are among the most respected and
highly esteemed in the entire township, and
all consider it a pleasure to know them.
LARKSON DORSETT, of section 21,
Huntsville, has had his residence in
Illinois since 1835. He was born in
Randolph county, North Carolina, April 28,
1823, being a son of Ezra and Mary (Beck-
erdite) Dorsett. In 1835 the family came to
Illinois and first settled in Adams county,
and Mr. Dorsett, Sr., entered land in Hunts-
ville township, section 6. There Clarkson
grew to manhood, and after marriage settled
where he now resides. At first he purchased
forty acres of land, which was unimproved,
and here he has since resided. He now owns
ninety-seven and one-half acres of land, and
has a good set of farm buildings.
He was married August 23, 1844. to Sarah
Sprigg, born in Meade county, Kentucky,
October 11, 1824, being a daughter of Thomas
and Elizabeth (Dorsey) Sprigg, natives of
Kentucky. The family came to Illinois in
1835 and settled in Huntsville. Mr. Sprigg
died in Kentucky while on a visit. His wife
survived him and died in Schuyler county.
Mr. and Mrs. Dorsett have had ten chil-
dren: Eliza Ann, born August 28, 1845, mar-
ried Thomas B. Graham, of Huntsville town-
ship; Linza D , deceased December 25, 1848;
Nathan G., born December 12, 1849, resides
in Ford county, Kansas; Francis A., born
December 10, 1851, resides in Huntsville
township; Elizabeth Jane, born July 9, 1861,
married Lewis Alexander Frather, resides in
Littleton township; William M., born March
11, 1865, at home; Mary M., born May 7,
SO SUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
421
1867, at home; and Cynthia E., born August
10, 1869.
Mr. and Mrs. Dorsett are earnest members
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which
Mr. Dorsett has been a member since he was
fourteen years old. He has been a Class-
leader for many years in the church at Shiloh,
of which society he was the organizer and
liberal supporter. Mr. Dorsett is a Repub-
lican and has been School Director. He and
his wife are highly esteemed by all who know
them .
Mrs. Dorsett had five sisters and three
brothers: Mary Pendleton, Eliza Chappell,
Nancy Clark, Sarah Jane Dorsett, Matilda
(Ezra) Dorsett, Melvina Vetach, Thomas C.,
and Samuel, deceased.
|ETER S. WILLIAMS, of Lee township,
was born in Clermont couuty, Ohio, in
1847. His father, Alexander, now liv-
ing at the Mounds, was born in Ohio, in 1818,
and his father, Thomas Jefferson, was a Mary-
land farmer who came to Ohio a young man.
He died there on his farm of 200 acres. His
wife's name was Sarah Jones. Alexander
Williams married Lydia Ann, daughter of
David and Sarah Smith. Peter is one of
nine children. His parents came to Illinois
and lived in Adams county five years, where
they bought a piece of land. They came by
water, bringing two children with them.
They came to Brown county in 1856 and
bought a farm of 120 acres on section 7 and
8, in Lee township. They moved to Mound
Station in 1884, where they have lived ever
since. They have lands also in Kansas.
They gave their children a good common
schooling. Mr. Peter Williams raises as
many as 100 hogs. He has from forty to
100 head of stock, keeps from fifty to 300
sheep. He has nearly 500 acres of land all
under the plow and also sixty acres of fine
timber, from which he has cut the largest and
most valuable oaks and walnut trees. They
have buried one little son, Charlie, two years
old, and have besides five children: Ralph,
Elmer, Jennie, James and Blanche. They in-
tend to give them all a good education.
Mr. Williams built his house in 1880. It
is a large, two-story frame building. He
built his barn in 1884. It is 34x44, for
stock and hay. He has also built another
stock barn, 40x44 feet. He has sold about"
two car loads of cattle per annum for the past
fifteen years, but it has not paid of late. Mr.
Williams and his wife are worthy citizens of
the county in which they live. Mrs. Will-
iams was born at her present home, in Sep-
tember, 1835, and married October 17, 1872.
Her parents bought 124 acres in 1832 and
also some land in other counties, making in
all about 500 acres. She was Cora Camp-
bell, daughter of William and Sarah (Mc-
Corrnick) Campbell. They moved from Ten-
nesssee into Sangumon county in 1829.
Mr. Williams is serving his second term as
Supervisor and has served as Road Commis-
sioner for the township. He is a Democrat,
a Royal Arch Mason and a Knight Templar.
His family belong to the Missionary Bap-
tist society.
fOHN HUESCHEN dates his birth in
Prussia, January 20, 1846. A review
of his life and ancestry gives the fol-
lowing facts:
His father, Henry Hueschen, was one of a
family of four sons: Matthias, George, Henry
and Deidrich. His parents were born and
422
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Off OASS,
passed their lives in Prussia. Matthias and
George reared families in their native land,
and are still living there, Henry and Deid-
rich being the only ones to come to America.
Deidrich is now a resident of Springfield.
Henry Hueechen learned the trade of weaver,
and was employed at work at his trade and
farming in Prussia until 1852, when, with
with his wife and three children, he came to
America. They set sail from Bremen and
after a voyage of nearly four weeks landed
in New Orleans; thence up the Mississippi
and Illinois rivers to Beardstown. After his
arrival in Illinois, Mr. Hueschen found em-
ployment at various kinds of work. He
bought a home at Beardstown and resided
there for many years. His death occurred
at the home of his son John, in 1883. His
wife's death occurred some years before his.
Of their four children be it recorded that
Sophia died in Germany when young; that
Sibilla married John Henry Betz, and lives
in the State of Washington; the other two
are John and William.
John Hueschen was only six years of age
when the family emigrated to America;
consequently he remembers little of his na-
tive land. At the time they settled in Beards-
town, although only a small place, it con-
tained a large packing house and was the
principal market for this section of the
country. He attended a German school,
and as soon as he was old enough to work
was variously employed. From the time he
was twenty-one until he was thirty he
worked on a farm by the month, after
which for seven years he rented land. At
the end of this time he purchased the 120
acres on which he now resides. This place
is well improved with good buildings* etc.
March 9, 1876, Mr. Hueschen was united
in marriage with Elizabeth Fidler, a native
of Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, arid a daugh-
ter of Henry and Katherine Fidler. This
union has been blessed with three children,
namely: Theodore, born January 25, 1877,
and died April 5, 1892; Huldah, born June
7, 1887; Alvin, August 6, 1890, and died
February 26, 1892.
He and his wife are members of the
Lutheran Church.
ASPEK STOCK, general farmer on sec-
tion 34, of the precinct of Beardstown,
was born in Hesse-Darmstadt, Ger-
many, 1832. He was the son of Thomas and
Margaretta (Shaffer) Stock, who both came
of old Hesse famlies of pure German blood.
Thomas was reared to the business of distil-
ler and was thus engaged until he came to the
United States. He and his wife with their
two children came from Bremen and landed
in Baltimore after a six weeks' voyage in a
three-mast sailing vessel. After the usual
trip they arrived in Beardstown, October 26,
1836. The father purchased and settled a
year latter on land in the precinct of Arenz-
ville, which he cultivated successfully until
his death, March 14, 1846. He was a good
hard-working man and was very ambitions,
but did not live long enough to realize his
hopes. His wife is still living with her son,
Thomas, Jr., on the old homestead. She is
eighty-one years of age, but is quite active
and mentally strong. She and her husband
were all their lives members of the German
Lutheran Church.
Casper was brought to this county when
four years of age and was raised as a farmer.
He has always been a resident of this county
and one of its most worthy German citizens.
He is a quiet, unassuming man, and when he
SCUU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
423
took charge of his farm the land was raw |
and unbroken, but by quiet, persevering ef-
fort he has made it one of the finest places in
the county. He owns 260 acres, all improved.
He has lived on the place for thirty-six
years and has owned it for twenty-six.
He was married in Cass county to Cath-
erine Seeger of Ohio, and came when very
young to Cass county with her parents. Her
father, Henry Seeger, is a retired merchant
who lives in Beardstown. He is one of the
old German settlers and came to the United
States in 1830, living in Beardstown since
1849. He was for years a merchant there
and his wife died in the same place. Mrs.
Stock is one of five children, all living. Mr.
and Mrs. Stock are the parents of three
children: Henry, a farmer of Beardstown,
married to Minnie Hansmeir; Mary Pilger,
living in Beardstown ; Rosa Hinners married
a farmer of Arenzville precinct. Mr. and
Mrs. Stock attend the Lutheran Church and
are good, prosperous people. Mr. Stock is a
member of the Democratic party.
lEV. WILLIAM S. GARNER was born
in what is now Cass county, Illinois,
December 16, 1837. He has passed his
whole life in this county, and has witnessed
the changes which have transformed the
frontier into a well-improved and thickly
populated section of country.
His father, Rev. James Garner, was born
in North Carolina, October 7, 1792; when
very young went to Kentucky, and subse-
quently to Clark county, Indiana, where he
was married and resided till 1830. He was
converted when a young man, joined the
Methodist Episcopal Church, and became
identified with the ministry. He was a
member of the Indiana Conference, and
preached in different places in that State till
failing health compelled him to relinquish
his labors. It was then that he came to Illi-
nois. He made the journey to this State
with a four-horse team and wagon, being
accompanied by his wife and four children.
They cooked and camped on the road, and-
after their arrival here settled in township
17, range 10, where they lived a year or two.
Mr. Garner then entered a tract of Govern-
ment land in section 2, township 17, range
9, on which he put up a log house, built after
the fashion of those days, with rived boards
for roof, stick-and-mud chimney, etc. In
this humble abode William S. was born. It
was some years before there were any rail-
roads here. The first railroad built in this
vicinity was from Springfield to Jacksonville,
the rails being of wood, and the cars drawn
by horses. After his settlement in Illinois,
James R. Garner became a local preacher.
He was frequently called upon to marry
couples and to preach funerals. Often he
would ride a number of miles to perform a
marriage ceremony, and receive 50 cents or
$1 for his pay. In politics he was a Whig,
and afterward a Republican. He was a strong
anti-slavery man. The subject of our sketch
remembers when Beardstown was the chief
market and depot of supplies for many miles
around. The merchants in Springfield used
to go to Beardstown with teams for their
goods. The price of all farm products was
very low. Dressed pork sold for 75 cents to
$1.50 per 100 pounds; corn and oats, 10 to
15 cents per bushel; a cow and calf, $8 to
$10. Deer and wild turkey were plentiful
throughout the State. The people lived on
wild game and the products of their own
land, dressed in homespun, and withal were
as happy, it not more so, than they are to-
424
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
day. It was not unusual to see the pioneer
women walking two or three miles to church
o
and carrying their shoes, putting them on as
they neared the church.
In 1855 Mr. Garner divided his land
among his children, and moved to section
36, township 18, range 9, where he improved
a farm and resided till his death, September
11, 1862. The maiden name of his wife was
Elizabeth Robertson. She was born in Clark
county, Indiana, October 15, 1795, when that
State was a part of the Northwest Territory.
These worthy pioneers reared ten children,
viz.: Mahulda married George Beggs; Green-
bury, Jane Redman; Susan, J. Fox; Amos,
Lucy Bingley; Mary J., Robert Robertson;
James R., Margaret Wilson; John W., Lucy
Carver, and after her death, Melinda Down-
ing; Sarah A., Henry Sherrer; and William
S. All their sons joined the Methodist Epis-
copal Church in youth, and became ministers
of the same. Greenbnry and Amos united
with the Illinois Conference, and the others
became local preachers.
The subject of our sketch received his edu-
cation in the primitive schools of his native
county. As soon as he was old enough he
began to assist his father on the farm, and
remained with his parents till their death.
He was converted at the age of nineteen,
joined the church, and a few years later was
licensed to preach. All his life he has been
true to the cause he espoused in his youth,
ever showing by example as well as precept
that he is a true follower of the Lord. In
1870 he moved from the old homestead to
his present farm of 120 acres. Besides this
he owns other land, making in all 210 acres.
Mr. Garner was married in 1858, Septem-
ber 30, to Nancy M. Crews, a native of San-
gamon county, Illinois, and a daughter of
Jesse and Susan (Sneed) Crews, natives of
Kentucky and pioneers of that county. Their
union has been blessed by the birth of eight
children, namely: Hanson A., Nellie May,
James H., Lena U., Belle, Jesse, Gertie
and Pearl. Nellie May married Charles A.
Schaeffer (of whom see sketch in this volume).
Lena U. is the wife of La Fayette Shankland.
Politically, Mr. Garner is a Republican.
He has served as a member of the School
Board, as Justice of the Peace two terms, and
as Township Trustee.
Such is a brief outline of the life of one of
Cass county's well known and highly esteemed
citizens.
SRED R. PRINCE, superintendent of
the water service of the St. Louis division
of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy
Railroad, having headquarters at Beardstown,
was born in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, February
9, 1859. He was the son of Charles Prince,
of Coventry, England, born August 30, 1822,
of good English stock, who, having grown up
in the trade of a machinist, had no difficulty
in obtaining work in the shops of Coventry.
He here married Emma Taylor, of similar
ancestry, and after the birth of three children,
in 1855, started for the United States, and
landed in New York city. They started on
their westward journey with teams, and did
not stop until they reached Mount Pleasant,
Iowa, which was yet a hamlet. He there
worked hard and established a shop, and has
since run his business successfully. He is
now about seventy years of age, but is still
in active business. He and his wife are the
only members of their families yet living.
They are Universalists in religion, are good,
worthy old people. He is a Democrat, and
has been Alderman of his city.
8VHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
425
Fred is the fifth of a family of eight chil-
dren. He was reared in his native city, and
learned his trade of machinist before lie be-
came of age. Soon after this period of his
life he associated himself with the Quincy
Railroad. He is a thorough machinist, having
learned his trade under his father, is a practi-
cal and valuable man for the company, and
has given good satisfaction to his employers.
Before accepting his present position, Mr.
Prince was from April 1, 1881, to September
1, 1883, a machinist at the shops in this
place. He has now assumed control of the
above mentioned branch of the Quincy busi-
ness. It covers about 300 miles of road,
representing the employment of fifteen men
regularly.
While engaged in the mechanical depart-
ment of the Boys' Reform School at Eldora,
Iowa, Mr. Prince was married to Miss Mat-
tie Champion, of Knox county, Illinois, who
was born in 1866, reared in Iowa and edu-
cated at Oscaloosa, that State. Her father,
Joseph Champion, was born in Kentucky,
January 31, 1810, and died on his farm near
Oscaloosa, at an advanced age. Her mother,
Rachel Champion, was born in Indiana, Sep-
tember 16, 1816, and is also deceased. The
subject of this sketch and his wife are active
young people, and much attached to their
home. They have no children. Mr. Prince
is a Democrat, and a member of Ark Lodge,
No. 16, I. O. O. F.
iNDREWB. McCORMICKhasthe hon-
or to be one of the pioneers of Schuyler
county, and it is fitting that an outline
of his life should be recorded on these pages.
He is a native of the Empire State, born
April 7, 1828, near Albany, Rensselaer
county.
His father, Andrew McCormick, was born
in Scotland, and is the only member of his
family who emigrated to America; hie youth
was spent in Scotland. Emigrating to the
United States he settled in New York city,
where he was married. After that event he
located in Rensselaer county, where he was
employed in a rolling mill until 1836. In
that year he removed to Illinois, coming via
the Erie canal to Buffalo, thence by lake to
Cleveland, thence by canal to the Ohio river;
the journey was continued by the Mississippi
and Illinois rivers to Beardstown, and thence
by team to Rushville, where he arrived Nov-
ember 15, 1836; where he lived until the
spring of 1837, and then settled on land in
Woodstock township, where he built a log
house, and began the task of developing the
wild waste into a fertile farm it the end of
two years he disposed of the property and
removed to Rushville, where he died, March
17, 1840. His wife's maiden name was Jane
Hill; she was one of the girls participating in
the reception of La Fayette at Sumbridge, as-
sistiug in strewing flowers. She was born in
Dutchess county, New York, and was the
daughter of David Hill, a native of Ireland,
of Scotch ancestry. He emigrated to Amer-
ica a member of the British army, but after
corning here his sympathies were transferred
to the colonists, and he deserted King
George's ranks, and took up the cause of the
oppressed. When the war was ended he
settled in Dutchess county, New York, and
engaged in farming; there he spent the re-
mainder of his days. The father of our sub-
ject was a strict Presbyterian; the mother in
earlier life belonged to the same church, but
afterward joined the Methodists. She was
married a second time, and spent her last
years in Rushville; she was the mother of
426
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW 0V CASS,
four children, born of her first marriage:
Andrew B., David, Jane E. and Samuel.
Andrew B. was a child of eight years when
his parents removed to the frontier, as Illi-
nois was then considered. Since that day he
has witnessed the wonderful transformation
from a wild, almost uninhabited waste into
one of the most productive and prosperous
States of the Union. He was only twelve
years old at the time of his father's death,
and was then thrown on his own resources.
He found employment on the farm by the
month, and worked in this way for three
years. At the end of that time he went to
learn the cooper's trade, which he followed
several years.
When he reached his majority he received
an inheritance from Scotland of £100, and
with this he purchased the land on which he
now resides; he then turned his attention to
agriculture, and soon came to be recognized
as a leading authority on many questions re-
lating to husbandry.
He was married February 15, 1849, to
Miss La Master, who was born in Rushville
township, Schuyler county, Illinois, a daugh-
ter of James and Nancy (Donahue) La Mas-
ter; the father was born in Jefferson county,
Kentucky, a son of Abraham and Orpha
(Erwin) La Master (see sketch of Charles
Kennedy), and came to Illinois with his par-
ents in 1826; he resided in Kushville town-
ship for a time, and then removed to Bain-
bridge township. In 1850 he went to Cali-
fornia, making the entire journey overland,
and after an absence of three years returned
to Illinois and to his home in Bainbridge
township, Schuyler county; a year later he
went to Fulton county and bought a fine
farm two miles north of Lewistown, and there
lived until death; his wife had died in Bain-
bridge township, many years previous to his
own demise. Mr. and Mrs. McCormick are
the parents of ten children, of whom four
died in infancy and two boys after twenty-
one. One daughter married, and died in
1881, leaving three daughters. David, Rob-
ert, Jessie and Delia are living now.
Mr. McCormick is one of the representa-
tive early settlers. In his youth his oppor-
tunities were exceedingly limited; schools
were taught on the subscription plan, and
were conducted in primitive fashion. He
has been a wide and careful reader, and
through his own efforts has accomplished, in
later years, what was denied him in his youth.
Politically, he affiliates with the Republican
party, and is an ardent supporter of its prin-
ciples. He is a man of great integrity of
character, and has the confidence and re-
spect of the entire community.
HARLES KENNEDY, the subject of the
following sketch, was born in Hardin
county, Kentucky, May 31, 1810. His
father, Peter Kennedy, was an old settler of
Kentucky, and like many others of that date
went through some very thrilling experiences.
He was made a prisoner by the Indians when
but thirteen years of age, and for nine years
was kept captive among them. Finally, mak-
ing his escape, he managed to reach Louis-
ville, that beautiful city being then but a
trading fort. In those days acqnaitance-
ship grew fast, and ere long, Mr. Kennedy
married Rachel Colvin, a Kentuckian, and
settled on a farm in Hardin county, where
they both remained during life. A younger
son still occupies the old home which he
owned.
Charles Kennedy was married to Sarah
Phillips, September 19, 1833, and he and his
SCBUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
427
wife removed Schuyler county, Illinois. In
1835, he purchased a farm and erected neat
buildings; here they lived until May 21,
1853, when Mrs. Kennedy died. To them
were born four children: Jesse, Francis,
John Q., and Charles C., two of whom are
still living, Jesse and John Q. The latter
served in the One Hundred and Nineteenth
Illinois Infantry, under Captain R. L. Greer.
Mr. Kennedy's second marriage occurred
March 8, 1854, to Miss Nancy La Master, a
daughter of Abraham and Orpha La Master.
Mr. La Master was born in Maryland, and his
wife in Virginia, of French extraction. They
were married in Kentucky.
Mrs. Kennedy was but three years old
when her parents removed to Illinois. She
being an early settler has witnessed the
entire development and growth of the coun-
try; Mrs. Kennedy is still living. Mr. Ken-
nedy died May 16, 1883; to them were born
two children: Leander and Mary, Leander
married Ellen Malcomson and has three chil-
dren: Bessie, Ruby and James; Mary mar-
ried S. R. Carey.
Mrs. Kennedy has been a member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church for more than
fifty years, Mr. Kennedy was a Baptist in be-
lief, and was a life member of that denomi-
nation.
jOBERT TAYLOR, a pioneer of Illinois,
and a prominent citizen of Cass county,
dates his birth in Scotland, ten miles
south of Campbeltown, Argyleshire, Novem-
ber, 27, 1816. His father, Robert Taylor, a
native of same place, was a son of Angus Tay-
lor, who was also bom in that locality. Both
passed their lives and died there. The father
of our subject was a farmer by occupation.
He married Miza McCoy, a native of the same
shire, and a daughter of Neill McCoy, also a
native of that place. Mrs. Taylor survived
her husband some years. She came to Amer-
ica in 1837, spent the rest of her life in Cass
county, Illinois, and died here in 1845. She
reared eight sons and one daughter, namely:
Angus, Neill, Alexander, Archibald, Flora,
Duncan, John, Robert and William. All
came to America.
Robert Taylor was reared and educated in
in his native land. When he was three years
old his father died, and until he was eight he
lived with his mother. He then found a
home with his uncle, Archibald Taylor, with
whom he remained three years. Returning
to his mother, he lived with her till his eigh-
teenth year, when he came to America. He
set sail from Greenock May 16, 1835, in the
John Hale, accompanied by his brother
Angus, and landed in New York on the 4th
of July following. His uncle, Alexander
Taylor, was a resident of Champaign county,
Ohio, and to that place he directed his course.
In Urbana he found a home with Douglas
Luce, learned the trade of tanner and cur-
rier, and remained their four years. In Oc-
tober, 1839, he came to Illinois, accompanied
by his four brothers, making the journey
with a team. They settled in Cass county
and bought a tract of land four miles north-
west of Virginia.
At that time this county was sparsely set-
tled. Deer, wild turkeys and other game
were plentiful, and for several years there was
not a railroad in the country. In 1840 Mr.
Taylor made a visit to Chicago, going by the
most convenient and expeditious route at
that time, namely, by team to Beardstown,
steamer to Peru, and stage to Chicago. Chi-
cago's population was then about 5,000. A
hotel and a few slab shanties were the only
428
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
buildings on the north bank of the river. He
put up at the Mansion House, which then
stood opposite the Tremont, after six weeks
spent in the city returned to Cass county.
From Chicago to Bureau county he rode with
a farmer who had been to the city to market
his grain. Then he walked to Peru, where he
took a steamer for Beardstown.
For sixteen years he lived on the land he
and his brothers purchased. At the expira-
tion of that time he rented it and purchased
the farm he now owns and occupies in the
Sangamon river bottoms, located in section
18 of township 18, range 10. He has been
very successful as a farmer, has purchased
other lands at different times, and is now the
owner of upward of 1,000 acres.
Mr. Taylor and his wife are members of the
Cumberland Presbyterian Church. They
were among the original members of the San-
gamon Bottom Church. The first meeting of
this society was held on the fifth Sunday in
July, 1848, and was organized late in the
month of August following by Rev. Nathan
Downing and by Rev. James White.
Politically, Mr. Taylor was reared a Whig,
but joined the Republican party when it was
formed. He has always been a Prohibition-
ist in principle, and of late years has voted
with that party in national elections.
5SAAC NEWTON PEVEftOUSE was
born on the farm on which he now re-
sides, November 1, 1849. His father,
John J. Pevehouse, was born in Kentucky in
1818, and his father, John, also was born in
Pennsylvania, while his father was a native
of Germany and came to America in colonial
times and served in the Revolutionary war.
He was a farmer and lived in Washington
county, Pennsylvania. John served in the
war of 1812 and removed to Kentucky di-
rectly after the war, being a pioneer of Wayne
county. He has served as County Com-
missioner several terms. In 1833 he removed
to Illinois and settled in Adams county, where
he bought land in Honey Creek township,
residing there until his death. The maiden
name of his wife was Mary Beeson. She
survived her husband a few years and died at
her home in the house of her son, John, Jr.,
in Pea Ridge township. The father of our
subject, John, Jr., was sixteen years old when
he came to Illinois with his parents. He
made the entire journey overland with teams.
At that time the county was but sparsely
settled and Quincy was but a hamlet. He
bought eight acres of unimproved land on
time, paying $80 for the tract. He bought
it at a public sale and did not have the money
to pay for it with. He soon found a pur-
chaser for his bargain at a small advance.
He married in Brown county and lived there
on a farm of 147 acres that he bought at a
big bargain, and also bought other tracts of
land. He was very successful. Here Isaac
was born and when his father died he left
800 acres for his heirs. His death occurred
March 17, 1891. The maiden name of his
wife was Susanna Pevehouse, born in Wayne
county, Kentucky. Her father, Joseph Peve-
house, was well known in Kentucky from
which he removed to Illinois, settling in
Scott county, where he resided in that part
which was Morgan county at that time. He
was one of the first teachers of the county.
He bought land and followed farming and
mercantile business in Clayton and resided
there until his death in 1863. The maiden
name of his wife was Mary Slagle. She was
born in Kentucky and died on the farm. The
mother of our subject is still living on the
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
429
home farm. She reared five children,
Thersa A., Elizabeth J., Isaac N., Martha E.
and Sarah E.
Isaac was reared and educated in his native
township and has always been engaged in
agricultural pursuits and still occupies the
old homestead where he has always lived.
Politically he has always been identified
with the Democratic party. His parents
were firm members of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church. Mr. Pevehouse is an upright
gentleman and is greatly respected by all
who know him.
fRANK LAWRENCE, a highly respected
citizen of Oakland township, was born
in Winnebago county, Illinois, in 1851,
a son of Thomas Henry Lawrence. His
father removed to Illinois about 1848, and
settled near Rockford, where he bought a
farm on which he passed the remainder of
his days; he died in 1853, in the prime of a
prosperous life, leaving a widow and eight
young children. Soon after Ids death his
wife disposed of the estate, which was valued
at $1,300, and returned to Orange county.
New York. Her maiden name was Sarah
Randle, and she was a daughter of Jesse
Randle; she now resides in Warwick, New
York, and is still vigorous both, in, mind and
body. Five of the children survive. Thomas
H., Jesse R. and A. P. were volunteers in the
late war; they all came out alive, but all were
wounded; Thomas H. and Jesse R. are both
deceased.
Mr. Lawrence came to the West in 1871,
his objective point being Council Bluffs,
Iowa. In the spring of 1873 he went to
Colorado, making part of the journey by rail,
and the rest overland by pack train. In 1882
he returned to the East, and then came to
Ray, Schuyler county, where he has since re-
sided.
He was united in marriage to Mary E.
Baxter Sumner, in 1885; Mrs. Lawrence died
July 15, 1889, leaving one son, Thomas H.
Lawrence, born in August, 1888. Mr. Law-
rence was married a second time, February
8, 1891, when he was united to Josie
Glimpse, a daughter of James and Sarah
(Shirley) Glimpse, natives of Illinois; the
Shirley family is from New Jersey, and the
Glimpse family came from Indiana. James
Glimpse died in 1891, at the age of forty-five
years, leaving a family of five children. Mr.
Lawrence occupies a pleasant home in Ray,
which he erected in 1891; he owns about
sixty acres of land. He has had charge of the
Ray tile works as superintendent and fore-
man; he has filled the position with marked
ability. Politically he affiliates with the
Democratic party. He is a member of the
Masonic order, and belongs to the blue lodge,
chapter and cpmmandry.
,ENRY STARK, of Mt. Sterling, was
born in Prussia, in 1848. His par-
ents were Peter and Elizabeth Stark,
both of Prussia. The father spent his entire
life there, and after his death the mother and
children came to America, and settled in
Mt. Sterling, where she spent her last days.
Henry attended school quite steadily, until
he was fourteen years old, and then com-
menced work in the mines for three years,
and worked in the rolling mills until 1869,
when he concluded to come to America to
try and better his condition. He came di-
rectly to Rushville, where he landed with
empty pockets. He at once found work in
430
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
the mines, where he continued about three
months, went from there to Beardstown, and
worked on the railroad for nearly a year, and
then went to Peoria and entered the coal
mines. A short time after his employer
failed and left him with no money. He
went from there to Rochelle, and from there
to Mt. Sterling, and entered the employ of
the Wabash Railroad Company. He then
worked two months in a pork-packing estab-
lishment, in a brick-yard one summer, then
went to St. Louis, in order to learn a trade,
and finally back to Mt. Sterling, where with a
partner he finally opened a market. He very
soon failed again, bnt a friend lent him money
and thus far he has met with remarkable suc-
cess. In the meantime he has engaged in
various lines of business. He was in the
junk business, and for two years he ran a
skating rink. He was the first ice dealer in
the town, and for about twelve years engaged
in that business. He continued in thebutcher-
ing business for eight years, and then entered
into his present business. He is one of the
largest real-estate owners in the city. In
1890, he erected a handsome business block
on Main street, with a forty-foot front, and
he owns another block on the same street,
40x100 feet, seven dwelling houses, besides
vacant property.
He married in 1877, Sarah "Ward, of Mt.
Sterling, daughter of Nicholas Ward, of
Ireland. He learned the trade of wheel-
wright, came to America a young man, and
carried on bis business in Mt. Sterling, where
he died as the result of an accident by fall-
ing backward from the upper story of his
wagon shop, breaking his neck in the fall.
He had four daughters. This death left the
family in rather straitened circumstances, bnt
by their industry, all learning the dress-
makers' trade, they managed to keep the
family together. One of Mrs. Stark's sisters,
Kate, is married, and lives in Rushville; the
other two still continue to carry on the dress-
making trade, in Mt. Sterling. Their mother,
nee Bridget McCabe, a native of Ireland, is
still living.
The only child of Mr. and Mrs. Stark
died in infancy. They both are members of
St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church. Mr.
Stark is a popular and well-thought-of man,
he is very liberal to -the poor, and is recog-
nized as a good citizen.
fOSEPH ALLISON was born near Dover,
Tuscarawas county, Ohio, October 17,
1828. Joseph Allison, his father, was
supposed to have been born in Pennsylvania,
as he was reared and married in that State,
and moved from there to Ohio. He bought
a tract of timber land in Tuscarawas county,
built a log cabin in the wilderness, settled on
his frontier farm and began the work of clear-
ing it. He lived there till 1840, when he
came Illinois, being accompanied by his wife
and eight children. He made the journey
overland with teams, working and camping
on the way. After a month's travel in this
way, they landed at Jacksonville, Morgan
county. At that time Jacksonville was a
hamlet and Springfield only a small place,
the surrounding country being thinly settled.
Renting land in Morgan county, he lived
there four years. Then he moved to Cass
county, and in 1847, after renting land here
three years, bought a farm in section 23, of
township 18, range 9, it being unimproved
at the time of purchase. He brought a log
house from Morgan county and erected it on
this place. It was years before there were
any railroads here. Settlers were few and
SCHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
431
wild game was plentiful. Beardstown was
the chief market for supplies. Mr. Allison
resided on this place till his death, February
11, 1859. He spent years of toil here, im-
proving and beautifying his farm, and at the
time of his death had it in a flourishing con-
dition, with good frame buildings, etc. The
maiden name of his wife, mother of the sub-
ject of our sketch, was Elizabeth Spawn.
She was born in Pennsylvania, and died on
the home farm, February 18, 1859. They
were married in 1812. Following are the
names of their eight children: Mary, Mar-
garet, Jane, John, Elizabeth, Martha, Joseph
and Catherine.
Joseph was twelve years old when his par-
ents came to Illinois, and he well remembers
the incidents connected with their pioneer
life here. His mother used to card, spin and
weave, and dress her children in hom,espun.
He resided with his parents until their death,
and now owns and occupies a part of the old
homestead. The farm contains 137 acres and
is well improved with good buildings, etc.
Mr. Allison was united in marriage, De-
cember 26, 1849, with Cecelia E. Logue, who
was born in Warren county, Tennessee, April
26, 1829. Her father, Oliver Logue, was
born in the same county, January }7, 1805,
son of William Logqe, thought to have been
a native of Georgia. William Lpgne was a
farmer and teacher, and served as a Justice of
the Peace in "Warren county, Tennessee,
where his death occurred. The maiden name
of grapdmother Logue was Hannah Sturgis.
(She, too, died in Warren county. Oliver
Logue was reared and married in Warren
county, and from there moved to Illinois, in
1829, becoming one of the first settlers of
what is now Menard county. About a year
later he moved to that part of Morgan county
now included in Cass. Here he entered a
tract of Government land, improved a farm,
and resided till his death. Mrs. Logue, nee
Rebecca Cole, was born in Warren county,
Tennessee, January 12, 1805, daughter of
James Cole.
Mr. and Mrs. Allison have three children:
John Wesley, who was born March 3, 1851,
and married Mary Mellstead, and has two
children, Bessie and Cassie; James E., born
in 1857, who married Lillie Wyatt, has one
child, Etta; and Arthur, born August 11,
1866, who married Sarah Morgan; Elizabeth
E., born June 1, 1854, died December 30,
1854.
Politically, Mr. Allison is a Republican.
He and his wife are members of the Metho-
dist Episcopal Church.
Mr. Allison has disposed of his farm and
intends to retire from active business pursuits.
AN IEL G. SMITH, M. D., who resides
on a farip in Hickory precinct, Cass
county, Illinois, is well known as a
prominent and successful physician of this
vicinity. Briefly given, a sketch of his life
is as follows:
Daniel G. Smith was born a mile and a
half east of Scottsville, Macoupia county,
Illinois, October 3, 1847. His father, Sam-
uel Smith, one of the pioneers of Macoupin
county, was born in Clinton county, North
Carolina. Grandfather Smith removed with
his family, from North Carolina to Kentucky,
where he spent his last years and died. Sam-
uel Smith was reared in Kentucky, and re-
sided there till 1835, when he moved to Illi-
nois, first locating in Morgan county. At
that time much of the land in Morgan county
belonged to the Government, and he entered
land near Woodson, and resided there a few
432
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
years. He then sold out and moved to Ma-
coupin county, where he bought a tract of
land near Scottville, a part of it being prai-
rie, and a part timber. After improving this
laud, and residing on it some years, he sold
out and moved to Franklin; thence to
Waverly, where he lived retired from active
business until the time of his wife's death.
He then went to Franklin, and spent his last
days with his daughter. His wife was be-
fore her marriage Miss Dorothy Hull, a na-
tive of Tennessee, and a daughter of Jesse
Hull. They reared eight of their eleven
children.
Dr. Smith first attended the district schools
and afterward the Scottville high school.
At the age of eighteen he commenced teach-
ing, and taught and worked on the farm for
four years. He then began the study of
medicine with Dr. G. W. Bradley, of Wa-
verly. He attended one course of lectures at
the Cincinnati E. M. Institute, and two
courses at the American Medical College at
St. Louis, graduating at the latter institution
with the class of 1877. He began the prac-
tice of his profession in Franklin, and after
remaining there four years removed to Vir-
ginia. Here he acquired a lucrative practice,
and remained a resident till 1889. That
year he bought a tract of land in section 1,
township 18, range 11, moved upon it, and
has since conducted farming operations. He
still, however, continues his medical practice,
being equally successful in each.
In 1866, Dr. Smith was united in mar-
riage with Melinda J. Thompson, a native of
Wayne county, Illinois, and a daughter of
William C., and Amelia Thompson. Dr. and
Mrs. Smith have five children living: Charles
W., Fred M., Dottie E., Lois and Zella
F. Myrtie, the first-born, died in her fourth
year, and Katie, the fourth, died in her tenth
year.
Politically, the Doctor is a Democrat. He
and his wife and three oldest children are
members of the Christian Church.
YMA.N HAGER, a successful farmer
and stock-raiser living near Beardstown,
was born in Sullivan county, New
Hampshire, August 30, 1828. His father,
Reuben Hager, was also a native of New
Hampshire, and died in 1871. His parents
had died when he was fourteen years of age.
He was afterward reared by a Mr. Town
until he was of age. While yet in Sullivan
county he had become owner of a small farm,
which he sold in 1835, and with his wife and
children came West, by canals and rivers,
until he landed in Beardstown. He made a
settlement on a farm, consisting of Govern-
ment land, and later added to it from time
to time until he owned a farm of several
hundred acres. He spent his last years in
quiet comfort in Beardstown. He was a
genial, good man, well known for his good
judgment. He had been for years a member
of the Grand Jury of Beardstown, and was
often called upon to arbitrate in difficulties.
His wife, who had died in 1846, was named
Sarah Reed, and was born in New Hamp-
shire. She had been a good woman, and a
consistent member of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church.
Mr. Lyman Hager could not help being
the fine man he is, after having such a good
father and mother. He has lived in this
county since he was six years of age, and has
spent his entire life since then near where he
now lives, with the exception of five years
spent in California during the '50s. Since
SCHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
433
early boyhood days he has been a hard worker
and he has been fairly successful. He was
not able to obtain much early education in
the new country.
He was married in this county, to Cordelia
Spalding, of Posey county, Indiana. She died
at her home, December 23, 1878, at the age
of thirty- eight years. She was the mother
of seven children. They are: Rose Phelps,
living in this county; Douglas, a farmer near
this city; Clara Phelps, of this township;
Emma Crum, of this county; Christina Red-
shaw, also of this county; Mary Thompson,
of the same; and Joseph at home helping on
the farm.
Mr. Hager was a second time married, in
Eeardstown, to Mrs. Annie Coort. She was
born in 1847, in Dublin, Ireland, and came
to the United States in 1853, with her par-
ents, who are not living at the present time.
Mr. and Mrs. Hager have three children.
One, William was fatally scalded when five
years old. The living ones are Charles and
Eva.
Mr. and Mrs. Hager are good and intelli-
gent people, and she is of the Catholic faith.
Mr. Hager is a Democrat.
^ARRISON HINES, foreman in the car
shops of the Quincy Railroad, St. Louis
division, was born in Montgomery
county, .New York, February 19, 1841. His
father, Henry, and grandfather, John Hines,
were natives of New York, but came of Hol-
land ancestry. The latter lived and died in
the Empire State a very old man. He had
married a kinswoman of Commodore Perry
and she also lived and died in New York.
Henry Hines grew up in his native State as
a carpenter and mechanic. After he came to
Illinois he engaged in contracting and build-
ing and helped build the Chicago division of
what is now the Quincy railroad main line. He
lived in Aurora and spent his last years there,
dying some fourteen years ago, over eighty
years of age. His wife's maiden name was
Betsey Howard, who was born and reared in
New York, also. The old stock of Hines
were Methodists.
Harrison is one of eight children, all living,
and was only one year old when his parents
came to Aurora, Illinois. He learned his
trade as a mechanic under his father and be-
came a skilled artisan. Mr. Hines en-
listed in 1861, in the Forty-fifth Regiment,
known as Washburn Lead Mine Regiment,
Colonel John E. Smith and Captain Hoi-
comb, commanding. He served through
three years and six months, being in the First
Division of the Third Brigade of the Seven-
teenth Army Corps, and was in all the ter-
rible battles that that brigade took part in.
He received a gunshot wound in his left leg
at Shiloh, and at Vicksburg he was wounded
in the head by the bursting of a shell. He
saw much hard fighting and for meritorious
conduct while running the batteries at Vicks-
burg, he received from General Grant, through
General Rawlins, a grant of leave home and
a free transportation. He is justly proud of
his war record. He was all through the Sa-
vannah campaign, march of Sherman to the
sea, and finally was honorably discharged at
Louisville, Kentucky, July 12, 1865. He
has been in his present position at Beards-
town for the past twelve years. He came
from Ottumwa, Iowa, where he was foreman
in a car shop for nine years. In 1866 he be-
gan with the Quincy Railroad at Aurora,
Illinois. He was there for some years in the
building department until 1869, when he was
sent to Burlington, Iowa, and was there in
434
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
the building department from Galva to
Keithsburg, Illinois, until 1871, when he be-
came connected with the car-building depart-
ment and has been a foreman most of the
time. He has grown very popular as a citizen.
He was married in Chicago, Illinois, to
Miss Nettie Thompson, who was born, reared
and educated in Wisconsin. Her parents,
now old people, live in Brookings, Dakota.
Mr. and Mrs. Hines of this notice are prom-
inent citizens of Beardstown and members of
the Congregational Church. They are parents
of seven children: Russel, Edgar, Nettie,
Augustus, Grace, Mabel and Ralph M.
Mr. Hines is a member of the Board of
Education and is a Republican. He is a
member of the MacLane Post, No. 91, G.
A* R., of Beardstown; of the Masonic chap-
ter, of the Odd Fellows encampment of this
place, and of the commandery at Rnshville.
Mr. Hines' record with the Chicago, Burling-
ton & Quincy Railroad is an excellent one;
for his fifteen years of service he has never
missed a month's salary. He is a refined
gentleman.
WILLIAM MORRELL, a prominent
farmer of Elkhorn township, was born
September 28, 1825, in Clermont
county, Ohio. He was the son of El more and
Nancy (Wright) Morrell, born in Maine, son
of David Morrell, of Portland, that State.
The subject's father was reared on a farm and
came to Fort Washington, now Cincinnati,
in 1812, with his parents and was one of the
pioneers who in 1832 came into Illinois.
The journey into the wilderness was made by
ox team and they suffered all the hardships
of that early date. He was married in Camp-
bell county, Kentucky, where his wife was
born. He brought his wife and three chil-
dren to Illinois and settled first in Morgan
county, where he bought eighty acres and im-
proved that, aud three years later sold this out
to buy the farm where our subject now lives
and there he spent his life, dying in 1891,
aged eighty-six years. He left his original
purchase of 100 acres on which he first
built a house, the lumber for which was
first sawed with an old-fashioned whipsaw.
That was the first lumber sawed in this part
of Illinois. The father of our subject was
one of the first and most active pioneers. He
was a Democrat politically. His wfie was a
Universalist and her life ended on the old
farm when she was about sixty-two. She
was born in 1806. The father was born in
1803.
Our subject was one of seven children, three
of whom are yet living. He remained at
home until his marriage and was employed
as are all the sons of farmers. After marriage
he picked up the wagonmaking trade and
rented the farm where he now lives. He
lived there from 1853 to 1876, when he
moved into his present home. He first bought
forty acres and later bought more until he
now has as fine a farm of 154 acres as there
is in the country. He also has a fine farm
in Buckhorn township, and is one of the most
successful farmers in the State. He haa
carried on a mixed farming.
The marriage of Mr. Morrell took place
February 6, 1846, to Miss Abigail Smith,
who was born in Ashtabula county, Ohio,
July 18, 1826, and was a daughter of Ben-
jamin and Abigail (Hackett) Smith. He was
born in New Hampshire and she in Vermont,
and after their marriage in Ohio they came
as pioneers to Illinois, and in 1889 rented
land in Morgan county for two years, and
then went over into Brown county and re-
SOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
435
mained there a year, and then finally settled
in Cass county, where Mr. Smith, died at the
age of forty-six. He has always followed
farming. The mother died in Cass county,
Illinois, aged about forty-four. George Hack-
ett, an uncle of Mrs. Morrell, came to the
county about 1824, and was one of the first
settlers in central Illinois, and the owner of
the first tanyard west of the Illinois river.
Our subject is a strong Democrat, having
given his first vote for Franklin Pierce. He
and his wife are both church-going people
and are highly esteemed in their neighbor-
hood. They have had seven children: four
yet living. Rosalie is a widow and has one
grandchild and five children. Delah is mar-
ried, with four children; William J. is a
married man; Henry has two children and
rents all the old farm.
The whole family are good, quiet people,
and these are the citizens whose names
properly appear in a record of this kind.
|OBERT RICH was born in Germany
on the Rhine, in Baden, in 1852. He
is the son of Matthias Rich of the same
place, who came to the United States in
1855, settling in St. Louis with his wife and
two children, where he pursued the trade of
cooper, which he had learned in Germany.
From there he came to Brown county in the
fail of 1858, and there continued his trade.
He bought 100 acres of timber land that had
been cleared, although there was plenty
ofbruih. Thib farm is Mr. Rich's (Sn) home
at present, and is east of Cooperstown. Al-
though Mr. Rich, Sr., had barely enough to
come to this country with, he now owns 300
acres of good land in this county with fine
farm buildings on it. He raises a good strain
of cattle. Beside this he has 500 acres in the
bottoms of Illinois. He is now worth about
$35,000. His wife is named Parthina. They
buried one infant son, and have ten living
children, namely: Robert; Julius, a farmer of
this township; Emma, now Mrs. Chnrlea
Petei, farmer in this township; Joseph, a
farmer in this township; Louisa, wife of
Newton Quinn, farmer of Cooperstown;
Sophie, wife of J ohn Snyder, farmer; Matthias,
fanner; Henry, farmer; Ellora, wife of
Charles Barton, farmer of this county; Perfina
is at home and brightens up the home circle
with her merry presence.
Robert Rich lived on the home farm until
he was twenty-one, when he went into a store
as a clerk, as he was in falling health and
found the farm work too wearing on him.
This work did not suit him, either; so a year
later he went to California by rail, in the
summer of 1873. There he worked out of
doors, doing farming, and this proved of great
benefit to him. He was there until the win-
ter of 1875, when he returned to Brown
county to his old farm. Here he worked on
the farm again for two years, and then farmed
on his father's bottom lands for three years.
He then bought 160 acres of his present
place, buying it at a low price, $6,000 in all
for the worked land. He moved his wife
into a shanty, where they lived until the farm
was paid for. In 1888 he built their present
comfortable two-story frame house, one of the
best in the township, costing nearly $2,000.
In 1891 Mr. Rich built a fine new barn,
40 x 60 feet, costing $1,200. This, too, is one
of the best in the section. Twenty-four to
thirty fine horses or cattle can be housed in
the large basement. Mr. Rich devotes him-
self chiefly to hogs, although he does other
farming also. He generally grows an equal
amount of corn and wheat, but has eighty
436
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
acres of wheat this year, which will yield
about twenty bushels per acre. On the third
year he grows clover about even. Mr. Rich
makes money, making about $1,800 clear of
expenses. He also has a great deal of tine
stock.
Mr. Rich was married to Elizabeth Quinn,
in 1877. Mr. and Mrs. Rich have four liv-
ing children, having buried an infant son.
Those living are: Delia E., twelve years;
Nellie Pearl, ten years; Matthias Benjamin,
eight years, and Robert, six years. Their
father is giving these children a good educa-
tion, and he is a School Director. Mr. Rich
has been a very successful man of one of his
age, forty. He has made all his money him-
self, making a beginning in California when
he saved up $1,000.
fAMES CRUM, of township 17 north,
range 11 west, postoffice Arenzville,
Illinois, was born in Clark county, In-
diana, September 22, 1806. His parents
were Matthias and Margaret (Spangler)Crum,
the former born in Montgomery county, Vir-
ginia, of German ancestry, and the latter in
Louisville, Kentucky, in the fort there. Her
father was killed there by the Indians.
They had twelve children, of whom James
was the fourth. Only five of the family are
living: Joseph lives at Paxton, Ford county,
Illinois, and is a retired farmer; Isaac
N. lives in Iowa, a merchant, farmer and
preacher; Abraham A. lives in Morgan
county, Illinois, farmer and wealthy citizen;
John W. owns property in Jacksonville, a
widower and well-to-do citizen; William died
Indiana; Christian died at Ashland;
n
David died in Missouri; Samuel died from
an accident received in California; Mary
married Leander E. Cobb, killed by a horse
in Greene county, Illinois; Elizabeth was the
widow of Louis O'Neil, and she died in 1892,
of the grippe.
James came to Cass county in 1830. The
next year his father and mother came and
took some land near that of their son, where
both parents died. On coming here Mr.
Crum and his brother, Christian, entered 160
acres and bought 240, which they divided
equally.
He was married to Christine Ream, Jan-
uary 31, 1833. Her parents were Pennsyl-
vanians who moved to Ohio, where she was
born. They had a large family. David, de-
ceased, was the eldest; Thomas Jefferson
(see biography); James F., a Dakota farmer;
Sarah Margaret, wife of Dr. J. F. Wilson, of
Tullnla, Illinois; Mary Elizabeth, wife of
William Howard Thompson, lives in Jackson-
ville; William Marcellus resides on a farm
near Virginia, Illinois; John went to Iowa
and Kansas and returning settled in Chapin,
Illinois; Amanda C., wife of William Henry
Thompson and now lives in Kansas; Mar-
quis L. (see sketch); Charles was killed on
the railroad near Keokuk, Iowa, it being a
very sad affair; he was a teacher in the
high school and left a wife and five children.
Mr. Crum lost his first wife May 1, 1878.
He since married Mrs. Eliza Bean, whose
husband died in the army. She had two
daughters by her first marriage. Mr. Crum
has divided his property liberally between
his children: most of them have received
$10,000 and some a greater amount. Mr.
Crum still owns a section of land where he
lives, besides having extensive interests in
personal property. Few men have been as
successful as he in the accumulation of wealth.
He has always lived well and endeavored to
enjoy life as it came. He is a liberal in re-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
437
ligious views and a believer in the Christian
religion, to the support of which he has
donated liberally out of his means. He has
been a life-long Democrat, has voted twice
for General Jackson, first in 1828 and again
in 1832. Very probably there is not another
man in this part- of the State that can say as
much. He has held various offices of respons-
ibility and trust.
The ancestral history indicates that the
Crum family have generally been tillers of
the soil, of a hardy, long-lived family,
usually successful in anything they under-
took.
An event transpired September, 1891,
which Mr. Crum will never forget, it being
the occasion of their eighty-first birthday.
The relatives from far and near came and en-
joyed the jubilee. Photographers and news-
paper reporters were in demand, as over one
hundred relatives were present.
Mr. Crum came here poor and was sur-
rounded by neighbors who were well-to-do at
that time. Since then he has outstripped them
all in accumulation of wealth. He has
given his children more than $100,000 and
still owns about $75,000 worth of property.
When eighty years of age Mr. Crum com-
peted at the Cass county fair for the old-
gentleman's prize for best horseback riding
and won it. The prize was a gold-headed
cane, inscribed: " Presented to James Crum
for the best old-gentleman riding, August 6,
1886."
JRAM EVANS is a native of the Old
Dominion, where he was born, in Wash-
ington county, November 4, 1810. His
father was Robert Evans, an industrious and
upright man, a native of the same State, and
was there reared to manhood, and married
and there resided until 1811, when he re-
moved to Kentucky, and settled in the fa-
mous Rock Castle county, where he contin-
ued to reside for several years. He then
removed to Woodford county, of the same
State, and followed his trade, that of a car-
penter, until the year 1853, when he sold
out and moved to Missouri, and spent the
remainder of his days in Rails and Monroe
counties. His wife, the mother of our sub-
ject, was formerly Sarah Peoples, a native of
Washington county, Tennessee, who died in
Rock Castle county, Kentucky, in 1813,
while the family resided there.
After the death of his mother, Hiram
Evans went to live with his cousin in Rock
Castle county, and resided there until the age
of fourteen years. He was then large enough
and strong enough to be able to do something
for himself, and accordingly joined his father
and under his directions commenced to learn
the carpenter trade. Thus he continued until
the age of twenty years, when he started
out on his own responsibility even with the
world. He went to Louisville, Kentucky,
and secured work at his trade, receiving one
dollar and twelve and a half cents per day for
his services, working from sunrise to sunset.
Thus he continued at hard work for eleven
months, when he went to Vicksburg, Missis-
sippi, where he found employment at $60
per month and board. He followed the car-
penter trade in Mississippi and Kentucky
until 1836, when in June of that year he
came to Bushnell, Illinois, and has here since
resided. Illinois at that time was very wild,
and deer and other wild animals roamed over
the prairies. Mr. Evans entered a tract of
200 acres in Henderson and McDonough
counties, but did not settle there. He com-
menced the business of contracting and build-
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
ing, at which he continued successfully for
many years; but finally turned his attention
to loan and general brokerage. His business
life was successful throughout, and was char-
acterized by industry and honesty. He is now
well-to-do, and for the past few years has
lived a retired life, enjoying the fruits of his
labor, and well earned reputation.
In 1845, he was united in marriage to Miss
Susanna Carrick, a native of Scott county,
Kentucky, and daughter of William and
Jennie (Campbell) Carrick. To Mr. and Mrs.
Evans were born two children, both of whom
died in childhood. Mrs. Evans died in 1849.
Mr. Evans has been a useful citizen, and was
formerly a Whig, but since the formation of
the Republican party has served faithfully in
its ranks.
The following interesting incident of early
times is related in this vicinity. At that
early day little or no attention was paid to
the style of dress worn by either women or
men. In fact it not uncommonly occurred
that when a person attempted to assume a
little extra style he was laughed at, if he was
not absolutely jeered. On one Sunday a
party of civil engineers, unusually well
dressed and stylish, attended preaching at
one of the Cumberland Presbyterian churches.
It so happened on that day that the minister
preached on the subject of the sinfulness of
dress, and was so severe in his remarks that
the party of engineers supposed he intended
to be personal, and accordingly became very
angry. They thereupon determined to have
revenge. The following Saturday, provided
with a goodly-sized bag of salt, they went to
the church and thoroughly filled the corners
and crevices of the same with salt, rubbing
it thoroughly upon the steps and around the
sides of the building. The next morning
about the time services were to begin, all the
cattle of the neighborhood seemed to have
assembled around the church for a picnic.
The people gathered and drove away the
cows, but no sooner had they gone inside and
begun services than the cattle returned ap-
parently wilder than ever. It is needless to
say that very little real devotion was shown
in that church on that Sabbath-day. The
engineers had their revenge.
"% ' ^'^y^y'1' ' f*~
ORNELIUS L. ATEN, proprietor of
Browning Roller Mills, was born in
Astoria, Fulton county, July 28, 1845,
his parents being Richard and Ann (Peter-
son) Aten, both natives of Hancock county,
West Virginia. He was raised on a farm
and continued there until 1888, when he
purchased an interest with Mr. Nagel in the
Browning Roller Mills. Recently Mr. Nagel
has withdrawn and Mr. Aten has become the
sole owner of the mills, which are very
valuable, being estimated at several thou-
sand dollars. These mills have a capacity of
seventy-five barrels, and Mr. Aten does an ex-
change business, dealing in grains of all
kinds, for which he pays the highest market
price. The products of these mills have
such an excellent reputation that it keeps
Mr. Aten very busy to fill his orders for flour,
meal and feed. In addition to the mill
property in Browning, Mr. Aten owns a
farm of 140 acres in Astoria, and also at
Summum, Fulton county, he owns the Home
Roller Mills.
Mr. Aten is a Republican in politics, has
been a Class-leader and Sunday-school Super-
intedent for many years, and the whole fam-
ily take an active interest in the Methodist
Episcopal Church and Sunday-school work.
SCHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
439
He was married in Fulton county, Novem-
ber 19, 1868, to Susan M. Bryan, of that
county. They have nine children, all living:
Henry W., Mary Edith, Alta Emeline, Car-
rie Samilda, Thomas Richard, Sabina Mabel,
Jeanette Ann, Chester Arthur and Walter
Wayne. Mary E. is a teacher in the public
school and all have enjoyed excellent advan-
tages in the public schools.
fRANCIS ASBURY CLARK, a promi-
nent farmer of section 32, Missouri
township, has been a resident of Brown
county since 1835. He was born in Logan
county, Kentucky, September 11, 1820, and
is of Scotch-Irish extraction. His father,
Abner Clark, was the son of Thomas Clark,
who came to this country some time before
the Revolutionary war and died at Orange-
burg, North Carolina, near the close of that
struggle. A copy of his will declares him to
have been a yeoman, and the document attests
his strength of character and sterling integ-
rity. His widow was left with six children
exposed to the ravages of war and the small-
pox. She was equal to the emergency.
Abner, her youngest son, described her as
tall and muscular, with great strength and
unflinching courage. To a British officer who
rudely demanded to know her political prin-
ciples she replied : "Sir, I am a helpless widow
with six children, but I am an American."
She seems to have impressed the stamp of
her character upon the family, which is distin-
guished for simple integrity and resoluteness.
The date of her death is unknown, but it
must have occurred soon after the death of
her husband, for Abner was raised by a Qua-
ker family, and further developed those
habits of blunt frankness toward which he
had a natural proclivity. In early life he
came to Logan county, Kentucky, where he
married Nancy Goram, and might have been
rich in slaves had he not resolutely chosen
free soil and set his face toward the forest
and privations of Illinois. In 1835, bringing
Francis A., the subject of this sketch, with
him, he came to this county; "Dick," as Fran-
cis is still familiar known, drove a four horse
team across the tire-swept prairies and bridge-
less streams of western Kentucky, and central
Illinois to Brown county.
The family, composed of the parents and
ten children, settled in Missouri township, and
soon succeeded in making a home whence the
children went out to feather the nests of their
own. In 1843 Francis took his new bride,
Eliza, nee Rankin, into the woods of Pea Ridge
township, and they set up in a log-house with
a work bench for a table and other things in
harmony. Industry and economy, inside and
outside, soon transformed the wilderness into
a beautiful field, and their empty house to a
luxurious home, in which were born nine
children, seven of whom are still living. The
mother was Irish by birth, having come from
Ireland to Philadelphia in her second year.
In that beautiful city she resided until her
thirteenth year, and acquired the rudiments
of education. At this early age she was
taken from school and carried to section 36,
Pea Ridge township, where, surrounded with
a waste of almost tractless forests on the one
side and a sea of prairie grass on the other,
she wept in childish grief for the scenes and
playmates from whom she was forever sepa-
rated. She was united in marriage to Mr.
Clark July 10, 1843, and the "heart of her
husband safely trusted in her, and she did
him good and not evil all the days of her life."
" Her own works praise her in the gates, and
her children rise up and call her blessed."
440
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
She died the 15th of February, 1867, leaving
her husband with a family of children, some
of whom were small, to mourn his bereave-
ment. He soon after married Sarah E. Burk,
a widow, with one lovely daughter, Alta Vir-
ginia, who, in her nineteenth year when
blooming into beautiful womanhood was
attacked by fever, to which her frail constitu-
tion succumbed.
Mrs. (Burk) Clark is an estimable lady, and
has been a kind mother and faithful wife.
Soon after his second marriage Mr. Clark
came to his present home two miles and a half
northwest from Mount Sterling, a farm which
he had purchased some ten years before, and
which he has finely improved.
Hie business life, which was " about cattle "
rather than farming, though he did and had
done much of the latter, has been one of
almost uninterrupted success. Beginning
while yet a boy by buying a heifer he con-
tinued until he became the largest stock
dealer of the county and rarely handled either
cattle, sheep, hogs, or horses without realizing
fair profits. Careful trading with apprecia-
tion of values made him a handsome fortune,
which he has carefully and equitably distrib-
uted by gift or will to his wife and children.
In character he is a man affable in manner,
sound in judgment, resolute in purpose,
sincerely honest and reliable, proud that his
paper is always at par. This quality, con-
nected with large descretion and shrewd busi-
ness instincts, is the key to his success in
what he has undertaken. He never tried to
succeed by being sharp, though he might
have gained temporary advantage by shrewd-
ness, but by being square.
In politics he has been anti-slavery from
the first, believes in moderate tariif and to-
day tends to the principle of prohibition as
a means of dealing with the liquor-traffic.
In theology he is a Cumberland Presby-
terian, but has never been identified with that
church or any other. His children are like
himself, prosperous, and are gathered round
about him: Alexander H., well-known in
the county, lives two miles northwest of the
county seat; Catherine M. McMurry, his
eldest daughter, just outside the corporation;
William A. West, of town, one and a half
miles; Abner and E. E. are members of the
faculty of Chaddock College, Quincy, Illinois;
Lydia McDonald, the youngest daughter,
with her husband resides in section 36, Pea
Kidge township, while Benjamin F. is still
on the homestead. Few men sitting in the
twilight of life have greater reasons for grati-
tude than Mr. Clark.
EOKGE W. ZIMMERMAN was born
in Pike county, Illinois, August 5,
1837. He was the son of George and
D
Mariah (Lutz) Zimmerman, of German de-
scent. They came to America when young,
and to Illinois in 1837, and settled in Pike
county and built a frame house on a bit of
wild land. He is still living on his farm as
is also his wife.
Mr. George Zimmerman remained at home
until married, in 1859, and helped his father
on the farm. He received a fair business
education in a neighboring school. After
his marriage he rented a farm in this county,
of his mother-in-law. He remained here for
two or three years and then bought 100 acres,
on which there were no improvements. He
built a small frame house and lived in it for
fifteen years, and then built a good farm
house, in which he still lives. He has added
to his farm until now he has 300 acres, while
all he had to start with was one pair of horses.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
441
He has held local offices. He voted first for
Stephen A. Douglas on the Democratic ticket.
When the Greenback movement started he
took an active part in it, and still advocates
its principles. He was a delegate to the
State convention at Danville. He was made
a delegate to the People's party Congressional
convention at Roodhouse, as for several
years he has been giving close and careful
attention to their movements. He was
elected from Roodhouse in the spring of
1892, to the national convention held at
Omaha, July 4, 1892. Mr. Zimmerman is a
very important man in politics in this part
of the county. He has faith in his convic-
tions and is not afraid to express them upon
all occasions. He is president of the Alli-
ance in this township.
He was married in 1859, to Miss Elizabeth
Winters, born in Calhoun county, Illinois, a
daughter of Peter and Willmina (Shaffer)
Winters, who also came from Germany and
died on the old farm in Brown county. Mr.
and Mrs. Zimmerman have three children,
William P., George H. and Nettie, all mar-
ried. Mr. Zimmerman and his wife are
members of the Methodist Church.
CHARLES N. lRWIN,«a resident
of Mount Sterling, was born in Fayette
county, Kentucky, August 30, 1827.
His father, John M. C. Irwin, was born in
the same county, and his father, William
Irwiu, was born in Virginia, although his
father was born in the north of Ireland, of
Scotch ancestry. He came to America in
Colonial times and settled in Virginia, where
he spent the remainder of his days. His son,
William, was reared in Virginia, and after
marriage emigrated to Kentucky with his
family. The removal was made with pack
horses. He located in Fayette county, which
was at that time very sparsely settled. When
about to trade some horses for some land the
horses were stolen from him by the Indians,
who were numerous and sometimes hostile.
He purchased a tract of land eight miles
from Lexington, on the Lexington and
Frankfort road. There was a fort in the
neighborhood, where the people used to
repair for safety. He improved his farm
with hard labor, and resided there until his
death. The maiden name of his wife was
Catharine McClay. She was born in Penn-
sylvania, of pure Scotch ancestry. She died
on the farm in Fayette county. Their son,
John, followed agricultural pursuits, and
spent his entire life in his native county. He
died in 1857. The maiden name of his wife
was Martha Nourse, born in Mercer county,
Kentucky. Her father, William Nourse, was
born in England, where his parents spent
their entire lives. He came to America in
Colonial times, and was one of the pioneers of
Mercer county, Kentucky, where he spent
his last years. Mrs. Irwin died on the home
farm in Fayette county. She was the second
wife of her husband and reared three of her
five children, Martha, Charles N. and George.
Charles was reared in his native State, re-
ceiving his early education there. In 1846
he came to Illinois, settling in Jacksonville,
where he remained a short time and then
came on to Mount Sterling, and commenced
the study of medicine with Dr. Witty. He
attended lectures at Jefferson Medical Col-
lege in Philadelphia, and in June, 1850,
commenced practice in Mount Sterling, which
he continued until 1862, when he entered the
United States army as Assistant Surgeon of
the Third Illinois Cavalry, joining the regi-
442
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Of CA88,
ment at Helena, Arkansas. They were with
Sherman at the first attack on Vicksburg, and
at the battle of Arkansas Post, in Grant's
command at the battle of Milliken's Bend.
Soon after this the regiment was detailed to
do garrison duty on the Memphis & Charles-
ton railroad, guarding different points.
During that time the regiment made frequent
raids into Mississippi. He continued with
the regiment until he was honorably dis-
charged in 1864. He then became Assistant
Surgeon in the Provost Marshal's office of
the Ninth Illinois District. Upon the resig-
nation of Dr. Worthington as Surgeon, he
was appointed his successor, continuing in
this office until the close of the war.
In 1865 he bought an interest in the drug
and hardware store of Dr. Stone, Dr. Burch
being his partner. One year later Dr. Burch
sold his interest to George Irwin. In 1877
Martin O'Neil purchased the interest of
George Irwin, and the firm became Irwin &
O'Neil, and have so continued until the pres-
ent time. They carry a full line of drugs,
agricultural implements, hardware, etc. Since
the Doctor engaged in the drug business he
has abstained from practice as much as possi-
ble. He is frequently called in consultation,
besides being called in by former patrons.
He was married in 1851 to Isabella C.
Dunlap, born in Fayette county, Kentucky.
Her father, Rev. Latin "W. Dunlap, was a
native of New Jersey, but resided some years
in Fayette county, Kentucky, from whence
he came to Mount Sterling, and was the pio-
neer Presbyterian preacher here. He organ-
ized the first Presbyterian society here, where
he was a resident until his death in 1889.
Dr. and Mrs. Irwin have one child, Nellie
li. Their only son, Charles D., died in 1890.
They are members of the Presbyterian Church,
of which the Doctor is an Elder, and has been
lor many years. He is an ardent worker and
takes a prominent part in the Sunday-school.
He formerly was a Whig, and has been a Re-
publican ever since the commencement of
the Civil war.
ENRY GARM, of the firm of Garm &
Son, was born in Altenburg, Germany,
in 1830. He was but a small child
when his parents landed in New York city-
From there they proceeded to Washington
city, but had not been there long when the
father, John Garni, was killed by a horse on
the roads of the county. He had been a hard-
working man and his family felt his loss in a
great degree. After some time Mrs. Garm
left Washington city and proceeded westward
and settled in Beardstown, Illinois, where
she resided until the day of her death, at the
age of sixty-three. She, like her husband,
was a consistent member of the Lutheran
Church.
Mr. Garm first engaged in farming when
he came to Beardstown. The country was
very new and uncultivated. After twelve
years spent in farming he went into town,
and in company with John H. Harris, now
president of the First National Bank of
Beardstown, purchased a large stationary saw-
mill and for six years manufactured lumber,
also engaged in the pine lumber trade with
Mr. C. Hagener. He then sold his milling
plant and engaged in the ice business with
Captain George W. Goodell; after two years
Mr. Garm organized a grain and transporta-
tion company and carried on an extensive
trade in shipping grain to St. Louis, that
he purchased in Beardstown and vicinity.
This business lasted for four years, and then
Mr. Garm entered the merchant tailoring
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNT IS 8.
443
business with his two sons. Robert H. at-
tends to all the financial part of the business
as well as being chief salesman, and John T.
does the cutting. Mr. Gartn is also inter-
ested in other local enterprises. He was one
of the promoters of the First State Bank, and
and is now vice-president and director, as
well as an extensive stockholder. This bank
was organized in 1889, and was the first bank
chartered under the State law providing for
the organisation of State banks. He is a
stockholder as well as a director in the Elec-
tric Light Company, is also a director of the
Mutual Loan & Saving Association. When
the wagon bridge was built across the Illinois
river he took an active part in this improve-
ment.
He has been an active politician and the
Democratic party has rewarded him in many
offices for hi s zeal and work in the interests
of the party. He was twice elected County
Commissioner, and is now serving a four-
year term as County Treasurer, and he is also
the County Assessor of Cass county. It has
not been in county offices alone that he has
served his'party, but he has been extremely
useful in the City Council for two terms.
As he is one of the leading Democrats in the
county, he has been chosen delegate to the
State and local conventions a number of
times.
Mr. Garni was married in Beardstown, to
Mary D. Harris. She had come to the State
of Illinois from England, when yet quite
young, with the relatives of her parents.
They settled in Cass county, and she has been
since a resident of Beardstown. Mr. and
Mrs. Garm have eight children three of
whom are dead. Those still surviving are,
Robert H., who married Tillie Dutch; John
T., married to Minnie Lamoreux of Mason
City, Illinois; Mamie, now the wife of Dr.
Norbury, the head of the wards at the in-
sane hospital at Jacksonville, Illinois; Joe
E., completing his education at the Depauw
University at Greencastle, Indiana; Frank, a
graduate of the Beardstown high school, and
still at home.
Mr. Garm and the oldest son are members
of the blue odge and chapter, A. F. & A.
M. The latter is present Master; the former
has also served in the same capacity for
three terms previously.
Mr. and Mrs. Garm are regular and con-
sistent members of the Methodist Episcopal
Church. Mr. Garm is a man of which his
town feels proud, as well it may, for he is one
of the representative men, not only of his
town and county, but of the State to which
he came so many years ago.
AERY J. CRUM, of township 17 north,
range 11 west, section 24, post office
Virginia, was born in Morgan county,
near Prentice, November 24, 1863. He is
the son of William A. and Nancy (McHenry)
Crum. The McHenry family were among
the first settlers of the county. Mr. Crum
came here about 1860, and was married. They
first lived in Morgan county, and then re-
moved to the eastern part of the State, where
he now resides. Harry is the eldest of a
family of eleven children, nine of whom are
still living. The grandfather was William
Crum, brother of James Crum (see biography
of James Crum).
Harry was educated in Mattoon, Illinois,
in the high school of the place. He lived
most of his life in Coles county, but came to
this county in 1883, locating on the farm
where he now lives.
444
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
He was inarried February 26, 1890, to
Mrs. Ida C. Bowers, whose maiden name was
Crum, daughter of Kobert Crnm, and third
cousin of Mr. Harry Crum. They have one
child, Robert A., born December 30, 1890.
Mr. Crum is a Democrat in politics, and
his wife is a member of the Methodist Epis-
copal Church. He is a young man of intelli-
gence and progressive ideas. He had a good
financial start in the world, which, combined
with his industrious habits, will make him
one of the foremost men in the county.
A maiden sister of the mother of Mr. Crum
resides with him, Miss A. M. McHenry. She
is a lady who is a fair representative of the
settlers of Cass county. She owns 300 acres
of land adjoining the farm of Mr. Crum,
which is highly cultivated. Mr. Crum's farm
consists of 160 acres in a high state of cul-
tivation.
|ILDEROY SETTLES, one of the larg-
est landowners in Schuyler county and
a man of great force and integrity of
character, is the subject of the following bio-
graphy. It is fitting that the history of such
men be preserved to the coming generations,
that they may have some idea of the vicissi-
tudes and privations and trials which beset
the path of those sturdy pioneers which pre-
pared the way for the onward march of prog-
ress. To this worthy band belongs Gilderoy
Settles, who was born in Fulton county, Illi-
nois, November 14, 1837; one of seven chil-
dren: Polly Ann, Gilderoy, David J.,
Serena, Penina. Nancy and Josiah. His
father, William Settles, was a native of Ten-
nessee, and emigrated from that State to
Illinois, becoming a pioneer of Fulton county;
there he was united in marriage to Peggy
Carlock, a daughter of Abraham and Mary
A. Carlock; he spent more than fifty years
in Fulton county, but died in Morgan county,
Illinois; his wife died in Fulton county;
their son Gilderoy was reared to the occupa-
tion of a farmer, and remained under the pa-
rental roof and guidance until he was twenty
years of age; he then began to face the world
laying the foundation of the fortune which
has since attended his path. He rented land,
as he had no capital to invest, and managed
in this way until 1859, when he made his
first purshase of eighty acres, at $10 per
acre; there was a log cabin on the place, and
this was the extent of the improvements, but
it was truly a home, the first he could call his
own.
Mr. Settles was occupying this quiet little
place, when in March, 1865, he enlisted in
Company I, Third Illinois Cavalry; he joined
the regiment at Springfield, and did garrison
duty until October of the same year; he was
then honorably discharged, returned to his
home, and resumed the pursuit of agriculture.
The following year he bought another farm
in the same township, and afterward sold the
farm he had first purchased; he resided in
Browning township until 1871, and then re-
moved to land he had bought in Frederick
township; this was his home until 1884 when
he bought the farm on which he now lives;
this tract consists of 204 acres in an advanced
state of cultivation and improved with excel-
lent buildings; besides this Mr. Settles owns
another farm of 200 acres in the same town-
ship, 120 acres in Oakland township, and 160
acres in Clark county, Kansas.
In 1857 he was united in marriage to Miss
Penina Tracy, who was born in Fulton county ;
May 24, 1835, one of the eight children of
her parents: Perry, Leonard R., Mary A.,
Thomas C., Penina A., Minerva, Arminda
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
445
and Cynthia A. Her father, Lyman Tracy,
was born in the State of New York, and came
to Illinois when a young man; he was one of
the early settlers of Fulton county, lived there
a few years, and then removed to Missouri;
at the end of seven years lie came to Schuyler
county, and settled in Browning township,
where he passed the remainder of his days;
his wife, Annie Oarlock, died on the farm in
Browning township. Mr. and Mrs. Settles
are the parents of six children: Leander,
Florentine, Logan, Doran, Charles and
Orpha. Politically Mr. Settles affiliates with
the Republican party.
IDWARD GUINN HALL, deceased,
was born in Baltimore, Maryland, Sep-
tember 10, 1810. His father, Wash-
ington Hall, whose parents were Dutch, was
uncertain whether his birthplace was in Eng-
land or Maryland. He was engaged for a
number of years in the wholesale mercantile
trade, at the end of which period he removed
to Cecil county, same State, where he resided
upon a farm for fifteen years, when he re-
turned to Baltimore, where retired from
the cares of trade he enjoyed in tranquillity
the fruits of a well spent life, dying a good
old age, respected by all who knew him. His
wife, whose maiden name was Guinn, bore
him seven children, namely: Edward, Wash-
ington, Samuel, Charles, Richard, Ann R.
and Achsah.
Edward Gninn Hall was reared and edu-
cated in Baltimore. He graduated when he
was seventeen years old and was admitted to
the bar before he attained his twenty-first
year. Soon thereafter he settled upon a 600-
acre farm owned by his father in Cecil county,
living there until the year 1838, in which
80
year he removed to Illinois and took up his
residence in what is now known as Rushville
township, on land which he inherited from
his father. He continued to reside there un-
til his death, which occurred July 28, 1857.
He was a man of good, strong sense and
excellent judgment. A sound patriot, he
took active interest in the affairs of his
country. An admirer of old "Tippecanoe"
and "Harry" Clay, each of whom received
his vote for President, the defeat of the latter
sat heavily upon him. He was an ardent
Whig and at the organization of the Republi-
can party in 1854 he identified himself with
that organization, continuing a faithful mem-
ber of it to his death. Being educated him-
self, and thoroughly appreciating the advan-
tages of knowledge, he desired his children
should have the benefit of a liberal education,
which wish his widow carried out.
He was married, August 26, 1845, to Pris-
cilla Baker, born in Flemingsburg, Fleming
county, Kentucky, April 9, 1825. Her father?
Francis Baker, was a native of Maryland,
having been born near Baltimore. When a
young, man he removed to Kentucky, engag-
ing in farming in Fleming and Maysville un-
til 1837, when he emigrated with his wife
and four children to Illinois, making the en-
tire journey overland. During that winter
he visited in Indiana, and in the following
spring settled in section 7, Rushville, where
he bought a tract of land. At that time the
country was sparsely settled and frame houses
were the exception, the people being well
satisfied to own log cabins. Wild turkeys
and other game were abundant and the trusty
rifles of the neighbors kept their tables well
supplied with this kind of food. Mr. Baker
died there in 1844, aged eighty-seven years,
universally mourned. He was a soldier dur-
ing the war of 1812.
446
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
The maiden name of Mrs. Hall's mother
was Mary Magdalene Brandenburg, who was
born in Berlin, Germany, and who died at the
home of her son, Dorsey Baker, while on a
visit, February 16, 1858. Pier home was at
Mrs. Hall's. When a girl Mrs. Hall attended
the Black Jack school, a house built of logs
resting upon underpinning of logs, with slab
seats and heated with a fireplace. She re-
sided with her parents until her marriage.
Mrs. Hall is the mother of seven children,
namely: Achsah A., Washington, Charles,
Melinda, Mary, George Edward and Richard.
Mrs. Hall is a lady of intelligence and great
worth and is held in great esteem by all who
know her. Her days pass peacefully and she
is happy in the consciousness of having
done well the duties, and responsibilities of
her station.
CARR was born on a farm in
township 18, range 10, Cass county,
Illinois, February 21, 1842. As one
of the prominent and highly esteemed citizens
of this county, and as the son of an early pio-
neer, biographical mention of him is appro-
priate on the pages of this volume. We ac-
cordingly present the following facts in re-
gard to his life and ancestry:
John Carr, grandfather of David Carr, was
born (tradition says) in Ireland, his parents
having come from Ireland to America and
located in Philadelphia, where they died soon
afterward. Thus, left an orphan at an early
age, he was reared by strangers. He located
in Ohio, and resided there till 1825. In that
State his son, David Carr, father of the sub-
ject of our sketch was born. In 1825 the
Carr family started for the far West. It is
said Mr. Carr's destination was the Platte
Purchase. He was accompanied not only by
his wife and seven children, but also by his
son Elisha's wife and two children, and Pe-
ter's child, its mother having died in Ohio.
They took passage on a keel- boat down the
Ohio river to Shawneetown, and from there
wended their way northward with teams.
They struck the Sangamon river bottom in
the locality known as Bluff Springs. At-
tracted by the natural beauty of the country,
they concluded not to go further; selected a
site about six miles up the river, and made
permanent settlement. At that time there
were very few families residing in the present
bounds of Cass county, Indians being much
more numerous than whites, and all the land
was owned by the Government. Mr. Carr at
once made claim to a tract of Government
land on section 6, township 18, range 10. It
is said that the family had but seventy-five
cents in cash among them on their arrival
here. The first thing he did was to build a
log house, No nails whatever or sawed lum-
ber were used in its construction. He rived
boards to cover the roof, and they were held
in place by poles which were laid lengthwise
of the cabin. He made a puncheon floor,
and built his chimney of earth and sticks on
a rock foundation. For some time there were
no flouring mills nearer than St. Louis. Mr.
Carr took a section of a log, hollowed out the
top, and in that pounded his corn, using the
finer part for bread and the coarser for mush.
Cornmeal, wild game and fish constituted
their chief living. As there was no improved
laud here and no market for grain even if
they had it to sell, the question was how to
raise the money to pay for the land, even at
$1.25 per acre. The lead mines of the vicin-
ity of Galena were then attracting attention,
and in the fall of the year some of the male
members of the family walked to Galena, and
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
447
worked in the mines through the winter. In
the spring they returned and continued the
improvements they had commenced on the
land, afterward working several seasons at
Galena. In this way the father and sons
earned money with which they acquired large
tracts of land in the Sangatnon river bottoms.
The grandfather resided here until the time
of his death. The maiden name of his wife
was Sarah Wolliver. She was born in Penn-
sylvania, of German ancestry, and died on
the home farm. She reared seven children:
Elisha, Peter, William, James, Benjamin,
David and Jemima.
David, the youngest son, came with them
to Illinois in 1825, and resided in the parental
home until the time of his marriage, when he
located on the place where his son David was
born and now resides. Here he passed the
rest of his life. His wife was before her
marriage Julia A. Wells. She was boru in
Wheeling, Virginia, and died on the home
farm.
David Carr, the subject of our sketch, re-
ceived his education in the pioneer log school
houses, the schools being taught on the sub-
scription plan, each family paying according
to the number of pupils sent. When a mere
lad he commenced to assist in the farm work,
and was actively engaged in agricultural pur-
suits till the breaking out of the war. At
the first call for troops he enlisted in the
State militia, served one month, and then
enlisted in Company A, Fourteenth Illinois
Volunteer Infantry, serving until June 24,
1864. During his time of service he was in
Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi,
Alabama and Georgia. He took part in nine-
teen different engagements, the most import-
ant of which were the battle of Shiloh and
the siege and capture of Vicksburg. He was
honorably discharged June 24, 1864, his
term of enlistment having expired, and re-
turned home. After his return he located on
that part of the homestead which he now
owns and occupies. He has bought other
land and is now the owner of 305 acres, the
home buildings being located on section 8,
township 18, range 10.
December 11, 1867, Mr. Carr married Mag-
gie McNeill. She was born in Cass county,
Illinois, daughter of Lachlan McNeill; their
union resulted in the birth of six children:
Florence N., Julia, William D., Lizzie J.,
Carrie E. and Chalmer M. Mrs. Carr died
May 25, 1890.
Mr. Carr is independent in his political
views. He is a member of the Cumberland
Presbyterian Church, of which he has been
Ruling Elder for a number of years.
ETER THOMAS, Supervisor of Coopers-
town, was born iu Brown county, in
1842. His father, William, was born
in Fayette county, Ohio, in 1809, and came
to Illinois October 1. 18 — , bringing his wife
and one daughter. He and his brother-in-
law joined teams, and they came emigrant
fashion, being four weeks on the way. He
took possession of a log cabin in Brown
county, in what was then Schuyler. Here he
lived four years, making some improvements,
which land he sold and then entered 120
acres of Government land. This was wild
land, on which he built a rough house, went
to work and cleared up a tine farm, where he
lived until 1860. He came with but enough
means to reach here, and had three bits left
when he crossed the Illinois river at Beards-
town. Before long he had made enough to
obtain a deed for his land, which was in 1837,
and he moved on it in February, 1838. His
448
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
wife was Julia, daughter of Morton and Sarah
(Stivers) De Witt, both natives of Kentucky,
where this daughter was born. They came
to Ohio in 1815. Mr. DeWitt died in Texas
in 1836 or 1837, and was no doubt killed.
His wife died in Brown county in 1857, aged
seventy-five. She was the mother of six
children.
Mr. Peter Thomas left home for the battle-
fields in July, 1862, in Company D, Eighty-
fourth Illinois Infantry (Captain Davis), at
nineteen years of age. He enlisted as a
Corporal, served three years and then was
promoted to be Sergeant. His first engage-
ment was at Perryville, where he had the
usual experiences of a raw recruit, and the
next engagement was Stone River. Here
over one-half of the regiment were killed or
wounded. The next battle was at Chicka-
rnauga, where the loss was heavy. During
his three years' service he was confined in
the hospital three weeks, and detached some
eight months, guarding prisoners at Nash-
ville, Tennessee. They were active in the
Cumberland campaign, and the last fight
of note of their regiment was in front of
Nashville, Tennessee, December, 1864. Mr.
Thomas was mustered out at Springfield,
June, 1865, and arrived home soon after.
He was married December, 1868, to Irene,
daughter of Fielding and Amanda (O'Neil)
Glenn. She was born in Brown county,
although her parents were Kentuckians, who
came to Illinois in 1830.
Mr. and Mrs. Thomas began married life
in a log cabin on his father's farm, but at the
expiration of three years he bought fifty-five
acres, part of his present home, which is now
220 acres. He paid $825 for the fifty-five
acres. His next purchase was 152 acres in
1878, costing $1,800; later he bought fifteen
acres for $325. He built his present com-
fortable frame house in 1886, and one barn
in 1878, and the second one in 1887. He
has under the plow 115 acres, and the bal-
ance is in woodland and pasture. Be grows
wheat, corn and hay, and raises horses, cattle
and sheep. He keeps fifteen to forty head of
cattle, good stock of dehorned and Short-
horns. He has fifteen head of draft horses
which he has bred, and has also a fine Perch-
eron stallion.
They have buried an infant son, and four
children are living: Charles S., Oliver O.,
Daisy E. and James W. They have enjoyed
good schooling and are very intelligent. Mr.
Thomas has served the township as Road
Commissioner and Town Clerk, and was
elected Supervisor in 1891, which office he is
filling to the satisfaction of his county. He
is a member of the Farmers' Alliance and
Industrial Union.
§EONARD SERROT, who is well-known
throughout Schnyler county as a pro
gressive and intelligent agriculturist
was born in Scioto county, Ohio, September
12, 1832, son of Peter F. and Nancy (Patton)
Serrot. The paternal grandparents were
born in the city of Paris, France, and emi-
grated to America to take up part of a tract
of land that was granted to La Fayette, near
Portsmouth, Ohio; there they settled and
passed the remainder of their lives. Peter
F. Serrot lived in Ohio until 1835, and in
the fall of that year removed to Illinois; he
made the trip with four horses and a wagon,
and was accompanied by his wife and eight
children. He first settled in the village of
Rushville, and the following spring bought
the land on which Leonard Serrot now lives;
the tract consisted of 160 acres, and the con-
SGHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
449
eideration was $300; there were no improve-
ments, and the land was heavily timbered.
He, Peter F., erected a log house which was
then regarded as a very superior structure,
and which furnished a shelter several years,
when it was replaced by a more modern edi-
fice. Mr. Serrot was an old-tirne Whig, but
joined the Republican ranks upon the for-
mation of that party. He died at the home of
his son, John, aged seventy-six years; his
wife, Nancy Patton Serrot, was born in Ohio,
and died at the old homestead, at the age of
fifty-six years. Leonard Serrot spent his
boyhood and youth at home with his parents.
He was married January 4, 1855, to Miss
Evelina Thompson, who was born in Cecil
county, Maryland, April 6, 1834, a daughter
of Ezekiel and Mary (Thompson) Thompson;
her father was a native of Pennsylvania, and
emigrated to the West at an early day, and
was one of the honored pioneers of Schuyler
county; he died at the age of eighty-two
years, and his wife survived to the age of
eighty-four years; they reared a family of
seven children. Mr. and Mrs. Serrot each
received a fair education in the common
schools, and are the parents of two children:
Millard F. was born December 24, 1855; he
is one of the prominent teachers of the
county, and has followed the profession ten
years; Mary E. was born May 4, 1860.
After his marriage, Mr. Serrot lived on
the home place for thirteen years, and then
embarked in the grocery trade in Ripley,
Brown county, conducting the business from
1868 to 1871. He is now engaged in gen-
eral farming. For more than forty years he
has been a member of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church, and has lived a life consistent
with its teachings. In politics, he adheres
to the principles of the Republican party.
He is a member of the Grange, and in all
movements for the benefit of the public he
takes a deep interest. He has always em-
ployed strictly honorable methods in his
business relations, and enjoys the highest
regard of his fellowmen. Six years ago he
erected one of the handsomest houses in the
county.
The paternal great-grandfather of Mr.
Serrot was Captain of a French man-of-war,
and was very prominent among the seamen
of his day.
DWARD S. FRANK, for many years
a prominent resident of Brown county,
and identified with the busines inter-
ests there, was born in Davidson county,
North Carolina, May 23, 1848, His father,
William Frank, was born in the same county,
and his grandfather, Peter, was born in
Pennsylvania of German ancestors. He emi-
grated to North Carolina and was an early
settler of Davidson county. He bought a
tract of land on the Yadkin river and en-
gaged in farming there, where he spent the
rest of his days. William Frank was reared
and married in North Carolina, and came
from there to Illinois in 1852. The re-
moval was made overland by teams. He lo-
cated at Buckhorn and there established the
post office of which he was the efficient Post-
master. It was kept in his house at that
time. His house was in section 33, of what
is now Lee township. He followed his trade
of gunsmith and resided there eight years,
and then removed to the locality known as
Mt. Pleasant and still lives there. His
wife's name was Sarah, daughter of Godfrey
and Martha (Merrill) Winkler.
Edward S. Frank was four years of age
when his parents brought him to Illinois.
450
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
He was reared and educated in Lee township,
and at the early age of fourteen he began to
assist his father in the shop, being a natural
mechanic, he soon developed into a first-class
workman. He finally established himself
in the blacksmith business at Mt. Pleasant
and continued there nine years, then closed
out that branch of the business. In it he
lost less than one hundred dollars on account
of bad bills, and never sued a customer. He
was married in 1878, to Martha J. Morehead
of Butler county, Pennsylvania, a daughter
of James and Margaret (Monks) Morehead.
She is a member of the Baptist Church, and
they are the parents of two children, Nona
Ruth and Jama E.
He saw the need in that section of a reg-
ular undertaking business, and he opened a
business of that nature and continued in it
successfully for thirteen years. In 1891,
failing health compelled him to change his
occupation and he sold out this business and
bought the farm where he now resides, one
mile southeast of Clayton, where he is now
engaged in raising sheep, breeding recorded
Shropshire sheep. Sheep-raising is not anew
business to him. While he was in the black-
smith business he bought a tract of rough
land and in clearing it up he stocked it with
sheep, so that he has been in the sheep busi-
ness for upward of twenty years. While in
the undertaking business he found it neces-
sary to divert his mind in some way. In this
way he began in his leisure hours to make a
study of sheep, and he is now thoroughly
acquainted with the subject of sheep farming
and breeding for vitality. He has raised dif-
ferent breeds, including Merinos, Cotswold,
Southdown, Oxforddown and Leicester, and
has proven that the Shropshire are by far the
superior all-around sheep.
Mr. Frank is a Republican in politics. He
has one of the most beautiful homes in the
east side of Adams county. It is located on
an eminence and is partially surrounded by
a beautiful glade. From the natural scenery
his home takes the name of the Crescent
Glade. Mr. Frank is one of the most prom-
inent men of this section. He is a thorough
business man and all his enterprises, which
have been many, and has been entirely suc-
cessful. It would be well if all the men in
the county were as well informed, honest and
reliable as is Mr. Edward S. Frank.
MOS HARSHEY, who is well known
throughout Schuyler county as a lead-
ing farmer of Littleton township, was
born in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania,
October 13, 1847, a son of Jacob and Be-
thiah C. (Barnes) Harshey. His father was a
native of the same county, and in 1858 he emi-
grated to the West, locating near Rushville,
Schnyler county, Illinois; after seven years
he sold the land he had taken up at that time,
and bought the farm now occupied by our
subject; here he passed the remainder of his
life, his death occurring at the age of forty-
nine years; his wife is a native of Westmore-
land county, Pennsylvania, and is still living,
a resident of Littleton township. Her par-
ents emigrated to Schuyler county in 1859,
and were living here at the time of death.
The youth of Mr. Harshey was a quiet, un-
eventful one, and he was at home until after
his marriage. He was united to Miss
Marissa R. Prather, September 10, 1872,
and they are the parents of one child,
Ethel G., born January 24, 1877. Mrs.
Harshey was born in Jefferson county, Ohio,
April 5, 1848, a daughter of James and Bar-
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
451
bara (Young) Prather; the parents removed
to this county in 1851, and the father died
here at the age of eighty years; the mother
is still living.
After his marriage Mr. Harshey engaged
in farming on his own account, renting land
for a period of five years; at the end of that
period he bought his present home, which he
has occupied since. He has 130 acres of fer-
tile land in a high state of cultivation. He
carries on a general farming business, and by
good management and industry makes the
business profitable. In politics he affiliates
with the Republican party; his father and
grandfather were Whigs before the organi-
zation of the Republican party, but after its
formation they joined its ranks. In 1892 he
was elected Supervisor for a term of two
years. He and his wife are members of the
Presbyterian Church, and are actively inter-
ested in the work of this society; he is an
Elder, and for many years has been superin-
tendent of the Sabbath-school. He belongs
to Friendship Lodge, No. 24, 1. 0. O. F.
IHARLES HILL, a retired farmer of Mt.
Sterling, Illinois, was born in Coopers-
town, Brown County, Illinois, Novem-
ber 14, 1834. His father, Robert Hill, was
born in North Carolina, and was at the battle
of New Orleans in the war of 1812. He
was the son of John Hill, who was a General
in the Revolutionary war. He was reared
and married in his native State and resided
there until about 1825, then came to Illinois
and was one of the first settlers of Schuyler
county. He resided near Rushville for eight
years and then moved to that part of Schny-
ler, now included in Brown county, where he
bought a tract of timber land. The log cabin
in which our subject was born was the same
in which the father resided until his death.
The maiden name of his wife was Elizabeth
Angel, who lived in North Carolina and was
the daughter of John Angel and died at the
home of her son-in-law, in Cooperstown.
Our subject was reared in his native State,
where he married. He attended the pioneer
schools, taught in the log house. In his
youthful days there were but few improve-
ments in the county and deer and other kinds
of game were plentiful. He resided with his
parents until his marriage, and then engaged
in farming on his own account and was an act-
ive and successful farmer for many years
and now lives retired in a beautiful home in
this city.
Mr. Charles Hill has been married three
times, the first time to Miss Farrington, and
she died on the home farm in Cooperstown
township. His second marriage was to Mrs.
Ella Crooks, and she died at the age of thirty-
two years; and his third marriage was with
Miss Lizzie Irwin. This lady was born in
Mt. Sterlingj September 6, 1850. She was
the daughter of Willam and Mary A. (White)
Irwin. Her grandfather, John Irwin, was a
native of Fayette county, where he spent his
entire life and died at the age of eighty years.
The father of Mrs. Irwin was born in Wood-
ford county, Kentucky, April 15, 1840, and
reared and married in his native State. He
came from there to Illinois, in 1839, and was
one of the pioneers of Brown county. He
settled on section 1, of what is now Mt. Ster-
ing township. Here he improved a farm
and lived until his death, July 30, 1887.
His wife returned to Maysville, Kentucky,
in 1830 and died August 12, 1870. The
maternal grandparents of Mrs. Hill were
James and Elizabeth (Browning) White, na-
tives of Kentucky and pioneers of Pike
452
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
county: later they moved to Macoupin county
and died there.
In politics onr subject is a firm supporter
of the principles of Democracy and upholds
the party measures upon all occasions. In
religious matters Mrs. Hill is an active and
zealous member of the Presbyterian Church.
LARIUS RUNKLE was born in Cham-
pagne county, Ohio, February 10, 1813.
He was the son of William and Mary
(Pence) Runkle. William was born in Vir-
ginia and went to Ohio in an early day, fol-
lowing his trade of tanner until about 1850,
when he came to Illinois, rented a farm in
Morgan county and lived there until the close
of the war. He then came to near where his
son now lives, and died, aged eighty-four.
His wife, also born in Virginia, died at the
same place, aged eighty-six. The Runkles
came from Germany, and the grandparents
of Darins lost their parents on the trip over
to this country.
Darius is one of ten children, four of
whom are yet living. He remained at home
until twenty-one years of age, working at the
tanning business and farming. He had very
limited schooling and is entirely a self-made
man. After he was twenty-one years old he
worked tor $10 a month for two years and
then clerked for a brother-in-law in a general
store in Sidney, Ohio, for two years more.
He then started for Illinois, coming to Beards-
town, and then walked over to Doddsville,
wading two miles in water. This was in the
spring of 1837, and he came to take charge
of Samuel Dodd's general store. He con-
tinued in that for a year and one-half, and
dnring that time entered eighty, acres which
later he sold and then bought 160 acres of
wild land where he now lives. He also
bought another eighty acres in the timber.
In the fall of 1838, he returned to Ohio and
remained with his father working in the tan
yard for two years, and then came back here
and commenced improving his farm. He
broke forty acres, built a story-and-a-half
house, and on October 12, 1840, he married
Ann Maria Walker, who was born in Adams
county, Pennsylvania. She was the daughter
of Andrew Walker of Adams county, Penn-
sylvania, who came here in 1840, and settled
on Mr. Dodd's farm. Mrs. Runkle was one
of nine children. Mr. and Mrs. Ruukle
have ten living children. The sons are:
James J., William, Charles W., Joseph C.
and Stephen A.; and the daughters: Mary
A., Laura, Liny and Clara J. Mary A. had
two sons and four daughters: Clara J. two
daughters and two sons; both the mothers
are deceased.
After marriage Mr. and Mrs. Runkle
moved into the log house he had built, and
remained there until 1866, and then moved
into his present fine home, which is one of
the best in McDonough, having cost $10.000
and being first-class in every particular. Mr.
Runkle has built four or five different times
where his sons live, and has bought thee farms
with houses upon them. He commenced with
$90, and had to borrow $10 to enter his first
eighty acres. He now has 3,000 acres of
land, 970 in Schuyler county and 1,940 in
McDonough county, and he has given each son
a fine farm. He makes a specialty of fine stock,
and has been engaged in various kinds of
business during his life. In 1841 be bought
a stock of goods, and was a merchant for two
or three years, and was Postmaster in 1843-
'44: he also kept a stage. He was Super-
visor of School Boards for years, and he with
two others built the first schoolhouse in this
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
453
district, and it also served as a church. He
also loaned money to build a pioneer mill and
tried to get a railroad through this section.
He has helped many a deserving and worthy
object. His wife has been a church member
ever since their marriage, being one of the
first to take an active interest in church and
Sunday-school work in the place. She was
very active in everything tending toward the
building of, churches and schools, and was a
most worthy companion to as public-spirited
a man as Mr. Runkle. Her death occurred
in 1889. Mr. linnkle can count his friends
by the number of his acquaintances and his
enemies are not known. He treats every one
well, and the deserving are never turned away
without help and words of cheer. Politically
he has always affiliated with the Whig and
Republican parties. He voted first for
Henry Clay, and at the birth of the Repub-
lican party voted for Fillmore. He is very
well satisfied with Republican principles.
,OBERT NEWMAN, an extensive
farmer of Cass county, Illinois, dates
his birth in that part of Grayson county
now included in Carroll county, Virginia,
August 31, 1834. Jesse Newman, his father,
was born in Botetourt county, Virginia. He
learned and followed the trade of cooper, and
in connection with his trade also operated a
sawmill. He resided in what is now Carroll
county for a number of years. From there
he came to Illinois, resided in this State
twelve years, and then went back to Virginia,
where he is still living. His wife, the mother
of Robert, was before her marriage Miss
Nancy Bedsall. She was born in Virginia,
and spent her whole life in that State. She
reared six children.
The subject of our sketch was reared in his
native State, and was there married when he
was nineteen years old. Accompanied by his
bride, he came to Illinois the' fall after their
marriage, making the western journey via
the Ohio, Mississippi and Illinois rivers, at
that time the most expeditious route, and
landed at Beardstown. He was in very lim-
ited circumstances at that time, being unable
to go to housekeeping for want of means.
He was industrious and persevering, however,
and at once found work on the farm, at $15
per month. Little of the land in this section
of the country was then improved, most of it
being owned by the Government. It was
not long after his arrival here till Mr. New-
man purchased a squatter's claim to eighty
acres of land, in section 9, township 18,
range 9, for which he paid $8 per acre.
There was a rude log cabin on this place, the
cover of which was made of boards rived by
hand, there being no floor at all. They at
once took possession of the place, and as soon
as Mr. Newman could get the money, bought
from the Government, under the graduation
law, paying twelve and a half cents per acre.
As there were no improvements on the land
and he had no team, he continued working by
the month a portion of the time, putting in
his spare hours in grubbing on his own land.
This he continued for twelve years. At the
time he located on it. his land was covered
with a heavy prairie grass, prairie fires hav-
ing run over it every year and checked the
growth of timber. Deer and other wild game
abounded here. There were no railroads in
the county for some years, and all produce
was marketed at Beardstown. The price of
grain was low, corn selling as low as ten cents
per bushel. Mr. Newman has been very
successful as a farmer, has purchased other
tracts of land at different times, and is now
454
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
the owner of 554 acres. Of this amount 245
acres are in Mason county, the rest being in
Case county.
The maiden name of Mrs. Newman was
Mary Mangus. She was born in Roanoke
county, Virginia. Their union has been
blessed by the birth of two children, viz.:
Sarah, who married Thomas Wortman, and
has seven children; and Alexander, who
wedded Ellen Cunningham, and has six chil-
dren.
fOHN GLANDON was born in Harrison
county, Ohio, February, 1834. His
father, William, was born in 1780 and
moved to Harrison county, Ohio, where he
bought a small farm. His wife was Mary
Magdalene Peacock, of German descent,
probably born in Maryland. Her father was
Robert Peacock, a soldier of the Revolution
and he laid his land warrant for 160 acres on
the historical Mt. Vernon home. She was
one of five children, and her parents were
stirring farmers of that time and died in
Ohio, at an advanced age. Mr. Glandon is
one of eleven children, all of whom came to
an adult age and became heads of families,
but all have passed away except five. The
father was an honest, hard working man, but
did not accumulate much wealth and died at
the age of seventy. His wife was much
younger than he and survived him many
years. She spent her last years at the home
of this son, but while on a visit to McDon-
ough county, in 1866, she died there, aged
seventy-two.
Mr. Glandon had but very limited school-
ing, as he had to work hard in early boyhood.
At the age of twelve he carried the mail for
one year for his uncle from Cadiz, Ohio, to
Cambridge, a distance of forty- two miles.
This he continued daily, except Sunday, and
this year's experience will never be forgotten.
He worked on the home farm from the age of
thirteen to sixteen, when he engaged as sales-
man, on the road in Ohio, Pennsylvania and
Virginia, in the fanning-mill business. He
was a success at this for two years. He then
returned to the home farm, where he re-
mained until the death of his father. He
then took the contract to build two miles of
railroad in Harrison county on the Pan
Handle road. He next went to Kentucky
at the mouth of the Big Sandy river, where he
builttwo miles of road on the Lexington & Big
Sandy. This, however, was not very profitable.
He had married in Harrison county and with
his wife and one child he came to Illinois.
His wife was Delilah, daughter of Joseph
and Catherine (Wood) Banister, both of
whom were from Maryland. They first
bought 125 acres, at $13 dollars an acre in
1855. Upon this place there were a small
log house and a rude stable. Since then
from time to time they have added ten to
twenty acres at a time, until he now owns
985 acres, all fenced in and 700 acres under
culture. Nearly all of this is good, arable
land. Much of it is very fertile and is very
desirable as it is all in one body. When he
built his first large barn, 40x70, with base-
ment, it cost him $25,000. It is one of the
best barns of the section, with solid stone
basement. About six years later he built
his second barn in which he can stall 100
head of cattle and ten head of horses. He
built his present large farm house in 1885.
These buildings are on an eminence, nearly
100 feet above the bottom lands and com-
mands a view of over 500 acres. He grows
from 400 to 500 acres of corn, yielding sixty
bushels to the acre. He rents much of this
SCHUYLER AND BKOWN COUNTIES.
455
land to small farmers, for twenty bushels to
the acre. He believes in a rotation of crops
and has for twenty-five years fed from fifty
to 150 head of cattle. Of late years he feeds
less and sells his corn. During the war he
kept sheep, as high as 1,700 of the Merinos,
and sold his clippings one year for $1 per
pound. In 1882 he bought the Brooklyn
Water Gristmill of which he had to rebuild
the lower portion and put in the roller sys-
tem. This cost a great deal of money, but
proved a great succes for three years- Cus-
tom came from far and near, and they had
more than they could attend to, as there was
no other mill like it nearer than Quincy; but
other mills of this kind sprang up and Mr.
Glandon moved his machinery to Walker,
Ellis county, Kansas, in 1888, but within
two years he exchanged it for property in
Denver, Colorado. The result of this invest-
ment is yet to be seen. Mr. Glandon has all
he can do to look after his tenants and busi-
ness, but he has often followed the plow and
swung the ax. He has served as Commis-
sioner and has filled all the minor offices.
He always votes the Republican ticket.
In 1865, he, in company with William
Hornley, went toGraystone, Texas, by teams
for an aged couple who had been stranded
there. This journey of about 2,000 miles
took from October 4 to December 1. It
was an arduous, dangerous journey at this
time of civil strife, and strong and resolute
as they both were they were glad to land here
safely with those dear old people, and the two
sons of Mr Hornley who had been left in the
South.
Mr. and Mrs. Glandon have four children:
Belinda Jane McKelvie, of Clay county,
Nebraska; James William, residing in Den-
ver, Colorado; Mary Alice Fowler, on a farm
close by; and Edgar Denis, now taking a
course at the Eureka College, Illinois. He
took one term at Knox College, where his
brother John was educated. Mrs. Glandon
has always been frail in health, but still
superintends and does much of her house-
work. There are but few finely located
homes as this one.
ENKY W. OETGEN, farmer and stock-
raiser of Frederick, Illinois, was born
near Beardstown, March 10, 1849. His
parents, William and Katherine (Middle-
busher) Oetgen, were natives of Hanover,
Prussia. The father was born May 31, 1817,
the mother December 23, 1823. They came
to America with their parents when quite
young, the paternal grandparents locating in
Pennsylvania, and the maternal grandparents
came straight to Beardstown.
Our subject was the third child of his par-
ents. He received his education in the pub-
lic schools of Cass county. He then engaged
in farming, which has been his life work. In
the fall of 1882 Mr. Oetgen purchased the
farm on which he now resides and moved
there the following spring. He owns a stock
and grain farm of 260 acres, besides some
town property in Frederick, all very valuable.
His residence is a modern cottage, beautifully
located and nicely furnished.
He was married in Cass county, March 13,
1879, to Miss Augusta C. Hansmier, daugh-
ter of Henry and Kate (Smidt) Hansmier.
Her parents were natives of Germany and
both came to America with their parents
prior to marriage. The paternal grandmother
and two daughters died on the voyage. The
grandfather located in Wisconsin, where he
remarried, afterward coming to Beardstown,
456
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
where the father of Mrs. Oetgen married and
now resides.
Mr. and Mrs. Oetgen are members of the
German Lutheran Church. They have two
children: Arthur H. and Inez Bailie. Mr.
Oetgen is of straight Republican faith. He
has served one term as Tax Collector of Fred-
erick township and is a member of the M.
W. of A.
JILLIAM SEW ALL, one of the earli-
est settlers of Cass county, Illinois,
was a son of Major-General Henry
Sew-all. He was born January 17, 1797, in
Augusta, Maine; received a good business
education at home, and also took a short
academic course. In 1818, at the age of
twenty-one, he obtained a clerkship in Wash-
ington, but on his way thither was ship-
wrecked, which event entirely changed his
plans, for, in working the ship's pumps his
hands were so badly frozen as to render it
impossible for him to fill the position. He
then spent a year teaching school in Mary-
land, Virginia and West Virginia, when, in
addition to the common branches he taught
also bookkeeping and the higher mathematics,
including astronomy, navigation and survey-
ing. To illustrate these he used the best
brass- mounted terrestrial and celestial globes,
with maps, charts and other appliances.
He was married August 9, 1821, to Mrs.
Elizabeth W. Adams, who was born in
Charles county, Maryland, July 27, 1795, a
daughter of Samuel W. Middleton, an exten-
sive planter. Mr. Sewall removed with his
family to Jacksonville, Illinois, in the fall of
1829, and while residing there he again
taught school. He was present at the or-
ganization of the First Presbyterian Church
in Jacksonville, and he and his wife were
among its first members.
In the spring of 1833 he removed to his
farm of 640 acres, entered from the Govern-
ment and partially opened a short time be-
fore. It was in the Sangamon bottom, near
the present site of Chandlerville. At that
time it was a wilderness which the Indians
had not yet wholly abandoned. Here, as was
his custom, he zealously engaged in Sabbath-
school and other Christian work, and exerted
on the new and growing community an in-
fluence for good difficult to estimate. Within
a radius of eight or ten miles he organized
three or four Sunday-schools, one of which
was at his own house, where he conducted it
for a considerable time, with only the assist-
ance of his wife. They furnished free to each
family a large cloth covered Testament for
use in this work. Afterward, in the secular
schools, these became the only reading books
for many of the children for a number of
years. By their constant zeal and Christian
labor they were instrumental in preparing the
way for the first church organization in the
vicinity, the First Presbyterian, but after-
ward a Congregational Church, and located
at Woodstock, now Chandlerville. Mr. Sew-
all was elected its first ruling Elder and
Sunday-school Superintendent, and these
offices he continued to fill with efficiency
as long as he lived. He was a man of exten-
sive reading, and rather in advance of his
time — a pioneer in material improvements as
well as morals. He had the first washing-
machine, the first cook-stove and the first
threshing-machine ever used in the county.
He also brought the first Durham stock of
cattle into his neighborhood, and made the
first brick, which were of unsurpassed qual-
ity. Shortly after his death his widow
bought the first harvesting-machine ever
SCHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
457
used in Cass county. He also was a good
singer and performed on the flute. He lived
a very useful life in all respects; and al-
though called from his labors in the prime of
life, he won the confidence, respect and es-
teem of all who knew him, and succeeded in
laying the foundation for a competency for
his family.
Politically, he was a Whig, but never
prominent in public affairs. He was thor-
ougly posted, however, on the political ques-
tions of the day, and prompt to express his
opinion through the ballot-box.
He died at his residence near Chandler-
ville, Illinois, April 7, 1846, at the age of
forty-nine years. His widow survived him
about thirty years, and to her was left the
task of educating a large family of children,
and of managing the many interests of an
extensive farm. She was successful in set-
tling up the estate to advantage, showing great
energy and executive ability. She removed
an incumbrance on the farm in a very short
time, and thus succeeded in saving the place
intact for the family. Two or three years
after the death of her husband she removed to
Jacksonville, Illinois, to educate her children,
where they received a good training. A short
time before her death she changed her resi-
dence to her daughter's, Mrs. J. H. Goodell,
at Chandlerville, where she died October 5,
1874, aged seventy-nine years.
Mr. and Mrs. Sewall had two sons and
four daughters, as follows:
Henry M., born near Warrenton, Virginia,
March 6, 1823, educated at Illinois College,
Jacksonville, married Mrs. Ann E. Clark,
formerly Miss Higgins, November 22, 1849,
and settled on a part of his father's farm,
where he died May 3, 1850, aged twenty-
seven years. At his father's death, although
a Methodist, he was chosen Superintendent
of the Congregational Sunday-school, at the
age of twenty-three, to fill his father's place.
After filling that place for a year or two he
was appointed Class-leader in his own church,
which position he filled until his death. He
had one son.
Catharine T. H., born near Warrenton,
Virginia, November 6, 1825, educated at
Monticello Seminary, married Robert Cole, a
farmer of Cass county, and died November 5,
1854, having had three sons and two daugh-
ters.
Susan E., born in Harrison county, West
Virginia, July 29, 1829, graduated at Jack-
sonville (Illinois) Female Academy in 1851,
married in 1867 Abiel Fry, Sheriff of Mus-
catine county, Iowa, and after his death mar-
ried, in 1878, Rev. William Barnes of Jack-
sonville, at one time pastor of the Congre-
gational Church at Chandlerville; she is now
a widow, residing at Jacksonville, with no
children.
William W., born in Jacksonville, Feb-
ruary 11, 1832, graduated at the Illinois
College, same city, in 1856, and from that
time until 1885 made his home at Virden,
this State, where he married Susan E. Cox,
in 1858. Enlisting in the Union army during
the last war, he served three years, engaging
with his regiment in a number of important
battles; was severely wounded at the capture
of Mobile. After the war he established the
North Star Flouring mill, and was for seven-
teen years a joint proprietor of the same.
For many years he was successively Deacon,
Trustee and Ruling Elder of his chnrch, the
Presbyterian. He now resides at Carthage,
Missouri, having two sons and two daughters.
Mary M., born near Chandlerville, July
15, 1834, educated at Jacksonville Female
Academy and married Addison L. Cole, in
1853. She resided on a part of her father's
458
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
farm, where she died April 16, 1857. She
bad five sons.
Harriet A., born near Chandlerville, April
4, 1838, educated at Jacksonville Female
Academy, married in 1865 John H. Goodell,
a lumber merchant of Chandlerville, where
she still resides, having three sous and three
daughters.
fOHN HENRY CARLS is a general
farmer and stock-raiser, livingon sections
24 and 25, township 17, range 12. He
was born in Hanover, Germany. December
23, 1831. He grew up in his native prov-
ince, a farmer boy, but at last decided to come
to America. Not wishing to cross the sea
alone to the new country, just before he sailed
he was married to a neighbor girl whose
maiden name was Mary Yoost. She came of
a good German family, and proved to him a
good wife. Immediately after marriage they
took passage at Bremen on the sailing vessel
Theodore Connor, and landed in New Orleans
after a passage of eleven weeks. From there
they went up the Mississippi river to St.
Louis and thence to Beardstown. Mr. Carls'
ambition was to become a farmer, and he and
his wife began in a small way have been very
successful.
In 1845 he first purchased forty acres of
land, and has since increased his possessions
until he has now 240 acres here, and 200
acres in an adjoining township. He has im-
proved the land very much, and has erected
excellent buildings.
Mr. and Mrs. Carls are members of the
Lutheran Church, and are regarded as very
excellent citizens. Mr. Carls is a Republi-
can in politics. He and his wife have ten
children, two deceased. Lizzie was the wife
of Charles Meyer, but died in the prime of
life, and Henry died when two years old.
The living children are: William, a farmer in
Morgan county, married to Anna Hagener;
Mary, wife of William Talkemeyer, of this
township; Lena married Gustaff Anoldi, a
farmer in this county ;Anna married William
Uush, a farmer in Morgan county; Harmon,
a farmer in Cass county, married Katie Uush;
Tilda married William Jockisch, a farmer in
Morgan county; George, farmer in this county,
married Dora Linker; and Carrie married
William Lovecamp, a farmer in Cass county.
They are among the best of our German citi-
zens, and are highly respected by all who
know them.
IRAM M. BACON of Huntsville set-
tled in Schuyler county in 1863. He
was born in Hancock county, August
12, 1836. He was a son of Benjamin and
Elizabeth (Brevard) Bacon, natives of South
and North Carolina. Mr. Bacon. Sr., came
West in an early day, and first went to
Missouri and then to Illinois and settled in
Hancock county in 1835, being one of the
pioneers of Augusta. He was a merchant at
an early day at Pulaski, later entered land and
engaged in farming. He had over 1,000
acres of land. His death occurred in 1860,
aged sixty-live years. His wife survived him
some twenty years, and was over eighty years
old when she died. They had nine children:
Alvin G.; Robert; Lam ira, deceased; LoisE.,
deceased; Benjamin F., deceased; Margaret
C., Hiram, William H. and Mary E.
He was reared on a farm in Pulaski, and
followed farming as his occupation. In 1863
he settled in Birmingham, and has since
resided there, and at Huntsville. He fol-
aCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
459
lowed farming until 1885, then engaged in
business at Hnntsville, which he continued
three years. Since which time he has not
been engaged in active business. He owns
180 acres of land.
He was married at Huntsville in 1861, to
Miss Emily Louisa Everson, a daughter of
Nathan and Cynthia (Cooley) Everson, of
New York State. She was born in New
York. Mr. and Mrs. Bacon have one daugh-
ter, Hila L., married to David E. McCreevy,
of Huntsville. They are Methodists in re-
ligion, and Mr. Bacon is an ardent Republi-
can in politics. He and his wife are valuable
members of society.
51LLIAM TALKEMEYER isasuc-
cessful farmer of Arenzville, now liv-
ing on his own fine farm, section 23,
township 17, range 12. He was born near
Arenzville, this county, in 1849. He grew
up and obtained all the education possible in
the common school. His father, William
Talkemeyer, was a native of Prussia, Germany,
and was the first member of his family to
come to this country. He came some time
in the '80s, landing in New Orleans, and was
engaged as a Mississippi boatman. Later he
came to Beardstown and engaged in farm-
ing, purchasing his first land in Arenzville.
About 1855 he purchased a good farm, the
same now occupiedby our subject. Here Mr.
and Mrs. Talkemeyer, Sr., lived and worked
hard, and by honest, economical living, man-
aged to obtain 240 acres. Here they spent
their last years, Mr. Talkemeyer dying in 1878,
aged seventy, and his wife about 1850, when
our subject was only a year old. She was a
Miss Duvall, who was born and reared in
Germany, but came to the United States
when a young woman. She and her husband
were both members of the Lutheran Church,
and he had been a Republican.
William was one of four children: himself
and a Mrs. Lizzie Crone, of this county, are
all that are now living.
He was married, near Arenzville, to Miss
Mary Carles, who was born, reared and edu-
cated in Cass county, and was the daughter
of J. Henry Carles (see biography). Mrs.
Talkemeyer is a fine woman, and has proved
herself a good wife and mother, and is very
highly respected throughout the community.
They have five children; one, George, having
died when young; Elizabeth, wife of Henry
Bill Smith, a farmer in Morgan county;
Lucy, William Henry, H. Robert and Harry
are at home.
The political faith of Mr. Talkemeyer is
Republican, and he and his wife are highly
regarded members of the Lutheran Church.
Mr. Talkemeyer's present farm consists of
600 acres, very well improved and watered by
Indian and Bear creeks. He has been very
successful, and has everything in first-class
order around him.
JSAAC MEATS was born in England,
in 1836, December 9, in Herefordshire,
son of Isaac and Elizabeth (Lawford)
Meats. Isaac, Sr., was born in 1812 and was
a farmer. Marrying in 1842, he turned his
face for the United States, sailing from Liver-
pool. Landing in New York he went from
there to Chicago, and from there to the Mis-
sissippi river, down which he sailed until he
came to St. Louis and landed at Griggsville.
The trip from Liverpool to New York took
five weeks. Mr. Meats brought his wife and
four children with him and five more were
460
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
added to the family after arrival in this
country. Mr. Meats first rented in Elkhorn
township until 1863 and then bought ninety
acres in Hancock county, where he lived un-
til 1868, and then sold out and moved to
Woodford county, Kansas, and bought 300
acres of land partly improved. He later
sold that and traveled in California for a
month or two, then went to Benton county,
Oregon, and bought a small farm, where he
lived in retirement until his death, at the age
of seventy-four years. His wife was born in
the same place as he, and she still lives in
Benton county, Oregon, with her son, Will-
iam. Mr. and Mrs. Meats, Sr., were mem-
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church for
years. Mr. Meats was an old-line Whig and
later a Republican. He first voted the Re-
publican ticket for John C. Fremont.
Isaac C. Meats, Jr., lived at home until he
was twenty-six years old, working on the
farm. He enlisted in 1861, September 5, in
Company I, Thirty-third Illinois Infantry.
He was mustered out November 24, 1865, at
Vicksburg. Mr. Meats receives a pension
for injuries received which confined him in a
hospital and from which he has never re-
covered. Part of the time Mr. Meats served
in special detached service. After he was
discharged at Fort Butler, in 1865, he re-
turned home and spent the winter visiting.
In the next spring he went to Hancock and
resided there for two years, and in 1869
moved to his present farm and rented for
several years. He was so well satisfied
with the land that he bought 185 acres,
known as the old Winslow farm. Here lie
has lived ever since. He has been a Com-
missioner for six years, succeeding Mr. Mc-
Donald. He has also held various other of-
fices, among which was Trustee for several
years.
He was married, March 4, 1866, to Mar-
tha Ingram, born in Pike county, April 17,
1842, a daughter of Henry and Paulina
(Kingston) Ingram. The former was born
in Smith county, Tennessee, December 1,
1815. He came with his parents to Illinois
and settled in Pike county, in 1856; from
there he moved to Brown county and bought
a farm in Elkhorn township, of 200 acres.
Here he died, January 7, 1890. He was a
son of John and Rachel Ingram, also of
Tennessee, who came here in 1850 and died
when very old people. Mrs. Meats was one
of six children. The family were all me-
chanics.
Mr. and Mrs. Meats had eight children,
Mary E. residing in Hancock county; George
is at home; Fred J. is also at home; Jessie,
deceased; Nellie; Francis; Dollie and Ralph.
Mr. Meats is a member of the G. A. R. of
Versailles. The family are attendants of
the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Meats
is a member of the I. O. O. F., Irene Lodge,
No. 72, at Versailles, and has held different
offices in the order. He is a Democrat in
politics and voted for S. A. Douglas. He
and his wife are highly respected members
of the township in which they live.
HEODORE SCHAAR, dealer in guns
and manufacturer of adjustable screens
of his own patent, doing business in
Beardstown, Illinois, was born in the Prov-
ince of Poseii in Prussia, where he grew
up and was educated. From the time he
was a small boy, he began to be educated
in his native language, and also in that of
Latin, French and English in the college of
his native town, graduating from it when he
was seventeen years of age. He is the son
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
461
of Carl Schaar, also a native of Posen, who
spent his life there and died when an old
man. He was a skilled musician and a
manufacturer of all kinds of musical instru-
ments, being so known in his native country.
He had taught his children the art of music,
and our subject has been a successful and
skilled teacher on different instruments. His
mother, whose maiden name was Willhel-
mina Borkenhagen, lived and died in her Prus-
sian home, having been a good wife and
mother.
Theodore was the first of the family to
come to this country, but he has since been
joined by his brother, Charles, now a music
dealer on State street, Chicago. He came to
this city in 1861 and has since been a resi-
dent of the place. His adjustable screens are
sold extensively to the trade and he employs
some eight or ten men all the time. This
business was established two years ago and
has been built up successfully. He is one of
the leading public-spirited men of Beards?
town, holding the office of Alderman, with
which he has before been honored. He is a
member of the Board of Equalization of the
Twelfth Congressional district, and he has
tilled that office with credit to himself and ac-
ceptably to his constituents. He has taken
an active part in local politics, having been a
delegate to the Congressional and county con-
ventions. He returned to his native laud in
1871, and came back to Beardstown after a
pleasant visit.
He was married in 1870, to Miss Johanna
Kulhen. She was born in Posen and was
there reared and educated. She and her
brother Fred, a farmer in Colorado, are the
only members of the family now living in
this country. Mr. and Mrs. Schaar have two
children : Clara, wife of W. T. Quirk, now a
train dispatcher of Jacksonville, on the Jack-
si
sonville Southeastern railroad. Mrs. Quirk
was educated in music in a conservatory
in Chicago, and was a teacher until her mar-
riage. Martha, a recent graduate of the
high school at Beardstown, is the other
daughter. Mrs. Schaar and the children are
members of the Lutheran Church.
Mr. Schaar has stood by the Democratic
party, in whose ranks he has been a leader
ever since he came to the United States.
,ON. LEWIS D. ERWIN, formerly of
the Illinois State Legislature, now liv-
ing in retirement in Rushville, was born
in Plattsburg, New York, July 1, 1815. His
parents were Cornelius M.and Lucinda (Fair-
man) Erwin, both natives of Vermont, the
former having been born in Fairhaven, Rut-
land county, and the latter being a daughter
of James Fairman, a man of some promi-
nence in his State.
David Erwin, paternal grandfather of the
subject of this sketch, was a native of New-
ark, New Jersey, and was an able soldier in
the Revolutionary war. He was with General
Washington at the second crossing of the
Delaware river and at the retaking of Tren-
ton. He afterward went from his native
town to Fairhaven, Vermont, where he estab-
lished a nail factory. In 1804, he removed
to Franklin county, New York, engaging in
the lumber business near Westville, and
there spent the rest of his days. His wife,
formerly Catherine Munson, and a native of
New Jersey, also died in Franklin county.
Cornelius M. Erwin removed with his par-
ents to New York State, and was engaged
with his father in the lumber business in
Franklin county. He was a resident of
Plattsburg until the breaking out of the war
463
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF VA8S,
of 1812, when he entered the service and
was assigned to the Quartermaster's Depart-
ment. In 1830 he removed to Ohio, then the
frontier of civilization, locating in Birming-
ham, where he operated a sawmill, the coun-
try abounding with excellent timber. Four
years later he went to Toledo, then a mere
village, where he worked at blacksmithing
for a short time, later engaging in the gro-
cery business, in which latter occupation he
continued until his death in March, 1837.
His devoted wife died in Birmingham, Ohio,
in August, 1833. They were the parents of
six children: Catherine, David, Eliza, Lewis
D., George "W. and Phoebe.
Lewis D., whose name heads this bio-
grapy, remained with his father, assisting
him at the forge until he was twenty-one
years of age, when he commenced life on his
own account, engaging in clerking. He re-
sided in the Buckeye State until 1839, when
he removed to Illinois, making the journey
by team, through a wild and sparsely settled
country. He secured a position as clerk in
Erie, then a small town on the Illinois river,
in Schuyler county, which was quite a thriv-
ing little center. In 1841 he purchased his
land in Schuyler county, near Littleton, on
which he engaged in farming. Ten years
later, he came to Rushville, which has ever
since been his home.
Mr. Erwin was married in 1843, to Elvira
Wells, an estimable lady, and a daughter of
Charles and Elizabeth Wells. They had
eleven children: David D.; Catherine; Ma-
tilda; Eliza; Elizabeth L. ; Emma; Lewis
D., born in 1859 and died in 1887; George
L.; Anna C.; Sophie B. ; and Edward, who
died in infancy. In 1875 the family was
called upon to mourn the loss of the devoted
wife'and mother, who had subordinated her
interests to their welfare. She was a woman
of rare Christian character, and much es-
teemed in her community.
The subject of this sketch cast his first
vote for Martin Van Buren, ever since
which time he has supported the principles
of the Democracy. Being a leading man his
constituents have conferred upon him various
offices of trust and honor, the duties of which
have been discharged with ability and fidelity.
In 1844 he was appointed Deputy Sheriff,
and in 1850 was elected Sheriff. In 1852,
he was made Circuit Clerk, to which position
he was re-elected in 1854. In 1846 he was
elected a member of the Illinois State Legis-
lature, his efforts in that body receiving uni-
versal commendation, as shown by his re-
election to the same position in the years of
1856, 1858 and 1860, thus serving five ses-
sions, including the extra session at the
breaking out of the war.
Such universal endorsement makes farther
encomiums on his character and qualifica-
tions unnecessary, as they are so plainly in-
dicated that " he who runs may read."
ARCUS WHETSTONE was born in
Adams county, Illinois, March 6,
1838, son of Abija and Lucinda
(Brunton) Whetstone, the former born in
1804, in Ohio, near Cincinnati, following
farming when a young man. His father ran
a distillery near Cincinnati, where he died.
Abija was married in 1832 and then moved
to Indiana, where lie worked on a farm for
twenty-four years. In 1834 he sold out and
came to Illinois and rented in Adams county
and later bought wild land on which stood a
log cabin, where they lived until three years
later, when he built a frame house. He lived
there until 1853 and then came to this county
SGHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
463
for three years, returning to Adams at the
end of that time. He bought the farm where
Marcus now lives, in 1850. He died in Mis-
souri, at the home of a daughter, aged eighty-
one years. His father, Nathan, was in the
war of 1812. Subject's mother was born in
Pennsylvania and came with her parents to
Ohio at an early date, and later to Indiana.
In 1834 she came to Illinois and settled in
McDonough county, later, moved to near
Quincy where her mother died, aged eighty
years, her father dying at her home, aged
ninety years. Mrs. Whetstone is still living
with her oldest child in Augusta, Illinois.
She and her husband had eleven children,
seven yet living. All are farmers as far as
known, although one of her brothers is a
school teacher, having followed that profes-
sion all his life, and one of her daughters fol-
lows the same profession. Marcus' people
came overland to this State with teams and
four yoke of oxen. Mr. Whetstone, Sr., had
but very little cash when he came to Illinois,
but he was industrious and soon had his
farm paid for. He and his wife were church
going people and active in any good work,
he being instrumental in building several
churches and schoolhouses. He started with
eighty acres of land, but kept buying inore
until at his death he had nearly 1.3.00 acres.
He was a good, hard-working man.
Marcus remained at home until twenty
years of age, working qn the farm, driving
oxen and attending the district school in the
winter. When, he was nine years old he
broke prairie and has been one of the hardest-
working men in this county. When he had
reached the age of twenty he rented the farm
on which he now lives, from his father.
There were no improvements but the house
which was built in 1854. He originally had
160 acres whicli his father gave him, and he
has added to this farm until he has 740 acres
of as tine land as there is in central Illinois.
He has made numerous improvements on
this land.
He was married in 1863, to Clara Tare,
who was born in Schuyler county, daughter
of Jacob and Nancy (Buck) Tare, natives of
Ohio, who came to Illinois in 1834, and died
in this county. Mrs. Whetstone was one of
eight children, seven yet living. Her family
were generally farmers, except a few who
were mechanics.
Mr. and Mrs. Whetstone have had eight
children, four living, Mary E., married to
W. E. Melvin and they have three children:
Mattie F., Hattie E. and James G. at home.
They are all well educated and graduated
from the Augusta and Bushnell schools. M.r.
Whetstone cast his first vote for S. A. Doug-
las and his next one for Abraham Lincoln,
He is a Republican and his'family were of
the Democratic faith, being old-line Andrew
Jackson men. He has filled the office of
Supervisor for nine years and has also held
other offices, among which are Justice of the
Peace and Assessor, the former for eight years
and the latter for three. He also has been a
School Director. Both Mr. and Mrs. Whet-
stone are attendants at the Methodist Chnrch,
of which she is a member. The family are
among the most respected and honored in the
county, and the entire family are upright in
their dealings, commanding the respect of
all who know them.
HOMAS W. WATTS, the oldest and
leading merchant of Huntsville, is
numbered among the pioneers of 1838.
He was born in Scott county, Kentucky, No-
vember 5, 1834. His father, Simeon Watts,
464
BIOGRAPHICAL UK VIEW OF OAS8,
was also a native of Scott county, being born
in 1806. He was a farmer, and in 1829
married Harriet D. Scott, and resided in Ken-
tucky until 1838, when he removed to Illi-
nois and settled on a farm near Rnshville,
where he purchased land, and resided there
about five years, and then removed to Brown
county and settled on a farm, four miles
north of Mt. Sterling, where he pursued farm-
ing until 1878, when he removed to Hnnts-
ville, where he passed his remaining years
and died in 1886. His wife died in Hunts-
ville in 1890. They had nine children, of
whom eight grew up. Mary Smith resides in
Huntsville township; John F. also resides
there; Horace W. resides in Greensburg,
Kansas; Simeon was a member of the Chris-
tian Church and his wife was a member of
the Missionary Baptist Church. He was a
poor man when_ he left Kentucky, but be-
came a successful farmer in Illinois. He had
a well improved farm of 240 acres and dealt
considerably in real estate.
Thomas was reared and educated in Illi-
nois. He was raised a farmer, but in 1859
he engaged as a clerk in a store in Rushville,
where he stayed five years. He then went
to Des Moines, Iowa, where he loaned money
and also operated a shingle and lath mill, and
while thus engaged lost one finger of his
right hand. He then went to Mt. Pleasant,
Brown county, Illinois, where he became a
merchant, but in 1866 he resumed his busi-
ness in Huntsville, where he has since con-
tinued. His brother, Horace, was his partner
for some ten years in a large general store.
He owns eighty acres of land near Hunts-
ville, also 320 acres in Hall county, Ne-
braska, 160 in Kiowa county, Kansas, and
160 in Grant county, Kansas. He also is
the owner of good property in Huntsville at
Wood river, Nevada, at Ford City and Hunt-
ington, Indiana, most of which is well im-
proved, and he has made all of this himself.
He was married in 1859 to Nancy A.,
daughter of Isaiah and Mary (McCarl) Lew-
ton, who were pioneers of Huntsville town-
ship. Mr. and Mrs. Watts have five children :
William O., Secretary of the Building and
Loan Association of Huntington, Indiana;
Laura Snyder of Caldwell, Kansas; Fred L.,
at home; Salena Denny, of Augusta, Illinois,
and Frank, still at home. In politics Mr.
Watts is a Democrat and has held local office,
but only takes enough interest in polities to
perform duty as a citizen. His business re-
quires all his time. He is a prominent mem-
ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church and a
very successful man in every way.
AULIN CAMPBELL, a successful
farmer and truck raiser, was born in
Gloucester county, New Jersey, Octo-
ber 14, 1849. His father, David, was a native
of New Jersey, who was the son of Thomas,
who was born, lived and died in the same
State. He was a successful farmer and he
had built up a large property and had given
his children all a farm together, and the place
was known as Campbelltown. David grew
up in his native State and became a promi-
nent man in a local way. He was successful
in life as a farmer, truck grower and lumber
man, furnishing lumber to house builders in
that community. He gave liberally toward
the upbuilding of the Methodist Church and
was Steward in it for many years. He died at
his home about twelve years ago. His wife
had been Ann E. Nelson. Her ancestry was
similar to that of her husband's and she lived
and died at her home, her death occurring in
SCHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
465
1870. She was a good wife and mother and
was devoted to the Methodist Church.
Paulin is one of six children and grew up
in his father's business. When twenty-one
years of age he came to Illinois and has since
lived in Cass county. Mr. Campbell makes
a specialty of sweet potatoes. He owns a
good farm of 120 acres, in section 7, town-
ship 18, range 11. He has been in the county
since 1872, has lived on his farm since 1880,
and has owned it since 1882.
He was married in this county, to Miss Jen-
nie Johnson, born near Brighton, Illinois.
She was educated chiefly in New Jersey.
Her father was Samuel Johnson, who grew
up a farmer in New Jersey, and soon after
his marriage to Ann E. Hiles, who came to
Illinois and settled on a farm near Brighton.
He there engaged in farming, but was ac-
cidentally killed while pressing hay. His
wife is yet living, the wife of John Elliott.
Mr. aud Mrs. Campbell are prominent
young people, the parents of one bright boy
of eleven, named Roy.
SRANS H. D. KRUSE was born in East
Friesland, Germany, in 1821. His
father, Dierk Kruse, son of George
Kruse, was born in the same place. The
father of the present subject learned the trade
of millwright and followed it in his native
land. He bought several important mills-ites
erected mills and set them in successful opera-
tion, and sold them. In 1835, he came to
America, in the Virginia, a ship sailing from
Bremen, bringing with him his sons, Frans
H. D. and Sunke M., and landed in New
York, July 4.
From there he went to Albany, by way of
the Hudson river, thence across to Schenec-
tady, and by Erie canal to Buffalo, thence by
lake to Cleveland and from there by land and
the Ohio river to Cincinnati. He afterward
went West into Illinois to Beardstown, and a
few months afterward bought a mill on Sugar
creek, ten miles east of Rnshville. Six
months later he sold the mill and bought a
small farm two and one half miles east of
Rushville and turned his attention to farming.
Here he resided for eight years, when he re-
turned to the old country. Some years after-
ward he returned to America and settled in
Texas, remaining there five years. He after-
ward came to Illinois and bought a farm in
McDonough county. This farm was ex-
changed for a farm five miles southwest of
Rushville in Woodstock township, where he
lived until his death in 1860.
The mother of the subject of this sketch
was Hiske J. Miller. She was a native of
the same country as her husband, and spent
her entire life there. She had five children,
all of whom grew to manhood, the present
subject being the youngest, who was in his
fourteenth year when he came to Illinois
with his father. The country was but
sparsely settled at that time, and some of the
land was still owned by the Government.
Frans assisted his father at the mill and
afterward in cleaning out the farm. As the
land was heavily timbered they were able to
build a small frame house on it. In 1843 he
bought the farm of his father and has had his
residence here ever since. Good, substantial
buildings have since been erected upon it, and
the farm is in a high state of cultivation.
He married, in December, 1843, Elizabeth
C. Garrett, who was born in Georgetown,
Scott county, Kentucky, in April, 1824. Her
father, Thomas Garrett, was born in Delaware
and was the son of David Garrett, who lived for
many years on the line between that State and
466
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GASS,
Pennsylvania and spent his last days there.
The father of Mrs. Kruse went to Kentucky
when a young man, and married in Lexing-
ton, Snsanah Wigert, who was born in Mary-
land and went with her parents to Kentucky,
while she was an infant. After her marriage
she removed to Georgetown with her hus-
band, and some years later again removed
with him to Illinois by way of the Cumber-
land, Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Mr. Gar-
rett made several removals in Illinois and
spent the last few years of his life near
Browning, Schuyler county. The mother of
Mrs. Kruse survived her husband for many
years, and died at the residence of a younger
daughter, who was a resident of Nebraska, at
the advanced age of ninety-one years.
fACOB 1). GERRISH, born in Brown
county, Illinois, March 12, 1861, is the
son of Sewall and Elizabeth (Grove)
Gerrish. He owns part of his father's farm,
and lives with his mother. In politics he is
a Democrat. His father, Sewall Gerrish,
was born in Boscawen, New Hampshire,
March 18, 1809; came to Brown county Sep-
tember 8, 1836; ran a sawmill on McGee
creek, and later was a farmer. He was a
Democrat in his political faith, and held
several township offices. He was married
January 8, 1846, to Elizabeth Grove, who
was born in Virginia, February 22, 1825.
Sewall Gerrish died May 17, 1879. He was
the son of Lieutenant Stephen and Hannah
(Ames) Gerrish. His father, born April 16,
1770, died November 11, 1815. He in-
vented the first practical auger for boring
logs and pumps, also the attachment of the
screw to the pod auger. With his father he
used to make the mill saws and cranks on the
common forge. He was one of the first in
New Hampshire to make cut nails.
February 7, 1796, he married Hannah,
daughter of Lieutenant Samuel Ames; she
was born January 14, 1776, and died Novem-
ber 18, 1834. Stephen Gerrish was the son
of Colonel Henry and Martha (Clough) Ger-
rish. His father, born May 3, 1742, died
May 16, 1806; married Martha, daughter of
Jeremiah Clough, November 10, 1763. She
was born November 10, 1742, and died
October 15, 1826.
Henry Gerrish was the son of Captain
Stephen and Joanna (Hale) Gerrish. His
father, born January 22, 1711, died in 1788,
in Boscawen, New Hampshire. He married
Joanna Hale, July 15, 1741, who was born in
June, 1715, and died in 1792.
Stephen Gerrish was the son of Colonel
Joseph and Mary (Little) Gerrish. Colonel
Joseph lived in Newbury, Massachusetts, and
was a member of the Colonial Legislature
twenty years. He married Mary Little,
February 26, 1703. She was born March 20,
1682, and died January 1, 1765.
Joseph Gerrish was the son of Colonel
Moses and Jane (Sewall) Gerrish. Colonel
Moses Gerrish, born in Newbury, Massachu-
setts, May 9, 1656, married Jane, daughter
of Rev. Henry Sewall, September 24, 1(577.
She was born in Badesly, England, October
25, 1658, and died in January, 1717; he
died in 1694. Colonel Moses Gerrish was a
son of Captain William and Joanna (Oliver)
Gerrish. Captain William Gerrish was born
in Bristol, England, August 20, 1617; came
to New England in 1639, and settled that
year in Newbury, Massachusetts; was the
first captain of the military band in that
town, and representative in 1650-'54; mar-
ried Joanna Oliver, of Newbury, April 17,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
467
1645, who died June 14, 1677, and he moved
to Boston in 1678. At the serai-centennial
anniversary meeting of Boston, March 14,
1686, Captain Gerrish opened and closed the
exercises with prayer. He died in Salem,
Massachusetts, August 9, 1687.
Elizabeth (Grove) Gerrish, daughter of
Joseph and Catharine (Staley) Grove, — he of
Baltimore, Maryland, and she of Lynchburg,
Virginia, — -came to Illinois in 1826, settling
in Sangamon county in 1828; came to Elk-
horn township and entered land. She died
in 1846, and he was married a second time,
to Elizabeth (Hunter) Clamp in 1851, and
died in October, 1858. Mrs. Gerrish is one
of twelve children. All are prosperous farm-
ers, mostly in Missouri.
Grandfather Jacob Grove was born in
Pennsylvania, and died in Virginia. His
wife, Margaret (Garinger) Grove, was born in
Virginia, and died in Maryland. Grand-
father Stephen Staley died in Virginia, and
his wife, Barbary (Yeasley) Staley, died in
Virginia. She was born in Germany.
Mrs. Gerrish was the mother of ten chil-
dren; eight are yet living. Hannah married
Fred Wenneker, and has four children, —
Frank F., Henry G., August C. and Katie
M. Harriet married Samuel C. Gerrish, and
has three children, — Nettie M., Harry E. and
Carlos A. Martha married George E. Rich-
ardson, and has five children, — Otis E., Josie
L., Sewall H., George E. and Nina L. Samuel
S. married Addie Hargus, and they have two
children, — Myrtle C. and Loren E. Jose-
phine married Joseph J. Moore, and they
have six children, — Joseph G., Edith M.,
Frank G., Harlan E., Dallas J. and Mabel C.
Mary E. married P. C. Sweeny, and has one
child, — John. Jacob D. and Cynthia are at
home. Her people came to America in 1717,
and settled in Pennsylvania. The first was
John Grove, who came from Holland, — a
Quaker. Some were in the Revolutionary
war. The family belong to the Presby-
terian Church, and are highly regarded in the
county.
[HRISTIAN S. KRUEGER, a farmer
of sections 22, 3, and 14, township
17, range 12, was born on the farm he
now owns in 1846. He was reared on
this farm, and has since lived on it. His
father, John, was a native of Hanover, Ger-
many; who grew up and was married there
to Mdry Hendricker, of the same place.
After the birth of two children, in 1839 the
family decided to come to America. They
came from Bremen, and after many weeks,
landed in New Orleans, coming from thence
td Beardstown. He purchased the land where
he lived and died, the latter event occurring
August 11, 1873. in the seventy-fifth year of
his age. He was a good, hard-working man,
always very quiet and peaceable. He was a
Lutheran, and embraced the Republican po-
litical faith. His wife, who was also a good
Lutheran, died at the age of sixty.
Our subject is the younger of four living
sons, a sister having died young. The chil-
dren are: Henry, a farmer in Morgan county;
John and Fred are farmers in Nemaha county,
Kansas.
Christian was married in Cass county, to
Elizabeth Meyer, who was born May 10, 1853,
in this county, and was reared and educated
here. She was the daughter of Charles and
Minnie (Rusch) Meyer, natives of Prussia,
Germany, who came to the United States in
the '40s, and made a settlement on a farm in
section 17, Cass county, afterward selling
that and buying land in range 17, township
468
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
12, where they died, both past the age of
sixty years. Mrs. Krueger is the youngest of
her father's children, and she with the eldest,
a brother, Charles H., a farmer in this county,
are the only members of the family living.
Mr. Krueger is a Eepublican, and he and
his wife are active members of the Lutheran
Church. They have eight children: Chris-
tian V., Minnie K., Henry E., Charles F.,
Lydia N., John F., Amelia M. and Benj. H.
Mr. Krueger now owns 160 acres of land,
which he purchased from the heirs of his
father's estate, having owned it eighteen years.
He has improved it, and is considered one of
the most success f ul farmers of the county.
fAMES M. EEAD was born in Birming-
ham township, October 2, 1842. He
was the son of Amasa Head, who was
born in Massachusetts, and Jane, nee Hender-
son of Ohio. The grandfather, with two
brothers, came to America from England
when they were young men, and followed
farming. Amasa and two brothers came to
Ohio at a very early day, and settled at
Xenia. In 1837 Amasa sold out his land,
and with a wagon came overland to this
county. He traded his team to some men to
build him a house. In 1837 he went back
and brought his family and settled on the
farm where our subject now lives. When he
came back the house was not finished, and he
was obliged to rough it for nine months
without doors or windows. The most of the
children were born in this old log house.
James was one of six children, three yet
living. His father died in the old log house
five years after coming here at the age of
sixty-six years, and his wife died in 1890,
aged eighty years. Amasa Read ran a clock
factory in Ohio, and when he first came to
Illinois he started a nursery. He was an old-
line Whig, and voted for William Henry
Harrison.
James remained at home until his mar-
riage, January 3, 1871, to Sophia King,
daughter of Louis and Harriet King, who
came to Huntsville, Illinois, in 1838 or 1839,
and are still living. Up to the time of his
marriage, James worked at home, attended
the district school, and went one year to
Abingdon Seminary. John Brown, of
Harper's Ferry fame, was an own cousin of
Mr. Read. Mr. and Mrs. Read have five
children: Effie M., Ellen J. and Eliza S., now
in school at Augusta, and preparing for col-
lege; George M. and James M., are both at
home.
After bis marriage he still lived on the old
farm where he had bought out all of the heirs.
Later he sold eighty acres, leaving him 240
at present. He has built a fine house and barn,
and has as good a farm as is in the county,
on which he raises a good deal of stock. He
voted first for Lincoln, and has been a Re-
publican ever since. Mr. and Mrs. Read
attend the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr .
Read joined the Methodist Episcopal Church
at the age of nineteen. His sister, Eliza J.,
at the age of twenty-six taught kindergarten
in Chicago, and is now the wife of Rev. J.
T. Sunderland. Mr. Read has a delightful
family and a very fine home.
fOHN SCHULTZ, of the firm of Schultz
& Baujan, proprietors of the Home Mills
and Elevator, located on the south bank
of the Illinois river, where they do a large
business, was born in Bavaria, in tho Rhine
province, on the river Rhine, June 1, 1849.
SG SUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
469
He learned his trade of wagon and carriage
maker before he left for America in the sum-
mer of 1860. He proceeded to Beardstown,
joining his sister, Mrs. Anton Kink, who had
come before. The father of our subject was
a native of Germany, and died there when
sixty. He was a farmer and small land-owner,
and married a German lady, Miss Margaret
Caalmann, who died when forty-eight. She
had six children.
Mr. Schultz began in Beardstown as a car-
riage and wagon maker. He then became a
dealer in wines and liquors for three years.
His present business is successfully carried
on by himself and the two sons of his old
partner, Mr. Baujan, who took their father's
place when he died in 1890. Their brands
of flour are represented by traveling men and
they do business all over the State. The mills
have a capacity of 200 barrels per day, and
the elevator of 80,000 bushels. They have
warehouses also at Spring Bluffs and other
places. The mills have nine sets of rollers
and are run by steam power. Their main
brands are Sunbeam and Sea Foam. It was
started in 1875, under the firm name of Bau-
jan & Company.
Mr. Schultz is also connected with other
local enterprises, being a stockholder in the
First National Bank and the Beardstown
Electric Light & Power Company, and a
director in both. He has been a leader in
many other enterprises that have affected the
welfare of the city.
He was married in Beardstown to Miss
Eosa A. Baujau, who was born and reared in
Cass county. They have four children : Harry,
now dead; Olive A., Etta A., Alfred C. Mrs.
Schultz is a member of the Roman Catholic
Church. Mr. Schultz is a strong Democrat
and has been Alderman of the city, and also
delegate to the State Congressional Commit-
tee. He is a member of the order A. O. U.
W., and has tilled the chairs. He has been sent
to the Grand Lodge.
AYLOR L. SMITH, Superintendent of
the Railroad Round House at Beards-
town for the St. Louis & Rock Island di-
vision of the Chicago Burlington & Quincy,
was born near Zanesville, Ohio. His father,
James Smith, was a native of Pennsylvania,
of Dutch ancestry. He had grown up in his
native county of Washington, at which place
his father, William Smith, had followed the
occupation of butcher. Later he came to
Ohio and there lived and died at Newark,
Licking county. It was there that his son
James had settled and engaged in the butcher
business. He had married Miss Elizabeth
Leggett in Pennsylvania. After settling in
Newark they became prominent in society,
and Mrs. Leggett died there when she was
forty-three. Mr. Smith was married a sec-
ond time to Miss Lotta Frink, in Ohio, and
in 1887 moved to Butler, Bates county, Mis-
souri, and are now living there, Mr. Smith
still actively engaged in the meat-market busi
ness. They are good, hard-working people.
Taylor L. is the third child of six chil-
dren, all married and prominent persons in
life. He grew up an industrious, hard-work-
ing boy, and earned his bread by his own per-
sonal endeavors. He was reared near the
place of his birth, and later became an appren-
tice to a firm selling portable and stationary
engines at Newark, Ohio. Three years after-
ward, he became connected with the Baltimore
& Ohio Railroad. He came to Beardstown
a number of years ago, began in the machine
shops and being a practical machinist and
470
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS8,
good workman, soon became overseer of the
engine repair shops. He was engaged there
for more than three years, when he was pro-
moted to the round house and has since
been thus connected, having some twenty-
five men under him, besides having to direct
about one hundred engineers. He has held
this office for two years. He has been very
successful, and owns a comfortable home in
Beardstown.
He was married in Newark, Ohio, to Miss
Mary Dalton of Newark, a very intelligent
lady, the daughter of Michael and Mary Dal-
ton, now living in Newark, both in the 60s.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith are the parents of four
children: Maybell, Edith, Anna and Warren,
all at home. Mr. and Mrs. Smith are promi-
nent in Beardstown society. Mr. Smith is a
Master Mason and is a member of Arch Lodge
No. 16, I. O. O. F., also of the Knights of
Pythias lodge, No. 207. He is a Republican
in politics and a genial, pleasant gentleman.
KOSES HARBISON, an intelligent
and progressive farmer of C a s s
county, Illinois, numbered among
the substantial men of this section, was born
in Barren, now Metcalt'e county, Kentucky,
September 3, 1831.
His parents were Adam B. and Hannah
(Rhea) Harbison, the former a native of Vir-
ginia, who, when a young man, operated
different mills and also did teaming. In 1831,
he came to Illinois with his wife's people,
although at the time unmarried, his union
taking place in the latter State. Accom-
panied by his wife, he shortly afterward re-
turned to Kentucky, where they resided for
a year or two, after which they removed to
Washington county, Missouri, in which
place he farmed for about five years. He
then sold out and returned to Illinois, settling
in Mason county, where he entered 200 acr.es
of good land, and built a log house. Here
he died two years later, at the comparatively
early age of forty-four years. He was twice
married, his first wife being the mother of the
subject of this sketch. She died on the farm
in Missouri, at the early age of twenty-three
years, leaving three small children to the
care of her bereaved husband.
The subject of this sketch is the only sur-
vivor of these children. He lived at home
until his father's death, after which his
stepmother bound him out to a farmer. Two
years later, however, at the age of thirteen
years, he took " French leave," and started
out in life for himself. He first worked for
$2.50 a month, which was in 1845. At the
end of five months, he bought a sow and pig,
which was his first speculation in pork. Out
of his small income, he provided them with
corn, and, like Jacob's kine, they waxed
strong and beautiful. This was only the
beginning of his schemes for advancement.
In 1848 he rented sixteen acres of land,
which, with one horse, he started to improve.
The following year, he bought another horse,
and thus continued to rent land and work it
until 1853, when he and a brother came to
where our subject now lives, and bought 160
acres of land. An old house was on the
place and ninety acres were under cultiva-
tion. This land they industriously improved,
and, in 1868, Mr. Harbison erected on it his
present substantial farm house. He has re-
cently sold some of his land, but still re-
tains 342 acres, most of which is under culti-
vation.
He was first married, January 7, 1857, to
Miss Mary A. Davis, an intelligent and
energetic lady, and a native of Cass county.
SQBUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
471
This union was destined to be of short dura-
tion, the devoted wife and mother dying at
the age of twenty-three years, leaving a child
to the care of her bereaved husband, which
afterward died, aged nineteen months. Her
people were very old and esteemed settlers
of this State.
March 13, 1863, Mr. Harbison was again
married, his second wife being Miss Lydia F.
Mason, an estimable lady, and a native of
Culpeper county, Virginia. She was a
daughter of John and Emma (Milliner)
Mason, also natives of the Old Dominion.
They came to Illinois in 1856, settling first
in Cass county, whence they removed to
Joplin, Missouri, where the mother died,
aged seventy years, the father still surviving.
This worthy couple were the parents of
eleven children, ten of whom are living.
Mr. and Mrs. Harbison have ten children:
Virginia S., married and has one child, a
daughter; Charles C., who is at home; Mary
C. is married and has one son. The other
children are still at home and are as follows:
Arthur J., Robert F., Estella, Alice, Martha
C., Emma and Nancy A.
Politically, Mr. Harbison is a Democrat,
and cast his first presidential vote for Gen-
eral Pierce. His constituents have recog-
nized his ability and integrity of character,
and have sought to gain the benefit of these
traits by electing him to various local offices,
in all of which he has served the best in-
terests of the community. He has been an
efficient member of the school board for
twenty-two years, which fact of itself speaks
volumes in favor of his excellent judgment
and moral force of character.
Mr. Harbison's life would furnish an in-
spiration to many poor, young men, who,
alone and unaided, are starting in life, with
no compass by which to guide their course.
Happy are they, if, like the subject of this
sketch, they keep their eyes stedily fixed on
the North Star of Truth, while industriously
spreading their sails to the breezes of pros-
perity, which will eventually waft them to
'he desired haven of comfort and happiness.
ATHANIEL H. EOONE, M. D.— This
gentleman was born in Troup county,
Georgia, June 6, 1836, and was the
son of William and Elizabeth (Bradford)
Boone. He was a farmer in South Carolina,
and died in Mississippi, aged forty-nine
years. The mother of our subject was also
born in South Carolina and died at the same
place, aged seventy-four.
The subject of the present notice was one
of ten children, three of whom are yet living.
He remained under the parental roof until he
was sixteen years of age, when occurred his
father's death. He then was sent to an
academy for several years at College Hill,
and then to medical college at Nashville. He
graduated at this college in 1860, and in 1861
he married Miss Cornelia Blackwell of
Georgia, but Dr. Boone had met her at Pine
Bluff, where he had gone to practice. Her
life was short, as her death occurred at the
the age of twenty-three. Her two children
died also. She was the daughter of James
and Mary Blackwell of Georgia, who later
removed to Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and there
died, he at the age of fifty-five or sixty, and she
about fifty years old. Our subject was mar-
ried a second time September 25, 1870, to Miss
Harriet H. Codington, who was born in Me-
nard county, Illinois, December 21, 1838, and
was the daughter of Joseph and Jane (Leeper)
Codington. They were natives of Barren
county, Kentucky, and he followed black-
472
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
smithing until in 1829 or 1830 he came to
Illinois. He drove his stock and wagon and
a carriage for the family, and first settled in
Menard county, and took up Government
land and then built a log cabin upon it.
Here they lived for quite a time in a tent and
in the log house, probably eight years. The
father, Mr. Codington, brought three chil-
dren with them and seven more were born
here, and six of this family still live. His
life extended to seventy-two years, and that
of his wife to sixty-four years. The Coding-
tons were of German ancestry, and on the
mother's side a little Irish. Mrs. Booue says of
those early times that the country was sparsely
settled and wild game was abundant.
Dr. Boone practiced medicine in Pine
Bluff, Arkansas, about three years, and
in 1864, he sold out there and came
North and settled in Chandlerville, this
county. Later, he bought land and kept on
adding to it until now he farms over 1,700
acres in this State and in Kansas, and rents
the most of it. He works a host of men
and presents the unusual spectacle of a suc-
cessful professional man who is also a success-
ful farmer.
Dr. Boone has taken no active part in poli-
tics, but his first vote was for Bell, and since
he has been a Democrat and a Prohibitionist.
He has served the town for years in the town
Council. He and his wife are members of
the Christian Church, and the Doctor has
been Superintendent of the Sunday-school for
many years.
Living with the subject, is his nephew,
Howard B. Boone, who was born in Fayette
county, Mississippi, May 30, 1870. He was
the son- of William Sanford and Ophelia
(Watson) Boone. William S. Boone was
born in the same place as our subject, March
6, 1841, and there died aged about thirty-
five or forty years. His wife Ophelia still
lives in Mississippi, on the old homestead.
Howard B. is a very promising young man
and medical student, and will receive every
advantage the best medical colleges afford.
E. NIEMANN, a successful dealer in
wines and liquors at the corner of
9 Washington and Main streets, in
Beardstown, was born in West Darling,
Prussia, Germany, April 17, 1832. He lost
his father, Casper Niemann, who lived and
died in his native province in Prussia. His
death occurred in his sixty-seventh year.
He had been a live-stock dealer and trader.
His mother lived to come to this country
with her children in 1859, where she spent
her last days. She and her husband were
consistent members of the Lutheran Church.
Mr. Niemann came to Beardstown in 1859
and began as a poor man and has for twenty
years been steamboating on the Mississippi
river and for the last few years as mate. He
has, however, always lived in Beardstown and
been closely connected with the town in its
growth. Since he came from Prussia, land-
ing at New Orleans, he has lived to see the
great changes come over the steamboating of
the great rivers. He has been in his present
business fourteen years.
He was married in this city to Miss Eliza-
beth Howard. She was born in Hanover,
Germany, and was twenty years of age when
she came to the United States. Her parents
and relatives all died in her native country.
Mr. and Mrs. Niemann have had eleven chil-
dren, of whom only four are now living.
They were among the first members and or-
ganizers of the Lutheran Church at this
SGHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
4-13
place, to which they have always subscribed.
He lias always been a Republican in politics,
but in no sense is he an office-seeker. He
has many warm friends among his large
circle of acquaintances.
THEODORE FRANKENFIELD.— The
subject of this sketch was born Decem-
ber 28, 1850, in Prussia, and was the
son of Adolph and Johannes (Fielden) Frank-
enfield, who were natives of the same place.
The father was a soldier for thirty years.
Our subject came to America when twenty-
five years of age and was seventy-five days on
the trip, and landed in the city of New York.
He was a blacksmith by trade and worked at
this business until he came to Illinois. His
first change in this new country was from
New York to Pennsylvania, and from there
he weut to various places until in 1861 he
settled near where he now lives. He worked
by the month and at his trade, and in June,
1863, he was married to Miss Catherine C.
Morris, who was born on the farm where our
subject now lives. She was born April 28,
1846, and was a daughter of Joshua and
Nancy (Hickey) Morris. Her father came
from Kentucky and settled here about 1830,
locating in this township with his father and
mother, Henry and Mary Morris, and lived
and died here, aged about seventy years.
The father of Mrs. Frankenfield was born in
the year 1801 and lived until 1881. He
was of Irish ancestry, and was proprietor
of a frontier grocery store. He was one of
the first of the pioneers of this section and
lived in a primitive log house, but at his
death he owned 700 acres of land to bequeath
to his family. He built the present home
about eighteen years ago. He was a kind-
hearted man, was very active in politics and
was an ardent Republican.
The gentleman of whom we write was one
of five children, of whom he is probably the
only survivor. He served four years in the
German army and soon after his discharge
came to America, where he has been a very
successful man. He and his good wife have
four living children, as follows: Joshua T. was
born April 16, 1864, and is now married and
the father of one boy; William E. was born
September 28, 1866, and a girl is now the
comfort of his home; Matilda C. was born
May 1, 1869, and now in her home has a boy
and girl of her own: Henry P. was born Sep-
tember 27, 1876; and Frank, a lad of eleven
years is dead. All the children received an
education in the district school.
Mr. Frankenfield believes in the principles
of the Democracy and cast his first vote in this
country for James Buchannan. He and all
of his family are members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church and he has been very
active in work in the church and Sunday-
school. He has carried on a system of
mixed farming and has 300 acres of land.
He is a man who commands the respect of
the whole neighborhood, and the family is
one which has been very prominent among
the pioneers of this grand old county.
§OHN W, MORRIS, a contractor and
builder of Rushville, was born in Rock-
ingham county, Virginia, April 8, 1832.
His father, William Morris, was a native of
Augusta county, the same State, and the
father of the latter was a life-long resident of
the Old Dominion. The father of John W.
Morris was reared in Virginia, where he
474
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
learned the trade of a carpenter, a calling he
followed there until 1833, when he emigrated
to Ohio accompanied by his wife and six
children, making the journey with teams. A
year was spent at Lancaster, Fairfield county,
when another migration was made, this time to
Franklin county, where he purchased a tract of
timber land near Groveport, where he resided
ten years, all the time carrying on the business
of contractor and builder, besides superin-
tending the improvement of his farm. Sell-
ing out again, he again took his family with
him, settling in Delaware county, purchasing
a farm near Centreville. Pie pursued farming
until 1862, when the spirit of change again
came over him, and he found a home in Grand
View, Edgar county, Illinois, where two
daughters and one son continued to reside.
He lived there, retired from business, until
his death, which came peacefully in May,
1879, when he was seventy-seven years old.
His wife's death preceded his a few months,
she having passed away in February of the
same year. Her maiden name was Eliza
Palmer, and she was born in Virginia, and
was the daughter of Robert and Martha
Palmer. She reared eight children : Harriet
Stevenson, George, Charles L., James H.,
William B., John W., Jane F. and Caroline
Cavendish.
John was so young when his parents left
Virginia that he has no recollection of his
native place.. He attended the public schools
of Franklin and Delavan counties, and when
not in school assisted his father at his trade
and on the farm. He was a natural mechanic
and gave evidence of skill with edged tools
at a very early age. He did journeyman's
work in Ohio until 1856, when he went to
Grand View, Edgar county, where he re-
mained until 1862, when he removed to Ful-
ton county, following his trade at Marietta
for tvvo years. Mattoon, Coles county, was
next his home, and then, in 1866, he removed
to Rushville, where he engaged in mercantile
pursuits for two and a half years; tiring of
this he followed farming for two years, when,
settling in Rushville, he began the business
of contractor and builder, which he has con-
tinued ever since. The principal business
blocks of Rushville were erected by him, and
they are so many monumects to his skill and
to the fidelity of his work.
Mr. Morris was married in 1860, to Eliza-
beth Cary, who was born in Ohio in 1840.
His married life has been a happy one, and
three living children bless their union, viz.:
Mary C., Annie E. and Alice G. Two, Cary
and Charles L., are deceased.
Mr. Morris united with the Methodist
Episcopal Church in 1859, and has continued
since that time to be a consistent member of
that body. In politics Mr. Morris is a Re-
publican, earnestly advocating the measures
of that party.
EV. DANIEL A. BLOSE, pastor of the
First Congregational Church of Beards-
town, was born in Indiana county,
Pennsylvania, May 23, 1854. He was reared
on his father's farm, and there remained until
seventeen years of age, when he entered
Covode academy in the same county, and a
year later attended an academy in Armstrong
county, and graduated in the class of 1875,
and then entered the University of Lewis-
burg, now known as Bucksnell University, and
graduated there with the class of 1878,
receiving 100 per cent, in all class examina-
tions, also the first honors with the oration
in the scientific course. He entered in the
fall of 1878, the Auburn Theological Semi-
nary of Auburn, New York, and graduated
SUHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
475
with the class of 1881. He was then li-
censed by the Kittaiming Presbytery of the
synod of Pennsylvania, that being their cus-
tom. He was ordained by the Geneva Pres-
bytery of the synod of New York, January
12, 1882, and soon after became pastor of
the Presbyterian Church of Dresden, New
York. In 1886 he became connected with
the Congregational Church, and has since
been an earnest worker. It was in De Kalb,
Illinois, that he did his first work as a Con-
gregational minister, and the beautiful stone
church edifice of that place stands as a silent
monument to his labors. Being overworked
he was obliged to resign his position against
the unanimous protest of the people. He
was immediately called to the church at
Tonica, Illinois, which he accepted under the
promise of being able to rest. During his
one year there the membership was doubled.
At the close of the year an anti-Masonic fac-
tion caused a lack of harmony in the church,
and the Rev. Blose resigned against the
united request of the congregation. He im-
mediately received a call from four churches,
and decided to accept theone from La Harpe,
Illinois, where he remained fifteen months,
and increased the membership by fifty mem-
bers. He was then unanimously called to
the church at Beardstown, which he accepted
much against the wishes of his congregation
at La Harpe.
He was married May 1, 1881, at Burns,
Allegany county, New York, to Mamie E.
Coray, born December 15, 1857, educated in
the Union High School of Canaseraga, New
York, graduating in 1879. She is an ac-
complished lady, an enthusiastic worker in
the church and in all the avenues where good
may be promoted, and is the devoted mother
of two very bright children; Minnie Coray
and Charles A.
Mr. Blose is a sound Republican, his faith
being born of intelligence vitalized by right-
eousness and patriotism. He feels that he
has a right to spread his principles and advo-
cate his political faith from the rostrum as he
preaches his religion from the pulpit.
ENRY YETTE,a general farmer, was
born in Prussia, May 10, 1864. His
father, William Vette, was a brick ma-
son, and died when he was thirty-eight years
old. His wife had died the preceding year,
and they both were members of the German
Lutheran Church.
Henry was left an orphan at the age of ten,
and grew up as a maker of cigar boxes in his
native province until seventeen years of age,
and then he and a friend set out for this
country. They set sail from Bremen in 1882,
landed in New York city in the same year
and then came to Illinois, reaching Beards-
town with $1.10 in his pocket. He began
work first as a laborer with his uncle, Henry
Vette, and after some years of economy he
was able to purchase the large farm he is uow
rapidly paying for. The farm consists of 125
acres, well improved, and other land that is
not under plow, amounting to 372 aaras. He
is a young man of good judgment, and has
shown what he can do and is bound to succeed.
He was married in Cass county, to Anna
Shave, who was born in Beardstown, March
22, 1867, and was reared and educated in this
county. She is the daughter of William and
Ingle (Shave) Shave. They are now living
in this county, successful farmers, owning
tine property. Mr. and Mrs. Vette are
members of the Sixth Street Lutheran Church
in Beardstown. They are the parents of
476
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
three children, Hilda 1., William H. and
Edna L. Mr. Vette is an ardent Republican,
and both he and his wife are highly esteemed
by all who know them.
>ARON LOGSDON was born in Madi-
son county, Kentucky, May 7, 1821.
His grandfather was Edward Logsdon,
a native of Maryland, who moved to Ken-
tucky in early life, where the thirteen chil-
dren were born. These all grew to adult age
and reared families of their own. The mother
of this family was Polly Brown, also a native
of Maryland. George Logsdon, the father of
the subject of this notice, was the youngest
of the family. He was reared on a farm and
was early accustomed to hard work, only
having the meager schooling of the time.
He lived at home on the farm, which finally
became his own at the death of his father,
Edward. The latter was a man of wonderful
strength, perfectly fearless, and in his old age
was a match for many men who were younger.
He weighed nearly 200 pounds, and was six
feet high. He was one of the pioneers of
Kentucky, and in those days strength and
courage were the only safeguards of a man
He was a very peaceable person, but had
some encounters with fighting men, and
never was conquered. He married Sally Mc-
Kinzie, a daughter of John McKinzie. The
union took place in Kentucky, and there
they lived and there their family of eleven
children were born. Two of these died in
infancy, but all of the others grew up and
became heads of families, and seven of them
are still living. The parents came to Illinois
in 1856, bringing three children with them.
Our subject had preceded them in 1852, with
his wife and five children, coining by water
to Lagrange.
The first wife of our subject was Lucinda
Dunbar, who died in the prime of life, of
consumption, and left him two daughters
and an infant which soon died. The daugh-
ters were Sally and Minerva. Mr. Logsdon
was again married, to Martha J. Johnson,
the daughter of Thomas Johnson and Re-
becca Shearer, the latter from Ireland and
the former from Pennsylvania. They were
early settlers in Kentucky, and the father is
still living and hearty at his old home. He
reared eleven children, ten of whom are still
living, the youngest being forty-six years of
age.
Mr. and Mrs. Logsdon came here without
means, and rented land for one year, but then
bought 160 acres of wild land for $500, pay-
ing $200 of it down. They occupied the log
cabin for several years, were frugal, and as
soon as they had paid for their first land they
bought forty acres adjoining for $600, and
still later bought more until he owned at one
time 400 acres. He has sold off and given
to his eons until he has only 155 acres left.
He has retired from active labor, and his
sons, Aaron and Ed., are working the farm.
Mr. Logsdon and his present wife have had
eleven children. The eldest daughter, Mary
E., is the wife of John Lear, who died in
January, 1883, aged thirty-six, and left two
children. Mary is dead, and Grandpa Logs-
don has adopted the children. The living
children are: Minerva, who is the wife of
Frank Simmons, who is a farmer in Missouri;
Thomas W. is a farmer in Nebraska; George
lives near by; Rebecca is the wife of Henry
Behymer, a farmer near Versailles; Lucinda
is the wife of William Betzmer; Aaron mar-
ried Maria Ballard, of this county; Nancy is
the wife of Samuel Wright, a farmer near
by; Edward owns a part of the homestead,
and lives near with his wife, Minnie Brewer,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
477
and two children; Martha A. is the wife of
James Harper, a fanner of this county. This
fine old couple rejoice in their ten great-
grandchildren, and have thirty-two grand-
children, living, and have seen ten buried.
There was patriotism in this family, for the
brother of Mr. Logsdon went all through
the war, and the brother of Mrs. Logsdon
carries a bullet wound and had two others;
and the son-in-law, Robert Johnson, went
three years through the great struggle, and
bears three wounds.
Mr. Logsdon ha? been a Master Mason for
thirty years, and has been a Republican for
many years. The family are religious people,
and belong to the Church of God.
i^EZEKIAH LEEK, M. D., has b,een a
resident of Schnyler county, Illinois,
since he was a child of seven years.
He was born in Peoria county, Illinois, Janu-
ary 25, 1840, a son of Jacob and Adiathia
(Leek) Leek. The maternal grandfather,
Henry Leek, was a native of Germany, but
emigrated to the United States when a young
man; he was married in the State of New
York, and later resided in Pennsylvania,
Ohio and Illinois, being one of the earliest
settlers of the last-named commonwealth; he
first located in Wabash county, and later re-
moved to Peoria county, and finally came to
Schuyler county, where he died at the age of
ninety years; his wife lived to the same ad-
vanced age. They had a family of eleven
children: Benjamin F., William, Allen,
Robert, George, Wright, Levi, Adiathia,
Abigail, Pernina and Mary. Jacob Leek,
the father of our subject, was born in Ohio,
and removed from that State to Illinois, set-
tling in Peoria county. In 1847 he came to
82
Schuyler county and entered laud in Freder-
ick township, which he occupied until the
time of his death in 1842. He left a family
of six children; Sarah, wife of Abraham
Yuble; Margaret, wife of Annis Davis;
Henry, deceased; Hezekiah, the subject of
this sketch; Alexander, wh'o died in the old
homestead; Jacob F., a minister of the Mis-
sionary Baptist Church. The mother died
in the autumn of 1891; she was a woman of
rare force of character, and for forty years
had been a consistent member of the Chris-
tian Church
Dr. Leek spent his youth on the farm, and
received his literary education in the com-
mon schools. Having determined to pursue
the science of medicine, he began its study
about 1857, in Fulton county, Illinois, under
the preceptorship of Dr. Smith of Cuba; he
subsequently studied at Olney, Illinois, and
iu Wabash county. He began the practice
of his profession in McDonough county,
Illinois, and remained there until 1871,
when he returned to Schuyler county. In
1880 he received a certificate from the State
Board of Health, having practiced fourteen
years. He now resides in Rushville, but
ihs patients are scattered over a wide terri-
tory. He has been very successful and has
won a reputation as a skillful and careful
dhysician.
Dr. Leek has been married twice: In
1859 he was united to Drusilla Tungate,
who died in 1866, leaving four children:
Abel; Margaret, wife of William Shriver;
Amos, deceased; and Minerva, deceased.
His second marriage was to Angeline M.
Johnson, a daughter of Joel Johnson; she
died in Aleny, Illinois, leaving four chil-
dren: Joel C., Harmon J., Asa, deceased,
and one child that died in early life. In
politics he adheres to the principles of the
478
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Republican party. During the war he was
president of the Union League. He was
once a minister of the Baptist Church, and
later was in the Christian Church in the
same capacity; he does no ministerial work
at the present time, but devotes himself
wholly to his profession. He has always
been deeply interested in the welfare of his
county and town; in his profession he has
won the highest respect of his colleagues,
and as a citizen he enjoys the respect of all
who know him.
lEESE H. GRIFFITH, one of the lead-
ing merchants of Rushville, is an Amer-
ican by adoption, his native land being
Wales; there he was born November 5, 1824.
His parents were Humphrey and Mary (Da-
vies) Griffith, the latter a native of Hanover,
Wales. His father was reared in the Inde-
pendent faith, and became a minister of that
denomination in Wales. In 1825 he, with
his wife and one child, sailed from Liverpool
for America. Landing in this country he
settled in Somers, Westchester county, New
York, where he was pastor of the Presbyte-
rian Church until 1832. He then removed
to Michigan Territory, and located in Tecum-
seh, Lenawee county. Michigan was then a
wilderness, and the greater part of the land
was owned by the Government. Mr. Grif-
fith purchased a tract near Tecumseh, in
which place he was later called to the pastorate
of the Presbyterian Church, he being the
second minister of the society. His family
had remained in Detroit while he was pre-
paring a home for them in Tecumseh. In the
fall he started back for them, but was taken
ill at Ypsilanti, where he died. Thus his
wife was left a widow with four small chil-
dren, one of whom died soon after the father.
Fortunately for her and those dependent on
her, she was a woman of superior education
and unusual energy. To support herself and
children, she opened a select school in Te-
cumseh and became prominent among the
early educators of the State. In addition to
providing for her family, she lifted a heavy
indebtedness that rested upon the land pur-
chased by her husband. Her last days were
passed in Rushville, Illinois, where she died
in 1877, in her seventy-ninth year. The three
children, who attained a mature age, were:
Reese H., the subject of this notice; Hum-
phrey, who died in Sacramento, California;
and Theophilus D., a resident of Kansas City,
Kansas.
Reese H. was an infant when his parents
crossed the sea to this country, and was but
eight years old when his father died. He
was thus reared and educated by his mother,
who, fortunately for him was a woman of un-
usual intelligence and activity. He later
attended a branch of the of the Michigan Uni-
versity, and when nineteen years of age com-
menced to teach, which profession he followed
in Michigan for nine years. He then went
to northern Alabama, and was engaged for
five years in teaching in Florence. In the
spring of 1852 became to Rushville, Illinois,
where he taught school one year, which ter-
minated his career in that capacity. He next
embarked in the hardware business, in which
he has been very successful. He, his son
Charles and a nephew, Humphrey Griffith,
compose the corporation under the firm name
of the Griffith Hardware Company.
Mr. Griffith was married March 15, 1852,
to Susan P. Stebbins, an estimable lady, a
native of Simsbury, Connecticut, and a daugh-
ter of Samuel S. and Laura (Bester) Stebbins,
also natives of that State. They have six
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
479
children: Charles, Eflie, Harry, Edwin, Laura
and William. The nephew, Humphrey Grif-
fith, has been a member of the home circle
since early youth, and is esteemed as a son.
The parents and children are members of the
Presbyterian Church.
Politically, Mr. Griffith was formerly a
Whig, and cast his first vote for Zachary
Taylor. Since the formation of the Repub-
lican party, he has been a supporter of its
principles, and has served that party in va-
rious positions of trust. He has been a dele-
gate to numerous county, district and State
conventions', and in 1892 ;vas alternate
delegate from his district to the National
Republican Convention at Minneapolis. He
also takes a prominent part in all church
matters of his denomination. He has always
taken a deep interest in Sabbath -school work,
has served as president of the Illinois State
Sabbath-school Association, and was the first
president of the Schuyler county Sunday-
School Association, having been a member of
the executive committee of the latter society
since its organization. In 1861 he acted as
delegate to the Presbyterian Conference at
Syracuse, New York, and went to New York
in the same capacity in 1889.
It is a matter of congratulation that Rnsh-
ville should have a man of such superior
intelligence and morality, fqr though this
combination is very pleasing, it is too often '
conspicuous for its absence. He who founds
his life on these lines builds with success,
and is eminently worthy of. the esteem of all
good men.
(EQRQE P. HUFF was born in Schuy-
ler county, Illinois, July 28, 1850. His
father was William Huff, born in North
Carolina in 1808. and his grandfather was
John Huff, also of North Carolina, where he
lived and died. The name of his grand-
mother was Charity Adams, born in North
Carolina.
William A. Huff married Betsy Ann Tea-
uey, daughter of John and Nancy Teaney.
She was born in Pennsylvania in 1812. When
she was fourteen years old, her parents moved
to Bartholomew county, Indiana, which they
did with their own team. Mrs. Huff was
married at the age of twenty-three, fifty-seven
years ago. They set out for Illinois with
their own horse and buggy and reached Rush-
ville in the fall, where they remained thir-
teen years, and then moved to their present
home. They had enough means to buy nine-
ty-six acres of Government land on which
they built a hewn log house containing one
room. This land was all wild, the country
entirely unsettled, abounding in game, large
and small. Mr. Huff afterward bought eighty
acres more, making his farm in all 156 acres.
In 186.0 they built the present frame house,
which was, nearly completed in the fall of
186.1, when he died. They had buried one
son, John, who left a widow. Since the death
of her husband she has buried, Sarah Huff,
aged thirty-four; Melissa Tucker, about forty
years old. and Martha Duncan, who died at
fifty-two years, leaving ten children. Mrs.
Huff has eight children still living: Mary
Clampitt of Greeley, Kansas; Amanda Line-
burger, of Hancock county, Illinois; Maria
Fisher, of Creston, Iowa; Francis, a stock
dealer of Hancock; George F. and Homer
W., are still at home; Perry P., a farmer on
an adjoining farm, and Eliza Wilborn, living
on the old homestead.
Mrs. Huff is still well and active in mind
and body, and considering that she has been
the mother of twelve children, has been a
toiler these many years, being now eighty
480
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
years old, she is a fair sample of the sturdy
pioneer women of early days. Mr. Huff died
in the faith of the Methodist Church, of which
his widow is a member. He and his sons
have always been Republicans, and they are
highly regarded in the commnnity in which
they live.
IRA N. GIBSON, of Browning, Illinois,
was born January 1, 1843, near New Cas-
tle, Pennsylvania, his parents being John
and Mary F. (Fervor) Gibson. They were
natives of Pennsylvania. They removed to
Morris, Illinois, stayed there seven years;
thence they went to the army, at the close
of the war, went to Peoria, when the
subject was twelve years of age. Both
parents are still living.
Ira Gibson grew to manhood in Peoria,
but in the fall of 1863, while prospecting in
Iowa, he enlisted in the Iowa Cavalry, at Sioux
City. He was sent out on the plains, where
he remained fighting Indians and guarding
the frontier until the close of the war, when
he was mustered out, at Davenport, in 1865.
He returned to Peoria and engaged in mill-
ing, where he remained seven years. He was
head miller in the mill of Frank Fields, for
two years.
Quitting the milling, he engaged in the
fishery business on the Illinois river, and this
has been his occupation since. In it he has
acquired a comfortable living and a nice
property in Browning, Illinois. He furnishes
his stock both winter and summer to J. W.
Peters, at St. Louis, where he finds a ready
sale for all his products. He puts up his
own ice and operates the business in a sys-
tematic manner.
Mr. Gibson has been twice married. His
first venture into matrimony was when twenty-
four years of age, to Miss Frances Smith of
Peoria. At her death she left four children:
Alice, Frank, Louisa and Viola.
Mr. Gibson was married a second time in
Browning, to Miss Mary Williams, who was
born in Fulton county, Illinois, in 1858. To
this union there are two children: Frances
and Ethel, bright little girls, at home.
Mr. Gibson is a Democrat in politics, and
is a member of Browning Lodge, No. 309, I.
O. O. F. He was formerly a member of the
G. A. R., but the post disbanded and he has
not yet joined any other.
His first wife was a Roman Catholic in re-
ligion, but the present Mrs. Gibson is a mem-
ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
§ THOMAS LAWLER, a widely and fa-
vorably known citizen of Woodstock
° township, Schuyler county, Illinois, is
a native of Virginia, having been born in
Fauquier county, that State, May 7, 1824.
His parents were Alexander and Margaret
(White) Lawler, both natives of Virginia.
His father served with distinction in the war
of 1812. His father was a cooper, and fol-
lowed his trade in his native State until the
spring of 1839, when he with his family
drove from Virginia, to Ohio, and thence to
Schuyler count}1, bringing all their worldly
goods in their wagon. Arrived in Illinois,
they purchased 160 acres of wild timber land
in Woodstock township, on which they built
a log house, and began the life of pioneers.
Both father and mother lived here until their
death, although it had been much improved
during their possession, both with buildings
of a substantial kind, as well as the land well
8CHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
481
cultivated. The father died here at the age
of sixty-four years, while the mother sur-
vived him for a long time, dying at the ad-
vanced age of seventy-three years. The Law-
lers were originally from Ireland, where
they were well-to-do people.
Our subject was one of a family of four-
teen children, seven of whom are now living.
He was reared in Woodstock township, and
and received his education at the country
schools of his day. He lived at home until
be was twenty-two years of age, working on
the farm and at his trade of coopering. He
then enlisted in the army, and served in the
Mexican war for thirteen months, and now
gets a Mexican pension. After returning
from the war, he married, on May 7, 1848,
Miss Sarah E. Pinkerton, who was born in
Putnam county Indiana, June 14, 1831. She
was a daughter of William and Anna (Jack-
son) Pinkerton. Her father was a native of
Kentucky, while her mother was a native of
one of the Carolinas, having come with their
parents to Indiana in a very early day. Her
father died in Indiana, aged about thirty years,
after which her mother moved to Illinois, lo-
cating in 1855, in Rushville, later moving to
Augusta. She is still surviving, and lives
with her daughter, the wife of our subject.
She had three children, only two of whom
are living.
Joseph and Sarah Jackson were Mrs.
Lawler's grandparents. They were pioneers
of Indiana and later moved to Illinois. Mrs.
Jackson died in Indiana aged fifty years, and
her husband died in Illinois at the advanced
age of ninety-six years. They were related
to General Jackson, so famous in the war of
1812.
David and Margaret Pinkerton, the grand-
parents on her father's side both died in In-
diana, at a very advanced age. They were
both natives of Kentucky, and of English an-
cestry.
After marriage, our subject settled where
he now lives, residing there continuously ever
since. He built at first a little log cabin, in
which he and his family lived, until 1865,
when he erected his present substantial and
comfortable home. Bis farm was unim-
proved when he bought it, but it is now one
of the best farms in the country, being highly
cultivated, and well improved with sub-
stantial barns for grain and stock, besides
other modern conveniences for the care of
grain an other agricultural products.
Mr. and Mrs. Lawler have eleven children,
nine of whom are living. Margaret E., mar-
ried and has seven children; Henry W., mar-
ried, having three children; Silas E., mar-
ried, has four children; Albert 0., married,
has five children; Simon A. and Jane A.,
twins; Simon, a school teacher; and Jane,
married, and has two children; Nancy E.,
married, with two children; Hattie E., mar-
ried, and has one child; and Thomas A., at
home, and works the farm with his father.
Our subject and wife are consistent mem-
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and
contribute liberally towards its support.
Mr. Lawler and family are highly re-
spected by people of the community on ac-
count of their many admirable traits of char-
acter.
,LEXANDER MOORE, the prominent
citizen of Buck Horn township, whose
biography it is our pleasure to present
to our readers, was born in Harrison county,
Ohio, December 23, 1821, son of Alexander
and Sarah (Smith) Moore. Alexander Moore
Sr., was born in Maryland, but came to
482
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
Ohio with his parents, when very
settling in Harrison county. He was one of
eight children, and learned the millwright and
carpenter trade, but followed farming princi-
pally, and ran a horse-power mill for many
years. He and his parents took up land in
Ohio, that was wild and unimproved, and
here he lived in a log cabin all his days, dying
on the first farm taken up of Government
land, in that section, aged eighty-five years.
His wife died on the same place when about
eighty-eight, she being a native of Tennes-
see. The subject's father on the father's side
of the family was Alexander Moore, who
married, and spent his last days in Ohio,
dying when full of years. The father of our
subject was a Justice of the Peace, and an
old Andrew Jackson Democrat, and filled the
different township offices, and was active in
church and other good work at an early day.
He helped to build the first church in that
part of Ohio, a Methodist house of worship,
and his family were members of it to the
close of their lives. There is a record that
some of the ancestors of Mr. Moore were on
the way to join in the war of 1812, but
peace was declared before they reached their
destination. The father of Mr. Moore started
out as a fifer, and his uncle as a drummer.
Our subject remained at home until he
was seventeen years old, worked summers, and
attended school winters, in the old log tem-
ples of learning of that day, which were
erected within a bit of clearing. At the age
of fourteen he went to learn the cabinet-
maker trade, and served three years for his
board and clothes. At the age of twenty he
commenced work at the lucrative trade of a
carpenter, and continued at this for fifteen
years.
Our subject was married November 30,
1841, to Elizabeth P. Johnson, who was born
in the same place as was her husband, and
was the daughter of Nathan and Jane (Aul)
Johnson, who were natives of Maryland, and
spent their last days in Ohio; the mother
died at the age of thirty-five years. Mr.
Moore, of this notice, was one of five children,
but one of whom is yet living. The first wife
of our subject died where he now lives, aged
forty-four years, and left five living of her
twelve children. They are as follows : Martin
L. has five children; Margaret J. has five chil-
dren; Amanda has but two little ones, as also
lias Lizzie; John C. is unmarried. Our
subject was married a second time in Novem-
ber, 18 — , to Mrs. Mary E. (Gregory) Ayers,
who was born in Pike county, Illinois,
November 23, 1842, and was the daughter of
John J. and Samantha (Barrett) Gregory. He
was born in Tennessee, in 1814, and came
to Illinois at a very early day, and died in
Pike county, aged forty-seven years. His
wife also died in the same county, about forty-
four years of age. Mrs. Moore's first mar-
riage was November 7, 1858, to Francis M.
Ayers, who was born in Ohio, and enlisted in
the early part of the war, and died from
wounds received at Hartsville, Missouri. He
was thirty-five years old when he died, and
was a member of Company B, Captain Math-
ews. She drew a pension from the Govern-
ment until her marriage. She had three chil-
dren, one of whom is William A., who has a
family of three children.
After his first marriage our subject first
followed the carpenter trade until 1856, when
he sold his houses and lots and went to Kan-
sas, but the next year he returned to Ohio,
and that fall came back to Illinois, and bought
eighty acres of laud where he now lives. He
first built a log house, and then built a per-
manent dwelling.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
483
Mr. Moore has been a Republican ever
since the formation of the party, and always
votes that ticket. He was a Free Soiler until
1856. He and his wife attend the Methodist
Episcopal Church, where they hold their
membership. This large and prosperous
family are much respected in their neighbor-
hood.
?OHN MERZ, general farmer and stock-
raiser, was born in Hesse-Darmstadt,
Germany, March 21, 1829. He lost his
mother when he was fourteen years of age.
Her name was Margaretta Darmer, and her
husband was John Merz, who lived and died
in his native province, at the age of sixty-
seven. He was a shoemaker, and followed
that trade in connection with his farming.
He and his wife were long members of the
Lutheran Church. Our subject is the eldest
of three children. He grew up as a farmer
boy and linen-weaver, and did not come to
this country until he was twenty-five years of
age. He landed in New York city in 1855,
and came right on to Beardstown, and three
days later engaged as a farm laborer and has
been a tiller of the soil ever since. He has
been very economical, like the most of his
race, and has acquired a large property by
real hard work. He is the only member of
his family who has ever come to this country.
He now owns 240 acres of very fine land, and
has good farm buildings, having owned this
since 1858, and strange as it may seem he
has made every bit of his fortune by earnest,
hard work, receiving help from no one.
He was first married in Beardstown, to
Louisa Rohn, who was born and reared at
her father's home, not far from Beardstown.
She died after five vears of married life,
being then only twenty-two years of age. She
left one daughter, Louisa, who died at four-
teen years of age, having been a very intelli-
gent child. Mr. Merz was married in Beards-
town a second time, to Miss Louisa Folks,
born in Baden, Germany, who came to this
country with her parents when very small.
Her parents died in Schuyler county. Mr.
Folks was a cooper by trade, and followed it
all his life.
Mr. and Mrs. Merz have six children:
Louisa, Etta and Henry are married; Mar-
garet, Charles and Nora are still at home.
They are Lutherans in religion, and Mr. Merz
is a Republican. They are among the best
of Beardstown's German citizens.
ILLIAM ROHN, a practical farmer
and stock-raiser, was born in Cass
County, September 27, 1854. His
father, Henry, came to the county in 1835,
took up Government land near Beardstown,
and here lived, labored, and died April 21,
1891. He was then eighty-six years of age.
He was a native of Hesse-Darmstadt, of good
German blood, came to this country in 1835
with his brother John, and they began life
as farmers. Here this brother died when he
was seventy years old. (For further family
history, see biography of Henry Rohn in this
book.) William's mother is yet living, very
smart and active, and on her eighty-first birth-
day, November 21, 1891, enjoyed the kind
hospitality of her neighbors in the form of a
surprise party.
William Rohn owns 160 acres in Home-
stead, and eighty acres of bottom land. He
has always lived on this farm. He is famous
as a local Nimrod, having killed more ducks
than any other man in this part of the State.
484
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
He has been a hunter all his life, and has
made some wonderful scores. In the spring
of 1885 he killed 165 ducks in three and one-
half hours. His shots are always on the
wing, he always giving his game a chance.
He has always carried off the prizes in the
pigeon and other shooting matches. He
takes great interest in these pursuits, and
keeps a tine pack of hunting dogs.
He was married in Beardstown, to Griista
Mahan, born and reared in this county, and
died, after fourteen years of married life, in
1891. She was thirty-two years of age. She
was a good, worthy woman, and the mother
of six children, those living being Edwin,
Anna and Fred. He was married for the
second time, to Anna Mann, who was born,
reared and educated in Cass county. Her
father, John, died some years ago, but her
mother is still living in Beardstown. Both
wives, as well as Mr. Rohn, have been worthy
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church-
Mr. Rohn is a Republican in politics. They
are very successful people, hard workers, and
much esteemed by the whole neighborhood.
M. LANE, a successful wholesale and
retail dealer in wines and liquors, lo-
cated on East Main street, was born in
Pennsylvania, and was but tour years of age
when his people came to Illinois. His fa-
ther, S. P. Lane, was born in New York, and
was married in Pennsylvania, and later came to
Winnebago county, Illinois, where he died, in
April, 1869. Mrs. Lane still survives him
and now lives in Cadillac, Michigan, and is
sixty-seven years old. Her maiden name was
Mary E. Finn, of Pennsylvania, of German
ancestry. She came of a long-lived family,
her grandmother being at her death 105
years old, her mother eighty-five and her
father ninety-five years of age.
Our subject was never married, but has
devoted all his energies to his business. He
has been engaged in it for more than ten
years and by his own efforts has made his
place headquarters for the best people in the
city. He has lived in this city since 1871.
He was engaged as a miller for some years.
He enlisted from Cook county when only fif-
teen years of age, as a member of the Seven-
teenth Illinois Cavalry Regiment. He en-
tered the army in 1863 and served until the
close of the war, and also spent more than
two years serving on the frontier. He es-
caped unhurt, but saw considerable hard
service and received his honorable discharge
as a brave soldier. He is known in Beards-
town as a great hustler and is a Republican
in politics.
fAMES NEELEY, foreman of the store
house of the St. Louis division of the
Quincy Railroad, was born in Philadel-
phia, Pennsylvania, March 20, 1857. He
was the son of James Neeley, a Pennsylva-
nian who still lives in Philadelphia, over sev-
enty five years of age. His business has been
that of architect. His wife died when James
was a few hours old. He was only twelve
years of age when he came all alone to
Beardstown in 1869, and has lived here ever
since. He has gained the knowledge of the
business of growing sweet potatoes and that
industry was just being developed here.
He received $20 dollars a month for his ser-
vices. He was afterward variously engaged
until he became of age and then connected
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
485
himself with the Quincy Railroad. This
took place in 1879, and he was engaged as
car inspector for six years and afterward for
four years. He was foreman of the lumber
yard, which position was similiar to the one
which he now holds. He has been the fore-
man of the store-house for three years and
has charge of the receipts and distribution of
all store house supplies.
He was married in Beardstown to Mary
G. Fulks of Beardstown and a sister of R.
B. Fulks (see biography for family history).
Mr. and Mrs. Neeley attend the Methodist
Episcopal Church, of which Mrs. Neeley is
an active member. Mr. Neeley is a mem-
ber of the subordinate and encampment
lodges I. O. O. F., the former Ark Lodge,
No. 7, and the latter Mt. Verr.on Lodge, No.
7, and has filled the chairs of both lodges.
They have no family. Mr. Neeley is a Re-
publican in political, but is no office seeker,
having no time to spare from his business.
)HN GEORGE FREY, who has retired
from active business, and living in
Beardstown in a pleasant home, was born
in Wiirtemburg, Germany, March 9, 1827.
He grew up and worked on his father's farm
until twenty-eight years of age. In February,
1854, he took passage on a sailing vessel to
New York city, making the trip in thirty
days. He then settled at Lancaster, New
York, but left that place in six months, and
came to Beardstown, which he has since made
his home, and has been fairly successful in
life. His father, John Frey, died in Ger-
many when eighty years of age. His wife
had died many years before, they both being
members of the German Lutheran Church.
What Mr. Frey possesses he has made by
his own efforts. When he arrived in this city
in 1854, he began as a laborer, and was
variously engaged for two years. In 1856 he
became connected with Mr. Bohlman, and
continued with him four years, until he en-
gaged with Mr. Anton Ruck and continued
there until he retired from active business.
He was married in Lancaster, New York,
to Miss Mary Hoearsch. She was born in
Wiirtemburg, Germany, August 13, 1824.
She was a daughter of Mathias and Sarah
Hoearsch, who lived and died in Wiirtemburg.
They were birthright members in the Luth-
eran Church. She was the only member of
her family, who came to this country, com-
ing on the same vessel that brought her
husband. She died at her home in this city
January 26, 1888, having been a member of
the Fourth Street Church. Mr. and Mrs.
Frey have had four children. Two are living:
William, a turner in this city, and is a success-
ful busi ness man; and Mary, who is house-
keeper for her father. She is a dutiful girl
and an intelligent young woman. Mr. Frey
and family are members of the Fourth Street
Lutheran Church, and he and his sou are
Democrats in politics, good quiet citizens and
upright, straightforward men.
EORGE J. SCHMITT, a retired busi-
ness man living on Sixth street, Beards-
town, was born in Bavaria, Germany,
May 14, 1828. His parents were Casper
and Mary Schmitt, who were born, reared,
married and died in their native country.
They were members of the Catholic Church
and died in middle age.
Our subject was yet a young man when,
in 1854, he came to this country and spent
4S6
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
one year in New York city, working at his
trade of cabinetmaker. After that he jour-
neyed around to many places, seeing the
country, before he settled in Beardstown.
He reached here in 1861, established a furni-
ture business with his brother, Casper
Schmitt, and by good judgment and honest
dealing made money and retired from labor
in 1882. He was married to Miss Mary
Stoner, who was born in JBeardstown, No-
vember 3, 1837. When she was six weeks
old the family moved to Texas, settling in
Montgomery county upon a farm and there
her father died a few years later. His par-
ents had both come from Germany and set-
tled in Cass county, and were among the old-
est settlers of the county. Mrs. Stoner is
still living and makes her home with her
daughter, Mrs. Schinitt. Although nearly
eighty- two years of age she is very bright
and active. Her father was Fred Krohe,
who came to Illinois very early and died
here. Mr. and Mrs. Schmitt have two liv-
ing children, George J., Jr., now in charge
of a drug store, No. 34 Washington street,
Chicago; and Victor, who is connected with
the same house.
QEYTON R. KEITH, a prominent farm-
er of section 29, Missouri township, is
a native of that same township, having
been born here, July 26, 1856. His father,
Peyton A. Keith, was born in Kentucky,
January 15, 1824, was a son of Peyton R.,
who reared a family of the following children :
Isham, James, John, Alexander, Peyton A.,
Mary, Eliza A., America, Susan, Caroline
and Mary J. The grandfather of our sub-
ject lost his wife in Kentucky, and in the fall
of 1837, came to Illinois and passed the
winter of 1837-'38 in Missouri township.
He then rented land in Mt. Sterling town-
ship and later purchased land in the same
place, becoming the owner of a good farm,
where he finally died. His body rests in
Mt. Sterling. His son, father of subject,
was only a boy of thirteen when he came to
Illinois, and continued to live at home dur-
ing his father's life, settling his estate after
his death. He married Mary Moses, a na-
tive of Ohio, born in September, 1830,
daughter of William and Rhoda Moses, pio-
neers of 185—. After his marriage, the fa-
ther settled on section 33, Missouri township,
where he beeame the owner of 320 acres, im-
proving it considerably. He lived here for
many years, dealing in live stock, but the
last fifteen years of his life he was an invalid
and so was unable to carry on the work of
his farm. His death occurred January 12,
1887, but his wife is still living, on the old
homestead. He was a stanch Republican,
but was no office seeker. He lived and died
in the faith of the Christian Church. He
and his good wife had eleven children, as fol-
lows: Peyton; John A., resident of Pea
Ridge township; Joseph D. is on part of the
old homestead ; Francis Marion is on the old
homestead with his mother; Charles I. is
also with his mother; Mary J. is the wife of
John W. Bell, and they are residents of Mis-
souri township; and the other children all
died in childhood.
Peyton, the namesake of his grandfather,
was reared in his native county, where he at-
tended the district schools and learned the
vocation of farming. He remained at home
until his marriage, when he settled on his
present farm, where he owns 100 acres of
fine land and carries on mixed farming.
Mr. Keith was married January 5, 1880,
to Mary E. Bell, daughter of Ira and Emeline
aCHUYLER AND SHOWN COUNTIES.
487
Bell. Mr. and Mrs. Keith have three chil-
dren, Bertie Arthur, William Austin and Ira
Anderson.
Mrs. Keith has nine brothers and sisters,
namely: [sham died in Columbus, Indiana;
James died in Missouri; Alexander, resident
of California; Mary married James Kirk and
died in Iowa, 1891 ; Mary J. married Richard
Bruce and died in Iowa ; Eliza died in Mt.
Sterling; America and Susan, married, are
both deceased ; and Caroline, who married
General II. Roberts and died in Missouri
township.
Mr. Keith is a strong Republican in poli-
tics and always supports the principles of his
party. He is a worthy member of the Christ-
ian Church, and he and his estimable wife
enjoy the respect and esteem of all their fel-
low citizens.
fOHN W. WEBB representative engineer
of the Quincy Railroad, living at Beards-
town, was born in Estill county, Ken-
tucky, January 22, 1858- He was reared
there until twelve years of age, when his par-
ents moved to Daviess county, Missouri, and
settled on a farm. Here he grew up on the
farm with only ordinary school advantages.
His father is Elijah Webb, son of Richard
Webb, of North Carolina. The family came
of old Maryland stock, and Richard was
brought to Kentucky when eight years old by
his parents, who settled on a farm. Here
they died after improving the land to a con-
siderable extent. Here Richard grew up and
married Miss Clemy Tipton, born in Ken-
tucky, in 1804. After their three children
were grown up they removed to Daviess
county, Missouri, and joined their son Elijah.
They both died in this place, the wife in
1872, her husband ten years later. They both
were Baptists. Their son Elijah, born in
1827, was a farmer in Kentucky and followed
that profession all his life. He married Sal-
lie A. Brinegar, born in 1841 in Kentucky.
They now live in Harrison county, Missouri.
Mrs. Webb is a member of the Christian
Church, but Mr. Webb is a member of an-
other organization.
John Webb is one of twelve children, of
whom nine are yet living. He began his
career in the railroad service in 1876 as a
brakeman on the Iowa division of the Quincy
road. He was then living in Iowa. When
he was located at Eldon, Iowa, he was brakes-
man and extra conductor. Later he was a
farmer in DeKalb, Missouri, for two years,
and from there returned to the Qnincy road,
and has been employed by them ever since.
He has gained the confidence of the road by
his faithful service and good habits. He has
been associated with the St. Louis division
since June 30, 1886. He was a conductor
of local and through freight trains and extra
passenger conductor, and only had one wreck.
That occurred in the winter of 1884, when
engine 194 and eleven cars left the track at
Vermont, Illinois. He is a practical man
and has made money at his business.
He was married in Wapello county, Iowa,
to Miss Hattie Smock, who was born in the
same county and was there reared and edu-
cated. She is the daughter of Archibald and
Hannah (More) Smock, natives of Ohio.
They were married near Indianapolis, where
Miss More and her parents had settled when
she was a small child. Mr. Smock followed
his vocation of farming, first in Indiana and
then moved to Iowa, and, settling on a farm
in Wapello county, remained there the rest
of his life with his wife. They were both
488
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS 8,
faithful members of the Baptist Church and
were esteemed by all who knew them.
Mr. and Mrs. Webb have had four children,
two of whom are dead. Those living are:
Maude and Ernest E., two bright little chil-
dren. Mr. and Mrs. Webb are attendants on
the services of the Christian Church, of which
Mrs. Webb is a member. Mr. Webb is a K.
of P., being a member of the Beardstown
Lodge, and he is a Democrat in politics. He
and his wife are worthy citizens and are
greatly liked for their many good qualities.
Mr. Webb is a genial, warm-hearted man,
with hosts of friends, and his good natured
wife is equally esteemed.
S. COIL, editor and publisher of the
Beardstown Enterprise, was born in
Lincoln county, Missouri, October 24,
1860. His father, Jacob Y. Coil, was a na-
tive of Kentucky, came of southern parents,
who were a stout and long-lived people.
Jacob Y. Coil had moved into Missouri after
the birth of one child, became a farmer and
was thus engaged in Lincoln county until his
death in 1873, aged forty-two. He was a
kind man to his family, a good neighbor, a
prominent Mason and a Democrat in politics-
He had offered bis services in 1861, but was
refused on account of disabilities. Mrs.
Jacob Coil's maiden name was Viola Olive
Durough of Ohio, and she is yet living, in
Mexico, Missouri, the mother of ten children,
nine boys and one girl, of whom six are living.
Mr. Coil is the only one of his family in
Illinois. His paper is a forty-eight column
quarto weekly, published in the interests of
the Democratic party. It was started under
its present title in Meredosia by F. W.
Schierbaum & Company, and in 1879 the
plant was moved to Beardstown and con-
tinued under the same title. It was run as a
daily and weekly. Mr. Schierbaum died in
1886 and C. H. Cummings took the paper as
administrator, until Mr. Coil purchased the
property in 1888. He is a practical news-
paper man and has gone through all the ex-
periences from printer's devil to his present
position of editor-in-chief and publisher. He
had many discouragements, but by dint of
hard work lie has been successful in clearing
himself from debt and in running the paper
successfully. The same perseverance which
enabled him to gain a great part of his edu-
cation by lamplight has served him well in
his business. His paper has a good circula-
tion and is ably edited. He is now making it a
paying investment and by his own efforts has
made it the principal Democratic paper of
the county.
He was married in Perry, Pike county,
Illinois, to Miss Dora Brandom of Indiana, in
June, 1880. She came when young to
Quincy, Illinois, with her parents, and her
father now resides in Beardstown. Mr. and
Mrs. Coil have six bright children: May bell
M., Grace, Arthur L., Harry. Bessie L. and
Ruth M.,- — • all at home with their parents.
They attend the Methodist Church. Mr.
Coil has been a delegate to local conventions
as he is a strong man in his party.
RNEST H. BOLLE, now running a suc-
cessful meat market on Second street, was
born in Hesse- Darmstadt, near Hesse-
Cassel, March 26, 1832. He is the son of
John and Keshling Bolle, natives of Hesse,
where they were married and their children
were born. The family set out for the United
States in 1845, landing after five weeks' voy.
8CHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
489
age. They settled in Beardstown in the same
year that they came to the country, and here
the father died when sixty-eight years of age,
and the mother died some time later. They
had both been members of the Lutheran
Church.
Mr. Bolle has resided in Beardstown ever
since he arrived here in 1845. For some
years he was a mechanical engineer for the
Quincy Railroad. In 1885 Mr. Bolle went
into business on his own account and has
been quite successful as a dealer in live stock.
His present business was established in 1879,
under the firm name of Bolle, Ortwine & Co.
He was married in this city to Helena
Nice. She was born in Hesse, Germany, and
there her parents lived and died. She came
with some old friends to this country and
lived in this city until her death. December
5, 1887. She was born in 1833 and was a
good wife and faithful mother, and bore her
husband seven children, five of whom are yet
living: Mary, wife of Henry G. Mohlman;
Lena, wife of Zenas Sexton, a railroad bridge
carpenter now at Galesbnrg; John is a clerk
in the Quincy office in Beardstown, and mar-
ried to Ida French; George and Bertha still
live at home.
[ILLIAM WOOD, a prominent pio-
neer of 1827, resides on section 17,
Huntsville township. He is the son
of Mitchell and Nancy (Skiles) Wood, and
was born in Wayne county, Missouri, March
8, 1824. His mother was born on the 27th
of May, 1802. Her father, William, lived in
Maryland and was the son of John and Lizzie
Skyles. He was married in North Carolina,
and went from there to Jasper county, Ten-
nessee, resided there a few years and then
moved to within forty miles of Nashville.
There he lived until 1817 and then moved to
the Territory of Missouri, remaining there
until 1827, when he came to Schuyler county,
Illinois, and became one of the first settlers
of Rushville township. He resided there
until 1844, when he went to Madison, Iowa,
and remained there with his sons until his
death in 1845. His wife's name was Lydia
Chaddick, of North Carolina, and she also
died in 1845. Mr. Wood's mother was first
married at nineteen years of age, to Mitchell
Wood of Kentucky. They were married in
Missouri, went from there to Arkansas, but
after his death in 1825 she returned to her
parents in Missouri. In 1827 she married
Jonathan Smith. They lived in a log cabin
near Rnshville. At that time Rushville con-
sisted of three log houses. She now resides
with her daughter, Mrs. Teel. During her
married life she dressed her children in home-
spun, and she raised the flax and spun and
wove the cloth out of which they were made.
In 1827 Mr. Wood came with the family
to Illinois and grew to manhood in the vicin-
ity of Rushville. He was raised a farmer
and embraced all the advantages for learning
that was possible in those early days. In
the fall of 1848 he married Hulda Ann Teel
(see sketch of James A. Teel in this book).
After his marriage he continued to live on
the home farm.
In 1853 he crossed the plains to California
and engaged in mining. After an absence
of fourteen months he returned via Isthmus
of Panama and New York city. In 1854 he
purchased eighty acres of his present farm
and settled on same. In August, 1862, he en-
listed in Company F, One Hundred and
Ninteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and
served three years, going through many seri-
ous battles, and was mustered out with the
490
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASH,
rank of Corporal. After the war he resumed
business on his farm and now owns 240 acres
of land and follows stock-raising.
Mr. and Mrs. Wood have seven children:
William H., Ann Elizabeth Wilson, Mitchell
C., Dora Josephine, John R., Calvin Mead
and Ella Alice. Mr. Wood is a Republican
in politics and has been honored with all the
local offices and is a member of Cyclone
Lodge, I. O. O. F.
'ACHARIAH HASH, a widely known
and esteemed pioneer of Cass county,
Illinois, now one of the most prosper-
ous farmers of this section, residing in town-
ship 19, range 9, was born in Green county,
Kentucky, April 6, 1812.
He came of a family of patriots and suc-
cessful agriculturists, many of whom held re-
sponsible positions, in the service of their
country, and a few were noted hunters in pio-
neer days, being unerring marksmen and
skillful trappers. His parents were Philip
and Sarah (Nance) Hash, both natives of
Virginia, who emigrated with their parents
to Kentucky in an early day, when they
themselves were quite young. The paternal
grandparents of the subject of this sketch
were Thomas and Ruth (Sturgeon) Hash,
also natives of the Old Dominion, who spent
their last days in Kentucky. The grand-
father was a brave and efficient soldier in the
Revolutionary war. The Hash family were
of English ancestry, while the Sturgeons
were originally from Ireland. The maternal
grandfather was Zachariah Nance. Grand-
father Nance served all through the Revolu-
tionary war, and was a distinguished soldier.
He drew a pension for his services, drawing
at one time as high as $700. Others of the
family were distinguished soldiers in the old
wars of this country, who sought to defend
their land in her hour of need. The Nances
were mostly mechanics, being skilled in their
various callings, and all lived to an advanced
age. Our subject's parents and paternal
grandparents were pioneers in three different
States, and were hardy and energetic men
and women, inured to hardship and toil. His
father was an extensive traveler in pioneer
days throughout the frontier, and visited
nearly every settlement in the West during
the '80s. He was an old Andrew Jackson
Democrat, and took an active interest in pio-
neer politics. He was for forty years an effi-
cient Justice of the Peace in this section of
Illinois, discharging his duties with judg-
ment and impartiality. He was born Janu-
ary 81, 1790, and died August 5, 1849; his
wife was born October 24, 1791, and died
February 27, 1847. Both expired in south-
western Missouri, whither they had removed
from Illinois. They were the parents of fif-
teen children, six or eight of whom now sur-
vive, as far as known. Some of these are
prominent men in Indiana.
The subject of this sketch worked on his
father's farm in Kentucky and Illinois until
he was married. On account of the new-
ness of the country and his busy life, his
educational advantages were neglected, and
he attended school for the first time when he
was twenty-one years of age. He is essen-
tially a self-made man, and having inherited
a good intellect and robust constitution, has
applied himself with such persistency that he
is now a well informed and progressive man,
interested in everything that pertains to the
welfare of his county, and takes a prominent
part in all movements tending to the advance-
ment of the community.
SG11UYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
491
When be first came to this State it was
wild and sparsely settled, game and wild
fowl abounding in great profusion. He first
located on Government land a short distance
from where he now lives, on which he
erected a log cabin. He lived there only two
or three years, when he sold out and bought
his present farm. He purchased 220 acres,
which is now as fine a farm as can be found
in Sangamon valley, or in the State. He
paid twenty-five per cent interest on money
with which he entered his land, but his in-
dustry and careful management soon enabled
him to pay all indebtedness, and left him a
comfortable income. He raises nourishing
crops, has erected a comfortable farm house,
and has large barns for his grain and stock,
and is numbered among the prosperous farm-
ers of the county.
He was first married, June 26, 1834, to
Miss Polly Dick, who was born in Kentucky,
February 16, 1817, an intelligent and worthy
lady, and a daughter of Peter and Christina
(Shutt) Dick, well known and highly re-
spected people. By this marriage there
were seven children, two of whom survive:
Peter, born May 19, 1853; and Martha, born
January 11, 1856, who married John Plun-
kett, a successful farmer, and they have five
children. Two of our subject's children were
married before their death: Philip, who had
a son and daughter; and Sarah J., married to
Benjamin E. Bowman, left two children, one
of whom, Orpha, was born November 14,
1872, and has been at the home of the snbject
of this sketch ever since her birth. Mr.
Hash's first wife died where he now lives,
June 22, 1857, leaving her family and many
friends to mourn her loss.
On April 3, 1862, Mr. Hash was again
married, chosing for his second wife Miss
Bowman, an estimable lady, who was bora in
Rutherford county, Tennesssee, March 17,
1825, Her parents were Daniel and Katie
(Horn) Bowman, natives of Maryland and
Tennessee, respectively. They were the par-
ents of ten children, of whom, as far as known,
only four are now living. The Bowmans
were originally from Germany. Grandfather,
Daniel Bowman, was an old Revolutionary
soldier, and drew a liberal pension for his
services. Most of Mrs. Hash's people are
successful farmers.
Mr. Hash, like all of his people before him,
is an Andrew Jackson Democrat, and al-
though not actively engaged in political mat-
ters, takes an interest in all public affairs of
importance. He is more of a home man,
and his private affairs absorb most of his at-
tention.
He and his wife have been earnest and use-
ful members of the Christian Church for
many years.
Whatever success in life has been obtained
by Mr. Hash, is entirely due to his own ex-
ertions; and many a poor young man, just
starting in life, would do well to read his
history, and adopt the methods pursued by
the subject of the sketch. These methods
are unfailing, and are persistent industry and
careful economy, supplemented by intelli-
gence and uprightness of character.
HARLES M. DUNLAP, who was for
many years engaged in the lumber
buusiness in Mt. Sterling, was born in
Lexington, Fayette county, Kentucky, in 1836.
His father, Rev Latin W. Dunlap was bom in
New Jersey and went from there to Kentucky
when quite young. He was converted in his
youthful days and joined the Baptist Church,
but later identified himself with the Pros-
492
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Off CA88,
byterian Church. He came to Illinois in
1837, landing at La Grange and then located
in Mt. Sterling, and here organized the first
Presbyterian Church in the county and was
its pastor tor many years. He was a resident
of this place almost continuously from 1837
until he died in 1889, aged eighty-seven
years. His wife's name was Rebecca M. Bell,
born in Lexington, Kentucky, and died at
the age of fifty-four.
Charles Dunlap was but one year old when
he came to Mt. Sterling with his parents.
He received his education in the public
schools of this city, and when he had reached
manhood's estate he engaged in the lumber
business and so continued for twenty years.
For about fifteen years of this time he was
connected with F. "W. Rottger. In 18 — he
sold out his lumberyard to his partner and
moved to the farm which he now occupies.
This contains 400 acres, located one and one
half miles east of the courthouse. The build-
ings which he has erected compare favorably
with the best in the county.
For his wife he married Helen McCreery,
born in Rushville, Schuyle^ county, daughter
of James and Hannah McCreery. Mr. and
Mrs. Dunlap have four children: Helen,
George, Latin and Annie. He is a Demo-
crat and a member of Unity Lodge, I. O. O. F.
[INGLETON G. WRIGHT is numbered
among the honored pioneers who have
passed away. He was born in Hardin
county, Kentucky, January 12, 1816, and died
in Huntsville township, February 24, 1886.
He has four brothers, Richard, James,
Edmund and William. He came to Illinois
on horseback in 1836 and when he arrived in
Schuyler county his saddle horse constituted
his entire property. He worked as a farm
hand for William McKee, near Rushville, and
while thus engaged made the acquaintance of
Sarah E. Graham, who afterward became his
wife. She was born in Kentucky, a daughter
of Fergus and Martha (Tyree) Graham, who
settled in Schuyler county in an early day.
About two years later Mr. Wright settled
on section 17, Huutsville, where he purchased
320 acres of land. He was industrious and
observed due economy, and thus soon paid for
his land and had money to loan. He carried
on stock-raising in addition to his farming.
He was an active man until 1880, when he
was taken sick with softening of the brain,
which caused his death six years later.
He was a Democrat in politics and a warm
friend of public schools, being elected as
School Trustee several terms. He donated
the land occupied by the schoolhouse in the
district.
Mrs. Wright still survives her husband
and still resides on the old homestead.
Mr. and Mrs. Wright had four children:
Frances, the wife of William Wood, Jr.;
Martha and Columbia, who carry on the home
farm ; and Alice, the wife of R. Ackley.
When Mr. Wright's health failed the work of
carrying on the farm devolved on his two
daughters, Martha and Columbia, as did the
other business. These two girls have carried
on the work of the farm successfully, not
only superintending the work but also doing
much of the outdoor labor themselves.
When their father died the two girls pur-
chased the interest of the others and now
owe the farm with the exception of their
mother's dowry. Martha attended college
at Abingdon, Illinois, and taught school for
thirteen terms. She was a close student,
SCHUYLER AND SHOWN COUNTIES.
493
rising at four in the morning in order to
study. She is very systematic in all her
work. The two are always willing to exert,
their influence for the Democratic party.
I1LLIAM P. GAUT, the subject of
this notice, was born in Jefferson
county, Tennessee, April 16, 1862.
His father was .Robert Gaut, born in the
same place, in 1800, and his father, the
grandfather of our subject, was George Gaut,
born in Pennsylvania, who went to Tennes-
see when a young man. This family is of
Huguenot origin. He had by one wife thir-
teen children, of whom ten grew to adult age.
One of these, James Gaut, lived to the age of
ninety-seven years, and the average of these
ten were over eighty, and the one still living,
George Gaut, is on the old home farm. The
father of our present subject was reared to
farm life and has good common schooling.
He married Mary P, Woods in Tennessee,
who was born there in 1799. She was of a
family of ten children: James, Mary P.,
Lutetia, John C., Martha J., W. P., E. Flora,
Mary E., Sarah P. and Julia Ann M., the
last two twins. Some of these children dipd
in infancy. Of the six that came to adult age,
five are still livipg. Th.e mother of this
family died in her forty-seventh year and the
father lived nineteen years a widower. He
died in 1864, in his sixty- fifth year, still
mourning his wife.
William P. (jfaut is a photographer. At
the age of seventeen years he went to work
in a blast furnace in Monroe county where
he was reared and at this place he worked
for six years at low wages. He had the
promise of $20 a month, but at that
time fifty cents a day was average wages
88
when six cords of wood, pine and chestnut,
could be bought for a dollar. He next went
to work'at the trade of carpenter and mill-
wright and for six years this claimed his at-
tention. From 1861 to 1886 he became a
photographer, and he worked at this through
Knoxville, Tennessee, and New Orleans.
Our subject was married in Versailles, in
1866, to Miss Elizabeth E. Reily, of Davidson
county, North Carolina, who was born there
December 21, 1840. She was the daughter
of Solomon and Polly (Williams) Reily, both
natives of North Carolina. She came to
Illinois in 1850 with her mother, in a cov.
ered wagon, emigrant style, and were four
weeks making the trip. They camped out
all but two nights, when the weather was
stormy. She was an only child and lived
with her mother until her marriage.
After marriage Mr. and Mrs. Gaut lived
in Mount Sterling for a few months and
then moved to Marietta, Georgia, where they
remained about nine years when they re-
turned to Mount Sterling and Mr. Gaut con-
tinued the old business which he had started
during the war. They bought their present
farm of 611 acres, all bottom land except
eighty acres, where they reside on the Bluffs,
paying $8,000 for it. They have buried two
sons and two daughters, all in infancy, but
have four of the finest boys left that can be
found in the township. K. Eugene is twen-
ty-one, James B. is nineteen, Charles W. is
fourteen and George Lea is a bright lad of
ten years. All are at home in the sense of
not having thought of any separate home;
Eugene is attending college at the State Uni-
versity at Champaign; and James B. is fol-
lowing his fancy by learning the carpenter's
trade.
Mr. Gaut makes a special crop of his corn,
and raises many hogs. He has his hill land
494
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
for a fruit farm and has it planted mostly in
apples and peaches. The native products of
uplands are pawpaws and of the .bottoms
are pecans. He expects his land to yield
from fifty to 100 bushels of corn to the acre.
Mr. Gaut is an ancient Odd Fellow and is
a Royal Arch Mason and is a Democrat in
politics. He was in the Confederate army
from 1861 to 1863, and although he was
not wounded he lost his health. He was
made a prisoner at Knoxville. He has voted
for every President since 1861 and has been
active in his party.
The aged mother of Mr. Gaut lives with
him and is strong and vigorous still.
[ILLIAM H. McCREERY is a resi-
dent of Huntsvijle township, residing
on section 6, having settled here in
1834. His father, William McCreery, was
born in Culpeper county, Virginia, March
1, 1802, being a son of John McCreery, who
was also a native of Virginia a^nd a planter.
He married Sarah Rousseau, of French an-
cestry. William McCreery, Sr., was reared
on a farm and when seven years of acre, the
family removed to Kentucky, where he grew
to manhood in Pulaski county. Here he
entered the ministry of the Methodist Epis-
copal Church as an itinerant preacher.
His work was in Kentucky and Tennessee.
In 1827 he preached in Orange county, In-
diana. From there, in 1829, he went to Mis-
souri and stayed for a few years, and an account
of his work in this State may be found at
length in Dr. McNally's History of Method-
ism in Missouri. In 1832, in Cape Girar-
deau county, Missouri, he married Harriet
E. Long, and two years later they came to
Rushville, Schuyler county, Illinois. The
next year they settled on section 6, Hunts-
ville township, where Mr. McCreery had
purchased a claim August, 1834, and here he
resided until his death, November 2, 1884.
He was a local preacher and was assigned a
circuit in 1848, the Columbus circuit, Adams
county. He continued his religious work
until within a few weeks of his death. His
wife died two days before her husband. He
died within two hours after returning from
her funeral. Mr. McCreery was a good man
and was greatly opposed to slavery, refusing
to receive any portion of them from his fath-
er's estate. He was an ardent Whig and Re-
publican in politics. They had thirteen
children, nine of whom grew up to manhood,
namely: James N. and John F., twins: the
former was drowned in the Missouri river
while working on the bridge at Kansas City;
the latter died in Taylor county, Iowa; Wil-
liam H.; Sarah married Robert Ellis and re-
sides at Saline county, Missouri; Eliza mar-
ried William Kirk and resides in Lincoln
county, Washington; Benjamin B. is a mer-
chant and resides in Augusta, Illinois; Henry
C. is also a merchant and resides in Illinois;
Edward M. resides in Henry county, and Mary
married to Quincy Allphin and residing near
Andover, Kansas.
Our subject was born in Cape Griardeau
county, Missouri, June, 1834, and was only
six months old when the family settled in
Illinois. He was reared on the farm and at-
tended the country schools two or three miles
distant from his home until he was twenty-
one. He then attended Rode River seminary
one year. He then rented a farm from his
father and in 1863 -settled where he now re-
sides, and in 1868 became the owner of 160
acres of land. He now owns 333 acres of
land and follows stock-raising. He is a good
Republican and has always supported the
SCtlUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
495
straight ticket. He is interested in all matters
tending to improve the welfare of the county
or township. He has rnn for several of the
local offices, hut, owing to the Republican
party being in the minority, he has been de-
feated. He is a charter member of the Hunts-
ville Lodge, No. 465, A. F. and A. M., and
has been Master of the same lodge.
He was married in 1881 to Rachel Baxter,
daughter of James and Elizabeth (Cooper)
Baxter of Ohio. The Baxter family came to
Schuyler county in June, 1857, and settled
in Huntsville. Mr. and Mrs. McCreeryhave
had ten children, six grown up, namely: Will-
iam Morris, for fourteen months-in the cen-
sus office at Washington, is now in Augusta,
Illinois; Frank M. and Fred H., twins, the
former at home and the latter dealing in im-
plements in Augusta, Illinois; Harry, Ralph
and Mary are at home. Mr. and Mrs. Mc-
Creery are members of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church, in which they are earnest work-
ers.
[DWARD HAGENER, one of the fir.m
of Hagener & Schu,man, dealers in
wines a.nd liquors, located at the corner
of State and Main streets, Beardstown, was
born here in 1855,, and waa reared and educated
in this same city, and he has always resided
here. He is the younger of three sons, all of
wh.om are excellent business men. Their
father, William Hagener, now deceased, was
for many years prominent in the history of
Beardstown. He was a man liked and re-
spected by every one. He was a Republican
in politics, and a member of the Lutheran
Church. His wife yet living, aged seventy-
three years, is one of the best old ladies in
the city.
Mr. Hagener established a wood and coal
yard in 1877. He also dealt in farm imple-
ments, and also managed a farm for some
time in Hitchcock county, Nebraska, and
spent some time in Colorado and California.
His present business was established in Feb.
ruary, 1890.
He was married in this city lirst to Miss
Carrie Nieman. She was born in this city,
and died at her home in this city, when only
twenty-three years of age. She left one
child, John, now a clerk for his grandfather,
Fred Nieman. Mr. Hagener was married a
second time, in St. Louis, Missouri, to Miss
Mollie Harmon, January 29, 1889. She was
born and reared in Astoria, and she is an
excellent housekeeper and the mother of two
children, George E. and Pearl. Mr. and Mrs,
Hagener attend the Lutheran Church, and
Mr. Hagener is a member of the I. O. O. F.,
Arch Lodge, No. 16j. It is an old and very
strong lodge. He has been, a publicTspirited
man, and a worker for everything of value
for his ci$y ar\d county. He takes no par-
ticular part in politics, but votes the Repub-
lican ticket.
fOSEPH J. SMITH, of section 8, Pea
Ridge township, is a native of North
Carolina, having been born in that State,
Chatham county, February 25, 1843. His
father, Relliff Smith, was also born in the
same county, December 4, 1810, being a son
of Jonah and Patsy Smith. He married
Nancy Dorsett, came to Illinois in 1851,
and settling in North East township, Adams
county, where he purchased land, becoming
the owner of 180 acres of good land. He
later removed to a farm near Clayton, and
resided there until 1890; then as he had sold
496
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
his farm to our subject, he began to make
his home with his son, and has continued
with him ever since. His wife died in 1875.
They had three children.
Joseph was reared on a farm, and resided
at home until he grew to manhood. He was
married in the fall of 1861, to Elizabeth May,
daughter of Benjamin May. She was a native
of North Carolina. Mr. May and his wife,
Mary (Harris) May, were natives of the same
State as their daughter, Mrs. Smith. They
came to Illinois in the fall of 1846, settling,
first in Mt. Sterling, where the father rented
land for three years. He then removed to
Pea Ridge township, where he first rented
land and then purchased ninety acres in sec-
tion 16, which was partially improved. Here
he has since resided, becoming the owner of
280 acres of land. He still owns 150 acres.
He dates his birth back to 1818. He had
ten children, eight of whom grew up.
Joseph resided at home after his marriage
until the death of his mother. In the fall of
1889, he removed to Brown county, and pur-
chased his present farm of 159 acres of land,
fifteen acres of this is planted with as fine an
orchard as is in this part of the State. This
farm is a very good one in every way, as it
ought to be, as Mr. Smith has always followed
farming, and so ought to know how to de-
velop his land. He deals largely in the cult-
ure of small fruits and has been very suc-
cessful with them.
Mr. Smith's father was a blacksmith by
trade, and pursued his trade in his native
State. This work had no attraction for Jo-
seph, however, and so he turned his atten-
tion to farming, with very satisfactory re-
sults, as his nice farm with the two sets of
farm buildings testifies.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith have no children. Mr.
Smith is a Republican, but like his father
before him he has refused any office. He
and his wife are members of the Presbyterian
Church, of Clayton. They are very estima-
ble people, and enjoy the respect of the whole
community.
fOHN BAUJAN, deceased, who died at
his home at Beardstown, July 4, 1889, at
the age of sixty-nine years, was born
in Siegberg, Germany, April 6, 1820. He
came of pure German stock and had grown
up to the trade of stone and brick mason. He
left Antwerp with two of his fellow towns-
men, William and Philip Frisbaugh, in the
spring of 1849. They lauded in New Orleans
and came up the river in one of the old river
boats to St. Louis. The cholera was raging
there at this time and he came on to Arenz-
ville, Cass county, Illinois, and was engaged
there for some years at his trade of making
brick, building several houses at that place.
He then lived one year on a farm three miles
from Arenzville, and in 1856 came to Beards-
town and made this place his home until his
death. He followed his trade and later he
with Philip Frisbaugh, put up a sawmill
and ran it two years. After that, with John
Sclmltz, he purchased the gristmill at this
place under the firm name of Baujan &
Sclniltz. They did a very large and success-
ful business here. At his death the mill in-
terest went to his twosons, Louis and Edward.
Mr. Baujan was a good, upright man and one
of the city's best and most successful citizens.
He was a Democrat in politics and a Roman
Catholic in religion. He was an Alderman
of Beardstown city and served in that capacity
in a faithful manner.
He was married in 1852, to Catharine Yock
of Wurtemburg, Germany, born September
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
497
10, 1828. She was the daughter of Jacob
and Christina (Trouth) Yock, who lived and
died at Wiirtemburg. They were members of
the Lutheran Church and were worthy, hard-
working people. Mrs. Baujan came of a large
family, who now reside here. She has been
a true, good wife and mother, and is a much
respected lady of this county and a most con-
sistent member of the Lutheran Church.
Mr. and Mrs. Baujan had eight children, one,
Philipena,died young. Those living are: John
of the grocery firm of Baujan Brothers, on
Fourth street, this city; Rosa, wife of John
Schnltz, a miller of this city; Henry, who is
a liveryman and blacksmith; Kate, wife of
Charles Rupple, with his father, Henry Rup-
ple, in the shoe business; Louis and Edward,
of the firm of Baujan Brothers, millers; and
Otto, of the firm of Baujan Brothers, grocery
merchants.
fAMES L. DE WITT, a son of the Rev.
James De Witt, whose biography ap-
pears on another page of this history,
was born in Rushville township, Schuyler
county, Illinois, April 30, 1845. He remained
at home and led the life which usually falls
to the pioneer farmer's son, until twenty-five
years of age, when he was united in marriage
to Miss Sarah F. Ross, who was born in this
township and county, October 6, 1850. Her
parents, Talbart and Catharine (Snyder) Ross,
were natives of Kentucky and Virginia
respectively. The father emigrated to Illi-
nois about the year 1830, and died here at
the age of forty-five years ; he purchased land
and left one of the finest farms in this
locality. His wife was a native of the Shen-
andoah valley, and died in Adams county,
Illinois, at the age of fifty-six years. They
had born to them a family of nine children,
eight of whom are living. In his political
opinions Mr. Ross affiliated with the Demo-
cratic party until 1844; he then united with
the Whigs, to whom he gave his support un-
til 1856; he then cast his suffrage with the
Republican party. He and his wife belonged
to the Methodist Episcopal Church, and were
members of the Rev. James De Witt's con-
gregation, in Littleton township; they were
zealous workers in the Sabbath-school, and
were among the pioneers in establishing and
keeping up organizations.
Mr. De Witt has been a citizen of this
community all his life. He has represented
the people in the various local offices; has
been town Clerk. Justice of the Peace, and
Collector, rendering entire satisfaction in his
methods of conducting the business of these
offices; it should not be omitted that he has
filled the position of Supervisor three terms,
giving the same faithful service that has
characterized his transaction of business,
both public and private. Mr. and Mrs. De
Witt are the parents of two children: Jessie
R. was born February 26, 1875; Clyde L.
was born January 1, 1882.
'HOMAS J. CHALFANT, a well-known
and influential citizen of Beardstown?
Illinois, was born in West Virginia in
1823. His parents, William and Helen
(Adams) Chalfant, were natives of Pennsyl-
vania. Here they were reared and were
married, after which they moved into West
Virginia, and Mr. Chalfant followed his trade
of ship carpenter until his death, which
occurred when he was sixty-five years old.
His wife had died previously, in 1832, leaving
six children, three of whom are yet living.
498
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Thomas Chalfant is the only one of the
family in this State. He came to the State
when but twelve years of age, with a family
by -the name of Clark. He had lived with
this family after the death of his mother.
He assisted in farming until he was twenty-
four, and then learned the trade of machine
carpenter and pattern-maker, and after learn-
ing was three years in a foundry. At last
he went to work on his own account, and
started to making wagons. For years he
made a greater number of the wagons than
were made in the whole surrounding country,
but in time he was obliged to give way to the
larger manufactories, and he then did repair-
ing until six years ago, when he turned the
business over to his son Walter, who now
carries on the business with his partner, Mr.
Doesser. Mr. Chalfant has lived in the town
of Beardstown so long that he* has seen it
change from a wilderness to the growing,
prosperous place it now is. He has lived
here ever since coming to the State, with the
exception of a trip he took in 1859. He
started in that year for Pike's Peak, but be-
came discouraged and returned home. Beards-
town was the chief town for conveying goods
from St. Louis to inland places, and oxen
were used to draw the wagons from one place
to the other, and this slow and laborious
mode of travel was continued some time after
Mr. Chalfant came to the State.
He was married in Beardstown, to Miss
Anna E. Norton, of Wheeling, West Vir-
ginia, and the daughter of Thomas P. Nor-
ton, a worthy pioneer of Illinois. He started
the first store and hardware shop of Beards-
town. Two of their children are deceased.
Their living children are: Helen, now Mrs.
David B. Tread way, of Butler county, Ne-
braska; Matilda, now Mrs. William Danner,
of Kansas; Walter S., who carries on his
lather's old business, married Louisa Looken,
and resides in Beardstown; Gertrude, now
Mrs. James McClure; Anna, now Mrs. Edwin
Stribbs, of Beardstown.
Mr. Chalfant is one of Beardstown's most
honored and respected men. He has worked
his way up from a poor boy to the position
he now enjoys. He has retired from busi-
ness, and is now reaping the benefits of his
years of toil and labor.
fEPTHA PLASTER, an esteemed pioneer
of Cass county, Illinois, for four years
Associate Justice, and a prominent citi-
zen of Chandlerville, was born in Robinsou
county, Tennessee, March 19, 1827.
His parents, Thomas and Elizabeth (Batts)
Plaster, were also natives of Tennessee, the
families on both sides being prominent in the
State, many members holding responsible
public offices. Thomas and Mary Plaster,
the paternal grandparents, were natives of
North Carolina, who accompanied their son
to Illinois in an early day. The grandfather
was a devout and able Baptist minister, who,
besides successfully conducting a farm,
preached throughout Cass and adjacent
counties, doing much good in the dissemina-
tion of moral and religious knowledge. No
opportunity escaped him of enlightening the
people in regard to their obligations, and
urging upon them a conscientious fulfillment
of their duties. On one occasion, when the
subject of this sketch and his grandfather
were on their way to the mill, the old gentle-
man, seeing a group of people, addressed
them in an impressive discourse, after which
he and his grandson resumed their journey.
The grandparents lived to a very old age, and
were the recipients of wide- spread and uni-
8CHUTLER AND SHOWN COUNTIES.
499
versal esteem. The maternal grandparents,
Jeremiah Batts and wife, were life-long and
respected residents of Tennessee, where they
died at an advanced age greatly mourned by a
large circle of friends. The father of the sub-
ject of this sketch grew to manhood in his
native State of Tennessee, and was there mar-
ried. A few years after marriage, in the
spring of 1828, leaving his family in Ten-
nessee, he came alone to Illinois, and located
Government land. In the fall of the same
year, he returned after his family, who, with
his parents, accompanied him on his removal
to the Prairie State. The journey was made
overland with an ox team and cart, several
weeks being consumed on the way. Once,
their cart broke down, and they were obliged
to trade a horse for a wagon with which to
proceed. On their arrival in Illinois, the
grandfather settled on Government land in
Morgan county, which then embraced what
is now Cass county, the latter having been
formed out of Morgan county territory in
1835. The father continued to live on rented
land for a year or two, when he removed to
his own farm. For twelve or fourteen years,
he and his family occupied a little log cabin.
This was subsequently replaced by a better
log and frame house, which, in 1853, gave
place to a substantial farm residence. His
father purchased all his early supplies in
Beardstown, which then boasted of but one
log store. The country abounded in wild
game, such as deer, squirrel, rabbit, tur-
key, prairie chicken, etc., which, supple-
mented by the products of the farm, formed
the diet of the frontiersman. Thus, industri-
ously and happily, the parents passed their
lives on the old homestead, which they had
reclaimed from the wilderness. It was in
this home, made sacred by many ties, that
the beloved mother expired at the age of
fifty-five years. The father survived her but
a short time, dying in 1858, aged fifty-six, as
if unable to endure separation from his
life-long companion. This worthy couple
had nine children, three of whom survive:
the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Richard M.
Johnson, living in Chandlerville precinct,
Cass county, Illinois; and Mrs. Elizabeth
Layman, residing in Lincoln, Logan county,
same State.
Jeptha Plaster, whose name heads this
memoir, spent his early days on the old
homestead, and received his education at a
subscription school and from private instruc-
tion at his teachers home. In those days, it
was customary for the teacher to board around
in the various families of the neighborhood,
each person Subscribing toward the support
of the school, according to the number of
children sent. Our subject's father agreed
to send two pupils, but usually sent and paid
for three.
When twenty-one years of age, Mr. Plaster
rented land from his father, which he farmed
until 1852, at which time, induced by the
gold excitement in California, he went over-
land to that State, where he spent a year and
a half prospecting and mining. He then
returned to his old home, and worked on his
father's farm.
On October 14, 1858, he married Miss
Elizabeth Johnson, an estimable lady, and a
native of Morgan, now Cass, county, where
she was born March 15, 1838. She was a
daughter of John and Rosanna (Adkins)
Johnson, both natives of Tennessee, who
were early settlers and esteemed residents of
this section of Illinois.
Mr. Plaster continued to fellow agricultural
pursuits until 1880, when he bought his
valuable city property, on which he erected
his present comfortable residence, and retired
500
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
from farm life. His father left at his death
about 1,000 acres of land, of which Mr. Plas-
ter now owns about 600 acres, a good share
of which he bought.
Coming of a family of lifetime Democrats,
Mr. Plaster has followed in their footsteps,
casting his first vote in 1848 for Lewis
Cass and William O. Butler for president and
vice-president. His constituents have em-
phasized their appreciation of his abilty and
worth by electing him Associated Justice of
Cass county in 1869. He is also a member
of the School Board, his election to the latter
position having been non-partisan and un-
sought, although he appreciates the honor.
Such unanimous endorsement of Judge
Plaster's worth renders further remarks on
the subject not only unnecessary but imper-
tinent. He has brought to his office a varied
and extended experience, unusual acumen,
and sustained powers of thought and reason
as well as a reputation above reproach, to-
gether with a kindly disposition, which can
sympathize while condemning, thus winning
the hearts of his fellow-men.
IAPTAIN ROBERT E. WILLIAMS,
Postmaster and druggist, of Camden,
has been one of the most prominent of
its residents since 1850. He was born in
Montgomery county, Kentucky, April 14,
1829, being a son of Robert P. and Christina
A. (Urquhart) Williams, both natives of
Kentucky. The family came to Illinois in
1830, and first settled in Hancock county,
but soon removed to Quincy. Robert Will-
iams was a lawyer and practiced law the re-
mainder of his life at Quincy. He died in
1840. He was an ardent Whig, and held
local offices. He was also a member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, being an earnest
worker. When he died he was only thirty-
five years old. His wife died in 1833, aged
thirty years. They had three children, of
whom Robert is the only surviving member.
The father of Robert P. was John, and he
married Amelia Gill. They came to Illinois,
and died in Pike county. They had a large
family of twelve children which they raised.
They were widely known and respected.
Robert E. received a fair education, and
then clerked in several stores until he came
to Schuyler. county in 1850 and engaged in
farming, in Birmingham township, where he
purchased 340 acres of land. Three years
later he removed to Rushville and engaged
in saddlery and harness, continuing in the
same nearly twenty years, and was also en-
gaged in the drug trade. In 1879 he came
to Camden, and has since represented the
drug trade in Camden.
In the time of his country's need he
enlisted in Company K, One Hundred and
Thirty-seventh Illinois Volunteers, going as
Captain. They were stationed at Memphis.
Captain Williams raised this company and
served 100 days, the time of the enlistment.
On his return he assisted in raising Company
K, One Hundred and Fifty-first Illinois Vol-
unteer Infantry, of which he was made First
Lieutenant. They were ordered to Nashville,
and from there to join Sherman in Georgia,
at Columbus. Here the company was mus-
tered out of service.
In the cyclone of 1887 Mr. Williams lost
his building and a fine stock of goods. He
was caught up and lodged in the branches of
an apple tree, some distance from where he
was.
He was married in 1851, to Mary E. Baker,
born in Missouri, a daughter of George Baker.
She died in Rushville in 1877, leaving one
SOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
501
son, Emory, now with his father. In 1879
Captain Williams was married to Nancy
Allen, who was born in Ohio. They have
two children, Ellen M. and Myrtle A.
He is a Republican in politics, and has
been one since the formation of the party,
and has held the position of Postmaster since
1880, with the exception of about ten months
during the Cleveland administration. He is
a member of Rushville Lodge, No. 9, A. F.
& A. M., and Royal Arch and Chapter, at the
same place. He was Master of the lodge two
terms, and has held many of the minor offices.
He is now Secretary of the lodge. He and
his wife are worthy members of society,
and are highly esteemed by all who know
them.
IEORGE EDWARD SNYDER, a
prominent farmer and respected citizen
of section 15, Buena Vista township,
Schuyler county, Illinois, was born in the
game section on which he now resides, the
date of which event was October 7, 1836. His
parents were Jacob and Margaret (Hughes)
Snyder, natives of Virginia, who located in
Schuyler county, October 5, 1835. His father
was born August 9, 1798, and died Septem-
ber 28, 1865, aged sixty-seven years. His
mother was born March 23, 1798, and died
November 7, 1849, aged fifty-one years. She
was a woman of many admirable traits of
character, much beloved, and lamented by
her family and friends. His parents were
married February 10, 1822, and located in
Schuyler county, Illinois, October 5, 1835.
They had four children: John W., born in
Frederick county, Virginia, June 4, 1823;
James W., born June 14, 1830, now residing
on a farm near Hamilton, Illinois; Joseph W.,
born July 9, 1833, resides in Littleton town-
ship, same State; and the subject of our
sketch.
Our subject was reared on a farm, and at-
tended the district schools. He lived at home
and assisted on the farm, until he was mar-
ried, on October 25, 1859, after which he
farmed for himself. He married Margaret
McCreary, daughter of Robert and Fannie
McCreary. After his marriage, he rented
land in Buena Vista township, on which he
remained for two years, and then purchased
320 acres in Iluntsville township, where he
lived until the death of his father, in 1865,
when he sold his farm and returned to the old
homestead, where he has since resided. He
owns 162 acres of land and has good improve-
ments. Besides agriculture, he deals largely
in live-stock, in which he is very successful.
His wife died March 16, 1877. She was a
woman of ability and was much lamented by
her family and friends. She left six children:
Roland M., who was born September 9, 1862,
now a farmer of Buena Vista township;
Charles died at the age of seven years, four
months and twenty-seven days; Florence was
born April 10, 1867, and married P. Bartlow,
now residing in Littleton township; Fannie
was born August 8, 1870; Dwight C. was
born May 27, 1874; and Carl C. was born
September 14, 1876.
Our subject married a second time Sep-
tember 26, 1877, his choice being Mrs. Eva
Ann Boyles, nee Krieole. She was born in
Clarion county, Pennsylvania, March 16,
1845. Her parents were David and Mary
Krieole, both natives of Pennsylvania, who re-
moved to Ohio about 1846, locating in Benton
county. Here their daughter, Eva A.nn,
married John H. Boyles, October 6, 1861,
who in 1869 removed to Illinois, locating in
Augusta, Hancock county, later removing to
502
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CMS,
Schuyler county, where he died September
19, 1873. He was a soldier in the Civil war,
a member of Company D, Ninetieth Ohio,
and served for three years, dying from the ef-
fects of disease contracted during his service.
He left five children: Mary E., born Novem-
ber 2, 1862, who died aged sixteen years and
three months; Martha Ann, wife of William
Krieole, resides in Macomb, Illinois; Nora J.
was born April 9, 1868, and died in 1873;
Daniel H. was born March 12, 1870, now re-
siding in Littleton township; Viola M. was
born December 16, 1872, and died in May,
1874.
Mr. and Mrs. Snyder have two children:
Lee Edwin, who was born January 29, 1878,
and Eva Lena, born J.nne 22, 1882.
Politically, Mr. Snyder affiliates with the
Democratic party, and has been honored by
his constituents by an election to a member-
ship of the School Board, in which capacity he
has served for twenty-one years, and has also
served as Road Commissioner for a period of
three years.
Mr. and Mrs. Snyder belong to the
Methodist Episcopal Church, of which they
are respected members.
Upright in his dealings, of high morality,
and great industry, he has accumulated a
comfortable supply of this world's goods, and
what is best of all, enjoys in addition thereto
the hearty good-will of his fellow citizens.
fOHN P. MURPHY, of the firm of
Murphy & Co., proprietors of the Cam-
den Roller Mills, at Camden, Illinois, has
been a resident of Schuyler county since
1886, born in East Tennessee, August 18,
1833, being a son of William L. and Matilda
(Hill) Murphy, natives of Virginia and
North Carolina. William's father was a na-
tive of Scotland and came to the United
States, settling in Virginia. He was a mer-
chant of Richmond, Virginia. William,
born in 1805, went to Sullivan county, Ten-
nessee, when a young man, and there mar-
ried, and still resides there, a farmer. His
wife is deceased. They had nine children:
Preston W., John, Robert E., William B.,
David W., James J., Martha Josephine,
Mary and Caroline.
John was reared on a farm and received a
limited education. When he grew up he
learned the trade of a blacksmith. When
the war broke out he was exempted from
serving, although he was conscripted. He
worked for the Confederate Government at
his trade at Knoxville. When Burnside
captured the city John remained with the
Union forces. In March, 1864, he engaged
as engineer in a mill. In 1868 he returned
to East Tennessee and worked as engineer
for four years. In 1872, he returned to
Brown county and continued his trade until
1886, when he came to Camden and pur-
chased the Camden Roller Mills. He made
many improvements, putting in the newest
machinery, and has made it one of the finest
mills of its kind in the vicinity. He has a
flour, feed and exchange at Mount Sterling.
He was married to Flora Gault, who was
born in East Tennessee, a daughter of Robert
Gault. She had one child, deceased. She
died at Knoxville, Tennessee. Mr. Murphy
was married at Mount Sterling, toMivina M.
Black, daughter of Judge Samuel Black. He
is a Democrat in politics, but takes very little
interest in such matters. Mr. and Mrs.
Murphy are members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church. Mr. Murphy is a mem-
ber of the Hardin Lodge, A. F. & A. M.,
No. 44, and also Chaplain of the R. A. M.,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
503
at Mount Sterling, of which he was a promi-
nent member for many years. He is also
a member of Unity Lodge, No. 310, I. O.
O. F., and has passed all the chairs in the
same.
|EV. WILLIAM WEIGAND in charge
of St. Alexis' Catholic Church, Beards-
town, was born in Zanesville, Ohio, April
12, 1852. He was reared in Brown county,
Illinois, where his parents moved when he
was a child. His parents were John and
Elizabeth (Leisen) Weigand, natives of Hesse-
Darmstadt, Germany. The father was a
soldier in the regular German army and he
came to the United States after his discharge
and married his wife in Baltimore, where she
had lived after coming to America with her
parents. Mr. and Mrs. Weigand settled in
Philadelphia and afterward moved to Zanes-
vjlle, Ohio, and from there to Brown county,
Illinois, in 1864, and settled on a farm.
Farming was the vocation of Mr. Weigand.
He died soon after coming to Illinois when
he was fifty-four years of age. His wife is
still living, aged seventy-six years, and is
the housekeeper for her son, the subject of
this notice. She has eight children, forty-
eight grandchildren and twenty-two great-
grandchildren. The entire family are good
Catholics and are successful in whatever pro-
fession they have adopted, making hosts of
friends.
Mr Weigand was thirteen years old when
he was sent to St. Francis College, Milwaukee,
Wisconsin. Later he was sent to St. Joseph
College and finished his course at a college
in Ohio. The church at Beardstown is the
first charge he has had since he graduated in
the spring of 1878. He was ordained by the
Right Rev. Father P. J. Baiters, now de-
ceased, then of Alton, Illinois. The church
has grown under Father Weigand in a won-
derful degree. When he came there four-
teen years ago he found the church bending
under the weight of a heavy debt. He has
not only cleared off the debt, but has recently
finished a new church edifice that is one of
the finest buildings in the county. The cor-
ner stone was laid July 7, 1889. It is of
brick and all the appointments, both inside
and out, are of the most beautiful design.
The altar furnishings are in keeping with the
general tone of the whole building, and the
whole taken together far surpasses any of the
buildings used for religious purposes in
Beardstown.
The history of the church dates back to
the '40s, when a priest from Quincy, Illinois,
came to start the church in Beardstown. He
built and added to the edifice. There are
now about 100 heads of families in the
church and it is in a growing condition,
although the railroad strike of 1887 caused
a decrease of twenty-five families. Father
Weigand is a worker and is a man greatly be-
loved by all his people, having studied their
wants. He has charge of the parish at
Arenzville. He had a parish school at
Beardstown for a time, under his supervision.
Father Weigand is a man of true Catholic
spirit.
*ۥ
HRISTIAN BROCKSCHMIDT, a
general farmer and stock raiser in
Beardstown precinct, was born in
Washington county, Illinois, January 30,
1852. His father's name was Eenry, who
was a native of Hanover, Germany, grew up
504
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF C'ASS,
a blacksmith and came to the United States
in 1828. He settled in St. Louis, Missouri,
and later his father and stepmother, through
his help, also came to America. After Henry
came to this country he worked with the
Eagle foundry of St. Louis, but losing his
health he settled with his family on a farm
in Washington county, Illinois. His wife
died some years later and he afterward went
back to St. Louis and spent his last years
there, dying in 1877 at the age of sixty-
three years. He was a skilled mechanic, an
active citizen and a worthy member of the
Lutheran Church. He was a Democrat in
politics. His wife was named Katharina
Helmick, a native of Prussia, who came to
St. Louis when a young girl. She was a
mother of nine children and died in 1866, at
the age of fifty- seven. She was a good,
kind woman and a member of the Lutheran
Church.
Christian is the youngest of a family of
nine. He came here from Sfc. Louis, where
he had lived since he was fourteen years.
He had been engaged as a teamster for many
years. He came to Cass county, February
1880, first rented his land and then pur-
chased his present farm, August 12, 1890.
It consists of 244 acres in what is known as
bottom lands, and 120 acres are under the
plow. This is considered a fine piece of
farming land and is located in township 19,
range 11.
He was married in St. Louis, Missouri, to
Louisa Shave, who was born in Prussia in
1850 and came to the United States when
fourteen years old, located at St. Louis, Mis-
souri, where her father, William died in
1877. He was thrice married. His first wife,
the mother of Mrs. B., died in Germany
when the latter was very young. Mr. and
Mrs. B. have three children: Ida E., Fred
W. at home, and Minnie, deceased. They
are members of the Sixth Street Lutheran
Church. He is a Republican. They are
excellent people and highly respected.
ILLIAM L. BRUMBACK, Postmas-
ter and merchant at Huntsville, be-
came a resident of that place October
22, 1864. He was born in Boone county,
Kentucky, January 29, 1852, being a son of
Peter W. and Ann E. (Estes) Brumback.
The former was boru in Virginia in 1801,
but removed in childhood with his parents to
Kentucky, where he passed his early life on a
farm, learned the trade of brick mason, also
silversmith. He married in Kentucky a
lady who was born September 22, 1809, and
died March 16, 1884. After his marriage
he bought land and engaged in farming. In
October 1864, they came to Schuyler county,
Illinois, and settled in Hnntsville, where he
was interested for a short time in merchandise.
He died November 27, 1867. He and his
wife had twelve children, eight of whom grew
to maturity, namely: Oliver, Benjamin, Mil-
dred Harrison, Isabel Barmour, Adelia Smith,
Nathan, William L., Jessie Aleshire. Peter
Brumback was an old-line Whig and later a
Repnblican, being always prominent in poli-
tics. His father, also Peter Brumback, was
a German and came to the United States when
sixteen years of age. He served seven years
in the Revolutionary war, being present at
the surrender of Cornwallis. His brother,
John, also came to America. The two were
sons of a ship-builder in Germany. Mr.
Peter Brumback, Jr., was an earnest mem-
ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
William was reared on a farm and tilled
the soil until 1881, when he engaged in
SCHDTLEIi AND BROWN COUNTIES.
505
mercantile business and still continues it.
He is a stanch Republican in politics. The
appointment of Postmaster was conferred on
him during Arthur's administration and he
served nearly five years. In 1889 he was
again appointed and now holds the office.
He is also a Notary Public.
He was married, July 8, 1889, to Mary E.,
daughter of Dudley and Nancy Overstreet.
She was born in Huntsville. Mr. Bruin -
back is a member of Huntsville Lodge, No.
465, A. F. & A. M. Mr. and Mrs. Brnm-
back are highly esteemed citizens of Hunts-
ville.
'ILL1AM HALE, an honored pioneer
of Schuyler county, Illinois, who has
contributed materially to the phe-
nomenal advancement and prosperity of this
section by his superior executive ability,
unremitting energy and progressive dis-
position, enjoys a well-earned repose in retire-
ment at Rushville. He is a native of New
Madrid county, Missouri, where he was born
May 18, 1833. His parents were Jatnes and
Charlotte (Briggs) Hale, the former a native
of Georgia andjthe latter of Vermont. Joshua
Hale, paternal grandfather of the subject
of this sketch, was also a native of Georgia,
while his father was a native of England, who
emigrated to this country at a very early day,
and located in the South. Joshua Hale moved
to Missouri previous to the war of 1812, and
was one of the pioneers of that territory,
which at that time included a very large area,
out of which many States have been formed,
but which was then the frontier of civiliza-
tion. Joshua Hale was a farmer by occupa-
tion and secured a large tract of Government
land in this new and fertile territory, but
spent the last years of his life in New Mad-
rid. James Hale was but a child when his
parents removed to Missouri, where he was
reared, educated and married, his wife being
a lady of superior attainments and culture.
She was a daughter of Asa Briggs, a brave
and efficient soldier of the Revolutionary
war; and widow of John Smith. In 1837,
the family, consisting of father, mother and
ten children, removed to Illinois. Here, al-
though land could then be purchased for
$1.25 an acre, the father, on account of
limited means, was obliged to rent a farm for
a few years. By industry and economy, he
accumulated in time sufficient means to pur-
chase a farm, and bought some choice agri-
cultural land in Buena Vista township, on
which he and his family located. This he as-
siduously cultivated and made on it many
valuable improvements, continuing to reside
there until his death, his wife also dying on
the old homestead. He was a man of ster-
ling qualities of mind and heart, and enjoyed
witli his worthy wife the highest esteem of
all who knew them. Their death was greatly
lamented, not only by their immediate fam-
ily and friends, but by the whole community.
The subject of this sketch was only four
years of age when his parents removed to
Illinois, but he has a vivid recollection of
the privations and vicissitudes of the long
and toilsome journey, made in those pioneer
days. The country was Jwild and sparsely
settled, while game and wild fowl abounded
in great profusion, such as deer, turkey,
prairie chickens, etc., while the streams were
full of excellent fish. People lived on the
products of their land and wild game, while
the subject of this biography and the rest of
the family were clothed with homespun,
manufactured by the unremitting toil of his
mother's patient and skillful hands.
506
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
Mr. Hale received the limited education
afforded by the pioneer schools, and was
reared to agricultural pursuits, early becom-
ing accustomed to the hard labor incidental
to farm life. Previous to his father's death
he had invested in land, to which he subse-
quently added, until he now owns 430 acres
in a body in Buena Vista township, com-
prising some of the best realty in that vicin-
ity. He continued to reside on this farm,
which he brought to a high state of cultiva-
tion and greatly improved, until 1892, when
he moved to his present home in Rnshville.
Here he has a substantial home with attract-
ive and tasteful surroundings, all the ap-
pointments of which suggest comfort and re-
finement, where he and his worthy wife are
enjoying in ease the fruits of their early in-
dustrious efforts.
Mr. Hale was married in 1855, to Miss
Margaret Priscilla Sponarnore, an estimable
lady, a native of Schuyler county, Illinois,
and a daughter of William and Mary (Green)
Sponamore, pioneers and prominent residents
of this county. They have had nine children,
seven of whom now survive: Mary F. ; Sarah
Malinda;, James F., Hester A., William 0.,
Lydia Belle, and John Martin, — all of whom
fill positions of honor in business and society.
The parents are earnest and useful members
of the Methodist Episcopal Church South, to
the support of which they contribute liber-
ally of their means and influence.
Politically, Mr. Hale affiliates with the
Democratic party, and although not a poli-
tician in the modern acceptance of the word
takes an active interest in all public affairs of
importance. He is public-spirited and is al-
ways ready to assist any worthy enterprise,
tending to the moral, educational or material
advancement of his vicinity.
Whatever prosperity Mr. Hale has attained
is entirely due to his own unaided efforts.
By persistent industry, careful economy and
intelligent management he has accumulated
a competency, while his unimpeachable in-
tegrity, unwavering fidelity and uniform
courtesy have gained for him the universal
esteem of his fellowmen.
ILLIAM PILGER was born in the
»ir«aiK Rhine province, Prussia, Germany, in
I 3Ji-?j 1832. He remained with his father in
farming until 1853, when betook passage for
the United States on the ship Yaeger which
was making its first voyage. He landed in
New Orleans after a six weeks' voyage, and
then came up to St. Louis by way of the
Mississippi, and from therecameon to Beards-
town. He spent the first five- or six years
here as a laborer. He was the first son of
the family to come to this country, one sister
having preceded him, another brother and
two other sisters came over and settled in St.
Louis. Here one died. Mr. Pilger came
here a poor young man just twenty-one years
of age. He began to farm here in 1858, and
was actively engaged in farming and stock-
raising from 1858 to 1891, when he retired
to Beardstown. He owns 240 acres of very
good land, forty being in timber, the rest im-
proved and supplied with good buildings. He
has made money by his own efforts and is
now enjoying the result of those efforts. He
has been a hard-working citizen and is well
known in the county, and now resides on the
corner of Eleventh and Adams streets.
Mr. Pilger was married to Elizabeth
Schmidt, who was born in Hesse- Darmstadt,
Germany, October 20, 1830, and she died at
her home on the farm, March 4, 1881. She
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
507
was young, when, with her mother and other
children, she came to the United States and
settled in Cass county, where her father had
preceded them two years.
Mr. and Mrs. Filger had six children, four
of whom are living, viz.: Louis, a teamster in
Beardstown, married Mary Stock; Lena, is
the wife of Marshall J. Ratineau, a painter
by trade; Henry C., is a farmer; William is
also a farmer on his father's homestead, and
married Mary Holbrook. Mr. and Mrs. Pil-
ger and family are members of the Lutheran
Church. Mr. Pilger is a Republican in
politics, and is a man of influence in the city
in which he has made his present wealth. He
is great respected by all who know him.
fRANCIS EUGENE CADY is one of
the prominent pioneers and substantial
farmers of Schuyler county, born in
Stafford county, Connecticut, December 4,
1825, being a son of Isaac and Sarah (Chap-
man) Cady. Francis was ten years old when
the family came to Illinois, landing June 12,
1835. The family soon settled in Camden
township, entering the northwest one quarter,
section 18. Here he grew to manhood. He
was reared on the farm, but learned the trade
of bricklaying and plastering. After he was
married he settled on section 18, on eighty
acres of land, entered by his half brother,
Alonzo Jones. Mr. Cady gave his attention
to his trade for awhile, and then went to
California in April, 1853, crossing the plains
with an ox team most of the way. He was
accompanied by his brother, M. E. Cady, and
they took 150 head of cattle and thirteen head
of horses. He remained two years and pur-
sued mining, being successful at that occupa-
tion. He returned via the Isthmus and New
York city. He now owns 160 acres of land,
which he has well improved and on which he
has erected a nice set of farm buildings.
He was married in 1855 to Percilla Nor-
vall, of Claiborne county, Tennessee, a daugh-
ter of William and Mary (Jenkins) Norvall,
of Scotch parentage, the former born in Vir-
ginia, the latter in North Carolina. Mr.
Norvall received a good education and was a
lawyer by profession, and was married twice,
his second wife being Mrs. Cady's mother.
He died at the age of sixty-live years, in
1825. Mrs. Cady was one of eleven children.
A part of the family came to Illinois and
settled in Huntsville in 1835, and Mrs. Cady
was among the number. Here the mother
died in 1858, aged seventy-two years. Her
brothers and sisters are: William, Timothy,
Ralph, John, Sarah, Henry, Nancy, Rnfus
Audren and Mrs. Cady.
Mr. and Mrs. Cady have had four children:
Mary, wife of Henry King, of Huntsville
township; Isaac N., a ranchman in California;
William E., farmer of Huntsville township;
Francis E., at home. He is a Democrat, but
has never sought public office. He is a mem-
ber of Camden Lodge, No. 668, A. F. & A. M.
fAMES M. EDWARDS, of the firm of
Edwards & Cavens, Camden, Illinois,
general merchants, was born in the
northern part of Greene county, Illinois, Sep-
tember 12, 1839. He was the son of Isham
B. and Sarah (Day) Edwards, natives of Vir-
ginia and Kentucky. The father of our sub-
ject went to Kentucky when a young man,
where he married and in the winter of 1830
came to Illinois and settled in Greene county,
entering land and engaging in farming, and
he there passed his remaining years. He
508
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
died in February, 1882, aged seventy-nine
years. His wife died at the age of sixty-
two years.
Father of subject owned over 1,000 acres
of land, and at one time he was a large stock-
raiser. They had thirteen sons and three
daughters; twelve of whom grew up. The
subject was the thirteenth child. He was
raised on the farm, and in August, 1857,
was married to Miss Melinda E. Hoots,
daughter of David Hoots, of Scott county.
Our subject, after his marriage, purchased
land and pursued farming in Greene county
until 1862, in August, of which year he
enlisted and was mustered into service with
Company H, Ninety-first Illinois Volunteer
Infantry, and served for two years and nine
months as a private soldier.
He was in the battles of Elizabethtown,
Mabeto, Richmond, Red River expedition
and many other battles. After the war he
resumed farming in Greene county for one
year, and then sold out his farm and went to
the Cherokee lands in Indian Nation, and
one year later he returned to Greene county,
and two years later came to Schuyler county,
and purchased 160 acres of land, which he
improved further and sold. He has since
improved ten farms in Schuyler county,
numbering at least 2,000 acres. He has
been a hard worker and has improved more
farms than any other man in Schuyler county.
He owned a sawmill for eight years, and
for thirty-two years has run the mill for
threshing machines. He has at all times
been ready to engage in any business which
would promise to make any money. He has
been at all times very successful in all of his
enterprises. He now owns 160 acres of land,
and property in Carnden.
In 1891, he engaged in hie present busi-
ness. He dealt in live stock for twenty
years. Mr. and Mrs. Edwards have had
eight children, six are living: Sarah J. mar-
ried Harvey Rleckledge of Henderson county,
Illinois; Etta married George Watt and re-
sides in Catnden township; Trissie married
Nicholas Notson of Schuyler county; Ollie
Belle married Amos Cavens, her father's
partner; Mary Emeline and Daisie D.
In politics, Mr. Edwards is a Republican.
He has been Justice of the Peace and other
local offices. He is a member of the Cam-
den Lodge. No. 648, A. F. & A. M- He is
also a member of the G. A. R. Post in
Brooklyn.
>ENRY J. BAUJAN, a successful liv-
eryman, blacksmith, dealer in imple-
ments and buggies and owner of the
Palace Hotel, was born December 20, 1859,
in this city, and was here reared and edu-
cated. He is the second son of John Banjan,
who was born in Germany and who, when he
was twenty-nine years old, came to the United
States. He followed his trade of brick ma-
son in St. Louis for one year and then came
to Cass connty, and was married at Areriz-
ville, and later came to Beardstown. Here
he established a brick-yard, did a manufact-
uring business for some time and later be-
came connected with the gristmilling business
under the firm name of J. Baujan & Co.,
until his death, in July, 1889. He was
over sixty-nine years of age when he died and
was a well-known and popular German of this
city.
Our subject is one of seven children. He
has always lived in this city 'and here learned
his trade of blacksmith, before which he
worked in his father's mill. He has been in
the livery business for one year and carries a
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
509
fine class of outfits and good horses. He has
been a blacksmith and farm implement dealer
for nine years, and lias always made money.
No donbt a great deal of it is owing to his
good habits and his energy as a business man.
He was married to Rosa Milner, born in
this city August 23, 1861. She was here
educated, although she completed it at St.
Louis, and she is an intelligent, agreeable
lady. Her parents, Hannah and Richard
Milner, of English descent, are well known
settlers of this city. Mr. Milner has for six-
teen years been the Chicago, Burlington &
Quincy bridge tender and Government water
ganger of the Illinois river. These old peo-
ple are connected with the better elements
of the city. They are Methodists and con-
sistent Christians.
Mr. and Mrs. Banjan attend the Methodist
Episcopal Church. He is a Democrat in
politics, has been Alderman of the city, and
is a public- spirited young man. They have
three children, Nellie, Verna andGlenna.
fAMES PERRY, a prominent citizen of
Versailles, is a native of the B.lue Grass
country, being born there in 1817. His
father was Edinond Perry, a farmer of South
Carolina, and his father was Nathan Perry, a
farmer of the same State, who came to Illi-
nois in the fall of 1830. Edmond Perry had
made the journey the year before, in the com-
pany of his two brothers and a brother-in-
law. They spent the winter of 1829-'30 in
Illinois and were here during the big snow-
storm, which is a historical one. In June of
1830, he returned to his family and brought
them and his parents to the new country.
The trip was made in the regulation style,
covered wagons and ox teams, and, although
they were a month on the journey, they en-
joyed it to a remarkable degree. There was
a fascination in the free life they led, camping
by the roadside when they made their stops.
One night the party had the luxury of sleep-
ing in a vacant house in Springfield. The
party consisted of seven families of the
Perrys, including two brothers-in-law. They
came with limited means, but before long by
industry they all were in comfortable circum-
stances. The old grandmother Perry had
been a Miss Rebecca Yarbrey, and she was
the mother of eight children, all of whom
eventually came to Illinois. She and her
husband lived to be aged people, he dying at
the age of eighty-two years and she some
three years before him. Their children wer»;
Edmond Perry, father of subject, eighty-two;
Luke Perry, eighty; Melvjna, seventy; Will-
iam died in the prime of life; Edward, about
seventy; Sarah, over seventy; Irving, about
sixty; Benjamin, baptised in the Baptist
Church, is about sixty; John, baptized in the
same faith when seventy -five years of age;
Edmond Perry j married Rachel Bridges of
North Carolina, and they had eleven children,
all of whom grew up and had families,
namely: Martha, died when she was about
fifty, leaving nine children; Phoebe, died
when a young woman, leaving four children;
Rebecca, wife of Samuel Briggs, of Versailles ;
Ichabod, a retired farmer in Mt. Sterling is
a widower; James, of this sketch; Nathan,
a farmer of this township; Sarah died in
this township, leaving six children, being
about fifty at her death; Melvina died in
the prime of life, leaving one child; Louisa
married and in middle life; Francis, farmer
of Mt. Sterling, has six sons; and Luke, a
farmer of Stone county, Missouri, who has
six children. The mother died when about
seventy-six years of age and the father four
510
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
years later, when he was eighty-two years of
age. They left a good estate and are remem-
bered as being among the best of the pioneer
families of the State.
Mr. Perry was married, in his twenty-
third year to Eliza Hills of Indiana, daugh-
ter of Robert and Betsy (Angel) Hills, who
came to Schuyler county before the big snow-
storm. They died on their farm at an ad-
vanced age, he when he was seventy-five, and
she when she was a year younger.
Mr. and Mrs. Perry settled on their present
home of eighty acres in the fall of 1841, Oc-
tober 15. He now pays taxes on about 560
acres of land, although he started with very
little money. All of their eleven children
are living, the eldest fifty-three and the
youngest twenty-six. There is not a death
in the family and a}l of the children are mar-
ried and settled in life. These children are:
Charles, now a banker in Knoxville, Iowa,
with two sons; William Perry (see sketch);
Olive, wife of J. B. Masters, a retired farmer
of Denver, with three children; Francis, a
farmer of this township, with four children;
Robin, a farmer of Mt. Sterling township,
with one daughter; Almira, wife of Richard
Underwood, a farmer living near by, has four
sons; Elizabeth, wife of James Butler, a
farmer of this township, six children; Ed-
mond, a farmer of this township with two
children; Eliza, wife of E. W. Lanier, a
a farmer living near by, four children; and
James K., a farmer on the old homestead,
two children.
Mr. Perry supports the principles of the
Democratic party and he and his wife are
members of the Baptist Church. Mr. Perry
is now an old man, being about seventy-five,
while his faithful wife is about two years
younger. He is practically retired, but takes
a strong interest in all that is taking place,
and is as much interested in the welfare of
his children and grandchildren as if he were
yet a young man. These children are persons
to be proud of, as none of them ever contract
any debts that they are not perfectly able to
pay, all have been well educated, and are
worthy sons and daughters of their respected
and honored parents. The old people's hearts
are gladdened by the merry prattle of the
thirty-three grandchildren who have been
added to this large and prosperous family.
J. ROWLAND was born in Frederick
county, Virginia, near Winchester,
0 January 15, 1864. His father, Mat-
thew M. Rowland, was born in the same
county. His father was a native of Wales
and came to Virginia where he lived until his
death at an advanced old age. Mr. Matthew
Rowland was a farmer all his life; he mar-
ried Miss Margaret Campbell, also of Vir-
ginia, who died in Jacksonville, Illinois.
Mr. Rowland died in Virginia, in 1834,
when his son was still very small.
Our subject began to support himself
when he was eleven years old. He learned
the saddle and harness business at Zanesville,
Ohio. Here he remained after learning his
trade. He then removed to Newark, Ohio,
and began business for himself and remained
there six years. From there he went to
Coshocton county, Spring Mountain, and
from there to Coshocton, the county seat.
The war then broke out and he enlisted in
the One Hundred and Third Ohio Infantry
and served about two years when he was dis-
charged by the close of the war. He made a
fine record in the army and was a brave
soldier. He settled in Keokuk, Iowa, and
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
611
remained there three years and then re-
moved to Brown county, and has resided
here ever since.
He was married in Newark, Ohio, to
Miss Lenora Barring, of Slatestown, New
York, born September 18, 1850. They
have had eleven children, seven of whom are
living, namely: Blendon L., Louise, Lu-
cinda C., Abner C., Lovey Augusta, Bessie
[. and Homer M. Mr. Rowland worked at
his trade at this place until he retired. He
is connected with .the Methodist Episcopal
Church and has been for forty years. He
has been a member of the Masonic fraternity
for about the same number of years. He and
his wife are good, highly esteemed citizens
of the place and have earned their right to
their present life of ease by years of toil in
their younger days.
fACKSON C. HUFFMAN was born in
Lexington, Virginia, February 14, 1826.
His father, Joseph Hoffman, was born
in 1801 at the same place, but his grand-
father, David, was born in Germany and
came to America at the close of the Revolu-
tionary war and settled one mile west of
Lexington, Virginia. His occupation was
that of a farmer and tanner, which he con:
tinned as long as he lived, dying at the age
of eighty- nine years. His father, Joseph,
was also a tanner, continuing the business of
his father until his death, which occurred at
the age of fifty-two years. He was a great
temperance man and advocated his doctrines
upon any and all occasions. His mother's
name was Elizabeth Windel, born in Lex-
ington, Virginia, and dying in Huntsville,
Alabama, at the age of fifty-six. She left
five children, three of whom are still living.
Mr. Hoffman started out to carve his own
fortune one year after the death of his
father in Lexington, Virginia, and worked
there until nineteen years of age. He then
volunteered for the Mexican war and served
twelve months. The regiment was detailed
for guarding train provisions from Camargo
to Monterey. It was discharged at the
former place and Mr. Hoffman returned to
Frankfort, Kentucky, where he remained for
two years. He then built a mill on Camp
creek, in Estill county, Kentucky, and car-
ried it on as a saw and gristmill for a time
and then moved to Irvine and worked at his
trade for about two years and then moved
to Madison county, Kentucky, near Clay
county. Here he remained for four or five
years. He then moved from there to Clark
county, Kentucky, near Winchester, and
there run a sawmill for two years. From
there he moved to Armistead, Blaekwood's
place, the same county. After that he went
to Mt. Sterling and followed his usual occu-
pation of carpentering. He remained there
six years and then removed to Coaperstown
township, and there remained six years,
then went to Missouri and farmed for one
year, and then returned to Versailles, where
he has since remained.
He was married, in Kentucky, to Margaret
Eads, born in Estill county, Kentucky, about
1825, and is still living. Mr. and Mrs.
Hoffman have fiVe children: Elizabeth,
Charlton, Matilda, Joseph and Mary Ann.
Mr. Hoffman has held the offices of Magistrate
and School Trustee and has belonged to the
Methodist Episcopal Church for seventeen
years. Politically he is a Democrat, and a
member of the I. O. O. F., and for eighteen
years has held all the offices of a subordinate
512
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Off CASH,
lodge. He has twenty-eight grandchildren
and two great grandchildren. He is the
owner of a well improved farm of forty acres.
fRED W. HUGE, one of Beardstown's
most influential contractors and builders,
was born in Hanover in 1832, January
27. He learned his trade of carpenter with
his father and worked with him until twenty
years of age. He was the first to leave the
home roof when he set forth for America.
He came from Bremen to New Orleans and
landed after a voyage of six weeks and three
days. Fifteen more days were consumed in
going to St. Louis, and from there he came
to Beardstown. Here he has had his home
ever since. Four of his brothers and sisters
have joined him, and one brother, William,
was a soldier in the Rebellion for two years.
The other brother is a furniture dealer in
Beardstown. The parents of Mr. Huge,
Casper H. and Anna M. (Peters) Huge, both
lived and died in their native country. One
daughter still lives in Germany.
Mr. Huge had made a success of his busi-
ness, and has built nearly all of the business
houses in Beardstown and a good many of
the residences. He is a member of the Cen-
tral Building and Loan Association, and is
influential in many other ways. He is a
Democrat in politics and a Lutheran in reli-
gion.
Mr. Huge was married in Beardstown, to
Miss Anna Slater of the same town in Ger-
many as Mr.Huge. She grew up there, and
was educated there, also. Her parents lived
and died there, but she and a sister, Eliza, came
to the United States. They were the only ones,
however, of the family that ventured across
the deep sea. Mrs. Huge was only seven-
teen years of age when she landed in this
country. She has resided, ever since her
arrival, in Beardstown. Mr. and Mrs. Huge
are members of the Sixth Street Lutheran
Church, of which Mr. Huge is Trustee, and
has been for sixteen years. They have six
children: Dina, now Mrs. John Leger, a shoe
dealer of the city; William, a tailoring cutter
in Chicago; Lizzie, who died in her fifth
year; Fred, a hotel clerk in St. Nicholas
Hotel, Springfield; and Julius, who died when
six months old.
Such men as Mr. Huge are wonderful aids
in the building up and growth of the town.
He is honored and respected by all who know
him.
ICHARD B. FULKS is a retired mer-
chant, living at his pleasant home at
Beardstown. He was born at Rushville,
Schuyler county, New York, February 6,
1840. This boy grew up under the name of
Dick, and has borne that title ever since, be-
ing scarcely known by any other title. He
is a man who has made his own fortune and
carved his own history. His early life was
a struggle to acquire book knowledge. Dur-
ing his boyhood days he studied hard and
served as clerk as early as fourteen. He was
with the firm of Shaw & Merriman of
Beardstown for some time, and in 1857 he
became a clerk for Charse, Rich & Parker,
of this city, and was thus engaged until the
breaking out of the war. He enlisted August
21, 1861, as a private in Company K, Thirty-
third Illinois Volunteer Infantry, Captain
Lippincott and Colonel Charles Hovey, of
Normal, Illinois, in command. In 1862,
while encamped at Ironton, Missouri, Mr.
Fulks issued for three months a camp jour-
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
513
nal called the Camp Cricket. This knowl-
edge of newspaper work he had acquired
when but yet a boy; and later, in 1860, by
working at night and at odd times in the
office of Thompson & Irwin as assistant in
publishing The Central [llinoian of Beards-
town. After a service of two and a half years
as a private Mr. Fulks was commissioned as
Quartermaster Sergeant and in that capacity
served till the close of the war on the staff of
General Lippincott. After serving as a brave
soldier he was mustered out and discharged
properly and honorably at Springfield, in De-
cember, 1865. During the war he was in
many engagements, including the burning of
the big bridge on the Iron mountain railroad
in 1861, later at Frederickstown, Missouri,
and afterward did guard work on the Missis-
sippi river, and his saw much active service,
but escaped without a scratch. He went
through the battles of Vicksburg, Jackson,
Mobile and Spanish Point and at Placeo,
Texas. While at Meridian, Mississippi, he
received a severe sunstroke, from which he
has never recovered. The Government re-
members him with a pension. When the
war closed he laid aside the soldier's habili-
ments and resumed citieen's dress and re-
turned to Beardstown. He then resumed
his mercantile pursuits. The qualities for
which Mr. Fulks is noted are grit and push,
and as he put them in his business he has
made a success of it. He has added to the
general welfare of the city, which gives him
credit for making it the thriving place it has
become. No misfortune ever shocked or
worried Dick. He has had three disastrous
tires, which in each case represented heavy
losses to his stock and his business, but he
has pulled through and managed to have a
surplus at the bankers, to supply all demands.
Hard work and years finally told upon him,
he lost his health, and had to retire from
active labors in 1887. He has owned and
dealt, sometimes quite extensively, in city
property.
He was married first, in this city, to Lydia
M. McClure, who was born and reared in
Cass county and died at Denver, Colorado,
April 10, 1878. Her body was brought to
this city and interred in Oakwood cemetery.
She was then in the prime of life, being born
about 1843, and was a well educated woman,
having been second principal of the school in
this city. She was a member of the Con-
gregational Church, and left one daughter,
now a well educated young lady, named Inas.
He was a second time married, in this city, to
Miss Mattie, of Louisville, Kentucky, a bright
young woman, who died two years after, and
was buried at her old home. He was married
a third and last time to Miss Etta Brown,
who was born and reared here, but died at the
birth of her first child, in 1885. The child
is a bright little girl of seven years, named
Anna D. He has been a member of I. O. O.
F. for some twenty-five years, a member of
the Knights of Honor, and one of the pro-
moters and charter members of the G. A. R.
order. He has served the city as an Alder-
man for some time, and has been a member
of the Board of Education. He has always
been a strong Republican.
HOMASEDWARDCUNNINGHAM,
a highly respected citizen of section 30,
Buena Vista township, Schnylerconnty>
Illinois, was born in Rushville, of this State,
on May 2, 1860.
His paternal grandfather, William Cun-
ningham, was a native of Kentucky, in which
State he was married, and in 1837, came to
514
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Of CAS8,
Rushville, near which place he was for some
years engaged in fanning. Later, he has
kept a hotel, and still later, removed to Mt.
Sterling, where he continued in the hotel
business until the time of his de^th, which
occurred in February, 1871. He was twice
married. His first wife, the grandmother of
our subject, died, leaving nine children. He
had no children by his second marriage. The
nine children were as follows: William, born
on October 31, 1816, died in Schuyler county;
Nancy J. was born on October 31, 1818, and
married William Cooney, who died in Canton,
Illinois; Woodson was born on September
23, 1820, and died in Brown county; Caleb
was born on August 22, 1822, and died in
California; Joseph was born on October 17,
1824, and died in Brown county; Ellen was
born on November 17, 1826, and married
William Bowling, who died in Schuyler
county; John was born on November 30,
1828, and died also in Schuyler county;
Thomas was the father of our subject; Lu-
cinda, the only surviving member of the
family, was born on October 16, 1834 ; she
married Isaac Warrington, and resides in
Camden township, Schuyler county.
The father of our subject was born on De-
cember 23, 1830, and removed with his
parents to Illinois. He was reared in Rush-
ville, where he was married on March 16,
1859, to Nancy Ann, seventh daughter of
Edmund and Lucy Ann Smith. She was
born in Kentucky, on February 23, 1833, and
came to Illinois when sixteen years of age.
The father of our subject resided in Rush-
ville, until the close of the Civil war, and
owned and operated the stage route between
Rushville and Mt. Sterling, for many years.
In 1866, he settled on a farm in Buena Vista
township, where he purchased 160 acres of
Aand, where he passed his declining years.
On this property he built a large, handsome
brick residence, and made other substantial
improvements. He died at his home on
September 22, 1882, leaving a wife and
family to mourn his loss. His faithful wife
survived him seven years, passing away on
March 30, 1889, lamented by all who knew
her. They were consistent members of the
Christian Church, contributing liberally to-
ward its support.
Politicaliy, he was a Democrat, and was
elected by his constituents to the office of
Supervisor of Buena Vista township, serving
in that capacity for several years.
They had eight children; William, born
on February 17, 1885, married Margaret
Green; Charles D., born on August 5, 1857,
married Mary C. Unger; Thomas E., born on
May 2, 1860, married Clara A. Wilmott;
Lucy A., born on July 30, 1863; Amanda
E., born on May 19, 1866; Nancy J. was
born on April 2, 1869, married Charles Hes-
ter; Woodson J., born on July 19, 1873;
John M., born on July 9, 1876, died on July
10, 1876. Of these, seven are still living,
all being residents of Schuyler connty.
Thomas Edward, the subject of our
sketch, was reared on the home farm, and
attended the district schools. In 1881, he
was married to Miss Clara A. Wilmott, a
native of Schuyler county, where she was
born on June 3, 1859. She was a daughter
of Morris and Dorotha Wilmott, highly re-
spected citizens of that county. She died
on September 30, 1890, leaving a husband
and three children to mourn her loss, be-
sides a large circle of friends. They bad
three children: Reverda, who was born on
March 13, 1884; Bertha, born on November
9, 1885; Raymond, born on November 13,
1887.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
515
Mr. Cunningham carries on the homestead,
besides which he owns forty acres of his own,
all of which is under a high state of cultiva-
tion, and which is applied with all modern
improvements, of machinery and buildings,
to facilitate the planting and gathering of
his crops.
In politics, he follows in the footsteps of
his fathers, affiliating with the Democratic
party.
Of high integrity and morality, courteous
and cordial in manner, and interesting in
conversation, he enjoys the esteem of his
fellow citizens and the affectionate regard of
his family and friends.
5SAAC MISENHIMER, farmer and stock-
raiser of Frederick township, was born in
Clay county, Illinois, September 28, 1839.
His parents were Jacob and Elizabeth (Mc-
Grew) Harris. Mr. Harris was a native of
Pennsylvania and his wife of Indiana. They
were married in Clay county, Illinois, where
their parents had moved, being among the
first pioneers of that county. Mr. Harris
died in 1843, and his widow survived him
some ten years. The family moved to Schuy-
ler county when Isaac was about nine years
old. He was educated in Schuyler county
and was reared on the farm, and he has fol-
lowed that business ever since. He enlisted
in Company I, First Illinois Infantry, and
served three years in the Western army. He
participated in the battles of Shiloh, Britain
Lane, siege of Vicksburg, and was present at
the capture of Little Rock, Arkansas. When
he returned from a furlough the regiment was
back in Tennessee and he there re-enlisted
and was in Tennessee until he was mustered
out in March, 1865. Returning home after
this, he settled down to farming. He owns
223 acres of land in excellent farming condi-
tion, and two years ago he built one of the
most commodious and comfortable houses in
the county. He has large barns, and alto-
gether his farm is among the best in the
county. His grade of stock, too, is very fine
and he is among the most prosperous of the
citizens of this section.
He was married, September 27, 1867, to
Miss Penelope Gillet, of Schuyler county.
Her parents were Elijah and Eliza Gillet,
who were among the very first settlers of the
county. She was the youngest of seven chil-
dren. Mr. Misenhimer was one of five chil-
dren, only two of whom are living. They
have one child, Jennie, born December 28, •
1874, and is still at home. She is a young
lady of tine attainments and holds a teacher's
certificate. * She is a fine musician, also. Mr.
Misenhimer is a Democrat in politics.
EWIS SCHISLER, JR., son of Lewis
Schesle'r and Anna Schisler, was born in
York county, Pennsylvania, April 14,
1851. His parents were natives of the same
State, but came to Illinois among the first
settlers and located near Astoria. Here Mr.
Schisler died when only twenty-seven. His
widow married again, but her second husband
died in Iowa when out there visiting. Mrs.
Schisler bore her husband fifteen children
and all are living. Of this large family,
Louis was next to the youngest. He was
educated in the country schools and worked
on the farm. His father was a miller, and
worked at his trade until the time of his
death, but afterward his widow bought a farm
and removed there with her family. Mr.
516
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
Schisler still resides on this farm with his
mother and attends to all the management of
it for her.
He was married to Miss J ulia Coldrider, of
York county, Pennsylvania. Mr. and Mrs.
Schisler have eight children, all of whom are
living: Ananias, John, Josephine, Sarah,
Anna, Daniel, Noah and Harry.
The family of Schislers is of German ori-
gin, although remote, as the family lias been
established in America for several generations.
Mr. Schisler is a Republican in politics and
he belongs to the United Brotherhood Church,
known as Dunkards. The 160 acres that he
farms for his mother are in splendid condi-
tion, and speak well for his management and
thrift, for which the well cultivated fields and
' comfortable farm buildings the place is one
of the finest in the county.
^ESLEY M. GRIMWOOD, merchant
of Frederick, Illinois, was born at
Akron, Ohio, February 7, 1855. He
is the only surviving member of a family of
four children. The father was a mechanic
by profession and a native of England, where
he was born February 18, 1816. His father
was also born in England and married Maria
Clapper, daughter of Daniel Clapper. He
started for America with his family in 1830,
but was wrecked off the coast of Prince
Edward's Island, and he and his family re-
sided there for two years and then removed
to Providence, Rhode Island. In 1858 he
moved to Akron, Ohio, where he died in
1864. His wife died at Akron, Ohio, in
1876. The father of our subject was born,
reared and educated in England and came to
America with his parents in 1833. He was
aboard the steamship Royal William on her
first trip across the Atlantic, thus demonstrat-
ing the feasibility of steam navigation. In
the fall of 1837 he removed from Rhode Is-
land to Pekin, Illinois, where he married
Miss Anna Eliza Brewingam. In 1859 he
removed to Schuyler county, where his wife
died, in 1868. He was a stanch Abolitionist
and later a Republican. During a political
riot at Alton, Illinois, he was struck on the
head with a club, and almost killed by a
member of the mob, who afterward killed
that honored patriot Elisha P. Lovejoy. He
served his county as Supervisor, Justice of
the Peace and various other offices of respon-
sibility. He was an honored and respected
citizen. He married Miss Alice A. Bartho-
low-j of Astoria. She was a daughter of
Jasper and Olive Bartholow, natives of Ohio.
Both are now dead. They were pioneers of
Fulton county. They had four children.
Mr. Grimwood was educated in the com-
mon schools of Schuyler county, and at Wa-
bash College, at Crawfordsville, Indiana. He
learned the wagon maker's trade with his
father, and followed it for about twenty years,
when he engaged at merchandising at Fred-
erick, here he carries on a general store.
Mrs. Grimwood is a member of the Christian
Church, and Mr. Grimwood is a member of
Browning Lodge. No. 389, I. O. O. F., and of
the M. W. of A., a beneficial order. Mr.
and Mrs. Grimwood have three living chil-
dren: Charles L., Ferol Fern and Don Wes-
ley. Mr. Grimwood is a stanch Republican,
and has been Clerk of Frederick township
for the last twelve years. He is the candidate
of his party from the Thirty-fourth District,
for Senator. He. did not seek this honor,
but when notified of his selection, consented
to allow his name to appear on the ticket.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
517
This is a genuine case of the office seeking
the man. He stands very high in the esti-
mation of the people.
fOHN T. HILLS was born in Oakland
township, Schuyler county, Illinois, in
1841, a son of Jackson Hills, who was
born in 1812; his father died in June, 1842,
so that in infancy he was deprived of his
guidance and care. The paternal grand-
father, Ephrahn Hills, was a native of Penn-
sylvania; he was a farmer by occupation, and
came to Oakland township from Indiana
when Jackson Hills was a lad of twelve years;
he settled on a farm of 160 acres, on which
he lived until death during the war; he had
attained near four-score years of age. His
first wife died, leaving a family of five chil-
dren, but his second wife survived him; one
son, James, died at the age of twenty-four
years, leaving a wife and one son; Ephraim
is a farmer, residing in Missouri; Jackson,
the father of our subject, died at the age of
twenty-five years, leaving a widow and two
sons, William Henry and John T. ; his wife's
maiden name was Delilah Fowler, a daughter
of Thomas Fowler, of New York, who came
to Illinois as early as 1825. John T. Hills
was reared from his twelfth year by his uncle,
Henry Hills: his mother was married a second
time to William Schroder.
He had just attained his majority when
the great war of the Rebellion arose, and he
offered his service in defense of the old flag.
He went to the front a member of Company
0, Seventh Missouri Cavalry, and served
three years and three months as a private.
He was mustered out at St. Louis, after which
he returned to Oakland township; he was
held a prisoner at Fort Smith, Arkansas,
for three months, at the end of which time
he was exchanged; he experienced many of
the horrors of prison life, but was fortunate
in being released before the confinement had
sapped his life away.
Mr. Hills was united in marriage the first
day of the year 1866, to Miss Mary E. Chock
ley, of McDonough county, Illinois, a daugh-
ter of Benjamin and Sally (Du Wese)
Chockley, natives of Kentucky, who settled
in Illinois at an early day. He then settled
in Littleton township, on 160 acres of land,
which he sold at the end of the first year; he
rented one year of his wife's father, and then
purchased a tract of forty acres; here he re-
sided three years, returning to his wife's
home where they passed six years. In 1880
he bought eighty acres of his present farm,
paying therefor $700; he has sixty acres un-
der excellent cultivation, and he has made
many valuable improvements. He carries on
a general farming business, raising corn,
wheat and clover, and some live-stock; twenty
acres have been set to timber, which is in a
flourishing condition.
Mr. and Mrs. Hills have buried three
infant children, two sons and a daughter, and
four children survive; the mother died in
1882. Mr. Hills was married a second time
to Mrs. Martha Fowler, nee Chockley, sister
to his first wife. The children of the first
marriage are: Delilah I., wife of Hiram Fow-
ler; Genevra; Lilladocia, wife of William
O'Donnell; and Tennessee; the children of the
present wife are: Eldow C., aged eight years;
Inez L., five years old; and Perry E., an in-
fant of two years. Mr. Hill has a foster son,
a nephew, named Alvin E. Toiand, aged
twenty-three years, now a resident of Mc-
Donough county. He is a member of Fre-
518
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GA88,
raont Post, No. 33, G. A. R. He is a man
of good business ability, has been fortunate
in all his undertakings, and enjoys the respect
and esteem of his fellow men.
|EV. HARVEY A SKILES, pastor of the
Union Baptist Churches at Browning and
Denver, in Hancock county and Spring
Creek in Sangamon county, is one of the
very early settlers of Schuyler county, born
here August 29, 1829. His parents were
William and Sarah (Perkins) Skiles, who lo-
cated in Schuyler county after their marriage
sixty-eight years ago. The grandfather was
a farmer in Rushville township, where he set-
tled in his early manhood and died. The
mother died during the cholera epidemic in
1852.
Harvey A. Skiles says that he received his
education in the backwoods seminary, to
which he walked two and one- half miles night
and morning. Later in life he applied him-
self to sludy iu the line of theology. Thirty-
nine years ago he was ordained a minister in
the Union Baptist Church, and has been con-
stantly in the ministry to the present time.
He has on ten or more occasions walked forty
miles in a day and preached at night. His
labors in those days were not pathways lined
with roses, by any means. The pay consisted
largely in provisions and necessaries, and they
were not always in very liberal quantities.
He preached two years in Fulton county for
a wagon load of frost-bitten corn. It is cer-
tain Mr. Skiles did not preach for the emolu-
ments derived from it. In late years his pay
has been satisfactory and work not arduous.
He worked on a farm in his early manhood,
and continued until the last twenty years,
thus securing a livehihood for his family,
giving his services in the ministry for the
good of humanity. Little was expected in
return for his labors except the satisfaction
of duty well done; certainly, little was realized
in a temporal sense. Mr. Skiles spent four-
teen years preaching in Iowa, and has
preached two years at Keokuk since locating
at Browning, going from here to his appoint-
ments.
He married, September 15, 1854, Mary A.
Wright, daughter of William and Rebecca
Wright, who came to Schuyler county in
1835. Mrs. Skiles was born October 31,
1836. She was the eldest of a family of nine
children, eight of whom are still living. Her
father died August 15, 1884, and the mother
died March 13, 1891. Mr. and Mrs. Skiles
were born within one and one-half miles of
each other, attended the same school, grew to
maturity as young acquaintances and friends,
which resulted in matrimony. They have had
six children, but only one is living, Bele, now
Mrs. Billingsley, and resides near Camden,
Illinois, her husband a farmer. Mr. Skiles
is a stanch Republican, and takes a lively
interest in political matters. The family
owns a pleasant home, located in Browning.
EORGE W. CAMPBELL was born in
Richland county, Ohio, October 30,
1827. He was the son of Peter L.
Campbell, a native of Virginia. He was of
Scotch ancestry, and his father and he re-
moved from Virginia to the Northwest Ter-
ritory about 1797. As the Indians at that
time were hostile, he returned to Virginia
and resided there for a short time, but in
1800 he concluded that he was much more
likely to gain a fortune in the new West than
in the old East, so he returned to his western
8CHUTLBR AND BROWN COUNTIES.
519
home and settled on the west bank of the
Ohio river, and remained there a tew years.
He then wandered to Richland, and from
there to Crawford county. Mr. Peter Camp-
bell learned the trade of tanner, and followed
it till 1843, and then came to Illinois in the
fall of 1844. He was accompanied by his
wife and eight of his twelve children. They
made the entire journey overland with teams.
He settled in what is now Bainbridge town-
ship, where he had previously bought a tract
of land in section 4, the northwest quarter.
Like all the land of that date, there were no
improvements, and they resided with another
family for a short time after their arrival.
The following year he built a cabin on his
own land, where he lived to the day of his
death. He made many improvements on the
farm and erected tasteful buildings. His
death occurred August 19, 1881. His wife's
name before her marriage was Agnes Jones,
and she was born in Virginia, July 6, 1801.
She was the daughter of Oliver Jones. Mr.
Campbell was a Democrat in politics, and
served as County Assessor for two years, and
several terms as Justice of the Peace of the
township, and County Treasurer. He was a
strict Predestinarian Baptist, of which de-
nomination he was an Elder.
The subject of this sketch was seventeen
years old when he came to Illinois. He did
not come until the following year after his
parents came. He came with a team. Coining
here as he did when there were so few settlers,
and about the only inhabitants were the wild
game, he had a good opportunity to watch
the growth of the country, as he has been a
resident of this township ever since. He has
occupied the farm he now resides upon since
1870. He married, January 20, 1853, Laura
A. Neill, the daughter of James Neill. She
was born in Weatherfield township, Trumbull
county, Ohio. Her father was a native of
Tyrone, Ireland. His first wife was a native
of the same county, and he and she died
there. After her death he came to America,
bringing his only child with him, and settled
in Trumbull county, and bought timber land
and erected the log house in which Mrs.
Campbell was born. Here he lived until
1846, and then moved to Illinois, accom-
panied by his five children, and settled in
liushville. Here he bought land and pur-
sued the occupation of farming until his
death in 1864. The maiden name of his
second wife was Mary Stewart, daughter of
Archibald Stewart, a native of Ireland, and
of Scotch ancestry. She was a native of
Ohio, and died in Trumbull county about
1843.
Mr. and Mrs. Campbell have ten children
living, namely: James N., Agnes M., C.
Stewart, Edward L., Mary W., Lewis E.,
Jonathan, Milton, Amy L., Delia K. ; L. Jen-
nie and Lucy M. died in infancy.
Mr. Campbell is a Democrat and cast his
first vote for Lewis Cass. He has served
twelve years as Justice of the Peace, and
seven years as Assessor. He also served
several terras as Supervisor, and one term as
Sheriff.
fAMES GE.OVER, farmer of Mt. Ster-
ling township, was born in 1841. He is
the son of Henry P. Grover (see this
book). James attended the pioneer school,
and afterward taught in a log house where
the furniture was of the most primitive kind,
— seats made of rough slabs, with wooden
pegs for legs. He worked for his father
until twenty-one, and then rented some land
from him for two years. He then bought
520
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP OA88,
some land in Mt. Sterling township, and there
built a log house, 16 x 18 feet. The log house
gave place in time to neat buildings of all
kinds, and he resided here until 1882, when
he traded with his father for the old home-
stead. His present farm contains 160 acres,
highly improved, with farm buildings that
compare favorably with any in the township.
He married, August 13, 1863, Miss Mar-
garet C. Putnam, of Brown county, Illinois.
She is the daughter of William and Martha
Putnam. Mr. and Mrs. Grover have three
bright, intelligent children, — Minnie, Arthur
and Oscar H. Mr. Grover and wife are
members of the Primitive Baptist Church.
Mr. Grover is a stanch Democrat in politics.
| D WARD BERTHOLF has been so
closely identified with the early politi-
cal history of Schuyler couuty that this
volume would not be complete without an
extended review of his career, which began
here May 1, 1836. He is a native of Orange
county, New York, born April 9, 1816, a son
of John and Elizabeth (Perry) Bertholf, na-
tives of New York and New Jersey respect-
ively. The family is descended from the
Hollanders, who emigrated in colonial days
to New York. The father was a farmer by
occupation, and resided all his life in the
Empire State. They had a family of thir-
teen children, twelve of whom grew to ma-
turity; ten married aud reared families. Ed-
ward grew to manhood amid the scenes of
farm life, and attended the common schools;
at the age of sixteen he began to teach school;
and followed this profession until he was
twenty. At that age he removed to Illinois
and located at Rushville, Schuyler county,
his older brother, Henry B., having settled
here previously; here he taught a school and
assisted his brother, who was Judge of the
probate court, deputy Clerk and county Re-
corder; he was thus introduced into court-
house work, and has since passed one- half of
his time in various offices. In 1848 he was
appointed Treasurer of the school fund, and
held the office until 1869; he continued teach-
ing, served as deputy for other offices, clerked
and kept books for the merchants of Rush-
ville. In 1848 he was also elected Justice of
the Peace, and retained the office for more
than twenty years; he finally resigned both
this and the office of school trustee. In
1847— '48 he was deputy Sheriff and Collector
of Taxes; he was elected deputy Clerk in
1855, and six month later, on the death of
the Clerk, Nathan Moon, he was appointed
to the office of county Clerk. In 1860 he
was elected Sheriff and served one term ; two
years later Thomas J. Kinney, went into the
war, and he took charge of the office of Cir-
cuit Clerk, which Mr. Kinney had previously
filled, and continued to transact the business
during the remainder of the term; he was
then deputy County Clerk, and is still in the
office of Circuit Clerk during court.
Mr. Bertholf was married in November,
1838, to Mary E. Jackson, a daughter of Levi
and Lydia (Wilcoxen) Jackson; nine chil-
dren have been born to them; one died in
infancy and the eldest, William H,, died at
the age of twenty-one years; Horace is a resi-
dent of Cherokee county, Kansas; Frank E.
is a citizen of Rushville; Fred L. is a farmer
of this county;. John Jesse is also a farmer;
Emily Ann married Thomas W. Moon; Har-
riet E.; Mary E. is the wife of E. W. Bick-
ford of Plymouth, Illinois.
In his political convictions Mr. Bertholf
adhered to the principles of the Whig party
until 1856, and since that time has been a
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
521
Democrat. He is a member of the Method-
ist Episcopal Church, and lias been a liberal
supporter of the society. In 1862 he pur-
chased the farm on which his father settled,
and owned this land until March, 1891. He
has never been connected with any civic society
except the Sons of Temperance. Levi Jack
son, father of Mrs. Bertholf, was a native of
Connecticut, and was there reared and mar-
ried; he removed from that State to Ohio,
and thence in 1836, to Schuyler county, Illi-
nois; he died in July, 1868; his wife died in
1839; they reared a family of four daughters
and three sons. Mr. Jackson was a shoe-
maker by trade, but followed farming from
the time he settled in Ohio until his death.
He was married a second time, bnt had no
children by this union. Politically he affili-
ated with the Republican party.
jTEPHEN BRANNAN, deceased, hav-
ing died at his home in Beardstown,
^ff Illinois, September 16, 1875, was born
in Queen's county, Ireland, about seventy-two
years ago. He came of pure Irish ancestry.
His mother had died in her native country,
when in middle life. Her name was Anorah
Brannan. His father later came to this
country, joined his son in Cass county,
and after having lived here twelve years, died
at his home, aged eighty-four. He and his
wife were all their lives Roman Catholics.
Mr. Brannan came to Cass county a poor
man in 1849. He had given up a farmer's
life in Ireland and when twenty-three years
of age went to England, spent three years in
Liverpool and in 1849 reached the United
States. He had been nine weeks in the city
of New York before he came on to Beardstown
and here the scenes of his active life began.
He was a hard-working farmer and stock-
raiser and became prominent as such in the
county. He was successful in accumulating
land, having worked around for seven years;
he then purchased and began to farm for him-
self. He first bought eighty acres, which be-
fore his death he had increased to 380, and 340
of it is still in the family. This land is in
Indian precinct.
He was married, in Beardstown, to Eliza-
beth A. Riley, who was born in Londonderry,
Ireland, August 7, 1835. She was the
daughter of John and Margaret (Kenan)
Riley, natives of Dublin, Ireland. Mr.
Riley and his wife had both come to England
when young people, were married in Ashton,
England, and there Mr. Riley followed for a
time the trade of a baker and was so engaged
throughout England until 1836, when he
came to the United States and located in
Beardstown. Four years later his wife aud
children came over on the same ship with
Mr. Brannan of this notice. Mr. Riley ob-
tained laud in Indian precinct, about 650
acres, and it was upon this place that John
Riley and wife labored, successfully, and died
about the age of fifty- five years, having been
all their lives good Roman Catholics. Mrs.
Brannan washer parent's only child. She has
kept the property together and is a good
manager. They had thirteen children, four
of whom are dead. Nicholas is now a farmer
on the old homestead; John Jr., is also a
farmer at the same place; R. Edward is a
partner with his brother in farming; Mary
A., at present housekeeper for her brothers
on the farm ; Nora is at home with her mother;
Thomas is a clerk for Werner & Stoneagle;
Lizzie is at home, while William and Stephen
work for their brothers on the farm.
522
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OA8S,
Mr. Brannan was a good neighbor, a kind
father and husband and a consistent member
of the Roman Catholic Church.
I LIAS CLARK, a prosperous retired
farmer and an esteemed pioneer citizen
of Cooperstown, Illinois, was born in
Virginia in 1808.
His parents were Josiah and Jane (Adams)
Clark, both natives of the Old Dominion.
The latter was a daughter of John Adams, a
native of Maryland, who removed to Vir-
ginia in an early day, but who later re-
turned to his native State. By this marriage
there were ten children, six sons and four
daughters. The devoted wife and mother
died in middle life, and was buried on the
old farm in Virginia. The father afterward
married again, his second wife being Lucy
Menifee, a native of Pennsylvania, who be-
longed to a large and prominent family of
that State. By this marriage there were
also ten children, eight sons and two daueh-
" O
ters, most of whom are still living and reside
in Ohio.
The subject of this sketch spent his boy-
hood on the home farm in Virginia, and had
but few educational advantages, having at-
tended the subscription schools but for a
short time. He was trained to drive four
and five horses by one line, riding one of the
wheel horaes, and in this manner made
many long trips to Washington, District of
Columbia, Fredericksburgh and Falmouth, on
the Potomac. He made one trip to Balti-
more, a distance of 100 miles, with ten bar-
rels of flour, and returned with merchandise.
He counts these as among his happiest
days, when, in company with other teamsters,
he would camp out in his wagon at night.
In 1835, he and his father and family
moved from Virginia to Ohio with a covered
wagon and a team of horses, the party num-
bering thirteen persons. His father and
family settled on eighty acres of timbered
land, the timber being mostly chestnut and
dogwood. Here they resided until the
venerable man died. He was well into the
nineties at the time of his death, about 1850.
In the fall of 1851, Mr. Clark sold his
Ohio farm and removed to Illinois, which was
then the frontier of civilization. He was ac-
companied by his wife and eight children,
six sons and two daughters. The long jour-'
ney was made overland with two lumber
wagons and two double teams of horses, and
was rendered exceedingly tedious on ac-
count of bad weather and miserable roads,
in addition to which his children were taken
sick with the ague. He inquired on the
way for a healthy location, and was directed
ta Adams county, Illinois. Before reaching
there he rented a house east of Mt. Sterling,
where he and his family remained until the
following spring. He then rented the farms
of two brothers, Henry and Mike Huffman,
who were going to California. He was to
reap the wheat, which was then half grown,
and this helped him to a good start, as he
realized therefrom 250 bushels as his share.
This was a windfall to him, as he had little
or no means, and it secured for him bread
and seed for the following year. One of his
sons worked in a tanyard and earned the
the price of two cows, which then cost $10.
His other son took a job of clearing timber
from some land, and drew the wood to
market. Thus all put their shoulder to the
wheel until brighter days dawned upon them.
Mr. Clark afterward rented an old farm
of 160 acres, which was a part of his present
place. He lived there two years, when he
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
623
built a good brick house on his own farm,
his house having an excellent cellar under
the whole of it. He paid $1,000 for 160
acres, and most of it was wild and covered
with brush. He now has 140 acres of this
under good cultivation, while twenty acres
are of timber, which is planted with blue
grass, which makes good pasture. He has
fertilized his land with clover, and grows
about forty acres each of corn and wheat,
realizing as high as forty bushels of wheat
to an acre, and sixty and seventy bushels of
corn. He has ceased, for some years, from
active labors on his place, although still en-
joying fair health.
His first wife died, aged nearly seventy
years, and is buried on the farm. They had
seven children, three of whom are living:
Joseph W. died May 31, 1859, leaving a wife
and three children; Elias died in Ohio, when
an infant, in January, 1842; Jonah was
stabbed at Cooperstown, Virginia, when
twenty-one years of age, and died November
29, 1859; Moses was a volunteer in the Civil
war, and died March 7, 1871, aged twenty-
eight years; Martin, also a volunteer in the
late war, passed through the conflict in
safety to return home and meet with an ac-
cident by which he lost a leg in a threshing
machine. He is now farming on his father's
land. This son and two daughters are the
only living children. One daughter, Tabi-
tha, now Mrs. George Kendrick, lives on a
farm near Mt. Sterling, and has four chil-
dren; Massy J., the other daughter, is the
wife of George Hollis, a prosperous farmer,
who lives in Gibson City, this State; they
have eight sons.
Mr. Clark's present wife, with whom he
has lived ten years, was the widow of Will-
iam Lozden. Her maiden name was Eliza
Curlew, and she was born in Kentucky, in
1835, and was reared on the frontier in
Missouri, when the aborigines were plenti-
ful. She had seven children by her former
marriage, four sons and three daughters.
Politically, Mr. Clark has been a Demo-
crat until recently, and now votes independ-
ently, regardless of politics. Religiously,
his faith for twenty-five years has been that
of the Methodist Church, to which he
renders much valuable assistance.
These are a few of the most prominent
events of an eminently busy and useful life,
which is deservedly crowned with prosperity
and the esteem of his fellow- men.
§AMES W. BLEYER was born near
Franklin, Franklin township, Pennsyl-
vania, June 17, 1860. His father, Sam-
uel Bleyer, was born in Connecticut, and his
father, Alex. Bleyer, was a native of the New
England States. The ancestry of the family
is Scotch. Mr. Alex. Bleyer removed from
Connecticut to Pennsylvania, and died in
that State, and his son was reared in the State
of his birth. Here he followed farming
until he removed to Williamsport and re-
mained a few years, and then returned to
Franklin county, and still resides on a farm.
The maiden name of his first wife was Bar-
bara Kane, and she was the mother of
James. She was a native of Connecticut,
and she died in Franklin county, Pennsyl-
vania, in 1875. James was reared and edu-
cated in his native State. He was fifteen
years old when his mother died, and from
that time he cared for himself. He had
learned the printer's trade in the office of the
Press at Chambersburg, at the age of four-
teen, worked there one year, and with the
exception of a few months has followed the
524
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASK,
trade ever since, and has set type in the
principal offices east of the Mississippi river.
In May, 1891, he bought the office and good
will of the Brown County Republican^ a
weekly paper devoted to the interests of the
Republican party.
He was married in 1890, to Hattie May.
She was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the
daughter of David and Alice May. Mr.
Bleyer is a member of Cincinnati^ Lodge,
No. 287, K. of P., and of the National Tele-
graph Union. He has always been a sound
Republican.
fAGOB HOWELL is one of the oldest
settlers of the county now living in
Bainbridge, he having been born in
what is now Woodstock township, Schuyler
county, Illinois, April 23, 1833. His father,
John Howell, was a native of Guilford county,
North Carolina, where he was reared and
where he married. He emigrated to Illinois
across country with teams, accompanied by his
wife and five children, locating in what is
now Woodstock township. It was a wild and
cheerless country, that in which the pioneer
North Carolinian and his family settled. The
cry of the wolves startled the children by night.
Deer and turkeys haunted the big woods.
Most of the land was owned by the Govern-
ment. Neighbors lived far apart. Yet he
went to work with a stout heart upon a tract
of land, sixteen acres of which had been
cleared. A log cabin stood upon the tract
and there the subject of this sketch was born.
The father resided there until his death, in
August, 1833.
The maiden name of the mother of Jacob
Howell was Sarah Manlove, daughter of
William Manlove, born in North Carolina.
After the death of her husband she married
a second time, a man named Stephen Frazer.
She died on the home farm in 1842.
But an infant when his father died he was
doubly an orphan when but nine years old.
From that time onward the brave and per-
severing lad was made to care for himself.
He was able to attend the primitive school
of his youth — the conventional log cabin
with its splintered seats and puncheon floors,
where, somehow, boys did manage to pick
up knowledge nearly, if not altogether, as
good as that of the present date, when the
pupils are given the advantages of culture,
aesthetic furnishings and scientific appli-
ances. He began work upon the farm at $5
per month, continuing to work out until
1853. In February of that year he started
out with others to make the overland journey
with ox teams to California. It was a peril-
ous undertaking for this inexperienced lad of
less than twenty. The only white settle-
ment between the Missouri river and Cali-
fornia was the Mormon one in Utah, which
report declared was to be nearly as much to
be dreaded as the hostile Indians who scoured
the plains in search of victims. Reaching
California he first engaged as cook for a
threshing party, receiving $3 per day. A
few weeks of this life sufficed and he under-
took mining, which disagreed with him and
he went to southern California, where he en-
gaged in the raising of hogs. In 1859 he re-
turned to Schuyler county, and bought the
farm he now owns and occupies. Since that
time he has devoted himself to agricultural
pursuits.
In the following year, 1860, he was united
in marriage to Rachel Parker, who has borne
him four children: Emma, Addie, John and
Fred. Mrs. Howell was born in Bainbridge
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
township, and is a daughter of John and
Emily Parker, who are natives of North
Carolina and pioneer settlers of Schuyler
county.
Mr. and Mrs. Howell are members of the
Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Howell
is a Republican in politics.
lAVID THRON, an old resident and
well-to-do farmer, now living at his old
home on section 27, township 17, range
12, was born in Baden, near Heidelberg,
Germany, June 3, 1823. He was only twelve
years old when his father, Michael, died, at
the age of forty-four. For eleven years he
had been a soldier in the Spanish provinces,
and had seen much hardship and had many
unpleasant experiences. He is remembered
as a brave German soldier. His wife, who
survived him, came to the United States
shortly after the death of her husband, bring-
ing with her five children, two having come
before. She sailed from Bremen and came
via New Orleans, being fifty -six days on the
water. The family, including the mother
and seven children, settled in Cass county,
except one who died in New Orleans. The.
mother died at the home of pur subject in
1880, aged eighty-four. She had spent her
last years with him. She had been a good
woman all her life, and she and her husband
were consistent members of the German Lu-
theran Church.
David kcaiue to this county in 1844, and
began life as a laborer in Beardstown. He
then decided to become a farmer, after hav-
ing worked and saved his money for nine
years. He rented one year and then bought
the farm where he now lives. His first pur-
chase was of eighty acres, and he afterward
85
entered forty acres of Congress land, adjoin-
ing his first purchase. He afterward im-
proved this and added to it until he owned
200 acres. He disposed of part of his land
to August Hausmeyer, and expects to retire
and move into Arenzville after the spring of
1893. He added buildings to his farm and
made it comfortable in every way.
He was married in Beardstown to Maria
A. Eradt, who was born in the same town
and ['province as himself, coming to Amer-
ica on the same vessel with him, and they
were married soon after landing. Her par-
ents came to this country a few years later
and settled in Bellville, where they continued
until the end of their lives. They are mem-
bers of the Lutheran Church.
Mr. and Mrs. Thron are honored and re-
spected members of the Lutheran Church,
and he is a Democrat in politics, and they
are the parents of seve,n children. They ex-
perienced a great grief in the loss of four of
them in a few we,eks, in the fall of 1863, of
diptheria. Their names were: Valentine,
fifteen yea,rs old; Henry, thirteen years old;
Da^vid, Jr., nine years old; and Anna M.,
seven years old. The living are: Michael, a
workman on the Quincy Railroad, who mar-
ried Elizabeth Garrick; Elizabeth, wife of
Henry Kneke, a farmer in this county; and
Louis, a farmer in Cass county, who married
Dora Fellow. Mr. and Mrs. Thron are
among the best of our German citizens, and
are highly respected by all who know them.
EORGE W. F R I S B Y, a prosperous
farmer of Schuyler county, was one of
the pioneers of this section, and is justly
entitled to the following space in this his-
tory. He was born near Watertown, Jefier-
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP OA88,
son county, New York, June 21. 1821, a son
of Sparrow Frisby, a native of the same
State; the maternal grandfather emigrated
to the United States from Wales; he resided
in New York for some years, and then re-
moved to Connecticut, where he passed the
last years of his life. The father of George
W. was but an infant when his mother died,
and he was then taken into the family of Dr.
Wesley Willoughby, of Herkimer county,
New York, and there grew to mature years.
In the spring of 1837 he made a trip to Illi-
nois in search of a permanent location; he
came to Schuyler county, and selected a tract
of land in what is now Woodstock township;
he built a log house in the midst of the
wilderness, and in the fall was joined by his
family; after a few years he sold this place
and removed to Rushville, where he worked
at the trade of painting and paper-hanging;
he was a resident of that place at the time of
his death. The maiden name of the mother
of our subject was Lydia Willoughby, a na-
tive of Herkimer county, New York, and a
daughter of James and Lydia (Cook) Wil-
loughby, natives of Connecticut and pioneers
of Herkimer county; the last years of her
life were spent in Rushville. George W. was
sixteen years old when he came to Illinois in
the fall of 1837; the journey was made by
. the most convenient route at the time; via
team to Utica, thence via the Erie canal to
Buffalo, thence by steamer to Cleveland,
thence by canal to Zanesville, thence by team
to Portsmouth, thence via the Ohio, Missis-
sippi and Illinois rivers to Schnyler county,
landing at a point then known as Erie. Mr.
Frisby had attended the schools in New
York State quite regularly, and after coming
to Schuyler county was a pupil one term in
the primitive school of the frontier. He lived
at home with his parents until he was twenty-
one years of age, and then he worked at the
shoemaker's trade for two years. He next
took up the cooper's trade, which he followed
five years, and then engaged in farming. In
1860 he settled on the place he now owns
and occupies, section 8, Bainbridge town-
ship.
Mr. Frisby was married in 1845, to Eliza-
beth Thompson, who was born in Greene
county, Pennsylvania. They have five chil-
dren living: Ann Elizabeth, William V.,
Mary C., James and Serilla H. The parents
are members of the Free Methodist Church.
Politically our subject is identified with
the Republican party, and has represented
the people of his township in many offices of
trust and honor; he has been School Trustee
and Director, Collector, Town Clerk, Con-
stable, Magistrate, and at the present time
is School Treasurer, an office he has held
more than twenty-five years. He has dis-
charged all the duties devolving upon him
with rare fidelity, and has the utmost con-
fidence of his fellow-men.
NDREW L O G S D O N , aprominent
farmer of Bainbridge township, has
been a resident of Schuyler county, Illi-
nois, since he was a child of seven years. He
was born in Cooperstown township, Brown
county, Illinois, March 13, 1858. His father,
Joseph Logsdon, was a native of Kentucky,
born in Madison county, September 6, 1809,
and the grandfather, William Logsdon, was
also born in Madison county, Kentucky; he
was a planter by occupation, and spent all his
life in the county of his birth. He married
Elizabeth Beheimer, a Virginian by birth;
after the death of her husband she emigrated
from Kentucky to Illinois., and died in Brown
SCHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
527
county, at the age of eighty-four years. Jo-
seph Logsdon was reared in Kentucky, and
was there married. In 1844 he came to Illi-
nois and located in Brown county, where he
purchased sixty acres of unimproved land in
Cooperstown township; there he resided un-
til 1865, when he removed to Woodstock
township, Schuyler county; here he bought a
tract of land that had been improved, and on
it he has since lived. He was married to
Lucy Parker, who was born in Madison
county, Kentucky, May 1, 1815, a daughter
of Jonathan and Patsey (Everson) Parker.
Of this union were born eight children, seven
of whom lived to mature years.
Andrew Logsdon, the subject of this no-
tice, was reared from his seventh year in
Woodstock township, and received his educa-
tion in the common schools of that neighbor^
hood. At the age of twenty years he assumed
the responsibilities of life, and began his career
as a farmer on rented land. In 1882 he
purchased the land which he now occupies,
located on section 6, Bainbridge township.
He is engaged in general farming, and has
been quite successful in his operations.
He was united in marriage in 1879, to Ro-
hamah Terrill, a native of Bainbridge town-
ship, and a daughter of Jackson and Elizabeth
Terrill. To them have been born fon,r children:
Maude, Hugh, Lucy and Elizabeth. Politi-
cally Mr. Logsdon has always been inde-
pendent, and is nqw identified with the Peo-
ple's party.
(EORGE H. KIRKHAM, a prominent
farmer and progressive citizen of Little-
ton township, Schuyler county, was
born in Brooklyn township, this county,
April 22, 1846. His parents were Henry
and Elizabeth Kirkham, his father still living
in Buena Vista township, this county.
Our subject received his education from a
private teacher, who boarded about at the
different homes, teaching in the various
families, his facilities were thus necessarily
limited, all of which have been supplemented
by subsequent endeavor and self instruction.
At the age of twenty, he enlisted in the war
on August 15, 1861, serving in Company G
and D, Twenty-eighth Illinois Infantry for
four years, under the command of Captain B,
C. Gillam. He was with his regiment all
through the war, with the exception of about
four months, when he was sick and in the
hospital at Monterey, and went through the
international struggle without receiving so
much as a scratch. He was mustered out of
the service in Brownsville, Texas, and honor-
ably discharged in March, 1866. He had
a brother and two step-brothers also in the
late war, his brother in the same regiment as
himself, while his step-brothers served in the
Fiftieth Illinois Infantry. His brother served
for three years, at the end of which time he
went as a substitute, serving until the close
qf the war. Both of his step-brothers were
re-enlisted.
After the war he returned to Schuyler
county, and on November 6, 1870, was mar-
ried to Anna E. Garrison, who was born in <
this township and county, July 31, 1846.
She was a daughter of George and Sarah
Garrison, rjroniinent pioneers of this county,
who both died here, her father at the age of
seventy-seven years. She was one of eleven
children, ten still living. Our subject is one of
six children, five living, all of them farmers.
After marriage, he located where he now
resides, on a part of the old Garrison farm,
he having made all the improvements at
present noticeable on the place. He built,
52S
B10GKAPHIOAL REVIEW OF GASS,
in 1882. his present large and comfortable
home, and now has good barns for his grain
and stock, besides various other -modern con-
veniences, facilitating the handling of the
various products of his farm, which is devoted
to mixed agriculture. He has recently added
to his original farm by purchasing 160 acres,
and now has one of the largest and best farms
in the county, having more than 800 rods of
tiling on his place.
Mr. and Mrs. Kirkham have ten children:
Charles L., at Normal school, born January
6, 1872; Elizabeth, born March 27, 1873,
wife of William Blodgett; Ida F., born No-
vember 16, 1874, now attending the Normal
school; William It., born December 14, 1876;
Margaret G., born August 4, 1878; George
H., born May 16, 1882; Anna B. M., born
September 4, 1884; James O., born January
4, 1888.
Politically, Mr. Kirkham is a Republican,
and cast his first vote for General Grant's first
term. He served as Collector of his town-
ship during 1890, doing in that capacity
creditable and satisfactory work. He is a
member of Colonel Horney Post, G. A. R.,
No. 131.
He and wife are consistent members of the
Christian Church, of which Mr. Kirkham is
Deacon, and for the support of which he and
wife are ardent workers and liberal contrib-
utors.
Intelligent, honest and public-spirited, he
commands the respect of all, while his more
amiable virtues have won the affectionate re-
gard of his fellow citizens.
HENRY KIKKHAM, one of the oldest living
pioneers and most highly esteemed citizens of
Schuyler county, dates his first appearrnceon
the stirring scene of this locality on January
4,1835. He is a native of Ohio. His father,
Henry Kirkham, was born in Virginia, Sep-
tember 2, 1769, while his grandfather, Michael
Kirkham, came from Ireland, where lie was
married, to the United States, locating first
in Virginia, and later moved to Kentucky,
residing in Lexington, that State, for seven
years, during the Indian troubles. He died
in Kentucky in 1835, aged ninety-six years.
His wife died on the same day, aged ninety-
four years, both dying of cholera.
The father of our subject removed from
Virginia when a boy, accompanying the
family to Kentucky, where he was married to
Mary Gay. She was a native of Kentucky,
having been born in that State in 1773. She
died September 9, 1820. The parents of our
subject removed from Kentucky to Ohio,
coming in 1834 to Illinois, locating in Rush-
ville township. Here his father died April
12, 1840.
His parents had ten children: Agnes, born
February 3, 1794, married John Patterson,
and died in Ohio; Sarah, born February 15,
1796, married John Kaze, and died in Mis-
souri; Margaret, born January 6, 1798, was
married, and died in Bloomfield Illinois ; James,
born January 11, 1800, died in Ohio; John, born
September 6, 1802, died in Schuyler county,
Illinois; Michael, born February 20, 1805,
died in Schuyler county, Illinois; Mary, born
August 7, 1808, married Martin Huffstetter,
and died in Iowa; Rebecca, born February
20, 1810, married Peter Wempler, and died
in Schuyler county, Illinois; the subject of
our sketch, was born in Ohio; William, born
August 1, 1815, died in California.
At the age of five or six years, our subject
removed with his parents to Monroe county,
Indiana. Here he was reared on a farm, at-
tending the district school, but receiving but
little instruction. On January 4, 1835, he
married Elizabeth Hinkle, and at once came
to Illinois, locating in Schnyler county. He
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
529
was poor, consequently rented land for some
years, finally purchasing land in Woodstock
township, Schuyler county, where he re-
mained until the close of the war, when he
removed to Buena Vista township, where he
now resides. Here he owns eighty-two acres,
which he has vastly improved, having erected
a substantial residence and barns for grain
and stock, besides numerous other modern
conveniences for the pursuit of farming. His
land is under a good state of cultivation, being
devoted to mixed agriculture. It was here
that his wife died, September 26, 1847, leav-
ing six children to his care. She was a lady
of much intelligence and many admirable
traits of character, and was greatly regretted
by her family and friends. The children
were: James, born February 13, 1836, still
residing with his father; William, born Sep-
tember 26, 1837, was a soldier in Company
Gr, Twenty-eighth Illinois, serving three years
in the army, then re-enlisted and did duty
until the close of the war, and now resides in
Portland, Oregon; Mary, born September 4,
1839, married Jabez "Vatters, residing in
Macomb, Illinois; George H., born April 22,
1841, was a soldier in the Twenty-eighth
Illinois, serving until the close of the war,
now residing in Littleton township, Illinois;
Sarah E., born March 20, 1843, married, and
now resides in Springfield, Illinois; Margaret,
born December 7, 1844, married Amos
Burgee, and resides in Portland Oregon.
Our subject was married a second time,
March 26, 1846, his second wife being
Frances Swan, born in 1803. They had one
son: Robert John, born December 28, 1849.
By a former marriage to Morris Swan, she
had had six children : Martha, Matilda, Mary
Ann, James, Jason W. and one that died in
infancy. His second wife died in 1875, much
lamented by all who knew her, as a worthy
woman, a faithful wife and devoted mother'
Politically, our subject first voted the
Whig ticket, and is now a Republican. His
constituents have honoied him by electing
him to one of the most responsible positions
in their power to bestow, he having served as
School Treasurer for forty years, which is the
only office he would accept.
The Kirkhams are Presbyterians, although
our subject is not a member of any church.
He is, however, a believer in the Christian
religion, and has never used a profane word,
or tasted intoxicating liquor in his life. A
kind of rara avis, sometimes heard of but
seldom seen.
His endorsement by the community, and
his conduct of life, make further remarks un-
necessary. His integrity and fidelity are
noticeable in this day of uncertainty in such
matters, and are as refreshing as they are
rare, and appear to be fully appreciated by
his community. Would that the world might
have more of such men, that the millennium
might b6 hastened!
OHN H. CLARK was born in West-
moreland county, Pennsylvania, Septem-
ber 8, 1815, a son of William and
Rosana (Hurst) Clark. The father was a na-
tive of Ohio, and in 1838 penetrated the
frontier to Illinois, and located in Schuyler
county. He erected a sawmill, which he
operated for eight years, and then disposed
of the property, retiring from active labor;
he died at the home of John J. Redick, aged
seventy four years; his wife was born in
Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, and died
at the old homestead in Schuyler county,
aged sixty-four years. John H. is one of a
530
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Of CA88,
family of eight children, and the only sur-
viving member. He remained under the
parental roof until his marriage, which oc-
curred March 1, 1852, when he was united to
Miss Rena Black ; she was born in Schuyler
county, Illinois, and died herein early woman-
hood; she was the mother of four children,
two of whom are living: Mary E. is married
and has four children ; Lorena is married and
the mother of one child. Mr. Clark was
married again in 1858, to Miss Mary Carter,
a native of Ohio, who died in Schuyler
county, Illinois, at the age of forty years.
The third union was in 1870, when Mr.
Clark was married to Miss Sarah E. Lawler;
she was born in Fauquier county, Virginia,
October 22, 1821, a daughter of James and
Nancy (Harris) Lawler.
In 1870, Mr. Clark settled on a farm near
his father's home, and began the task of
clearing a heavily timbered tract; there he
labored industriously for eight years, and
then sold the place; he bought the farm he
now owns soon afterward, but only eleven
acres were cleared, and a log cabin was the
only place of habitation. Since then he has
witnessed the many changes that have been
wrought by the hand of progress, and has
done his share in making the path clear for
the advance of civilization. His dealings
with his fellow-men have been characterized
by a strict integrity and keen sense of honor
that have won the highest respect of all who
know him.
The parents of Mrs. Clark, James and
Diana (Thomas) Lawler, reared a family of
five children, four of whom survive; the
maternal ancestors came from Ireland, and
the father participated in the war of the
Revolution; he died at the age of seventy-
five years, and she survived to the age of
siity.
Politically the subject of this sketch affili-
ates with the Democratic party, and has
always supported its issues. He and his wife
are consistent members of the Christian
Church.
ENRY P. GROVER, Mount Sterling,
Illinois, one of the oldest settlers of the
county, was born in Mason county, Ken-
tucky. His father, Joseph, came from Vir-
ginia, and the grandfather, Jonathan, spent
his last years in Lewis county, Kentucky.
Joseph was a farmer in Mason county, where
he spent the last years of his life. His wife
was named Sarah Putnam. She was the
daughter of Elizabeth and Henry Putnam,
who came from Kentucky to Illinois in 1836,
and she spent her last years in Brown county.
Henry was ten years old when his father
died, and when he was sixteen years old his
mother and her family moved to Ohio, and
settled in Champaign county, where they
were pioneers. They lived there until 1836,
when Henry concluded to go West and try
to better his fortune in a new country; con-
sequently he came by teams as did other
emigrants, and after eighteen days of travel
landed in that part of Schuyler now included
in Brown county. His means were very
limited, and therefore, although there was
plenty of Government land to be had for $1.25
an acre, he was not able to secure any for
a time. He rented for two years, and then
entered a Government tract, near Mount
Sterling township. It was timber land, and
he built the usual log hut, and existed for a
long time upon the game that at that time
was very plentiful. It was many years be-
fore there was any railroad through that sec-
tion. He made frequent trips to Quincy,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
531
forty miles distant with wheat. Those were
days of privations, but are now looked back
upon as being very happy ones.
His first wife was very industrious, was
able to card, spin and weave and dressed her
entire family in homespun, made entirely by
her own hands. Mr. Grover cleared the land
and built a brick house and lived there until
1882, and traded with his son James for the
farm he now owns and occupies.
He married first in 1833, Lucinda Putnam
of Champaign county, Ohio, a daughter of
William and Mary Putnam. She died about
1860. His second wife was named Martha
Putnam. He has seven children, who were
all born by his first marriage, and are named :
Erwin, Caroline, John G., Marion, James,
Joseph and Angeline. Mr. Grover is a
member of the Regular Primitive Baptist
Church, and is a Democrat in politics. He
has served two terms as a member of the
County Board of Supervisors.
?OSEPH LOGSDON, a venerable pioneer
of Schuyler county, has been a resident
of the State of Illinois since 1844. He
was born in Madison county, Kentucky, Sep-
tember 6, 1809, a son of William and Eliza-
beth (Beheimer) Logsdon; his father was a
native of the same county, and died there, at
the age of fifty-five years; the mother sur-
vived until her eighty-fifth year, and died in
Brown county, Illinois. The paternal grand-
parents, Edward and Polly Logsdon, also
lived to a good old age. Joseph Logsdon is
one of a family of eleven children, four of
whom are yet living. He spent his youth at
home, and in 1837 was united in marriage to
Miss Lucy Parker, a native of his own county,
born May 1, 1815. Her parents, Jonathan
and Patsey (Everson) Parker, were born in
Madison county, Kentucky, and were pioneers
of Ohio. After his marriage Mr. Logsdon
settled in Kentucky and followed agricult-
ural pursuits there until 1844, when he came
to Brown county, Illinois; he purchased sixty
acres of wild land, and made it his home
until coming to Schuyler county, when he
bought a tract of 184 acres, which was well
improved. He has done a general farming
business, and has met with merited success.
Mr. and Mrs. Logsdon have had born to
them nine children, seven of whom survive;
they are all married and the heads of families,
excepting one: Elizabeth R. has seven chil-
dren; Perry is the subject of a sketch which
will be found elsewhere in this volume; Sarah
is the mother of seven children ; Ellen has a
family of six children; George is married,
but has no children; Jacob has two children;
Andrew is the father of a family of four; the
two who are deceased were twins. The an-
cestors have been people of long lives, noted
for their honor and uprightness, respected by
all who knew them.
lHARLES II. PHELPS was born in
Dutchess county, New York, January
25, 1836. He is the son of E. B. and
Jane (Wright) Phelps, the former born in
New Medford, Connecticut, taught school for
twenty-six years, and also ran a tile factory,
working at different trades. He died at the
age of fifty-five, in Dutchess county, New
York. His wife was born in Fishkill, New
York, and died in Hancock county, aged
fifty-five years. Her family were from the
New England States, where they followed
the occupation of farmers.
532
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Charles remained at home until he was
twenty-three years of age, when he came to
Illinois in 1857 and settled near Huntsville
on a rented farm. He then rented in Birm-
ingham township for five years, and two
years in Hancock county. He then bought
a farm in Hancock county, and lived there
for ten years, then sold and bought in this
county, in Huntsville, 240 acres of improved
land, where he lived for four years, and then
sold and rented a farm in Adams county, and
in 1887 bought his present farm of 200 acres,
partly improved, near the geographical center
of the township. He has also been engaged
in threshing.
Until Lincoln's second term he was a
Democrat, but since that has been a stanch
Republican. He has been Supervisor for
four years, being first elected in 1888. He
succeeded Marcus Helston.
He was married February 3, 1859, to
Nancy Scott, of Carroll county, Ohio, who
came here with her parents when two years
old. She was the daughter of William and
Elizabeth (Hunter) Scott, the former a son of
John Scott, of Ireland, who came with his
wife and son to the United States when Will-
iam was only eight years old. He rented in
Carroll county, Ohio, in 1817, and came
from there to Illinois in 1842, settling in
Huntsville, Schuyler county. John Scott
was seventy years old at his death, and his
wife, Isabel, died on the old farm. Eliza-
beth Hunter was born in Maryland, but her
father was a native of Ireland. She died on
the old farm, aged sixty-five years. She and
her husband had five children, four yet
living.
Mr. Phelps was one of fourteen children,
but he himself has only nine, as follows:'
Sarah Alice, wife of B. Craft, and they have
three children; William E., married to Nana
Tyree, four children; Charles F., married to
Josephine Farewell, two children; Eliza May,
married to George Burnett, one child; Ervin
is at home, as are also George B., John R.,
Bert R. and Clara Belle.
Mr. and Mrs. Phelps are members of the
Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Phelps
has been the Master of the Masonic lodge,
No. 465, of Huntsville, for eighteen years.
He was once a member of the I. O. O. F. He
is a Granger, and was Master and State
Deputy in same, and no one has been more
popular, both in the offices he has held and
in the various business dealings he has had
with his fellow-men. He was one of the men
who put John A. Logan in the United States
Senate. He worked for him personally, and
as long as the history of the Thirty-fourth
Illinois Congressional District contest, which
put J. A. Logan in the Senate, is preserved,
just so long will the biography of Charles H.
Phelps be on record as one of the workers,
if not the hardest worker, in that cause. He
knew no such word as fail, and much of the
enthusiasm of that time was due to his ef-
forts. He is a man of honor and upright-
ness, and is loved by every one, regardless
of party affiliations.
BRAHAM LINCOLN STOUT was
born in Ripley township, Brown county ?
Illinois, November 9, 1860. He is the
fifth son of Francis M. and Catherine Stout
(see biography of same). He was reared and
educated at Ripley. In his youthful days he
attended school and helped his father on the
farm. He lived with his parents until his
marriage and then settled on the farm he now
owns and occupies. This contains 180
acres, pleasantly located on the Rushville
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
533
road one mile east of the courthouse. He has
erected a good set of farm buildings, planted
fruit and shade trees and otherwise improved
the farm.
He was married in November, 1884, to
Miss Louisa Lanning. She was born in
Cooperstown township and was the daughter
of Isaiah and Ellen Lanning. They have
three children: Ethel, Eleanor Lottie and
Helen.
Mrs. Stout is a member of the Christian
Church. Mr. Stout is a Republican in poli-
tics. Both he and his wife are good, hard-
working farmers and are greatly esteemed by
all who know them.
kICHARD BUSH, of Mt. Sterling, a
successful manufacturer of tile and
brick, was born in Zanesville, Ohio,
December 20, 1827. His father, Thomas,
was born near Easton, Pennsylvania, in 1802,
and his father, Richard, was born in the same
State. He removed from there to Ohio and
was one of the pioneers of Muskingum
county. The removal was made on pack
horses in 1801. He secured Government
land on Meig's creek. At that time the In-
dians were more numerous than whites, but
all of them were friendly. For many years
there were no railroads, no canals, no markets,
and the people lived on the products of their
lands. His wife's name was Dorothy Ryman,
born in Pennsylvania of German ancestry.
Thomas was eight years old when his parents
made this move to Ohio, and there he was
reared and married. He learned the trade of
carpenter, and in his early life would hew all
the timber and then saw all the lumber with
a whipsaw to build a barn. He remained
in Ohio until 1834, and then with his wife
and nine children came to this State. This
removal was made by team, cooking and
camping by the way. Mr. Bush entered
Government land, one and one-half miles east
of Exeter. There was a small cabin on the
land. As soon as he could well do so he
erected a frame house with two rooms, and
that was one of the five houses of that sec-
tion. At the time he settled there the county
was but sparsely inhabited and much of the
land was still owned by the Government. He
remained there until 1849, when he sold and
came to Brown county and settled in Lee
township, and bought land and lived there
until his death. The name of his wife was
Elizabeth Morrison, born in Virginia, daugh-
ter of Alexander Morrison, who had come
from Ireland. He had settled in Virginia
and from there had moved to Muskingum
county, Ohio, and died near Zanesville, his
wife being also from Ireland. She reared
seven children and finally died on the home
farm.
Richard was six years of age when he came
to Illinois with his parents and attended the
log sehoolhouse. He remained with his par-
ents until 1848 and the same fall he moved
to Brown county, and settled in Lee town-
ship. There he bought eighty acres of land,
all wild, part timber and part prairie. He
improved the farm and resided there until
1856, and then sold out and moved to
Texas, making the journey with teams. He
bought 400 acres of land in Lamar county)
at $5 an acre, and engaged in farming and
stock-raising, and lived there until 1860, and
then sold out, for $10 an acre. He had in
the meantime accumulated quite a stock of
cattle, so that his investment there had proved
very profitable. On selling out he returned
to Lee township and bought 200 acres of
land, three miles west of Mt. Sterling, and
534
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
continued farming there until 1889, when he
sold the farm and moved into Mt. Sterling.
He then engaged in the manufacture of tile
and brick. The most solid and enduring brick
in existence is made by Mr. Bush at his yards.
It is exclusively used for the paving of Jack-
sonville and Quincy. He introduced the first
portable steam sawmill into Brown county,
and owned and operated the first mower and
reaper combined, the first twine binder and
the first thresher in that part of the State.
Mr. Bush is an intelligent man, he has pro-
gressive ideas and he is not afraid to put
them into practice.
He was married in 1848, to Lucinda Stayle,
born in that part of Morgan now included
in Scott county, a daughter of Peter and Par-
thena Stayle, natives of Kentucky and pio-
neers of Morgan county. Mr. and Mrs.
Bush have eight children: Elizabeth A.,
Peter T., Emma J., Alexander J., Parthena
S., Asenath, Minnie and R. Arthur. He is
a Republican in politics.
[ILLIAM J. LAMBERT, a promin-
ent citizen of Schuyler county, has
been a resident of the State of Illi-
nois since his childhood, and has aided in de-
veloping the wild, uncultivated land into one
of the most fertile farming sections in the
United States. He is a native of Washing-
ton county, Kentucky, born January 21,
1832, a son of William and Catharine (Den-
nis) Lambert. William Lambert, Sr., was
born in Washington county, Kentucky, and
was reared to the occupation of a farmer,
which he followed all his life. He emi-
grated to Illinois in 1836, and settled at
Rushville, where he operated a pioneer hotel
until 1844; he died in that year, at the age
of forty-five years. The trip to Illinois was
made with a covered wagon and four horses,
and the trials and hardships endured by the
family were many, and such as are incident
to life on the frontier. The mother of our
subject was born in Mercer county, Ken-
tucky, and died at Rushville, Illinois, at an
advanced age; she was married a second time,
this union being to Charles Wells; she reared
a family of three children, two of whom sur-
vive, Mrs. M. O. Snyder and William J., the
subject of this notice.
He was a youth of fourteen years when he
left the home of his childhood, and went out
to meet some of the responsibilities of life;
he first, worked for his brother by the month,
and in 1847 he came to Littleton township,
and bought a tract of wild prairie land,
which he undertook to improve and place
under cultivation. Here he was married
April 18, 1852, to Miss Josephine Rose, who
was born on the farm which is now her home,
June 29, 1833. Her parents, Randolph and
Sarah Rose, were natives of Kentucky, but
emigrated to Illinois and settled in Schnyler
county in 1826; they had to undergo all the
hardships of pioneer life, and did their share
in the development and improvement of the
country; they had a family of three children.
Mr. and Mrs. Lambert are the parents of
eight children, six of whom are living: Mabel
is the wife of George Little, and has two
children; William L. is married and has two
children; Ellen, a talented artist, is a pupil
in the Art Institute, Chicago; Edward is on
the home farm ; Josephine is a teacher in the
Littleton schools; Fannie is at home. The
family have had excellent educational advan-
tages, and are among the most prominent
citizens of the county.
Mr. Lambert in his youth enjoyed only such
educational facilities as were afforded in the
SOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
535
district schools, but he improved his time
and secured a fund of information that fitted
him for the ordinary duties of life. After his
marriage he settled on a farm which he oc-
cupied for some time and then sold; he now
owns nearly 500 acres of as choice land as
lies within the borders of the county. He is
engaged in general farming, but gives especial
attention to the raising of high-grade cattle.
Politically he affiliates with the Demo-
cratic party. For more than twenty years he
has been School Director, and has always
given a liberal support to those movements
which tend to advance the interests of the
county and State. In his religious faith he
is a Baptist, and has been a member of that
church for many years. The children being
reared to this faith, are also members of the
church.
H ARLES H. JUETT,a well-known
farmer of Woodstock township is the
subject of the following biographical
sketch. He is a native of the State of Ken-
tucky, born in Fayette county, June 7, 1831,
a son of John and Catharine (Hoffman)
Juett; the parents were natives ef the Blue-
grass State, and there passed all their days;
they had born to them a family of nine chil-
dren, two of whom died in infancy, and four
of whom are yet living. Charles H. was
married February 22, 1859, to Miss Mary
Jane Hoffman, a native of Fayette county
Kentucky, and a daughter of Michael and
Syba Hoffman. Nine children have been
born of this union, two of whom died in in-
fancy: John M.; "William, who is married
and has one child; Anna M., married and
the mother of two children; Catharine A.,
married and the mother of three children;
Eliza E.; Charles H.; Benjamin D.; Effie
S. and Francis M.
After his marriage Mr. Juett removed to
Illinois, and settled in Brown county; later
he came to Schuyler county, and here he
purchased 160 acres of timber land; he then
undertook the task of clearing this and plac-
ing it under cultivation; he erected a log
cabin, 16 x 18 feet, which was afterward de-
stroyed by fire. As his means increased
he made additional investments in land,
and now owns 320 acres, all under cul-
tivation. He is engaged in general farm-
ing, and has been very successful. He has
filled various local offices, and in both public
and private life he has made a record for
honorable and correct methods of dealing
that command the confidence of the entire
community.
In politics he was allied with the Whig
party until its dissolution, and since that
time he has voted the Democratic ticket.
ENRY MEYER, an old and retired Ger-
man farmer of section 19, township 17,
range 11, was born in Prussia, Germany,
in 1814. His parents lived and died in Prus-
sia, when quite old. The father, Conrad, was
a small farmer, and he and his wife were
members of the Lutheran Church. Henry
is the youngest but one of the family. He
and a brother Fred are the only surviving
members of the family. Henry has earned his
own living since he was eight years old and has
made his present large fortuue entirely by his
own efforts. He was yet a young man when
in the spring of 1833 he sailed from Bremen,
on a sailing vessel, arriving at New Orleans
after a voyage of nine weeks. He came up the
Mississippi river and spent some few months
536
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OA88,
in Missouri, but not liking it he came on to
Beardstown, Illinois, and settled here, being
among the first settlers of the locality. They
were all strangers to him. He is now the old-
est settler now living in the county, which was
all unbroken when he came to it in the spring
of 1833. Arenzville was a small town indeed
when he settled there, consisting of two log
houses. Beardstown and Virginia were ham-
lets, and no roads marked out the sectional
and township lines. In fact there were no
improvements in the county to amount to
anything. As there were no railroads the
pioneers had but few advantages to sell their
produce when they had raised it. Mr. Meyer
has lived to see all this changed, doing his
full share to effect this change. He has worked
hard to increase his original 186 acres to his
present number of 380 acres, of which 250
are highly improved. The 380 acres are di-
vided into two separate farms, each supplied
with a complete set of farm buildings. Un-
til about five years ago Mr. Meyer worked
hard, but then, as advancing age told upon
him, he retired, and has been living quietly
ever since, enjoying the fruits of his labors.
He is now seventy-eight years old, and can
point to a life of usefulness that would put
to shame many an idle man.
He was married in this county to Eliza-
beth Talkemeyer, born near the old home of
her husband in Prussia, Germany. She
came to America with a brother, Frederick,
in the '40s, their parents having died in
Germany. After they landed in New Or-
leans, they came north to Beardstown, and
here they both lived and died. Mrs. Meyer
died at her home where her husband yet lives,
September, 1884, aged sixty-seven. She was
a good wife, a devoted mother, and a kind
neighbor. Mr. and Mrs. Meyer were the
parents of four children: Caroline Keane, of
Arenzville; Mary, wife of William Duvel-
meier, of Beardstown; Henry manages the
farm, and married Caroline Baujan, of Arenz-
ville; Louisa, wife of Fred Wienkencman, a
farmer on one of Mr. Meyer's farms.
Mr. Meyer has been a leading man for
many years in his section, and one of the
most prominent members of the Lutheran
Church in Beardstown, and one near Arenz-
ville. Hs is an ardent Republican in poli-
tics.
NGUS McPHAIL was born in Glasgow,
Scotland, April 25, 1810. His father,
Angus, was born on the island of Mull,
and served an apprenticeship in Glasgow, to
the trade of haberdasher. He then went
into business for himself, but was not suc-
cessful, losing all he had. He then decided
to come to America, and try his fortune in
the new world. His son, Angus, sent money
to defray the expenses of his parents to
America in 1844. He spent his last days in
Lee township, and died aged eighty- four
years. His wife's name was Jane, daughter
of James and Flora (McVicker) Crawford.
She was born in Argyleshire, Scotland, and
died at the home of our subject. Her father
was born in Renfrewshire, Scotland, and
descended from the early settlers of that
place who fled from France during the time
of the persecution by the Roman Catholics.
He was a sailor, and followed the sea many
years. He fell from the mast, finally, and
was killed. His wife passed her entire life
in Scotland. The mother of our subject
reared seven children: Archibald, Jane, and
our subject, were the only ones that came to
America.
Angus was reared in Glasgow, and served
six years' apprenticeship to the tailor's trade,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
587
and then did journey work in different parts
of Great Britain. He came to America in
1835, and stopped in New York a few weeks,
and then made his way to Toronto, there
bought property and opened a shop, continu-
ing at his trade until 1837. Early in the
spring of 1838, he left for the States by a
roundabout route, and at last reached St.
Louis, which then contained but 2,000 peo-
ple. He stopped there a short time, and
then came on to Beardstown, and from there
to Rnshville, and here opened a shop where
he conducted his business until 1840, and
then went to Mt. Sterling, and there opened
a shop and continued until 1850. He then
moved to the farm he now owns, and has since
been engaged in farming.
He was married in Glasgow, in 1833, to
Mary Crawford, born in Scotland, who died
in 1852. He was married a second time in
1855, to Jane McCaskill, born in Sangamon
county, Illinois, February 26, 1828. Her
father, Daniel, was born in North Carolina,
and his father, John, was born in Scotland,
and coming to America settled in North
Carolina, and then went to South Carolina,
where he died. The father of Mrs. McPhail
went to Indiana when a young man, and
studied medicine, and continued practicing
there. He then became one of the pioneers
of Sangamon county, Illinois. He practiced
medicine in that county until 1835, and then
took eighty acres of Government land in Pea
Ridge township, and bought 240 acres more
in the same township. He remained there
until his death, at the age of fifty- nine.
The maiden name of the mother was Esther
Turner, the daughter of Archibald Turner,
a native of Ireland, who died at the home of
the family in Pea Ridge township.
Mr. and Mrs. McPhail have four living
children: Daniel, William, Archihald John
and Flora Ellen. He has also four living
children by his first wife: Mary, Catherine,
James and Scotland. They are members of
the Presbyterian and Methodist Churches,
and he is a Republican.
ENRY A. HIERMAN, a young and
energetic farmer, living on section 12,
township 17, range 12, was born on this
farrm on June 6, 1865. He was educated in
the public schools, and lived at home until
the death of his father, since which time he
has farmed on his own account. He is the
fourth son of nine children born to his
parents, Bernhardt and Mary (Legerraeier)
Hierman, natives of Germany, whose parents
both lived and died in the fatherland. The
father was yet a young man, about twenty
years of age, when he came to the United
States in the '50s and made a settlement at
Beardstown. He there followed his trade of
painter, which he had learned in Germany.
He afterward decided to go to farming, and
purchased land six miles from Beardstown,
in township 17, range 11. He here improved
a large and beautiful tract of land embracing
more than 300 acres. There are eighty acres
of timber. He put up good farm buildings
and made everything pleasant around him.
Here he died, November 16, 1887, in the
fifty- sixth year of his life. He was a good
man, well known throughout the community.
He was a Republican, and a member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church. His wife, who
survives him, had come to the United States
when a young woman. She married Mr.
Hierman in Beardstown, and after his death
married a second time, Fred Housmier, a re-
tired farmer. His first wife had died here.
Mr. and Mrs. Housmier are members of the
538
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASH,
Methodist Episcopal Church, and Mr. Hous-
mier is a Republican in politics.
Mr. Hierman now conducts a Jarge farm of
320 acres, belonging to his mother. He has
been operating it for the past three years
very successfully. It is in a high state of
cultivation and is one of the substantial farms
of the township. The brothers of our subject
are: William A., a farmer of Schuyler county,
married to Mary Winklehack; Edward, a
dealer in agricultural implements in Arenz-
ville, married Josie Beard; Thedora married
Cinda Hackman, and they »re farmers in
Morgan county; our subject married Lizzie
Nordsick, who was born and reared in Cass
county, and is the mother of one child, Inas;
Frank lives with his brother Edward, in
Arenzville; George lives with his brother
Theo, in Morgan county; Louis and Al-
bert, twins; and Charles is with his brother
Henry.
Mr. Hierman is a Lutheran, but his wife
is a Methodist. Mr. Hierman is a Republi-
can, and both he and his wife are highly re-
spected throughout the community where
they live.
JON RAD BECKER, now a retired farmer
living in section 32, township 17, range
11, near Arenzville, was born in Hesse-
Darmstadt, Germany, August 18, 1826. He
grew up and was educated in his native
province, being twenty-one years old when
he came to the United States, sailing from
Bremen on a sailing vessel that landed him
in New Orleans after an eight weeks' voyage.
He came from there up the Mississippi river
to St. Louis, and from there to Beardstown,
taking five weeks to make the trip. He set-
tled in the last named city, February, 1847.
He was a poor man at that time and among
strangers, but by hard work and economy he
has accumulated a fortune. He is the only
member of his family who came to the United
States. The parents of Mr. Becker died in
Germany, and were farmers, as were their
parents before them, and they were Lutherans
in religion.
Mr. Becker has lived in Cass county for
forty years, and has been a successful farmer
and stock-raiser. His property embraces
some very fine land, besides his fine residence
and a large number of Government bonds.
Mr. Becker was married in Arenzville in
1851, to Miss Sarah Hakes, born in Notting-
hamshire, March 7, 1828, daughter of Will-
iam and Elizabeth (Freeman) Hakes, natives
of Nottinghamshire, England, where they
lived and died. Mrs. Becker lost her mother
when quite young, and so was obliged to take
care of herself. She is the only member of
her family who came to the United States,
and she made the trip in 1848, sailing from
Liverpool, England. She landed in New
York city after a voyage of some weeks, and
came thence to Morgan county, Illinois,
where she remained a few weeks, and then
came on to Arenzville, which has since been
her home. She has proved herself a true
wife and mother, always willing to do any
amount of hard work. Mr. and Mrs. Becker
have three children: Henry married Mattie
Boyer, and resides in Arenzville; Mary died
in 1882, at the age of twenty-four, being the
wife of Herman Weber; Lizzie, wife of Ed.
Petefish, farmers of Virginia, this county.
fOHN H. WALKER was born in Gray-
son county, Kentucky, October 5, 1831.
His father was Felix, born, in Brecken-
ridge county, Kentucky, November 14, 1804.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
539
He was a farmer whose father, William
Walker, was a farmer who lived and died in
the same county. He owned a good home
and raised a large family. Felix Walker
came to Rushville and settled four miles
north of Buena Vista township, in 1837. He
rented lands for some years, but in 1844 he
bought forty acres in Brooklyn township.
This was wild land, on which he lived for only
a short time. He had but a few hundred
dollars and soon moved to the hamlet of
Brooklyn, where he died November 14, 1845.
He left a wife, five daughters and his only
son, John. Soon after his death, his daughter
Harriet died, in her sixteenth year. The
mother of these children was Rachel Watts,
of Hardin county, Kentucky. She died
January 22, 1884, aged eighty years. She
was lame many years from a dislocated hip
caused by a fall, but other than that she was
well and bright to the last. There are four
of her children still living: Mr. Walker;
Sarah Blackburn, living in Brooklyn town-
ship; Catherine Hine, also of Brooklyn;
Callie Shaler, living in Adams county, Iowa.
Mr. Walker grew up ou the farm and re-
mained at home until thirty-one years of age,
when he enlisted, August 11, 1862, in Com-
pany A, Seventy-eighth Illinois Infantry.
He served nearly three years, and was in but
one general engagement, and that against
Hood at Nashville, Tennessee. He was in
seven skirmishes, but was confined to the
hospital most of the time. He returned to
Brooklyn and resumed farming the forty
acres his father had left. In 1866, with his
brother-in-law, Orville Blackburn, he bought
eighty acres on section 29. for $1,700. They
farmed this in company for three years.
In 1869 he was married to Lydia McAllis-
ter, born in Shelby county, Kentucky, daugh-
ter of Enoch and Elizabeth (Smiley) Mc-
Allister, who came to Illinois in 1854. The
father died in the Confederate army, at Cor-
inth, Mississippi, in 1862, aged fifty-one.
His wife is living near Huntsville, eighty-
one years of age, and is still well and active.
Mr. and Mrs. Walker have buried one child,
but they have five living: Felix, Adolphus,
George A., Maude A. and an unnamed baby.
Mr. Walker has eighty acres in his home farm
and 120 elsewhere. He raises horses, cattle
and hogs, buying and selling them. He has
been Road Commissioner many years, Super-
visor five years and is also Assessor. He is
a Republican, member of G. A. R., George
A. Brown Post, and is a Master Mason.
fOHN W. McCLINTOCK was born in
Ireland, August 12, 1812. His father
was also John, a farmer in Ireland, who
died there in middle life, when his son was a
youth. His wife was Jane Thompson, the
mother of fifteen children. She lived to be
quite aged. Of this family, Isabella came
to this country first, when a young lady and
her sister, Margaret, joined her. Our subject
came next, when twenty-eight years of age,
bringing his wife and two children. His wife
was Eliza Hebron. They came in 1840 on
the sail ship, Sardiana, and were six weeks
and three days between Liverpool and New
York. They encountered a great storm, and
for two nights they were nailed below the
decks. Mr. McClintock had $100 after pay-
ing his way. They lived first with a farmer
of Chester county, named William Webb, a
grand, good man, a Quaker. Mr. McClin-
tock lived with him for five years, in which
he had house rent, cow and feed, free. In
1846 they to Ohio, and two years later he
bought two acres of land, for $200, at
540
BIOGBAPHICAL REVIEW OP CA3S,
Youngstown, Ohio. He lived liere five years,
farming, and within five years he bought
eight acres in the suburbs of that village, for
$166 an acre, and brush at that! At this
time there were eight railroads there. This
eight acres brought him $500 in money and
120 acres of land here in Brooklyn township.
His two acres brought him $500, aud he
came, to his present farm home in the fall of
1871.
They have buried one son, John, who died
in 1882, aged thirty-three years. The living
ones are: William, a farmer on the old home-
stead; Andrew, at home; Sarah, now Mrs.
James Henderson, farmers in this township;
Hugh, on an adjoining farm.
Mr. McClintock has voted the Republican
ticket since Horace Greeley ran for President.
They are members of the Baptist Church,
and have given their children a good educa-
tion. Although Mr. McClintock had only
$100 when he landed in this country, he and
his family now have 300 acres of land, worth
$30 an acre, with no mortgage upon it. They
are worthy people and are justly proud of
their success.
|ICHARD BO YD, a farmer on section
34, Oakland township, Schuyler county,
is a native of county Donegal, Ireland,
born in 1858, the son of James and Cather-
ine Boyd; the parents of both died on the
Emerald Isle, the father at the age of sixty
years, and the mother at the age of ninety-
nine. At the age of sixteen years Richard
Boyd bade farewell to his home and friends
and native land, and crossed the sea to
America; he landed at the port of New
York, and continued his journey to Pitts-
burgh, Pennsylvania, to which point his
ticket carried him. He soon secured em-
ployment at $2 a day, and worked until he
had paid back his passage money which he
was obliged to borrow; he remained in Pitts-
burgh three years, and at the end of that
time came West with his brother James, who
had preceded him to America. He was in
the employ of John Young for three years,
at $16 a month; he then spent a year in
prospecting, and ended his observations by
purchasing a tract of eighty acres, a part
of his present farm, the consideration being
$600; he has since added forty- three acres,
and has made many improvements, develop-
ing one of the most desirable farms in the
township.
Mr. Boyd was married in March, 1891,
to Miss Jessie Ackman, a daughter of Isaac
and Nancy (Harmon) Ackman. Mrs. Ack-
man died when Jessie was a child of six
years, and Mr. Ackman married a second
time to Miss Maria Hay, of Ohio; he died
May 26, 1886. He was a farmer by occu-
pation, and was one of the pioneers of this
county, settling here in 1842. There were
nine children of the first marriage, and to
these the second wife was a good and kind
mother; she was as deeply and truly mourned
as was the father: David Ackman lives in
northern Kentucky; Georgiana is the wife of
Edward Garrett, and lives in Kansas; Mary
married Blair Simpson, a farmer of north-
ern Wisconsin; the rest of the family live in
Schuyler county. Mr. Boyd does a general
farming business, raising grains and live-
stock; his preference in the latter is Short-
horn cattle and Poland-China hogs.
Mr. and Mrs. Boyd are both members of
church, and are liberal supporters of the re-
ligious denominations. Politically, he affili-
ates with the Republican party. Two of his
brothers and two of his sisters are living in
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
541
the United States, but the remainder of the
family are in Ireland. Mr. Boyd is a man
of many sterling traits of character, and has
the respect of his adopted countrymen.
[AMU EL W. COOK, a highly respected
member of the farming community of
Oakland township, was born in Marion
county, Ohio, in 1833, a son of Peter L.
Cook. The father was born in 1808. and
died May 2, 1892, aged eighty-four years;
he enjoyed excellent health until about three
weeks previous to his death. The paternal
grandfather of our subject, John Cook, was
a blacksmith by trade, and also carried on
farming in Marion county, Ohio; he was
sixty-two years of age at the time of his
death, and left his second wife a widow.
His first wife was Susan Louderback, a na-
tive of Pennsylvania, and in that State they
were married; thence they removed to Ohio,
when Peter L. was a small lad ; he is one of
a family of nine children, seven of whom
grew to adult age. He married Hannah
Hankie, a native of Bucks county, Pennsyl-
vania, and a daughter of Henry Hankie, who
died at the advanced age of ninety-six years.
Eleven children were born of this union;
the mother died in the fall of 1887, in her
seventy-sixth year; one son died in the
summer of 1859, aged twenty-eight years;
he left a wife and five children; the other
members of the family are living, all are
married and have families, the first, second
and third generations numbering about 125
souls.
Samuel W. Cook, our worthy subject, was
married in 1857, to Elizabeth Lovell, of
Schuyler county, a daughter of William and
Elizabeth (Seaver) Lovell; Mrs. Cook's father
86
was a native of Kentucky, and her mother
was of German extraction; the maternal
grandmother lived to the extreme old age of
104 years: Mrs. Cook was born in 1840. They
began their married life here in Schuyler
county, and with the exception of a legacy of
$3,000, which was recently received by Mrs.
Cook, have accumulated their property
through their own efforts. They own a fine,
fertile farm of 110 acres, and Mrs. Cook has
a tract near by which consists of fifty-six
acres.
They are the parents of eleven children:
one son and two daughters died in infancy;
Charles E. died at the age of nineteen years,
in 1885; Mary E. is the wife of Thomas
Chalkley; William T. married Laura Straus-
baugh, and has two children; Lizzie is the
wife of Harry Smith; Hannah married
James Lybarger, and is the mother of one
child; Inez L., Samuel W. and Wilmar F.
are at home.
In his political opinions Mr. Cook adheres
to the principles of the Democratic party; he
has represented his township in some of the
local offices, and has discharged his duties
with great credit to himself. Mrs. Cook is a
consistent member of the Church of the
Disciples.
,OAH W. BAKEH was born in Summit
county, Ohio, June 25, 1835. He was
the son of James M. and Eliza (Taylor)
Baker. James M. Baker was of New York,
and came from there to Ohio, and rented in
Summit county, and soon after bought and
began farming. In 1840, he sold his Ohio
property and drove of oxen and one wagon,
and settled in Pike county, near Griggsville,
and lived there eight months. He then came
542
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
to this county and bought forty acres and
built a log house in which they lived. He
then bought sixty acres more, and he lived
there till his death, which occurred when he
was eighty-six years of age.
Our subject's father was one of live chil-
dren. Our subject's mother was born in
Connecticut and came West to Ohio with her
people, and she died here about seventy-one
years of age. Noah W. was one of eight
children, four yet living, and all in this
neighborhood but one. The subject of this
sketch is a Democrat, and was from his
twenty-first year. His people all belong to
the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was at
home till he was of age, and then worked out
by the month.
He was married February 21, 1867, to
Miss Margaret Greenleaf, who was born in
Elkhorn township, July 10, 1B43. She was
the daughter of Peter and Mary (Furguson)
Greenleaf, she being of Ohio, and he came
from Canada to Illinois. Their daughter
Margaret, was one of four children, and all are
living. Margaret's father and mother died
in Elkhorn township and had about 160
acres of land at his death. He went to Cali-
fornia overland and part of the way he walked
and rode. He staid there four years, and
while there he practiced the trade of a tanner.
He returned by land.
Our subject's wife had nine children, seven
of whom are living: Hattie M. was born De-
cember, 1869; Perry was born February 4,
1870; Susie was born October 22, 1873;
Nellie was born September 6, 1875; Fred
was born November 16, 1878; Carson was
born October 13, 1883, and Mart was born
April 13, 1885. After his marriage our sub-
ject settled on the forty acres he had bought
and built a log house and then a frame one.
He lived there till 1888. He has now in the
neighborhood, over 480 acres and eighty un-
der cultivation.
Subject's children are all cultivated and in-
tellectual. One of them is teaching, two are
musical, and the others are more or less
gifted. He himself is a Democrat and voted
for Stephen A. Douglas. He is a member
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and he
is also a member of the 1. O. O. F. He is a
fine man, and very much respected by all of
his fellow citizens.
LLEN WEBB was born in Madison
county, Kentucky. July 25, 1820. He
was the son of Joshua and Letta (Haw-
ard) Webb. The former was born in Vir-
ginia and came with his parents at an early
day to Kentucky, where he lived and died at
the age of eighty years. He was in the war
of 1812 and drew a pension, having been a
brave soldier. He was the son of John and
Millie Webb, who were both natives of Vir-
ginia and died in Kentucky, the former at
eighty- five, the latter at 103. All the family
were farmers. Mrs. Letta Webb was born
in Virginia and died in the same State as her
husband when she was fifty-five. She was a
daughter of John and Nancy Haward. A
brother of Joshua Webb was in the Revolu-
tionary war and was at the Cornwallis sur-
render.
Allen Webb was one of five children and
remained at home until nineteen years of age,
working on the farm. He then hired himself
O
out to a man as blacksmith's apprentice and
stayed with him two years, and then started
a business for himself in Clark county, Ken-
tucky. He continued working at his trade
until 1851, and then started by wagon for
Illinois. He first located at Mt. Sterling
8GHUYLER AND SHOWN COUNTIES.
543
His original farm was 160 acres, worth but
little at that time, and he lived in a log house
for some time. He then sold that farm for
100 per cent, profit and bought another farm
of 225 acres. He built a good farm house
and soon had one of the best farms in the
county. This farm he sold also, and moved
to another place for a year. He then settled
on the old Dennis farm and lived there for
three years, when he again sold out and
moved back to Mt. Sterling and retired from
active business, having been an extensive
stock-grower. He now has a fine town house
and the old General Signtetan farm of twenty
acres. He was an old Whig and voted first
for Henry Clay and in 1856 for John Fre-
mont. He has voted the Republican ticket
ever since. Mr. Webb had only six month's
schooling in his entire life, but he has edu-
cated himself and is a well-read man. Mr.
Webb now enjoys life in an easy way looking
after his property and real estate interests.
He was married for the first time to Emily
Oliver, of Madison county. She died in Lee
township aged forty- eight years. She bore
her husband ten children, four now living,
namely: Jennie, John A., Emelineand Isaac.
Mr. Webb was married for the second time
to Miss Martha Harper of Ohio, daughter of
Stephen and Martha Harper, who came here
at an early day. Mrs. Webb died in this
county, aged forty-eight years. She bore him
one child, that died at the age of four years.
Mr. Webb was married for the third time, to
Miss Sarah Dennis of Bourbon county, Ken-
tucky, near Georgetown. She was the daugh-
ter of Clark and Elizabeth Dennis. They
were also natives of Kentucky and came to
this State at an early date, and Mr. Dennis
was made the first Sheriff of the county.
Mrs. Webb was one of nine children, five yet
living. Her whole family were members of
the Christian Church of which her father was
ati Elder.
Mr. and Mrs. Webb have educated the four
living children of Mr. Webb very finely, and
the oldest son was in the late war, being one
of the first 100-day men. Mr. and Mrs.
Webb are influential people who are greatly
respected by their large circle of friends.
RS. ALMIEA YOUNG, widow of
John Young, is the daughter of Will-
iam and Elizabeth (Seaver) -Lovell,
natives of Ohio. Her parents emigrated to
Illinois in the fall of 1836, when she was an
infant of two years; they made the journey
overland with horses and a prairie schooner,
being five weeks on the way; the family con-
sisted of the parents and three children. They
first settled on the Illinois river, but shortly
afterward removed to the present home of
Mrs. Young. The mother died in 18,41? leav?
ing a family of six children, four sons and
two daughters; she was forty-two years of
age; the father survived her forty-nine years,
and died at the age of eighty-six years.
Mrs. Young was married in 1849 to Ladon
Beghto}, a native of Kentucky, a son of
Peter Beghtol, who emigrated to Illinois
about 1840; they lived here until the death
of Mr. Beghtol, which occurred in 1857; he
left a family of three children: Mary Eliza-
beth, Sarah Melvina and William Levi. Mrs.
Beghtol was then married a second time, this
union being with John Young; he was a na-
tive of Pennsylvania, was reared in the State
of Ohio, and removed to Illinois with his
first wife and four children in 1855; the wife
died soon after their arrival in this State.
Mr. and Mrs. Young were married in 1859,
and seven years later they moved to Hamil-
544
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA3S,
ton county, Iowa, where they settled on a
small farm; there they resided until the death
of Mr. Young, which occurred. March 20,
1876, at the age of fifty- seven years. Nine
children were born of this union: John died
in infancy; Oscar was accidentally killed in
childhood; Justine is the wife of Marion
Stockton; "William, Eli, George, !{ola, Mar-
ion, Joseph; Nola is married to Webster
Aten of Schuyler county.
fOSEPH PARKE was bor.u in Chester
county, Pennsylvania, in 1818. His
father, Jonathan, was born in the same
place and died at an advanced age, when his.
son was so small that he has no recollection
of him. There were ten sons and the same
number of daughters in this family, all coin-
ing to adult years, but all have now died.
The mother of this remarkable family was
Marjory Woodward of the same county. She
lived some fourteen years after her husband's
death and they both now rest in the Marshall-
town cemetery, a large Quaker cemetery.
These parents were well-to-do and gave the
family a good education.
Joseph was sent to a Quaker school at
Western Academy. He was reared to farm
life, but at twenty -one he began school-teach-
ing, taught two years in Pennsylvania and
four years in Ohio. At his mother's death
he was put under a guardian, who gave him
additional educational advantages.
He was married in Logan county, Ohio, in
his twenty-sixth year, to Mary Ann Wilson,
She was a daugther of Eobert and Elizabeth
(Holt) Wilson. They, Mr. and Mrs. Parke lived
for five years in this county and taught school.
In October, 1840, they came West, overland,
and settled in Brooklyn township, entering
160 acres. This was wild and they made the
first improvements, building a log cabin with
a sod chimney. Mr. Parke still has the
cabin as a part of his present dwelling but
the sod chimney is now a brick one and the
cabin is weather-boarded externally and lathed
and plastered inside. He has 300 acres, a
part of which he has deeded to his daughter.
About 1865 they buried one son, Jonathan,
aged twenty. They next buried Elizabeth,
Mrs. Taylor Gray, at the age of twenty-six;
in 1885 their daughter, Ada Sario, aged
about eighteen years old, died at Dr. Prince's
establishment at Jacksonville. His wife had
fits for some twenty years and in March,
1891, fell into the tire and died the same
day. He has only one living daughter, Eliza,
second wife of Taylor Gray. She has four
children: George W., Mary Florence, Estelle
and Nellie Jane. She has buried one infant
son. She and her husband are operating the
farm, for her father, who lives with them. Mr.
Parke has been a constant toiler since 1840,
when he came to this home. He has served
in some of the township offices and taught
school one year. He has been a general
farmer, although he has made the most
out of wheat, growing from fifteen to thirty
bushels per acre. Hogs have been the best-
paying stock and horses have paid well in a
small way.
He has voted the Democratic and Repub-
lican tickets, but' is now a Farmers' Alliance
man. He and his family have been Univer-
salists, although he has been reared a
Quaker.
fAMES E. NEELEY, a prominent farmer
and dealer in live-stock, Littleton town-
ship, was born at Fort Larned, Kansas,
March 3, 1864, a son of John and Lucinda
SOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
545
(Snyder) Neeley. The father was a native of
Pennsylvania, but emigrated to Kansas, where
he engaged in farming. James E. is the
only child of the first marriage; the mother
died April 8, 1864, at Lamed, Kansas. Mr.
Neeley married a second time, and had one
child by this union. After the death of his
mother our subject was taken to the home of
Major Wheeler, where he was reared with all
the affectionate care that could be bestowed
upon him. The farm he now occupies was
inherited from the Major, and he is engaged
in general agriculture.
Mr. Neeley made a specialty of breeding
and raising tine, thoroughbred horses, and
fine stock of excellent pedigree; Roan Dick
is an animal of good record, and a colt that
he is now raising promises to be one of the
fastest horses in the State. He has managed
all branches of farming with keen intelli-
gence, and has met with merited success.
In 1886, November 25, he was united in
marriage to Miss Rachel A. Greer. Mr. and
Mrs. Neeley are the parents of one child:
John F., born March 13, 1891. Politically,
our subject adheres zealously to the principles
of the Republican party, having cast his first
presidental vote for James G. Elaine. He
is a young man of superior business qualifica-
tions, and his judgment carries due weight
throughout the agricultural district of this
section of Illinois.
^ENRY FISCHER, a successful and
practical farmer, living on section 24,
township 17, range 11, was born
November 1, 1854, and is the son of Henry
Fischer, a native of Hesse- Darmstadt, where
he learned the trade of shoemaker. There
he was married to Miss Margaret Kraft, a
native of the same province. After the birth
of two daughters and a son, the family em-
igrated, in the '40s, to the United States,
settling in Beardstown, Illinois, where Mr.
Fischer established a shoemaking business,
and ran it for some years with the assistance
of his son, our subject; but when the latter
began to farm the father withdrew from his
trade and is now retired. Although now
quite an old man he is still very active and
energetic^ and is a Lutheran in religion and a
Democrat in politics. His mother is still
living, in Beardstown, with her daughter,
Mrs. Elisabeth Bohrnman, and is over ninety
years old. The excellent wife of Henry
Fischer is yet living, about seventy years old.
She has been a valued member of the Luther-
an Church for many years. Our subject and
two sisters are yet living: the latter are Mar-
garet, widow of Martin Bolle, deceased,
having died from the effects of an accident
on the Qnincy railroad; and Sophia, wife of
George Speaker, who is now foreman of the
wrecking department of the Quincy railroad.
Our subject has been a farmer for eleven
years. He enjoys it more than his former
trade of shoemaker. He is now located on
section 24, and the land of which he owns
one-half interest is known under the firm
name of Keil & Co. They purchased to-
gether the old John Weiss homestead, em-
bracing 500 acres of land, mostly well im-
proved with good farm buildings. On this
land is Hagener station, and besides this
they own 200 acres in this township, known
as pasture land, and forty acres of timber
in township 17, range 11, which is very
valuable. He has, for the last eleven years,
had the management of this land and is a
practical man and an excellent farmer.
Mr. Fischer was married to Miss Mamie
Weiss, who was born on the farm where she
546
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
now lives, April 26, 1856. She is the
youngest child of John and Katherine
(Hahn) Weiss, natives of Germany. They
married immediately before sailing to the
United States, in 1842, and on reaching
here made a settlement on a farm in town-
ship 17, range 11, which is now the home of
Mr. Fischer. They began to make improve-
ments and bought more land, and in time
Mr. Weiss' possessions increased until he
owned 900 acres of valuable land. Here
they remained the rest of their lives. Mr.
Weiss died in 1876, aged seventy-two years.
He had been an active, hard-working man all
his life and was regarded by his neighbors
as an upright citizen, worthy of their respect
and regard. He was a member of the
Lutheran Church and was a Republican.
His wife died some years later, at her old
home, in 1887, aged sixty-two years. She
had been a member of the Lutheran Church
all her life. Of the family of four children
left by Mr. and Mrs. Weiss, all were daugh-
ters: Lizzie, wife of Christian Meyer, died at
the age of forty, leaving a family of eight
children ; Katie is the wife of William Hack-
man, grocer of Jacksonville; Sophia is the
wife of Henry C. Keil (see sketch of same).
Mr. and Mrs. Fischer are the parents of
five children: Adelaide, Ervin L., Ray H.,
Rena K. and Albert H.,,who died when an
infant. This is one of the wealthy and greatly
respected families of the township with whom
it is a pleasure to become acquainted.
CHARLES D. RITCHEY, a substantial
farmer and influential citizen of Little-
ton township, Schuyler county, was
born in this connty on June 11, 1862. His
father, Addison B. Ritchey, is a prominent
pioneer of Schnyler county, and a sketch of
his life is subjoined. Our subject was reared
on a farm and was educated at a college in
Vaparaiso, Indiana, from which institution
he graduated with honor.
He was married June 13, 1889, to Miss
Dena Saunders, a native of Atlanta, Macon
connty, Missouri, in which place she was born
June 15, 1864. She was a daughter of James
W. and Martha A. (Stone) Saunders. Her
father was born in Kentucky, and accom-
panied his parents to Missouri when he was
but nine months old. His father, Woodward
G. Saunders, is also a native of Kentucky,
and is still living, at an advanced age, in Mis-
souri. George W. Saunders, father of Wood-
ward G., was a school teacher, and died in
Missouri a number of years ago. Woodward
G. Saunders located on a farm in Missouri,
where he and family began the life of pio-
neers, experiencing all the inconveniences and
hardships incident to those similarly circum-
stanced. Here, James W. Saunders was
reared, and was educated at the William
Jewell College, located at Liberty, Missouri,
and was for twenty years a Baptist minister.
It was in Missouri that he met and married
Martha A. Stone, a very attractive lady, and
daughter of Hiram and Laura J. (De Freire)
Stone, both natives of Tennessee, the father
still surviving in Macon county, Missouri, a
graduate from the high school in Elletts-
ville, Monroe connty, Indiana. Our subject's
wife was a school teacher for more than six-
teen years, and is a highly educated and in-
teresting lady, of superior ability and culture.
After his marriage, Mr. Ritchey went into
business with Mr. De Witt, in a general
store, where he remained for some time. He
was later elected Clerk of Littleton township,
in which capacity he served for one year.
He was afterward elected Collector of that
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
547
township, serving for two years in a highly
creditable manner.
Mr. and Mrs. Ritchey have one child: Edna
M., who was born December 25, 1890.
Mrs. Ritchey is a member of the Baptist
Church, to which she contributes liberal aid.
He is a Republican, and cast his first vote
for James G. Elaine. His constituents have
demonstrated their esteeem by electing him
to two of the most responsible positions in
their power to bestow.
Of unswerving fidelity and integrity, and
high morality, together with generous im-
pulses and cordial manners, he enjoys the re-
spect and esteem of his fellow citizens.
ADDISON B. RITCHEY, one of the oldest
pioneers of Schuyler county, is a native of
Ohio, and was born in Green county, of that
State, September 17, 1817. His parents were
John and Elizabeth (Reed) Ritchey. His
father, a native of Pennsylvania, was born in
Alleghany, that State> and was a farmer all his
life. He went to Ohio in 1816, and in 1824
came all the way to near Rnshville with a
four-horse wagon. All the worldly posses-
sions of the family were in the wagon and they
had very little money besides, as they paid
their last fifty cents for being ferried across
the river at Beardstown, then known as
Beard's Ferry. He had come out for the
purpose of taking land, for which he had a
patent, but after camping on the land, for
one night, he would not remain, and rtioved
to near Rushville, where he located on a
quarter section, building there a small log
cabin about 16 x 18, in which they lived for
several years. His was the thirteenth family
in the county. In 1826, he traded his claim
for 160 acres of land in Littleton township,
in section 35, on which he built another log
house, where they lived for one season, then
rented land and removed to his former farm,
where on account of some trouble about trade,
he moved to Rushville, buying there 160
acres adjoining the town, on which he built
another log house, in which he and family
lived for about eight years. He then sold
and came back to Littleton township. Dur-
ing all this time our subject was employed in
various pioneer work, splitting rails, plowing
and doing whatever other work he found to
do. His father died in 1842, aged fifty-three
years; His father's father was a native of
Ireland, from which country he emigrated in
the early days of this country, and died many
years ago, in Pennsylvania. His mother,
Elizabeth Reed, was born in Pennsylvania,
and died in Ohio when our subject was but
three years of age. Our subject remained at
home until his father's death, after which he
spent one year with a brother, in the mean-
time farming the old homestead on his own
account.
On June 4, 1845, Mr. Ritchey was married
to Miss Mary Ann Hayes, a native of Ver-
milion county, Illinois, where she was born
October 3, 1829. Her parents were John and
Debora (Hankins) Hayes. Her father was a
native of Virginia, from which State he emi-
grated, first to Kentucky, afterward to Illi-
nois, at a very early day, where in Vermilion
county he rented a farm, which he worked for
some time, when he later came to Carroll
county, and still filter to Putnam county, fi-
nally going to Henry county, all in Illinois, in
whjch latter place he died, aged seventy
years. His wife, Debora Hankins, was a na-
tive of Tennessee, in which State she was born
and is at present living with a daughter in
Kansas. Grandfather Hankins also came to
Illinois at an early day, where he died, at the
advanced age of ninety-three years. Grand-
mother Hankins also died in Illinois, aged
sixty-five years. Grandfather and grand-
548
BIOORAPHIGAL REVIEW OF CA88,
mother Hayes were also pioneers of Illinois,
where they died, in Whiteside county, both
very old people. The Hayes were of Irish
descent. Our subject's wife was one of seven
children, four of whom are yet living. Our
subject is one of three children, of whom he
ist he only survivor; he has, however, a half-
sister and half-brother, both of whom are liv-
ing.
After marriage, our subject lived in section
34, in his old home, where lie remained for
two years, at the end of which time he bought
160 acres of wild land, on which there was a
log house. Here he and his wife lived until
he built his present home. He has improved
the farm in numerous ways, until now it is
the finest in the county. He has erected a
large and comfortable residence, and com-
modious barns for the accommodation of
grain, stock and machinery, besides adding
other modern improvements and conveniences
to facilitate agricultural pursuits. He has
planted ornamental trees and shrubs around
his house, which now only renders his place
attractive from a distance, but is a welcome
retreat from the sun's too ardent rays on a
mid-summer day.
He has reared fifteen children, eleven of
whom are living. His oldest son, John Q.
Ritchey, served for four months in the war
in Company K, One Hundred and Thirty
seventh Illinois Infantry, and also was in the
hundred days' service.
Our subject's father was an old-line Whig,
as was also his son, who was later a Free-
soiler, and now a Republican. Our subject
cast his first vote for General William H.
Harrison. His father voted for John Quincy
Adams. Neither he nor his father were poli-
ticians in the modern acceptation of the term,
never desiring office but wishing only the ad-
vancement and welfare of their country.
Mr. Ritchey and wife are members of the
Baptist Church, to which they have liberally
contributed.
Commencing life in a new country, with-
out means and without friends, he now has
both money and friends, which have accum-
ulated and increased with the progress of the
country. He is the oldest living pioneer of
his county, and as such enjoys a pre-emi-
nence among his neighbors, which superior
age always bestows. Of superior ability and
unswerving integrity, he has retained the re-
gard of all through his checkered career, and
now holds an eminent position in the com-
munity.
lEYTON HARDING, farmer of town-
ship 17, range 9, section 19, Philadel-
phia- postoflice, was born in Barren
county, Kentucky, December 17, 18l7. His
parents were Martin and Isabella (Beard)
Harding. The father came from Virginia, .
born in 1792, and the mother from Tennessee,
born in 1794. They were married in Barren
county, Kentucky, where their eldest chil-
dren were born: Peyton, Paschal, William,
Sarah and Andrew; and after coming to Illi-
nois, Winnie, Isabella and Martin were born.
Paschal lives with Peyton; Andrew is a
farmer in this precinct; Martin lives in Vir-
ginia, Illinois; and Isabella, now Mrs. Foster,
resides in Lucas county, Iowa. The parents
removed from Kentucky to Illinois in 1826,
and located on the farm where Andrew now
lives. The father entered a large tract of
laud here on which he died in 1854, and the
mother died in 1867. At the time the Hard-
ing family located here the country was en-
tirely new. There was no improved land,
except two small improved tracts in this
neighborhood. The forest was overrun with
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
549
wild game and Indians. Mr. Harding has
lived to witness the development of this
wilderness into one of the most fertile and
valuable sections in the United States. He
has also witnessed the growth of inventions,
the extent of which is wonderful, railroads,
plows, reapers, mowers, binders, separating
threshers, telephones, electric lights and
thousands of other inventions, more than in
the past 200 years previously. Mr. Harding
taught school here in 1840, but preferred the
less confining occupation of farming. He
has been a farmer and stock-raiser all his
life. He is comfortably situated and will
spend his old age in ease. He owns 280
acres of good land. He has never married,
but his brother, Paschal, resides with him
with his four children. He is a Democrat in
politics and cast his first vote for Martin
Van Buren. His father was a soldier in the
war of 1812 and the Black Hawk war, also
in the Mormon troubles, but none of the
family took part in the late Civil war.
JPSAAC BLACK, a retired farmer, is proba-
f[ bly the oldest settler of Schuyler county
^ now living in Rushville; he has endured
the trials and toil in a pioneer country, and
is entitled to more than passing mention in
this history. He is a native of Indiana, born
in Dubois county, February 24, 1824, a son
of Richard Black; the father was born in
Mecklenburgh county, North Carolina, and
was reared in that State; he removed thence
to Hancock county, Kentucky, and lived there
a few years; he then went to the Territory of
Indiana, and was one of the pioneers of Du-
bois county. In 1826 he again started to the
West, keeping close upon the frontier border.
Accompanied by his wife and four children,
he made a journey to Illinois, and located in
Schuyier county, where he purchased a claim
to land entered by Willis O'Neil; this land
is the present site of the city of Rushville.
When the county was organized the claim was
selected as the county seat, and so was taken
from Mr. Black; he was afterward reimbursed
in part. He then went five miles to the
southwest, near the present site of Bethel
Church, and there bought a tract of patent
land, on which he erected a log cabin, sixteen
feet square; there were a puncheon floor and
a stick-and-clay chimney. Later he made an
addition to this domicile, and resided there
until Iris death in 1853. The maiden name
of his second wife was Elizabeth Fowler, a
native of Jefferson county, Kentucky; she
spent her last years with her son Isaac, the
subject of this notice. The family reared by
her consisted of eight children, two of whom
were born of her husband's former marriage:
Elizabeth, William, Isaac, Cecelia, John L.,
Richard S., Austin F. and Monroe.
Isaac Black was an infant when his parents
removed to this county; the country was
thinly settled, and Indians still tarried in the
vicinity of Rushville; game was abundant
and the pioneers lived on wild turkeys, deer,
and the product of their land; the children
were clothed in homespun, woven by the
mother's hands. Young Isaac attended the
primitive pioneer schools during the winter
season, and in the summer he lent valuable
assistance in subduing the wild land and pre-
paring the way for the coming generation; it
is to such men that a deep debt of gratitude
is owing from those who have reaped the
benefits of those years of privation and labor.
Until he was twenty years of age he remained
with his parents, and then with his brother
rented a farm near Littleton; they cultivated
this land four years, and then Isaac Black
550
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
purchased ninety acres in Woodstock town-
ship; there he lived two years, and in 1850
sold it, purchasing a tract in Bainbridge
township. He was very successful in all his
undertakings, made profitable investments,
and secured 450 acres of as choice land as
lies within the borders of the county. He
lived on his farm until 1889, when he retired
to Rushville, where he leads a quiet, con-
tented life.
In 1848 he was united in marriage to
Cynthia A. Edmonston, a daughter of Enoch
Edmonston, who located in Schuyler county
in 1831; he became prominently identified
with public affairs, and served two terms as
Sheriff of the county; he was also County
Treasurer and Assessor; his wife's maiden
name was Susan Allen. Mr. and Mrs. Black
are the parents of eight children: Susan,
Emily, Sarah E., George M., James P.,
Enoch, Flora A., Elvira and E. Louisa.
George M. Black has represented the people
of his county in the State Legislature. Mr.
Black affiliates with the Democratic party,
and at one time represented Bainbridge town-
ship on the County Board of Supervisors.
He has been a loyal citizen, always giving a
liberal support to worthy movements and to
those enterprises tending to benefit the gen-
eral public.
ZAHN, a practical farmer and
stock-raiser, living on the old Zahn
homestead, which he has owned since
1882, was born in Pike county, near Waverly,
in 1857. He came with his father to Illinois
when only fourteen years of age, and has since
lived in this county. His father, Frederick
Zahn, was a native of Hesse-Darmstadt, and
was a boy of sixteen years when his parents
came to America and settled in Pike county,
Ohio, where they were pioneers. There the
parents of Frederick Zahn died when he was
quite young. There he grew up as a farmer,
and was there married to Tinna Creek, who
had settled there, with her parents. The lat-
ter had come with a colony at the same time
the Zahn family had come from Hesse-
Darmstadt. Frederick and his wife began
life in the usual pioneer fashion, both work-
ing very hard, raising a family of eight chil-
dren. There Frederick's wife died, being
then thirty-two years of age. He was mar-
ried for the second time, in Pike county, Ohio,
to Miss Margaret Halensteine, who was born
in Germany, but reared in the United States.
In 1864 they decided to remove to Illinois
and settled on a large farm of 507 acres, where
they remained two years, and then purchased
200 acres on the line of Morgan and Cass
counties. There they lived until 1876. They
then removed to Missouri, where they now
live. Mr. Kahn was seventy-three years of
age, December 29, 1891, his wife being not
quite so old. They are members of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, and are good,
respectable people. Mr. Zahn has been a life-
long Democrat.
Our subject was reared a farmer lad and
lived at home until he took a farm to run on
his own account. He has lived on this farm,
which is one and one-half miles from Arenz-
ville, section 36, township 17, range 12, and
consists of 250 acres, well improved and well
stocked. He has excellent farm buildings and
everything convenient about him.
He was married, in this county, to Miss
Mary Hinners, who was born, reared and edu-
cated in Cass county, her birth occurring Octo-
ber 7, 1852. She was the daughter of John
and Caroline (Miller) Hinners, who were born
in Hesse- Darmstadt, Germany. They came
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
551
to the United States, and were married in
Morgan county, and here lived to amass a
fine property. In 1891 Mr. and Mrs. Hinners
retired to Meredosia, Illinois, where they
live, respected members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church. Mr. and Mrs. Zahn are
members of the same denomination, and Mr.
Zahn has been an official member of the
church.
Mr. and Mrs. Zahn are the parents of three
bright, well educated children: Mamie Ella,
Lusetta and Henry A. This is a fine family,
well thought of in and around Arenzville.
IEORGE H. HOFFMAN, a successful
farmer of section 2, township 17, range
11, was born in Hesse-Darmstadt, May
20, 1840, and when young came alone to the
United States. In 1856 he sailed from
Bremen and after forty-nine days of the ocean
he landed in New York city. He came on
to Chicago, and thence to Springfield, from
there to Jacksonville, and across the country
to Arenzville. When he landed in Arenzville
he was $5 in debt. He is the only member
of the family who came to this country. His
father, George, is still living in Germany,
and is hale and hearty, at the age of eighty-
six, but his mother, Mary, died when he was
eight years old. They always were members
of the Lutheran Church. Two of our sub-
ject's brothers are still living in Germany,
and are married, pursuing the occupation of
farmers.
After our subject first came to this county
he began work, near Hagener Station. After
some years he began his agricultural life as a
renter, and later purchased his present farm.
Mr. Hoffman was first married to Eliza-
beth Schuman, who was born and reared in
this county at what is known as Hagener Sta-
tion, March 9, 1849. She is the eldest child
of John Schnrnan (see biography of Adam
Schumau for family history). Mr. and Mrs.
Hoffman are members of the Lutheran
Church, in which Mr. Hoffman has been a
Deacon for six years. He is a Democrat in
politics, and he and his wife are the parents
of eleven children: Mary, wife of Adolph
Kruse, a farmer iu this county; John A., at
home, helping his father; Attia, Henry,
Emma, Edward, William, Eva, Ralph, Martha,
and the two-year-old baby, are all healthy,
intelligent children. The older children have
been well educated in both German and En-
glish, and are able to speak and write in both
languages. Mr. Hoffman is a very progres-
sive farmer, and owns a tine place, containing
170 acres, 135 of which is under the plow.
He came into possession of this in 1865, and
has since this made all of his excellent im-
provements.
fRED MEYER, a retired farmer of Arenz-
ville, was born in Prussia, Germany, in
1805. He came of Prussian parents,
who lived and died when quite old. His
father, Gotlieb H. Meyer, was a German
farmer, and his wife was a Prussian lady,
formerly Anna Roche. They were members
of the Lutheran Church.
Fred was one of five sons and one daugh-
ter. The latter lived and died in Germany.
The five sons all came to the United States
at different times. Fred and a brother,
Henry, are the only surviving members of
the family. The former grew up and was
married in his native province, to Catherine
M. Burkesikus. She came of an old Prussian
family. After the birth of all their children
552
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
but one, they came to the United State8, in
December, 1848, leaving Bremen on a sail-
ing vessel and landing at New Orleans after
a trip of nine weeks and three days. They
proceeded up the Mississippi river to St.
Louis, and from there to .Beardstown, and
began farming the next year. Here Mrs.
Meyer died, in 1865, at the age of forty-three.
She and her husband were members of the
Lutheran Church. They had five children:
William, a farmer in this precinct, married
Carrie Talkerneier; Mary, wife of William
Dougal, farmer near Taylorsville, Illinois;
Minnie, formerly wife of Fred Nordsiek, and
the mother of seven children; Mary A., at
home; Lizzie, wife of Henry Hierman, farmer
of this county; Emma, wife of Ed. Kloker,
farmer in this county; Henry, Lena, Ann and
John are all at home. Another son of Mr.
Meyer, now deceased, named Henry A., mar-
ried Minnie Yost.
Mr. Meyer began in this county in 1848,
and in the time since then has by hard work
accumulated a large property. He had only
100 acres at first, but now has 474 acres,.
most of which is well improved, with good
farm buildings. He has always been a hard-
working man, and although now eighty-eight
years of age, is as active as ever and in per-
fect health. He has been a good citizen, a
Republican in politics, and now lives in re-
tirement with his daughter Minnie (Mrs.
Nordsiek), on section 7, township 17, range
11. He is a good old man, greatly respected
by all who know him.
I AMUEL HINDMAN was born in Rich-
land county, Ohio, January 24, 1834;
his father, Elijah Hindman, was born
in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, Novem-
ber 4, 1798, a son of Samuel Hindman, whose
nativity is not positively known : the year
of his birth was 1763, and after his marriage
he emigrated to Allegheny county, Pennsyl-
vania, where he was one of the pioneers; he
was a cooper by trade and followed that vo-
cation until his death; he was married to
Letitia M. Clinithan, a native of Allegheny
county, Pennsylvania. Elijah Hindman was
married in Alleghany county and resided
there until 1833: in that year he emigrated
with his wife and four children to Ohio, mak-
ing the journey overland with a four-horse
wagon; he located in Richland county, on a
tract of timber land which he occupied until
1838, he again started westward, coming to
Illinois and settling where Rushville town-
ship, Schuyler county, now is; here he im-
proved a tract of land and passed the re-
mainder of his life. He married Anna Mace,
a daughter of John Mace, a native of London,
England, who emigrated to America and
fought in the war of the Revolution. Mrs.
Hindman, the mother of our subject, resides
with a daughter in Rushville township, at
the advanced age of ninety-one years. Sam-
uel Hindman, Jr., was four years old when
his parents removed to Illinois. Here he
grew to manhood, among the vicissitudes
and privations of frontier life; the mother
carded and spun the cloth with which the
children were dressed, and they lived from
the products of their land; Mr. Hindman re-
lates that on one occasion his father sold a
load of wheat at twenty-five cents a bushel,
and at the same time paid thirty-seven and
one-half cents a yard for calico. He received
his education in the pioneer schools, the fur-
niture and house being constructed in the
most primitive style; in early youth he be-
gan to assist in the cultivation of the land,
and has since followed farming.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
553
In 1869 he determined to make a trip to
Pike's Peak, but at Fort Kearney the party
met many returning with discouraging re-
ports; Mr. Hindman then changed his course,
going to Coffey county, Kansas, whence he
returned home after an ahsence of three
months. He had once before started to the
West, in 1855, accompanied by his brother
John; their destination was Kansas, and
they traveled via the Illinois, Mississippi and
Missouri rivers to Richfield, Missouri, at
which point his brother died of cholera; Mr.
Hindman pushed on to western Missouri,
but on account of his brother's death he came
back.
He was married November 8, 1876, to
Julia (Ward) Mathews, a native of Washing-
ton county, Pennsylvania, and a daughter
of James Ward, and a granddaughter of
Thomas Ward, a native of England, who
passed his life in the British kingdom. James
Ward married Nancy Hamilton, a native of
New Jersey and a daughter of Richard Ham-
ilton. Mrs. Hindman was first married in
1853 'to Thomas H. Mathews, a son of James
and Sarah (Mclntire) Mathews; he died in
1873; one child was born of this union, Le-
inonia H. Mr. and Mrs Hindman have one
child, Juniata. Mr. Hindman inherited a
part of the old homestead, and has devoted
his life to agricultural pursuits.
C. NIESTRADT, a general
farmer living on section 12, township
17, range 12, is a young, progressive
man. He has always lived in this county
where he was born September 29, 1861. He
was reared and educated in the public schools,
remaining home with his father until his ma-
jority. He is the third son of Henry B.
Niestradt, who was born in Prussia, Ger-
many, where he grew up and remained until
he was twenty -five years of age. He then
came to the United States and settled where
he now lives and now owns a large property.
He is the only member of his father's family
that came to the United States. He is very
active for his eighty years, and is proud of
his good, healthy German blood. He was
married, in Cass county to Charlotta Miller,
who was born in Prnssia, Germany and who
came alone, the first of her father's family
who ventured to this country. Her parents
have died, but the most of her brothers and
sisters have joined her here. Henry B. and
wife are both active members of the Lu-
theran Church and he has been an officer in
the same for some years. Henry C. is one
of seven children, two having died in in-
fancy.
Mr. Niestradt has been a farmer for some
years, having carried on farming for three
years before he took the present farm. This
he purchased September 30, 1890. He is a
very practical man and has so improved his
eighty acres that one would predict great
success for him in the future.
He was married, in this county, to Miss
Minnie Lawner, who was born in this town-
ship, August, 1868. Her early life was spent
at home with her parents, Frederick mid Car-
rie (Meyer) Lawner, both natives of Illinois.
They were married in Cass county and began
life as farmers in township 17, range 11, and
there Mr. Lawner died, in 1878, being under
forty years of age. He was a good citizen, a
fine farmer, a, member of the Lutheran
Church and a Republican in politics. His
wife was married for a second time, to John
Kern, who lives in Arenzville, Illinois.
Mrs. Niestradt is the only child born to her
father. She is an intelligent women and
551
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OA8S,
makes a good wife and mother. She and
her husband have one child, Anna B. Mr.
and Mrs. Niedstradt are Lutherans in
religion and Mr. Niedstradt belongs to a
Republican family. They are highly re-
spected people of their neighborhood.
\ERMAN EL LOVECAMP, one of the
most successful farmers and stock-
raisers of township 17, range 11, near
Arenzville, Illinois, was born in this county
in 1840. He has passed his life in this sec-
tion and is the son of Katherine and Fred
Lovecamp, both natives of Germany, born
and reared in Hanover, and married after they
came to St. Louis. They were early settlers
of Cass county, coming to Cass county about
1835. They were both industrious and
economical, and bravely contended against
all the trials that beset the early settlers.
They spent their last days on the large farm
which their united efforts had earned. Mr-
Lovecamp only lived to be forty-live years
old, but his wife survived him until she was
seventy-eight. They had both been Luther-
ans, and Mr. Lovecamp was a Republican, a
worthy, good citizen and his wife was one of
the best and kindest women in the world.
Herman grew up under his mother's care
and became a farmer also. He was married
in this county to Mary Peters, born in Han-
over, Germany, December 19, 1843. She
came to the United States and to Beardstown
with her parents, Mary and Fred Peters, in
1845. Mr. Peters was a blacksmith by trade,
a good mechanic and had always been a hard-
working man until the time of his death.
He was a Democrat and belonged to the
Lutheran Church. He died in 1877, aged
sixty-five. His wife is still living in Beards-
town, and upon her last birthday, August 13,
1892, was seventy-three years old. She is
still active and lias been a member of the
Lutheran Church all her lite. Mrs. Love-
camp is one of nine children, three yet living.
She is one of the good, German women where
she resides and she has the respect of the
whole neighborhood. She is the mother of
twelve children: Emma and Cora died yonng;
John is a harnessmaker in Arenzville; Will-
iam, a farmer in Cass county, married Miss
Caroline Carls; Henry assists in running the
home farm; Mary, Christina, Lucinda, Louisa,
Alma Albert and Julius all are at home.
They are Lutherans and they have had the
pleasure of seeing their children confirmed
in the same faith. Mr. Lovecamp and his
grown sons agree in their political faith, being
members of the Democratic party.
Mr. Lovecamp owns over 240 of well im-
proved land, and has been the possessor of it
for the past fifteen yea'rs. He has made a
great many improvements on the place and
now resides very comfortably in his nice home
with his family around him.
DWARD T. M1LBY was born in Sus-
sex county, Delaware, August 4, 1835.
His father, Nathaniel J. Milby, emi-
grated with his wife and four children to
Illinois in 1840, settling in Rushville town-
ship. The journey was made by canals and
rivers and proved a tiresome one. The father
bought a tract of land and hastened to make
it ready for settlement. Two acres of the land
had been cleared and a plain log cabin had
been built. This was all. But deft and will-
ing fingers soon made things assume a fairly
comfortable shape, and western life was fairly
under way. This log cabin, by the way, was
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
555
the first permanent house of its kind in Illi-
nois. Mr. Milby, Sr., occupied the farm to
the day of his death. The maiden name of
the mother of the subject of this sketch was
Mary Wilson, born in Sussex county, Dela-
ware. She died on the Schuyler county home
farm.
In those days nearly every one lived in log
cabins of one room. The housewife spun
and wove the cloth used for the clothes for
both sexes. She also had many other duties
to which the wives of farmers now are
strangers.
Edward attended school attired in home-
spun that his mother had made for him with
her own hands. Notwithstanding his school
duties he assisted on the farm and continued
to do so until his marriage, when he began
for himself on rented land in Huntsville.
He continued to pay rent for land for about
ten years, when he bought two and a half acres
in Buena Vista township. He lived in the
latter place but two months as he went to his
father's farm, where he stayed for seven years
and then bought eighty acres in section 23.
After ten years' residence there he sold out and
bought the place where he now resides. On
his farm of 223 acres he does general farm-
ing and stock-raising.
Mr. Milby has been married thrice. The
first time he was twenty-three years of age
when he married, and the lady who honored
him with her hand was Lydia Hillis, of Rush-
ville, the daughter of John and Jane Ferres
Hillis. She died in 1865 and Mr. Milby re-
mained single until 1872, when he again en-
tered the married state. The second lady
was Lizzie J. Davidson, of Kentucky, and
she died in 1879. Mary A. Bauer, of High-
land county, Ohio, the daughter of Valentine
Bauer, was the lady to whom he was married
January, 21, 1886.
Mr. Milby has had six children, all of which
save one, are living. Three of the children
are the issue of the first marriage: Frank,
Clement and Lizzie, and the other three are
the issue of the second marriage. The second
child of the second marriage, Herne, died
when three years old, but the other two,
Walter and Ida, are living.
Mr. Milby is an earnest member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church South, while
the present Mrs. Milby is a member of
the same church in the North.
In politics Mr. Milby is a disciple of " Old
Hickory," he being a Democrat.
ATHERINE SAUNDERS, who has
kept a little store for years at La
Grange, Brown county, Illinois, is the
widow of John Saunders, and was born
in Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, in
1826. Her father, John Whited, and her
mother, Mary Sheckler, were of the same
place in Pennsylvania. Her husband was
from Maryland. Mrs. Saunders is the fourth
child of a family of eleven. As her parents
were poor, Mrs. Saunders has had no educa-
tional advantages, but has worked hard from
early childhood.
She was married at the age of twenty-
three to William Thomas, with whom she
lived ten years, bearing him four children,
all of whom have died. In 1855, she came
West to this part of Brown county, where
she has lived the most of the time. She was
married a second time when she was thirty-
four years old, to George Wei bourn, of En-
gland. By this marriage, there were two
children, one of whom died in infancy, the
other at eighteen years of age. Mr. Wei-
bourn died in 1862, aged thirty- two years,
556
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF C'ASS,
of congestive chills. She was married to
her last husband, John Saunders, of Virginia.
By this husband, she had one daughter: Liz-
zie, now Mrs. John Cisco. Her husband is
a native of Ohio, and a farmer by occupation,
working by the day. They live at home with
her mother. She received a good education
at the public schools, and now conducts the
store for her aged mother.
Mrs. Saunders has seen some hard times
in her life, but she has bravely met her
troubles and conquered them. She owns her
little home and store, which are nestled under
the hill on the banks of the Illinois river,
where she has done a snug little business,
paying as she went. Mrs. Saunders is not
wealthy, but she owes no one, and expects to
finish her days here happily. She is a good
and worthy woman, and deserves much praise
for the way in which she has supported her-
self, keeping out of debt as she has.
>iRS. MINERVA HINMAN was born
near her present farm home, January
2, 1832. Her lather was Ralph
Alexander, and her mother, Elizabeth Fields.
She was born in Indiana, and he in Hillsboro,
Ohio, in 1808. Elizabeth Fields was left an
orphan at eight years, was reared by a Mr.
Scott, of Indiana, who gave her a good school-
ing for that period. She was married in
Indiana, at sixteen years of age, to Ralph
Alexander, when he was twenty-six. He was
a tanner and currier by trade, and followed
that business until they came West to Brown
county, in 1829. They came as other emi-
grants did, and made their first stop in this
neighborhood, at the home of Ezekiel Rosses,
who had come here about six months earlier.
The two families dwelt in this one log house
during that memorable winter of deep snow,
and it was not a large cabin, either. With
his good span of horses, Mr. Alexander
helped Mr. Rosses harvest his first crop of
grain and hay. He took a half section of
land close by, to which they moved in the
spring of 1830, and lived in the rough log
cabin on the place. It was in this mansion
that our subject first saw the light. Eight
years later they moved into the two-story
hewn-log house, and in this very good dwell-
ing the father died, in 1846. He died a com-
paratively young man, leaving his wife, who
survived him some thirty years, and died in
Kansas, aged seventy. She was the mother
of twelve children, many of whom have also
passed away. The living ones are: Thomas
M., a ranchman in Arizona, now seventy-one
years old, who killed two mountain lions
at this age; Milton H., living at Versailles,
Illinois; Mrs. Hinman; James, now in Ari-
zona, and the youngest of the family; John
P., pastor of the Baptist Church at Auburn,
Illinois.
Mrs. Hinman was married in this county,
in 1851, to Gideon Hinman, who was a
widower with three sons. They have had
eight children: Clara, Otis, Ralph and Hes-
ter have died. The living are: Minerva J.
Withrow, of Cooperstown; Nellie Swenson,
wife of a farmer at Mound Station; Abra-
ham Lincoln, the unfortunate son, crippled
and nervous from infancy from whooping-
cough. He is very bright in some things,
especially in figures. He cannot express
himself. Elizabeth is the next child, and is
known as Dolly, a young lady at home, who
graduated at the Rushville Normal College,
being the valedictorian. Two of the sons of
Mr. Hinman's first marriage are still living,
large farmers and stock dealers.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
557
Mr. Ilinrnan left his wife this tine- estate
of 160 acres of rich farm land with good
buildings, well stocked. She has made a suc-
cess of conducting it, pays taxes like her male
neighbors, even if she cannot vote. She
believes in a rotation of crops and clover.
She grows from forty to sixty acres of corn,
yielding from fifty to sixty bushels per acre,
and feeds the most of it to hogs, of which
she sells from fifty to sixty-five per year. She
has colts, and about thirty head of cattle
raised on the farm. The farm is in a finer
condition than ever before.
Mr. Hinman came here about 1840. He
was a school teacher, and he soon settled on
eighty acres south of Cooperstown, and two
years later he entered 160 acres. He started
with no means at all, but by his industry he
accumulated a large property. He was in
ill health some time before his death, and
Mrs. Hinrnan had the experience that has
proved so valuable to her in the management
of the farm.
jARO HARRIS was born in Schuyler
county, Illinois, November 10, 1864.
His parents were F. Marion and
Arthusia (Hollingsworth) Harris. Mr. Har-
ris, Sr., was born on the farm, on which his
son now lives, in 1844, and he die,d March
27, 1892.
Maro Harris is the only surviving child,
and he was educated in Schuyler county.
When about fourteen he decided to see some-
thing of the world outside of Illinois; so
visited Pikes Peak, Denver, etc. He is a
fine musician, and there is a great demand
for his talents. He enjoyed himself to such
a degree during his trip that he did not re-
turn until three years ago. He tried farming
87
when in the West, and was successful in his
undertakings. He has inherited a fine farm
of 320 acres in Schuyler county from his
father, and owns valuable property in the
vicinity of Beardstown, besides the fine farm
in Colorado.
He was married about three years ago to
Miss Melinda Betville, of Arkansas. They
have one child. Mr. Harris is a Republican
in politics, and is a good business man, and is
respected by all who know him.
ILLIAM PERRY.— The gentleman
whose sketch it is our pleasure to
present to our readers, was born in
Cooperstown township, at the present home
of his father, March, 1844. His father,
James Perry, was born on Powel's river, in
Tennessee, in 1808, poising to Illinois in
1830.
William Perry was reare.d to farm life, and
was well educated in the common schools,
teaching several terms after finishing his
education.
His marriage occurred, in 1866, when he
was only twenty-two to Miss Mary E. Grover,
daughter of W. P. Grover, and his wife, a
Miss Patterson, both natives of Ohio, but
residents of Brown county.
Mr. and Mrs. Perry first rented the old
home farm, and in 1876 bought eight acres
for $3,200, which he sold two years later,
buying his present farm of eighty acres on
section 32, paying the same price for it.
By this marriage Mr. Perry had six chil-
dren, one of whom died when an infant.
Mrs. Perry died in 1878, leaving three sons
and one daughter, namely: Oscar, twenty-
four; Elmer, twenty-two; Scott, eighteen, and
Hattie, fourteen. He was again married in
588
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
1882, to Miss Anna Whitehead, of this
county, daughter of Dr. John and Mary
(Gilford) Whitehead. Mr. and Mrs. Perry
have one living child, Orpha, aged six.
Mr. Perry was Town Collector, at twenty-
two years, and served as Assessor for two
years, from the time he was twenty-three un-
til he was twenty-five. He next served as
Township Treasurer for twelve years. Until
1876 he was a Democrat, but since that time
he has been an advocate of reforms, being
now a member of the Farmers' Alliance, or
People's Party.
Mr. Perry carries on general farming on
his beautiful farm, where he resides, sur-
rounded by his children and his loving wife;
and if ever a man had cause to be proud of
his past life, it is the subject of this sketch,
William Perry.
WILLIAM H. GRIFFITH is a native
son of the State of Illinois, born
in Woodstock township, Schuyler
county, April 5, 1847. His father, Joshua
Griffith, was born in Tuscarawas county,
Ohio, and was there reared to the occupation
of a farmer. In 1837 he accompanied his
father to Iowa, and three years later he came
to Schuyler county, Illinois, and purchased
forty acres of wild, timber land. He built a
log-house, which was his dwelling for fifteen
or twenty years. In connection with his
agricultural pursuits he had mastered the
cooper's trade, which he followed after com-
ing to this county. His father was Nathan
Griffith, and he died in this county at the
residence of his son, Joshua, aged ninety-three
years; he was a soldier in the war of 1812,
and drew a pension from the Government in
recognition of his service. Joshua Griffith
married Margaret Hoffman, who died at the
age of fifty-seven years; they reared a family
of eleven children, all of whom are living.
Mr. Griffith is living a retired life at Lewis-
town, Fulton county, Illinois. He has a few
acres of land, and is devoting his energies to
fruit culture. Politically he is identified
with the Republican party, and while a resi-
dent of Schuyler county was Justice of the
Peace for many years. He is a self-made
man, and has accumulated his entire property
since coming to the State; he has been very
successful in his farming operations, but has
relinquished the care and management of his
land to his son, William H. He has bravely
done his share in 'the development of the re-
sources of Schuyler county, and the present
prosperity of the commonwealth is due to
the men of his type.
William H. Griffith was married October
9, 1870, to Miss Susanna Ouster, a native of
Washington county, Iowa, born August 12,
1852. Her parents, Abraham and Susanna
(Antrim) Ouster, were natives of the State of
Ohio; the father died in Iowa, but the mother
survives, and is a resident of this county.
Mr. and Mrs. Griffith are the parents of four
children: Elmer E. was born September 17,
1871; Wilmer E. was born January 26, 1877;
Edith L. was born February 26, 1880; Myrtle
was born March 32, 1888. After his mar-
riage Mr. Griffi,th settled on a farm with his
grandfather, renting for a year; he then pur-
chased forty acres, to which he removed, and
later bought an additional forty; he has the
management of the entire farm, which con-
sists of 200 acres.
In politics he affiliates with the Republican
party, having cast his first vote for General
Grant's second term.
The paternal grandfather of our subject
was one of the pioneers of the county; he
8CUUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
559
made the journey to the frontier when the
distance was wearily covered by driving or
walking, and met the privations and hardships
unflinchingly, as became the sturdy soul who
undertook to rescue this wilderness and con-
vert it into one of the most fertile States of
the Union. Let the coming generations
never forget the debt of gratitude they owe
their worthy forefathers.
?AMES M. PATTERSON, one of the
successful farmers of Cooperstown, re-
siding on section 21, was born in this
O
county, June, 1849. His father was Joseph
Patterson, a native of Highland county,
Ohio, who lost his father when very young
and was reared by an uncle, learning the wool-
carding business. He came to Brown county,
when young, in company with the family of
James B. Russell, making the journey by
team, in 1830. The gentleman with whom
he came brought his family of seven. Mr.
Patterson married one of the daughters of
Mr. Russell, Phoabe, whose mother had been
a Miss Sarah Lincoln, a native of Pennsyl-
vania. Her husband, however, hailed from
the State of Vermont. They were married
in Fulton county, between 1843 and 1845,
and Mr. Patterson pursued his trade at the
Cardie mills, near Versailles, and then in
Versailles. Their next place of settlement
was in Elkhorn township, and later they
moved to this county, where he worked in a
flouring mill. He also cleared a fine farm of
heavy timber.
The gentleman whose name appears at the
heading of this sketch was reared to farm
life, and was offered plenty of opportunity
for improvement, but like many boys of that
age he did not appreciate nor take advantage
of his opportunities. When twenty-one he
began working by the day and month.
Mr. Patterson was married, January 16,
1879, to Miss Sarah Howell, born May, 1856,
daughter of Thomas and Rebecca (Bearel)
Howell, natives of Indiana and North Caro-
lina, respectively. Mr. Howell came to Illi-
nois when he was eleven or twelve years old,
in 1832, and was there married, twelve years
later. They bought eighty acres of land,
built a log house, where they spent the first
year of their married life, and then moved to
a much better piece of land on which they
built a permanent house, and lived therefor
twenty-one years, when they moved one halt
a mile away. Mrs. Howell died November,
1878, aged fifty-three years and fourteen
weeks; on February 14, the husband followed
the partner of his joys and sorrows, dying at
the age of fifty-seven. They had ten children,
but lost all but three, they all dying at the
farm, some in infancy and others later.
These good people had been extremely poor
when they were married, but when they died
they had 100 acres of fine land and a property
worth about $30,000. They were good,
worthy people who richly deserved their good
fortune.
Mr. and Mrs. Patterson began their mar-
ried life on the old homestead, where they
remained for one and one half years, then, in
1881 bought their present farm of 160 acres,
paying $8,000 for it. On this farm was the
present fine frame farm house, built by the
former owner, .1. Stiles. They built their
large, ornamental barn in 1885. It is a tine
structure, 40 x 60 feet, with eighteen-foot
posts and a shed 12 x 60, and they can house
sixteen horses.
These good people have buried one infant
son and still have two living: Otho T. and
Lee R., the former twelve years old, the lat-
560
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
ter nine. They are intelligent little lads, who
are fond of their books.
Mr. Patterson is pursuing geaeral farm-
ing, growing corn, wheat and hay, of which he
has just cut a tine crop, filling both barns.
He engages in stock-raising, having some
forty to sixty head of cattle, hogs, and now
feeds sixteen head of horses, three of whom
he has raised.
Mr. Patterson is a member of the Masonic
fraternity, and adheres strictly to the princi-
ples of the Democratic party. Mrs. Patter-
son is a devout member of the Christian
Church, and she and her husband are worthy
members of the society of Cooperstown.
ARTHUR A. McCABE, M. D., one of
the most prominent physicians of Ver-
sailles, was born in Macomb, Mc-
Donough county, Illinois, December 17,
1856. His father, John McCabe, was a na-
tive of Ohio, and his father, also John Mc-
Cabe, was a native of the same State. The
latter gentleman was a blacksmith who came
to Fulton county, Illinois, about 1849, where
he followed his trade until he went into the
army, in 1862. He had a family of seven
sons and one son-in-law when he went to the
defense of the old flag. Four of his eons,
he, himself and the son-in-law, all perished
in the army. Mr. McCabe dying from the
effects of poison in a mince pie, which was
bought of a Confederate and contained poison.
The names of his sons who fought in the
late struggle, were: John, father of subject;
Miles, James, Marion, Westley and the
son-in-law, James W. Jefferson, who married
the daughter, Mary McCabe. There were
four other brothers, also. Miles survived
the war, but died of consumption, contracted
in the service. John was a volunteer in the
Eighty-fourth Illinois Infantry, entering as
a private and coming out as an Orderly of
Company A, after a service of three years.
He was wounded at the battle of Lookout
Mountain, a ball passing through his ankle.
He received a furlough, but on his way back
to Washington he was hurt by jumping from
the cars; so badly was he injured that he was
obliged to delay joining his command for
some weeks. While waiting he joined the
Masonic fraternity, and while sick in a strange
city proved the worth of the order. When
he returned, he was given a commissary
position, and served his time out. His
brother James was in the service three years
and came out of the war sound and hearty,
and is now a resident of Texas, in the employ
of the railroad. He had quite a romantic
accident some time since. He was injured
by an explosion in Ohio, and he was nursed
back to life in a Catholic hospital by the
Catholic Sisters. So impressed was he by
their sweet faces and kind, skillful treatment
that he declares that if he ever marries, one
of those sisters will be his wife!
John McCabe was married, at Indian-
apolis, Indiana, to Mary Ann Clark of that
city, when twenty-two years of age. They
came to Illinois soon after marriage, and
made their home on a farm in Littleton
township, Schuyler county, moving from
there to Macomb, and from there to Rush-
ville, where they have lived ever since. Here
Mr. McCabe has carried on a successful busi-
ness in the manufactury of brick and tile, in
connection with his son, James. Mr. Mc-
Cabe has three sons and one daughter, namely :
James; Arthur, subject; Howard C.; Cora
May, wife of Allen Walker, of Rushville.
Two sons and one daughter died in infancy.
SOHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
561
Dr. McCabe was educated at the Rushville
high school, and in the College of Physi-
cians and Surgeons of Keokuk, Iowa, grad-
uating in the class of 1878. He began his
practice in Bath, Mason county, where he re-
mained for two years, then removing to Lit-
tleton, Schuyler county, where he remained
for two years, when he finally removed to
Versailles. Here he practiced for four years
and then removed to Mt. Sterling and re-
mained for one year, returning to Versailles,
where he has remained ever since, enjoying a
good practice.
The Doctor was married, January 1, 1879,
to Carrie E. Seely, of Rushville, daughter of
James Seely and Mary Sanford, born in New
York. They have one daughter, Myrtle
Isabelle, a promising, beautiful child of ten
years of age, whose musical attainments on
the piano are wonderful for one of her tender
years.
The Doctor is a Master Mason, and a mem-
ber of the fraternity of Modern Woodmen.
He has been a Republican since the start of
the party, and has always voted according to
the principles of that party. He has served
on the central committee for some time.
The Doctor has gained the confidence and
respect of all who know him, and his large
practice testifies to the appreciation in which
his services are held. He and his estimable
wife hold an enviable position in Versailles
society.
S. GLOVER, of Beardstown, was
born about thirty years ago at
1° Winnemac, Indiana, and was there
reared and partly educated, but desiring to
to improve his knowledge of books he at-
tended a college at Valparaiso, Indiana.
Upon completing his course there he became
a telegraph operator there, working in the
city of his birth for some time and later at
Logansport, Indiana, for the Pittsburg, Chi-
cago & St. Louis Railroad. He remained
here three years and then went to Nickerson,
Kansas, in a similar position on the Santa
Fe road. He was in active service there as
a train dispatcher until he came to Beards-
town and the Quincy system, February, 1882.
Like most railroad men, he has since that
time seen very active service. Mr. Glover's
personal appearance and jovial manner are
sufficient to make friends for him everywhere.
He comes of a respectable line of ancestry,
who date their first settlement in this coun-
try prior to the Revolutionary war. His
grandparents lived and died in Ohio, where
his father, Samuel Glover, was born, at Ports-
mouth, Ohio. He came to Winnemac when
young and there became a successful me-
chanic, and was thus engaged when the Re-
bellion broke out. He enlisted in the Eighty-
First Indiana Infantry, but was transferred
later to the Ninth Indiana Cavalry, and con-
tinned in the service for three years, seeing
much hard fighting He was neither cap-
tured nor wounded, but he contracted a terri-
ble camp malady, from the effects of which
he died in 1866. He married in Winnemac,
Indiana, Hannah Hawes, of Kentucky, who
had been brought to Indiana by her parents
in the '40s, where th'ey lived and died, re-
spected by all. Mrs. Hannah Glover is still
living, and is very active in spite of her fifty-
seven years, and makes her home with her
son, W. S. Glover. She is a Christian lady
and has been a member of the Methodist
Episcopal Church for years.
September5, 1886, Mr. Glover received
the promotion of chief train dispatcher for
the St. Louis & Rock Island Division of
562
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GA88,
the Chicago, Burlington & Qnincy, affecting
285 miles of line and railroad and places him
over several men. His energy and fidelity to
business is what brought him this promotion.
While in Mckerson, Kansas, Mr. Glover
met and married Sarah Van Arnsdale, a lead-
ing lady of that place. She received a prac-
tical education in Ohio, that being her place
of nativity. She has no children, but is
known as a worthy wife and kind neighbor,
and she and her husband take an interest in
bettering humanity. They affiliate with no
particular church creed. They are interested
in everything that benefits Beardstown, and
have recently built a fine residence with all
modern improvements in the best part of
the city. Mr. Glover is a sound Republi-
can, and is interested in local politics. He is
a prominent member of Beardstown Lodge,
No. 107, Knights of Pythias, and has filled
all the chairs.
jUGUST KROHE, an old settler and
well-to-do fanner, was born on Saxony,
Germany, on August 19, 1812. He
came of good German blood and good fam-
ily. He is the son of Christian and Rosina
(Reicker) Krohe, natives of Saxony, where
they grew up and lived until the family of
children were all born and part 6f them grown
up. They then took passage on a sailing vessel
in August, 1835, and after a seven weeks'
voyage landed in New Orleans, coming
thence up the Mississippi and Illinois rivers
to Beardstown. From there they soon went
to Spring Bluff, and here they bought and
improved new lands, part of which was
Government land. It was on this farm that
the father and mother spent their last days,
the former dying at the age of seventy-nine
years; the latter was eighty-eight when she
died. They were a healthy and prosperous
family, and the same quality is in their son,
August, who is as bright and healthy at eighty
years as he ever was. The father and mother
of our subject were members of the Lutheran
Church.
Mr. Krohe has a fine farm with good build-
ings on it, on which he has lived since 1840.
It is in section 8, township 17, range 11. He
has always been identified with the best in-
terests of the county, and has lived to see
wonderful improvements here.
He was married in this county to Miss
Christianna Jockisch, born near the farm of
her husband in Saxony, Germany, in 1810.
She was yet a young woman when her par-
ents and grandparents came to the United
States, in 1835, on the same vessel that the
Krohes came on, and they, like the latter, found
good homes in Cass county. Soon after coin-
ing here, Mr. Krohe and Miss Jockisch were
married, and lived together until 1889, when
Mrs. Krohe died. She was a good mother
and wife and was a faithful member of the
Lutheran Church. She was the only daugh-
ter of Gottlieb and Christianna (Jacob) Jock-
isch. Grandfather Jockisch died here in
1836, after he had been here about a year.
He was then about sixty-four and was a good,
reliable old man. His name was Gottlieb
Jockisch, and he was the founder of the fam-
ily in this country.
Mr. and Mrs. Krohe had six living chil-
dren: Louis, a farmer in Schuyler county,
married to Sophia Korte; Minnie, wife of
Henry Korte (see biography); Louisa, wife
of a farmer of Morgan county; Henry (see
biography); Amelia, wife of Henry Rupel, a
farmer on Mr. Krohe's homestead.
SGHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
503
Mr. Krohe, wife and all the family have
been members of the Lutheran Church, and
Mr. Krohe and his sons are Democrats.
They are all worthy people.
^ATHANIEL P. MESERVE, a resident
farmer of section 30, Lee township, was
born in Caledonia county, Vermont,
March 25, 1825. His father, Nathaniel, was
a native of Barnstable, New Hampshire, born
about 1794, and died at the age of ninety-two,
in Vermont.
The subject of this sketch was educated in
the best New England schools for a teacher,
which profession he followed for over twenty
years, in the East and West. He taught sev-
eral years in Illinois, both before and after
his marriage. He married Mary J. Meserve,
a cousin who was born in 1839. She was a
daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth Meserve,
who were English people. The peculiar in-
cident that led to this marriage was romantic.
After Mr. Meserve had been in Illinois some
time, he was shown a letter from this young
miss, and he said to his friend who showed it
to him, "That girl shall be uty wife;" and
sure enough, when she came West she became
his wife. They were married in Brown
county, in 1856, and settled on their present
farm two years later, first buying eighty acres
and later 100 more. In 1870 they went to
Colorado Springs, where they remained six
years. This move was made partly on ac-
count of Mr. Meserve's failing health. While
there he invested in silver mines, and now
owns one mine and has an interest in another.
They returned to their Illinoian home.
They have two children, Ai Meserve, born in
1857, and Rosabelle, born in 1871. The son
is a farmer, and both are at home where they
have enjoyed every advantage and have im-
proved every opportunity. Mr. Meserve is
not strongly partisan, but votes the Republi-
can ticket. His wife is a Presbyterian, and
is an interesting lady. He is in failing health
and strength, and has retired from all business.
They are both admirable people, and are
greatly esteemed by all who know them.
ON. WILLIAM C. RENO, of Browning,
Illinois, dealer in grain and stock, is a
native of this township, born in 1838.
He is the son of Jonathan and Louisa (Thorn-
ton) Reno, both natives of east Tennessee,
father born in 1811, the mother in 1813. The
paternal grandfather, also named Jonathan,
came to Schuyler county in 1825, and was
accompanied by his son, Jonathan. The lat-
ter was married in 1834.
William Reno grew to manhood in Brown-
ing township, spent a year traveling through
Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado, and on his
return was married to Rebecca A. Wallace
of Browning township, in 1860. She was
boru in 1841, grew up in the same neighbor-
hood, as her parents were very early settlers
in this county. Mr. Reno was raised on a
farm and followed that occupation until nine
yearsago, when he went into his present busi-
ness. He has been an active man all his life.
In 1880, he was elected Representative to
the State Legislature, and served one term of
two years, having been elected on the Demo-
cratic ticket. For many years he has been
an active worker in political affairs, and on
the national and State issues has always affil-
iated with the Democrats, but in county and
township affairs he has voted for men rather
than measures. Mr. Reno is a man of ster-
ling integrity, having the esteem of all with
564
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OAJ3S,
whom he has been associated, either socially
or in business capacity. He has been Justice
of the Peace for Browning township for the
last sixteen years, and has represented his
township on the Board of Supervisors for five
or six years, and has held the various offices
of the county.
Mr. and Mrs. Reno have seven living chil-
dren, having lost one, namely: Samuel F. is
cashier of the bank at Rushville, Illinois; Sa-
lina and Jennie are at home, the former a
teacher in the public schools; Mark M. is a
telegraph operator at Creston, Iowa; Minnie
M. is a teacher in the public schools; Jay and
Fred are still at home. Mrs. Reno belongs
to the Methodist Episcopal Church. The Reno
family are of French ancestry on the father's
side and of Welsh and Dutch on the mother's.
The family was established in America five
generations ago and all were given to agri-
cultural pursuits. His father was a soldier
in the Black Hawk war.
[LENDON L. ROWLAND, one of the
most prominent citizens of Versailles,
Illinois, was born in Newark, Ohio, De-
cember 5, 1856. His father, Thomas Jack-
son Rowland, was born near Winchester,
Virginia, about 1826, and his father, 'grand-
father of subject, was named Martin Rowland
who was a farmer of Virginia, who died
therein 1830, in early manhood, of consump-
tion. He was married and had four children
>
nam ely: Julia Ann, wife of Mr. McCapp;
Abner died near Jacksonville, Illinois, leav-
ing four children; Thomas, father of subject;
Lucinda, wife of Henry Lybarger, died in
middle life, leaving two children. Thomas
Rowland married Leonora Barney of Sackett's
Harbor, New York, daughter of Thomas J.
and Louisa (Wells) Barney, of Wellsville,
New York. The latter died in Watertown,
New York, and the mother of subject was
reared by an uncle, James Barney, who
moved to Newark, Ohio, when she was a
small child. Here she was married to the fa-
ther of subject, who was a harnessmaker and
worked at his trade at Newark, Millwood and
Spring Mountain, Ohio. He and Senator
Joseph Wilson were shopmates and warm
friends. They came West in 1864, to Keokuk,
Iowa, but three years later landed in Ver-
sailles. They were in humble circumstances
and had only $200 when they arrived in Ver-
sailles. Mrs. Rowland bore her husband
eleven children, three of whom died in in-
fancy, and another, Emma, died when seven
years old. The adults, seven in number, are
as follows: Blendon L., of this notice; Anna,
wife of Charles W. Wainnon, of Rushville,
Illinois; Lucinda C., wife of Oscar Van De-
venter; Abner C., of the mercantile firm of
Rowland Brothers, hardware and farm im-
plements; Love Augusta, of Versailles; Bes-
sie, wife of J. C. Cleveland of • Versailles;
and Homer M., bookkeeper and salesman for
the firm of Rowland Brothers, a promising
young man of twenty. These children all
received a good common-school education and
are all well informed, intelligent people. The
parents, while not wealthy, were able to give
them a good start in life. The mother
died in 1884, but the father is still living a
retired life in Versailles, making his home
with Abner C. The maternal grandfather,
Thomas J. Barney, died in St. Paul, in his
seventy-eighth year, leaving an estate of
$100,000, which he willed to his nephews
and nieces, making no mention of this daugh-
ter. This injustice was too great, so Blendon
broke the will and recovered $40,000 to the
family, showing great ability in the contest,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
005
although he had received no education in this
direction. He persistently worked at the
case in the face of much discouragement
from a prominent lawyer, who told him that
there was nothing in the case. His efforts
were richly rewarded and much credit is due
him.
Mr. Blendon Rowland left the harness
trade, in 1884, having worked at it for
twenty years, and embarked in his present
business, with his brothers. They do nearly
all of the business in this line, and he is the
leader in this line, as he always was in the
harness business.
Mr. Rowland is chairman of the Demo-
cratic Central Committee of Brown county,
and has filled all the township offices, being
School Director for ten years and the Super-
visor from this township. He is a Master
Mason, and is a very influential man in his
township.
He and his charming wife have four chil-
dren, Dollie Rowland, a young lady of twenty ;
Nellie, wife of A. R. Groves of Versailles;
Nettie, fourteen; and Ethel, eight.
Mrs. Rowland is a Methodist and her hus-
band is favorably inclined toward that church.
LATHANIEL G. SLACK, M. D., de-
ceased, stood at the head of his pro-
fession in Schnyler county, and it is fit-
ting that his name should be recorded in this
history as one of the most skillful and be-
nevolent practitioners. He was a native of
England, born April 9, 1830, a son of John
and Ann Slack; the father spent all his life
in England, but after his death the mother
emigrated to America and settled in Fulton
Illinois; she had married a second time, a
Mr. Potts, who died a few years after they
came to this country. Nathaniel G. was a
mere lad when his father died, and still in his
youth when he came to the United States
with an older brother; he first settled in
Rhode Island, and thence removed to Fulton
county, Illinois. He attended Farmington
Academy, and afterward went to Cedar Rap-
ids; but the funds to defray his expenses
were raised through his own efforts; possess-
ing a natural talent for painting, he secured
pupils in this art, and taught until he had
saved sufficient means to carry him through
his literary course; he then taught school for
a time, and choosing the profession of den-
tistry he was in due time engaged in prac-
tice. All his leisure time, however, was given
to study, and he attended medical lectures at
Keokuk later on; he finally abandoned the
profession of dentistry, and began practicing
medicine in Fulton county, Illinois. In 1859
he removed to Rushville, Schuyler county,
and in November of that year entered upon a
career, every action of which reflected honor
upon his name. He was very successful in
the practice of medicine and was a skillful
surgeon. The poor found in him the truest
and kindest of friends, and the best knowl-
edge was as freely given to them in their
distress as was expended in the care of the
wealthiest patient.
In addition to his professional duties, Dr.
Slack found time to engage in mercantile
pursuits, and was also interested in the woolen
mills here.
He was united in marriage November 12,
1858, to Eliza C. Berry, a native of Fulton
county, Illinois, and a daughter of Henry C.
Berry, who was a native of Berkshire, En-
gland; the grandfather, Joseph Berry, also a
native of England, emigrated to America,
accompanied by his family, and settled in
Canada; he removed from the Dominion to
568
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS 8,
Fulton county, Illinois, about 1839; he pur-
chased a tract of land there on which he re-
sided until his death; his wife's maiden name
was Elizabeth Blanche; her death occurred
in Fulton county. Henry C. Berry was a
miller by trade, having mastered this vocation
in England; he followsd this pursuit after
coming to America, and also engaged in farm-
ing. Later he disposed of his land and em-
barked in mercantile business in Fulton
county, Illinois. Thence he removed to Cali-
fornia, and lived in Santa Ana for a number
of years; his death occurred there. He
married Elizabeth Temple, a native of En-
gland, who emigrated to this country with
an uncle. Dr. and Mrs. Slack had born to
them six children: Clement L., Sheridan
Grant, Flora M., Bessie, Clara and Henry.
Politically, the Doctor affiliated with the
Republican party. During the war he was
United States Marshal, and passed through
many dangers and perils in the discharge of
his duty. He was a member of the Rush-
ville Lodge, I. O. O. F., and also belonged to
the Encampment. He continued in the active
practice of his profession until overtaken by
death, August 9, 1887. The country lost a
loyal, noble-hearted citizen, the medical pro-
fession a skilled practitioner, and the family
a beloved husband and indulgent father.
(AMUEL A. MOORE, of Lee township,
was born in the State of North Caro-
lina, in 1820. His father was William
Moore, a farmer and blacksmith, who emi-
grated from North Carolina to Indiana
when about sixty years of age. He settled
on a farm in Monroe county, where he re-
sided some fifteen years, when he again sold
and moved to Illinois, in the fall of 1852.
He died on his farm near Kingston, when
about eighty-five years old. His wife was
Margaret Summers, born near Baltimore, and
died when nearly eighty years old. They
left what was considered a good estate at that
time.
Samuel had but little schooling, as there
were no public schools where he was reared.
His parents had but a small farm, but did
the best they could for their children. He
worked by the day and month for some years,
and was married at twenty-six years of age,
in Indiana, to Sarah, daughter of John and
Agnes (Jones) Goodnight. They were farm-
ers and moved to McDonough county, Illi-
nois, about two years after Mr. and Mrs.
Moore came to Illinois. Mr. and Mrs. Moore
started with no means when they were mar-
ried and they worked rented lands three
years near Bloomington, the county seat of
Monroe county. They then started with a
pair of horses, a covered lumber wagon,
bedding, furniture and clothing, all that
they could draw for a new home. They
camped nights in their tent, which they
brought along. They drove two milch cows,
and had a pleasant journey of some three
weeks. They settled in Adams county, where
they now have a good farm of 240 acres and
other lands there, making 720 acres in this
part of Illinois. They have seven living
children: A. W., of Chicago, a stock-dealer
in the Exchange building; Elizabeth, at home
with her parents; Esther Ann, wife of J. H.
Amran, a farmer of Lee township; Sarah M.,
wife of I. M. Sout, of Ripley, Illinois; Paris
D. is on the old homestead; S. D. remains
on the old farm, and Mary E. is still at home.
Mr. and Mrs. Moore, with most of the chil-
dren, are professors of the Christian faith.
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
567
Mr. Moore is a Democrat. He never sought
office, but was made Supervisor of the town-
ship, and for sixteen years a director of the
County Agricultural Society.
R. SUTHERLAND was born in
Knox county, Ohio. His father, Joseph
B., was born in Trumbull county, Ohio,
and his father, Benjamin, married Jane
Beard, of Pennsylvania. They were farmers
and spent the most of their lives in that
county. Joseph Sutherland married, in Ohio,
in 1834, Jane, daughter of Joseph and Sarah
(Crider) Eaton both of Pennsylvania. They
were married in Ohio, where the father died,
in middle age, and the mother died in Little-
ton, Illinois, aged fifty. Mr. Joseph Suther-
land died in Ohio, aged twenty-four, leaving
his widow and this one son. She was mar-
ried again, to Henry Schoonover, of Ohio, by
whom she had two children, both dying
young. They came to Illinois in 1858, and
settled near the present home soon after com-
ing. They bought 140 acres first, paying
$800, and they have lived here since, where
Mr. Schoonover died, aged forty- four years.
Mrs. Schoonover and her son, Henry R.
Sutherland, have added to the original pur-
chase of eighty acres, making 220. All of
this, except twenty acres, is under good culti-
vation, and these twenty are in pasture and
timber. They were left in good circum-
stances, and by good management have
prospered since.
Henry married Ella R. Pratt, of Licking
county, Ohio, daughter of Hector and Susan
E. (Reed) Pratt. They have two children:
Twilie D., born July 3, 1887, and Glen C.,
born August 30, 1889.
Mr. Sutherland has been a School Director
for many years. He has a good education,
and is an intelligent, reading man. He is a
Democrat. They have one a general farmer,
raising the usual crops, but he sells no grain
but wheat. He has six cows and the same
number of horses, and fattens forty to sixty
hogs, also feeding some cattle. They raise a
great plenty of orchard and small fruits.
Mrs. Sutherland is a Baptist, and the whole
family are greatly esteemed by their large
circle of admiring friends.
>DAM L. HAGEMAN was born Feb-
ruary 26, 1857, on the farm which
he now owns. Here he grew to man-
hood, and was educated. His father, Isaac
Hageman, was born in Schuyler county,
Pennsylvania, in 1809, of English and Scotch
ancestry. His wife was Susanna Lischy,
born in York county, Pennsylvania, in 1813,
of German and Scotch ancestry. They were
married in 1837, in Ohio, and removed to Illi-
nois in 1839. They settled on the farm
where their son now lives in Monroe precinct,
Cass county, Illinois, where both died, the
father in 1873 and the mother in 1883.
They had eight children: Jesse, William,
Emanuel, Noah, Miller, Adam, Amanda and
Sarah. All the children except Jesse were
born on the old homestead in Monroe pre-
cinct. He was born in Ohio. Mrs. Hageman
was raised in the Lutheran faith, but after
marriage she joined the Methodist Episcopal
Church with her husband. Both were con-
sistent members of that church at their death
and were respected by all.
Adam bought out the other heirs and now
owns the old homestead. The farm comprises
acres of farming land well adapted to
568
BIOGRAPHICAL US VIM W Off GASS,
stock-raising. There are sixty acres of tim-
ber on the land. He has rented the farm for
live years. Next year he purposes moving
his family to Virginia to live in comfort and
ease. He is a Eepublican in politics.
He was married to Miss Lizzie Jockisch of
Bluff Springs, Cass county, Illinois, born
May 20, 1865, he being thirty years of age.
Her parents were Charles T. and Eleanora
(Carls) Jockisch, who were very early settlers
of Bluff Springs. To Mr. and Mrs. Hageman
have been born four children, three of whom
are living: Mary Eleanora, Emma Madora,
Eflie Cornelia and a son who is yet un-
named. Effie C. is the one not living.
Mrs. Hageman is a member' of the Method-
ist Episcopal Church and both she and her
husband are worthy people.
fOHN J. BEATTY, Sheriff of Cass
county and a member of the firm of
Beatty & Hammer, formerly Rearick &
Beatty, was born in Franklin county, Penn-
sylvania. He lost his father when very
young. The latter was of Irish descent and
died in the prime of life. He was a miller
by trade. His mother died soon after and
he was reared by Jacob Rearick and wife,
who brought him to Cass county, when he
was six years old. They were early settlers
of Cass county and here they lived and died,
leaving three sons. The latter were very
prominent in politics for many years. Mr.
Beatty, after he had grown up, started out to
seek his own fortune, always with the love
and respect of his foster parents. He came
to Beardstown in 1856, and afterward spent
some five years in Missouri, engaged in the
hardware business. His present business is
dealing in farm implements and hardware.
He is located on Main street and the present
firm has been in business seven years. The
store is an old one and was first started in
the '40s and has been considered one of the
leading stores of the city since it was started.
Some years ago he was elected Mayor and
held that office five terms. In 1980 he was
elected Sheriff of the county, and has held
this office with great credit to himself and
satisfaction to the people. Being an ardent
Democrat, he has taken an active part in
local politics and has been a delegate to the
Congressional conventions.
He was married in Canton, Missouri, to
Miss Mary Francis Pickering, of Boston,
Massachusetts. Her father, John, was born
in New England, and came from there to
Chicago, and at one time was well-known as
a railroad contractor and builder and now
lives retired in Portland. His wife is yet
living and is also quite old. They are both
quite intelligent and are highly respected by
all who know them .
Mrs. Beatty was carefully educated and is
the devoted mother of two bright young
sons, William P. and Edward L. Mr. and
Mrs. Beatty are prominent people of Beards-
town and leaders in society. Mr. Beatty is a
leading Mason, member of the blue and
chapter lodges in Beardstown.
HO MAS ARMSTRONG, a retired
farmer now residing in Bainbridge
township, was born in county Mona-
ghan, Ireland, in March, 1837. His father,
Robert Armstrong, was a native of the same
county, but unquestionably of Scotch ex-
traction; he was a farmer by occupation, and
passed his life in his own country. He
married Jane Crozier, a native of county
SCHUYLER AND BRO'WN COUNTIES.
Tyrone, Ireland, and a daughter of William
Crozier; she emigrated to America in 1852,
resided in the State of JS ew York four years,
and then came to Illinois, where she spent the
remainder of her days; she was the mother
of sixteen children. Thomas Armstrong was
a youth ot sixteen years when he came to
America; he sailed from Dundalk to Liver-
pool, and there embarked upon an American
vessel; he landed at the port of New York
after a voyage of five weeks and three days.
He now fonnd himself a stranger in a strange
land, without money. After a time he found
work at the cabinetmaker's trade which he
followed about a year and a half, and then
turned his attention to marble-cutting.
Times were hard, business dull, and he conld
earn but little more than a living. He there-
fore determined to emigrate to the West,
and try his fortunes on the frontier. He lo-
cated at Rushville, Illinois, and worked by
the day, month or job for three years. He
then rented land for a time, aad a little later,
purchased forty acres in Bainbridge town-
ship; there was a small house on the place,
and seven acres had been cleared; this con-
stituted the improvements. Mr. Armstrong
lived here four years, and at the end of that
time sold at an advance; he then bought
seventy-five acres in the same township,
made many valuable improvements, occupy-
ing the place two years; he disposed of this
farm and purchased 106 acres, which are in-
cluded in his present farm. He has erected
a nice set of frame buildings, has invested in
other lands as his means increased, and now
owns 285 acres. He was actively engaged
in agricultural pursuits until 1892, when he
removed to the home he now occupies; he
erected this dwelling in 1891, and is sur-
rounded with all the comforts which his
years of industry have secured.
Mr. Armstrong was married, in 1859, to
Catherine Ryan, who was born in Buena
Vista township, February 1, 1840, a daugh-
ter of Charles and Margaret Ryan (see
sketch of Thomas Ryan). They have six
children living: John, Mary, Charles, Rob-
ert, Samuel and Frank. The parents are
consistent members of the Protestant Meth-
odist Church. Mr. Armstrong is a sup-
porter of the principles of the Democratic
party. He is a man of strict integrity, and
has the respect of the entire community.
ILLIAM SCHEWE, a large farmer
and stock-raiser living in section 5,
range 18, has a large farm of 160
acres. He owns in other parts of the county
large amounts of land. He has altogether
680 acres, mostly in the Sangamon bottoms,
and is unusually well improved. He has
lived in this county ever since 1866. He has
always been a farmer on his own account
since 1869, having spent the first two years
in Beardstown.
He was born in Westphalia, Prussia, Ger-
many, in 1839, and was reared and educated
in his native country. When he was of age
he set out for the United States, being the
first of the family to come. He left Bremen
in 1859, crossing on a sailing vessel to
New Orleans, and thence up the Missis-
sippi river to St. Louis. After spending
some years in the southern part of Illinois
and around St. Louis, he came on to Beards-
town, and has since been a tiller of the soil
in Cass county.
He was joined, some years after his coming
to this country, by his father, William Schewe,
who died in Cass county when forty-four
years of age. He had lost his wife in Ger-
570
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW Of CAS8,
many, when she was in middle life. Her
maiden name was Louisa Meyer. She and
her husband were members of the Lutheran
Church all their lives. Our subject and a
sister, Mrs. Charles Brokemeier, are all that
are living of the children born to their
parents.
Our subject was married in St. Louis
county, Missouri, to Miss Ingra Otschwe.
She was born and reared in Prussia, Ger-
many, and came to the United States when
twenty years of age, and since her marriage
has been a hard-working woman, and has
borne her husband eight children: Anna,
wife of Henry Wette; Louisa, wife of Henry
Merz, a farmer in this county; William,
Charles, Herman, Minnie, Henry and Emiel
are at home.
Mr. and Mrs. Schewe are members of the
German Lutheran Church. Mr. Schewe is a
Republican.
tAVID C. LINN, who ably represents
Frederick township on the County Board
of Supervisors, was born in Franklin
county, Indiana, March 29, 1834, a son of
John Linn, a native of Sidney, Ohio. The
father was a carpenter and wheelwright by
trade, and was engaged in the manufacture
of large spinning and small flax wheels. He
removed to Indiana when a young man, and
followed his trade in Franklin county until
1839, when he started westward with his
family, his objective point being Illinois; the
entire journey was made overland, and after
about five weeks of travel he landed in Adams
county. At first he rented land near Camp
Point, and two years later he bought a tract
of land ; here he erected a log house and a
shop, and worked at his trade, at the same
time superintending the cultivation of his
farm. He made many valuable improve-
ments, and resided on the place until his
death in 1881. His wife's maiden name was
Nancy Gant; she now resides at Camp Point,
at the advanced age of eighty-three years.
David C. is one of a family of eleven chil-
dren, and was but six years of age when he
came to Illinois with his parents. At that
time Adams county was sparsely settled; deer,
wild turkeys and other game abounded, and
the iron .horse had not yet penetrated the
frontier. Quincy was the nearest market
town, and was the depot of supplies for many
miles around.
Dr. Linn received his early education in
the primitive schools which were taught in
the log schoolhouse. At the age of eighteen
he began the study of medicine under the
preceptorship of Dr. Ashton, of Cincinnati;
he also attended lectures at the Eclectic
Medical College, and in 1857 began the
practice of his profession at Birmingham ; he
had been there but a short time when he
went to Plymouth, where he practiced until
1859. In the spring of that year he was
graduated from the Eclectic Medical College
of Cincinnati, and then located in Frederick
township, where he has practiced continu-
ously since. He has been a close student of
his profession, and has availed himself of
every opportunity of improvement. In 1883
he attended a course of medical lectures at
Bellevue Hospital Medical College, and in
1888 he was graduated from the Ohio Medi-
cal College at Cincinnati.
In the month of March, 1865, Dr. Linn
entered the service of the United States, as
Assistant Surgeon of the One Hundred and
Forty-eighth Volunteer Infantry, and was on
duty until the following September, when he
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
571
was honorably discharged, the war being
ended.
He was married in March, 1861, to Ada
Folsom, a native of Illinois; she died in Au-
gust, 1862. The Doctor was married again
in 1863, to Delia Trnett, of Baltimore. Po-
litically he is a Republican, and a stanch
supporter of the principles of that party.
He was first elected Supervisor in 1886, and
has served continuously since that time. He
has been a capable and efficient officer, work-
ing always for the best interests of the
county. He has been successful in his pro-
fession, and has a large and appreciative
practice.
[ILLIAM THOMAS was born in Fay-
ette county, Ohio, January 9, 1809.
His father was John, a Virginian,
who came to Ohio while the Indians were
still plentiful on Paint creek. His first wife
was Nancy Putnam of Pennsylvania, who
died in early life, leaving six young children.
Four years later he was married again, but
she was drowned about one year later, while
trying to save the life of his child. Some
years later he was married again, and by
this marriage he had six children, making in
all thirteen. He died at eighty years, on his
farm. These children have all passed away
but our subject and Benjamin Thomas, a
farmer in his eighty-fifth year, living in Iowa.
William has been a farmer all his life and
had very little schooling. He was married
in Ohio, to Julia DeWitt, and came West in
the fall of 1831, with wife and one child.
They came in a four-horse wagon and with
three loose horses, which they rode part of the
time. In good weather his wife rode his little
D
pacing mare and carried the baby. He had
very little money left when he crossed the river
at Beardstown. He took up a homestead, and,
not being able to deed it, sold out his im-
provements and then had enough to enter
120 acres, for which he obtained a Govern-
ment deed, and then had eighty acres under
the plow and an orchard and two good
hewed-log houses. There he lived from 1837
to 1860. He traded it for 160 acres of his
present farm and moved upon it. There was
an old log house into which he moved until
he could build a good log house, and in 1866
or 1867 he built a part of his present frame
house. In 1882 he built his good barn, and
in 1884 he built the frame addition to his
house. There is not a man living in this
section that was living here when Mr. Thomas
first came.
Mr. Thomas lost his first wife in March,
1855, by whom he had seven children, Dru-
silla Shield, deceased; John M., deceased;
James, deceased ; Sarah C., a maiden lady at
home with her parents; William A., a mer-
chant in Cooperstown; Peter A., farmer close
by; Parmelia Ann Gibson, living on the
homestead; Eliza Jane Garnett, in Arkansas.
Mr. Thomas was married again, to Mrs.
Nancy Brown, nee Clayton. She died, aged
seventy-eight years, in 1884, after having
been his faithful wife for twenty-four years.
He is a Master Mason and organized the Ver-
sailles Lodge, of which he is the last living
member. He believes in moral reform in
politics.
MANUEL LEIB, deceased, was one of
the most highly respected farmers of
Schuyler county, and it is fitting that
his name should be preserved to the coming
generations as an honored citizen of the
572
BIOGRAPHICAL RRV1K*W OF OASS,
great commonwealth of Illinois. He was
born in York county, Pennsylvania, August
26, 1808, a son of Abraham Leib, a native
of the same county; the paternal grandfather
spent his entire life in York county, and there
Abraham Leib was reared to agricultural
pursuits; he, too, remained in York county
until the day of hia death. He married
Matilda Ziegler of the same county, and
she died on the homestead. Emanuel Leib
grew to maturity, surrounded by rural scenes
and occupations; he remained in the place
where he was born until 1865, when he em-
igrated to Illinois and settled in Rushville
township, Schuyler county; he purchased a
farm and spent the remainder of his life.
He was an intelligent, successful farmer, and
developed one of the most desirable tracts of
land in Schuyler county.
He was united in marriage to Miss Mary
Ann Kimmel, a native of York county, Penn-
sylvania, and a daughter of Philip and Eliz-
abeth (King) Kimmel. Three children were
born to them: Henry E , who married Addie
Wells, is a resident of Chicago; Alice Leota,
a stenographer, is also in Chicago; and John
Robert resides with his mother.
After the death of her husband, Mrs. Leib
remained on the farm for three years, man-
aging it with marked success; in 1890, how-
ever, she rented the land, and is now making
her home in Rushville.
?W. ORWIG, of the firm of Orwig
Brothers, successful house painters of
9 Beardstown, is one of the prominent
men of the city. The firm employs from two
to ten men and are noted for the excellence of
their work. They make a speciality of fine
graining. The firm includes J. W. and a
brother, George. They have been doing
business under the present firm name for the
past twenty-two years: formerly the firm was
known as William D. Orwig & Sons. Mr.
Orwig started the business as early as 1857.
He was engaged in business with them as
journeymen workmen for two years, coming
to Beardstown in 1867. Here he died in
1875, aged sixty-three. He was born in
Pennsylvania of Pennsylvania Dutch parents.
He grew up in his native State, following in
his trade of distiller, and was yet a young man
when he .came to Illinois, settling in Morgan
county. Here he was married to Jane Whipp
born in Yorkshire, England. She emigrated
to this country with her parents, settling in
Morgan county in the '30s. Mrs. Orwig
remained with her parents until her marriage,
and she made her husband a most faithful
wife until his death.
For some time after his marriage Mr.
Orwig engaged in the mercantile business in
Morgan county, but later went to Rushville,
Schuyler county, where he was engaged in
the same business for a time. In 1857 he
entered the painter's trade, having learned
his trade in Sandusky, Ohio. He was a
good citizen and his loss was felt by all who
knew him. He was a Republican in politics
from the formation of the party. He was a
sound friend and acquaintance of Mr. Lin-
coln's, having formed his acquaintance while
he, Mr. Orwig, was a clerk in the treasury
department at Springfield. His wife is still
living with her son, George L., at Beardstown
and, although she is in her seventy-first year
she is very active for her years and is a devoted
Methodist and a good Christian woman. Her
husband was of the same religious faith.
Our subject is the eldest of two sons and
three daughters, namely: Lizzie, wife of John
Shaw, retired farmer of Beardstown; Mary,
SCHUYLER AN£> BROWN COUNTIES.
573
wife of Charles Fulks, wholesale grocer of
Peoria, Illinois; Rosa I., wife of Milton Mc-
Clure of Beardstown; J. W., born in Rush-
ville, Illinois, November 12, 1845, and
George.
Our subject was reared and educated in
this city and was married here to Ann Sum-
mers of Rochester, New York, born in 1869.
She came to Beardstown when young with
her parents. They are still living in this
place and are past middle life. They are
well known and highly respected people.
Mr. and Mrs. Orwig are parents of one
child: Charles William. The are prominent
young married people and are gre.atly liked
by their large circle of frie.ncjs.
§EWIS DIMMER is nqw retired from act-
ive labor as a farmer and is living at the
corner, of Jefferson and Twelfth streets
in Beardstown. He was born in Frankfort-
on-the-Maiu in Hesse-Darmstadt, July 28,
1819. He came of Hesse-Darmstadt parents,
his father, John Zimmer being a German
farmer in, a small way and died when ninety-
two years of age. He was an active old man
to the last, and when seventy-five thought
nothing qf walking twelve miles. He was a
tried and loyal soldier and served his country
for six years as one. His wife, whose maiden
name was Margaret Snyder, died at the age of
eighty, at the same place as her husband. She
came of a long lived-family. They were both
members of the State Church of Hesse-
Darmstadt.
Lewis is the youngest, but one of nine
children born to his parents. Several of the
family are still living and married, but Lewis is
the only one who came to the United States.
He grew up on the farm in his native country
88
and after he became of age he enlisted as
a soldier in the regular Germany army, serv-
ing six years; when he received his honorable
discharge he came to the United States, leav-
ing in August, 1846. He sailed from France
on a three-mast sailing vessel, landing in New
York city after thirty-one days' passage. He
came thence to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, locat-
ing fourteen miles west of that city and be-
gan life in the new country as a day laborer,
After about three years he came to Cass
county, Illinois, through the influence of a
German friend who lived there. Here he
has lived ever since. He has a nice farm of
200 acres, a good portion of which is well
improved and the soil is as fine as any in the
county. The farm lies against Bluff Springs,
in, the valley of the same name. He came to
the county a poor man, renting his fann, but
in 1859 he purchased sixty-eight acres and on
this began to farm on his own account. He
added to this original farm until he had ac-
cumulated a tine property and fortune, and
this without assistance from anybody but his
faithful wife.
He was married in Beardstown to Mrs.
Catharine Price, nee Keil. She was born in
Hesse- Darmstadt and after growing up was
married to Conrad Price, a gentleman of the
same province. After marriage Mr. Price
with his parents and young wife came, in
1845, from Bremen to Baltimore and thence
to Beardstown, Illinois, and here a few years
later he died very suddenly from paralysis,
leaving his widow with quite a family, two
sons who are now grown up arid prosperous,
Henry and John. The parents of Mrs. Price
died in Beardstown when old people, their
names were Conrad and Catherine (Shelman)
Price. They were both natives of Hesse-
Darmstadt and were all Lutherans.
574
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
Mr. and Mrs. Zimmer are the parents of
two children: Lewis, Jr. (see biography), and
Margaret, wife of Theo. Krohe, an implement
dealer in the city.
Mr. Zimmer moved into the city in 1888
and is now enjoying the fruits of his early
labors. He is a Democrat in politics and he
and his wife are members of the Lutheran
Church.
kOBERT LITTLE was born in county
Tyrone, Ireland, August 8, 1808. He
was the son of William and Jane (Cro-
zier) Little, who were both born in Ireland,
where he died, at the age of sixty years, but
she, surviving, came to Pittsburg, where
she died, at the age of sixty-five years.
William L. came to this country in 1831, in
a sailing vessel, Captain Haines, command-
ing. They were nearly six weeks on the trip
and first landed at Quebec, Canadas and re-
mained there that summer. He worked in
Queen Victoria's works for about three
months at dry masonry, and he was injured
there by a large stone falling upon him which
laid him up for about two months. He seems
to have had a good deal of sickness and mis-
fortune, and it was not until that fall that he
was able to go to Eastern Canada, where he
worked for two years. The next spring he
came to Pennsylvania, and went into a boot
and shoe store with his uncle. He left Canada
against the wishes of the English company
by whom he was employed, who offered to
make him an officer and deed him a large
tract of land. He remained in Pennsylvania
twelve to fifteen years, engaged for the most
part in superintending the construction of
railroads.
He was married the day before he left Ire-
land, and his wife came with him. He, his
wife and eight children left Pittsburg for
Illinois via St. Louis and Fredericktown,
and from there came to Rushville. In 1844
he rented a farm for three years, and then
bought a farm of partly improved land in
Littleton township. The next spring he
moved to this farm, into a little log house
about ready to tumble down. The next year
he built a substantial log house, and then
built a frame addition and otherwise improved
the entire house. He has now over 600 acres
of fine land and two houses, and several lo<s
in Littleton. About eleven years ago he re-
tired from farm work, and rented his land to
his boys. His wife was named Eliza Cun-
ningham, was born in 1814, on the estate of
Lord Mt. Joy, in Tyrone county, Ireland,
Easter Monday. She was the daughter of
Henry Cunningham, who came to Quebec,
and the father, who was pensioner of the Brit-
ish army, died at the age of sixty, and his
wife at the age of sixty-five.
Mr. Little's wife died in 1890, at home
where he now lives. Mr. and Mrs. Little had
ten children, seven of whom are yet living.
EORGE E. RICHARDSON of Elkhorn
township was born in St. Louis, Mis
squri, in J.846. He was the son of Rob-
ert H. and Sophia (Armbrewster) Richard-
son. He carne with his parents to Illinois
when a boy, and before he was of age went
on the river and learned to be an engineer
and followed that business until 1864, when
he died. His father's family were farmers
and mechanics.
George remained at home until he was
nineteen years old, having remained at school
until fourteen. He entered an office in St.
Louis as shipping clerk, and afterward came
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
575
to this county and settled in JVIt. Pleasant,
and worked for an uncle one year on a farm.
He then took to running a portable sawmill.
Since then he has farmed and continued his
business in the sawmill. He has been As-
sessor and Collector, and is now a Democrat,
although he first voted the Republican ticket.
He was married April 22, 1875, to Miss
Martha J. Gerrish, who was born in this
county April 9, 1854. She is the daughter
of Sewall and Elizabeth (Grove) Gerrish. Mr.
and Mrs. Richardson have five children,
namely: Otis E., Josie L., Sewall H., George
Everett and Nina L. Mr. Richardson and
family are prominent people in the township
and they are steady church-going people.
,ENRY Y. NEWBOLD, now deceased,
was born in Lippe-Detmold, Prussia,
Germany, September 22, 1828. He
came of a respectable family and his mother
died in her native province when he was eight
years fid. His father, Henry, who was a
small German farmer, came with his four
children, in 1850, to New York city, and
from thence to Stephenson county, Illinois,
where they all settled for a time, and where
a part remained. The father continued there
with one of his eons until his death. He and
his wife were Lutherans all their lives.
Henry Y. came to .Beardstown in ^854, and
two years later was married, and after a few
years purchased a good farm, five miles east
of Beardstown, where he lived and died. He
was a practical farmer, improved his land
nicely, put up a tine residence and good out-
buildings. At the time of his death he owned
152 acres of good, improved land in the bot-
toms. He was a much respected citizen arid
a working member of the Lutheran Church.
His wife, who still survives him, and is
managing the farm with remarkable success,
is a very capable woman. Her maiden name
was Mary Mohlman, and she was born in
Westphalia, Prussia, September 25, 1838.
She was twelve years of age when her parents
came to the United States and to Beardstown.
There the father, Henry Mohlman, died, be-
ing nearly sixty years old. He was a good
mechanic and operated a large planing- mill,
and also did business as a merchant. He was
a well-known and worthy citizen, a Repub-
lican, and an active member of the Lutheran
Church. His wife is yet living, and bears
her eighty years as well as can be expected.
She has always been a consistent Lutheran.
Mrs. Newbold lived with her parents until
her marriage. She is the mother of six
intelligent children, all living: Henry A., a
farmer of Christian county, Illinois, married
to Phoebe Livergood; Ellen, wife of Herman
Drawer, a farmer of Christian county ;
Charles, also a farmer, married Amelia Tribs-
water; William runs his father's old farm 5
Emma is the wife of Parker Hammer and
Lily M., a charming young lady, is at home
with her mother. The children are all well
educated, and are, highly respected through*
out this county.
MASA HILL was born two and a
half miles from Friendship, Allegany
county, New York, July 1, 1830. His
grandfather Hill, a pioneer of Allegany
county, and a farmer by occupation, died in
1832. His father, Nathaniel Hill, was born
in Delaware county, New York; removed
from there to Allegany county, bought a tract
of timber land, and from the wilderness de-
veloped a farm. He spent his life there, and
576
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASH,
died in 1838. The maiden name of the wife
of Nathaniel Hill and the mother of Amasa
was Ehoda Tiffney. She was born in Dela-
ware county, New York, daughter of Horace
Tiffney. She came to Illinois, and died at
the home of her son, Amasa, in 1875. Mr.
and Mrs. Hill reared four children: Chancey,
Horace, Mary and Amasa. Chancey now
lives at Fredericktown, Knox county, Ohio.
Horace and Mary are deceased.
The subject of our sketch attended the
primitive schools of Allegany county, which
were held in log soho.olhonses, with greased
paper for windows and the seats made of
slabs with wooden pins for legs. When he
was nine years old his mother sold the farm,
his father having died the previous year, and
emigrated to Ohio, the western journey being
made in a two-horse w^gon. They settled in
Knox county. There were no railroads in
Ohio then, and the people lived off the prod-
ucts of their farms and wild game. The
mother bought fifty acres of land, eight miles
from Mount Vernon, and there Amasa Hill
was reared to manhood. At the age of four-
teen he began to make his own way in the
world, starting out from hom.e with all his
possessions tied up in a handkerchief. He went
to Fredericktown, and there served a three
years' apprenticeship to the trade of wagon
and carriage maker. After learning his trade
he did journeyman work there one year. In
1846 he came to Illinois, landing in Cass
county, September 20. He found employ-
ment in a carriage shop at Beardstown, where
he worked four years. He then started in
business in company with Richard Miller,
and together they conducted a carriage shop
four years. At the end of that time he and
his brother, Horace, bought a farm and en-
gaged in agricultural pursuits. They farmed
together till the latter's death, April 13,
1877. Since then Mr. Hill has operated it
alone.
He was married, in 1850, to Mary A.
Streeter, who was born in Pennsylvania,
August 11, 1832, daughter of Andrew J. and
Diana Streeter. Mr. and Mrs. Hill had
three children: Chancey, Amanda and Will-
iam. Chancey married Lucy Schaeffer, and
Amanda is the wife of J. Theirget, and has
one child, Nettie. Mrs. Hill died Decem-
ber 3, 1885. She was a consistent member
of the Presbyterian Church, of which her
children are also members.
NGLEBERT CRAMER, farmer on
section 33, township 18, range 11, was
born in Beardstown, November 7, 1856.
He was reared and educated iu his native
city. He is the son of Jacob H. Cramer, a
native of Hanover, Germany, who came to
America when a young, single man. He set
sail from Bremen, on a sailing vessel, and
after a long and stormy passage he "landed
in this country, and coming up the Missis-
sippi river he located at Beardstown, Illinois.
This was in the spring of 1848. He was a
cabinetmaker, and had no difficulty in ob-
taining work, as he was a skilled workman.
He later engaged as mechanic, and house-
builder, and carpenter. He was thus engaged
the remainder of his life, dying at his home
in Beardstown, in 1874, when he was fifty-
four years of age, having been born in 1820.
He was a Republican in politics, and a mem-
ber of the German Methodist Episcopal
Church, and a good substantial citizen. He
was married in Beardstown, to Charlotte
Frankle, born in Prussia, Germany, coming
to this country with a sister. They settled
in St. Louis, where they remained for a time
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
577
She was a true wife and good mother, and a
worthy woman, dying in 1888, being about
sixty years of age. She was a member of
the German Methodist Episcopal Church.
She was the mother of ten children, seven
yet living, three of them being married.
Englebert grew to manhood in this county.
He has a fine farm of 160 acres, which lies
in the Illinois valley, and is well improved.
He has good buildings on it, and also very
good stock. He is a practical farmer, and a
good manager.
He was married to Paulina M. Hackman,
born in this county, in 1858, where she was
reared and educated. She is a very intelli-
gent woman and good housekeeper. She has
proved herself a kind and devoted wife and
mother. She is the daughter of John fl. and
Louisa (Jockisch) Hackman. Mr. Hackman
was born in Hanover, Germany, and came to
the United States when thirteen years old
with his parents, John E. and Mary E. (Stn-
ben) Hackman. The family located in Cass
county, in the early '40s. They bought a
farm on which the father died soon afterward,
and the mother some years later. John Hack-
man was reared to manhood on a farm in
this county, and was married here. After
marriage he purchased land in township 17,
range 11 (which is the home of our subject)
and here Mr. Hackman and wife worked and
built up a fine home and large farm of 320
acres in one body, and here they both died,
the former April 18, 1874, aged fifty. He
was a prominent man, a Republican in poli-
tics, and was one of the builders and lead-
ing members of the Zion Methodist Episco-
pal Church. His wife died July 26, 1877.
She was born in this county, in 1837. (For
full biography of her family see history of
William Jockisch). She was a kind and good
neighbor, a worthy wife and mother, and a
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
She was the mother of four children, yet liv-
ing.
Mrs. Cramer is the eldest; Frank J. R., a
farmer in this county, married Rosa Wag-
oner; Lydia C., wife of Henry Sitter, now a
farmer in Petersburg, Illinois; Julius H. is
single and lives with his brother, Frank.
Mr. and Mrs. Cramer have four children:
Louisa B., Jacob H., Julius W. and Engle-
bert Ci Mr. Cramer is a stanch Republican,
and takes a very prominent part in politics,
having held all of the precinct offices. He
and his wife are leading people in the county.
H. DRUSE, passenger and freight
agent at Beardstown for the Chi-
cago; Burlington & Quincy Rail-
road since 1886, was born in Henry county,
Illinois and was reared, educated and has al-
ways lived in this State. His father lived on
a farm when he was born and reared in that
calling; later he learned the trade of a
carrriage painter, but after pursuing the
trade for a short time he found it was not
congenial and so did not continue it. He
then entered into the employ of the railroad.
Since then he has been successful and has
saved part of his income, with which he has
purchased various pieces of real estate: in
this is the valuable farm in Clay county of
160 acres. It was uncultivated when he pur-
chased it, but he has improved it until it is
one of the best farms in the county. He has
put a good farm house and farm building on
it and has planted a large number of fine trees.
Mr. Druse comes of Eastern people, his
parents being from Kentucky. His father,
Stephen Druse, was a farmer in Illinois and
finally ended his days with his son in Leland,
578
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
Illinois. His wife, whose maiden name was
Driggs, is still living and makes her home
with Mr. Druse. She is now an old lady and
holds to the doctrines of the Presbyterian
Church. She has only live living children,
all of whom, excepting Mr. Druse, are resi-
dents of Nebraska.
Mr. Druse came to Beardstown in 1882 and
has not lost at single day since from the pur-
suit of his duty. He has exclusive charge
of the passenger and freight depots and has
always proved himself worthy of the trust
imposed in him. There are from twelve to
twenty-five men under him all the time. He
is a popular young man in his city and has
the confidence of his employers. He has a
thorough knowledge of his business and is a
man of good habits. When he first came
to the city he was clerk and night agent for
the Quincy Railroad until 1886. He was
also connected with the main line, with head-
quarters at Leland for some time. When he
was first employed he was the youngest man
in the employ of the road.
He was married in Beardstown, to Miss
Bertha Boehme of Williamsville, Illinois. She
was yet young when her parents came to
Beardstown and here she was reared and edu-
cated. Her father, Julius Boehme, was a na-
ive of Germany who settled in Illinois and
was engaged as a mechanic until his death.
His wife followed her husband some years
afterward and was about the same age when
she died. Her maiden name was Anna Phil-
lipi and she also was a native of Germany.
She came to this country with her husband
and they became pioneers of Beardstown.
Here they spent the remainder of their days.
They were people quite well known to the
people of this city and county and can be
properly associated with the history of this
place.
Mr. and Mrs. Druse have a close social re-
lation with the better class of Beardstown so-
ciety, and are prosperous, progressive young
people who will make life a success. They ad-
here to the moral principles of life, but hold
to no church creed. Mr. Druse is a stanch
Democrat, but is no oince seeker. He is an
active worker for the principles of his party
in a local way. He is a working member of
the Masonic order, Cass Lodge, No. 23, and
takes a live interest in public matters tending
to benefit the city and county.
fAMES L. GREEK, who was for more
than twenty years the popular landlord
of one of the best hotels in Rushville,
was born near Five Mile Town, county Ty-
rone, Ireland, January 14, 1820, the son of
Robert and Catherine (Lendrum) Greer. (See
sketch of George Greer.) He was a lad of
nine years when his parents left the beautiful
Emerald Isle and crossed the sea to America.
When thirteen years of age he was sent to
sea as a cabin boy on a cruising vessel, mak-
ing the principal ports of both the Atlantic
and Pacific coasts. A portion of the time he
was drillmaster, and after seven years he
was discharged as an able-bodied seaman.
In 1841 he removed to Rushville and there
engaged in the manufacture of brooms for a
few years. During the war he was engaged
in buying horses under contract from the
Government. Previous to the war he had
bought a farm in Littleton township, on which
he resided until 1869, when he sold out and
came to Rushville. He purchased the prop-
perty which has been used as a hotel, and be-
came the proprietor of a hotel which he man-
aged with rare ability; he had a large and en-
thusiastic patronage, and a reputation that
reached as far as his guests traveled.
8CHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
579
Mr. Greer WEB married in 1841, to Nancy
Wilson, who was born in Nelson county,
Kentucky, a daughter of Elijah M. and Jane
(Hawley) Wilson. Six children have been
born to this union, who are still living: Em-
ily, now Mrs. McCreery, Robert, George,
Charles and Milton. Robert and Charles are
engaged in the mercantile business at Kear-
ney, Nebraska; George is a carpenter, and Mil-
ton is in the livery business at Rashville.
Mr. Greer and wife are members of the
Methodist Episcopal Church. He assisted in
organizing the first Methodist Episcopal class
in Littleton, and aided very materially in the
building of the church. For a number of
years he was superintendent of the Sabbath-
school, and has always been a devoted worker
in the cause of the Master. He is a man of
excellent traits, and has the respect of all who
know him.
|EV. JOHN W. HAYES, general farmer
on section 7, township 17, range ll,
was born in Clark county, Missouri, but
was reared in Schuyler county, Illinois. He
is the son of George W. Hayes, a native of
Kentucky, and own cousin of ex-President
Hayes. His mother was a relation of J. Q.
Adams. Mr. George Hayes came to Indi-
ana when a young man, and followed his trade
of general mechanic and cooper carpenter.
Here he was married to Martha Finer, of
Jennings county. Here he lived for a few
years, and then moved to Missouri, coming
to Schuyler county, Illinois, in 1862, and
began life as a farmer. Later he settled in
Rushville, and there the wife and mother
died, in 1886, when in middle life. Mr.
Hayes still lives in Rushville, and is sixty-
six years of age. He is a Methodist, as is his
wife. He was a Democrat, He has three
living children: Nancy, wife of Mr. Lee of
Rushville; L. Jennie, wife of M. B. Woods,
living at Havana, Illinois, and John W.
John W. Hayes has been in this place
only a short time, formerly living in Schuy-
ler county, Illinois, where he had lived the
most of his life after he was five years old.
He was married in Schuyler county, to
Annie Horton, who bore him no children.
He was married a second time, in Cass
county, to Mrs. Martha E. Buck, nee Wegle,
born in Cass county, where she has since
lived. She is the daughter of Jeptha and
Phebe (Tood) Wegle, natives of Kentucky,
where they were reared and married. They
came to Illinois in the '30s and settled in
Brown county. Later they came to Cass
county, and settled on a farm, where Mr.
Wegle died, in 1861, in middle life, being
born in 1812. He was a farmer, a Republi-
can, and a member of the Union Baptist
Church. His wife makes her home with her
daughter, Mrs. John Hayes. She is quite
old, being born in 1812. She is a Baptist,
and was the mother of twelve children. Mrs.
Hayes is the youngest of the nine now living,
all married with families.
Mrs, Hayes was married for the first time
in Cass county, to Stephen D. Buck, who was
born on the farm he lived to own and im-
prove. Here he died, September 16, 1890.
He was then fifty-seven years old, being born
of a family of pioneers, who came here at an
early date from North Carolina. Mr. Buck
was a kind husband and a good citizen, a
Democrat in politics, but not an office seeker.
He was the father of ten children, two de-
ceased. Those living are: Flora, wife of Elza
Merrot, of Cass county, a farmer; Julius H.
works for a farmer in this county; Ste-
phen D. and Ella, at home. Edith M., Lillian
580
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS 8,
M., and Walter A. are triplets, and are bright
healthy children. Mr. Hayes is a minister
of the Church of God, and has been the
pastor of the church for several years. He
is a forcible speaker, and prominent minister.
His wife is a member of the Baptist Church.
Both are worthy people.
|EORGE W. BARNEYCASTLE, Alder-
man of the First Ward, Beardstown,
and blacksmith for the Quincy railroad,
was born in Bertie county, North Carolina,
October 1, 1844. His father, George W.
Barneycastle was born and spent all his life
in Bertie county. He spent his life in farm-
ing, and died at the age of seventy years.
His wife died when little George was twelve
years old. At the death of his mother, little
George was taken by an uncle and aunt, James
and Sarah Wilson, and taken by them to Cass
county, Illinois. They settled on a farm in
Arenzville precinct. Here George was
raised and his uncle and aunt lived and died.
He learned his trade in Beardstown under the
oldest firm in the city, John Webb & Co.,
and completed his trade a little before
he was twenty-one. He then tried his hand
at farm ing for three years, but finally entered
the Quincy shops, and has since been engaged
there. He has been on their pay rolls ever
since 1878.
When George was eighteen, he enlisted in
Company I, Third Illinois Cavalry, Captain
Samuel Shelenberger in command. They
went as a regiment to the front in 1864, and
engaged in many small battles in the Cum-
berland mountains and Mississippi, under
General Hatch. After serving fry about one
year he was mustered out at Snelling, Min-
nesota, October 20, 1865. He escaped un-
hurt and was never captured. He was always
on duty and never was sick. Since the war
he has lived in Beardstown most of the time
and has been an enterprising citizen. He is
a member of the G. A. R., McLane Post, 97,
also a member of the subordinate lodge I.
O. O. F., and is Past Grand Commander,
having filled all the chairs. He takes an act-
ive part in local politics and serves his party,
Democratic, in a very proficient manner. He
has been closely associated with the best in-
terests of the city.
He was married in this city, to Miss Eliza-
beth Dengler of Schnylkill county, Pennsyl-
vania, born in 1845. She came West with
her parents when very young, the family set-
tling in Bath, Mason county. Her father
and mother died when quite old, Mr. Deng-
ler being an engineer.
Mr. and Mrs. Barneycastle attend the
Methodist Episcopal Church, of which Mrs.
Barneycastle is a member. They have three
children besides the one child, William, who
died when young. The living children are:
Lillie M., a type-writer in the office of the
" Star of the West;" Clyde, at home.
|OBERT ANDERSON, the capable and
enterprising manager of the lumber
business of J. S. & G. S. Russell, and a
popular citizen of Ashland, Illinois, was born
in county Tyrone, Ireland. December 22,
1842. His parents were William and Mar-
tha (Kimpston) Anderson, both of whom
were natives of county Tyrone, where they
were married and where all of their children
were born. In 1847, they came to America,
and located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
where both parents afterward died. This
worthy couple were the parents of five chil-
SCRUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
581
dren, of whom the subject of this sketch was
the first son. Jane, the first in order of birth,
died in young womanhood, in Philadelphia;
next in order was our subject; Kate, the third
cl;ild, resides in Bucks county, Pennsylvania;
Sarah, now Mrs. Finley, lives in Philadelphia
where her husband is a carpet manufacturer;
Willie was born in Philadelphia, but died in
infancy.
Mr. Anderson lived with his maternal
grandfather in Ireland, until he was twenty-
two years of age, when, in June, 1865, he
came to Philadelphia. He remained in the
city of Brotherly Love until the fall of 1872,
and was, in the meantime, on May 2, 1868,
married there, to Miss Mary A. Lucas, who
was born in his native county, in Ireland,
and who had been a schoolmate of his in the
beautiful Emerald Isle, in which country her
parents spent their entire lives.
In 1872, Mr. Anderson came to Jackson-
ville, Illinois, where he entered the employ of
Russell Brothers, with whom he has been
connected ever since. In 1876, he started
the business in Ashland, which he now oper-
ates, which is the only lumber-yard in that
city, and they enjoy a large and lucrative
trade. The entire management of this large
enterprise is vested in Mr. Anderson's hands.
It is he who pays the men, does all the col-
lecting, and handles all the money, and is, in
fact, a trusted employee, whose integrity is
unimpeachable and his faithfulness unsur-
passed.
Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have four children:
Robert L., twenty-four years of age and unmar-
ried, is the manager of a lumber business in
Virginia, Illinois; Henrietta, is the wife of
Ferdinand L. Strawn, a prominent and suc-
cessful young farmer near Jacksonville, Illi-
nois, to whom she was married January 6,
1892; Sarah E. and Willie Johnson are still
under the parental roof: the former, now past
eighteen years of age, is an efficient teacher
in the public schools of Sangamon county;
the latter is employed, during vacation, about
the lumber-yard or on the farm belonging to
the Russell Brothers. All of the children
have had excellent educational opportunities
in the common and high schools of Ashland.
Robert L., the oldest son, is a graduate of the
Jacksonville Business College, and Henrietta
graduated in music at the Jacksonville Con-
servatory of Music, and taught that beautiful
art in Ashland for several years, being .very
successful.
In his political affiliations, Mr. Anderson
is a stanch Republican, advocating most
thoroughly jthe principles of that party. He
abhors free-trade England, and deeply sym-
pathizes with his oppressed countrymen
across the water. Socially, he affiliates with
the 1. O. O. F., Knights of Pythias and with
the A. O. U. W. The entire family are
earnest and useful members of Pleasant
Plains Presbyterian Church, contributing
liberally to its support and advancement.
Ireland and America being such friends, it
is natural that their respective countrymen
should entertain the kindest regard for each
other, especially if, as in Mr. Anderson's
case, they are irreproachable in business and
social life, inspiring all worthy men with the
deepest respect and esteem.
}SAAC R. GARNER, a prominent and
esteemed citizen of Ashland, Illinois, and
an honored veteran of the late war, was
born in Cass county, Illinois, February 21,
1846. His parents were Greenberry and Mary
J. (Redman) Garner, his father being a na-
tive of Indiana, while his mother was born in
582
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GAS 8,
Morgan county, Illinois, in which latter
county their marriage took place in 1837.
The father was a prominent and useful min-
ister of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and
was an active member of the Illinois confer-
ence for more than forty years. The paternal
grandfather of the subject of this sketch, Rev.
James Garner, was also an able minister of
the same denomination, while four brothers
of our subject's father were also ministers of
the same church. The family was originally
from Hollaad, but have been established in
America since an early day. The subject of
this notice was one of ten children, seven of
whom are now living. Hannah E., the old-
est, is the wife of Rev. G. B. Wolfe, an itinerant
minister in the Methodist Episcopal Church
in the Illinois Conference; Charles W., mar-
ried, is a farmer in Pike county, Illinois;
Isaac E., the subject of this biography; Mary
A., widow of J. Bagby, resides in Ashland ;
Hattie E., wife of .Ross Ister, lives on a farm
in Pike county, Illinois; George, unmarried,
is a horse trainer in Virginia, Illinois; Min-
nie Lee, wife of Jerry Hitter, lives in Ash-
laud; James died in childhood; William N.
died aged eight years ; and Elina Bell aged
thirteen.
The early life of our subject was spent in
school and in working in a store, up to the
time of his enlistment in the army. He
offered his services to the Twenty-first Illi-
nois Regiment, under General Grant, but
was rejected on account of his youth; a year
later, however, he was accepted in Company
I of the Sixty-second Illinois Infantry, and
was assigned to duty in the Army of the
West. For a time he served in the Sixteenth
Army Corps, and was afterward under Gen-
eral Steele in the Seventeenth Corps. Mr.
Garner was appointed Drum-major of his
regiment, serving in that capacity most of
his army life. His duties were to drill his
own band, and he was afterward detached and
placed in charge of the bands of new regi-
ments as drillmaster. He participated with
his regiment in several skirmishes, and took
part in the battle of Little Rock. It was
while on board a boat, in the spring of 1864,
that he met with a distressing accident, which
destroyed his sight, and he has been totally
blind since the spring of 1866. The anguish
occasioned by the deprivation of sight has
been intense, and for twenty-six years he has
never looked upon the face of his wife and
children. On May 2, 1865, he was honor-
ably discharged, and at once returned to his
parental home in Cass county, Illinois. He
afterward entered the Blind Institution at
Jacksonville, where he remained four years,
taking the entire five years' course. He then
engaged in selling musical instruments, in
which business he continued for seven years.
After this, he was for two years in the livery
business at Plymouth, Hancock county.
Later, he followed trading for a time, but,
since coming to Ashland, about twelve years
ago, he has retired from active business. He
o '
receives a liberal pension on account of his
misfortunes.
Mr. Garner was married November 10,
1885, to Miss Grace E. Douglass,'a highly es-
teemed lady and a daughter of W. S. and Vir-
ginia (Job) Douglass, honored pioneers of Cass
county, Illinois, who now own and operate
the Central Hotel, in Ashland. Mrs. Garner
is the second of five children, of whom
Charles, the eldest, is unmarried, and is in
the insurance business in Ashland; Edward,
died in infancy; Ellen is the wife of Dr.
William Bane, a practicing physician of
Springfield, Illinois; William is employed in
a drug store in Ashland, and is unmarried.
Mr. and Mrs. Garner have two children,
SCHUYLfiR AND BROWN COUNTIES.
583
Harold D., born in Ashland, September 10,
1886; and Helen Lee, born September 2,
1888.
Politically, Mr. Garner is a straight Re-
publican, and takes a deep interest in the
affairs of his country. Socially, he is a prom-
inent member of Douglass Post, No. 592,
G. A. R., in Ashland.
He is a devout and useful member of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, and is active in
forwarding the interests of the church, Sun-
day-school and other religious and charitable
enterprises.
Thus, notwithstanding his deep affliction,
he does more for his fellow-men than many
others who have nothing of that kind with
which to contend. In the midst of all his
sorrow, he is buoyed up with the sense of a
duty done by which he is assisted in liberat-
ing thousands of suffering humanity, who
might yet be groaning in bondage. This and
the universal esteem of his associates and
friends tend to brighten his otherwise dark
pathway through life.
JILL1AM HARVEY McCASKILL
is one of the oldest of the native-born
citizens of Illinois now residing in
Brown county. He was born in Sangamon
county, Illinois, July 23, 1826. His father,
Daniel McCaskill, was born in North Caro-
lina, and his father, John McCaskill, was
born in Scotland, coming to America when a
young man, locating in North Carolina,
where he married a lady of Scotch birth, and
spent the remainder of his days there. His
son was reared and educated in his native
State, but came North when a young man and
engaged in teaching. He married in Indi-
ana, at the age of thirty-four, and either in
the fall of 1825 or the spring of 1826 came
to Illinois, making the journey overland with
teams. He located in Sangamon county.
At that time the State capital was at Van-
dalia; Springfield was but a hamlet, and the
surrounding country was sparsely settled.
He engaged in teaching, and resided there
until 1834, when he emigrated to Schuyler
county, settling in that part now included in
Pea Ridge township, Brown county. He
entered a tract of Government land, and at
once built on the place. He was one of the
first teachers in the county, and followed his
profession for many years. He superin-
tended the improvement of his farm, which
he occupied until his death in 1851. His
wife was Esther Turner, daughter of Archi-
bald Turner, of Ireland, of Scottish descent.
William has been a resident of this county
since his eighth year, and has witnessed the
improvement and development of this sec-
tion of country. Deer, wild turkeys and
other game were plentiful. There were no
railroads for years, and the people were
obliged to convey their grain by team to a
distant market. The people lived principally
off of the products of their own farms. Hie
father used to raise flax and sheep, and his
mother manufactured all the cloth used in
the family, dressing the children in home-
spun made by her own hands.
William received an ordinary education,
but began when very young to assist his
father on the farm. After his marriage he
settled on a farm on section 1, where he re-
sided until 1864, when he settled on the old
homestead, which he had bought from the
other heirs. The farm, which is well im-
proved, contains 240 acres; besides this he
has a farm of ninety acres in Bates county,
Missouri.
He was married in October, 1851, to Jane
584
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
Crooks. She was born in England, and came
to America with her parents when an infant.
Mr. and Mrs. McCaskill have eight children
living: Daniel Morgan, Mary, William H.,
Thomas L., Ella, Esther, Cora and Kate.
Mr. McCaskill is a Republican in politics,
and he and his wife are highly respected
members of society.
flNIS E. DOWNING, the present Clerk
of the Circuit Court, and a resident of
Virginia, was born in Virginia, Cass
county, Illinois, August 24, 1846. Of his
life and ancestry we record the following
facts :
Rev. Nathan H. Downing, his father, was
the son of John Downing, son of William
Downing. The father of William was a
native of Scotland or Ireland, of Scotch an-
cestry, and was one of three brothers who
came to America in early Colonial times. He
settled in Virginia and there spent his last
years. William Downing was born, reared
and married in Virginia, and about 1784
moved to Kentucky, becoming one of the first
settlers of Garrard county. For some years
after his settlement there the Indians were
numerous and troublesome, and the whites
lived in block-houses. He cleared and de-
veloped a farm, and resided there till his
death. John Downing was about eight years
old when the family moved to Kentucky. He
resided there till 1828, when, with his wife
and ten children, he moved to Missouri and
settled in Marion county. He entered a tract
of Government land, twenty miles from Han-
nibal, erected a log cabin, and there spent
the remainder of his days, dying in his fron-
tier home on the 7th of June, in 1832. The
maiden name of his wife, grandmother of the
subject of our sketch, was Susanna Hall.
She was born in Virginia, daughter of Ran-
dolph and Sally (Woodson) Hall. Her death
occurred at Newark, Knox county, Missouri,
March 4, 1861. She reared nine of her twelve
children.
While John was a resident of Garrard
county, Kentucky, his sou Nathan H. was
born there, November 11, 1811. The latter
was seventeen years old when the family
moved to Missouri. His youthful days were
spent in assisting his father on the farm, and
when he .was twenty-one he entered Marion
College, Marion county, Missouri, and worked
his way through college. Before leaving
Kentucky he was converted, and while a col-
lege student joined the Presbyterian Church.
After completing his studies he was employed
at various kinds of work. He subsequently
bought an interest in a sawmill at Hannibal,
which he operated six or seven jrears. ^n
1842 he came to Virginia. During this time
he had severed his connection with the Pres-
byterian Church and had joined the Cumber-
land Presbyterian Church, and was ordained
as preacher of the Salt River Presbytery. He
came to Virginia to accept the pastorate over
a small society here and other charges in this
vicinity. He was instrumental in building
a church and having a college located here.
His death occurred in Virginia, November
30, 1853. On March 16, 1836, he was united
in marriage with Eliza J. Head, who was born
in Boone county, Missouri, July 16, 1821, a
daughter of Alfred R. Head, a native of Vir-
ginia. Her grandfather, William Head, was
born in England; came to America and
served in the Revolutionary war. After
residing in Virginia some years, he moved
to Missouri long before it was a State.
He erected a block-house on his place, four
miles from Rocheport, which is now known
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
585
as Head's Fort. He resided there till death.
His son Alfred, grandfather of Mr. Downing,
went to Missouri with his parents, and on
their frontier farm he was reared. All his life
he was engaged in agricultural pursuits. He
bought a tract of land near the old home in
Boone county, and lived on it till his death.
His wife, nee Margaret Heard, a native of
Garrard county, Kentucky, was a daughter of
John and Jane (Stevenson) Heard, pioneers
of Howard county, Missouri. Her second
husband was John Arnold, and her death oc-
curred at the home of her son, Jesse Arnold,
near Los Angeles, California. The mother
of Mr. Downing is now a resident of Vir-
ginia. She reared three children, viz: John
C., who served in the One Hundred and Four-
teenth Regiment of Illinois Volunteer In-
fantry, and died in the service at Memphis,
in 1863; Finis E.; and Lucy J., who married
Russel G. Middleton.
The subject of our sketch was seven years
old when his father died. He continued to
reside with his mother, attending the public
schools and working on the farm. When he
was twenty years old he was employed as
clerk in a dry-goods store in Virginia, re-
maining as such five years. Then he engaged
in the mercantile business on his own account
in Virginia, and conducted the same until
1869. Next we find him at Butler, Missouri,
where he clerked till 1874, after which he re-
turned to Virginia, and continued clerking
here till 1880. That year he was elected to
his present position ; has since been re-elected
twice, and is now serving his third term.
He has been quite an extensive dealer in real
estate, both in city property and farm lands.
In 1868 Mr. Downing was united in mar-
riage with Sue H. Payne, who was born in
Fayette county, Kentucky, daughter of Will-
iam B. and H. E. Payne. They have one
son, Harry F., who graduated from Knox
College in the class of '90, and from the law
department of the University of Michigan in
1891.
Soon after Mr. Downing was elected to his
present office he commenced the study of law,
and in January, 1887, was admitted to the
bar.
Politically, he has always affiliated with
the Democratic party. He has served as a
member of the City Council, and has been a
member of the Senatorial and Congressional
committees.
Fraternally, Mr. Downing is associated
with the Virginia Lodge, No. 544, A. F. &
A. M; Clark Chapter, No. 29, R. A.M.;
Hospitaller Commandery, No. 31, K. T. ;
Saxon Lodge, No. 68, I. O. O. F., and Vir-
ginia Camp, M. "W. A.
fRANCIS MUHLERT, now deceased,
was born in the kingdom of Hanover,
Germany, April 4, 1820. He grew up
there and obtained a good German education.
His father was a professor of mathematics
in Hildesheim University, and as a linguist
he could speak five different languages. He
had three brothers and two sisters. Fred-
erick, the eldest brother, and Ferdinand, the
youngest, are professors in the University of
Gothingen. Herman went to the East In-
dies, where he became head physician of the
East India hospitals. The two sisters, Bertha
and Amelia, are still in their native country,
married. All are members of the Lutheran
Church. His parents lived and died in their
native province and he was the only one of
the family to come to the United States.
When twenty-eight years of age he embarked
on a sailing vessel from Hamburg to New
586
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OASS,
Orleans, and after the usual tedious trip
arrived in Beardstown, February, 1848. In
Germany Mr. Muhlert had been overseer of a
large farm, but after his arrival here he be-
came for two years a merchant in Arenzville.
About this time he was married to Paulina
Winhold, born in Kurhessen, Germany, Jan-
uary 4, 1831. She was the daughter of
William and Barbara (Weber) Winhold, who
were born in the same place in Germany and
came to the United States after the birth of
their two children. This was in 1834. They
landed in Baltimore, Maryland, after a
seven weeks' voyage and afterward settled
near Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. Seven years
later they came to Illinois, and settled on a
farm in Cass county, township 17, range 11,
and here they lived and died, the father aged
seventy-seven, and the mother eighty-two.
They were good, hard-working people, mem-
bers of the Catholic Church.
Mrs. Muhlert is the eldest of a family of
which seven are still living.
Mr. and Mrs. Muhlert purchased a good
farm after their marriage in section 4, town-
ship 17, range 11, and there Mr. Muhlert
spent the remainder of his life. He was a
well respected and favorably known citizen.
His widow now lives on and owns a fine prop-
erty of sixty acres of land, all highly' im-
proved. She is a noble, good, kind woman
and has many friends here. She attends the
German Lutheran Church, as did her hus-
band. She is the mother of eleven children,
one having died young. The living children
are: Sophia, wife of Jacob Heinen, now
• farmers in Kansas; William, living with his
mother on the home place; Amelia, wife of
William Meyer, farmer in this county; Ed-
ward is a farmer in Kansas and he married
Matilda Heinen; Henry is a carpenter and
lives with his mother; Herman is a farmer
in Kansas and lives with his sister; Lena is
the wife of John Parish, a railroad engineer
at Jacksonville, Illinois; Charles, Frank and
Ernest are at home.
WEBB, who was for many years
prominently identified with the manu-
facturing interests of Beardstown, Illi-
nois, is now a resident of Baiubridge town-
ship, Schuyler county. He was born in
Lancashire, England, December 9, 1813, a
eon of Samuel Webb, who was a native, of
the same shire; the paternal grandfather,
John Webb, was a manufacturer of cotton
goods, and operated in Lancashire, where he
spent his entire life. Samuel Webb learned
the trade in his father's factory, and became
a skilled workman. In 1817 he determined
to come to America, and, as it was at that time
time against the law for expert mechanics to
leave Great Britain, he sailed under an as-
sumed name. He located in Baltimore, and
there secured a situation as foreman in a
cotton factory three miles from the city; after
a few years he took the same position in
another mill, where he continued until 1827.
He then went to Mercer county, Pennsyl-
vania, and leased a mill, engaging in the
manufacture of cloth. He afterward returned
to Baltimore, and in 1842 he came to Illi-
nois; he was foreman of a woolen factory at
Petersburg, Menard county, several years,
and then purchased a farm near Mason City,
on which he resided until death. He mar-
ried Ellen Fletcher, a native of Manchester,
England and a daughter of James Fletcher, a
soldier in the British army and a participant
in the battle of Waterloo: she died at Peters-
burg about 1848. The family consisted of
ten children: Mary, Ellen, Olive, Sarah,
John, James, Samuel, Nathaniel, Thomas
SGHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
587
and "William. John Webb was a child of five
years when he was brought to America; he
attended school in Baltimore, and when he
had finished his studies began to learn the
machinist's trade; he served an apprentice-
ship of three years, and at the end of that
time took charge of a shop for his employer;
he held this position three years, and then
entered the service of the Baltimore & Ohio
Railroad at Mt. Clare; after a year he went
to work in a marine foundry in Baltimore;
twelvemonths later he entered the employ
of the Savage Manufacturing Company,
and remained with this firm until 1817.
In that year he came to Illinois, via stage to
Pittsburg, and thence by the Ohio, Missis-
sippi and Illinois rivers. He was in poor
health, and did not at once engage in business.
September 12, of the same year, he started
back to Baltimore with a horse and carriage
making the entire journey overland, and ar-
riving at his destination October 22. De-
cember 2, he started on the return trip, ac-
companied by his family; this journey was
also made with a horse and carriage.
Mr. Webb remained in Springfield until
1839, and in the fall of that year went to
Petersburg, where he had purchased a flour
mill; in 1844 he went to Cass county, and
there built the first circular-saw mill west of
the Alleghany mountains; this he operated
until 1848, and then went to Beardstown
where he opened a machine shop and foundry.
December 5, 1856. the buildings and entire
plant were destroyed by fire, and the follow-
ing year he rebuilt, and continued there until
1866, when he sold out. Later he built a
carriage-shop which he operated a number of
years. For the past nineteen years he has
been interested in agriculture; he owns 500
acres of land, and is one of the directors of
the First State Bank of Beardstown.
He was married in the city of Baltimore in
1834 to Miss Eliza Callaley, a native of Vir-
ginia; she died November 20, 1888. His
second marriage was in November, 1890,
when he was united to Maria Serrat, a native
of Scioto county, Ohio, and a daughter of
Peter and Mary Serrat. Five children were
born of this union: John, Joseph, Samuel,
William and Mary; the children are all mar-
ried, and there are twenty-eight grand-chil-
dren in the family.
HOMAS GAPEN, a retired farmer of
Rushville township, Schuyler county,
is the subject of the following bio-
graphical sketch. He was born in Clearfield
county, Pennsylvania, May 3, 1833, a son of
Zachariah T. Gapen, also a native of the Key-
stone State. The paternal grandfather, John
Gapen, was descended from English ancestors;
he was a farmer by occupation, and owned
land in Greene county, Pennsylvania, on
which he lived the last years of his life. His
'son, Zachariah T., was reared and married in
Pennsylvania; there he resided until 1841,
when he removed to Illinois; the journey was
begun March 19; he floated down the Mo-
nongahela to Pittsburg, and there took a
boat, going via the Ohio, Mississippi and
Illinois rivers to a point in Schuyler county
then known as Erie; by team he came to
Rushville township. His means were very
small, and he was obliged to rent the lands
he cultivated; later he purchased the tract on
which he had expended so much labor, and
lived there until his death in 1846. His
wife's maiden name was Margaret McGee;
she was born in Pennsylvania and died in
Rushville township, Schuyler county, Illinois,
in 1851; they reared a family of eleven chil
588
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
dren. Thomas Gapen was a child of eight
years when his parents came to Illinois. He
has since witnessed many changes in the
country, wrought by the inarch of progress
He remained under the parental roof until
bereft of both father and mother. He then
purchased the old homestead, and now has
320 acres, 130 acres being in an advanced
state of cultivation. He now rents the land
and lives a quiet life at Rushville.
Mr. Gapen was married, in 1872, to Isabelle
Williamson, a daughter of L. S. and Margaret
Williamson; she was born in Peoria county,
Illinois. Three children have been born to
them, two of whom died in infancy: Maggie is
the name of the surviving child. Mr. Gapen
is a man of high and honorable principles,
and has the respect of the entire comrn unity.
PILLIAM T. EMMERSON of Beards-
town was born in Morgan county,
November 27, 1840. His father was
Richard Emmerson of Yorkshire, England,
who was the son of Thomas Emmerson. The1
latter came to the United States and settled
on a large tract of Government land in Mor-
gan county, Illinois, amounting to over a
thousand acres, near St. Glair station, and
went back to England, and returned four
years later with his wife and children, and
finally they became the most prominent peo-
ple in Morgan county. Of their four chil-
dren, Richard was the eldest, and was mar-
ried, as was also one of his sisters, before
leaving England. A nephew of his now lives
on the old homestead in Morgan county.
Richard Emmerson, after he came to the
United States, became a farmer of Morgan
county. He came to Beardstown in 1850,
and died here the following December, at
the age of forty. His wife survived him
many years and died at the home of her son,
in 1869. She and her husband were Meth-
odists, and she was born, reared and married
at Scarborough, England. Her maiden name
was Elizabeth Musham. She was a mother
of a family, of whom five are still living.
William Emmerson was reared in this
county and has never married. He was only
nine years old when his parents came to Cass
county, and has always lived here, except
from 1862 to 1864, when he served as a sol-
dier in the quartermaster's department, at
Roila, Missouri, and at Helena, Arkansas.
After two years' service he was honorably dis-
charged, and returned to Cass county, where
he has siuce lived, and made most of
his fortune by his own efforts. He lives
near the city precinct. He owns a well
improved farm adjoining the city limits.
Here he has lived since 1867. He also owns
and has a controlling interest in 600 acres in
other parts of the county, all well improved.
He is a Democrat in politics and a public-
spirited citizen. His brothers and sisters are
as follows: Mary Thornley, lives in Morgan
county; Ann Harris is the wife of the pres-
ident of the First National Bank of Beards-
town; Edward lives with his brother, and
Emma Harris lives in this county.
AVID W. ORR was born in Sumner
county, Tennessee, March 17, 1826.
His father was Greenberry Orr, widely
known as " Berry Orr ", who came to Illinois
in the fall of 1828. He stopped two years
in Morgan county, and then moved to Mount
Sterling township, near the village, which
was then in Schnyler county. He made
some improvements on 160 acres of Govern-
SCHlfYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
589
inent land, which he sold, and one year later
moved to what is now section 34, Pea Ridge
township. They had twelve children, born in
Tennessee, and left two behind and buried one
on the way. Their journey was made in one
of the old-style prairie schooners, drawn by
three horses, and were six weeks on the way.
They arrived in Morgan county, November,
1830, and at Pea Ridge the night of the great
snow storm. Their new log house had not
been well chinked, and he was obliged to
take up the puncheon floor to get dirt to make
mud for the walls, in order to keep ont the
fearful storm. They reached here with very
little means, but he was fortunate in getting
work in wood hauling, and when his farm
came into the market he was able to obtain
his deed for 160 acres. It was part prairie
and part timber. He built a house here,
where he died, February, 1850, aged sixty-
five. He left his widow with eleven children.
She had been Mary Brown of Tennessee.
His children all had to work hard in life, and
had but very little schooling. One of their
employments was to beat the hotniny mortar,
which Mr. Orr obtained by trading a shot
gun. The nearest doctor was at Jacksonville,
and they were obliged to go there over the
paths that the Indians had trod.
David remained at home until after b,is
father's death, and August 1, 1850, he was
married to his first wife, Mary Jane Pells,
who died a year and a half later. April 6,
1854, he was married to his present wife,
Patience H. Osborn, daughter of Lewis and
Amelia (Corwin) Osborn, of Ohio, where she
was born, reared and educated. She was a
teacher there and in Illinois before her mar-
riage. Her father was a Baptist minister,
and he died in Hancock county, while on a
visit, in his eighty-fifth year. His wife died
in 1875, aged seventy-one, leaving four chil-
89
dren, Mrs. Orr being the only one now liv-
ing. She is a niece of Tom Corwin, of Ohio,
and i# a relative of the family of General
Halleck. Mr. Osborn owned the farm on.
which his daughter, Mrs. Orr, lives, for fifty
years. He had no regular charge for some
ten years prior to his death, but preached
occasionally. Mr. Orr left the old homestead
of his parents in 1858, and moved to Hancock
county. He has lived in Kansas and Mis-
souri, and came back to Illinois and settled
on his present farm of 112 acres, in 1874.
This has fqrty acres of timber. He has been
doing general fanning. Mr. and Mrs. Orr
have four children: John M., now .a resident
of Anthony, Kansas; Mary Halleck, at home;
and Lewis H., residing in Mount Sterling.
Mr. and Mrs. Orr had reared this son to
farm life, and hoped to have him with them
on the farm during their declining years, but
he preferred the life of a mechanic; hence of
late years they rent out their land. He has
made much money out of corn and hogs, and
also breeds some horses. He has a stallion
of Leviathan stock, which is turning ont well.
H;e has served the town as Road Commis-
sioner, and both he and and his wife are Mis-
sionary Baptists.
!RA BELL, a prominent citizen of section
28, Missouri township, Brown county,
was born in this township, October 27,
1830. His grandfather, Robert Bell, was a
native of Virginia, and married Jane Ander-
han. These two reared a family of nine
children, namely: James, Richard, Emily,
Ira, John, Patsey, Sarah, Catherine, Rebecca,
and they all came to Illinois, settling in
Brown county, after a residence of a short
period in Morgan county. The aged grand-
590
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
father of our subject died in Brown county,
surrounded by his children. The father of
our subject was born in the State of Vir-
ginia, February 5, 1800, and was married in
Morgan county, Illinois, to Elizabeth Mul-
len, coming to Brown county after marriage
where he settled, and entering land in Missouri
township. This he improved and finally be-
came the owner of a farm of 200 acres of very
fine land. He died February 13, 1883.. His
wife died in 1836, having been the mother
of six children, namely: Mary Jane, wife of
Moses Coffman, of Quincy, Illinois; Robert,
of Missouri township; Ira, our subject j
James died at Nashville, Tennessee, was a
member of the Eighty-fourth Illinois Volun-
teer Infantry; Lizzie, wife of John Carter, of
Kansas; John W., died in childhood.
Ira was reared in Missouri township,
where he helped on the home farm until he
was married, when he settled on forty acres
given him by his father and erected a dwell-
ing on it. Soon he added another forty and
then removed to his present residence, where
he has eighty acres of land. The land was
but little improved when he took charge of
it and it owes its present state of cultivation
to his efforts.
Mr. Bell was married to Emiline Bates,
daughter of William and Elizabeth Bates.
Mrs. Bell is a native of "Winchester, Scott
county, Illinois, born January 1, 1837. Her
father was born in Kentucky, near Lexing-
ton, and was a son of Thomas Bates. He
was reared to farm life in his native State,
but migrated to Indiana, where he married
Elizabeth Carr, a native of that State, born
in 1818. They came to Illlinois in 1835, re-
siding in Scott county until 1839, when they
came to Brown county, where the father
died. His wife still survives him, however,
and is a very interesting lady. She and her
husband had five children: Emiline, Math-
ew T., Francis M., Mary A. and Sarah
Jane.
Mr. and Mrs. Bell have five children:
Mary E., wife of Peyton R. Keith; John W.,
of Missouri township; George L\, of same
township; James A., at home: and Charles
Bertie, also at home.
In politics Mr. Bell supports the principles
of the Democratic party, but his time is so
fully occupied that he has not been willing
to accept any of the public offices, except
that of School Director, which office was
thrust upon him. He is a consistent mem-
ber of the Christian Church and he and his
intelligent wife are influential members of
society in Missouri township.
RS. MARY (PETERS) JACKSON
was born in Alleghany county, Vir-
ginia, February 18, 1820, a daugh-
ter of John Peters. The father was also a
Virginian, and was reared and married in his
native State; he purchased land, owned slaves,
and was in very good circumstances at one
time; he endorsed notes for other parties,
which he had to pay, and as the sums were
heavy his property was swept away. He re-
sided in Virginia until 1825, and then emi-
grated to Missouri, where he spent the re-
mainder of his days. His wife's maiden name
was Catherine Lane, a native of Virginia;
she cam,e from Missouri to Illinois, and here
passed the last years of her life with her
children in Schuyler county. Mrs. Jackson
was a young child when her parents removed
to Missouri, and at the age of eight years she
came to Illinois with her sister and brother-
in-law, Allen Persinger. The country was
then sparsely settled, deer and wild turkeys
SCllUfLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
591
were plentiful, and the privations of the pio-
neer were many. Mrs. Jackson lived with
her sister until her marriage, September 3,
1835, when she was united to Jeremiah Jack-
son.
Mr. Jackson was born in North Carolina,
November 27. 1807, a son of James and Mary
Jackson. He emigrated to Illinois about the
year 1826, and was one of the pioneers of
Schuyler county. Two years after his mar-
riage he purchased the farm now occupied by
his widow, and engaged in agricultural pur-
suits, which he followed until his death in
June, 1883.
Mrs. Jackson has reared a family of nine
children: Martha J. Chitwood, died in Ne-
braska; Harriet Riley is a resident of Mis-
souri; Andrew J. served in the late war in
the One Hundred and Fifteenth Illinois Vol-
unteer Infantry, and died before the war was
ended; John was a member of the same regi-
ment, and now resides in Kansas; Jesse, en-
listed twice in the late war, and is now a citi-
zen of the State of Washington; Calvin and
Garrett live in Nebraska; Emrita Kokenours
and Mary McCormick are residents of Schuy-
ler county. Mrs. Jackson belongs to the
Methodist Episcopal Church, of which her
husband was also a consistent member. Po-
litically he affiliated with the Democratic
party.
W. G. UNLAN.D, erne of the suc-
cessful physicians and surgeons of
Beardstown, was born and chiefly reared
in Cass county, Illinois. His people are pio-
neers of the county. He came of good, re-
spectable German stock, his parents being
born in Hanover. His father, Rev. Casper
H. Unland, had grown up there and for some
time associated in ministerial way with the
old German Reformed Church. After com-
ing to this country and settling in Cass
county. Mr. [Inland connected himself with
the Methodist Episcopal Church and was as-
sociated with the local work as a Methodist
minister. He was so engaged at the time of
his death, March 8, 1889, when nearly eighty-
two years of age. With the money he had
brought with him he bought and improved
land, erecting houses and a gristmill, which
was one of the first in the county for making
flour. He was a good and worthy citizen,
a prominent man. At first a Whig, but in
later years a stanch Republican. His wife
who survived him died September 25, 1891,
and was eighty years of age on the day of her
burial. Her maiden name was Mari^ Carlas.
She was a worthy woman and a good neigh-
bor.
The parents of Dr. Unland, recognising in
their son a bright mind and a liking for
books, afforded him, opportunities for im-
provement by sending him to the best schools
in Quincy, Illinois. After this he completed
his classical education at the Wesleyan col-
lege at Warrenton, Missouri. The Doctor
practices upon a broad and liberal scale, fol-
lowing no particular school. He is a graduate
of two different schools: Hahnemann Medi-
cal College of Chicago, in the class of 1871
(later he spent one year at Quincy, Illinois);
after that he went to Berlin, Germany, and
graduated there again in medicine, and re-
turned, remained in Quincy fora time, going
thence to Lincoln, Nebraska, later to Fre-
mont, and afterward to Pekin, Illinois, spend-
ing some time in each place. Since 1881 he
has practiced in Beardstown. His genial
nature and cheerful manner have made him
very popular in his chosen profession. His
experience and thorough education in all
592
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OAKS,
branches of medicine have made him very
popular and his practice is a very large and
paying one.
The Doctor was married here to Miss
Emily Minton, of Ohio, who lived in Schuy-
ler county for six years after coining to Illi-
nois. Her parents died in Caldwell, Kansas,
some years ago. They have a bright little
daughter of eight years of age, named Ethel.
They are members of the Methodist Episco-
pal Church.
[AMUEL MILLER, an intelligent fann-
er and prominent veteran of the late
war, residing in Ashland, Illinois, is a
native of Tazewell county, this State, where
he was born July 6, 1837.
His parents were Joseph and Sarah (Kem-
per) Miller, the former a native of Philadel-
phia, Pennsylvania, while the latter was born
in Kentucky, in which latter State they were
married, and whence they removed in an
early day to Tazewell county, Illinois. Eight
children were born to this union, four sons
and four daughters, only three children now
surviving. The deceased are, Christiana,
Eliza, Harriet, Diana, Thomas and "William,
of whom Harriet and Diana died in childhood
and the other two daughters in mature life,
being married and leaving families; William
also died in mature age, leaving a wife and
child. Thomas, Joseph and the subject of
this sketch comprise the surviving members
of this once large family. Thomas, who
served two years in the army, is now married,
and is a farmer in Harper county, Kansas;
Joseph is a prosperous farmer, and resides in
Delavan, Tazewell county; he is also married,
and both have families. The father of this
family died in 1843, widely mourned by the
pioneers of his county. He left a large fam-
ily to the care of his faithful wife, who ably
performed her duty by them, finally going
to her reward in 1863, while the subject of
this notice was absent in the war.
Mr. Miller received a common-school edu-
cation in Tazewell county, and was reared to
farm life. November 8, 1858, he married
Miss Nancy Nash, an intelligent lady, who
was also a native of Tazewell county. She
was a daughter of Andrew and Lucinda Van-
cil, prominent pioneers of that county, and
was one of seven children, three of whom are
now living. Andrew J., the oldest, died in
childhood; Mrs. Miller is the second; Cath-
arine died aged two years; George served
in the Twenty-sixth Illinois Infantry, is mar
ried, and is a farmer in Harper county, Kan-
sas; William Graham, a half-brother, was
also a soldier in the late war, and resides in
Tazewell county,; Sarah and John A. died in
youth.
Mr. Miller enlisted in Company C, Elev-
enth Illinois Cavalry, at Peoria, this State, in
November, 1861, serving in the regiment
commanded by the noted Colonel R. G. In-
gersoll. He was sworn into the United States
service December 20, 1861, remaining at
Camp Lyon until February 22, 1862, when
he accompanied his regiment to Benton Bar-
racks, St. Louis, Missouri, where they were
armed and mounted. Thence they proceeded
to Shiloh, to take part in that sanguinary en-
gagement, under the command of General
Lew Wallace. After two days at that point,
they moved forward to Corinth, participating
at the siege of that city. They remained
there until the fall of 1862, when they were
attacked by Van Dorn and Price, who sought
to recapture Corinth, but the enemy were re-
pulsed with heavy loss of killed, wounded
and prisoners. The regiment next went to
8CHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
583
Rienzi, Mississippi, where they had-a severe
battle, capturing the place and returning to
Corinth. They afterward went to Lagrange,
Tennessee, under the command of General
Grant, and were cut off at Holly Springs, be-
ing obliged to return; whereupon they took
boats and went to Vicksburg, participating
in the siege of that city. They captured
Yazoo City and went in camp between Jack-
son and Vicksburg, on the Black river.
While lying there, the regiment and two sec-
tions of artillery were ordered on a forced
inarch to Lexington, Tennessee, where a por-
tion of the regiment, including Colonel In-
gersoll, were taken prisoners by General For-
rest's men, and were paroled on the field.
At Parker's cross-roads they had a fight, in
which the Union forces defeated the enemy,
and pursued them into Tennesseee. Mr.
Miller's regiment was with General Sherman
in his march to Meridian, Mississippi, in Feb-
ruary, 1864. Their time having expired,
nearly all re-enlisted, and were mustered in
at Vicksburg, December 20, 1863. They
then returned to Illinois on a veteran fur-
lough, at the expiration of which they went
back to Vicksburg, where they spent the
spring and summer in scouting and watching
guerillas and bushwhackers. It was while
here that Mr. Miller received a severe injury,
by his horse falling on him, for which he
now receives a pension. He was mustered
out of the service, September 30, 1865. and
was paid off and discharged at Springfield,
October 20, 1865.
He then hastened to return to his family
in Tazewell county, Illinois, where he missed
one kindly face and heart-felt welcome, his
mother having died during his absence. He
gradually assumed his former daily routine
of duties, and notwithstanding loss of dear
ones, many hardships endured and misfor-
tunes sustained, the sense of having fulfilled
his duty, as he realized it, gave him renewed
energy for the prosecution of life's tasks.
He and his worthy wife are the parents of
six children, all of whom are now married
and at the head of families. Thomas is a
farmer near Delavan, Illinois; Alpheus lives
in Ashland; Clara, now Mrs. Thompson, lives
in Virginia, this State; Ida, married Ralph
Nixon, a superintendent of coal mines, and
resides in Wesley City,, near Peoria, this
State; Martha, now Mrs. Smith, lives at her
parents' home; Delia married Mr. Perrin, and
resides in Virginia, Illinois;
Mr. Miller is a stanch Republican in pol-
itics, and is a prominent member of Down-
ing Post, No. 321, Virginia, Illinois. His
worthy wife is an earnest and useful member
of the Baptist Church, to the support of
which they both contribute.
An honest and industrious citizen, a brave
and efficient soldier, and devoted husband
and father, he deserves the high esteem in
which he is universally held.
ANIEL LYONS, M. D., an eminent
physician and surgeon, of Ashland, Illi-
nois, was born in La Salle, of the same
State, June 16, 1848. His parents were
Daniel and Mary (Morris) Lyons, both natives
of Ireland, who came to America in 1832,
soon after their marriage. His father was a
railroad contractor, which business he fol-
lowed during his life in this country. The
first death which the family was called upon to
mourn was that of the devoted wife and mother,
who expired in Arkansas, in 1861, greatly
lamented by her associates and friends. The
father survived his faithful companion fifteen
years, dying in Brierfield, Alabama, in 1876.
594
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
He was a man of the highest integrity, ex-
tremely kind-hearted and benevolent, and was
very popular among his acquaintances. This
worthy couple had six children: Lawrence,
Michael, Daniel, David, Mary and Katie.
All but two of these are now deceased, the
subject of this sketch and a brother David,
who is engaged in mining at Crystal, Colo-
rado.
Dr. Lyons received his elementary educa-
tion in the public schools of La Salle county,
where his boyhood and early manhood were
spent. After attaining his majority, he was
engaged for about seven years in civil engin-
eering. During the liebellion, he was for
three years in the Quartermaster's Depart-
ment, in St. Louis. In 1878, he commenced
the study of Eclectic medicine, in the Amer-
ican Medical College, St. Louis, taking four
courses, and continuing his studies until 1883.
While pursuing his studies, he spent most of
his time in the city hospitals of St. Louis,
gaining practical experience in his chosen
work. In 1883, on graduating in St. Louis,
he came to Ashland, where he commenced
the practice of his profession. He has stead-
ily grown in favor until he now does a large
and lucrative business, being universally re-
garded as thoroughly skilled in his profes-
sion, conscientious and careful.
He was married in St. Louis, in 1869, to
Miss Johanna Connelly, an estimable lady,
and a native of Canada. Her parents were
James and Catharine Connelly, and she was
one of seven children, three sons and four
daughters. Dr. and Mrs. Lyons have two
children : Deloraine J., now twenty two years
of age, is unmarried, and is a telegraph op-
erator in Colorado; Gertrude, now thirteen
years old, is at home and in school.
The Doctor is Democratic in his political
affiliations, on which ticket he was elected to
the position of Coroner of Cass county,
serving in that capacity with acknowledged
ability.
Socially, he is a member of the M. W. of
A., and is prominently associated with the
Masonic order, which latter society he joined
in St. Louis.
These are a few of the most important facts
of a busy and useful life, which has been
spent in the amelioration of human suffer-
ing, and in promoting the happiness and
welfare of his fellow beings.
ILLIAM FKEESEN, now deceased,
having died near Oxville, Scott
county, Illinois, in 1884. He was
fifty-four years of age, being born in the
Rhine province, Prussia, Germany, near the
river Rhine, in November 1829. He came
of German parents, who lived and died in
Germany. He was the only member of his
family to come to this country, which he did
when he was twenty-three years of age, set-
'ting out from Antwerp, in 1852, for the
United States in a sailing vessel. He landed
in New Orleans after a seven weeks' voyage.
He came to Beardstown, and after the first
year became a farmer, purchasing land in
Cass county, where he became a successful
farmer. He owned 200 acres of good land
in Cass county, and 240 acres in Scott, at the
time of his death. His widow still owns the
Cass county farm. Mr. Freesen was a good,
worthy citizen, a member of the Lutheran
Church, and a stanch Democrat.
He was married after the first year in this
county, in Beardstown township, to Eliza-
beth Stauttler, who proved herself a most
devoted wife, and a woman in every way
worthy of the good husband she had. She
SOHUTLER AND BltOWN COUNTIES.
595
now enjoys the property she helped her hus-
band accumulate. She was born in the same
place as her husband March 9, 1838, and
was reared and educated by her German
parents, William and Margaret (Speaker)
Stauttler. The former died in Germany,
when a young man, and his daughter, Mrs.
Freesen, was only eighteen years old. Her
mother is yet living in Beardstown, and is
eighty years old, and is now the wife of F>
W. Friday, and both old people have been
prominent members all their lives, of the
Lutheran Church.
Mrs. Freesen came to America with her
mother and stepfather on the same vessel as
Mr. Freesen. She is the mother of twelve
children, four of whom are deceased: Marga--
ret, Bell, Anna and Hannah, all died young.
The living ones arej William, now a farmer
in Scott county, married to Matilda Baully;
George Garrett, a farmer in Scott county;
Fred, a resident of St. Louis; Katie, at home,
and she and her sister Maggie, also at home,
dressmakers; Henry is at home, as are
also Lewis and Edward. Mrs. Freesen and
all the children are members of the Lutheran
Church.
PHEOPHILUS C. LAUJSER, a large
and prosperous farmer, lives on sec-
tions 6 and 7, township 17, range 11,
where he owns 270 acres of well-improved
land, with good farm buildings. He also owns
320 acres, almost all well improved. Besides
this he owns a fine lot of timber land amount-
ing to 182 acres, and eighty acres draining
land in section 20. He came to the county
a poor young man, but has since accumulated
much valuable property. He has always
lived in Cass county, except a year in Morgan
county. He began here as a farmer on his
own account, first purchasing forty acres,
which he sold and with the proceeds bought
120 acres, and later sold that and increased
his sales until he now owns a fine property,
all earned by his own efforts.
He was born in Buffalo, New York, Janu-
ary 30, 1838, and was yet a very young child
when his parents removed to Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. Two years later they came to
Cass county, which be has since made his
home, and where he has been a prominent
farmer. His father, Rev. Frederic G. Launer,
was a native of Berne, Switzerland, born
February 18, 1798. He was very highly
educated, receiving instruction in his native
country and other places, including London.
He was educated as a Lutheran minister, and
became master of five languages, being a man
of quick perception and powerful intellect.
He came to America in 1832, and first held
a professorship in a college in Buffalo, New
York, and later at Philadelphia, also preach-
ing in both places. He afterward came to
Beardstown and built up the first Lutheran
Church of the place, and was also at Havana
and Pekin, Illinois. He was widely and well
known throughout the State as a preacher,
and had a great deal of influence in that
capacity. He was the pioneer minister in
this part of the State, and did a great deal of
good. He died in Beardstown, September
28, 1867. He was then seventy-four years,
six months and ten days old. He worked
hard all his life for his church, and made a
host of friends. He was a missionary in this
State, after filling that position in Africa for
three years. His wife, Lydia, was born No-
vember 23, 1811, and died several years after
him, in Beardstown, January 1, 1873. She
was then over sixty years of age, being born
in Canton Peal, Switzerland, where she lived
596
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
until her marriage. She was a devoted wife
and mother, and a good Christian woman.
She was a daughter of General Marthe, and
a grandchild of General David Marthe, Coin-
mander-in-Chief of the army of Napoleon
the Great, during the time that general was
frozen out of Russia, near Moscow. Of seven
children three are now deceased. Charles
served five years in the Union army; Peter
was a brave and efficient soldier in the Mexi-
can war; Theodore is now living in Morgan
county, this State; and Mary resides in
Beardstown.
Our subject was married in this county,
March 10, 1863, to Josephine Winhold, born
near Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, September 12,
1838, coming to Cass county with her parents.
Mr. and Mrs. Launer are members of the
Lutheran Church, and are prominent, good
people. Mr. Launer has held almost all the
local offices. He is a Republican in politics,
as are his sons. They are the parents of six
children: Bertha, wife of Prof. John Hage-
ner, a teacher of the county; Ida, wife of
John Kloker, farmer of this county; Rose,
Cora, Richard and Robert are all at home,
and all the children are intelligent, well edu-
cated, a credit to the family, society and the
State.
fERDINAND WINHOLD, a very pros-
perous German farmer, living on section
8 of township 18, range 11, was born in
Pennsylvania, near Pittsburg, in 1839. He
is the son of William Winhold, born in Hesse-
Darmstadt, of Hessian parents, who, after all
their children were born and a good part of
them married, including the son, William,
came to the United States in 1833. They
set sail from Bremen, Hanover, and after a
voyage of fifty- seven days landed in Baltimore,
Maryland, later settling in Pennsylvania, near
Pittsburg, where the father of William died,
an old man. Later, William, who was the
only child who came with his parents to
America, came with his mother and own
family to Illinois, settling in 1840 on a new
farm in township 18, range 11. Here the
mother of William spent her last years and
died when an old woman. William began to
make a home for his wife and children. He
first bought forty acres, and added to it from
time to time, improving it all the while until
it was one of the finest farms in the county.
He died in 1886, when nearly seventy-eight
years old. He was a good citizen, a success-
ful farmer and a stanch Republican. He held
to no church, although his parents were
Catholics. His wife is now deceased, dying
on the old farm in 1887, when quite an old
woman. She was born, reared and married
in Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, coming of
good old stock. She was the good mother of
seven children, five of whom are married and
all are living in Cass county.
Ferdinand is the fifth child of the family
and was reared in this county, being but
eighteen months old when brought to Illinois
by his parents in 1840. He now owns 230
acres of land, all well improved, which he has
owned for some years, having begun farming
for himself when twenty-three. He had but
few opportunities for education, but made the
most of what he had, and has made up for
lack of education in common sense and in-
telligence.
He was married in this county to Bertha
Philippi, born near where she now lives in
1847. She was reared and educated in this
county, and is one of a large family. (For
history of same see biography of parents.)
Mr. and Mrs. Winhold are prominent people
SCHUfLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
597
of their county. Mr. Winhold is a Republi-
can, and has held local offices. He and
his wife are the parents of nine children, all
yet at home: Rudolph F., Julius P., William
P., Lena B., Charles EL, Eugene S., Paul P.,
Bodo H. and Hugo V. Mr. and Mrs Win-
hold deserve their present prosperity, as they
have been hard workers all their lives.
§EWIS ZIMMER, JK., a practical general
farmer, of section 2,1, township 18, range
11, was born on his present farm March
19, 1861. He has since lived on the farm
and was educated in Bluff Springs precinct.
He lived with his parents until after he be-
came of age, and since that time he has had
control of the home farm, which he has run
successfully. He is the son of Lewis Zim-
mer, a native of Prussia, Germany, and came
of German ancestry. He was reared a farmer
and while yet a young man he came all alone
to America and settled in Cass county. This
was in the '40s. He later began to buy land
and finally accumulated the large and sub-
stantial farm he now owns. Here Mr. Zim-
mer, Sr., and his wife lived until some six
years ago, when they retired to Beard stown,
and are Spending their last days quietly,
leaving the farm in the charge of Lewis. Mr.
Zimmer, Sr., married his wife in this county,
her name being Catharine Keil, a native of
Germany, who came to America when young.
She has proven herself a good wifeand mother.
Mr. and Mrs. Zimmer are members of the
German Lutheran Church of Beardstown.
Mr. Zimmer is a Democrat.
Our subject is the second child and only
son, his only sister being Maggie, wife of
Theo. Krohe, an agricultural dealer in Beards-
town. The farm consists of 200 acres, 100
of which he owns himself. It is in fine con-
dition.
Lewis was married in this county, to Ma-
tilda Krohe, born in this county, February 1,
1862, and was reared and educated in her
native county. She is the daughter of Au-
gust and Mary Krohe, who now live in Beards-
town and are retired farmers, owning a large
improved farm in township 18, range 11.
Mr. and Mrs. Krohe are both natives of Ger-
many, but have lived in Cass county since
their marriage. They are Lutherans. Mr.
and Mrs. Zimmer are members of the Lu-
theran Church, and Mr. Zimmer is a Demo-
crat. They have three children: Calvin L.
P., Clara M. C. and Theodore E. Both Mr.
Zimmer and his wife are highly respected,
and have hosts of friends in the county, where
they are well known as honest, hard-working
people.
,ON. JESSE DARNELL, deceased, a
resident of Rushville township, and one
of the oldest settlers of the county, is
worthy of representation in this history. He
was born eight miles from Wooster, Wayne
county, Ohio, October 4, 1811, a son of Henry
Darnell, a native of West Virginia. The
father was a volunteer in the Colonial army,
participated in the battle of Yorktown, and
was present at the surrender of Lord Corn-
wallis. About the year 1800, with his own
and nine other families, he emigrated to the
Northwest Territory, being among the earliest
settlers of Ohio. He first located in the
Scioto valley, but as it was sickly there, he
went to Wayne county; here he secured a
tract of land which was part timber and part
prairie. For several years there were no
other settlers in that section. Indians were
598
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF GA8S,
numerous and often hostile. The colony
built a block-house with a stockade around it,
and it was within these walls that our subject
was born. The father improved a fine farm
there, on which he resided until his death in
1847. His wife's maiden name was Eliza-
beth Lee, also a native of Virginia; she died
in 1818.
Jesse Darnell, whose name heads this
notice, was reared in his native State, where
his educational opportunities were limited to
the subscription schools, which were taught
in private houses. There were no railroads
or canals: consequently no market towns.
The people lived upon the products of their
own land and wild game, which was plenti-
ful. The mother carded, spun and wove all
the cloth used by the family.
At the age of fifteen years our subject
went from the home which had sheltered his
childhood, out into the world to begin life
for himself. He remained in Ohio until
1833, and then came to Illinois via the Ohio
and Mississippi rivers, landing at Oquawka,
where he remained about a year, after which
he carne to Schuyler county. There were few
settlers in the county, and agriculture was
carried on in a most primitive fashion. He
settled at Frederick and engaged quite ex-
tensively in the manufacture of fanning-
mills, which he continued for seven or eight
years, and then turned his attention to farm-
ing. He lived in Frederick township until
1886, at which time he removed to a farm he
had purchased several years before; this is a
tract of 160 acres, the greater portion of
which is well improved; he also owned
another farm of 200 acres in Frederick town-
ship.
Mr. Darnell was married in April, 1841,
to Louisa Utter, a native of Illinois and a
daughter of Lyman and Martha Utter, natives
of the State of New York and pioneers of
Schuyler county, and located on a farm east
of Pleasant View. His wife died in 1847, but
he never married again. Two sons and one
daughter survive him: John Monroe, James
K. Polk and Mrs. H. A. Nelson, the latter
living in Santa Barbara county, California.
His son James is a resident of Breckinridge,
Colorado, having located in that State twenty-
two years ago.
Mr. Darnell was a sincere Democrat, and
had been from early youth. The principles
laid down by Jefferson were thoroughly in-
stilled into his very being, and he was always
found allied with the cause he believed to be
right. In 1848 he represented this county
in the Legislature, and for eight years he was
Supervisor from Frederick township, filling
the position of chairman of the board for
several years. He was a prominent member
of Rushville Lodge, No. 9, A. F. & A. M.,
to which he had belonged for nearly half a
century. He was a man of sterling integrity,
esteemed and respected by all who knew
him.
EORGE H. WIER of Birmingham
township, was born here September 16,
1841. He is the son of Samuel and
Sarah (Clampet) Wier. Mr. Samuel Wier
is a native of North Carolina, a farmer, and
came to Illinois in the fall of 1835 and set-
tled where the subject now lives, and bought
eighty acres and later purchased more, leav-
ing 160 acres at his death. He made the
trip with his wife and child, with one horse
and wagon. He first built a log house 16
x 18 feet and remained in it until his present
house was built in 1869. In politics he was
an old-line Whig and was a minister of the
SCHUTLBR AND BROWN COUNTIES.
599
Methodist Episcopal Church. He continued
preaching occasionally until his death in
1865. His wife was born in North Carolina
and died where our subject now lives, in
middle life.
George Wier remained home until his
marriage, when he rented part of his father's
farm and after the latter's death he bought
the land and now owns 365 acres. He is a
thoroughly self-made man, politically a Re-
publican and a highly valued church member
for eighteen years.
He was married for the first time in 1863,
to Martha Wells, who died a year later, leav-
ing one child which also died. In 1870 he
was again married, to Mary McPherson.
She was a native of Morgan county, Illinois,
born in 1847, daughter of Benjamin F. and
Harriet (Thompson) McPherson. Her fa-
ther is still living, but her mother died here,
aged forty-five. They were pioneers of
Illinois.
Mr. Wier has five children, namely; Har-
riet L., William A., Edwin R., Samuel B.,
and Harrison R.
IEORGE W. ERWIN, one of the most
prominent farmers of Littleton town-
ship, Schuyler county, Illinois, was
born in Constable, Franklin county, Ohio,
December 1, 1818. His parents were Cor-
nelius M. and Lucinda (Furman) Erwin.
His father was born in Rutland county,
Vermont, and died in Ohio, aged fifty years.
(See sketch of L. D. Erwin.)
Our subject was reared and educated in
Ohio, living at home until his father's
death, when in June, 1838, he came to
Illinois, where he walked all through the
lead mines, looking for work, and finally
located in Rushville, working by the month
on a farm. He continued in this capacity
until the year 1847, when he enlisted in
Captain Dunlap's company and served for a
year and a half in the Mexican war. At the
end of this time, he returned to Rushville,
and soon after married Agnes Corrie, on
New Year's Day. 1851. She was born in
Orange county, Illinois, and was a daughter
of John Corrie, a substantial farmer of the
State. After his marriage, our subject
bought a farm of 160 acres of partly im-
proved land, on which he built in 1855, the
home in which he still resides, which is a
substantial pile, suggestive of comfort and
convenience. He has added large barns and
other buildings for his grain and stock, and
has his land under a high state of cultiva-
tion, being devoted to mixed farming. His
former farm is worked by his son-in-law,
Mr. Bosworth, a highly esteemed young
man and intelligent farmer.
Mr. and Mrs. Erwin have had ten children,
four of whom are now living, viz.: Ellen A.,
wife of Richard R. Bosworth, has five chil-
dren, three boys and two girls; Cornelius
M., married Sara B. Taylor, and they have
four children; Frank C. married Mary Cor-
dell; William S. lives in Montana. He has
had his children carefully educated in the
schools of the vicinity, and all are intelligent
members of the communities in which they
live.
Mr. Erwin had the misfortune to lose
his wife, after thirty-four years of happy
wedded life. She died May 10, 1885, aged
fifty-five years, mourned by her family and a
large circle of friends. She was a lady of
intelligence and many charms of person and
character, a faithful wife and fond mother,
and sympathetic friend.
600
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
Our subject is a member of the Demo-
cratic party, having cast his first vote for
Martin Van Buren, since when he has voted
the straight Democratic ticket. His constitu-
ents have honored him by an election to
the office of collector of the township, in
which capacity he was the first to serve after
its organization. He has also been a school
trustee and director for many years, which
position he has filled with ability and to the
general satisfaction of the community.
He is a consistent member of the Meth-
odist Episcopal Church, to the support of
which he has always liberally contributed.
Ot superior ability, energetic and pro-
gressive, and of high morality and integrity,
Mr. Erwin enjoys the esteem of his fellow-
citizens to an unusual degree.
jE WITT CLINTON JOHNSTON, de-
ceased, was born in Clermont county,
Ohio, April 2, 1824. His father, James
T. Johnston, was born at "Washington, Penn-
sylvania, and his father and grandfather lived
in Scotland, and on corning to America set-
tled in New Jersey. They removed to Penn-
sylvania and there engaged in farming until
they died.
The father of the subject was a graduate of
Jefferson College and became a practicing
physician in Clermont county, Ohio, but he
spent his last days at New Richmond. His
wife was a Mary Whetstone, of Hamilton
county, Ohio. She died in the same town as
her husband.
The subject of this sketch received his edu-
cation at the public schools of New Rich-
mond, and from private tutors, and graduated
from the same college as his father, in the
year 1843. He commenced the study of law
at Batavia, Ohio, and was admitted to the
bar at Hillsborough, Ohio, and practiced there
till 1850, when he removed to New Rich-
mond, Ohio, an opened an office and continued
there until 1853, when he came to Rushville
and practiced there until January 28, 1866.
He married, in 1845, a lady whose maiden
name was Margaret Bauer, a native of Bavaria,
Germany. Her grandfather had lived in the
same country all his life, and so had her father
until 1832, when he resolved to try his for-
tune in the new world: so with his family he
set sail from Havre de Grace in the fall of
the same year. His father, Conrad Bauer,
also came over to America in the same ship.
The trip was made in thirty-three days. From
New York, where they landed, the older man
went to Ohio by the way of Pennsylvania,
making the journey by the canal and stage
to Pittsburg, and then down the Ohio river.
He located in Brown county, and bought a
farm and engaged in tilling the soil until his
death.
Mrs. Johnston's father was accompanied by
his wife and two children, and he located in
the same county as his father, bought a farm,
and resided there until 1856, when he sold
out and came to Illinois, and located in Rush-
ville township. Here he also bought a farm,
on section 25, and engaged in agricultural
pursuits until his death.
The maiden name of the mother of Mrs.
Johnston was Margaret Heigh. She was born
in the same locality as her husband, and
spent the last years of her life on the home
farm.
Mrs. Johnston continued to reside in Rush-
ville for some time after her husband's death,
but she now occupies her father's old home-
stead in Rushville township. She has two
sons living, James B. and Harold W. The
former is a graduate of the Chicago Univer-
80UUrLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
601
sity and is a practicing attorney. The second
son is a graduate of the Illinois College, Jack-
sonville, where he is professor of Latin. He
is also an author, his first work is entitled
"Select Orations and Letters of Cicero."
Mr. and Mrs. Johnston were earnest mem-
bers of the Episcopal Church. Mr. Johnson
was a stanch supporter of the principles of
the Democratic party, of which he was a mem-
ber. He was an able lawyer and a fine citi-
zen. His record is one of which his family
and friends may justly be proud, not only in
his capacity as County Judge, but in the oc-
cupations of daily life. Having many ad-
vantages which other early settlers did not
have, he became well-known throughout the
State as a legal authority, as well as a man of
literary attainments.
T. RITCHEY, a farmer and
resident of Rushville township, was
born in what is now Buena Vista town-
ship, Schiiyler county, Illinois, September
19, 1844, being the only son of George S.
and Lucinda Ritchey. His father was born
in Dayton, Ohio, and lived there until 1831,
when he emigrated to Schnyler county, hav-
ing nothing but a large stock of health and
youthful spirits upon which to draw for a
livelihood. Energy and industry spurred him
on and he continued a hard-working man, liv-
ing to see himself possessed of a good com-
petence.
In 1831 neighbors were far apart in old
Schuyler, deer being far more numerous than
human beings. When he married Lucinda
• Walker, of Kentucky, he took her home to
a log cabin, where the subject of this sketch
was born. The year following this latter
event Mr. Ritchey removed with his family
to section 6, Rushville township, upon land
he had previously purchased, and, except
two years spent in California, he resided
there until his death. His wife also died on
the old home farm. Mr. Ritchey, Sr., was
mourned as a good farmer, a kind neighbor
and a good friend.
Frank Ritchey received his early education
at the district school, the first one being
held in a log house with furniture of the
most primitive kind, the benches being
mere slabs. Later he took advanced steps in
the public schools of Rushville, where he was
fitted as a teacher. He engaged in teaching
and farming until 1872, when he went to
Crawford county, Kansas, and there taught
school for two terms, after which he returned
to Illinois, and has resided ever since, in
Rushville, where he now owns a nice farm of
255 acres and is engaged in general farming
and stock-raising.
He was married in 1876, to Catharine F.
Sands, of Rushville township, daughter of
Robert and Frances Nail Sands (see sketch
of R. E Sands). Four children have blessed
this union, namely: Lora E., Lucinda F.,
George F. and Robert.
Mr. and Mrs. Ritchey are consistent mem-
bers of the Christian Church. He is an act-
ive member of the Republican party, and,
as all good citizens should do, takes a deep
interest in all that concerns the well being of
his county, State and the Union.
,ON. J. M. HAMBAUGH.— The sub-
ject of this brief sketch is one of the
men of whom the State of Illinois is
proud. His career in the last Legislature, as
a Representative from the Thirty-sixth Sen-
atorial District, has made a national reputa-
602
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF UASS,
lion for him as a champion of the rights and
privileges of apiarists.
This gentleman was born in Versailles
township, Brown county, Illinois, July 16,
1846, hence he is over forty-five years of age.
His father, Stephen D. Hambaugh, emigrated
from Kentucky, and pre-empted the farm
now occupied as a homestead by his son, in
the year 1828, being one of the very first
settlers of this section of the country. Ste-
phen was the son of Henry, a native of Louisi-
ana, born in 1771, who married Eebecca
Morris. Henry was the son of John, a na-
tive of Germany, married to a lady of De-
troit, Michigan, having come to this country
when quite a young man. He and his wife
died in Louisiana, leaving quite a family.
Stephen was one of ten children, of whom he
was the third. He was reared to farm life,
receiving a fair schooling, and married Elmina
Stone, daughter of John and Abigail (Crook)
Stone, natives of New Hampshire and Ver-
mont, respectively. The mother of our sub-
ject was born in 1814, and was taken to Ken-
tucky by her parents when only five years old,
and is the last surviving member of her
father's large family of ten children, who
were reared to maturity and became the
heads of families. The grandfather of our
subject came to Illinois in 1824, with his
wife and three children, leaving one son be-
hind. He had no property, but settled first
at Edwardsville, Illinois, in the fall of 1824,
and in the spring of 1828 he came to the
present home of our subject. Here he moved
his family into a small log cabin, which his
brother had built. The brother had preceded
him and built this cabin on eighty acres of
land. They made the journey to their new
home in a " prairie schooner," drawn by four
horses. The company that made the trip was
composed of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Hambaugh
and their children, — John P., Stephen D.,
Philip G., and Francis, the only living
daughter, who became the wife of Governor
Ford, of this State. S. D. Hambaugh, father
of J. M. Hambaugh, died November 4, 1877.
J. P. Hambaugh, brother of S. D. Ham-
baugh, a bachelor who had always made
his home in the family of S. D., died Sep-
tember 3, 1886, leaving his nephew, J. M.
Hambaugh, executor of his estate, and in his
will bequeathed $1,000 to be expended on a
monument to the Hambaugh family, and an
iron fence around the cemetery; and Mr.
Hambaugh had a most unique model of the
old pioneer log cabin erected on the bluff in
Hambaugh cemetery near the old home,
which has been visited by thousands of peo-
ple and admired by all who have seen it.
At the time the Hambaugh family made
their advent into Illinois there was not
a railroad in the State, and but few in the
United States. The father of our subject was
united in marriage to Miss Elmina Stone on
the eve of the great snow-storm, December
28, 1830, so historical and memorable in the
minds of old settlers, the snow falling to a
depth of four feet on a level, and remaining
on the ground until the 1st of April.
Nestling among the trees of the forest,
where scarcely a ray of sunshine could pene-
trate, Mr. Hambaugh had built his hut, which
was in keeping with its rude surroundings,
and it was to this rude structure that Mr.
Hambaugh introduced his bride, to share his
lot in the miseries and pleasures coincident
with a truly pioneer life. They were the ad-
vance guards of the on-coming tide of civili-
zation. With nerves of steel they endured
privations and sufferings and made possible
the deeds of to-day.
It was during the first winter of his pioneer
experience that Mr. Hambaugh obtained a
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
603
few colonies of bees from hollow trees, by
felling them, and sawing above and below
the colony, covering one end with boards and
mounting them upon platforms prepared for
that purpose, then transporting them to his
cabin on a sled. In this way the first bees
were obtained, from which he increased their
numbers year by year, until they reached as
many as fifty or sixty colonies. The hive
used was very primitive, and the method of
taking the honey was with the brimstone
match; but, strange as this may seem, wax
and honey was quite a financial factor with
the early pioneers, and many a hearthstone
has been made happy by the timely exchange
of this product for linsey, jeans and other
necessities for home comforts; and one settler
states that he paid for eighty acres of land
with the money obtained from honey and
wax.
Mr. and Mrs. Hambaugh had seven chil-
dren born to them, four of whom are still liv-
ing, Joseph M. being the youngest; and it has
fallen to his lot to remain on the old home-
stead to look after the fences and the bees.
Having inherited a passionate fondness for
this wonderful little insect, like his father, he
declares that the old homestead will never be
deprived of their merry hum; but it was not
until 1881 that he began to study modern
methods, and prepare for a new era in bee
culture. Up to that time he had never seen
the inside of a bee-book. He had been taught
to produce honey in small boxes, and believed
it to be the ne plus ultra of all other meth-
ods, when a little circumstance led him to
an investigation, which was a ray of light
cast upon a new field of labor, grand and
beautiful beyond discription. It was in the
fall of 1881 that, chancing to step into the
grocery house of J. A. Givens, in Mount
Sterling, he discovered a huge pyramid of
beautiful white clover honey put up in two
and three pound packages, and upon inquiry
he found that they had been produced by a
citizen of his own county, by the name of
Dunbar. He sought out Mr. Dunbar and
found out that to be a successful honey-pro-
ducer one must study the art. About this
time he read A. I. Root's advertisement in
an agricultural paper and sent for a catalogue
of his bee supplies, and he" was soon in pos-
session of Cook's Manual of the Apiary,
Dzierzon's Rational Beekeeping and many
other works of note; and it was after a care-
ful persual of these works that he ventured
on modern improved methods. Did not
space forbid we might follow Mr. Hambangh
through all his evolutions, but suffice to say
that he prefers the Dadant hive for extrac-
ting purposes; and, as his success as a honey-
producer is well known throughout the
county, his opinion is valuable.
He was married October 26, 1869, to Miss
Josephine Shamp, of Edina, Knox county,
Missouri, daughter of H. S. Shamp, who
gladdened his home but the short space of
two and a half years, when she crossed the
dark valley, leaving to him an infant but six
hours old. This sorrowful experience in Mr.
Hatnbaugh's life came near turning his
brain, and he says that only those who pass
through a similar experience can ever under-
stand the intensity of the heartache and lac-
eration of the soul such a disaster occasions.
Mr. Hambaugh was married for the second
time, February 29, 1879, to Miss Frances
Cullinan, of Mount Sterling, daughter of
Williatn'and Ann (Brown) Cullinan. She is
the mother of five children, all living, but
one infant. The living ones are: Elrnina,
aged twelve; Anna M., aged nine years;
William Jatnes, aged six years; Stephen D.,
aged two years.
604
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASH,
Mr. Hambaugh has borne his share of the
minor township offices, and was elected to the
Legislature, November, 1890. HB has pur-
sued mixed farming and stock-raising, in ad-
dition to honey production, and has always
been prominent in bee societies all over the
State, and is a member of the North Amer-
ican Beekeepers' Association, the Beekeepers'
Union, and is President of the Illinois
State Beekeepers' Association.
Our subject is a devout Catholic in reli-
gion. In politics he has maintained the prin-
ciples of the Democratic party, is strictly
temperate, and an ardent advocate of the
abolishment of the American saloon.
|OBERT E. SANDS, a highly respected
citizen of Rushville, Illinois, was born
in Rushville township, Schuyler county,
Illinois, April 15, 1849, a son of Robert R.
Sands, who was born in Washington, Dis-
trict of Columbia. The paternal grandfather
of our subject, Robert Sands, was a native of
Ireland, of Scotch ancestry; upon coming to
to the United States he located in the capital
city, where he resided several years. In 1831
he removed to Schuyler county, Illinois, and
was one of the pioneers of Rushville town-
ship; he entered a tract of Government land
on section 8, improved the place, and occu-
pied it until his death. Robert R. Sands
was a child of eight years when his parents
come to Illinois; at that time there were few
settlers, and Rushville was but a hamlet;
deer, wild turkeys and other game were
plentiful; there were no railroads and for
many years the river towns were the market
places. The following incident related by
Mr. Sands is worthy of record: One season
his father raised about 1,000 bushels of corn;
he shelled it in a machine operated by hand,
teamed it to Frederick, and sold it for fifteen
cents a bushel! Robert R. Sands inherited
land from his father which he occupied until
his death. His wife, whose maiden name
was Frances Nail, was a native of Kentucky,
and a daughter of Gabriel Nail, also a Ken-
tuckian by birth, and a pioneer of Schuyler
county; she died on the home farm in April,
1870.
Robert E. Sands was reared and educated
in his native town, and was never separated
from his parents until the hand of death was
laid upon them. He then purchased the in-
terest of the other heirs in the homestead,
and was actively engaged in agricultural
pursuits until March 14, 1892, when he
sold the farm, and removed to Rushville.
Mr. Sands was united in marriage, in 1873,
to Sarah Montooth, a native of Pittsburg,
Pennsylvsnia. They are the parents of three
children: Walter E., Kate Alice and Mary
Stella. Mr. and Mrs. Sands are worthy and
consistent members of the Methodist Epis-
copal Church. Politically he supports the
issues of the Republican party.
fOHN F. SNYDER, a progressive and
enterprising agriculturist of Littleton
township, is a native son of Illinois,
born at Rushville, Schuyler county, Novem-
ber 20, 1849, a son of William and Jane
(Little) Snyder; the father was born in Lan-
caster county, Pennsylvania, April 23, 1803,
and was a cabinetmaker by trade; he pene-
trated the frontier in 1835, and settled at
Rushville, where he followed his trade until
removing to Littleton township in 1854; here
he engaged in farming in connection with
his other vocation. His father, Heury Sny-
SGHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
605
der, was also a native of the Keystone State,
but emigrated to the West and died in Rush-
ville township at the age of sixty-seven,
October 23, 1835. William Snyder died on
the i'arm now occupied by his son John F.,
September 22, 1875, at the age of seventy-
three years; his wife was a Pennsylvanianby
by birth, and now deceased. They reared a
family of seven children, five of whom are
now living, viz.: John F.. who lived upon his
father's farm until the death of the latter;
Mrs. M. A. Davidson, Mrs. Ellen De Witt
Mrs. Susan Dooley, and William. James Lit-
tle, the maternal grandfather of John F
Snyder, departed this life October 19, 1855,
aged seventy-one years, and his wife Septem-
ber 10, 1864, in the sixty-fourth year of her
age.
The subject of this sketch was first mar-
ried October 2, 1873, to Miss Frances Park,
who was born, reared, and died in tins county;
she was a daughter of Washington and Maria
Park, natives of Ohio, who were among the
early settlers of this county; the parents are
deceased. Mr. Snyder's second marriage
was May 12, 1880, when he was united to
Miss Brunette Spragg; she was born in
Lewis county, Kentucky, August 25, 1858.
Five children have been born of this qnion,
three of whom are now living: Ma,ry J.
dates her birth March 12, 1881; Martha E.
was born September 10, 1883, and died April
16, 1889; William H., born December 23,
1885, died September 16, 1887; John L.
was born December 8, 1889, and Charles
Beam, July 26, 1892. Mrs. Snyder's parents
are William P. and Mary B. (Scott) Spragg,
natives of Ohio and Kentucky, respectively;
they are now residents of Nashville, Tennes-
see. William P. Spragg was born Novem-
ber 22, 1837, in Fairfield county, Ohio. His
father, N. B. Spragg, was born in the State
40
of Pennsylvania, October 1, 1797. His wife,
Rhoda Green, was born in Fail-field county,
Ohio, July, 1795, the second white child born
in that county. Mary B. Spragg, Mrs.
Snyder's mother, was born iriGreenup county,
Kentucky, November 4, 1835, and married
William P. Spragg, December 2, 1855. Her
father, Jacob Scott, was born in the State of
North Carolina, January 15, 1798, and his
wife, nee Catherine Thompson, was born in
Lewis county, Kentucky, June 24, 1802.
Mr. Snyder settled on his father's farm
after his marriage, purchasing fifty-four acres
of land; as his means increased, he made
additional investments, and now owns 210
acres, all in a high state of cultivation. He
carried on his agricultural pursuits with
great intelligence and energy, and has met
with merited success; he gives especial atten-
tion to the raising of live-stock, and has
some very fine specimens on his place.
Politically our worthy subject adheres to
the principles of the Republican party, as
did his father before him. He has tilled some
of the local offices, and has discharged the
duties intrusted to him with a zeal and
ability that have won the confidence of the
con^m unity. He and his wife are members
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and are
both active workers in the cause of the Mas-
ter. His father was also a zealous church-
man, and for many years, was a Class-leader
on the frontier. Mr. Snyder belongs to
Littleton Lodge, No. 766, A. F. & A. M.
He was not a soldier in the late war, but his
brother William was in the service two years,
in Company A, Tenth Missouri Volunteer
Infantry, and was wounded in the battle of
Corinth.
Concerning Mrs. Jane Snyder, deceased ,
the mother of the subject of the foregoing
sketch, we are furnished with the following
600
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP CASH,
additional items: She was a daughter of Mr.
James and Mrs. Rebecca Little, and was born
in Columbia, Lancaster county, Pennsylvania,
on the 26th day of Jnly, 1810. On April 2,
1833, she was united in marriage with Mr.
George Carson, who survived this marriage
but fifty-seven days, leaving a young bride
to mourn his untimely death. After a widow-
hood of nearly two years, she married Mr.
William Snyder, on May 20, 1835, and soon
after they removed to Illinois, tirst to Jack-
sonville, and then to Eushville, where they
resided till 1854, when they removed to
Littleton. Mr. Snyder died in September,
1875, and Mrs. Snyder remained on the farm
with her son, John- F., till, within the last
few years, she has been making her home
with her daughter, first at Augusta, and then
at Plymouth, spending some time every year
with her son at the old home.
She had returned but a short time to her
home, from an extended visit with her son,
when she was stricken down with a violent
attack of flux, and notwithstanding all that
physicians could do, with the loving care and
nursing of children and friends, she calmly
departed out of this life on Friday, Septem-
ber 23, 1892, after only five days' illness, in the
eighty-third year of her age.
Mrs. Snyder was converted and united
with the Methodist Episcopal Church, when
she was but fifteen years old, and she held
fast the beginning of her confidence firm
unto the end.
iRS. MARGARET FRANCIS
BO WE, widow of Thomas Bowe, was
born July 27, 1857. Her parents
were Lawrence and Mary (Adams) Costello,
both natives of the Emerald Isle, the father
having been born in Westmeath Athlone,
Ireland, in 1822. In 1844, at the age of
twenty-two years, he emigrated to America,
landing in New York, where he remained
for a short time, going thence to Pennsyl-
vania. He afterward came West to Mt. Ster-
ling, Illinois, where he was married, Octo-
ber 11, 1856. The worthy parents still re-
side on their farm, two and one-half miles
west of Mt. Sterling. They first bought
eighty acres and lived for several years in a
small log house: later they built the pleasant
home they now occupy. It is a seven- room,
two- story house. Soon afterward, they added
a large barn to their frame buildings. They
began life with but little means, but are now
well-to-do farmers. They buried an infant
son and daughter, also a son, James, born
July 23, 1864, died January 22, 1880, in his
sixteenth year; and Thomas, born April 6,
1860, died April 3, 1880; both thus dying
within three months of each other. Another
son, Walter, was injured by a runaway, and
died at the age of thirty-two, in Woodland
Park, Colorado, where he had gone in search
of health. The living members of the fam-
ily are, Mrs. Eowe; John, First Sergeant,
Second Artillery, in the regular army, sta-
tioned at Fort Riley. He began as a teams-
ter when eighteen, but volunteered at twenty-
one, and was made Post Librarian, and has
been regularly promoted until he is now
First Sergeant. This young man is quite an
adventurer, having started out on his life of
adventures at the age of twelve, without the
knowledge of his parents, who thought for a
long while that he was dead, and were re-
joiced to hear from him, some four years later,
that he was safe and well. The next child
was Catherine H., who was married to Elmer
Byrns, July 6, 1829, and now resides in Mt.
Sterling, where she and her husband intend
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
607
to make their future home. William and
Chris are young men at home on the farm.
Their parents came to Illinois when young,
Mr. Costello from Pennsylvania, and Mrs.
Costello direct from Ireland. Both came
without means, and worked by the week and
month, and they have been very successful,
and by hard work and economy have accumu-
lated a large fortune of $20,000, besides their
other property, which is very valuable.
August 7, 1892, Mr. Costello started for
the land of his birth, to benefit his health and
visit his three sisters and two brothers, who
still reside there. He reached his home in
safety, and has every prospect of a pleasant
visit.
Mrs. Bowe had only a common -school edu-
cation, but has improved her mind by read-
ing. She has one daughter, Eva May, born
January 23,1886, twenty-nine days after the
death of her husband. Mr. Bowe left 500
acres of land, but Mrs. Bowe only received
fifty-five acres of it. She now has 150 acres,
having bought the remainder herself, and
this large farm with its nice buildings, she,
superintends herself. She is a, very remark-
able lady in that she can manage the estate
in so able a manner.
fOHN K1RCHER, a practical farmer and
stock-raiser, living on section 29, town-
ship 17, range 11, was born not many
miles from Frankfort on the Main, Germany,
October 4, 1835. His father, Henry, was
a native of Hesse-Darmstadt. He grew up a
farmer, and was there married to Elizabeth
Folp, who was born and reared in the same
province. After they had six children, they
decided to try their fortunes in a new country.
In 1847, they took passage on board a sail-
ing vessel at Havre de Grace, France, and af-
ter forty-seven days landed in New Orleans,
and came from there up the rivers to Beards-
town. Here they lived a short time, and a
few months after landing the mother died, at
the birth of another child, when she was in
her fortieth year. The infant died also. The
children have been taught to revere her name.
Her husband is yet living, aged eighty-seven,
making his home with his son, our subject.
He has been a cripple for forty years, having
lost his leg by the accidental discharge of a
gun in the hands of a friend, when they were
out hunting. The Lutheran Church has al-
ways been his choice, as it was that of his wife,
and he has always been a Democrat. Our
subject and a sister, Elizabeth, wife of Mi-
chael Fortune, of Rich Hill, Missouri, are
the only remaining children.
John liircher landed in Beardstown in
1847. His mother died before he was twelve
years old, and he had to go out among stran,
gers to work for a living. In 1856, he bought
his first forty acres of land; he was married
the same year; he hired to a man to work on
a farm at §20 per month, and boarded him-
self. The next year he rented a small farm
and commenced farming for himself, and im-
proving his forty acres. His first corn was
shelled by a hand sheller, and he hauled it fif-
teen miles to market, and got fourteen cents
per bushel for it. From then on, he bought
one piece of land after another, adjoining his,
when he could get it, until he now has a farm
of 280 acres.
He was married in Cass county, Illinois,
to Elizabeth Rahn, born in Hesse-Darm-
stadt, near the birthplace of her husband,
coming in 1854 with her parents, John and
Mary Rahn, to Cass county. Mr. Rahn was
a farmer near Arenzville. He died Febru-
ary 1, 1892, agdd eighty-two years. He
608
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS,
had come to this country in 1854, with his
wife and family. The wife, who is yet liv-
ing, is eighty years old and lives with her
daughter, Mrs. Kircher. They were always
members of the Lutheran Church. Mrs.
Kircher is the only daughter, although she
has three brothers, George, living in Chris-
tian county, and John and Henry, living in
Casa county.
Mr. and Mrs. Kircher have had eleven
children: Louisa and an infant died young;
Edward married Laura Buck, and is a farmer
in this county; William married Josephine
Buck, and is also a farmer in this county;
Henry, Frank, Mary E., Lena, Anna, Lucy
and Rosa are all at home.
Mr. and Mrs. Kircher are members of the
Lutheran Church, and Mr. Kircher and his
grown sons are sound Democrats. They are
excellent representatives of the thrifty Ger-
man element in this township.
JBENEZER SPINK, the able editor of
the Sangamon Valley Times, of Chan-
dlerville, Illinois, was born in Mason
county, this State, January 8, 1857, his par-
ents being Ebenezer and Fannie (Baylor)
Spink.
The originator of the paternal branch of
the family in this country was Daniel Spink
a native of England, who emigrated to Amer'
ica in middle life, settling in Rhode island"
where he spent the rest of his life. Samuel'
his son, was born in Rhode Island, about 1784'
and married Ruth Slocumb, also a native of
that State. Her parents were Pelick Slo-
cumb and Ruth (Cappes), her mother also be-
ing a native of England, and both parents re-
siding in Rhode Island until their death.
Both Samuel Spink and his wife resided in
the State in which they were born until their
death, which occurred in 1814, at the age
of thirty years. They were the parents of
four children: Washington, William, Louise
Ann and Ebenezer, the father of the subject
of this sketch. Ebenezer Spink, Sr., was
born in Prudence Island, in JSarragansett Bay,
Rhode Island, April 12, 1812. After the
death of his father, Ebenezer went with his
mother to Wickford, on Narragansett bay,
and thence to Providence, in 1822, where he
received instruction in the rudimentary
branches of education. In 1825, he left
home and worked in various localities, doing
whatever he could to turn an honest penny.
He finally went to Boston, Massachusetts,
where he met and married his first wife,
Juliet Nichols, their marriage taking place in
1832. Two years later, he removed with his
family to Indiana, whence they moved, in
1836, to Kentucky. Two children, Alonzo
and Melissa, were born to this marriage.
Mr. Spink, Sr., was, sometime later, sep-
arated from his wife, and in 1843 married
Fannie Baylor, an estimable lady and the
mother of the subject of this sketch. Her
parents were George P. and Louise E. (Moy)
Baylor, who were married in Pennsylvania in
1823. Her father was a native of Germany,
and served twelve years in the Revolutionary
war, for which he received a large tract of
land in Fulton county, this State; her mother
was a native of Pennsylvania, where she was
born in 1803. They were the parents of
eleven children, seven now living, their
daughter, Fannie, the mother of our subject,
having been born in Pennsylvania, July 18,
1826. The parents eventually removed from
the Keystone State to Fulton county, Illinois,
where they both died, the mother at the age
of fifty-one years and the father aged seventy-
two.
8CHU7LER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
609
In 1853, Mr. Spink, Sr., removed with his
wife and children to Illinois, by boat, landing
at Havana, and continued to reside in and
near that city until his death, August 14,
1892, aged eighty years, three months and
twenty-seven days.
There were twelve children born to bless
this union. Two daughters died in infancy.
The eldest, Charles H., was born in Ken-
tucky, February 11, 1844. He enlisted in
Company B, Eighty-fifth Regiment of Illi-
nois Volunteers, in 1862, and was killed in
the battle at Peach Tree creek, Georgia, July
20, 1864. The remaining children are as
follows: Mary E. Haynes, of Blue Mound,
Kansas; Isabelle Chambers, of Mason City,
Illinois; Joseph E., of Guthrie, Oklahoma;
George W., of Petersburg. Illinois; Clara
Yates, of Havana, Illinois; Ebenezer, of
Chandlerville, Illinois; Walter W. and James
W. of Havana, Illinois.; and Lilly M. Mor-
genstein, of Topeka, Illinois.
Ebenezer Spink, Sr., being one of the pio-
neer settlers of Mason county, was well known
by all the older residents, and was held in
high esteem as a neighbor and friend. In
1856 he joined the New Lebanon Baptist
Church, on Crane creek, and lived a consist-
ent Christian life ever afterward. Having a
large family he never accumulated much
property, but was ever a most kind and in-
dulgent father and husband.
Ebenezer Spink, Jr., whose name heads
this notice, attended the schools in his vicin-
ity and learned the printer's trade in Havana,
Illinois. He resided in Havana until 1879,
when he came to Chandlerville and engaged
in the publication of The Independent, re-
turning in 1881 to Havana. The following
year, however, he again removed to Chandler-
ville, and bought out the Independent and
changed the name to The Sangamon Valley
Times, which he has ever since continued to
edit and publish.
When eighteen years of age, he was mar-
ried, in Havana, Illinois, August 8, 1875, to
Miss Anna R. Morrison, an estimable lady, a
native of Havana, where she was born Janu-
ary 19, 1859. She was a daughter of John
and Virginia (Derry) Morrison, prominent
and early settlers of Illinois. Her paternal
grandmother's people came directly from the
Emerald Isle to America, where her grand-
mother married Thomas Morrison. They
had four children, one of whom was John
Morrison, the father of Mrs. Spink. He was
born in Pennsylvania, December 27, 1821,
and came to Illinois in an early day. He was
a blacksmith, which occupation he followed
through life. He was twice married: first to
Aurilla E. Jones, July 1, 1848, and they had
two children: Amelia A. and Marcus J. The
latter child was born December 27, 1852,
and became a prominent man; he died Oc-
tober 16, 1883. On February 16, 1853, the
devoted wife and mother died, leaving the
son to the care of her husband, the daughter
havingdied in infancy. OnDecemberSl, 1854,
the father married again, the only child by this
marriage being Mrs. Spink. The father died
in Havana, Illinois, November 25, 1859.
Mrs. Spink's mother, Virginia Derry, was
born February 14, 1832, in Virginia, and was
a daughter of Jacob and Mary A. S. Baggett,
both natives of the Old Dominion, the latter
having been born near Alexandria, Virginia,
on September 20, 1808, and died September
21, 1890. The couple were married March
14, 1834, and reared eleven children, eight of
whom are now living, there being also thirty-
four grandchildren and twenty-nine great-
grandchildren. Virginia Derry's grand par-
ents were Townsend and - (Howard)
Baggett, both natives of Virginia, who, as far
610
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CA8S,
as known, lived and died there, surviving to
an advanced age.
Mr. and Mrs. Spink have seven children:
Marcus L., born in Havana, July 21, 1877;
John C., born in the same place, January 7,
1879; Ernest O., born January 23, 1881;
Fay JR., born February 21, 1884; Earl M.,
born March 16, 1888; Flossie M., born Janu-
ary 8, 1890; and Wallace, born January 31,
1892.
Mr. Spink belongs to the Republican party,
casting his first vote for General James A.
Garfield, for President. The citizens of
Chandlerville have honored him with official
positions several times. He served two
terms as Treasurer of the village and is a
member of the School Board. He is a promi-
nent member of the Woodmen, and attends
the Congregational Church. Mrs. Spink is
an earnest member of the Woman's Christian
Temperance Union.
It is eminently fitting that a person who
wields the influence of an editor should be of
high moral character and possess the courage
to express his honest convictions, both of
which are characteristics of the subject of
this sketch, and as such he deserves the
commendation which he so widely receives.
(DWIN M. ANDERSON, member of the
County Board of Supervisors and pre-
sident of the Rushville Village Board,
first saw the light of day in Louisburg,
Greenbrier county, Virginia, April 1, 1837.
His father, James L. Anderson, was a native
of Scotland, "the land of cakes," and the
home of Robert Burns, the greatest amatory
poet the world has ever known. The grand-
father of our subject was also a native of
Scotland, in which historic land he passed
his entire life. His widow, however, came to
America, and spent her last years with her
son, James L., in Rushville. She reared four
children, of whom our subject's father was
the only one to cross the Atlantic to America.
When a young man he learned the trade of a
silversmith, and upon his arrival here lived
for a short time in North Carolina, thence
going to Louisburgh, Virginia, where he mar-
ried. In 1848 he moved with his wife and
infant child to Illinois, coming via the Ohio,
Missouri and Illinois rivers to Erie, Schuy-
ler county, thence by team to Rushville. He
followed his trade for a short time and then
founded a weekly newspaper, which he con-
ducted successfully for eight or ten years.
During this time he studied law and was ad-
mitted to the bar, and for a time was asso-
ciated in practice with Judge Bagby. He
resided here until his death in 1865. His
wife, and the mother of our subject, was
Maria W. Moore. Her parents were Samuel
and Jane (Matthews) Moore, natives of Vir-
ginia, as was also their daughter Maria. The
latter passed away February 21, 1872. James
L. Anderson was formerly a Whig, but later
became a Democrat. He was a man of more
than usual ability and strength of character,
and served several years as Police Magistrate
and Probate Judge. He is a thirty-second
degree Mason, and served as Grand Secretary
and Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of the
State, a distinction conferred upon him by
reason of his intelligence and high character.
His four children were named Edwin M.,
Bessie, Edgar and Porter, the two latter
being deceased.
Edwin M. Anderson was reared and edu-
cated in liushville, and resided here continu-
ously until 1862, when in July of that year
he enlisted in Company C, One Hundred and
Nineteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and
SGHUTLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
611
served until the close of the war. He par-
ticipated in the Red River campaign under
General Banks, and with the movements at
Nashville under General Thomas. He was
engaged in all the arduous duties, campaigns
and battles participated in by his regiment,
passing through it all with gallantry and
patriotism until he was discharged in August,
1865. Dpon his return home he secured
employment as bookkeeper for the firm of
Little & Ray, and remained in their employ
continuously for fourteen years, since which
time he has not been engaged in active busi-
ness. Socially he is a member of the Rush-
ville Lodge, No. 9, A. F. & A. M., and of
Rushville Chapter, No. 184, F. A. M. Po-
litically he has always affiliated with the
Democratic party. He was elected one term
as County Treasurer, and handled the finances
of the county in an able and creditable man-
ner. He had served several terms as a mem-
ber of the County Board and as a member of
the building committee appointed to super-
vise the construction of the county court-
house. He has shown himself eminently
qualified for any office within the gift of his
fellow-citizens.
CHRIST. J. HUSS is a retired farmer,
living in Beardstown, and was born
near Westphalia, Prussia, March 11,
1827. He came of respectable German par-
ents and was the second of the family to
come to the United States, corning from
Bremer- Haven on a sailing vessel, which was
forty-two days on the water. He landed in
New Orleans and came thence up the Illi-
nois and Mississippi rivers to Beardstown,
making the trip in nine days. He had a
brother, August, now deceased who had
come to Beardstown in 1845, being the first
to come to the country. Our subject was
fifteen years old when his father, Henry, a
farmer, died, having been engaged on a farm
in Prussia, Germany,- for forty-nine years.
He was seventy-two years old when he
died, and was a Lutheran in religion-
The maiden name of his wife was Caroline
Andres, and she survived her husband some
years, dying in Prussia at the age of seventy-
two. She was a life-long and faithful mem-
ber of the German Lutheran Church.
Christ, is the only member of the family now
living in this county. A sister, Charlotta,
wife of Henry Backman, lives on the old
farm in Germany.
Our subject came here in 1849 when a
young man twenty-three years of age. He
worked one year on a farm as a laborer. In
1850 he began teaming in Beardstown and in
1861 he sold out this business and bought
a good farm, where he afterward did a large
stock business in connection with grain
farming. In 1890 he retired to the city of
Arenzville, where he lives in comfort, enjoy-
ing a well-earned fortune, which he obtained
by his own efforts, as sisted by his good wife.
He was married in Beardstown to Miss
Mary Bronkar, who was born August 29,
1833, in Hanover, Germany, and came to
the United States in 1848 with her parents,
who settled in Cass county, where they lived
and died. Her father, Ernest Bronkar, was
a successful farmer and lived to be eighty
years of age. His wife lived to be sixty-
five. Her maiden name was Mary Kelver.
They were members of the Lutheran Church.
Mr. and Mrs. HUBS are parents of eleven
children, four died young, an infant, Ed-
ward, William, Sr., and William, Jr. The
living are, August, married Mary Kuhl-
man and is a farmer in his county; Henry
612
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF OAS8,
is a shoemaker and dealer in the firm of
Fish & HUBS, married to Minnie Coblones;
Christian, dealer in agricultural implements
and groceries, married Mary Hurbert; John
operates his father's farm in this county, and
married Amelia Buck; Minnie is the wife of
Peter Hems, a farmer in this county;
George is a farmer of this county, and Lizzie
is at home.
This is one of the large and most respect-
able families in the county.
SENRY C. FUNK, a well-to-do farmer
and stock-raiser of township 17 north,
range 11 west, section 14, near Vir-
ginia, Illinois, was born in this precinct
February 13, 1860. His parents were Con-
rad and Frederica (Steiner) Funk. The fa-
ther was born in Hesse-Darmstadt, Ger-
many, December 26, 1832, and his mother
in Texas, December 5, 1839. They were
married in Beardstown, Illinois, July 28,
1857. Conrad came to Cass county in 1842
with his mother, his father having died on
the ocean. They came directly from Europe
to Arenzville, where they rented for a short
time, afterward removing to this precinct,
where Conrad purchased a farm, having at
the time of his death 1,150 acres of land, all
except 304 acres being in Monroe precinct.
He died upon the farm where our subject
now resides, March 8, 1888. His wife still
resides at the old homestead where her un-
married children live.
They had eight children, who are as fol-
lows: Willis Conrad died in childhood;
Henry C., our subject; Louis A. resides up-
on a farm near; Rosa, Mary, George, Emma,
and Frank, living at home. This whole family
has enjoyed good educational advantages and
have an excellent home.
Henry grew to manhood upon the farm
and received his education in the common
schools. He now owns 360 acres of good
land, which he rents. He furnishes all the
seed and gets one half the grain. The girls
have good farms and the brothers are equally
well off. The voters of the family are
Democrats. The parents were members of
the Lutheran Church and the whole family
is prominent, and possesses the confidence
and esteem of all who are fortunate enough
to know them. George Edward is not mar-
ried, and is of a roving spirit, having visited
many of the cities of the West. Early in life
he developed a fondness for fire-arms, and is
now one of the best rifle-shots in the country.
He has given numerous exhibitions of his
skill at target practice, shooting glass balls,
etc., and has always come out beet in com-
petition with local authorities. He was
born November 13, 1868, on the farm
where his mother and family live and which
is his home.
fOHN G. KENDRICK,of Elkhorn town-
ship, was born in Lebanon, New Hamp-
shire, February 18, 1828. He is a son
of Stephen and Martha (Gerrish) Kendrick.
Stephen came to Illinois in 1841 with his
wife and two children, his possessions being
.an ox team and $50 in cash. He first rented
in this county and bought forty acres of land,
where he died when eighty-four years of age.
Stephen's father was a merchant of Lebanon,
New Hampshire, and died there a very old
man. Stephen's wife was named Thankful
Howe, and she died when an old woman.
The father of our subject was one of eight
children, and his mother one of seven chil-
dren. She was born in New Hampshire, and
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
613
died at the home of her son, aged sixty-one
years.
John remained at home until married,
and went to the district school with James A.
Garfield. He learned the trade of a black-
smith and wagon maker. After he married
he rented a farm near his father, and there
lived until 1872, when he moved into his own
house, and now owns 300 acres. He carries
on mixed farming and has been very success-
ful. He is a Republican in politics.
He was married in 1850 to Mary Jaques,
born in Allegany county, New York, April
14, 1843, daughter of Samuel and Effie (Fa-
gort) Jaqnes. They were New Yorkers, who
came to Illinois in 1841. Mrs. Kendrick is
one of twelve children. Mr. and Mrs. Ken-
drick have three living children: Edward
R., Fred "W. and Emma. The boys are on
the land their father owned. They are mem-
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and
Mr. Kendrick is a Class-leader, and the whole
family are very active in Sunday-school work;
in fact Mr. Kendrick is active in every good
work, especially temperance work, and has
organized several temperance societies. No
man in the county has been more active than
Mr. Kendrick in placing it in the position it
now enjoys. He has a grand record for local
temperance and church work, and is highly
s teemed throughout the county.
?AMES M,, BENJAMIN R., AND WILL-
IAM B. WILSON are farmers of Elk-
horn township, where they have been
residents for along time. Their father, John
S. Wilson, was born in New Jersey, May 15,
1817. He was the son of Reuben Wilson,
who was of English parents and a successful
farmer of New Jersey. (See sketch of George
W. and F. M. Wilson.) Reuben Wilson re-
moved to Ohio and resided there a few years,
and in 1829 he visited Illinois on horseback,
and was so pleased with the country that he
emigrated to Illinois in 1833, and settled in
Adams county. He entered sixteen sections
of Government land, 10,240 acres, part of
which was included in the township of Quincy.
Soon after his arrival in this State he was
taken quite sick, and was rendered helpless
until his death some three years later. He
married Susan Carver, of New Jersey, and of
Holland parents. She died about two years
after her husband. John Wilson was about
sixteen years old when he came to Illinois
with his parents. At that time Adams was
but little settled, and Quincy was only a vil-
lage, although it served as the market place
for the farmers for many miles around. He
was the pioneer teacher for Adams county
and also Brown county, and as there were no
districts all were taught in the subscription
school in a little log house. The teacher was
obliged to board around among the people.
He was married November 30, 1843, to Miss
Elizabeth J. Adams, born in 1827, daughter
of Mr. Benjamin Adams, Sr. They had six
children, namely: Benjamin B., born No-
vember 3, 1844; Perlina, born December,
1846; Pernita, born March 25, 1849; James
M., born May 26, 1851; Dora E. was born
February 5, 1854; William B., born Novem-
bea 4, 1859. Mr. Wilson bought land in sec-
tion 5, and built a log-cabin, in which all of
his children were born, and where he lived
until the day of his death, on April 22, 1875.
His wife died in 1892.
The brothers have always resided on the
old homestead, and have been engaged in
farming. They have received a good educa-
614
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS8,
tion, and they are extensive readers, putting
into practice the ideas they receive from their
papers. Their farm is one of the best and
most improved in the county.
§OHN H. TURKMAN.— Mr. Tureman'
father, in the year 1827, emigrated to
what is now Cass county, with his family,
which then comprised a wife and seven chil-
dren. He purchased from a man named
Myers a claim to a tract of Government land,
and some time later, as soon as he could ob-
tain the money, entered the same direct from
the Government. It is the same that is now
owned by the subject of this sketch. There
was then a log cabin on the place, having in
it neither sawed lumber nor nails; the boards
on the roof were rived by hand and held in
place by weight- poles; those of the floor were
split and one side hewed smooth, — called
" puncheons," about six feet in length.
The chimney was built of earth and sticks on
the end and outside of the building. And it
was in this humble abode that John H. Ture-
man was born. The family occupied this
dwelling about four years, when Mr. Ture-
man erected a story-and-a-half frame house, —
one of the first frame dwellings in the county.
The lumber for this structure was all sawed
by hand, as there was no sawmill in the
country. A platform was constructed, on
which the logs were rolled, and two men
operated the saw, what was called a " whip
saw," one man standing above, the other
below. The father was a resident of this
place until his death, in June, 1835, when he
was aged about fifty-two years. His wife
survived him many years, dying in 1868,
aged seventy-nine years. Her maiden name
was Elizabeth Harbold, and she was born in
Pennsylvania, of Germany ancestry. Until
seven years of age she spoke no other lan-
guage than the German, and after moving
from Pennsylvania there was a period of
twenty-one years during which time she did
not even see a German-speaking person.
Following are the names of the twelve chil-
dren in the above family: Eliza, the wife of
William Carr; Ann, who married James
Cook; David, George, Leonard, Catherine,
who married William Patterson; Arsenoin,
who married Cabel Patterson; John H. ;
Elizabeth, the wife of James Allison ; William
A.; Tracy; and Virginia, who married George
Davis. Of the foregoing, Catherine, John
H., William and Virginia are living.
Mr. Tureman, our subject, was born and
has passed his entire life on the place he now
owns and occupies and has therefore lived
longer on one place than any other person
now residing in the county. He has a very
retentive memory and relates many interest-
ing incidents of pioneer days, illustrating the
contrast between the peculiar! ties of those days
and the present. He was in his sixth year
when his father died, and he remembers how
he seemed to be his father's favorite, for his
father often took him along on his travels,
thus widening our subject's experience and
the scope of his pleasures. Their grain and
other products were all marketed at Beards-
town, much of it being drawn there with ox
teams.
On one occasion they camped over night a
short distance from that place, which was
then the principal market for this part of
Illinois. There were then many campers
there, some having come from Jacksonville,
Springfield, and Decatur for merchandise.
It was on one of these return trips that the
elder Tureman drew the second load of mer-
chandise that was ever taken to Virginia, the
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
615
goods being for Dr. Hall, who, at the time,
kept the only store in the place. On another
occasion he took acarding-machine to Jackson-
ville, and on this trip they stopped on the
way at a distillery to quench their thirst,
distilleries being then very numerous and
their products pure and cheap. The people
subsisted principally upon wild game and
produce of their own raising. Deer, wild
turkey, prairie chickens, etc., were abundant.
Bread was considered a great luxury, Corn
meal was the principal breadstuff in use,
sometimes exclusively so for long periods.
For several years there were no gristmills
other than horse-mills in this part of the
country, and often the inhabitants had to
grate their corn on a perforated tin grater, or
pound it in a mortar. The first gristmills
started were operated by horse-power. When
but a boy our subject used to take a sack of
shelled corn on the back of a horse to mill,
where he often had to wait all day for his
grist. When he was about fourteen there
was a water-power mill at Arenzville, to
which he took grists.
His father was a true friend of popular
education. He hired a teacher, giving him a
room in his own house. But in those days
" licking " and learning went together, and
John came in for his share of the " lickings."
His sister, Mrs. Cook, took pity on him, and
on one occasion lined his jacket with card-
board made of brown paper, which was placed
under his clothes, as a protection against the
customary rough usage of the " schoolmaster."
His other brothers having left home, young
Tureman found himself at the age of fifteen
with the management of the farm devolving
upon him. Being industrious and possessing
good judgment, he was successful from the
start. In the course of time he bought the
interest of the other heirs in the homestead,
and he has also purchased other tracts of land.
The home farm contains 400 acres; another
farm, in Logan county, also contains 400
acres. Mr. Tureman's life has not only been
characterized by industry and enterprise, but
also by generosity and public spirit. In 1884
he erected the opera-house in Virginia, — a
handsome, well built structure, 64x120 feet
in dimensions, two stories high besides base-
ment, and was, at the time it was erected, the
fines't, building in any town of its size in the
State of Illinois. He is also a stockholder
and ii director in the First National Bank in
Virginia.
Politically Mr. Tureman was originally a
Democrat. In 1876 he voted for Peter
Cooper, but, previous to this, a revolution in
his political creed had occurred, which had
its incipiency in the first issue of greenbacks
by the Government. He accepted these as
safe money, because it had the stamp of the
land, was a creation of the law, and conse-
quently was good, and would remain so as
long as the Government by which it had
been issued was solvent. In this he was an
original greenbacker. At this time, or per-
haps a little later, Mr. Tureman began to
realize the drift of the old party he had left;
saw that the famous Kansas and Nebraska
bills were shallow pretenses of democracy,
championed by Douglas and other pro- slavery
leaders to ultimately carry slavery into all
the unorganized domains of the Government.
This after-light caused him many doubts
about clinging to the fortunes of a party bent
upon fostering slavery in the free Territories
from 1856 to 1864. From the latter date on,
he has not been in harmony with either of
the old parties, the financial policy of the
Republican party being particularly distaste-
ful to him in all its collateral branches. He
wants no dollar redeemable in another dollar,
616
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OP CASS,
no specie base to hoodwink and give the
appearance of security to a currency, which
is as good without a promise to redeem in
specie as it is with a promise to redeem and
without the specie with which to do it.
Socially he is a member of the Morgan and
Cass County Pioneer Society, of which he has
served both as president and vice-president.
He was married December 5, 1851, to
Mary J. Davis, a native of Cass county.
Their two children are Parthena and John F.
The former is the wife of Hugh W. Harrison,
of Belleville, this State, and has one child,
named Zoe. John F. married Mary Cald-
well, and he is engaged in the grocery busi-
ness in Virginia.
ylCHARD S. BLACK, an intelligent,
progressive and highly esteemed citizen
of Mound Station, Illinois, and repre-
senting one of the best families of Schuyler
county, was born in Woodstock township,
this county, May 28, 1832.
His father, Richard Black, was a native of
Mecklenburg county, North Carolina, where
he attained to manhood. Of an adventurous
and progressive disposition, he removed from
his native county to Hancock county, Ken-
tucky, in an early day. The spirit of emi-
gration, however, was too strong for him to
resist, and after a few years' sojourn in Ken-
tucky, we again see him moving Westward.
His second settlement was made in Dubois
county, in what was then Indiana Territory.
lu 1826, he again moved toward the setting
sun, moving by team overland to Schuyler
county, Illinois, accompanied by his wife and
four children. Arrived at his destination, he
purchased of Willis O'Neil a claim to the
land which is now the site of the city of
Rushville. On the organization of Schuyler
county, this claim was selected as the county
seat, and it was consequently taken from Mr.
Black, the county afterward reimbursing him
in part. Thus deprived of his home, he re-
moved five miles southward, near the present
site of Bethel Church, where he bought a
tract of patent land. He erected on this a
log cabin sixteen feet square, for the roof of
which he rived clapboards, and split puncheon
for the floor, while he made his chimney of
sticks and clay, called in those days a " cat-
and-stick chimney." He, later, built an ad-
dition, making a double log cabin with an
entry between, at that time a very pretentious
residence, where he dwelt until his death, in
1853. The maiden name of his second wife
was Elizabeth Fowler, a native of Jefferson
county, Kentucky. She reared eight chil-
dren, two of whom were her husband's by
his former marriage. These children were:
Elizabeth, William, Isaac, Cecelia, John L.,
Richard S., the subject of this sketch; Aus-
tin S., and Monroe. The devoted wife and
mother survived her husband and spent her
declining years in comfort with her son Isaac.
Richard S., whose name heads this biogra-
phy, was reared and educated in Schuyler
county, where he was born. He attended
the pioneer schools, which were held in log
houses without any floors. The seats were
made of small logs, split and hewed smooth
on one side, with wooden pegs for legs. A
piece of puncheon, supported by wooden
pins inserted in the sides of the building,
served as a writing desk for the larger schol-
ars. The country was sparsely settled, all
land that was not patent or soldier's land be-
ing owned by the Government. The country
was mostly inhabited by wild Indians, while
game abounded in great profusion, such as
deer, bear, rabbit, turkey, prairio chicken,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
617
grouse, etc., and the streams were alive with
the -choicest fish. No mills were in the
country at that time, and all grain was ground
by hand. The pioneers subsisted on wild
game, fish, and such products as they raised
on their land. All clothing was of home-
spun, which was manufactured by the women
of the family, who carded and spun the
materials and afterward cut and made
the garments, and that at a time when sew-
ing machines were unknown.
The subject of this sketch resided with his
parents until he attained his majority, when
he commenced farming for himself on rented
land in Bainbridge township. After a few
years of industry and careful management,
he had sufficiently prospered to be able to buy
land, which he accordingly did, purchasing
a tract in the same township. He continued
to farm this land until 1869, when he sold
out and bought another tract in Brown county,
on which he remained for three years. This,
he also sold, and removed to Adams county,
purchasinga farm in Concord township, where
he resided until 1884. He then again dis-
posed of his interests and removed to Law-
rence. Kansas, where he engaged in the
manufacture of cider and vinegar for eight
months. The climate there not agreeing
with him, he- returned to Mound Station,
and entered the mercantile business, which
he successfully continued for five years. For
the the last two years he has been prosper-
ously conducting the principal hotel of Mound
Station.
Mr. Black was first married, in 1857, to
Harriet Terrill, an estimable lady, daughter of
Andrew and Elizabeth Terrill, who were early
and prominent settlers of Bainbridge town-
ship, where their daughter, Harriet, was born.
This marriage was dissolved by death in
1883, the devoted wife and mother going to
her reward. Matilda, the only surviving
child, is now the wife of John M. Anderson,
a well-to-do farmer of Huntsville township,
Schuyler county. They have three children:
Hattie, Ora and John Richard.
In 1887, Mr. Black was again married,
his second wife being Mary M. McBrackney,
a native of Clayton, Adams county, Illinois.
Her parents were Robert and Elizabeth
(Marshall) McBrackney, both born in Ireland,
of Scotch ancestry. Her parents resided in
their native country until 1834, when they
removed to Clayton, Adams county, this
State, where the father purchased and im-
proved land, on which he resided until his
death. Both parents were devout members
of the Presbyterian Church, in which faith
they reared three children.
Mr. Black is, politically, a Democrat, and
has been elected by his constituents to vari-
ous offices of trust. He was for seven years
an efficient member of the Adams county
Board of Supervisors, and for the past two
years has represented Lee township on the
Brown County Board. He and his worthy
wife are esteemed members of society, being
as widely respected as they are known.
§OHN SMITH WALKER was born in
Adams county, Pennsylvania, in Novem-
ber, 1826, the son of Andrew Walker, a
native of the same State and county; there
the father was reared and married; he
was a farmer by occupation, and followed
agricultural pursuits in Adams county until
1839, when he emigrated to Illinois, accom-
panied by his wife and eight children. They
made the entire trip overland, and on their
arrival to Schuyler county they settled on
618
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW UF CASS,
what is now Littleton township. Mr. Walker
rented land, and later purchased a tract un-
cultivated and without improvements; he
built a small frame house and log stable, and
here passed the remainder of his days; he
died in 1848. His wife's maiden name was
Ann Wilson, a native of Adams county,
Pennsylvania. After her husband's death
Mrs. Walker lived with her children at their
various homes until her decease, which oc-
curred in October, 1870, at the residence of
her daughter, Mrs. John McGaughey, near
Industry, McDonough county, Illinois. She
was buried beside her husband in the Camp
Creek cemetery south of Macomb, Illinois.
John Smith Walker is one of a family of
ten children; he was thirteen years of
age when the family left their Pennsyl-
vania home and penetrated the wilds of
the frontier, as Illinois was then called. The
country was thinly settled; there were no rail-
roads, game was abundant; they were pio-
neers, and had to undergo all the privations
incident to the settling of a new country.
Our subject attended the common schools
taught in the primitive log house, conned his
lesson while sitting on a puncheon seat, and
learned to write on a puncheon desk. He as-
sisted in the farm work and resided with
his parents during their lifetime. He has
been successfnf in his farming operations,
and owns at this time 200 acres of choice
farming land. He resided on his farm until
1887, when he removed to Rushville, where
he now makes his home.
Mr. Walker was united in marriage, in 1868,
to Elizabeth Hnckeby, a native of Brecken-
ridge county, Kentucky, and a daughter of
Thomas Huckeby, her parents emigrated to
Illinois in 1836, making the journey by the
river on steamboat; they were pioneers of
Schuyler county.
The mother died within three years after
coming to this State and was buried in the
Thompson cemetery a short distance south-
west of the village of Littleton. The father
married again and removed to Fulton county,
where he resided until the time of his death
in March, 1847.
Mrs. Walker was but sixteen months old
when she was brought to Illinois, and has
therefore witnessed the transformation of
the country from a wild prairie to a rich
farming community. Mr. and Mrs. Walker
are the parents of two children, Anna and
John.
?OHN FOOTE, the senior member of the
firm of John Foote & Son, proprietors of
the Rnshville Hosiery Factory, was born
in Leeds, Yorkshire, England, January 17,
1827. His father, John Foote, was a native
of England, and a weaver by trade; he oper-
ated a hand loom for many years, and spent
his last days in Leeds. He married Mar-
garet Hines, who spent her entire life in Eng-
land. Three of their children came to Amer-
ica, Frank, Mary and John. The last named,
the subject of this biography, began when
quite young to learn the trade of cloth dresser,
and followed this vocation in Leeds until 1844.
In July of that year he sailed from Liverpool
on board the Greenock, and landed in New
York city after a voyage of six weeks. He
went directly to Boston, and thence to Mill-
bury, Massachusetts, where he followed his
trade for two years; he was afterward in
Cherry Valley and Foxboro; and later went
to Oxford, Massachussetts, where he was em-
ployed in a satinette factory for a few months.
Next he went to Winchester, where he was in
a flannel factory, and after that to a place
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
619
now called Bridgewater, Massaclmsets, where
he worked at the boot and shoe trade until th
beginning of the Civil war. At this time he
went to Newport, New Hampshire, and secured
employment in a flannel factory. After the
close of the war he removed to Charleston,
but in 1866 went to Michigan; he resided in
that State for two years, and then removed to
Rock Island, Illinois, where he was foreman
in the carding and spinning department of
the Rock Island Woolen Mills, a position he
filled until 1874. In that year he came to
Rushville, and two years later established
the Rushville Hosiery Factory, which has
been in successful operation since that time;
both cotton and woolen hose are maufact-
ured, and are sold directly to the trade in
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Nebraska.
Mr. Foote was united in marriage in Fox-
boro, Massachusetts, in May, 1846, to Mar-
tha A. Childs. a native of Maine and a daugh-
ter of Amos Childs; there are five surviving
children born of this union: Charles F., Al-
fred A., Ada, John W. and George H. The
last named is in partnership with his father.
Mr. and Mrs. Foot are zealous members of
the Methodist Episcopal Church, and are act-
ive in all movements tending to elevate hu-
manity. Politically, Mr. Foote affiliates
with the Republican party.
IEORGE W. AND F. M. WILSON are
among the few men in Brown county
who own and occupy the same farm
on which they were born and on which they
have resided continuously since childhood.
Their grandfather, Savile Wilson, was born
in Egg Harbor city, New Jersey, in 1770,
of English parents. He was a farmer by oc-
cupation, owning several hundred acres of
choice agricultural land. He made a specialty
of dairying, having several hundred milk
cows, and made cheese and butter, which he
marketed in New York city and Philadelphia.
He also engaged extensively in truck farm-
ing and poultry raising. Iii 1790, he mar-
ried Susan Carver, and they had seven
children, four sons and three daughters. On
the outbreak of the war of 1812, he enlisted
in a New York regiment, and participated in
most of the great battles. He was in the
battle of Bladensburg and saw Washington
city burned. In 1817, he emigrated to Ohio,
settling near Cincinnati, where he engaged
in farming. His entire family, some of
whom were married and had children of
their own, emigrated with him. In 1825,
he removed farther westward, settling near
Indianapolis, Indiana. Here he bought 640
acres of wild land, from which he and his
sons proceeded to clear the timber, prepara-
tory to its cultivation. One would have
thought that a man who had passed the
meridian of life, and who had borne the
hardships and privations of two settlements
in the wilderness, would be content to re-
main where he was, but such was not the
case. Indeed, a desire for change increased
with the gratification of a naturally ad-
venturous and roving disposition. Conse-
quently, we again find him, in 1836, turn-
ing his steps toward the setting sun. This
time he removed to Illinois, settling in
Adams county, where he bought twelve
sections of land, some of which now lies
within the limits of the city of Quincy. In
this same year, shortly after their arrival in
the Prairie State, the devoted wife and mother
was called to her reward, leaving a break in
in the family which time could never repair.
As if the severance of those tender ties was
too severe a blow to be endured, the husband
620
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CAS '8,
and father also expired, two years afterward,
in 1838. They were aptly mated, both be-
ing persons of intelligence, activity and great
perseverance, which contributed to their
marked success in life. Mr. Wilson's in-
fluence and strong sense of justice retained
his family around him until his death, many
of his children having families of their own.
The interests of these were consolidated,
their land and agricultural interests being
held in partnership, and all accomplished
with the utmost satisfaction and good will.
His forethought and perseverance were re-
markable, and seldom failed to carry him
forward to success. As witness of this, we
append an incident, showing with what care
the last removal of the family to Illinois was
contemplated and brought to a happy con-
summation : Previous to disposing of his farm
in Indiana, which in itself was contrary to
the time-honored custom, of leaping first and
looking afterward, he and his eldest son,
John S. Wilson, went all over the proposed
route to the "West," as Illinois and Mis-
souri were then called, traveling through the
Prairie State to St. Louis, thence to Fort
Scott and Fort Leavenworth, at that time
the extreme western part of Missouri. At
the latter place they rested a few days, after
covering this long stretch of territory on
horseback, and then resumed their journey
homeward, returning by way of Iowa and
central Illinois. This was, indeed, an under-
taking in those days, the magnitude of which
cannot be correctly estimated in these times
of rapid and comfortable transit. Their way
led over lonely distances, the silence of which
was, at times, oppressive, many days some-
times elapsing without disclosing to view a
single habitation or the face of a white man.
All glory be to those who went before and
blazed the path for others to follow !
Reuben Wilson, father of the subjects of
this sketch, was born in New Jersey in 1790.
The schools in that State were then but
primitive affairs, but his quick perception
and inherited judgment stood him in good
stead, and he imbibed a fair amount of
knowledge of books. He married Sarah
Spencer, a bright, active girl, whose parents
were German. His father, some time later,
becoming inspired with his customary desire
for travel, Reuben accompanied him to Ohio,
afterward to Indiana, and finally to Illinois.
He at first settled in Adams county, the latter
State, whence he removed, two years later,
to Brown county, locating on the west half
of section 32, township 1 south, 3 west.
Reuben Wilson was thus a pioneer in three
different States, and was well acquainted
with the hardships and privations incidental
to settling a wild, new country. He was
always a champion of education, and es-
pecially favored free public schools. He was
one of three or four men, who built the first
school-house in district No. 1 township 1
south 3, west, which served for school purposes
for twenty years. It was christened White
Oak College, from the white oak logs used in
its construction, and that name still clings
to the large frame house, which took its
place years afterward. He was a devoted
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
to which he had belonged from his twentieth
year; and he helped organize the first Meth-
odist Episcopal Church in Brown county,
his residence often serving for the public
meeting-house. This good and greatly es-
teemed man was called from this life in
1855, leaving a stricken family and many
friends to mourn his loss. His worthy wife,
Sarah, the companion of his youth and sharer
of his hardships, survived him many years,
expiring in 1873. They had ten children,
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
621
seven sons and three daughters, all but the
two, whose names head this biography, hav-
ing passed away. Following are their uames:
John S., born in Hew Jersey, May 15,
1817, came to Brown county, where he died
April 22, 1885; he married Elizabeth
Adams, in 1845, who was born March 14,
1827, and died June 13, 1892; they had six
children, three sous and three daughters, all
now living in Brown county.
Savile Wilson, born in New Jersey, came
to Brown county, married Mary McDaniel,
in 1845; he emigrated to Texas in 1853, and
his wife died in Shreveport, Louisiana, with
the cholera, on the way to their destination;
he settled_ near Gainesville, Cooke county,
where he died in 1880; his children consisted
of four sons and two daughters, all but two
now dead.
Reuben J., born in Ohio, came with his
parents to Brown county, where he died in
1860; he married Lncinda Marden in 1846,
who died in 1889; they had three daughters
and one son.
Jesse J., born in Ohio, died in Brown
county, in 1877, unmarried.
Susan, born in Indiana, married Silas
Campbell in 1868, and died in 1878; they
had three daughters, two of whom survive.
Hester, born in Indiana, married Dr. T. J.
Norvell, and died in 1885.
James M., born in Indiana, died in 1847,
in boyhood.
Sarah Ann, born in Adams county, Illi-
nois, married Arthur Newenhan, in 1872;
she died in Missouri, in 1879; they had two
sons, one of whom is now living.
George W. Wilson, senior partner of Wil-
son & Brother, was born January 19, 1837,
on the west half of section 32, township 1
south, 3 west, Brown county, Illinois, where
he has resided continuously ever since. He
was educated in the country schools, which
were crude at that time, attending usually
for three months during the winter. He
soon learned that it was a virtue to be in-
dustrious. The chief occupations were: cul-
tivating and harvesting the various crops;
attending and feeding stock; clearing off
new land; splitting rails and building fence.
There was ample recreation in the hunting
of wild game, with which the prairies and
woods on the streams abounded, especially
wild turkey and smaller game, such as
squirrels, quails, etc., affording great sport
in shooting and trapping.
When twelve years of age, he and his
younger brother, F. M. Wilson, built a small
pen out of fence rails, covering it with the
same, and made a trap door, which they set
for turkey. They caught ten at one time,
besides one or two on various other occasions.
He was never married. He was never
identified with any church, although a
strictly moral and upright man. He ex-
perienced a great affliction in 1855, when his
father died, leaving him and F. M. Wilson,
the youngest of the family, and their mother,
alone, the older members being married and
having homes of their own. Such had been
their training, however, that they successfully
carried on the farm as usual. It was this
trying ordeal, sharing a common sorrow
through the long and lonesome days, as they
went about their daily tasks, that laid the
foundation for the partnership which has
survived for more than a generation. In
1880, they, in company with William Eckler
and Manville Larkin, took a trip out West,
to look for a more favorable location. After
visiting Missouri, Kansas and other por-
tions of the West, they concluded Illinois
was the best place, and accordingly com-
menced life in earnest.
622
BIOGRAPHIC 'AT. REVIEW OF CASS,
In 1865, they formed a partnership in
snwmilling, of which the members were,
Jesse J., George W. and F. M. Wilson, the
firm name being Wilson & Brother. They
continued successfully in the lumber busi-
ness for eight years, sawing large quantities,
which they shipped to Turner, Jacksonville
and other places, besides supplying a large
home trade, and in the meantime they
were also farming. In the spring of 1866
and 1867, they set out a large orchard of
apple trees, covering 120 acres, which, after a
great expense, proved a failure, the winter
of 1875 killing the trees, so they had to be
cut down.
In 1873, they were called upon to mourn
the loss of their devoted mother, who went
to her reward after a life of the purest un-
selfishness and entire subservience to the
happiness of her children. She was widely
known in her community, and was sincerely
mourned by a large circle of friends.
In 1877, Jesse J. Wilson died, and the
business was continued by the two brothers,
who, for several years past, have carried on
general farming and stock-raising. At the
present time they have a feed mill, where
they grind all the grain for their stock; and
they have also a small sawmill, which they
operate principally for their own use.
F. M. Wilson was born March 3, 1839, in
Brown county, on the west half of section
32, township 1 south, 3 west; and has re-
sided continuously on the same farm ever
since. He was known as a quiet, unassum-
ing boy, ever ready to stand for the right
and condemn the wrong, which characteristic
is equally marked in him as a man. He
never belonged to any church, but is an up-
right man, accepting for his guide the great-
est of rules, that " Whatsoever ye would that
men should do unto you, do ye also even
unto them." He was a member of the
Grange until that lodge was discontinued.
He belongs to the Farmers' Alliance, is
president of the Board, and has been School
Director for twenty years, which position lie
still holds.
He has been twice married: first, in 1862,
to Martha Carpenter, who died the following
year. In 1866, he married Minerva J.
Richey, who died in 1874, leaving two chil-
dren to his care, a son and daughter, who
are living at home with him.
Mr. Wilson was educated in the common
schools of his vicinity, then called subscrip-
tion schools, which he attended for three
months each winter. The term "subscrip-
tion" arose in consequence of each parent
signing a paper, which assured a teacher a
certain number of scholars, the tuition be-
ing usually $2 for each child for a term of
sixty days, including the teacher's board,
who lived arouud for equal lengths of time
among the various families. The school
houses were crude, being built of logs,
usually sixteen feet square, with a stove in
the center. The furniture corresponded
with the appearance of the house, the seats
being made of slabs, a slab being the first
piece sawed from a log. These were sup-
ported by wooden pins, inserted in auger
holes bored in the bark side. These seats
were placed around the stove, usually about
two feet apart. For writing-desks a plank
was fastened to the walls, all around the
room. Thus in this room would be crowded
probably forty pupils, of ages ranging from
five to twenty years. The studies were neces-
sarily crude, nothing being attempted but
the rudiments of reading, writing and
ciphering, often denominated the " three
R's." However, on the foundation thus at-
tained many built well, and afterward took
SCHUYLER AND BROWN COUNTIES.
623
their place in the world as useful members
of society.
The Messrs. Wilson have witnessed the
improvements extending over a period of
half a century, many of which are interest-
ing for a later generation to note. The first
plowing was done with a wooden plow, fur-
nished with an iron share. A complete revo-
lution has been made in agricultural imple-
ments and methods within their lifetime.
One of them still bears the scars on his
hands, which were made by a reaping hook,
in' his first efforts at harvesting wheat. After
this came the cradle, which superseded the
reaping hook; later the horse-power machines,
the grain being cut by horse-power, after
which it was raked from the platform and
made into bundles by hand. Subsequently
to this came the self -raking reaper, which
was a great saving of labor entailed in hand
raking. After this, the self-binder; first
with wire, then with twine, and bunching
the sheaves together ready for shocking.
But, there have been more improvements, if
possible, in threshing and cleaning the
grain. First, the flail and tramping floor
were used, the modus operandi being as
follows: A circle of sheaves, five or six feet
wide and ten or twelve paces in diameter,
over which four or six horses would tramp,
until the grain was out. Then the straw was
separated from the chaff and wheat, after
which the wheat was run through a fanning-
mill, to clean the grain. Fanning-mills were at
first few in number; men often hauled their
wheat and chaff five or six miles in order to
get it cleaned; often paying as much to get
their wheat fanned as it now costs to have
it threshed. The first threshing machines
were composed of a cylinder, operated by a
belt, which threshed the grain, but did not
separate it from the straw, which was after-
ward accomplished by hand. The next im-
provement made, was a separator which, as
the name implied, separated the straw from
the wheat and chaff, after which the wheat
had to be fanned free from the chaff. The
cleaners were then used, which cleaned the
grain as it was threshed.
One would naturally suppose that labor*
saving devices would have been readily
adopted, but such was not the case. There
were men who opposed every advance that
was made. They clung tenaciously to the
reap-hook, after they could have a cradle;
others would still use the cradle when they
could have a horse-power machine; and, in-
credible as it may seem, there were binders
destroyed in Brown county during the first
year of their use, by the professional harvest
hands, who said they could get no work to do.
[KNEST JOCKISCH, a practical farmer
and stock-raiser of section 5 and 6, of
township 17, range 11, owns a fine and
well improved property where he lives. Al-
together he owns about 500 acres of first-
class land, 400 acres of which is highly im-
proved and supplied with first-class build-
ings. He has lived in the county since he
was ten years of age and has owned land
farming it for himself since he was twenty
seven. He has been very successful and is
very proud of his efforts.
He was born in Saxony, Germany, Febru-
ary 6, 1825, and came with his parents and
grandparents to the United States. The
family began life here as poor people did in
those days, but they did not remain poor very
long and are all rich at the present writing.
They have done much to build up Cass
county, where many of them yet live, and
624
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS, ETC. COUNTIES.
they are all progressive people. (See bio-
graphy of William Jockisch.)
Ernest was married in this county to
Margaret Deiglemeier, born in Hanover,
Germany, coming with her mother and
brother to the United States when she was
young. The family settled in Cass county.
The head of the family had died in Germany
before they started on their trip across the
ocean. The widowed mother died soon after
her arrival in this county.
Mr. and Mrs. Jockisch are the parents of
seven children: Wilhelmina, deceased after
marriage and birth of three children, yet liv-
ing. The living children are: Caroline, wife
of Oscar Lane, farmer of Concord, Morgan
county, Illinois; William A., a farmer, mar-
ried to Tilda Carls; Frank, a farmer in Cass
county, married Emma Hesler; Louisa, at
home; Charles and Henry are at home and
farm with tlieir father. All are good hard-
working people. Mr. Jockisch, wife and
children are members of Zion German
Methodist Episcopal Church, of which they
are generous supporters. Mr. Jockisch and
sons are all Republicans and Mr. Jockisch
lias held i^cal offices. He is a genial man
and kind-hearted neighbor, and is highly re-
spected by all.
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-URBANA
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW OF CASS. SCHUYLER AN
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