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 of the 
 
 FIGURINES 
 
 on display in the 
 
 ILLINOIS STATE HISTORICAL 
 LIBRARY 
 
 Compiled by Georgia L. Osborne, Librarian 
 Assisted by Emma B. Scott 
 
 Springfield, Illinois 
 1932 
 
 Printed by authority of the State of Illinois
 
 ' ^Mff "".' i 
 
 LINCOLN ROOM 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS 
 LIBRARY
 
 Brief Biographies 
 
 of the 
 
 FIGURINES 
 
 on display in the 
 
 ILLINOIS STATE HISTORICAL LIBRARY 
 
 Compiled by Georgia L. Osborne, Librarian 
 Assisted by Emma B. Scott 
 
 THE LIBRARY OF THE 
 
 AUG 1 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS. 
 
 Springfield, Illinois 
 1932 
 
 Printed by authority of the State of Illinois
 
 PANTAGRAPH CO. B LOO Ml NG TON .
 
 
 FOREWORD 
 
 Though many people are already acquainted with the 
 beautiful figurines in the Illinois State Historical Li- 
 brary, many others have not met them, and so this little 
 book is published as an introduction. Through the gen- 
 erosity of Mrs. Minna Schmidt, of Chicago, this addition 
 to the Library was made possible. 
 
 It has been a long, but delightful, task, searching 
 for any bit of information possible to obtain — a few lines 
 here, a paragraph there — for until recent years, biog- 
 raphies have been confined principally to the masculine 
 sex. 
 
 Authorities differed on some points, as the spelling 
 of a name, the date of a birth or death. In such cases 
 we had to choose that which to us seemed more nearly 
 correct. 
 
 It would be impossible to enumerate all the sources 
 from which this information has been derived, but we are 
 greatly indebted to all the relatives and friends who have 
 assisted us with personal letters or interviews, as well 
 as to the County Histories of the State and other ref- 
 erence books used in the compilation. 
 
 GEORGIA L. OSBORNE. 
 
 808658
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 OFTHt 
 
 UMWER81TY Qf MtO»
 
 Mrs. Minna Schmidt
 
 MRS. MINNA SCHMIDT 
 
 Mrs. Minna Schmidt, of Chicago, Illinois, has pre- 
 sented to the State one hundred twenty-nine figurines 
 of Illinois women (none living) , who have in some special 
 way helped to make Illinois history. These figurines 
 have been deposited in the Illinois State Historical Li- 
 brary, where they are on display at all times. They are 
 dressed in the costumes of the periods which they rep- 
 resent, and attract much attention. 
 
 The eldest of seventeen children, a young life full of 
 poverty and hardship, but with an intense desire for 
 knowledge, is the story of Mrs. Schmidt's early days in 
 Germany. She mastered the English language, and bent 
 every energy toward self -improvement along progressive 
 lines. 
 
 At the age of twenty, she came to America. It was 
 not long before she was married, and she was often over- 
 taxed with her home duties and her studies. Mrs. 
 Schmidt opened a small studio and began to teach danc- 
 ing, physical training and play-acting. She also designed 
 costumes for the players. Not yet satisfied, she studied 
 the costumes of women from the beginning of time. She 
 made small wax figures and dressed them, commencing 
 with Eve and ending with the modern swimming girl. 
 
 The small studio grew into the Schmidt College of 
 Scientific Costuming, in which Mrs. Schmidt's husband 
 and two sons worked with her. Since the presentation 
 of the figurines, one son, Helmut, who modeled them, has 
 died. Mrs. Schmidt has built up this institution with 
 hard work, infinite patience, and the ambition to be cor- 
 rect in every detail of a costume. She conducts a course 
 of lectures on this subject in the University of Chicago, 
 which has proved very popular.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 I. The French Period 
 
 II. The Pioneer Period 
 
 III. The Civil War Period 
 
 IV. The Chicago Fire Period 
 
 V. The World's Columbian Exposition 
 Period to 1929
 
 I. 
 
 THE FRENCH PERIOD
 
 11 
 
 MRS. JOSEPH H. BANCROFT 
 
 (Emily Adams) 
 
 Mrs. Emily Adams Bancroft was born January 2, 
 1813, at Andover, Massachusetts, daughter of John and 
 Elizabeth Ripley Adams. Her father was a New Eng- 
 land school teacher, formerly Principal of Phillips 
 Academy, at Andover. On her mother's side, she was 
 a direct descendant of Governor Bradford of Massa- 
 chusetts. 
 
 In May, 1845, she was married to Joseph H. Ban- 
 croft, in Jacksonville, Illinois. 
 
 Probably the most outstanding of Mrs. Bancroft's 
 public work was in connection with the Ladies Educa- 
 tional Society, founded in 1833, the oldest woman's club 
 in the United States. She joined this Society in 1837, 
 and for fifty years was corresponding secretary. In later 
 years she was elected president. In her father's home 
 she met many of the prominent men of the nation, and 
 this large acquaintance proved to be valuable in secur- 
 ing funds for the Society. 
 
 Mrs. Bancroft was also active in W. C. T. U. work, 
 and in various charitable organizations. She was a faith- 
 ful member of the Congregational church, teaching, for 
 many years, a large Bible class in the Sunday School, and 
 aiding in all other church activities. 
 
 In 1897, she gave the address of welcome before the 
 State Federation of Woman's Clubs in Jacksonville, be- 
 ing at that time eighty-four years of age. She and Mr. 
 Bancroft celebrated their golden wedding in 1895. 
 
 Mrs. Emily A. Bancroft died in February, 1900, at 
 Jacksonville, Illinois, and is buried in Diamond Grove 
 Cemetery.
 
 12 
 
 MRS. SHADRACH BOND 
 
 (Achsah Bond) 
 
 Mrs. Shadrach Bond was born in 1775, the daughter 
 of Thomas Bond III and his wife, Catherine Fell Bond. 
 On November 27, 1810, she was married to a distant rela- 
 tive, Colonel Shadrach Bond, who, in 1818, became the 
 first Governor of the new State of Illinois. The young 
 couple came to Illinois and settled in the New Design 
 District, Monroe county. 
 
 Mrs. Bond was a devoted wife, a kind mother, and 
 a devout christian. Coming from Baltimore, her native 
 city, and the home of Methodism, she early became a 
 member of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
 
 When her husband was elected a Delegate to Con- 
 gress from the Territory of Illinois, Mrs. Bond, with the 
 assistance of her negro servants, sheared some sheep, 
 washed, carded and spun the wool, wove it into broad- 
 cloth, and made him a suit of clothes. She accompanied 
 him to Washington on horseback, the journey taking six 
 weeks. 
 
 All of her life Mrs. Bond was a strong pro-slavery 
 advocate. She refused to free her slaves until the law 
 required her to have them indentured. 
 
 Much of the success in life of Colonel Shadrach Bond 
 was due to the valuable assistance rendered him by his 
 wife, who, although a home-loving woman, entertained 
 lavishly, and helped him in every way. 
 
 Mrs. Bond died on February 29, 1844, and was buried 
 beside her husband on the homestead farm. In 1879, 
 when the Mississippi River threatened to wash away the 
 ground upon which Kaskaskia stood, the remains of both 
 were removed to Evergreen Cemetery, at Chester, 
 Illinois.
 
 13 
 
 MRS. THOMAS K. CARSON 
 
 (Catherine Kendall) 
 
 Catherine Kendall Carson was born in Shenandoah 
 county, Virginia, September 11, 1785. She married 
 Thomas K. Carson, May 11, 1803. They moved to Mor- 
 ganfield, Kentucky, in July, 1822, and in April, 1824, 
 traveled to Illinois in a "mover wagon" drawn by oxen. 
 Mrs. Carson carried the door and window frames on her 
 arm, riding on horseback, from Jersey Prairie, Illinois, 
 where they were made, to Jacksonville, Illinois. They 
 were for their cabin home which had two rooms, the 
 whole being eighteen feet square. In this cabin or tav- 
 ern, as it was later called, was tried the first case in 
 Morgan county, Illinois. 
 
 Mrs. Carson was a woman of strong physical con- 
 stitution, penetrating intellect, of unusual energy and 
 determination. It was a matter of pride that one of her 
 ancestors was a noted Indian, hence the indomitable 
 spirit and courage for which she was noted. She quali- 
 fied herself for the important profession of an "ac- 
 coucheuse," or in common parlance, that of "mid- wife." 
 She rose to a high position in this profession. Her rec- 
 ords show that she was present at the birth of 3,500 
 children. She was often called to St. Louis to visit her 
 patients, as well as to Springfield and the neighboring 
 towns. 
 
 She was the mother of nine children, the first child, 
 Alexander Woffendall, being the first male child born 
 in Jacksonville. 
 
 Mrs. Carson died November 22, 1869, and so re- 
 spected was she by all, that upon motion of Judge Wil- 
 liam Thomas, Court adjourned to attend her funeral.
 
 14 
 
 MRS. EDWARD COLES 
 
 (Sally Logan Roberts) 
 
 Sally Logan Roberts was born August 4, 1809, a 
 daughter of Hugh Roberts, and a descendant of James 
 Logan, secretary of the province of Pennsylvania, with 
 William Perm. 
 
 In 1832 or 1833, Edward Coles, second Governor of 
 the State of Illinois, removed from Illinois to Philadel- 
 phia. Here he met Miss Roberts, and on November 28, 
 1833, they were united in marriage by Bishop DeLancy. 
 Three children, two sons and a daughter were born to 
 them. Surrounded by all that wealth could give them, 
 their home was the center of genuine hospitality to their 
 friends. 
 
 Mrs. Coles died April 4, 1883, and is buried beside 
 her husband, who died in 1868, in Woodlands Cemetery, 
 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Although all Cemetery rec- 
 ords were entered in the name of Sarah L. Coles, the fol- 
 lowing inscription was cut on the tomb over the grave: 
 " Sally Logan, daughter of Hugh Roberts, wife of 
 Edward Coles, Aug. 4, 1809. Died April 4, 1883."
 
 15 
 
 MRS. JOSEPH DUNCAN 
 
 (Elizabeth Caldwell Smith) 
 
 Elizabeth Caldwell Duncan was born in New York 
 City, March 28, 1808, the daughter of James R. Smith, a 
 shipping merchant in New York, and Hannah Ogden 
 Caldwell Smith. The Caldwells were French Huguenots 
 who moved to Scotland, and by way of Ireland, to Vir- 
 ginia. Mrs. Duncan's heritage was distinctly religious 
 and patriotic. The religious tone of her diary, which 
 has been published, is due both to the spirit of the times 
 and the atmosphere of her home. 
 
 On May 13, 1828, she was married to General Jo- 
 seph Duncan, a representative from the young State of 
 Illinois, whom she met at a dinner at the White House. 
 His twenty-year old bride accompanied Mm to Illinois. 
 Ten children were born to them, of whom only three lived 
 to maturity. Most of their married life was spent in 
 Jacksonville. 
 
 General Duncan was elected Governor of Illinois in 
 1834, and during his term of office he was ably assisted 
 by his wife who was active in all charitable and educa- 
 tional movements. Mrs. Duncan was unassuming in man- 
 ner, and interesting in conversation. She was especially 
 interested in the Abolition and Colonization Societies, 
 and in maternal meetings. She loved to do good. The 
 hospitality of their home was unbounded. At one time 
 Daniel Webster, his wife and his niece were entertained 
 by Governor and Mrs. Duncan at a barbecue held in their 
 grove at the "Elms," Jacksonville. 
 
 Mrs. Duncan died at her home on May 23, 1876, sur- 
 viving her husband about thirty-two years.
 
 16 
 
 MRS. JOHN EDGAR 
 (Madam Rachel ) 
 
 Madam Rachel , a widow, married General 
 
 John Edgar, in Boston, Massachusetts. She was a small 
 woman, with fair complexion, quite dressy, and wore 
 much jewelry. She was a very pious lady, and beloved 
 by all who knew her. She was a true American in 
 education and sympathy. 
 
 Her husband, John Edgar, was an officer in the Brit- 
 ish navy, fighting against the colonies in their struggle 
 for liberty and independence. By her talent, tact, and 
 above all, her patriotic devotion to her country, she won 
 over, not only the heart of her husband to the American 
 cause, but was the projector of many plans by which 
 soldiers in the British army were induced to quit, and 
 join the ranks of the patriots. 
 
 On one occasion she had arranged a plan of escape 
 for three soldiers, and was to furnish them guns, Ameri- 
 can uniforms, and all needful information to enable 
 them to reach the American camp. When they came, 
 Mrs. Edgar was away from home, but her husband be- 
 ing in her confidence, supplied them with the outfit. The 
 deserters were caught, returned to the British camp, and 
 compelled to divulge the names of their abettor. This 
 implicated Mr. Edgar, and he fled. He remained for a 
 while in the American army, then for greater seclusion, 
 he went to Kaskaskia. His property was confiscated, 
 but the shrewdness of his wife saved $12,000, with which 
 she joined her husband two years later. 
 
 Mrs. John Edgar died in Kaskaskia, Illinois, in July, 
 1822, at the age of eighty-six.
 
 17 
 
 MRS. JOHN MILLOT ELLIS 
 
 (Frances Celeste Brard) 
 
 Frances Brard Ellis was born in Baltimore, Mary- 
 land, in 1795, of French parents who had left the island 
 of St. Domingo, and settled temporarily in Baltimore. 
 When Frances was four years old they returned to the 
 island, but were caught in the negro insurrection, and 
 again they came to the United States, stopping in Phila- 
 delphia. Frances was placed in a French school, and 
 afterward became a teacher of French. Upon the death 
 of her mother in 1819, she went to Kaskaskia to reside 
 with a married sister. 
 
 Miss Brard had the sparkling vivacity for which her 
 nation is so noted, and her wit was quick and keen. 
 Above all, her heart was set upon whatever was noble, 
 pure and holy. 
 
 In Kaskaskia she met John Millot Ellis and became 
 his wife on April 2, 1828. Coming to Jacksonville from 
 Kaskaskia, Mrs. Ellis opened a school for young women. 
 Pupils came to her from St. Louis, Kaskaskia, and 
 Prairie du Chien, as well as from Jacksonville. In her 
 cottage of three rooms she taught her scholars, cared 
 for her family, boarded several young ladies, and wel- 
 comed and entertained all the ministers who came to 
 Jacksonville. 
 
 She entered into the plans of the founders of Illi- 
 nois College with her whole heart, and prepared the way 
 for the establishment of the Jacksonville Female 
 Academy. She was in her grave before its walls were 
 raised, but the advanced scholars of its early days were 
 trained in her home. 
 
 Mrs. Ellis and three children died of cholera in Jack- 
 sonville, in 1833.
 
 18 
 
 MRS. GEORGE FLOWER 
 
 (Eliza Julia Andrews) 
 
 Eliza Julia Andrews was the second daughter of 
 Rev. Mordicah Andrews of Eigeshall, County of Essex, 
 England. She was a great friend of the Birkbeck family 
 in England, and was on a visit to Wanborough, England, 
 at the time Mr. Birkbeck decided to emigrate to Ameri- 
 ca. She was twenty-five years of age at that time, and 
 consented to accompany them. 
 
 At Richmond, Virginia, the party was joined by Mr. 
 George Flower, and journeying by stage-coach and horse- 
 back, they finally reached Vincennes, Indiana. Mr. 
 Flower and Miss Andrews had become much attached to 
 each other on the long journey, and they were married 
 at Vincennes in 1817, at the home of Colonel LaSalle. 
 The ceremony was performed by Elihu Stout, Justice of 
 the Peace, and the Editor of the only newspaper pub- 
 lished at that time. There were present at the ceremony, 
 Morris Birkbeck, representing the father of the bride, 
 and Mr. Elias Pym Fordham and Judge Blake as invited 
 guests and witnesses. 
 
 Mrs. Flower was a woman of rare intelligence and 
 excellent education, to which she united an energetic and 
 courageous spirit. She was an affectionate wife, a de- 
 voted mother, a kind friend, and a good neighbor. She 
 proved herself in all the relations of life a true and noble 
 woman. 
 
 Mrs. Flower died at the home of her daughter, Mrs. 
 Agniel, at Grayville, Illinois, January 15, 1862. At twi- 
 light the same evening, her husband also passed away. 
 They were buried in the same grave at Grayville, Illinois.
 
 19 
 
 MRS. NATHAN HEALD 
 
 (Rebekah Wells) 
 
 Rebekah Wells Heald, daughter of Captain Samuel 
 Wells, a noted Indian fighter of Kentucky, was born 
 about 1776, near Louisville. She was the niece of Cap- 
 tain William Wells who had been stolen by the Indians 
 in boyhood, and was one of them. After much persua- 
 sion by Rebekah and her father, her uncle finally decided 
 to return to his relatives, but he still retained his friend- 
 ship with the Indians. 
 
 During a visit with her uncle in Fort Wayne, 
 Rebekah met Captain Nathan Heald, and on May 23, 
 1811, they were married in Louisville. She rode horse- 
 back on a superb gray mare all the way from Louisville 
 to Fort Dearborn with her husband who was Comman- 
 dant of the Fort. The bridal party was received by the 
 garrison with all the honors of war, for the addition of 
 a woman like Mrs. Heald to the garrison circle, was a 
 great event. 
 
 As daughter, niece, and wife of these three brave 
 men, Rebekah Wells Heald was worthy of her name. 
 She was a woman of vast courage, as proven by her ac- 
 tions at the massacre at Fort Dearborn in 1812. Mrs. 
 Heald was wounded six times by the Indians, and was a 
 British prisoner of war at Fort Mackinac with her 
 husband. 
 
 Upon being paroled, they returned to Louisville. In 
 1817, they went to Stockland, now 'Fallon, St. Charles 
 county, Missouri, where they made their home. In 1821, 
 a son, Darius, was born to them. Mrs. Heald died at her 
 home, April 28, 1857, aged eighty-one years.
 
 20 
 
 MADAM NICHOLAS JARROT 
 
 (Julia Beauvais) 
 
 Mrs. Julia Beauvais Jarrot was born in 1780, the 
 daughter of Vital and Felicite (Janis) Beauvais of Ste. 
 Genevieve, formerly of Kaskaskia, where they were 
 among the most influential families. 
 
 Julia Beauvais was the second wife of Nicholas Jar- 
 rot, who was born in 1764. They were married at Ste. 
 Genevieve in 1797. Julia inherited the wedding ring, 
 silver ladle, spoons and cups which her mother had re- 
 ceived on her wedding day in 1776. 
 
 In 1798 the young couple lived in Cahokia. Nicholas 
 Jarrot was accumulating a fortune, and he began the 
 building of a mansion close to the church. The house was 
 finished in 1806, and from that year it became the home 
 of generations of Jarrots. 
 
 Mrs. Jarrot possessed a strong mind together with 
 a mild and amiable disposition, and was a great support 
 and solace to her husband. Six children were born to 
 them, several of whom married into the Edgar and Mor- 
 rison families. 
 
 Worn out by unusual and varied activities, Nicholas 
 fell a victim to undue exposure, and died on December 8, 
 1820. The family continued to live in the mansion, the 
 children and their children, with Madam Jarrot. In a 
 suit known as "Jarrot vs. Jarrot," a so-called French 
 slave sued his mistress, Julia Jarrot of Cahokia, for 
 pay for his past services. The suit was lost by Mrs. Jar- 
 rot, and it was considered a great triumph by all anti- 
 slavery men. 
 
 Finally Mrs. Jarrot went to St. Louis to live, where 
 she died in 1875, at the age of ninety -five years.
 
 21 
 
 MRS. JOHN RICE JONES 
 (Mary Barger) 
 
 Mary Barger Jones was born in Pennsylvania, on 
 May 17, 1767, the eldest daughter of George and Mar- 
 garet Barger. The Bargers were of German ancestry, 
 whose language they all spoke as well as the English and 
 French. Mary told how she always, even when past 
 childhood, said her prayers, learned at her pious mother's 
 knee, in that language. 
 
 In a very early day her father, with his wife and 
 large family of children, emigrated from Pennsylvania 
 and settled in the country northwest of the Ohio. Here, 
 in Vincennes, she met John Rice Jones, a widower, and 
 married him on February 11, 1791, four years after the 
 death of his first wife. Mr. Jones was a man of great 
 prominence in the law, being the first English-speaking 
 lawyer in Indiana, and the first to practice his profession 
 in Illinois. 
 
 Mary Barger Jones was of a very gentle nature and 
 highly regarded by all who knew her. She was a woman 
 of many virtues and had the strong character that was 
 developed in women under the conditions of life and 
 society in the early West. 
 
 Eight children were born to John Rice and Mary 
 Barger Jones. One died when young, but the others 
 lived to grow up and be a credit to their parents. 
 
 Mrs. Jones died at the home of her son, General 
 Augustus Jones, at Potosi, Missouri, on January 6, 1839, 
 having lived to a good old age and survived her husband 
 about fifteen years.
 
 22 
 
 MRS. JOHN KINZIE 
 
 (Mrs. Eleanor Little McKillip) 
 
 Mrs. Eleanor Little McKillip Kinzie was born in 
 1770, the daughter of John Little, and the granddaughter 
 of Nathaniel Little who came from Ireland to Lancaster 
 county, Pennsylvania, about 1830. When Eleanor was a 
 child the family moved to Plum Creek, close to Pitts- 
 burgh. It was from this place that the Seneca Indians 
 stole Eleanor when she was nine years old. She was 
 adopted by Chief Cornplanter, who, four years later, re- 
 stored her to her parents. 
 
 At the age of fourteen, Eleanor married a British 
 officer, Captain Daniel McKillip, who was accidentally 
 killed August 20, 1794. Mrs. McKillip took her little 
 daughter, Margaret, to Detroit, where they lived four 
 years, and where she married John Kinzie, on January 
 23, 1798. 
 
 Mrs. Kinzie, with her husband and three months old 
 baby son, John Harris, moved to Chicago in 1804. Her 
 three other children were born in Illinois. 
 
 At the massacre of Fort Dearborn, August 15, 1812, 
 the Kinzie family escaped, with the help of friendly In- 
 dians, to Detroit. In 1816, they returned to Chicago 
 where they lived till Mr. Kinzie 's death in January, 1828. 
 
 In 1830, Mrs. Kinzie removed with her son, John 
 Harris Kinzie, to Fort Winnebago where he had been 
 appointed sub-Indian agent. He married Juliette Ma- 
 gill, who later wrote a book entitled "Wau Bun: The 
 Early Day in the Northwest. ' ' Her mother-in-law, while 
 not the author, was the inspiration of the book, as she 
 related the story of the early life and sufferings. Mrs. 
 Kinzie died in 1834.
 
 23 
 
 MADAM LA COMPT 
 (Miss LaFlamme) 
 
 Madam La Compt was born of French parents of the 
 name of LaFlamme, at St. Joseph, on Lake Michigan, 
 in 1734. 
 
 She first emigrated to Mackinac, and after residing 
 there some time, settled at Chicago with her hnsband, 
 Saint e Ange, about 1765. Saint e Ange dying, she mar- 
 ried M. La Compt, a Canadian, in Cahokia, about 1780. 
 From this marriage proceeded one of the largest French 
 families in Illinois. 
 
 After the death of M. La Compt, she married the 
 celebrated Thomas Brady. They had no children. 
 Madam La Compt, as she was commonly called after 
 Thomas Brady's death, possessed a strong mind with the 
 courage and energies of a heroine. She was scarcely ever 
 sick, though often exposed to the inclemency of the 
 weather and other hardships. 
 
 The Indians were her neighbors and friends all her 
 life. She was familiar with their language and their 
 character. By a wise and proper course with them, she 
 acquired a great influence over the Pottawatomies, Kick- 
 apoos, and other nations bordering on the lakes, and 
 thus was enabled to prevent many an Indian attack on 
 the white population. Her Indian friends often awak- 
 ened her in the dead hours of the night to warn her to 
 leave Cahokia, when there was an intended attack. In- 
 stead of leaving she would go to the Indian camp and 
 stay there for several days, appeasing the anger of the 
 warriors, and never failed to avert the storm and prevent 
 bloodshed. 
 
 Madam La Compt died in Cahokia at the age of one 
 hundred and nine years.
 
 24 
 
 MRS. JOHN MARSHALL 
 
 (Almira Leech) 
 
 Almira Leech Marshall was born in Louisville, Ken- 
 tucky, February 21, 1787, the daughter of George and 
 Achsah Applegate Leech. In 1782, Mr. and Mrs. Leech, 
 with others, removed from Philadelphia to Louisville, 
 Kentucky. Later they went to Yincennes, and were 
 among the early white settlers. 
 
 Almira was married to John Marshall, October 21, 
 1806, her father, Judge Leech, officiating. Soon after 
 their marriage they came to Illinois, but Mrs. Marshall 
 was not satisfied, as she considered the people so wicked, 
 and the following March they returned to Vincennes. 
 Later, they moved to their farm, and finally, to Shawnee- 
 town where Mr. Marshall opened a general merchandise 
 store. 
 
 They built the first brick house in town, a large resi- 
 dence facing the Ohio river, and here they entertained 
 many prominent people. Mr. Marshall also conducted 
 a bank in the front room of his residence, which was the 
 first bank in Illinois. 
 
 Mrs. Marshall was very devout, even as a young girl. 
 She loved to sing the old hymns, and in her youth memo- 
 rized many of them, as well as whole chapters of her 
 Bible. She felt the need of a church in Shawneetown, 
 and through her untiring efforts a church was built, and 
 in 1827 was organized by Rev. B. F. Spillman, and the 
 first communion was administered. 
 
 Mr. and Mrs. Marshall had seven children. Mrs. 
 Marshall died at the home of her son, John, near Carmi, 
 Illinois, August 18, 1864, and is buried beside her hus- 
 band, in Westwood Cemetery, Shawneetown, Illinois.
 
 25 
 
 MRS. PIERRE MENARD 
 
 (Angelique Saucier) 
 
 Mrs. Angelique Saucier Menard was born at Portage 
 des Sioux, on March 4, 1783, the daughter of Frangois 
 Saucier and Angelique La Pensee, and granddaughter of 
 Jean Baptiste (or Frangois) Saucier, once a French offi- 
 cer at Fort Chartres, who resigned and settled in the 
 Illinois country. 
 
 Angelique was a sweet girl and beloved by many. 
 Both John Rice Jones and Pierre Menard were suitors 
 for her hand. Her choice fell on Pierre, and on Septem- 
 ber 22, 1806, she was married to him, this being his sec- 
 ond marriage. The ceremony was performed by Donatien 
 Olivier, the priest of the parish at Kaskaskia. Six chil- 
 dren were born of this marriage, four sons and two 
 daughters. 
 
 For twenty-seven years Pierre Menard held many 
 positions of trust and honor, the last one being that of 
 Lieutenant Governor of the State of Illinois, serving with 
 Governor Shadrach Bond, the first Governor after it was 
 admitted to the Union. 
 
 Mrs. Menard was a lady noted for her generous hos- 
 pitality and her beautiful manners. Her charities were 
 many, and unknown to the world. She gave freely to 
 the poor and unfortunate. Her husband was in full ac- 
 cord with her plans, and after his retirement from office, 
 both of them were happiest when helping some one. 
 
 ' Mrs. Menard died February 12, 1839, survived by 
 her husband and four children. She was buried in the 
 Menard burial ground at Kaskaskia.
 
 26 
 
 MRS. JOSEPH MILLS 
 
 (Sarah Raley) 
 
 Sarah Raley Mills, daughter of Eli and Mary Lup- 
 tou Raley, was born December 11, 1792, in the State of 
 Virginia. On June 9, 1813, she was married to Joseph 
 Mills, whose father came from Wales. Eli Raley came 
 from Ireland. 
 
 In the spring of 1840, Mr. and Mrs. Mills emigrated 
 from Washington county, Pennsylvania, to Putnam 
 county, Illinois, locating near Magnolia. They were ac- 
 tive members of the Society of Friends and transferred 
 their memberships to the Clear Creek Quaker Meeting 
 near Magnolia. They were quite influential in the church 
 as well as in the community in which they lived. The 
 neighborhood became notable for progressive farming, 
 educational progress, and religious liberality. Mostly 
 they were "Hicksite" Friends, who found comfort in 
 silent worship. 
 
 Nine children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Mills, six 
 sons and three daughters. Sarah Mills readily made and 
 held friends. She was of medium height, well-formed, 
 and was gifted with energy and endurance. She was 
 skillful with the spinning wheel and she spun and wove 
 many yards of cloth. She pulled flax, dried and broke it, 
 heckled and spun it into linen thread on a little wheel. 
 She did sewing and knitting for the household with a 
 devotion characteristic of a true mother. Her love for 
 the Bible was manifest. She so governed her children 
 that they both obeyed and respected her. 
 
 Mrs. Mills died March 4, 1864. A small stone marks 
 her grave in Friends' burying ground at Clear Creek.
 
 27 
 
 MRS. ROBERT MORRISON 
 (Miss Donaldson) 
 
 Mrs. Robert Donaldson Morrison was reared and 
 educated in the Monumental city (Baltimore, Maryland). 
 In 1805 she accompanied her brother, Colonel Donaldson, 
 to St. Louis, in the far off wilds of the west, whither he 
 was sent as a Commissioner to investigate the land titles. 
 
 She was married the following year to Robert Mor- 
 rison, of Kaskaskia, which place became her permanent 
 home. Well educated, sprightly and energetic, her mind 
 was gifted with originality and romance. Her pen was 
 seldom idle. She composed with a ready facility, and 
 her writings possessed a high degree of merit. She con- 
 tributed both verse and prose to scientific and other pub- 
 lications. Nor did the political questions of the day es- 
 cape her ready pen. The discussion of these topics in 
 the newspapers was eagerly read by the politicians of 
 Illinois. 
 
 A feat of much ingenuity was her work of remodel- 
 ing and converting into verse the Psalms of David. The 
 volume was presented to the Philadelphia Presbytery, 
 and met with high commendation for many of its excel- 
 lencies, though it was not adopted. Later in life, after 
 much reflection, she united with the Catholic church. 
 Possessed of great force of character, and zealous and 
 ardent in whatever she espoused, her example and pre- 
 cepts contributed greatly toward proselyting members 
 to that faith. 
 
 Mrs. Morrison became the mother of an interesting 
 family. Some of her sons have been quite conspicuous 
 in the affairs of the state. Mrs. Morrison lived to an 
 advanced age, and died at Belleville, Illinois, in 1843.
 
 28 
 
 MRS. ARCHANGE OUILMETTE 
 
 (Ar change Chevallier) 
 
 Archange Ouilmette was born at Sugar Creek, Michi- 
 gan, about 1764. Although Archange was of the Potta- 
 watomie tribe of Indians, her father was Francois 
 Chevallier, a Frenchman. These Indians were constantly 
 roving over what is now Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and 
 Wisconsin, but at the time of Archange 's marriage to 
 Antoine Ouilmette, said to be of royal blood, they were 
 living at Gross Point, or what is now Wilmette, this be- 
 ing the first wedding on the North Shore. 
 
 Antoine and Archange Ouilmette were the parents 
 of eight children, four boys and four girls. One of these 
 girls, Josette, a bright, pretty child, was bound out at 
 the age of ten years to the John Kinzie family. 
 
 The Treaty of Prairie du Chien, dated July 29, 1829, 
 included among its other provisions, a grant "to 
 Archange Ouilmette, . . . two sections (of land) for her- 
 self and her children, on Lake Michigan." This grant 
 included most of the present cities of Evanston and 
 Wilmette. 
 
 At the time of the Massacre at Fort Dearborn, in 
 August, 1812, Mrs. Helm was sent by Black Partridge to 
 the Ouilmette home for protection. Archange and her 
 sister, Mrs. Bisson, covered Mrs. Helm with a feather 
 bed, with her face to the wall, and Mrs. Bisson seated 
 herself on the front of the bed, busying herself with sew- 
 ing. Though Mrs. Helm was nearly smothered to death, 
 the Indians did not find her when they came to search. 
 
 Archange Ouilmette died at Council Bluffs, Iowa, in 
 1840.
 
 29 
 
 MRS. NATHANIEL POPE 
 
 (Lucretia Backus) 
 
 Mrs. Lucretia Backus Pope, daughter of Elijah 
 Backus (graduate of Yale, 1777) and Lucretia Hubbard 
 Backus, was born in New London, Connecticut, January 
 5, 1787. She was a descendant of John Haynes of Cop- 
 ford Hall, Essex, England, who was Governor of the 
 Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635, and of the Hartford 
 Colony in 1639. 
 
 At the age of about twelve years, Lucretia went with 
 her parents to live in Marietta, Ohio. She attended the 
 Moravian Seminary at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, until 
 she was sixteen, at which time her education being com- 
 pleted and her mother having died, she went to live with 
 an aunt in Kaskaskia, Illinois, where she met Nathaniel 
 Pope. In 1809 she married Mr. Pope who was Territorial 
 Representative from Illinois, and later, until his death, 
 United States District Judge. 
 
 Mrs. Pope was a highly intellectual woman, and a 
 fine pianist, but her home was always the center of her 
 activities, as was the case generally in those days. 
 
 Six children were born to this union: William, 
 Penelope, Elizabeth, John, Lucretia and Cynthia. Judge 
 Pope died on January 24, 1850, at the home of a daughter 
 in St. Louis, Missouri. Mrs. Pope passed away in St. 
 Louis, also, on March 12, 1867, at the age of eighty. She 
 is buried beside her husband in Belief ontaine Cemetery.
 
 30 
 
 SAKAKAWEA 
 
 Sakakawea, or the "Bird Woman," is considered the 
 "foremost female figure in the history of the great North- 
 west." She was born in the early summer of 1786, a mem- 
 ber of the Shoshoni tribe of Indians who dwelt in the 
 valley of the Lemhi River in Wyoming. When Saka- 
 kawea was fourteen years old she was captured by the 
 Minitares, and was later sold to Toussaint Charboneau, 
 who married her. 
 
 In 1804 she was engaged, with her husband, as a 
 guide and interpreter for the Lewis and Clark expedi- 
 tion, accompanying them to the mouth of the Columbia 
 river and back. Sakakawea was intelligent, resourceful, 
 patient, brave and faithful. She knew all the mountain 
 passes, and her acquaintance with the hostile tribes made 
 possible the success of the expedition. 
 
 Her son, Baptiste, was born while on the expedition, 
 and in after years was educated with her adopted son, 
 Bazil, by Captain Clark, in St. Louis, where a home had 
 been established for them with their mother. 
 
 In 1820, Charboneau took another wife which dis- 
 pleased Sakakawea, and in a dispute, he beat her. She 
 left him, making her way to the Comanches. Here she 
 married and lived happily till her husband was killed, 
 about 1850, when she again wandered. She finally reached 
 the Shoshoni Reservation in Wyoming where her two 
 sons lived, and made her home with Bazil until her death 
 on April 9, 1884. Bazil died two years later and was 
 buried beside her. 
 
 Four states, Montana, Idaho, North Dakota and Ore- 
 gon have erected statues to her memory.
 
 II. 
 
 THE PIONEER PERIOD
 
 33 
 
 MRS. SAMUEL ADAMS 
 (Mary J. Moulton) 
 
 Mrs. Mary Moulton Adams was born in Bucksport, 
 Maine, on September 20, 1810, the daughter of Mary F. 
 and Dr. Jotham Moulton. On September 15, 1836, Mary 
 Moulton became the bride of Samuel Adams, a young 
 physician beginning practice with her father, and who 
 was a graduate of Bowdoin College. 
 
 In 1838 Dr. Adams was appointed Professor in Illi- 
 nois College, Jacksonville, Illinois, where Mrs. Adams 
 joined him in about a year. Illinois College, and the, 
 then, Village of Jacksonville were fortunate in the wives 
 the early Professors brought. These wives formed the 
 nucleus of a cultivated circle, such as few new communi- 
 ties could boast. 
 
 "While quiet and unpretentious, Mrs. Adams con- 
 tributed no small part to that social atmosphere. She 
 was often requested to sing in duet, without accompani- 
 ment, and always complied. She was ever ready to take 
 her full part in the social circle of which college life was 
 the center. 
 
 Mrs. Adams was active in church life, and welcomed 
 strangers to the church with a smile and a clasp of the 
 hand. She also made it a practice to invite to her home 
 for a meal, every one uniting with the church. 
 
 On October 11, 1887, Mrs. Adams quietly breathed 
 her last in her home in Jacksonville, Illinois. 
 
 At the mid-winter, 1898-1899, meeting of the trus- 
 tees of Illinois College, it was announced that an anony- 
 mous gift of $1,500 as a Mary Moulton Adams Memorial 
 Fund for the general endowment of the library, had 
 been received.
 
 34 
 
 MRS. THERON BALDWIN 
 
 (Caroline Wilder) 
 
 Mrs. Caroline Wilder Baldwin was the fonrth child 
 and third daughter of Daniel and Persis (Chandler) 
 Wilder. Her father was an architect of Burlington, Ver- 
 mont. 
 
 Caroline was a young lady of culture with much 
 sympathy for the Missionary cause. She was engaged to 
 Abraham Baldwin, who was doing religious work in 
 Canada. But Abraham died, and she became acquainted 
 with his younger brother, Theron, who was one of the 
 Yale Band. Miss Wilder 's charming character and chris- 
 tian devotion won his heart, and they were married in 
 June, 1830. 
 
 They went to Jacksonville, Illinois, where Mr. Bald- 
 win was doing Home Mission and educational work in 
 connection with Illinois College. Mrs. Baldwin cheer- 
 fully shared with him the privations and privileges of 
 a pioneer life. 
 
 In 1833, Mrs. Baldwin formed a Juvenile Sewing 
 Society which was in existence many years. The ladies 
 of Jacksonville wished to form an association which 
 should devise plans of usefulness adapted to a growing 
 state. The plan chosen was suggested by Mrs. Baldwin, 
 and after much consultation there was formed the 
 "Ladies' Association for Educating Females," the pur- 
 pose of which was to encourage and assist young ladies 
 to qualify themselves for teaching. Mrs. Baldwin was 
 much interested in the Female Academy begun in 1833, 
 and she helped many a young girl with her tuition. 
 
 When Mr. Baldwin was asked to become the first 
 principal of "Monticello," the family removed there. 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Baldwin were admirably suited to 
 their work. They remained here seven years, and then 
 returned to the East.
 
 35 
 
 MRS. THOMAS BEARD 
 
 (Mrs. Nancy Crombie Dickerman) 
 
 Mrs. Nancy Crombie Dickerman Beard was born in 
 1804, in New York State. She was married to Willard 
 Arms Dickerman by whom she had three children, two 
 of whom died in yonth. Business reverses caused the re- 
 moval of the family to Beards town, Illinois. 
 
 After the death of Mr. Dickerman on April 19, 1836, 
 Mr. Thomas Beard, pioneer and founder of Beardstown, 
 who had been his warm friend and who had helped care 
 for him in his sickness, took charge of his property and 
 looked after the interests of the widow and son. Mr. 
 Beard and Mrs. Dickerman were married on July 18, 1837, 
 at Rushville, Schuyler county, Illinois. 
 
 To this second marriage of both, which was an un- 
 usually happy one, were born three sons and one 
 daughter. Mr. Beard educated his step-son with his own 
 children. Mrs. Beard was a noble, pure, and good woman. 
 Every life that came in touch with her own was com- 
 forted, elevated, and encouraged. She inspired affection 
 in those who knew her. She was one in mind with her 
 husband regarding acts of benevolence, which was a 
 source of great pleasure to them. 
 
 Mr. Beard died in the fall of 1849, and Mrs. Beard 
 returned to her old home in New York, where she resided 
 at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Augustus Sidney 
 Doane, until her death on November 13, 1899, at the age 
 of ninety-five years. Her remains lie in beautiful Green- 
 wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.
 
 36 
 
 MRS. EDWARD BEECHER 
 
 (Isabella Porter Jones) 
 
 Mrs. Edward Beecher was born in the very early part 
 of the nineteenth century, the daughter of Enoch and 
 Paulina (Porter) Jones. Losing her mother when six 
 years old, she became a member of the family of an uncle 
 and aunt, Nathaniel and Mary (Porter) Coffin, of Wis- 
 casset, Maine. Here she remained until her marriage to 
 Edward Beecher, older brother of Henry Ward Beecher. 
 Dr. Beecher resigned as pastor of Park Street Church in 
 Boston, Massachusetts, and came to Jacksonville, Illi- 
 nois, as the first president of Illinois College, in 1830. 
 
 In 1844 they returned to Boston where Dr. Beecher 
 was pastor of Salem Church. In 1854 a Congregational 
 church was formed in Galesburg, Illinois, and Dr. Beecher 
 was called to its pastorate. They remained in Galesburg 
 until 1872 when they again returned East, settling in 
 Brooklyn, New York, where they passed the remainder 
 of their lives. Their deaths occurred after 1895 with 
 only a short time intervening between them. Both were 
 over ninety by several years. They were buried in 
 Georgetown, Massachusetts, but there are no dates on 
 the boulder that marks their graves. 
 
 Nine children were born to Dr. and Mrs. Beecher, 
 several of whom died early in life. 
 
 Of a cheerful, amiable disposition, exceedingly char- 
 itable and broad-minded, Mrs. Beecher was greatly be- 
 loved by all with whom she came in contact. 
 
 Beecher Avenue, the site of their old home, and also 
 Beecher Chapel of Knox College (formerly the First Con- 
 gregational Church) serve to perpetuate their name in 
 Galesburg.
 
 37 
 
 MRS. JOHN C. BOND 
 (Nancy Green St ice) 
 
 Nancy Green Stice, daughter of Nancy Wilson and 
 Andrew Stice, of Revolutionary stock, was born in Bowl- 
 ing Green, Kentucky, September 23, 1807, and died in 
 Warren County, Illinois, May 14, 1906. 
 
 In 1816 her family removed to Madison county, Illi- 
 nois Territory, and there she married Andrew Terry. 
 After his death in 1836 she removed to Warren county, 
 Illinois. In 1844 she married Major John C. Bond, an 
 officer in the Black Hawk War, also of Revolutionary 
 blood. 
 
 Mrs. Bond came to Illinois on horseback, the family 
 possessions being conveyed in a covered wagon, drawn by 
 an ox team, when there was not a railroad in the state, 
 and she lived to see the automobile and the airplane. 
 
 As a pioneer woman she placated the Indians, nursed 
 the sick, mothered the orphans, laid out the dead. She 
 and her husband at different periods cared for forty 
 children besides their own. Many of these were clothed 
 from the raw material. 
 
 She spun and wove, carded the wool and did the sew- 
 ing. Their home was noted, even in those pioneer days, 
 for its bountiful hospitality. A letter is in existence 
 telling of their Christmas dinner in 1859 when sixty-five 
 relatives and friends were present. At Camp Meeting 
 times, nothing was thought of having thirty-five or forty 
 for dinner. 
 
 Born during the administration of Thomas Jefferson, 
 living under that of Theodore Roosevelt, the life of Mrs. 
 Bond spanned a marvelous period of our state and na- 
 tional history.
 
 38 
 
 MRS. PETER CARTWRIGHT 
 
 (Frances Gaines) 
 
 Frances Gaines Cartwright was born August 18, 
 1789, in Charlotte county, Virginia. She was married to 
 Peter Cartwright in Barren county, Virginia, August 18, 
 1808, on her nineteenth birthday. Their "infare" was 
 held at the home of Peter Cartwright 's father on the 
 following September first, which was his twenty-third 
 birthday. Her parents moved to Kentucky, but they did 
 not come to Illinois. 
 
 Mrs. Cartwright was a young woman whose heroism 
 of christian character was equal to that of her husband. 
 She lived to share with him to the end the joys and sor- 
 rows of his itinerant life, and to merit the frequent 
 praise of her husband and the devotion of her nine chil- 
 dren. They left a posterity of one hundred twenty-nine 
 direct descendants to mourn them. 
 
 Mrs. Cartwright died in Bethel church, about two 
 miles northwest of Pleasant Plains, Illinois, while in at- 
 tendance at a church service, on February 7, 1876. Tradi- 
 tion says she had been called upon to give her testimony, 
 which she did with much feeling, concluding with the 
 words "the past three weeks have been the happiest of 
 all my life; I am waiting for the chariot." When the 
 meeting broke up, she did not rise with the rest. The 
 minister solemnly said, "The chariot has arrived." 
 
 The remains of Mrs. Cartwright are interred beside 
 her illustrious husband in Pleasant Plains Cemetery.
 
 39 
 
 MRS. JOHN WANTON CASEY 
 
 (Elizabeth Moore Morris) 
 
 Elizabeth Moore Morris Casey was born in Harris- 
 burg, Pennsylvania, May 5, 1818. Her first paternal 
 ancestor was Thomas Lloyd, who came with William 
 Penn to Pennsylvania, and who later became first Depu- 
 ty Governor. There were six generations of Quakers 
 between Thomas Lloyd and Elizabeth Moore Morris. Her 
 maternal ancestry was in strong contrast; warriors, tak- 
 ing parts in the French and Indian and Revolutionary 
 wars. These unlike blood streams produced in Elizabeth 
 Morris a gracious personality, a visioned mind, a great 
 heart, innocent worldliness and deep piety. 
 
 When Elizabeth was thirteen years old, her father 
 decided to move to Illinois. Peoria was their objective 
 point, but they went on to Pekin, for various reasons. 
 In 1831, John Wanton Casey came out to Illinois from 
 New York City, to invest in grain lands. It was at 
 Pekin that a meeting of the two young people resulted 
 in their marriage on January 3, 1845. 
 
 About two years after their marriage, the Casey 
 Colonial home was built, which still stands as a landmark 
 of Pekin 's early days. It was a center of hospitality and 
 social life for two generations. Mrs. Casey was promi- 
 nent in all the progressive movements of Pekin 's history 
 during her long life. 
 
 Elizabeth Moore Morris Casey passed away on Feb- 
 ruary 13, 1894, beloved and mourned by all who knew her.
 
 40 
 
 MRS. WILLIAM COTTEAU 
 (Mrs. Sara Lett Springstead) 
 
 Mrs. Sara Lett Cotteau was born in Chatham, Can- 
 ada, on February 29, 1824, the youngest child of Samuel 
 and Elizabeth Warren Lett, whose ancestors on the 
 paternal side were Hollanders; the mother was of Eng- 
 lish and French descent. Both Samuel and Elizabeth 
 Lett were born in Ireland, from where they emigrated 
 in June, 1819, with their six living children, to settle 
 in Canada, where two more girls, Maria and Sara were 
 born. 
 
 In this home in the woods Sara lived for nine years. 
 She began to make rhymes when quite small. When the 
 Canadian rebellion broke out, she was living in Darling- 
 ton, Canada. Her brother, Ben, joined the patriots, or 
 rebels, as they were called by the loyalists. Sara wrote 
 many verses for the cause which her brother espoused. 
 Her mother saw them and insisted they be burned, lest 
 the Tories find them and burn their home. 
 
 In 1839 the family emigrated to Texas, then to 
 Louisiana, where several of the family, including her 
 beloved sister Ann, died from fever. Soon after, the ones 
 who were left moved to La Salle county, Illinois. Sara 
 married Harvey Springstead, having one child. Both 
 father and child died, and in July, 1852, she married 
 William Cotteau, a young Englishman. Six children were 
 born to this union, one of whom, Ida, compiled and pub- 
 lished a book of poems written by her mother. 
 
 Mrs. Cotteau died August 11, 1887, and was laid to 
 rest in the family cemetery on the Lett homestead, near 
 Sandwich, Illinois.
 
 41 
 
 MRS. JOHN DESOUSA 
 
 (Louisa Candidia DeSilva) 
 
 Louisa Candidia DeSilva was born in 1813, in 
 Funchal, on the Island of Madeira. Her father was a 
 very wealthy man, and their home was a large one. In 
 1838, a young physician of Scotland, Robert R. Kalley, 
 came with his wife to Madeira as missionaries. Louisa 
 DeSilva was one of the first converts to the christian 
 faith. 
 
 The christians were persecuted, and in 1846 Louisa 
 was threatened with death in front of her father's home. 
 She fled for security to the home of Dr. Kalley. The 
 Doctor was taken away, disguised, to save his life, and 
 Louisa was sent to the island of St. Vincent. Prior to 
 this she had met a young man, John DeSousa, a druggist, 
 who had been educated in Scotland, and when they met 
 again in St. Vincent they were married. With many 
 others they went to New York. Here nine children were 
 born to them. 
 
 After her husband's death, Mrs. DeSousa removed 
 to Springfield, Illinois, with two daughters, one of whom 
 is now living in the same house to which they first came.* 
 Mrs. DeSousa was a devout member of the Presbyterian 
 church in Springfield, and a faithful attendant upon its 
 services. She was a seamstress, while her daughter at- 
 tended to household matters. 
 
 When Mrs. DeSousa first saw the Governor's man- 
 sion, she exclaimed to her daughter, "Oh, this is the first 
 house I have seen that looks like my father's home." 
 
 Mrs. DeSousa died on July 1, 1903, and was laid to 
 rest in Oak Ridge Cemetery. 
 
 * Since writing the above, the daughter has died.
 
 42 
 
 MRS. ALAN EMMERSON 
 (Nancy Mounts) 
 
 Nancy Mounts Emmerson was born in Lincoln 
 county, Kentucky, July 18, 1792, the daughter of Mat- 
 thias and Molly Montgomery Mounts. The Kentucky 
 branch of the family are descended from Hugh Mont- 
 gomery, who had seven sons, all taking part in the Revo- 
 lutionary War. One of these sons, Thomas, was the an- 
 cestor of Nancy Mount s. 
 
 Nancy was married in Kentucky, in 1810, to Alan 
 Emmerson, and they became the grandparents of Louis 
 L. Emmerson, the present Governor of Illinois. 
 
 When Nancy was about twenty- three years old, the 
 family moved to Indiana. While here they met a band 
 of immigrants from England, who had come to this coun- 
 try to escape oppressive taxation. Mr. and Mrs. Emmer- 
 son cast their lot with these Englishmen, and in the 
 spring of 1818, came to Illinois and settled on land three 
 miles west of the present town of Albion, Edwards 
 county, purchasing the land from the Government. 
 
 Mrs. Emmerson was a kind, hospitable, christian 
 woman. Though the mother of a large family, she took 
 other children into her home. She possessed the courage 
 needed by pioneer women. She took entire care of her 
 little ones while her husband fought in the War of 1812 
 and the Black Hawk War. 
 
 Mrs. Emmerson passed away December 6, 1876, 
 aged eighty-four, and her husband the same year, aged 
 eighty-five years. They were both laid to rest in a little 
 cemetery adjoining the church — a log church with a 
 thatched roof — the land for which had been donated by 
 Mr. and Mrs. Emmerson.
 
 43 
 
 RUTH CARR FENNER 
 
 Ruth Carr Fenner was born near Elmira, New York, 
 in 1833, the second daughter of Felix and Harriet Fen- 
 ner. At the age of five years she came by wagon with her 
 parents and two sisters, to Tazewell county, Illinois. 
 
 At the early age of sixteen, Miss Fenner was chosen 
 as assistant in the seminary where she was then a stu- 
 dent, and from that time until she was stricken with 
 paralysis at the age of eighty-two, she was almost con- 
 stantly engaged in teaching. 
 
 Besides teaching the prescribed lessons, Miss Fen- 
 ner endeavored to fit the youth to become better citizens 
 of the community. Of most cultured and refined man- 
 ners herself, she inculcated lessons of good breeding into 
 the minds of her pupils. 
 
 She was a pioneer in the teaching of Americaniza- 
 tion; she so greatly respected her given word that sev- 
 eral times she refused to better her condition financially 
 by going to another school; she was industrious; as a 
 disciplinarian she was unexcelled ; she kept her body and 
 nerves fit for her work; her ability to impart to others 
 the knowledge found in books, and her skill in drawing 
 out the minds of the students were truly remarkable. 
 She was a born teacher, a " teacher sent from God." 
 
 Miss Fenner was a power for good in the community 
 in which she lived. She was truly a benefactor of the 
 race, and her thousands of pupils went away owing her 
 a debt of gratitude they could never repay.
 
 44 
 
 MISS PHILENA FOBES 
 
 Miss Philena Fobes was born September 10, 1811, in 
 Onondaga county, New York. She was a daughter of 
 Philander Fobes, a native of Bridgewater, Massachu- 
 setts. His earliest ancestors in this country were John 
 Fobes and John Washburn, who came from England, in 
 1632 and 1635, respectively, and were among the original 
 settlers and proprietors of Bridgewater. Miss Fobes' 
 mother, Nancy Warner, of Cummington, Massachusetts, 
 was of Puritan descent. 
 
 Miss Fobes was graduated from Cortland Seminary, 
 New York, and then taught for three years in the Seward 
 Seminary, Rochester, New York. In 1838 she became 
 identified with Monticello Seminary, at Godfrey, Illi- 
 nois. She was a lady of rare gifts as an instructor, and 
 was equally fine in mind and character. 
 
 In 1845 she succeeded Rev. Dr. Theron Baldwin as 
 Principal of the institution, and filled that position with 
 notable ability and success. Her devotion to Monticello 
 Seminary was the passion of her life. To enrich and en- 
 noble the lives of others was her strongest desire. To 
 her associates in teaching, as well as to her pupils, she 
 was an inspiration. 
 
 She resigned in 1865, and made her home with a 
 niece, Mrs. Mary Lyons-Moore, of Roxboro, a suburb of 
 Philadelphia, where she passed her declining years. She 
 was a member of "Colonial Dames" and of the "Daugh- 
 ters of the American Revolution." 
 
 Miss Fobes died on November 8, 1898, aged eighty- 
 seven years, and at sunset, three days later, was laid to 
 rest in Grove Street Cemetery, New Haven, Connecticut.
 
 45 
 
 MRS. AUGUSTUS GARRETT 
 
 (Eliza Clark) 
 
 Eliza Clark Garrett was born near Newburg, New 
 York, March 5, 1805. She was married to Augustus Gar- 
 rett in 1825. Two children, a son and daughter, were 
 born, both dying in childhood. 
 
 In 1834 Mr. and Mrs. Garrett took up their residence 
 in Chicago. In the winter of 1839, they both made a pro- 
 fession of religion and joined the Methodist church. Mrs. 
 Garrett was a great worker in the church, and an angel 
 of mercy to the poor of the city. 
 
 After Chicago became a city, Mr. Garrett was elect- 
 ed to the office of Mayor. He died in December, 1848. 
 Being without children, Mrs. Garrett became possessed 
 of one-half of his property without restriction. She cher- 
 ished a deep sense of responsibility for the right use of 
 the means at her disposal. From the first, Mrs. Garrett 
 inclined to an educational purpose of some kind. 
 
 With the help of her Attorney, a will was made, 
 leaving the greater part of her estate, that is, rents, 
 issue, profits and proceeds to the erection, furnishing, 
 and endowment of a Theological Institution for the 
 Methodist church, to be called the " Garrett Biblical In- 
 stitute," to be located in or near Chicago. 
 
 A temporary building was constructed in 1855. A 
 charter for the permanent institution was secured from 
 the Legislature, and events were progressing in a satis- 
 factory manner, when Mrs. Garrett died, November 23, 
 1855. She was the first woman in our country to attain 
 so distinguished a rank by an act of Christian philan- 
 thropy.
 
 46 
 
 MRS. NOAH GUYMON 
 
 (Lura Higley) 
 
 Lura Higley was born in Connecticut in 1784. In 
 girlhood she married Jonathan Rutherford, a physician. 
 From him she learned the rudiments of medicine, and 
 secured a practical knowledge of obstetrics. After mar- 
 riage they emigrated to Middletown, Ohio, where Dr. 
 Rutherford died. Later she married Noah Guymon, and 
 in 1830 came with him to Illinois, he on foot, and she on 
 horseback, settling on a tract south of Butler's Point 
 (now Catlin). They were an industrious and economical 
 couple, and soon prospered in their worldly affairs. 
 
 On her arrival in Illinois she began the active prac- 
 tice of medicine, specializing in the duties of midwifery. 
 Before her death she claimed to have officiated at the 
 birth of more than one thousand children. She contin- 
 ued in this work until the early '70s. She was never 
 known to refuse a call, and in her entire career never 
 made a charge. If a settler offered a fee of any kind, it 
 was accepted with thanks. 
 
 During the war, she said it seemed as though she 
 must read everything about it, for she could count a 
 great number of soldiers whom she had dressed for the 
 first time. At one time she was guest of honor at a 
 picnic at which 612 men and women registered as ' 'de- 
 scendants of her skill." 
 
 In 1874, at the age of ninety, she died at her home 
 where she had lived so many years. She sleeps in 
 " Jimmy Butler's God's Acre," near Catlin, where a neat 
 stone marks her grave.
 
 47 
 
 MRS. JOHN JAMES HAYDEN 
 
 (Sarah Marshall) 
 
 Mrs. Sarah Marshall Hayden, youngest of the seven 
 children of Mr. and Mrs. John Marshall, was born in 
 Shawneetown, Illinois, July 5, 1825. She was educated 
 at Edgewood Seminary, Sewickley, near Pittsburgh. On 
 her mother's side she was a descendant of Hannah More, 
 the English poetess. 
 
 At the age of sixteen, Sarah Marshall wrote a novel 
 which was published thirteen years later, and was re- 
 ceived with great praise. On April 10, 1843, she was mar- 
 ried to John James Hayden at Shawneetown. 
 
 Mrs. Hayden was the first woman novelist of Illi- 
 nois. ' 'Early Engagements ' ' and its sequel, "Florence, ' ' 
 were published in 1854. An old-fashioned love story, 
 "Mr. Langdon's Mistake," was published in 1901 by her 
 husband, but it had been written forty years before. For 
 almost sixty years Mrs. Hayden wrote for magazines and 
 newspapers, poetry as well as prose. 
 
 Mrs. Hayden was a club woman, both literary and 
 philanthropic. She was president of the "Eistophas" 
 (Lead us to the Light) club, an organization of women 
 authors from all over the Nation, who met at Washing- 
 ton, D. C, during the winter each year. She was a mem- 
 ber of the "Short Story Club" and the "Unity," a club 
 of Washington, of both men and women writers. 
 
 On November 19, 1899, Mrs. Hayden died in Wash- 
 ington, and was buried in Brown Hill Cemetery, Indian- 
 apolis, Indiana. She was survived by her husband, one 
 son and two daughters. One son was killed in the Civil 
 War, after which she wrote one of her best poems, 
 "Going Home."
 
 48 
 
 MRS. WILLIAM S. HORN MRS. WILLIAM MUNSON 
 (Sylvia Hall) (Rachael Hall) 
 
 Sylvia and Rachael Hall, aged seventeen and fifteen 
 years, respectively, daughters of William and Mary Jane 
 Rebecca Hall, were captured by the Sac and Fox Indians 
 on the afternoon of May 20, 1832. This happened on 
 Indian Creek, La Salle county, Illinois, about twelve 
 miles north of Ottawa. 
 
 About forty warriors were in the party. The girls 
 were placed on ponies and put near the center of the 
 procession. They traveled till late at night when they 
 halted and the Indians danced. They went on in the 
 same order till nearly two o'clock the next day when they 
 rested for a short time. At night they camped and had 
 supper consisting of dried meat, coffee, and pounded 
 corn made into soup. Some squaws had joined the party, 
 and one was placed on each side of the girls in the tent. 
 
 The next day while the Indians danced, squaws 
 painted one side of the girls' faces black, and the other 
 side red. After a half hour of dancing, they were led to 
 a wigwam, and the squaws scrubbed all the paint away. 
 This was the third day. Indians seemed to spring up 
 everywhere, and another dance was held. The Indians 
 gave the girls dresses, one of red and white calico, the 
 other, blue calico. 
 
 About the seventh day, the Indians told Sylvia she 
 must go with an old Indian, White Crow, Chief of the 
 Winnebagoes, but Rachael must remain with the Indians 
 with whom they had traveled. Sylvia said she would not 
 go unless Rachael could come, too. White Crow arose and 
 made a long, excited speech. Whirling Thunder brought 
 Rachael to Sylvia, the Chiefs shook hands, the girls were 
 placed on horses, and a young Indian cut a lock of hair 
 from Rachael's head. Another Indian cut a lock from 
 Sylvia's head. Then the entire party rode away at a
 
 49 
 
 rapid gait until just before daylight the next morning, 
 when they halted and rested. After breakfast the whole 
 encampment packed up and traveled all day by water, in 
 canoes. The next day they used the ponies again. On 
 the night of the tenth day, they came to where several 
 Indian families were encamped. The two Chiefs and the 
 girls had a good supper of pickled pork, potatoes, bread 
 and coffee. 
 
 Finally they came close to the fort at the Blue 
 Mounds. White Crow raised a white flag, and the inter- 
 preter and the Indian Agent came out. White Crow de- 
 livered the girls over to the company at the fort. To 
 their great joy, two of their uncles were in the company, 
 and a few days later they met their brother, whom they 
 thought dead. The girls stayed with one of their uncles 
 and their brother at Beardstown, Illinois, till the first 
 of October, when their brother, J. W. Hall, took them 
 to Bureau county for the winter. Some time in March, 
 1833, Rachael was married to William Munson. In May, 
 Sylvia was married to William S. Horn, and removed to 
 Cass county.
 
 50 
 
 MRS. LILY HENRY 
 (Lily ) 
 
 Mrs. Lily Henry was a woman of education, refine- 
 ment, and culture. She was magnetic in person, a tal- 
 ented elocutionist, and a very sweet singer. She was a 
 preacher, a very unusual profession for a woman in the 
 days of the late 'fifties, but she was able to remove much 
 of the prejudice against women speaking in the churches. 
 
 Mrs. Henry held regular monthly meetings for sev- 
 eral years in a little meeting house called "Antioch," 
 in Madison county, about 1857 or 1858. 
 
 She was well versed in the scriptures, studying the 
 Bible daily, and applying its teachings to herself and 
 the people whom she met. Mrs. Henry had the proper 
 spirit for pioneer work, and would go into villages and 
 small towns to preach, but could never be persuaded to 
 preach in cities, or go to the Eastern states. 
 
 Mrs. Henry's home was in Bunker Hill, Illinois. 
 After the children were grown and away from home, Mrs. 
 Henry became an itinerant preacher and evangelist in 
 the western states. 
 
 Some time near 1900, Mrs. Henry felt that her days 
 were few. With broken health and far from home, she 
 started to return to Bunker Hill, got as far as Chicago, 
 went into a hospital where an operation for her relief 
 was performed. But she lingered for a short time only, 
 then passed away. She was laid to rest in the Bunker 
 Hill Cemetery.
 
 51 
 
 MRS. SEYMOUR KELLOGG 
 
 (Nancy Wilcox) 
 
 Nothing has been learned concerning the youthful 
 days of Nancy Wilcox. On August 1, 1813, she became 
 the second wife of Seymour Kellogg of Genesee county, 
 New York. Three children were born to them, and these, 
 with the four by his first wife, moved with their parents 
 to Illinois in the spring of 1818. 
 
 Seymour's brother, Elisha, with his wife and their 
 five children, accompanied them. They went in wagons 
 to Pittsburgh where they disposed of their outfit, procur- 
 ing a flatboat to continue their journey down the Ohio. 
 At Shawneetown they disembarked and bought four yoke 
 of oxen and two wagons in which they drove to Carmi. 
 Here, another son was born to Nancy and Seymour. 
 
 They finally located in Morgan county at the head 
 of Mauvaisterre Creek, about ten miles east of the pres- 
 ent site of Jacksonville, and were the first permanent 
 settlers in Morgan county. 
 
 Another child was born in the log cabin home with 
 its clapboard roof, no windows, and with Indians and 
 wolves on all sides. Nancy's nearest neighbors were 
 thirty miles away, on Spring Creek, near Springfield. She 
 was a true pioneer, bravely enduring the many hardships 
 that came to her. 
 
 After the death of her husband in April, 1827, she 
 and her children moved into Jacksonville. Later, she 
 went to St. Louis, afterward going to Waverly in Mor- 
 gan county, where she died April 30, 1855. She was 
 buried in the cemetery there, and a modest stone marks 
 her grave.
 
 50 
 
 MRS. LILY HENRY 
 (Lily ) 
 
 Mrs. Lily Henry was a woman of education, refine- 
 ment, and culture. She was magnetic in person, a tal- 
 ented elocutionist, and a very sweet singer. She was a 
 preacher, a very unusual profession for a woman in the 
 days of the late 'fifties, but she was able to remove much 
 of the prejudice against women speaking in the churches. 
 
 Mrs. Henry held regular monthly meetings for sev- 
 eral years in a little meeting house called "Antioch," 
 in Madison county, about 1857 or 1858. 
 
 She was well versed in the scriptures, studying the 
 Bible daily, and applying its teachings to herself and 
 the people whom she met. Mrs. Henry had the proper 
 spirit for pioneer work, and would go into villages and 
 small towns to preach, but could never be persuaded to 
 preach in cities, or go to the Eastern states. 
 
 Mrs. Henry's home was in Bunker Hill, Illinois. 
 After the children were grown and away from home, Mrs. 
 Henry became an itinerant preacher and evangelist in 
 the western states. 
 
 Some time near 1900, Mrs. Henry felt that her days 
 were few. With broken health and far from home, she 
 started to return to Bunker Hill, got as far as Chicago, 
 went into a hospital where an operation for her relief 
 was performed. But she lingered for a short time only, 
 then passed away. She was laid to rest in the Bunker 
 Hill Cemetery.
 
 51 
 
 MRS. SEYMOUR KELLOGG 
 
 (Nancy Wilcox) 
 
 Nothing has been learned concerning the youthful 
 clays of Nancy Wilcox. On August 1, 1813, she became 
 the second wife of Seymour Kellogg of Genesee county, 
 New York. Three children were born to them, and these, 
 with the four by his first wife, moved with their parents 
 to Illinois in the spring of 1818. 
 
 Seymour's brother, Elisha, with his wife and their 
 five children, accompanied them. They went in. wagons 
 to Pittsburgh where they disposed of their outfit, procur- 
 ing a flatboat to continue their journey down the Ohio. 
 At Shawneetown they disembarked and bought four yoke 
 of oxen and two wagons in which they drove to Carmi. 
 Here, another son was born to Nancy and Seymour. 
 
 They finally located in Morgan county at the head 
 of Mauvaisterre Creek, about ten miles east of the pres- 
 ent site of Jacksonville, and were the first permanent 
 settlers in Morgan county. 
 
 Another child was born in the log cabin home with 
 its clapboard roof, no windows, and with Indians and 
 wolves on all sides. Nancy's nearest neighbors were 
 thirty miles away, on Spring Creek, near Springfield. She 
 was a true pioneer, bravely enduring the many hardships 
 that came to her. 
 
 After the death of her husband in April, 1827, she 
 and her children moved into Jacksonville. Later, she 
 went to St. Louis, afterward going to Waverly in Mor- 
 gan county, where she died April 30, 1855. She was 
 buried in the cemetery there, and a modest stone marks 
 her grave.
 
 52 
 
 MRS. RICHARD (or WILLIS) OGLESBY 
 
 (Judith ) 
 
 Not much is known of Mrs. Judith Oglesby, or " Aunt 
 Judy," as she was generally known, but one writer of 
 early history has this to say: "She was a kind, Chris- 
 tian woman, esteemed by all." 
 
 When ex-Governor Richard J. Oglesby 's father and 
 mother were suddenly stricken with cholera, and died, 
 Richard was taken to the home of his uncle Richard and 
 his wife, "Aunt Judy." In 1836 a number of the Ogles- 
 bys left Oldham county, Kentucky, and located in De- 
 catur, Illinois. Young Dick Oglesby, a fun-loving, 
 mischievous boy, was the particular charge of his "Aunt 
 Judy," and he always gratefully remembered her for 
 having looked after him during that time. She lived to 
 see the day when he was filling the highest position in 
 the State, and was exceedingly proud of him. 
 
 After the death of her husband, Mrs. Oglesby went 
 to live with the family of Dr. J. Gr. Speer, with whom 
 she lived many years. Afterwards she lived for a long 
 time with the Edmiston McClellan family. 
 
 Mrs. Oglesby was among the early members of the 
 Christian church which was built in 1835 on the present 
 site of the Hotel Orlando. She lived many years after 
 the death of Mr. Oglesby, and was affectionately remem- 
 bered for her kindness and usefulness.
 
 53 
 
 MRS. JEREMIAH PORTER 
 
 (Eliza Chappell) 
 
 Eliza Chappell Porter was born at Geneseo, New 
 York, November 5, 1807. Her parents united Huguenot 
 and Pilgrim blood, her father being a descendant of La 
 Chappelle, and her mother of Elder Brewster of "May- 
 flower" fame. She possessed strong qualities of mind 
 and heart, which fitted her for the life she led. 
 
 About 1830 Miss Chappell established a Kindergarten 
 school at Mackinac, and in September, 1833, she opened 
 a school in Chicago, with about twenty pupils, in a little 
 log house just outside the military reservation. An ap- 
 propriation for the partial maintenance of the school was 
 made by the Commissioners, thus recognizing Miss Chap- 
 pell as the first teacher employed, and as having taught 
 the first public school in Chicago. 
 
 On June 15, 1835, Miss Chappell married Rev. Jere- 
 miah Porter, a minister in the Presbyterian church. 
 When the Civil War broke out, Mrs. Porter was chosen 
 to head the Sanitary Commission. In 1862 she left this 
 work and, with Mr. Porter, followed the Army south, 
 preaching, teaching, and nursing the sick and wounded 
 soldiers. They opened the first school for freedmen on 
 the borders of the Mississippi river. 
 
 Later, Mrs. Porter was with Sherman's army with 
 sanitary stores and supplies. She treasured two letters, 
 one signed by five Confederate officers, and one signed by 
 twenty Confederate soldiers, testifying to the uniform 
 kindness Mrs. Porter had shown them while sick at 
 Marietta, Georgia. 
 
 Nine children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Porter, 
 three of whom died in infancy. Mrs. Porter died in 1888.
 
 54 
 
 MRS. TRUMAN MARCELLUS POST 
 
 (Frances Alsop Henshaw) 
 
 Frances Henshaw Post was born at Middlebury, 
 Vermont, in 1809, the daughter of Daniel and Sarah 
 Prentis Henshaw. Before her marriage she wrote, and 
 some silver tablespoons she bought with her first earned 
 money are still in existence. 
 
 On October 5, 1835, she was married to Truman Mar- 
 cellus Post at St. Stephen's Church in Middlebury. On 
 November 12, the same year, she came with her husband 
 to Jacksonville, Illinois, where he was Professor of an- 
 cient languages and ancient history in Illinois College. 
 She was of great assistance to her husband when he had 
 trouble with his eyes, for she helped him prepare for his 
 recitations by reading to him in English, Latin, and later, 
 Greek. 
 
 Mrs. Post took an active part in promoting the edu- 
 cational interests in Jacksonville, and was a helpmate 
 in the true sense of the word, of Dr. Post in his ministerial 
 career in St. Louis. She organized, and was president of 
 the first Woman's Congregational Missionary Society in 
 Missouri. 
 
 The strong and sterling character of Mrs. Post is 
 proven by the fact that although used to comfort and the 
 greatest refinement, she was able to adjust herself to 
 the wilds of Illinois in 1835. 
 
 Mrs. Post died in St. Louis, Missouri, November 4, 
 1873, and is buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery, which had 
 been dedicated by her husband in May, 1850.
 
 55 
 
 MRS. ALFRED B. SAFFORD 
 (Anna E ) 
 
 Mrs. Anna E. Safford was born in Kaskaskia, Illi- 
 nois, on April 7, 1837. Her early girlhood was spent in 
 that old first capital of Illinois. She moved to Cairo in 
 1844, and remained there during the Civil war. Cairo 
 was the headquarters of General Grant for many months 
 early in the war, and Mrs. Safford was active in all work 
 for soldiers and sailors, and in the United States Chris- 
 tian Commission. 
 
 She was married in 1863, to Alfred B. Safford, 
 banker and a leading citizen. She was a charter member 
 of the Cairo Woman's Club and Library Association, or- 
 ganized in 1875, and forerunner of the Cairo Public Li- 
 brary. In 1883, Mrs. Safford presented the city of Cairo 
 with a fine site and a beautiful library building in 
 memory of her husband. The Library has been main- 
 tained ever since as a public Library by the city. She 
 was president of the Board of Directors for many years, 
 and was President Emeritus of the Cairo Woman's Club. 
 She was patron of library and schools, and giver of many 
 valuable works of art to both. 
 
 Mrs. Safford was active in the Episcopal church, and 
 is the patron saint of this community where she was be- 
 loved by people of all walks in life. She died in 1921.
 
 54 
 
 MRS. TRUMAN MARCELLUS POST 
 
 (Frances Alsop Henshaw) 
 
 Frances Henshaw Post was born at Middlebury, 
 Vermont, in 1809, the daughter of Daniel and Sarah 
 Prentis Henshaw. Before her marriage she wrote, and 
 some silver tablespoons she bought with her first earned 
 money are still in existence. 
 
 On October 5, 1835, she was married to Truman Mar- 
 cellus Post at St. Stephen's Church in Middlebury. On 
 November 12, the same year, she came with her husband 
 to Jacksonville, Illinois, where he was Professor of an- 
 cient languages and ancient history in Illinois College. 
 She was of great assistance to her husband when he had 
 trouble with his eyes, for she helped him prepare for his 
 recitations by reading to him in English, Latin, and later, 
 Greek. 
 
 Mrs. Post took an active part in promoting the edu- 
 cational interests in Jacksonville, and was a helpmate 
 in the true sense of the word, of Dr. Post in his ministerial 
 career in St. Louis. She organized, and was president of 
 the first Woman's Congregational Missionary Society in 
 Missouri. 
 
 The strong and sterling character of Mrs. Post is 
 proven by the fact that although used to comfort and the 
 greatest refinement, she was able to adjust herself to 
 the wilds of Illinois in 1835. 
 
 Mrs. Post died in St. Louis, Missouri, November 4, 
 1873, and is buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery, which had 
 been dedicated by her husband in May, 1850.
 
 55 
 
 MRS. ALFRED B. SAFFORD 
 (Anna E ) 
 
 Mrs. Anna E. Safford was born in Kaskaskia, Illi- 
 nois, on April 7, 1837. Her early girlhood was spent in 
 that old first capital of Illinois. She moved to Cairo in 
 1844, and remained there during the Civil war. Cairo 
 was the headquarters of General Grant for many months 
 early in the war, and Mrs. Safford was active in all work 
 for soldiers and sailors, and in the United States Chris- 
 tian Commission. 
 
 She was married in 1863, to Alfred B. Safford, 
 banker and a leading citizen. She was a charter member 
 of the Cairo Woman's Club and Library Association, or- 
 ganized in 1875, and forerunner of the Cairo Public Li- 
 brary. In 1883, Mrs. Safford presented the city of Cairo 
 with a fine site and a beautiful library, building in 
 memory of her husband. The Library has been main- 
 tained ever since as a public Library by the city. She 
 was president of the Board of Directors for many years, 
 and was President Emeritus of the Cairo Woman's Club. 
 She was patron of library and schools, and giver of many 
 valuable works of art to both. 
 
 Mrs. Safford was active in the Episcopal church, and 
 is the patron saint of this community where she was be- 
 loved by people of all walks in life. She died in 1921.
 
 56 
 
 MRS. JULIAN MONSON STURTEVANT 
 
 (Elizabeth Maria Fayerweather) 
 
 Mrs. Elizabeth F. Sturtevant was born in New 
 Canaan, Connecticut, in 1806. Her mother was a sister 
 of Rev. James Richards, D. D., of Auburn Theological 
 Seminary. 
 
 When twenty years of age, Miss Fayerweather met 
 Mr. Julian M. Sturtevant in New Canaan, where he had 
 come to teach. The acquaintance continued a year be- 
 fore he made known his feelings toward her. 
 
 Mr. Sturtevant, with others, became pledged to go 
 as a home missionary to some frontier state or territory. 
 He was invited to go to Jacksonville, Illinois, where a 
 college was to be established. He laid his plan before 
 Miss Fayerweather as it involved her life as well as his 
 own. She was a woman of rare thoughtfulness, and cheer- 
 fully approved the plan. 
 
 Of her Mr. Sturtevant said: "She was eminently 
 qualified by sound and cool judgment, and by her first- 
 rate common sense, to be my wise adviser as well as to be 
 the head and ornament of my home." 
 
 In the early morning of August 31, 1829, the young 
 couple were united in marriage. After many trying ex- 
 periences they reached Jacksonville on November 15, 
 1829. Five children were born to them, two of whom 
 died when small. 
 
 Mrs. Sturtevant, with other wives of the early teach- 
 ers in the college, was of great assistance in the struggle 
 to establish Illinois College. Her life of service was cut 
 short when she passed away on February 12, 1840, when 
 about thirty-three years of age.
 
 57 
 
 MRS. JOHN TILLSON 
 
 (Christiana Holmes) 
 
 Mrs. Tillson was of New England parentage, born 
 Christiana Holmes, at Kingston, Massachusetts, March 
 13, 1796. She was educated and refined, her people in 
 comfortable circumstances in Kingston. She married 
 John Tillson, in October, 1822, at Kingston. He had 
 spent two years in Illinois, at Edwardsville and near 
 Hillsboro, and went back to Massachusetts, to marry her 
 and bring her to Hillsboro. 
 
 They started in October, 1822, in a carriage made at 
 Bedford, Massachusetts, for the trip. She describes this 
 trip and their life during the next fifteen years at Hills- 
 boro, in her book, "A Woman's Story of Pioneer Illi- 
 nois." Their home was a center for friends, transients, 
 business acquaintances, and for everyone, when county 
 and state enterprises were being carried through. 
 
 Mrs. Tillson was the first business woman in Hills- 
 boro, as she was the clerk for her husband in his store. 
 She was a woman of rare culture and deeply interested in 
 benevolent enterprises. The land for the Hillsboro 
 Academy and the Presbyterian church was given by the 
 Tillsons. 
 
 Two sons were born to Mr. and Mrs. Tillson at Hills- 
 boro, and other children later, but not here. The first 
 son arrived September 15, 1823, eleven months after they 
 reached this backwoods country. Mr. Tillson 's fortune 
 was swept away in the panic of 1837, and he moved from 
 Hillsboro to Quincy. He died suddenly at Peoria, in 
 May, 1853, when fifty-seven years of age. His wife died 
 at New York City, May 29, 1872, at the age of seventy-six.
 
 58 
 
 MRS. JONATHAN BALDWIN TURNER 
 (Rhodolphia S. Kibbe) 
 
 Rhodolphia S. (Kibbe) Turner was born at Somers, 
 Connecticut, September 13, 1810. On October 22, 1835, 
 she was married to Jonathan Baldwin Turner, who was 
 a Professor in Illinois College at Jacksonville, Illinois. 
 Theirs was a romantic meeting, which began in a stage- 
 coach. Rhodolphia, thinking he was asleep, mimicked 
 him for the benefit of her companions. But she was seen, 
 and learning her name, he wrote to her from Yale. Her 
 friends made inquiries which were satisfactorily an- 
 swered, and the result was a happy marriage. 
 
 Mr. Turner went to Connecticut for his bride, to take 
 her to his home in Illinois, "the Western wilds, that 
 mysterious realm full of dangers and hardships, Indians 
 and cholera. ' ' The young wife was stricken with typhoid 
 fever immediately following the wedding, and it was six 
 weeks before she was considered able to travel. The trip 
 was made safely, but with many dangers, delays, and 
 narrow escapes from death. 
 
 Seven children were born to this couple. Mrs. 
 Turner knew nothing of cooking when she was married, 
 and for a time it was not necessary, as they boarded. But 
 when they tired of this kind of a life and began house- 
 keeping, Mrs. Turner became a model housekeeper, and 
 she was always a conscientious and devoted mother. 
 
 With the wives of the other early professors in Illi- 
 nois College, she helped the struggling college and the 
 students in the movement for education in the state of 
 Illinois. 
 
 Mrs. Rhodolphia Kibbe Turner died suddenly on 
 January 6, 1879, at Jacksonville, Illinois.
 
 59 
 
 MARY ALLEN WEST 
 
 Mary Allen West, educator and philanthropist, was 
 born at Galesburg, Illinois, July 30, 1837, the daughter 
 of Nehemiah and Catherine Neeley West. After her 
 graduation from Knox Seminary in 1854, she taught un- 
 til 1873, when she was elected County Superintendent of 
 Schools, serving nine years. 
 
 Miss West took an active and influential interest in 
 educational and reformatory movements. For two years 
 she was editor of "Our Home Monthly," in Philadelphia, 
 and was also a contributor to other journals, besides be- 
 ing Editor-in-Chief of "The Union Signal," Chicago, the 
 organ of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, in 
 which she held the position of president. In the latter 
 days of her life she was president of the Illinois Woman's 
 Press Association of Chicago, that city having become 
 her home in 1885. 
 
 On August 31, 1892, Miss West started from Van- 
 couver to Japan. She spoke to the higher classes of 
 Japanese women several times a day. At Tokio she was 
 made an honorary life member of the Red Cross Society, 
 and was presented with a silver medal by the Empress. 
 
 The physical strain of the journey was too much for 
 her already over-taxed strength, and on December 1, 
 1892, she died at the home of her friend and former mem- 
 ber of her own church at home, Mrs. Leila Willard Winn, 
 of Kanazawa, Japan. Funeral services were held in the 
 native chapel, following which her remains were brought 
 to her home city, where on January 16, 1893, she was 
 laid to rest.
 
 60 
 
 MRS. WILLIAM WHITE 
 
 (Julia Mariah Hart) 
 
 Julia Mariah White, daughter of Julius Caesar and 
 Catherine Carroll Hart, was born March 18, 1827, near 
 Canton, Ohio. When she was twenty years old, she was 
 granted a teacher's certificate. After teaching a year, 
 in December, 1848, she married Samuel Russell. She had 
 one son, Homer Russell. Late in 1850, she was divorced 
 on the grounds of cruelty. 
 
 In 1856 she came to Illinois, near Fairfield, and be- 
 gan teaching in Wayne County the same year. On Feb- 
 ruary 28, 1859, she married William White. A son, Julius 
 White, was born in 1861, and the same year, Mr. White 
 enlisted in the Union army. He was wounded and was 
 very sick. After much pleading, Mrs. White was per- 
 mitted to go to her husband. She nursed him to con- 
 valescence, then began nursing other men. Late in 1863 
 both Mr. and Mrs. White returned to Illinois. Mrs. 
 White renewed her certificate and began teaching again, 
 her husband being an invalid till his death in 1885. 
 
 Mrs. White was a pioneer business woman, working 
 under discouraging conditions for her country and her 
 family. She was known and loved as "Aunt Jane 
 Mariah" by four generations of relatives and friends. 
 
 Mrs. Julia Mariah White died March 18, 1925, at 
 Fairfield, Illinois, at the age of ninety-eight, still active, 
 both mentally and physically.
 
 III. 
 
 THE CIVIL WAR PEEIOD
 
 63 
 
 MRS. CYRUS AIKEN 
 (Eliza N. Atherton) 
 
 Eliza N. Atherton Aiken was born March 24, 1817, 
 at Auburn, New York, the daughter of Steadman and 
 Deborah Ward Atherton. She was married May 2, 1837, 
 to Cyrus Aiken, who was a sedate man, nine years older 
 than his bride, and full of the western fever. They came 
 to Peoria, Illinois, and from there to a farm near Brim- 
 field. 
 
 When the war broke out, Mrs. Aiken and Mrs. Mary 
 Sturgis of Peoria, reported at Camp Butler, near Spring- 
 field. There was an epidemic of measles among the 
 soldiers, and as the surgeon showed them their duties, 
 he told the men to call one of them "Aunt Lizzie," and 
 the other one " Mother." There were eighty patients, 
 but the two nurses took care of them all. 
 
 Aunt Lizzie Aiken went from one place to another, 
 taking care of the sick and wounded. The only rest she 
 had during the war was a three weeks visit to her mother 
 in Cavendish, Vermont. 
 
 As an army nurse, and as a "church visitor" after 
 the war, Mrs. Aiken won a reputation. Her part was to 
 distribute the charities of the church, but her work was 
 much deeper and broader than this. She cheered the 
 sick and listened to the farewell utterances of the dying; 
 she rescued wanderers from the straight path and com- 
 forted those who lost their loved ones. 
 
 But Aunt Lizzie Aiken was human, and she grew 
 old and sick. In January, 1906, she passed away at the 
 age of eighty-nine years.
 
 64 
 
 MRS. ROBERT BICKERDYKE 
 
 (Mary A. Ball) 
 
 Mary A. Bickerdyke, familiarly known as ' 'Mother 
 Bickerdyke," was born in Knox county, Ohio, July 19, 
 1817, and came of Revolutionary ancestors. When about 
 twenty-five she married Robert Bickerdyke, a widower 
 with four or five children, by whom she was beloved. No 
 difference was known between them and her own two 
 sons. 
 
 Mrs. Bickerdyke was living in Galesburg, Illinois, 
 when the Civil war broke out, and as sickness appeared 
 among the troops at Cairo, she went down among them. 
 Her well-known skill as a nurse, and other qualities which 
 she possessed, enabled her to face many emergencies 
 during the trying days which followed. * 
 
 "Mother Bickerdyke'' also did heroic work in the 
 hospitals at Corinth, Missionary Ridge, and Fort Donel- 
 son. She was put in charge of the field hospital at Mis- 
 sion Ridge in November, 1863, and for over a month was 
 the only woman there. Over two thousand men were 
 assigned to her care. Few women equalled "Mother 
 Bickerdyke" in heroism and courage, ability, true worth 
 and modesty. 
 
 The "Mother Bickerdyke" Association was formed 
 soon after her death, which occurred at Bunker Hill, 
 Kansas, November 8, 1901. In January, 1903, a request 
 was presented to the Legislature for an appropriation 
 of $5,000 for a monument to this fine woman. The Bill 
 was passed and signed by Richard Yates (son of the War 
 Governor who had appointed her as the War Nurse). 
 The monument, the work of Mrs. Kitson, is in Galesburg, 
 Illinois. Governor Yates delivered the address at the 
 dedication.
 
 65 
 
 MRS. JOHN CALHOUN 
 (Pamelia C. Hathaway) 
 
 Pamelia C. Calhoun was born in Hounsfield, New 
 York, March 20, 1811, one of five children of James and 
 Lucinda Hathaway. Soon after her birth her parents 
 moved to Watertown. Here she received her education 
 in the common schools, and was active in the social life 
 of the village. 
 
 On May 31, 1832, she was married to John Calhoun. 
 Two children were born to them, both dying in infancy. 
 In September, 1833, Mr. Calhoun located in Chicago, Illi- 
 nois, where he established the first newspaper, the Chi- 
 cago Democrat, Mrs. Calhoun joined him in the follow- 
 ing spring, and became of great assistance to him in proof 
 reading and other business of the office. She also made 
 her home a pleasant center of social life. Helpfulness to 
 others was one of her chief characteristics. 
 
 Both Mr. and Mrs. Calhoun were lovers of outdoor 
 life, and made many fishing and hunting trips together, 
 as well as business journeys. To her business discern- 
 ment was largely due the competence which later enabled 
 her to be generous. 
 
 Mrs. Calhoun was intense in her likes and dislikes, 
 whether to a person, an idea or a cause. She was espe- 
 cially strong in her hatred of slavery. After Mr. Cal- 
 houn's death she remained in Chicago till her own health 
 failed, when she went to live with a nephew in Oak Park. 
 Here she died, on August 14, 1889. She left a legacy for 
 the purchasing of reference and library books to the Cal- 
 houn school, named for her husband.
 
 66 
 
 MRS. JAMES S. CATHERWOOD 
 
 (Mary Hart well) 
 
 Mrs. Mary Hartwell Catkerwood was born in Luray, 
 Ohio, December 16, 1844. In 1856 she went with her 
 parents to Milford, Illinois. Her father died, and when 
 ten years old, Mary was given a home by her grandfather 
 Thompson at New Hebron, Ohio. She attended the school 
 there, bnt at the age of fourteen, she was teaching to ob- 
 tain proper clothing, and to prepare the way for entrance 
 into the Female College at Granville, Ohio, where she 
 completed a four years' course in three years, graduat- 
 ing in 1868. She was in debt eight hundred dollars on 
 graduation, but her uncle, Cyrus Hartwell, agreed that 
 if she would pay this debt in four years by her own ef- 
 forts, he would make her a present of five hundred dol- 
 lars. She did it, and received the gift. 
 
 While still a little girl she contributed poems to the 
 local papers of New Hebron. Some elderly friend re- 
 marked that while the poems were beautiful, her field 
 lay in prose. Mary believed this, and determined to 
 achieve her aim if unceasing effort would help. She wrote 
 a short serial for Frank Leslie, "The Mill-Scott Million," 
 and received her first check. 
 
 In 1887 she was married to James S. Catherwood, 
 with whom she resided at Hoopeston, Illinois. 
 
 During her last few years she showed an inclination 
 for subjects connected with Illinois history, and pub- 
 lished popular romances under the titles of "The Story 
 of Tonty," "Old Kaskaskia," and others. 
 
 Mary Hartwell Catherwood died on December 26, 
 1902.
 
 67 
 
 MRS. STEPHEN A. DOUGLAS 
 
 (Rose Adele Cutts) 
 
 Mrs. Adele Cutts Douglas was born a short distance 
 from the White House, at the home of her grandfather, 
 Richard Cutts, the daughter of Ellen O'Neale and James 
 Madison Cutts, second Comptroller of the Treasury. 
 Adele made her first formal appearance when seven years 
 old, at a children's fancy ball in the White House. She 
 was educated at Madame Burr's school in Washington. 
 
 At a White House reception she met Stephen A. 
 Douglas, and was married to him on November 20, 1856. 
 They lived in Chicago, his legal residence, and in Wash- 
 ington, his real home. Here he built a large house which 
 was the scene of much hospitality. One child, Ellen, was 
 born, but died when less than one year old. 
 
 Mrs. Douglas traveled over the country with her 
 husband in his campaigns of 1858-1860, and received 
 great admiration on account of her beauty, her gracious 
 manner, and her infinite tact. 
 
 After the death of Mr. Douglas on June 3, 1861, Mrs. 
 Douglas returned to Washington, and lived there quietly 
 for several years. At a dinner in 1865, where she was 
 the guest of honor, she met General Robert Williams, 
 and in January, 1866, again became a bride. As an army 
 man's wife, the greater part of her life was spent in the 
 West. Six children were born to them. 
 
 Mrs. Williams died in Washington, D. C, on January 
 26, 1899. She lies beside her husband, General Robert 
 Williams, in Arlington National Cemetery.
 
 68 
 
 MRS. NINIAN WIRT EDWARDS 
 (Elizabeth P. Todd) 
 
 Mrs. Elizabeth Todd Edwards was the eldest daugh- 
 ter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert S. Todd, of Lexington, Ken- 
 tucky, and a sister of Mrs. Abraham Lincoln. 
 
 She was married to Ninian Wirt Edwards in Lexing- 
 ton, on February 16, 1832, and was confirmed in the 
 Episcopal Church about this same time, as Mr. Edwards 
 was an Episcopalian. To this union were born four chil- 
 dren: Julia, wife of Hon. E. L. Baker, Elizabeth E. 
 Clover, Charles Edwards, and Albert S. Edwards. Their 
 home was in Springfield, Illinois, on the spot where the 
 Centennial Building now stands. It was in this home 
 that Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd were married, 
 and in which Mrs. Lincoln died. 
 
 As the wife of Mnian Wirt Edwards, she was for 
 many years one of the most prominent women in the 
 state. She was well-fitted to hold this place, as she was 
 endowed with a great sweetness and gentleness of char- 
 acter. As a hostess none excelled her. She had tact and 
 delicacy of feeling which enabled her to cast a charm 
 upon her guests, whether young or old, making an im- 
 pression which was never effaced. 
 
 Mrs. Edwards expressed a wish to her husband, that 
 when she was gone, he would send certain articles of her 
 household furniture to St. Agatha's School and the Or- 
 phanage of the Holy Child in the city, which she knew 
 would be useful to those institutions. 
 
 She did not linger long when struck by disease, and 
 passed away at her home on February 22, 1888.
 
 69 
 
 MRS. LEMUEL FOSTER 
 
 (Lydia Conderry) 
 
 Mrs. Lydia Conderry Foster was a thrifty New Eng- 
 land school-teacher of Hart land, Hartford county, Con- 
 necticut, where also lived Lemuel Foster. She married 
 him with a strict understanding between them, that if 
 health and means should permit, they were to go to Illi- 
 nois as missionaries. 
 
 After their marriage they visited relatives and 
 friends for a time, then with a good strong horse and 
 buggy, they started, September 5, 1832, on their 1200 
 miles trip to Jacksonville, Illinois. 
 
 Mr. Foster was appointed to a church already or- 
 ganized in the northern part of Sangamon county, and 
 the first winter they made their home in a little cabin 
 standing in the yard of a church member, Mr. Moore. 
 In the spring they moved to a more central place where 
 Mrs. Foster opened a school, being urgently requested 
 to do so. The school flourished and was of great influence 
 in the community. 
 
 As Mr. Foster spent almost every Sunday in Bloom- 
 ington, they decided to move to McLean county. Here 
 Mrs. Foster conducted a school, taking six pupils as 
 boarders, one of them working for her board. 
 
 In 1838, they planned to go East for a rest, when 
 Mrs. Foster was taken suddenly ill of a fever, and the 
 trip was abandoned. About this time a call came for 
 Mr. Foster to take charge of an academy at Bethel, Bond 
 county, as Principal. He accepted, and they reached 
 Bethel on November 12, 1838. Here they remained till 
 December 8, 1845, when they moved to Upper Alton.
 
 70 
 
 MRS. ENOCH GOGIN 
 (Mary Ann Elwell) 
 
 Mary Ann (Elwell) Gogin was born of Scotch an- 
 cestry, in Greenbrier county, Virginia, on November 18, 
 1817. In 1824 her parents moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. 
 Here she married Enoch Gogin, in 1836. Two children, 
 a boy and a girl, were born to them. 
 
 In 1841, with a company of fourteen relatives, they 
 emigrated to Palestine, Illinois, near which place they 
 entered land. Mr. Gogin built a log cabin and cultivated 
 his farm. After some years spent amid hardships, the 
 farm was sold and Mr. and Mrs. Gogin moved to the town 
 of Palestine. 
 
 In 1863, Mr. Gogin was appointed Postmaster, and 
 with the help of his wife, conducted a General Merchan- 
 dise store, in connection with the Post Office. Both Mr. 
 and Mrs. Gogin encouraged religion and education, and 
 their home was a haven for ministers. 
 
 Mr. Gogin became an invalid; and at fifty years of 
 age, both of their children dead, a grandchild and help- 
 less companion to support, " Auntie Gogin" as she was 
 called, entered the business world. She bought goods in 
 Terre Haute or Indianapolis for her millinery store, and 
 was soon well-known to the heads of firms in those cities. 
 
 In 1893 her husband died. She kept her home and 
 her business until 1900, when she sold them and went to 
 live with the granddaughter she had reared and edu- 
 cated. Mrs. Gogin was interested in church and temper- 
 ance work, charity and public improvements all of her 
 life. She died at the age of eighty-five.
 
 71 
 
 MRS. ULYSSES S. GRANT 
 (Julia Dent) 
 
 Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant, the daughter of Frederick T. 
 and Ellen Bray Wrenshall Dent, was born in St. Louis, 
 Missouri, February 16, 1826. While at "finishing" 
 school, Julia Dent heard much, in home letters, of Lieu- 
 tenant Grant, a classmate of her brother, Frederick, at 
 West Point, who had been stationed at Jefferson Bar- 
 racks, and was a frequent visitor at the Dent home. 
 The young couple became engaged in the early summer 
 of 1844, and were married in August, 1848. Several chil- 
 dren were born to them. 
 
 Mrs. Grant was a wife who tried to shield her hus- 
 band from minor annoyances. She was interested in 
 whatever concerned him, but did not overstep the line 
 which kept her from his confidence in some matters. 
 They were always great lovers, never being fully content 
 when separated from each other. 
 
 When Mrs. Grant was the "first lady of the land," 
 she was somewhat of an autocrat. She felt she was re- 
 sponsible for the result, and should be the one to decide 
 the means. At her receptions she introduced the cus- 
 tom of inviting women of prominence to assist her. 
 
 In 1877, she accompanied General Grant on his trip 
 around the world, receiving much attention throughout 
 the trip. Mrs. Grant died in 1902, and is buried in Grant 
 Tomb on Riverside Drive, New York City. The Grant 
 home at Galena, Illinois, where the family lived after the 
 Civil War, is the property of the Grant Memorial Asso- 
 ciation, and is used as a Grant Museum.
 
 72 
 
 MRS. SARAH GREGG 
 
 In March, 1864, Mrs. Sarah Gregg of La Salle, Illi- 
 nois, was employed as matron of the General Hospital at 
 Camp Butler. Her superior qualifications for the ardu- 
 ous and peculiar duties of the place, soon became appar- 
 ent. She gave the sick and wounded soldiers a motherly 
 care, and this combined with experience and skill made 
 her especially fitted for the place. 
 
 At one time reports were circulated around that offi- 
 cers were consuming the sanitary supplies. In a letter 
 to Colonel John R Woods, Mrs. Gregg declared the re- 
 ports to be almost entirely false. She said, in part: "AH 
 canned fruit, butter or eggs, as supplied by sanitary so- 
 cieties, are brought into my store room, and they get 
 none of them. Vegetables and dried apples, I have not 
 room to store, and they are consequently put in the Com- 
 missary's room, whether supplied by Government or 
 sanitary, and are dealt out to the low-diet convalescents 1 
 and steward's kitchens. Four Doctors and two stewards 
 
 board at the steward's table They do eat some 
 
 vegetables and dried apples supplied by sanitary charity. 
 It is impossible to avoid these reports. Dissatisfied men, 
 (and no crowd of men brought together here can be satis- 
 fied) will start them. Some may honestly believe 
 
 what they are saying when they repeat them. We see 
 what we look for in the world, and thus people see evil 
 because they have it in their eyes. We can't help it. 
 If the Doctors here lived on bread and water, these same 
 reports would be. We cannot prevent it."
 
 73 
 
 MRS. HARRISON GRIMSLEY BROWN 
 (Elizabeth Todd) 
 
 Mrs. Elizabeth Todd Grimsley Brown was born Jan- 
 uary 29, 1825, at Edwardsville, Illinois, one of six chil- 
 dren of her parents, Elizabeth Smith and Dr. John Todd, 
 who was a prominent physician of Springfield, Illinois. 
 
 Elizabeth Todd and her cousin, Mary Todd, were 
 great friends, and when, on November 4, 1842, Mary be- 
 came the wife of Abraham Lincoln, she was a bridesmaid 
 at the wedding which was held at the Mnian Wirt Ed- 
 wards home in Springfield. 
 
 Elizabeth was married in Springfield, July 21, 1846, 
 to Harrison Grimsley, a native of Kentucky. Two sons 
 were born to them. 
 
 In February, 1861, she was invited, with other rela- 
 tives, to make a visit at the White House and witness 
 the inauguration. Mrs. Grimsley spent over six months 
 in Washington, and was a participant in the first recep- 
 tion held under Lincoln's administration. She was a 
 great favorite with the children of the household and 
 exerted much influence over them. 
 
 Harrison Grimsley died January 5, 1865, and in Jan- 
 uary, 1867, Mrs. Grimsley married Rev. John H. Brown, 
 pastor of the First Presbyterian church in Springfield, 
 and later of the Third Presbyterian church in Chicago. 
 Mrs. Brown was an active worker in the church, and was 
 especially interested in foreign missions. Her ability as 
 a leader was recognized, and in consequence she was 
 chosen to direct many of the church organizations. 
 
 Mrs. Elizabeth Todd Grimsley Brown died in Duluth, 
 Minnesota, at the home of a niece, on September 23, 1895, 
 and is buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Springfield, Illinois.
 
 74 
 
 MRS. JOHN HOSSACK 
 
 (Martha Lens) 
 
 Mrs. Martha Lens Hossack was born at Grenock, 
 Scotland, on November 28, 1813. As a child she crossed 
 the Atlantic with her parents, to Quebec, Canada. She 
 was educated here in the common schools. 
 
 On April 25, 1833, she married John Hossack at 
 Quebec, where he was engaged in the confectionery busi- 
 ness. Later he was a contractor on the "Long Soo" 
 Canal on the St. Lawrence River, where their three old- 
 est children were born. Mr. Hossack obtained a con- 
 tract on the Hlinois and Michigan Canal, and the family 
 moved to Chicago. 
 
 In 1850 they moved to Ottawa, Illinois, where her 
 husband engaged in the lumber and grain business. Mrs. 
 Hossack was the mother of eleven children and lived to 
 see them all grown to manhood and womanhood, and 
 settled in homes of their own. There was not a death 
 in this large family in fifty-four years. In 1883 they 
 celebrated their golden wedding, at which all of their 
 children were present, coming from five different states. 
 In every emergency Mr. Hossack sought his wife's ad- 
 vice and counsel, and at this celebration he said "a good 
 wife does much to keep a man in the way he should go." 
 
 During the Civil War Mr. Hossack was much inter- 
 ested in the "Underground Railway," and Mrs. Hossack, 
 though having a large family to care for, always cheer- 
 fully fed and lodged the poor slaves who were brought 
 to her door, there being, at one time, thirteen. 
 
 Mrs. Hossack died on August 30, 1899, at Evanston, 
 Illinois.
 
 75 
 
 MRS. H. C. JOHNS 
 (Jane Martin) 
 
 War worker, home maker, club woman, library spon- 
 sor, social leader, author, personal friend of Abraham 
 Lincoln, are some of the terms that might be applied to 
 Mrs. Jane M. Johns, one of the best known of Decatur's 
 early pioneer women. 
 
 Married in Ohio in 1845, to Dr. H. C. Johns, she 
 came, four years later, with her husband, to Illinois, set- 
 tling first in Piatt county, then five years later, coming 
 to Decatur, which was her home until her death in 1919. 
 From the home which her husband built on the top of 
 Decatur's highest hill, she could literally see Decatur 
 grow from a village of 400 to a city of 50,000. In all her 
 years there, she was a leading spirit in the city's de- 
 velopment. 
 
 During the Civil War she was active in the Sanitary 
 Commission work. During the World War she was just 
 as active in the Red Cross activities. Decatur was prob- 
 ably the only city that had a ninety-one year old World 
 war worker. 
 
 It was when Abraham Lincoln helped to unload her 
 piano, which, by the way, was the first in Decatur, that 
 she first became acquainted with him, and their friend- 
 ship continued for years. 
 
 When past eighty years of age, Mrs. Johns wrote a 
 book, "Personal Recollections," which attracted wide 
 attention because of its intimate glimpses of early days 
 in Decatur, and interesting stories of Abraham Lincoln.
 
 76 
 
 MRS. JAMES T. JONES 
 (Jane Ridgely) 
 
 Mrs. Jaue Ridgely Jones was born at Springfield, 
 Illinois, on January 28, 1846, the daughter of Nicholas 
 H. and Jane Huntington Ridgely. She was one of the 
 large and well-known Ridgely family, whose home stood 
 at the corner of Sixth Street and Lawrence Avenue, 
 Springfield, Illinois, where the Franklin Life Insurance 
 Building now stands. Their home was a center of hos- 
 pitality and music. Every music lover was welcome 
 there, and programs of the best in music were often 
 heard. 
 
 Jane Ridgely married James T. Jones on September 
 9, 1873. Four children were born to them. Mrs. Jones 
 both played the piano and sang, and when she married 
 she carried the same atmosphere of music and hospi- 
 tality into her new home. When a very young girl she 
 sang in St. Paul's Church Choir, and was one of those 
 who sang at Abraham Lincoln's funeral. 
 
 Mrs. Jones was a charter member of Christ Epis- 
 copal Church, and was a leader in church activities, often 
 having fairs and entertainments in her own spacious 
 home. She entertained their first minister for three 
 months, and was noted for her generous hospitality. 
 
 For many years she was a member of the Every 
 Wednesday Literary Club. She was a member of the 
 old Dramatic Club, taking part in many amateur plays. 
 
 Mrs. Jones died November 28, 1925, in Springfield, 
 where she had lived her entire life.
 
 77 
 
 MRS. CHARLES WESLEY LEFFINGWELL 
 
 (Elizabeth Francis) 
 
 Mrs. Elizabeth Francis Leffingwell was born in 
 1840, the daughter of John Francis, formerly of Kent, 
 England, at that time a resident of Chautauqua county, 
 New York. She was married to Mr. Charles W. Leffing- 
 well on July 23, 1862. After her marriage she was ap- 
 pointed Assistant-Matron at the same school where her 
 husband was Vice-Principal. So, without intending it, 
 both were becoming qualified to take charge of a similar 
 school, St. Mary's, at Knoxville, Illinois. 
 
 It was a cheerless and blustering day in March, 
 1868, when Mr. and Mrs. Leffingwell and their infant 
 daughter arrived at Knoxville for the opening of the 
 school in April. It was a hard year for them. Mrs. 
 Leffingwell was Domestic Manager of the school, which 
 position she held for forty years. For a long time she 
 shared, with her husband, the executive work of the 
 house and school, on account of low finances. She was 
 so interested in the work that she donated her inherit- 
 ance for carrying on the school. 
 
 In April, 1893, in response to the invitation of Dr. 
 and Mrs. Leffingwell, a goodly number of the Alumnae 
 assembled in Chicago, to celebrate the twenty-fifth an- 
 niversary of the founding of the school. A souvenir 
 booklet was presented to each guest, containing photo- 
 graphs of Dr. and Mrs. Leffingwell and Miss Hitchcock, 
 the three who founded the school on April 13, 1868. 
 
 Mrs. Leffingwell died on November 6, 1926, at the 
 age of eighty-six, the mother of seven children, two of 
 whom died in infancy.
 
 78 
 
 MRS. ABRAHAM LINCOLN 
 
 (Mary Todd) 
 
 Mary Todd Lincoln was born in Lexington, Ken- 
 tucky, December 13, 1818, the daughter of Robert S. and 
 Eliza Ann (Parker) Todd. Her ancestry dates back to 
 Scottish Covenanters. At the age of fourteen she en- 
 tered a French boarding school in Lexington, and ac- 
 quired an unusually thorough knowledge of the language. 
 
 In 1839 she went to Springfield, Illinois, for an in- 
 definite stay with her sister, Mrs. Mnian Wirt Edwards. 
 Here she met Abraham Lincoln, and found in him the 
 most congenial mind she had ever met. Though Mr. and 
 Mrs. Edwards, as her guardians, objected to him, chiefly 
 because his family relations were on a different plane, 
 she was married to him in her sister's home, on Novem- 
 ber 4, 1842. Four sons were born to them. 
 
 After Mr. Lincoln's election to the presidency and 
 the war began, Mrs. Lincoln's life was one of trials. To 
 the Southerners, she was a traitoress; as a Southern 
 woman in the White House, she was not popular with 
 the Northerners. If she abandoned social functions, she 
 was not carrying on; if she maintained them, she was 
 heartlessly gay. Mrs. Lincoln was subject to violent out- 
 bursts of temper, but through it all she loved her 
 husband. 
 
 After Lincoln's tragic death, Mrs. Lincoln was in 
 poor health for many years, finally passing away on 
 July 16, 1884, at the home where she was married. She 
 was laid to rest with her husband and three children in 
 the vault in Lincoln Monument, in Oak Ridge Cemetery, 
 Springfield, Illinois.
 
 79 
 
 MRS. DANIEL P. LIVERMORE 
 (Mary Ashton Rice) 
 
 Mary Ashton Livermore, reformer and philanthro- 
 pist, daughter of Timothy and Zebiah Ashton Rice, of 
 Welsh and English descent, respectively, was born in 
 Boston, Massachusetts, December 19, 1820. Her parents 
 gave her all the education afforded to women at that 
 time. She taught for a time in a female seminary in 
 Charlestown, and spent two years as a governess in 
 southern Virginia. 
 
 On May 6, 1845, she married Rev. Daniel P. Liver- 
 more, a Universalist minister, who held pastorates at 
 various places in Massachusetts and at Quincy, Illinois, 
 becoming editor of "The New Covenant" at Chicago, in 
 1857. During this time Mrs. Livermore wrote much for 
 denominational papers, and also assisted her husband 
 in his work. 
 
 In 1862 she was appointed an agent, and traveled 
 extensively in the interest of the United States Sanitary 
 Commission, visiting hospitals and camps in the Missis- 
 sippi Valley. She also took a prominent part in the 
 great Northwestern Sanitary Fair at Chicago, in 1863. 
 
 During the winter of 1873-74 a movement known as 
 the Women's Temperance Crusade appeared in Ohio, 
 Indiana and Illinois, in which Mrs. Livermore took part. 
 This was followed by the organization of the National 
 Women's Christian Temperance Union. Mrs. Livermore 
 labored and lectured extensively in the interest of woman 
 suffrage and temperance, besides being the author of 
 several volumes, one of these being "Pen Pictures of 
 Chicago" (1865). 
 
 Mrs. Livermore died on June 23, 1905.
 
 80 
 
 MRS. JOHN A. LOGAN 
 
 (Mary Simmerson Cunningham) 
 
 Mrs. John A. Logan was born at Petersburg (now 
 Sturgeon), Boone county, Missouri, on August 15, 1838, 
 of Irish-French ancestry. 
 
 When fifteen years old she was sent to St. Vincent's 
 Academy near Morganfield, Kentucky, one of the best 
 schools at that time. After her return from school she 
 met John A. Logan, prosecuting attorney of the third 
 judicial district, and on November 27, 1855, was married 
 to him. 
 
 In their early married life they lived in Murphys- 
 boro, Benton, Marion, Shawneetown, and other southern 
 Illinois towns. During the years that Mr. Logan was 
 before the public, from the time of his election to Con- 
 gress in 1858, till his death in 1886, Mrs. Logan was a 
 loyal and wonderful helpmate. She suffered the hard- 
 ships of early pioneer life, assisted in her husband's 
 political campaigns, and in Washington, D. C, was a 
 brilliant hostess and a charming woman. 
 
 Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Logan, 
 one child dying when a year old. After her husband's 
 death, Mrs. Logan edited The Home Magazine for six 
 years, and for more than seven years was on the editorial 
 staff of the Hearst Syndicate of New York City. She 
 traveled extensively, and met nearly all the " Crowned 
 Heads of Europe." During the summer of 1904 she gave 
 thirty lectures before Chautauquas and Assemblies in 
 Illinois and other states. She was the author of Rem- 
 iniscences of a Soldier's Wife. 
 
 Mrs. Logan passed away on February 22, 1923, and 
 lies beside her distinguished husband in Soldiers' Home 
 Cemetery, Washington, D. C.
 
 81 
 
 MRS. OLIVER MARCY 
 (Elizabeth Eunice Smith) 
 
 Mrs. Elizabeth E. Marcy was born December 22, 
 1821, at East Hampton, Connecticut, daughter of 
 Nathaniel Clark and Charlotte (Strong) Smith. She was 
 a direct descendant of Elder William Brewster and 
 Stephen Hopkins of Mayflower fame. She was educated 
 in the public schools, private schools, and later in the 
 Wesleyan Academy at Wilbraham, Massachusetts. She 
 taught school, and was a creditable art student. 
 
 On July 2, 1847, she married Professor Oliver Marcy, 
 a teacher in the Academy. Four children were born to 
 them. In September, 1862, they moved to Evanston, 
 where Professor Marcy had accepted a position. Here 
 Mrs. Marcy found time for public service of an endur- 
 ing sort. She was an active and influential worker in 
 the Woman's Foreign Missionary and the Woman's 
 Home Missionary societies of the Methodist Episcopal 
 church from their organization. 
 
 In connection with her work in the Home Mission- 
 ary society, Mrs. Marcy undertook to found what is 
 known as the Elizabeth E. Marcy Home in one of the 
 destitute sections of Chicago. The home is conducted as 
 a sort of religious settlement and is a center of acknowl- 
 edged help and usefulness. 
 
 Mrs. Marcy was also one of the founders of the 
 Woman's Christian Temperance Union. She belonged 
 to the Daughters of the American Revolution, and was 
 eligible to membership in the Colonial Dames. 
 
 Mrs. Marcy has written many pamphlets concerning 
 philanthropic work, and many hymns, some of which 
 have been used in Methodist Hymnals throughout the 
 world. Her death occurred in 1911.
 
 82 
 
 MRS. GEORGE POWERS 
 
 (Almira Avery Giles) 
 
 Almira Giles Powers, daughter of Almira Avery and 
 Dr. John Giles, was born at East Charlemont, Massachu- 
 setts, March 3, 1818. In addition to her common school 
 education, she attended the Academy at Bennington, 
 Vermont, and the Emma Willard Seminary. Here she 
 became very proficient in the French language. 
 
 Through a friend, Sarah Ann Powers, she met her 
 brother, George W. Powers. The acquaintance resulted 
 in their marriage, April 27, 1840, at Tuscaloosa, Ala- 
 bama, where Miss Giles was teaching. Their wedding 
 trip was the journey to their new home near Decatur, 
 Illinois, traveling in a double carriage drawn by a pair 
 of dapple-gray horses. It took thirty-nine days for the 
 trip. Ten years later, she was left a widow with three 
 children to support. 
 
 Being well educated, and having had experience as 
 a teacher, she naturally turned to that profession. She 
 began teaching in her own home, that being before the 
 days of public schools. For seven years she taught in 
 Decatur. She introduced many educational innovations, 
 such as denning words when they were spelled, construct- 
 ing sentences containing the words, and solving practical 
 problems in Arithmetic. She also introduced "moral 
 suasion" instead of the rod, when practical. Three 
 months before she stopped teaching, the public school 
 law was enacted. Thus she was Decatur's first public 
 school teacher. She was the first president of the Ladies ' 
 Library Association, the beginning of the Decatur Pub- 
 lic Library. 
 
 Mrs. Powers' death occurred on April 2, 1900.
 
 83 
 
 MRS. HENRY SHIMER 
 (Frances Ann Wood) 
 
 Frances Wood Shimer was born in Milton, Saratoga 
 county, New York, in August, 1826. In 1857, she mar- 
 ried Dr. Henry Shimer, a young physician of Mt. Car- 
 roll, Illinois. 
 
 From childhood, Frances was a lover of books. When 
 she was fifteen years old she began teaching, but in a 
 few years decided to attend Normal School in Albany, 
 where she graduated at the age of twenty-three. 
 
 Hearing of an opportunity for opening a school in 
 the New West, at Mt. Carroll, Illinois, she and a class- 
 mate, Miss Cinderella Gregory, decided to remove there. 
 In the spring of 1853, they opened their school for boys 
 and girls. A stock company was formed, money sub- 
 scribed, five acres of ground were bought, and a building 
 erected and occupied in the fall of 1854. 
 
 Mrs. Shimer was a woman of great personality and 
 wonderful character. She was an educator with a broad 
 vision, and was a successful business woman. The school 
 became well-known throughout the West, and in 1861, 
 on account of crowded conditions, boys were excluded. 
 
 In 1883, after forty years of service, she gave up the 
 work of the school because of failing health. In 1896, 
 she transferred the school to a Board of Trustees. The 
 name was changed from "Mt. Carroll Seminary" to 
 "Frances Shimer School." 
 
 Mrs. Shimer died in November, 1901, in the South, 
 and was brought back to Mt. Carroll, to be laid to rest 
 midst the scenes which she had loved.
 
 84 
 
 MRS. JOHN TODD STUART 
 
 (Mary Virginia Nash) 
 
 Mrs. Mary Virginia Nash Stuart was born August 
 25, 1816, in Prince Edward Comity, Virginia, near Rich- 
 mond, the only child of Francis and Judith (Bland) 
 Nash, both of her parents being natives of Virginia. 
 Their home was one of social enjoyments and generous 
 hospitality. 
 
 When Mary Virginia was a year old her parents 
 moved to Missouri Territory and settled above St. Louis, 
 near the mouth of the Missouri river, where she passed 
 her childhood. Her mother died when she was ten years 
 old, and her father six years later. Soon after she went 
 to live with her aunt, the wife of Judge Samuel D. Lock- 
 wood of Jacksonville, Illinois. She was a beautiful girl, 
 intelligent, and of quick perception. In later life she 
 added to her schooling by wide reading. While living 
 with her aunt, she became a member of the Presbyterian 
 church. 
 
 At the home of Judge Lockwood, on October 25, 
 1837, she was united in marriage by Rev. Julian Sturte- 
 vant, to John Todd Stuart, a promising attorney of 
 Springfield, Illinois. Seven children were born to them. 
 
 Mrs. Stuart was one of the most prominent and 
 highly esteemed women in Illinois. She had great 
 strength of character, was of a charitable disposition, 
 and was conscientious in her christian duty to a marked 
 •degree. She died at her home in Springfield, on May 
 30, 1901, and was laid to rest beside her husband in beau- 
 tiful Oak Ridge Cemetery.
 
 85 
 
 MRS. LYMAN TRUMBULL 
 (Julia Maria Jayne) 
 
 Julia Maria Jayne Trumbull was born in Springfield, 
 Illinois, June 3, 1824, the eldest child of Dr. Gershom and 
 Sibyl (Slater) Jayne. Her father practiced medicine in 
 New York until 1820, when he came to Illinois down the 
 Ohio river in a flat-boat. He spent about six months in 
 southern Illinois before permanently locating in Spring- 
 field, Illinois, then known as Calhoun. 
 
 Mrs. Trumbull was educated at Monticello Seminary, 
 Godfrey, Illinois. She was a bridesmaid of Mrs. Abraham 
 Lincoln before her marriage to Lyman Trumbull of Belle- 
 ville, Illinois, June 21, 1843, at the age of nineteen. A 
 wedding journey was taken to Mr. Trumbull's old home 
 in Connecticut, and then to Mrs. Trumbull's relatives 
 at Stockbridge, Massachusetts. 
 
 In 1846, on profession of faith, she united with the 
 First Presbyterian church of Springfield, Illinois, and 
 afterwards, by letter, with churches of the same denomi- 
 nation at Belleville and Alton, where she, at different 
 periods, resided. 
 
 Mrs. Trumbull was the mother of six boys, three of 
 whom, the first, third and fifth, preceded her in death. 
 On Sunday morning, August 16, 1868, Mrs. Trumbull 
 died at her home in Washington, D. C. Mrs. Trumbull 
 was qualified in every way to be the wife of Lyman 
 Trumbull. She was a true wife, a devoted mother, a 
 sincere christian, a noble woman. 
 
 Funeral services were conducted by Reverend Fred- 
 erick H. Wines at the home of her brother, Dr. William 
 Jayne, in Springfield, on August 20, 1868. Burial was 
 made in Oak Ridge Cemetery.
 
 84 
 
 MRS. JOHN TODD STUART 
 
 (Mary Virginia Nash) 
 
 Mrs. Mary Virginia Nash Stuart was born August 
 25, 1816, in Prince Edward County, Virginia, near Rich- 
 mond, the only child of Francis and Judith (Bland) 
 Nash, both of her parents being natives of Virginia. 
 Their home was one of social enjoyments and generous 
 hospitality. 
 
 When Mary Virginia was a year old her parents 
 moved to Missouri Territory and settled above St. Louis, 
 near the mouth of the Missouri river, where she passed 
 her childhood. Her mother died when she was ten years 
 old, and her father six years later. Soon after she went 
 to live with her aunt, the wife of Judge Samuel D. Lock- 
 wood of Jacksonville, Illinois. She was a beautiful girl, 
 intelligent, and of quick perception. In later life she 
 added to her schooling by wide reading. While living 
 with her aunt, she became a member of the Presbyterian 
 church. 
 
 At the home of Judge Lockwood, on October 25, 
 1837, she was united in marriage by Rev. Julian Sturte- 
 vant, to John Todd Stuart, a promising attorney of 
 Springfield, Illinois. Seven children were born to them. 
 
 Mrs. Stuart was one of the most prominent and 
 highly esteemed women in Illinois. She had great 
 strength of character, was of a charitable disposition, 
 and was conscientious in her christian duty to a marked 
 •degree. She died at her home in Springfield, on May 
 30, 1901, and was laid to rest beside her husband in beau- 
 tiful Oak Ridge Cemetery.
 
 85 
 
 MRS. LYMAN TRUMBULL 
 (Julia Maria Jayne) 
 
 Julia Maria Jayne Trumbull was born in Springfield, 
 Illinois, June 3, 1824, the eldest child of Dr. Gershom and 
 Sibyl (Slater) Jayne. Her father practiced medicine in 
 New York until 1820, when he came to Illinois down the 
 Ohio river in a flat-boat. He spent about six months in 
 southern Illinois before permanently locating in Spring- 
 field, Illinois, then known as Calhoun. 
 
 Mrs. Trumbull was educated at Monticello Seminary, 
 Godfrey, Illinois. She was a bridesmaid of Mrs. Abraham 
 Lincoln before her marriage to Lyman Trumbull of Belle- 
 ville, Illinois, June 21, 1843, at the age of nineteen. A 
 wedding journey was taken to Mr. Trumbull's old home 
 in Connecticut, and then to Mrs. Trumbull's relatives 
 at Stockbridge, Massachusetts. 
 
 In 1846, on profession of faith, she united with the 
 First Presbyterian church of Springfield, Illinois, and 
 afterwards, by letter, with churches of the same denomi- 
 nation at Belleville and Alton, where she, at different 
 periods, resided. 
 
 Mrs. Trumbull was the mother of six boys, three of 
 whom, the first, third and fifth, preceded her in death. 
 On Sunday morning, August 16, 1868, Mrs. Trumbull 
 died at her home in Washington, D. C. Mrs. Trumbull 
 was qualified in every way to be the wife of Lyman 
 Trumbull. She was a true wife, a devoted mother, a 
 sincere christian, a noble woman. 
 
 Funeral services were conducted by Reverend Fred- 
 erick H. Wines at the home of her brother, Dr. William 
 Jayne, in Springfield, on August 20, 1868. Burial was 
 made in Oak Ridge Cemetery.
 
 86 
 
 MRS. RICHARD YATES, SR. 
 
 (Catherine Geers) 
 
 Catherine Geers Yates was born in Lexington, Ken- 
 tucky, on September 22, 1822, the daughter of William 
 and Mary (Watkins) Geers. With her parents she came 
 to Illinois in 1830, and received her education in Jack- 
 sonville. 
 
 On July 9, 1839, she was married to Richard Yates, 
 before she was seventeen years of age. To them were 
 born five children, only one of whom is now living, Rich- 
 ard Yates, Jr., Congressman-at-Large, Washington, D. C. 
 
 Mrs. Yates was a woman of decided christian char- 
 acter. She was unostentatious in manner, maintaining 
 the highest respect of all who knew her. During the 
 four years of bloody strife, when her husband was Gov- 
 ernor, her faith comforted him and helped to keep him 
 from faltering in his course. She was beloved by both 
 soldiers and civilians. 
 
 While Mr. Yates was in Congress, she shared in all 
 his social honors and political triumphs. One of her 
 treasured keepsakes was a little faded cockade pre- 
 sented to her by General Scott, at a dinner party at the 
 White House, at which he escorted her to the table. 
 
 Though many sorrows came into the life of Mrs. 
 Yates, she yet proved of a sweet and loving spirit, and 
 well merited the pride of being taken back in her old 
 days, by her son, to the mansion over which she had so 
 worthily presided forty years before. 
 
 Mrs. Yates died on October 6, 1908, at her home in 
 Jacksonville, and was laid to rest in Diamond Grove 
 Cemetery.
 
 IV. 
 THE CHICAGO FIRE PERIOD
 
 89 
 
 MRS. DAVID B. AYERS 
 
 (Eliza Freitag) 
 
 Eliza Freitag Ayers was born in Rahway, New Jer- 
 sey, January 10, 1804. She married David Ball Ayers, 
 a druggist, and with her husband and two children, came 
 to Jacksonville, Illinois, arriving there May 15, 1830. 
 
 They left Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the spring 
 of 1830, by stage, for Allegheny City; there they took 
 the boat down the Ohio river, and up the Mississippi to 
 Alton, Illinois, thence by stage to Jacksonville. Mr. 
 Ayers had been in correspondence with a number of in- 
 fluential men in this vicinity at that time. He opened 
 up his drug store soon after arriving, and continued it 
 until his death. The two boys, M. P. and A. E. Ayers, 
 were educated at Illinois College. At his death he left 
 his store and his possessions to his wife and sons. 
 
 Soon after coming to Jacksonville, Mrs. Ayers was 
 elected the first president of the Ladies Educational So- 
 ciety in Illinois, which Society is still in existence. She 
 accumulated some wealth of her own, and came into pos- 
 session of Berea College. She lived there in part of the 
 building for a number of years, and then decided to give 
 the grounds and buildings and $60,000 to be used as a 
 hospital for this community. This was afterwards called 
 the Passavant Memorial Hospital. It is her gift to the 
 city of Jacksonville. It has grown considerably, and is 
 very prominent as a hospital in this community. 
 
 Eliza Freitag Ayers died in Jacksonville, Illinois, 
 January 16, 1896.
 
 90 
 
 MRS. EDWIN BOOTH 
 (Mary M. McVicker) 
 
 Mary M. McVicker, the little daughter of James H. 
 McVicker, was born in 1848. She appeared on her 
 father's stage in her tenth year. So pleased were the 
 audiences with her playing of little Eva, "the angel 
 child," and other parts, as well as the charming quality 
 of her singing voice, that she did much to help her 
 father throughout the first difficult years of his under- 
 taking in Chicago. 
 
 When Edwin Booth opened his new theatre in New 
 York, on February 3, 1869, Mary McVicker, at the age 
 of eighteen, played Juliet to his Romeo. Mr. Booth fell 
 in love with her, and they were married on June 7, 1869. 
 This was Mr. Booth's second marriage, and to his little 
 eight year old daughter, Edwina, Mrs. Booth made a 
 good mother. Although Mrs. Booth did not again appear 
 on the stage after her marriage, but devoted herself to 
 her husband and her home, she often took notes of how 
 and why Mr. Booth did certain things in the course of 
 his performances. 
 
 When, in later years, her health failed, and she be- 
 came an invalid, Edwina took her mother's place in so- 
 cial and household duties. In a letter written by Mr. 
 Booth to one of his friends, he said of his wife: "Her 
 great pluck keeps her up and about, but she is a very 
 sick woman, having lost her voice and much flesh, and 
 she suffers great pain constantly." 
 
 Mrs. Booth died November 13, 1881, when only 
 thirty-three years of age.
 
 91 
 
 MRS. JAMES B. BRADWELL 
 
 (Myra Colby) 
 
 Myra Colby Bradwell was born at Manchester, Ver- 
 mont, on February 12, 1831, being descended on her 
 mother's side from the Chase family to which Philander 
 Chase and Salmon P. Chase belonged. She attended 
 school in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and a Seminary at Elgin, 
 Illinois, afterward being engaged in teaching. 
 
 On May 18, 1852, she was married to Judge James 
 B. Bradwell, almost immediately going to Memphis, 
 Tennessee, where, with her husband, she conducted a 
 select school. She also taught in the public schools 
 when they returned to Chicago. 
 
 She was president of the Soldiers' Aid Society, and 
 was a leading spirit in the Sanitary Fairs held in Chi- 
 cago in 1863 and 1865. After the war she commenced 
 the study of law, and in 1868 began the publication of 
 ' ' The Chicago Legal News. ' ' After passing a most credit- 
 able examination, application was made for her admis- 
 sion to the bar, in 1871, but was denied on the sole 
 ground of sex, by the Supreme Court of the State, as 
 was also done by the Supreme Court of the United States. 
 She was finally admitted to the bar on March 28, 1892, 
 and was the first woman member of the State Bar Asso- 
 ciation. 
 
 Other organizations with which she was identified, 
 embraced the ' 'Illinois; State Press Association," the 
 "Illinois Industrial School for Girls," at Evanston, 
 the Women's Committee on Jurisprudence of the 
 World's Congress Auxiliary of 1893, and many others. 
 
 Mrs. Myra Colby Bradwell died at her home in Chi- 
 cago, February 14, 1894.
 
 92 
 
 MRS. MERRITT CALDWELL BRAGDON 
 
 (Elizabeth Wayne Byerly) 
 
 Elizabeth Wayne Byerly Bragdon was born in New 
 York City, December 12, 1834, the daughter of David 
 Byerly, who was a representative of one of the old 
 Quaker families of Philadelphia. 
 
 In Philadelphia she met Dr. Merritt Caldwell Brag- 
 don, and married him on June 6, 1876, coming to Evanston 
 to live immediately afterward. Four children were born 
 to them, and all were graduated from Northwestern 
 University, from which her husband had also been grad- 
 uated, and for which he served as trustee. 
 
 Mrs. Bragdon 's mind was keen and alert, and her 
 memory remarkable. She was a thorough student of 
 Romance languages, and her extensive travels greatly 
 enriched her personality. 
 
 While Mrs. Bragdon did not originate any organiza- 
 tion, she had deep interest in all community affairs. Al- 
 though she remained a Quaker, she attended faithfully 
 the First Methodist Episcopal Church. She was a mem- 
 ber of the Drama Club from its beginning, of the Uni- 
 versity Guild, served as president of Bryant Circle, and 
 several times as vice-president of the Woman's Club of 
 Evanston. She was a patron of music and other arts, 
 but chiefly she was known to a large circle of friends and 
 acquaintances as an exponent of the fine art of living. 
 In the home over which she presided for fifty years, and 
 where she died in October, 1926, she was remarkable for 
 constant and gracious hospitality, true philanthropy, 
 kindliness of spirit, and was an ideal wife and mother.
 
 93 
 
 MRS. WILLIAM TAYLOR DAVIDSON 
 
 (Margaret Gilman George) 
 
 Mrs. Margaret George Davidson was born in Colum- 
 bia, Boone county, Missouri, November 25, 1869. Her 
 father, Rev. Benjamin Y. George, was pastor of the 
 Presbyterian church at that time. 
 
 From a little child Margaret showed a love for the 
 beautiful that was most remarkable. As she grew up, 
 her health was so uncertain, that she was unable to at- 
 tend school regularly, so her father gave her training 
 at home. She became a thorough scholar in the best of 
 English Literature and was also a fine historian. Later, 
 she spent two years specializing in Greek and Latin at 
 the State University, living with her grandparents. 
 
 Most of her childhood was spent in Lewistown, Ful- 
 ton county, Illinois. She developed such marked ability 
 in painting, that she attended the fine Art School in 
 Kansas City for several seasons. 
 
 She had always written verses and stories, and this 
 power grew. All the best magazines published her poems. 
 After her death, two of her poems were selected by 
 Edmond Clarence Stedman to place in his American 
 Anthology. 
 
 Margaret Gilman George was married to William 
 Taylor Davidson, Editor of the Fulton Democrat, of 
 Lewistown, Illinois, at the home of her grandmother in 
 Dallas, Texas, on April 3, 1895. To this union was born 
 on May 1, 1896, one son, William Gilman Davidson, pres- 
 ent Editor of the paper which his father so brilliantly 
 conducted. 
 
 Heart trouble caused her death on November 23, 
 1897, when her husband found her sitting alone, her 
 Bible on her lap, and a lovely smile on her face.
 
 94 
 
 MRS. PETER DEMUTH 
 (Sophia ) 
 
 Mrs. Sophia Deinuth was born November 8, 1847. 
 She was married to Peter Demuth on October 10, 1866, 
 at Wheeling, West Virginia. Her husband passed away 
 about 1916. 
 
 For more than forty years Mrs. Demuth was inter- 
 ested in helping unfortunate people. Black or white 
 made no difference to her, and she often took them tem- 
 porarily into her home. With Mrs. H. M. Schweppe, 
 she constituted a very active Alton Humane Society, 
 Mrs. Demuth looking after the human unfortunates, and 
 Mrs. Schweppe the dumb brutes. 
 
 Mrs. Demuth always wore the little white ribbon of 
 the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, and no one 
 ever doubted her position on that particular question. 
 She was a power in this work, and every day she offered 
 her noon-tide prayer for the downfall of the liquor traffic. 
 
 When a flood came, drowning out Missouri Point 
 inhabitants, Mrs. Demuth was chosen by a committee 
 of business men to take charge of the relief work. Pub- 
 lic sentiment demanded that some way be found to pay 
 a salary to Mrs. Demuth. Under Mayor Brueggemann, 
 the office of police matron was created, and Mrs. Demuth 
 was appointed, holding that post for many years. When 
 the County needed a probation officer, she was chosen 
 for the place, which she held until her death. 
 
 Mrs. Demuth had eight children, five of whom pre- 
 ceded her in death. She became ill February 1, but lin- 
 gered on till Mother's Day, May 12, 1929, when she died, 
 in the eighty-second year of her age.
 
 95 
 
 MRS. NATHANIEL K. FAIRBANK 
 
 (Helen Livingston Graham) 
 
 Mrs. Helen Graham Fairbank, the daughter of John 
 Andrew and Helen (Beeckman) Graham, was born in 
 New York, April 13, 1840. She married Nathaniel Kel- 
 logg Fairbank in New York, on April 24, 1866, and came 
 at once to Chicago to live. 
 
 Mrs. Fairbank was always interested in charities 
 and social service work in Chicago. During the trying 
 days following the great Chicago Fire, which fortunately 
 spared the locality in which the Fairbank family lived, 
 Mrs. Fairbank worked hard to relieve the sufferings and 
 misery of the victims. 
 
 One of the organizations in which she was especially 
 interested from its very beginning was St. Luke's Hos- 
 pital, which she, with Dr. Clinton Locke, D.D. and Dr. 
 John E. Owens, organized soon after the close of the 
 Civil War. She was largely responsible for the estab- 
 lishment of the Nurses Training School, collecting, as 
 well as giving, great sums of money for the support of 
 the institution. 
 
 Mrs. Fairbank was always active in the work of her 
 Church, and was probably more prominently identified 
 with the Episcopal Church and its work than any other 
 woman in the diocese. 
 
 She was a member of the Fortnightly and the Deco- 
 rative Arts Society, both pioneer societies in this west- 
 ern state, and was also prominent in all social affairs. 
 
 Mrs. Fairbank passed away in Chicago on July 15, 
 1895. With all her interest in church and charity work, 
 she never neglected her home, and was a devoted mother 
 to her eight children, seven of whom survived her.
 
 96 
 
 MRS. WILLIAM S. HARBERT 
 
 (Elizabeth Morrison Boynton) 
 
 Elizabeth Boynton Harbert, daughter of William H. 
 and Abigail (Sweetser) Boynton, was born in Crawfords- 
 ville, Indiana, in 1845. She was educated in the Female 
 Seminary at Oxford, Ohio, and in the Terre Haute Female 
 College, graduating from the latter with honors. 
 
 Mrs. Harbert was a pioneer suffragist, temperance 
 worker, lecturer, writer, and club woman. Her first book, 
 "The Golden Fleece," was published in 1867. In 1870, 
 Elizabeth married Judge William S. Harbert, a success- 
 ful lawyer. Three children were born to them. 
 
 After their marriage they lived in Des Moines, Iowa, 
 where Mrs. Harbert 's second book, "Out of Her Sphere," 
 was published. During her residence here, Mrs. Harbert 
 earned the distinction of being the first woman to de- 
 sign a woman's plank and secure its adoption by a great 
 political party of a state. 
 
 In the winter of 1874, Mr. and Mrs. Harbert moved 
 to Evanston, Illinois. Mrs. Harbert was founder of the 
 Woman's Club of Evanston, and its president for eight 
 years. She was president of the Illinois Woman's 
 Suffrage Association for twelve years. As editor of a 
 department of the Chicago Inter Ocean, she exerted a 
 widespread influence over many homes. 
 
 With Mrs. Catherine Waugh McCulloch and Mrs. 
 Helen M. Gougar, Mrs. Harbert came to Springfield 
 where they addressed the House and Senate in favor of 
 the bill allowing the women of Illinois to vote upon 
 school questions, and secured the passage of the bill. 
 
 Although filling so many important offices, Mrs. 
 Harbert 's greatest pleasure was in her home and family. 
 Mrs. Harbert died in 1925.
 
 97 
 
 MISS HARRIET NEWELL HASKELL 
 
 Harriet Newell Haskell was born January 14, 1835, 
 at Waldoboro, Maine, the daughter of Bela Bangs and 
 Eliza (Sproul) Haskell. She graduated at Mt. Holyoke 
 College in 1855 (Litt. D., 1904). 
 
 Miss Haskell taught in public schools in Boston, 
 Massachusetts, Waldoboro, Maine, and in a classical 
 Seminary at Castleton, Vermont. On March 22, 1867, 
 she was appointed principal of Monticello Seminary at 
 Godfrey, Illinois. Miss Haskell was an ideal woman for 
 this position. She loved her work; she was ambitious, 
 brave, and resourceful; she was poised, self-reliant, and 
 had a buoyant spirit. Through the confidence of her own 
 convictions she inspired those about her. 
 
 In 1888, about four months after the fiftieth anni- 
 versary of Monticello was celebrated, fire broke out in 
 the Seminary, and the whole structure was burned, to- 
 gether with all the equipment. Miss Haskell was equal 
 to the situation. She gave orders, quieted the frightened 
 pupils, inspired every one with confidence, and all left 
 the building in safety, without a single serious accident. 
 In sixty days a temporary wooden structure was 
 erected, lighted by gas and steam-heated. The students 
 returned and work was resumed. With an abundance of 
 faith, Miss Haskell began to make appeals for financial 
 assistance for permanent buildings, and within nineteen 
 months this was accomplished and the buildings com- 
 pleted. 
 
 Miss Haskell died at the Seminary on May 6, 1907, 
 and was laid to rest on May 10, 1907, at Waldoboro, 
 Maine. Memorial services were held on the following 
 June eleventh, which were attended by many of her 
 pupils and friends.
 
 96 
 
 MRS. WILLIAM S. HARBERT 
 
 (Elizabeth Morrison Boynton) 
 
 Elizabeth Boynton Harbert, daughter of William H. 
 and Abigail (Sweetser) Boynton, was born in Crawfords- 
 ville, Indiana, in 1845. She was educated in the Female 
 Seminary at Oxford, Ohio, and in the Terre Haute Female 
 College, graduating from the latter with honors. 
 
 Mrs. Harbert was a pioneer suffragist, temperance 
 worker, lecturer, writer, and club woman. Her first book, 
 "The Golden Fleece," was published in 1867. In 1870, 
 Elizabeth married Judge William S. Harbert, a success- 
 ful lawyer. Three children were born to them. 
 
 After their marriage they lived in Des Moines, Iowa, 
 where Mrs. Harbert 's second book, "Out of Her Sphere," 
 was published. During her residence here, Mrs. Harbert 
 earned the distinction of being the first woman to de- 
 sign a woman's plank and secure its adoption by a great 
 political party of a state. 
 
 In the winter of 1874, Mr. and Mrs. Harbert moved 
 to Evanston, Illinois. Mrs. Harbert was founder of the 
 Woman's Club of Evanston, and its president for eight 
 years. She was president of the Illinois Woman's 
 Suffrage Association for twelve years. As editor of a 
 department of the Chicago Inter Ocean, she exerted a 
 widespread influence over many homes. 
 
 With Mrs. Catherine Waugh McCulloch and Mrs. 
 Helen M. Gougar, Mrs. Harbert came to Springfield 
 where they addressed the House and Senate in favor of 
 the bill allowing the women of Illinois to vote upon 
 school questions, and secured the passage of the bill. 
 
 Although filling so many important offices, Mrs. 
 Harbert 's greatest pleasure was in her home and family. 
 Mrs. Harbert died in 1925.
 
 97 
 
 MISS HARRIET NEWELL HASKELL 
 
 Harriet Newell Haskell was born January 14, 1835, 
 at Waldoboro, Maine, the daughter of Bela Bangs and 
 Eliza (Sproul) Haskell. She graduated at Mt. Holvoke 
 College in 1855 (Litt. D., 1904). 
 
 Miss Haskell taught in public schools in Boston, 
 Massachusetts, Waldoboro, Maine, and in a classical 
 Seminary at Castleton, Vermont. On March 22, 1867, 
 she was appointed principal of Monticello Seminary at 
 Godfrey, Illinois. Miss Haskell was an ideal woman for 
 this position. She loved her work; she was ambitious, 
 brave, and resourceful; she was poised, self-reliant, and 
 had a buoyant spirit. Through the confidence of her own 
 convictions she inspired those about her. 
 
 In 1888, about four months after the fiftieth anni- 
 versary of Monticello was celebrated, fire broke out in 
 the Seminary, and the whole structure was burned, to- 
 gether with all the equipment. Miss Haskell was equal 
 to the situation. She gave orders, quieted the frightened 
 pupils, inspired every one with confidence, and all left 
 the building in safety, without a single serious accident. 
 
 In sixty days a temporary wooden structure was 
 erected, lighted by gas and steam-heated. The students 
 returned and work was resumed. With an abundance of 
 faith, Miss Haskell began to make appeals for financial 
 assistance for permanent buildings, and within nineteen 
 months this was accomplished and the buildings com- 
 pleted. 
 
 Miss Haskell died at the Seminary on May 6, 1907, 
 and was laid to rest on May 10, 1907, at Waldoboro, 
 Maine. Memorial services were held on the following 
 June eleventh, which were attended by many of her 
 pupils and friends.
 
 98 
 
 MRS. BENNETT HUMISTON 
 
 (Harriet Camp) 
 
 Harriet Camp was born in Plymouth Hollow, Con- 
 necticut, the daughter of Apollis Camp, a descendant of 
 a Revolutionary soldier, and Nancy Thomas, a niece of 
 the famous Seth Thomas. 
 
 In 1851 her father came to Livingston county, Illi- 
 nois, and located in Sunbury township. In 1852 he moved 
 to Esmen township, where he was joined by his family 
 and also Bennett Humiston, who became his partner in 
 land purchases. 
 
 On May 22, 1856, Harriet Camp was married to Ben- 
 nett Humiston, and they made their home in this com- 
 munity. Mrs. Humiston had a calm mind, a reposeful 
 manner, and she was very sympathetic in all the benevo- 
 lent enterprises of her husband. After the death of Mr. 
 Humiston on November 15, 1883, she carried on his busi- 
 ness of farming and stock raising. She was one of the 
 founders of the Pontiac State Bank, acting as director, 
 and continuing to increase her land holdings in several 
 states. 
 
 Among the many gifts made by Mrs. Humiston were 
 the "Humis ton-Camp Swimming Pool" in Chautauqua 
 Park, and $25,000 to the Y. M. C. A. for a building. She 
 was a liberal supporter of the Pontiac library and the 
 Student Loan Fund. Mrs. Humiston made a study of 
 the proper use of her wealth, and in her will, besides per- 
 sonal bequests, she made provision for a trusteeship, 
 with directions for using the income from her vast estate, 
 valued at $1,075,147.08. 
 
 Mrs. Humiston 's death occurred in Pontiac, Illinois, 
 October 18, 1920, and she was laid to rest in Camp Ceme- 
 tery, Esmen township, Livingston county, Illinois.
 
 99 
 
 SISTER JOSEPHINE (MEAGHER), 0. P. 
 
 Sister Josephine (Meagher), O. P., was born at 
 Rosecrea, County Tipperary, Ireland, about 1836. In 
 December, 1852, soon after the death of her husband, 
 James Meagher, Sister Josephine's mother, Ellen Ryan 
 Meagher, embarked to New Orleans with her family of 
 six children. Sister Josephine was then in her 16th year. 
 The Meagher family reached America, April 15, 1853. 
 Mrs. Meagher, overcome by grief and fatigue, died almost 
 immediately, leaving her grief-stricken children, not en- 
 tirely among strangers, but in a strange land. 
 
 We meet the Meaghers no more until June 14, 1857, 
 when Sister Josephine and her sister, Germaine, are 
 clothed in the Habit and the white veil of a Dominican 
 Novice, at the Convent of Saint Catherine of Sienna, at 
 Springfield, Kentucky; again, at the completion of their 
 Novitiate one year later, in September, 1858; and once 
 more, after a period of five years, when they pronounce 
 the Vows of Final Profession, in 1863. 
 
 In 1873 Sister Josephine was sent by Mother Regina, 
 her Superioress, to Jacksonville, Illinois, to establish, in 
 conjunction with five other Sisters, a school of the Do- 
 minican Order. 
 
 On October 15, 1874, Sister Josephine, in obedience 
 to the Right Reverend Bishop Baltes of Alton, Illinois, 
 and at the request of the Honorable U. S. Grant, Presi- 
 dent of the United States, left Jacksonville in company 
 with Sister Rachel Conway, O. P., to unveil the statue 
 of Lincoln which a sorrowing populace had erected in 
 Springfield to the memory of our martyred President. 
 
 Sister Josephine died January 12, 1925, after a short 
 illness.
 
 100 
 
 LUCY LARCOM 
 
 Lucy Larcom was born March 5, 1824, at Beverly, 
 Massachusetts, the next to the youngest of nine children. 
 Her childhood was spent here, till her father, a retired 
 shipmaster, died in 1835, and left his family without re- 
 sources. They decided to move to Lowell where work 
 was more easily obtained. Lucy worked in a factory and 
 became one of the most popular contributors to "The 
 Lowell Offering," a magazine conducted by the factory 
 girls, thereby winning the acquaintance and friendship 
 of the poet, Whittier. 
 
 In 1846, she came to Illinois with her married sister, 
 to earn her living teaching school. She taught for some 
 time, and for three years was a student at Monticello 
 Seminary, at the same time teaching in the preparatory 
 department of the school. She was Monticello 's poetess 
 and one of her most distinguished Alumnae. She gradu- 
 ated in June, 1852, her essay being entitled "The Hearth- 
 stone and the Universe. ' ' 
 
 She returned to Beverly to teach, and later went to 
 Wheaton Seminary at Norton. In the midst of her work 
 she found time to write some of her best known poems, 
 chief among which is "Hannah Binding Shoes." 
 
 In 1862, on account of ill health, she gave up teach- 
 ing, and devoted herself entirely to literature. She was 
 editor of "Our Young Folks" for some years. In 1868 
 she published her first collection of poems. 
 
 Miss Larcom 's health gradually failed, and she died 
 April 17, 1893, in Boston. She was buried in her native 
 town of Beverly.
 
 101 
 
 MARIE EUGENIA VON ELSNER 
 ("Litta") 
 
 Marie Eugenia von Eisner was born June 1, 1856, 
 at Bloomington, Illinois, a daughter of Hugh and Amanda 
 (Dimmit t) von Eisner. When only five years old, Marie 
 sang before an assemblage of volunteer soldiers at 
 Springfield, Illinois. Her singing touched their hearts, 
 and they called her the " child wonder." 
 
 At the age of fourteen, she sang in Chicago, Cleve- 
 land, and New York. Mr. A. B. Hough, of Cleveland, 
 Ohio, was so impressed with her voice, that he financed, 
 liberally, her musical education in Europe. 
 
 After studying in Paris, she made her debut in that 
 city. Her role was " Lucia" in the opera of " Lucia di 
 Lammermoor." Here she first used the name "Litta," 
 by which she is most generally known. 
 
 Litta returned to America in October, 1878, under 
 the management of Max Strakosch. Her first appear- 
 ance in opera, in America, was at McVicker's in Chicago, 
 on November 16, 1878, in the same role as in Paris. From 
 Chicago she traveled from one great city to another, in 
 all parts of the country, everywhere achieving great 
 triumphs. 
 
 Following this, she abandoned opera and sang only 
 in concert. But her health, never good, gave way. She 
 returned to her mother's home where she passed away 
 on July 7, 1883. 
 
 A monument erected at her grave bears this inscrip- 
 tion: "This monument was erected by the Citizens of 
 Bloomington to the Memory of her who won fame for 
 herself and reflected it upon the city of her birth."
 
 102 
 
 MRS. CYRUS H. McCORMICK 
 
 (Nettie Fowler) 
 
 Mrs. Nettie Fowler McCormick was born in Clayton, 
 New York, in 1835, the daughter of Melzer Fowler, Esq., 
 of Jefferson county. In 1858 she was married in Chicago 
 to Mr. Cyrus H. McCormick, who had come here in 1847, 
 to establish a manufactory for reaping machines. Four 
 sons and three daughters were born to them, of whom a 
 son and daughter died in infancy. 
 
 Mrs. McCormick supported half a dozen schools and 
 institutions in this country, and missions in Siam, China, 
 and other parts of Asia. Her private gift to McCormick 
 Theological Seminary was $1,000,000. Mr. McCormick 
 was her adviser in her philanthropic enterprises. 
 
 One biographer has said: "Mrs. McCormick was a 
 woman of rare charm, and with a comprehension of busi- 
 ness affairs that was of the greatest possible value to her 
 husband. She was at all times in the closest touch with 
 his purposes. By her advice he introduced many econo- 
 mies at the factory and rebuilt the works after the great 
 fire of 1871. The precision of her memory and the grasp 
 of her mind upon the multifarious details of human na- 
 ture and manufacturing made her an ideal wife for such 
 a man as Cyrus H. McCormick. As he grew older, he 
 depended upon her judgment more and more. For. more 
 than a half a century she was a most influential factor in 
 the industrial and philanthropical development of the 
 United States. "
 
 103 
 
 MRS. RICHARD MICHAELIS 
 
 (Clara Leist) 
 
 Clara Leist Michaelis was born July 25, 1849, at 
 Berlin, Germany, where she received an excellent edu- 
 cation. On July 2, 1867, she was married to Richard 
 Michaelis, a young journalist, with whom she came to 
 the United States in 1868, first living in Milwaukee, Wis- 
 consin, then, after 1870, in Chicago. During the Chicago 
 fire the young family lost all its possessions, but made 
 good through redoubled energy and industry. Having a 
 fine literary as well as business talent, Clara Michaelis 
 assisted her husband greatly in the founding and build- 
 ing up of the German newspaper, "Die Freie Presse," 
 and later, in the acquiring of the "Illinois Staatszei- 
 tung." For many years she was active, editorially, on 
 the newspaper, "Die Frauenzeitung, " a supplement to 
 the Sunday paper, "Daheim," in which she strove for 
 those ideals of womanhood and motherhood which make 
 for the true happiness of family life. Through this pub- 
 lication she became widely known in German- American 
 circles, and exerted a most beneficial influence in many 
 homes. Many of her editorials and short stories were 
 translated from the German into the English and other 
 languages. 
 
 After the death of her husband in 1909, she lived in 
 retirement, partly in Medford, Wisconsin, partly in Chi- 
 cago. After 1914, her permanent residence was again in 
 Chicago. During the last years of her life her deeply re- 
 ligious and humanitarian nature found expression in 
 many benevolences which she practised privately and by 
 means of ten benevolent organizations in which she held 
 membership. 
 
 Mrs. Clara Leist Michaelis died in Chicago, February 
 17, 1922.
 
 104 
 
 MRS. HARVEY WILLIAM MILLIGAN 
 
 (Josephine Mason) 
 
 Josephine Mason Milligan was born in Philadelphia, 
 Pennsylvania, on February 27, 1835, the daughter of 
 Nelson and Royina Mason Wade. She was married in 
 Brownsport Furnace, Decatur county, Tennessee, to 
 Harvey William Milligan, on March 16, 1856. 
 
 On November 30, 1868, Mrs. Milligan organized the 
 Jacksonville Sorosis, after reading in the New York 
 Tribune about the founding of the New York Sorosis. 
 She was a contributor of household articles to that paper 
 for many years. Mrs. Milligan also organized the Jack- 
 sonville Household Science Club, on February 7, 1885. 
 She was for many years an active member of the Jack- 
 sonville Christian Association, and was a member of the 
 Ladies Educational Society for about forty years. 
 
 Mrs. Milligan was a student of nature and had a large 
 Herbarium of Central Illinois wild flowers, beautifully 
 mounted, which she donated, before her death, to the 
 Smithsonian Institution at Washington, D. C. She was 
 one of the earliest members of the Jacksonville Natural 
 History Society which was organized in 1870, and she was 
 also a member of the Microscopical Society. 
 
 While a young girl she collected many fossils that 
 she found while roaming in the glades of Decatur county. 
 A few of these fossils were interesting type specimens of 
 tiny trilobites. 
 
 Mrs. Milligan died July 5, 1911, at Jacksonville, 
 Illinois.
 
 105 
 
 MRS. RICHARD J. OGLESBY 
 
 (Emma Gillett) 
 
 Emma Gillett Oglesby was born February 11, 1845, 
 at Cornland, Illinois, daughter of John Dean and Lemira 
 Parke Gillett. She was married to Hiram David Keays 
 of Bloomington, Illinois, in November, 1864, and he died 
 in 1868. On November 18, 1873, she was married to Rich- 
 ard J. Oglesby, United States Senator. 
 
 For years Mrs. Oglesby was a prominent figure in 
 the life of Illinois and of the nation. Her years as first 
 lady of the state, as a member of the Washington official 
 set, as a social leader, as a member of the board of Di- 
 rectors of the World's Columbian Exposition and her 
 acquaintance abroad gained through travel, made her a 
 nationally known figure. 
 
 Mrs. Oglesby was an unusually well-read woman. 
 When she was sixteen years old, her father placed her 
 under the tutelage of his cousin, a classical scholar, who 
 laid out a course of reading for her. In her late years, 
 having outlived most of her friends, she had recourse to 
 books for companionship. Although she was more than 
 eighty years old, she was as witty and mentally active 
 as during her earlier years. 
 
 Mrs. Oglesby is survived by four children: Hiram 
 Gillett Keays, Elkhart; Countess Cenci Bolognetti 
 (Felicite Oglesby), John Gillett Oglesby and Jasper 
 Oglesby. Her husband died April 24, 1899, and one son, 
 Richard James Oglesby, Jr., died in 1913. 
 
 Mrs. Oglesby died November 25, 1928, and is buried 
 beside her husband on the Oglesby estate, Oglehurst, 
 Elkhart, Illinois.
 
 106 
 
 MRS. GEORGE M. PULLMAN 
 (Harriet Sanger) 
 
 Harriet Sanger was born in Chicago, April 18, 1842, 
 the only daughter of James Young and Mary Catharine 
 McKibben Sanger. She attended schools in Chicago, St. 
 Louis and Sacramento, California, as her father's con- 
 tracting business took him away from home at times. 
 
 In 1866 she met George M. Pullman, and on June 13, 
 1867, they were married in Chicago, where they resided 
 until their deaths. Four children were born to them, the 
 older daughter, Florence, becoming the wife of Frank O. 
 Lowden, afterwards a Governor of the State. 
 
 Mrs. Pullman held membership in the Second Pres- 
 byterian church, at which she was a regular attendant 
 when in the city. Her home was a center of social ac- 
 tivity over which she presided with much grace and 
 dignity. 
 
 Mrs. Pullman served on the board of the old Mary 
 Thompson Hospital for Women and Children, and in later 
 years was much interested in St. Luke's Hospital to 
 which she left a substantial legacy. She was always in- 
 terested in young musical students, and made it possible 
 for several to procure their education abroad. 
 
 After the death of Mr. Pullman, she supported the 
 Pullman Public Library, until it was taken over by the 
 Chicago Public Library as the George M. Pullman Branch 
 Library. She gave much time and money during the 
 years of the Great War to war relief work. Her sym- 
 pathy was readily given to the deserving poor, and she 
 gave generously to assist them. 
 
 Mrs. Pullman died March 28, 1921, in Pasadena, 
 California, where she had spent many winters.
 
 107 
 
 MRS. HARRY M. SCHWEPPE 
 
 (Angie Rand) 
 
 Mrs. Angie Rand Schweppe was born at Orino, 
 Maine, October 10, 1853. She was married in Alton, Illi- 
 nois, to Harry M. Schweppe, January 7, 1875. They were 
 the parents of four children, two of whom survived their 
 mother. 
 
 Mrs. Schweppe had a passion for doing things that 
 would better the home community. This characteristic 
 caused her to determine that a certain piece of property 
 on the Bluffs, no longer needed by the owner, should be 
 bought by the city for a public park, even if she held 
 the land through her own resources till the city could 
 buy it. It is said that Riverview Park on the Bluffs is 
 the best monument that Alton could have to this remark- 
 able woman. 
 
 Mrs. Schweppe was a prominent figure in state and 
 national work of the Humane Society, and gave not only 
 her personal services, but was a liberal contributor of 
 money. Her death coming only eleven days after that 
 of Mrs. Sophia Demuth, brings to mind the connected 
 activities of the two women in the Alton Humane So- 
 ciety. She was a woman of strong mind and firm resolu- 
 tion. When she undertook to raise funds for river front 
 improvement, she was not shaken in her belief that the 
 public would come to her way of thinking, which they 
 did. She belonged to the Woman's Christian Temper- 
 ance Union for twenty years, and was an ardent advocate 
 of woman suffrage. 
 
 Mrs. Schweppe died on May 23, 1929, at the age of 
 seventy-five years.
 
 108 
 
 ANNA PECK SILL 
 
 Anna Peck Sill was born in Burlington, Otsego 
 county, New York, on August 9, 1816. Her father, Abel 
 Sill, was a quiet, industrious farmer, who died in 1829. 
 Her mother was a daughter of Judge Peck, and was a 
 good scholar and of great energy of character. Anna 
 inherited these traits from both parents. She was eager 
 for knowledge and a seeker after religion. From the 
 year 1831, when a powerful revival swept the country, 
 Anna dated her real conversion. 
 
 Miss Sill left Burlington in the fall of 1836, and 
 taught a district school for about seven months. In 
 November, 1837, she entered Miss Phipps' Union Semi- 
 nary as a permanent scholar. A year later she was em- 
 ployed as a teacher. 
 
 In 1849 she laid the foundation of Rockford Female 
 Seminary. She had hoped to become a Foreign Mission- 
 ary, but the way did not seem to be open to her. Her 
 whole thought in life was to do good, and her thirty-five 
 years as principal of the Rockford Seminary enabled her 
 to accomplish her desire, even though not in foreign fields. 
 In 1884 she resigned and retired to the honored position 
 of Principal Emeritus. 
 
 A fund of $12,000 was raised among the Alumnae, 
 called the "Sill Endowment Fund/' the income to be used 
 for the support of Miss Sill during her life, and after- 
 wards go to the endowment of the chair of the Principal 
 of the Seminary. 
 
 Anna Peck Sill died June 18, 1889, and was buried 
 in the West Side Cemetery.
 
 109 
 
 MRS. GEORGE CLINTON SMITH 
 
 (Eva Munson) 
 
 Eva Munson Smith was born in Monkton, Vermont, 
 July 12, 1843, the daughter of William Chandler and 
 Hanna Bailey Munson. Her father was of Puritan de- 
 scent and her mother was a descendant of Hanna Bailey, 
 who, in the Revolutionary war, tore off her flannel petti- 
 coat to make wadding for the guns. 
 
 While Mrs. Smith was a girl the family moved to 
 Winchester, Tennessee, and she attended Mary Sharp 
 College at this place. She also went to Rockford College 
 at Rockford, Illinois, where she graduated in 1864. Upon 
 the death of her father she became instructress in music 
 at Otoe University, Nebraska City, Nebraska. Here she 
 met George Clinton Smith, a druggist. Their marriage 
 occurred in 1869, and in 1874 they moved to Springfield, 
 Illinois. 
 
 Mrs. Smith was a philanthropist and a temperance 
 worker, conducting many silver medal contests in Spring- 
 field and vicinity, so popular at that time. She formed 
 the first Woman's Christian Temperance Union in the 
 central part of the state. In addition to her prominence 
 in temperance work, she was a leader in the Equal Suf- 
 frage movement. For nineteen consecutive years she 
 served as vice president of the Illinois Equal Suffrage 
 club and for nearly thirty-five years led in the work. She 
 was also active in the affairs of the Presbyterian church. 
 
 Mrs. Smith was a literary woman. Her principal 
 works were "Woman in Sacred Song," "The Field is the 
 World," and a great number of sketches. Her death oc- 
 curred November 5, 1915, and she was laid to rest in Oak 
 Ridge Cemetery.
 
 110 
 
 MISS ADA CELESTE SWEET 
 
 Miss Ada Celeste Sweet, daughter of General Ben- 
 jamin Jeffery and Lovisa (Denslow) Sweet, was born 
 February 23, 1853, in Stockbridge, Wisconsin. She was 
 educated in the schools of Wisconsin and Chicago. 
 
 After the death of her father in 1874, she was ap- 
 pointed to fill his place as Pension Commissioner. She 
 was the first woman appointed to disburse money for the 
 United States government, serving during the adminis- 
 trations of Grant, Hayes, Garfield and Arthur. 
 
 Miss Sweet was widely known for her philanthropic 
 and welfare work in Chicago. She was the first president 
 of the Municipal Order League, a member of the Civic 
 Federation, and was organizer of the Columbian Ambu- 
 lance Association in 1894. 
 
 From 1888 till 1905 she conducted a United States 
 Claims office in Chicago; she was manager of the 
 Woman's department of the Equitable Life Assurance 
 Society of the L T nited States; she was literary editor 
 of the Chicago Tribune, 1886-1888; editorial writer for 
 the Chicago Journal, 1905, and was a contributor to 
 newspapers and magazines. 
 
 At one time she was president of the Woman's Club, 
 and later, was made an honorary life member. Work 
 for women prisoners occupied much of her time. She 
 was always busy, and always found time for something 
 else. 
 
 On September 17, 1928, Miss Sweet died at the home 
 of her sister, Mrs. Winifred Black Bonfils, in San Fran- 
 cisco, California.
 
 Ill 
 
 DR. MARY HARRIS THOMPSON 
 
 Mary Harris Thompson, physician and surgeon, was 
 born at Fort Ann, New York, April 15, 1829, the daugh- 
 ter of John Harris and Calista (Corbin) Thompson. She 
 graduated from the New England Female Medical Col- 
 lege at Boston, in 1863, following which she came to Chi- 
 cago, where she was the first woman physician in the 
 city. There were two hospitals in Chicago, but neither 
 of them would permit a woman doctor to practice in 
 them, and one was closed even to woman patients. 
 
 She opened her own office and found her field among 
 the returning soldiers of the Civil war and their needy 
 families, and among cholera victims, and presently she 
 had an enviable reputation. So she opened the Women 
 and Children's Hospital at the corner of Rush and In- 
 diana streets, with only fourteen beds. The catastrophe 
 of the fire in 1871 swept it away, but Dr. Thompson 
 moved all her patients safely to the homes of several 
 friends. 
 
 To further qualify herself she obtained permission 
 to attend the Chicago Medical College, and was gradu- 
 ated in 1870, being, at that time, the only woman who 
 was ever graduated at a Chicago Medical College of the 
 regular school. In 1874 she reopened the hospital in 
 connection with the first nurses training school in the 
 Middle West, and carried it on with brilliant results. 
 
 Dr. Thompson died on May 23, 1895. The great hos- 
 pital at Ashland and Maypole Avenue, completed in 1929, 
 is the finest monument that could possibly be erected 
 to her memory.
 
 112 
 
 MRS. S. WASHINGTON 
 (Lucy H. Walker) 
 
 Lucy H. Walker Washington was born in Whiting, 
 Vermont, and was descended from New England an- 
 cestry. From her mother she inherited a love of the 
 beautiful in nature, and an ear and soul attuned to song. 
 
 Her early educational advantages were such as the 
 common school, select school and academy of her native 
 state afforded. She commenced teaching at the age of 
 fifteen. 
 
 Her first printed verses appeared at the age of four- 
 teen. She decided to enter upon a wider course of study, 
 and became a pupil of Clover Street Seminary, Rochester, 
 New York, where she was graduated with the highest 
 honors of her class in 1856. She was often styled "Poet 
 Laureate" of the school. 
 
 After graduation she taught for three years, and at 
 the time of her marriage was Preceptress of the Collegi- 
 ate Institute at Brockport, New York. Her husband, 
 Rev. S. Washington, was a graduate of Rochester Uni- 
 versity and of Rochester Theological Seminary. When 
 they resided in Jacksonville, Illinois, in 1874, Mrs. Wash- 
 ington was made a leader in the " crusade" movement 
 •of that city. Her first address in temperance work out- 
 side of her own city was given in the Hall of Repre- 
 sentatives in Springfield, Illinois. Commendatory press 
 reports brought her repeated and urgent calls for ad- 
 dresses. She spoke in twenty-four states. 
 
 In 1878, Mrs. Washington published "Echoes of 
 Song," a volume of two hundred pages, and later another 
 volume, "Memory's Casket." 
 
 Mrs. Washington was the mother of four children, 
 all of them an honor to their parents.
 
 113 
 
 FRANCES ELIZABETH WILLARD 
 
 Frances Elizabeth Willard was born at Churchville, 
 New York, September 28, 1839. She graduated from the 
 Northwestern Female College at Evanston, Illinois, in 
 1859, and in 1862 accepted the Professorship of Natural 
 Sciences in that institution. During 1866-67 she was the 
 principal of the Genessee Wesleyan Seminary. The next 
 two years she devoted to travel and study abroad. From 
 1871 to 1874 she was Professor of Aesthetics in the North- 
 western University, and Dean of the Woman's College. 
 
 In 1874 she abandoned her profession to identify her- 
 self with the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. For 
 five years she was corresponding secretary of the national 
 body, and from 1879, its president. While secretary she 
 organized the Home Protective Association, and pre- 
 pared a petition to the Illinois Legislature to which 
 nearly 200,000 names were attached, asking for the grant- 
 ing to women the right to vote on the license question. 
 
 In 1882 Miss Willard was elected as a member of 
 the executive committee of the National Prohibition 
 party. In 1886 she became leader of the White Cross 
 Movement for the protection of women, and succeeded 
 in securing favorable legislation in twelve states. In 
 1883 she founded the World's Christian Temperance 
 Union, and in 1888 was chosen its president, and also 
 president of the International Council of Women. 
 
 The latter years of her life were spent chiefly abroad, 
 investigating the condition of women in the Orient. Miss 
 Willard was a highly valued contributor to the maga- 
 zines, and published several volumes, including "Nine- 
 teen Beautiful Years" (a tribute to her sister). 
 
 Miss Willard died February 18, 1898, in New York 
 City.
 
 V. 
 
 THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION 
 PERIOD TO 1929
 
 117 
 
 SYBIL BAUER 
 
 Sybil Bauer, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Carl 
 Bauer, was of Norwegian and German descent. She was 
 born in Chicago, September 18, 1903. She was devoted 
 to athletics, and her motto was "Not to quit short of 
 victory." She was an expert and patient coach for the 
 young girls who traveled with her from one swimming 
 meet to another. 
 
 Sybil Bauer improved or established all world's rec- 
 ords, twenty- three in all, for women's backstroke swim- 
 ming, and was undefeated in Central, National and 
 Olympic championship contests. One of her outstand- 
 ing distinctions was her winning of the 100 meter Olym- 
 pic backstroke championship at Paris, France, in 1924. 
 
 She was the first woman to break a man's swimming 
 record, when she swam 440 yards in six minutes and 
 twenty-four seconds at Bermuda, in October, 1922, lower- 
 ing the men's former record time of six minutes, twenty- 
 eight seconds. 
 
 Sybil Bauer was a senior at Northwestern Univer- 
 sity when she died. She was a campus leader, member 
 of the Student Council, and president of the Women's 
 Athletic Association. She was a star at basket-ball, 
 indoor baseball, and field hockey, and was interested in 
 every form of athletic rivalry. 
 
 In memory of Sybil Bauer, a bronze tablet is located 
 in the Carl Schurz High School swimming pool, where 
 she started her career, and a memorial shield is also lo- 
 cated in Patten Gymnasium at Northwestern University. 
 
 Sybil Bauer died on January 31, 1927, as she lived, 
 a great, courageous character. To youth and to her loved 
 ones, Sybil's last request was to "carry on."
 
 118 
 
 MARY CURRY DESHA BRECKINRIDGE 
 
 Mary Curry Desha Breckinridge was born in Lex- 
 ington, Kentucky, September 1, 1875, the daughter of 
 William C. P. and Issa Desha Breckinridge. 
 
 She received her education in the schools of Lexing- 
 ton, of France, for a year and a half, and of Washington, 
 when her father was a member of Congress. She taught 
 a Kindergarten school in an Italian neighborhood in 
 Lexington, and organized a night school. 
 
 In 1908 Miss Breckinridge completed training for a 
 nurse at the Presbyterian Training School in Chicago. 
 She had had some experience in the care of insane pa- 
 tients, and upon graduation took a position at Elgin at 
 the State Hospital. Her health was affected by the 
 strain, and she obtained a position on the staff of the 
 Municipal Tuberculosis Sanitarium. At the time of the 
 Dayton flood, in 1913, she was granted leave of absence 
 to serve under conditions of great hardship in Dayton. 
 
 In the spring of 1914, she was asked to do some pio- 
 neering work in Michigan, under the Tuberculosis So- 
 ciety, and was there when the war broke out. Owing to 
 a throat infection, she could not take overseas service 
 until June, 1915, serving back of the British lines. She 
 was transferred to the American Hospital at Neilly and 
 served until August, 1917. She then returned to help 
 in the organization of an American unit, but was taken 
 sick in March, 1918. She lingered until June 23, 1918, 
 when she died at the Presbyterian Hospital, where she 
 had had her training.
 
 119 
 
 MRS. CHRISTOPHER C. BROWN 
 
 (Caroline Owsley) 
 
 Caroline Owsley Brown was born December 29, 1845, 
 in Jamestown, Kentucky, the daughter of John and Mary 
 Finley Owsley. When she was six years old she moved, 
 with her parents, to Jacksonville, Illinois, where they 
 lived for a number of years before coming to Springfield. 
 She was educated in Springfield, Illinois. 
 
 Her first marriage was to Dr. Fainsworth of Chicago. 
 After Ms death she was married to Christopher C. Brown 
 of Springfield, Illinois, on June 10, 1872. Their children 
 are Stuart Brown (deceased), Edwards Brown (de- 
 ceased), Mrs. Frank P. Ide and Owsley Brown of 
 Springfield. 
 
 Mrs. Brown was deeply interested in missions, and 
 was President of the Illinois branch of the Foreign Mis- 
 sionary Society of the Presbyterian church. She was 
 also a member of the Board of Directors of the Presby- 
 terian Missions of the Northwest, and was vice-president 
 of the Sangamon County Chapter of the American Red 
 Cross. 
 
 Besides living a very active life in the social and re- 
 ligious world, Mrs. Brown was a literary woman of talent. 
 Among her published works are "My Girlhood in Ken- 
 tucky/' "A Young Girl's Recollections of Lincoln," and 
 "Springfield Society Fifty Years Ago." 
 
 Mrs. Christopher C. Brown died at the home of her 
 daughter, Mrs. Frank P. Ide, in Springfield, Illinois, on 
 October 12, 1919.
 
 120 
 
 MRS. F. H. CARRIEL 
 
 (Mary Turner) 
 
 Mary Turner Carriel was born October 30, 1845, 
 daughter of Jonathan Baldwin Turner and Rhodolphia 
 S. (Kibbe) Turner. She grew up with one of the most 
 cultured groups of the early pioneers of Illinois. 
 
 Her father, Jonathan Baldwin Turner, member of 
 the faculty of Illinois College, was the author of The 
 Land Grant Act, 1862, for Industrial Education. Mrs. 
 Carriel was graduated in 1864 from the Jacksonville 
 Female Academy, the first higher school for women in 
 the state, now a part of Illinois College. She was mar- 
 ried in 1875 to Dr. F. H. Carriel, who served the state 
 for many years as Superintendent of the State Hospital 
 for the Insane at Jacksonville. 
 
 All through their married life Dr. and Mrs. Carriel 
 were honored leaders in the life of the community. Chil- 
 dren came to them — three sons and one daughter, in addi- 
 tion to the step-sons whom Mrs. Carriel included in her 
 affections. She gave to her family the best that was hers 
 to give, but this devotion did not limit her interests. 
 
 She was elected in 1896 to the Board of Trustees of 
 the University of Illinois, serving one term — the first 
 woman ever elected to that Board. In 1927, during the 
 celebration of the Centenary of Jacksonville, she was 
 chosen as the " Queen Mother" of the Centennial. She 
 wrote "The Life of Jonathan Baldwin Turner " which 
 was published in 1911. 
 
 Mrs. Carriel died in California, June 10, 1928, and is 
 buried in Diamond Grove Cemetery, Jacksonville, Illi- 
 nois.
 
 121 
 
 MRS. ARTHUR SCHOFIELD CHAMBERLIN 
 
 (Maria Louise Barrett) 
 
 Mrs. Maria Louise Barrett Chamberlin was born in 
 Camden, Oneida county, New York, November 17, 1841. 
 Her father was Davis Barrett, born in Newport, Herki- 
 mer county, and her mother, Sarah Brainard, in the ad- 
 joining town of Norway. She was married November 1, 
 1862, to Arthur Schofield Chamberlin, who was born in 
 New Haven, Connecticut. Three children were born of 
 this union — Sarah Brainard, who died in infancy, Arthur 
 Marshall, who passed away in his early forties, and 
 Henry Barrett, who still survives. 
 
 In her book entitled ' 'Looking Back From Eighty- 
 five," published in 1926, she tells the story of an active 
 life, her experiences in Washington during the Civil War, 
 her acquaintanceship with the notables of that period, 
 among them — President Lincoln, Bancroft, the historian, 
 General Grant, Charles Dickens, Mrs. Stephen A. Doug- 
 las, and others. 
 
 Coming to Chicago in 1869, she was identified with 
 many activities, devoting much energy to church work, 
 the Young Women's Christian Association, of which she 
 was president, the Traveler's Aid, of which she was an 
 organizer, the Woman's Club, and many other organiza- 
 tions. She was a strong supporter of Susan B. Anthony, 
 and in politics, was a consistent Democrat. 
 
 In her eighty-sixth year she traveled alone to Mexi- 
 co, New York, to participate in the hundredth anniver- 
 sary of Mexico Academy, from which she was graduated. 
 She was alert, physically and mentally, until the last six 
 months of her life when she was obliged to place herself 
 under her physician's care. 
 
 Mrs. Chamberlin passed to her eternal rest Novem- 
 ber 27, 1928.
 
 122 
 
 MRS. HENRY W. CHENEY 
 (Flora Sylvester) 
 
 Flora Sylvester Cheney, of pioneer English ancestry, 
 was born in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, in 1872. She taught 
 school three years, and lived for some time in New York 
 City before her marriage to Dr. Henry W. Cheney, one 
 of Chicago's well-known physicians, in 1896. 
 
 Mrs. Cheney gave twenty years of active service in 
 church, club and civic work, taking a leading part in 
 local and city movements of common community benefit. 
 
 Although she never sought position or publicity for 
 herself, Mrs. Cheney did not shirk responsibility. For 
 thirteen years she was executive chairman of the Wood- 
 lawn Community Center in the Hyde Park High School, 
 and served as the first president of the Public School 
 Community Center Association of Chicago. She was a 
 member of the Executive committee of the Municipal 
 Voters League of Chicago, first president of the Illinois 
 League of Women Voters, and for more than five years 
 was editor of that organization's state publication. Her 
 club affiliations included the Chicago Woman's Club, 
 Woman's City Club, Woodlawn Woman's Club and the 
 Sixth Ward League of Women Voters. 
 
 At the time of her passing, Mrs. Cheney was a mem- 
 ber of the Fifty-sixth General Assembly, representing 
 the Fifth District of which she had been a resident for 
 more than thirty years. 
 
 "Experience has shown" Mrs. Cheney often said, 
 "that only through intelligent use of the ballot can 
 women safely and wisely care for all those things in gov- 
 ernment which touch directly the lives of women and 
 children. ' ' 
 
 Flora Sylvester Cheney died April 8, 1929.
 
 123 
 
 MRS. GEORGE NATHANIEL CURZON 
 
 (Mary Victoria Leiter) 
 
 Mrs. Mary Victoria Leiter Curzon was born at Chi- 
 cago, Illinois, daughter of Levi Z. and Mary Theresa 
 (Carver) Leiter. 
 
 She was serious and earnest, studious and ambitious, 
 and was well equipped for the place in life she was to 
 fill. For a time she attended the Madam Burr school in 
 Washington, D. C. 
 
 On April 22, 1895, she was married to Hon. George 
 Nathaniel Curzon. That same year Mr. Curzon was made 
 Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Privy 
 Councillor, and re-elected to his seat in Parliament. Mrs. 
 Curzon entered into the English political campaign with 
 a zest that delighted every one. She accompanied her 
 husband when he addressed the people, and she drove 
 through the district seeing the wives of his constituents. 
 
 Two daughters were born to them during the four 
 years spent in England. In the summer of 1898 Lord 
 Curzon was appointed Governor-General of India, and 
 on December 30 they landed in Bombay, and a few days 
 later, in Calcutta. In both places they were enthusi- 
 astically received. An Indian poet, in lines of welcome 
 to Lord Curzon, spoke of his wife as 
 "A rose of roses bright, 
 A vision of embodied light." 
 
 Not only by her youth, beauty and social graces, did 
 she endear herself to the people of India. With an ap- 
 preciation of their position and duty to their subjects, 
 both Lord and Lady Curzon investigated personally, 
 the conditions of sufferers in the plague-stricken dis- 
 tricts, and provided for their care. 
 
 Lady Curzon passed away in 1906.
 
 124 
 
 MRS. JOHN L. FRIEDL 
 
 (Florence Marie Pf under) 
 
 Florence Marie Pf under Friedl was born on October 
 21, 1879, the daughter of Frank and Louise Kemper 
 Pfunder. She was educated in the public schools of 
 Chicago, and was married to John L. Friedl in 1904. Her 
 maternal grandfather, William Kemper, came to Chicago 
 in 1837, and established himself on the North side of the 
 city; in the subdivision of the section in which he lived, 
 his name was given to Kemper Place, a street that still 
 bears his name. 
 
 Mrs. Friedl resided on the North side of Chicago 
 throughout her lifetime. She was an earnest worker in 
 the Rogers Park Woman's Club, being particularly ac- 
 tive in philanthropic projects. She served as director of 
 wartime activities in tins club. During the World War 
 she devoted much time to the work of the American Red 
 Cross Canteen. 
 
 There was never an hour too early or too late, nor 
 a duty too hazardous for her to bring cheer and comfort 
 to the many soldiers and sailors who passed through 
 Chicago. This Canteen was perhaps more active and its 
 work more perilous than others, by reason of the thirty- 
 seven railroads that came in and through the city. Her 
 calm efficiency and noble character were an incentive to 
 all her co-workers to give the best that was in them. 
 
 Throughout the later years of her life Mrs. Friedl 
 was interested in charitable and relief work, such as 
 that of the Mothers' Relief Association. She died De- 
 cember 10, 1928.
 
 125 
 
 LOIE FULLER 
 
 Loie Fuller, the daughter of Reuben Fuller and his 
 wife, Delilah, was born in January, 1862, in a Fullers- 
 burg, Illinois, tavern, called Castle Inn, located about six- 
 teen miles west of Chicago. The weather was very cold, 
 and Loie was born in the bar-room, beside the only hot 
 stove in the village. In this same Inn, Lincoln was once 
 a guest. 
 
 At the age of three, Loie began to recite in public, 
 and she became the greatest creative artist the world 
 had ever known. She was a woman of great mental pow- 
 ers and her knowledge of art and science made her the 
 friend of Anatole France, Alexandre Dumas, and others. 
 
 A New York German theater manager took her un- 
 der contract to Berlin. Her mother accompanied her, but 
 illness brought her into a hospital. Then the manager 
 left Berlin to take a troup to America, and Loie Fuller 
 had to seek her engagements alone. When her mother 
 recovered, and she had enough money, she traveled to 
 Paris. She was received favorably, and her career was 
 made. 
 
 Untold hours she would rehearse and study. She 
 revolutionized theater lighting, painting, and interior 
 decorating. Her dancing illustrated beautiful ideas ; but- 
 terflies, sun, stars, sacred music. Overwork seemed to 
 agree with her, for she sometimes worked all night with 
 the electrician and stage carpenter. In later years she 
 became impresario for other artists, giving her name, 
 experience, and connections to help them, often earning 
 only ingratitude. 
 
 Loie Fuller died in Paris in 1928.
 
 126 
 
 MRS. J. PAUL GOODE 
 
 (Ida Katherine Hancock) 
 
 Mrs. Ida Katherine Hancock Goode was born in 
 Kellogg, Minnesota, on September 18, 1878, the daughter 
 of Lewis Sheldon, of English origin, and Ruth Elizabeth 
 (Bolton) Hancock, of Scotch descent. When Katherine 
 was a few years old, the family moved to a farm at 
 Euclid, Minnesota, where she spent most of her girlhood. 
 Katherine had an insatiable appetite for studying and 
 teaching, beginning at the age of fourteen to teach. 
 When about twenty-one years old she was elected to a 
 position in the famous William Penn Charter School of 
 Philadelphia. She resigned after two years, to become 
 the wife of Dr. J. Paul Goode, of the University of Penn- 
 sylvania. They were married September 12, 1901. One 
 son, Kenneth Hancock Goode, was born to them. 
 
 In 1903, the family moved to Chicago where Dr. 
 Goode had been elected to a professorship in Geography 
 in the University of Chicago. Mrs. Goode continued to 
 study, and she soon became a leader in the Woodlawn 
 Woman's Club and in the Political Equality League 
 which later became the League of Women Voters. 
 
 After a brilliant campaign, Mrs. Goode was elected 
 from the University District, as representative in the 
 Hlinois Legislature, where she made a fine record. Her 
 re-election to a second term was without opposition. 
 But the calls upon her time and strength for public 
 speaking and other civic service, together with a touch 
 of influenza, had seriously sapped her vitality, and she 
 passed away on January 13, 1928, at Chicago, Illinois.
 
 127 
 
 MRS. CHARLES HENROTIN 
 
 (Ellen M. Martin) 
 
 Ellen M. Martin Henrotin was born in Portland, 
 Maine, in July, 1847, daughter of Edward Byam and 
 Sarah Ellen (Norris) Martin. She began her education 
 in the United States, but received most of it in Eng- 
 land, France and Germany. 
 
 On September 2, 1869, she was married to Charles 
 Henrotin, a banker of Chicago, who died July 25, 1914. 
 Three children, all boys, were born to them. 
 
 On Friday, March 4, 1887, a club was organized in 
 Chicago, called the "Friday Club," and Mrs. Henrotin 
 was one of the organizers. Its object was "literary and 
 artistic culture." This club, by request of Mrs. Potter 
 Palmer, who was Chairman of the Ladies ' Board of 
 Managers of the World's Columbian Exposition, took 
 charge of a bazaar to raise money with which to erect 
 the Children's Building at the World's Fair in 1893. 
 The large amount of $35,000 was raised. 
 
 Mrs. Henrotin was vice-president of the Congress 
 Auxiliary of the World's Columbian Exposition, and was 
 president of the General Federation of Women's Clubs, 
 1894-1898. She was decorated by the Sultan of Turkey 
 with the order of Chefakat in 1893, and made an Officer 
 de l'Academie by the French Republic, 1899. She was 
 also decorated by Leopold II, Chevalier de l'Ordre de 
 Leopold, in 1904. 
 
 Mrs. Henrotin was a member of the Chicago Vice- 
 Commission appointed by Mayor Busse. She favored 
 Woman's Suffrage, was a member of the Fortnightly 
 Club, the Chicago Woman's Club, the Women's City 
 Club, and of the Episcopal church. 
 
 Mrs. Henrotin died June 29, 1922.
 
 128 
 
 ANNIE LOUISE KELLER 
 
 Annie Louise Keller, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Philip 
 Keller, of White Hall, Illinois, a young school teacher in 
 a country school in Greene county, Illinois, died, a heroine 
 at twenty-four years of age, on April 19, 1927. 
 
 Her mind trained to instant decision, her pupils 
 trained to instant obedience, when she saw the terrible 
 storm coming, the only thing to do was to issue the or- 
 der to "crawl under your desks and stay there." No 
 soldier on the battle field ever met a great crisis more 
 nobly than she. Her conduct was heroic, noble and in- 
 telligent. In consequence, not one of her pupils was in- 
 jured, but her own young, vigorous life was crushed out. 
 Both houses of the Illinois State Legislature passed 
 resolutions honoring this young teacher, and commend- 
 ing her real heroism. They also stood in silent tribute 
 to her memory. 
 
 The people of White Hall began making preparations 
 to erect a monument as a memorial to Annie Louise Kel- 
 ler's bravery, but teachers and pupils, and others in the 
 state asked to be allowed to contribute toward the 
 memorial. 
 
 A beautiful monument was designed and modeled 
 by Lorado Taft, the famous sculptor, and on August 25, 
 1929, at White Hall, Illinois, in the presence of thousands 
 from all parts of the state, the monument was unveiled 
 and dedicated to the memory of brave Annie Louise Kel- 
 ler, who gave her life for her pupils. ' ' Greater love hath 
 no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his 
 friend. "
 
 129 
 
 MRS. LOUIS WILSON KERR 
 
 (Jayne Bartlett) 
 
 Mrs. Jayne Bartlett Kerr, daughter of Warren S. 
 and Louisa F. Bartlett, was born January 8, 1879, at 
 Marshall, Illinois. Her early life was spent in Marshall, 
 where during her girlhood days she displayed the trait 
 of leadership, so essential in her work in later years. 
 
 She was married on May 12, 1898, to Louis Wilson 
 Kerr of Chicago, Illinois, who preceded her in death. 
 She is survived by one son, Louis B. Kerr, of Philadel- 
 phia, Pennsylvania, and one sister, Mrs. Curtis B. Wilson 
 of Hutton, Indiana. 
 
 Mrs. Kerr was very active throughout her life in 
 club work, and was a member of the Illinois State His- 
 torical Society, Daughters of the American Revolution, 
 Daughters of the American Colonists, Abraham Lincoln 
 Chapter of the Eastern Star, and of the Business and 
 Professional Woman's Club. 
 
 Mrs. Kerr served on the staff of the State Tuber- 
 culosis Association as Field Secretary for seven years, 
 beginning her work in that capacity in 1919. She had 
 much to do with promotion of the Christmas Seal cam- 
 paigns, the planning of clinics and development of open 
 air hospitals. Her greatest joy was found in giving com- 
 fort and relief to those afflicted with tuberculosis. Be- 
 cause of her efficiency, she was appointed as Executive 
 Secretary in 1926, in which capacity she served until her 
 death. 
 
 Mrs. Jayne Bartlett Kerr died July 16, 1929. The 
 funeral services were held in Marshall, Illinois, July 18, 
 1929, at the Congregational church. Interment was in 
 the Marshall Cemetery.
 
 130 
 
 MRS. GEORGE A. LAWRENCE 
 
 (Ella Park) 
 
 Mrs. Ella Park Lawrence was the daughter of George 
 S. and Marie Louise Holmes Park. Her early life was 
 spent on a farm in Missouri. For several years she at- 
 tended Knox College at Galesburg, Illinois, where she 
 met Mr. George Appleton Lawrence, to whom she was 
 married in October, 1882. Five children were born to 
 them, only one of whom, Rebecca, wife of John M. Lowrie, 
 of New York City, grew to maturity. 
 
 Mrs. Lawrence was admitted to the National So- 
 ciety, Daughters of the American Revolution, in 1901, 
 and became a charter member of Rebecca Parke Chapter, 
 D. A. R., of Galesburg, Illinois. She was the fourth 
 Regent of her chapter, and was made State Regent in 
 1911. When she retired from this office, she was elected 
 Honorary State Regent for life. 
 
 Mrs. Lawrence worked hard for the restoration and 
 marking of Starved Rock; she also carried through the 
 plan for a State Flag for Illinois, and is referred to as 
 "Mother of Illinois State Flag." 
 
 In 1921 a cottage was erected and fully equipped in 
 Tilloloy, France, by the Chicago Chapter, D. A. R., and 
 dedicated to Mrs. Lawrence. In June, 1922, she was 
 awarded the degree of Master of Arts by Knox College. 
 
 Outside of her church and her home, her chief inter- 
 est was in patriotic service. She had a fine personality 
 and expressed it in many ways. She was loyal to home, 
 to country, and to her God. 
 
 Mrs. Lawrence passed away suddenly, after a short 
 illness, on March 17, 1924.
 
 131 
 
 MRS. VACHEL THOMAS LINDSAY 
 
 (Esther Catherine Frazee) 
 
 Mrs. Catherine Frazee Lindsay was born on Febru- 
 ary 1, 1848, in Fayette County, Indiana, the daughter of 
 Rev. Ephraim Samuel and Frances Amster Frazee. 
 
 She was graduated in 1869 from Glendale Female 
 College, Glendale, Ohio, as Valedictorian. Upon gradua- 
 tion she became a teacher, studying art while teaching. 
 
 In June, 1875, she went abroad with Miss Eudora 
 Lindsay and her brother, Dr. Vachel Thomas Lindsay, of 
 Springfield. Miss Frazee and Dr. Lindsay were married 
 at her home in Indiana, on Thanksgiving Day, 1876. Six 
 children were born to them, three of whom died in early 
 childhood. 
 
 Mrs. Lindsay was a tireless worker in the First 
 Christian Church, and taught an adult Bible class for 
 almost forty-four years. She was a member of the Sunny 
 Side Club and Authors Club. 
 
 In 1892 Mrs. Lindsay organized the Woman's Mis- 
 sionary Social Union, and in 1904, the Via Christi Study 
 Class. She wrote many pamphlets and articles for publi- 
 cation. In 1918 she was a delegate to the Ecumenical 
 Congress of the World in Edinburgh, Scotland. 
 
 Mrs. Lindsay was an exemplary mother, home- 
 maker, and hostess, entertaining many distinguished 
 guests as well as local club and church friends. 
 
 At her death from pneumonia, on February 1, 1922, 
 she was mourned, not only by her relatives and personal 
 friends, but by the whole community. The newspapers 
 paid tribute to her as the ''Mother of Springfield," as a 
 great citizen, and a beloved leader. 
 
 Mrs. Lindsay is survived by one son, *Vachel Lind- 
 say, and two daughters, Mrs. Paul Wakefield and Mrs. 
 Ben Blair. 
 
 * Since writing the above, Vachel Lindsay has died.
 
 132 
 
 ISABEL McISAAC 
 
 Isabel Mclsaac was born in Waterloo, Iowa, January 
 9, 1858, and died in Washington, D. C, September 21, 
 1914. 
 
 Miss Mclsaac was graduated from the Illinois Train- 
 ing School for Nurses in 1888. After graduation she 
 served continuously in that organization until 1904, as 
 Assistant Superintendent, and later as Superintendent 
 of the Illinois Training School for Nurses. The construc- 
 tive influence of Isabel Mclsaac was in evidence every- 
 where in Illinois, but particularly in promoting better 
 care of the sick through better preparation of the stu- 
 dents in the schools of nursing. 
 
 As an officer in the National Nursing Organizations, 
 as Interstate Secretary of the American Nurses Associa- 
 tion, as president of the Board of Directors of the Ameri- 
 can Journal of Nursing, and as superintendent of the 
 Army Nurse Corps and in her writings, her influence and 
 inspiration has been extended beyond that which is usual. 
 
 A rare ability in insight, understanding, and sym- 
 pathy, and with a forceful application of clearness, fair- 
 ness, and dignity in business or friendship, were qualities 
 which made Isabel Mclsaac a valuable force in shaping 
 the early nursing affairs. 
 
 Miss Mclsaac also was the author of " Primary Nurs- 
 ing Technique," "Hygiene for Nurses," and "Hygiene 
 for the Use of Public Schools."
 
 133 
 
 MRS. LA VERNE NOYES 
 (Ida Elizabeth Smith) 
 
 Ida Elizabeth Smith Noyes was born at Croton, 
 Delaware county, New York, on April 16, 1853, the daugh- 
 ter of Dr. Joel W. and Susan M. (Wheat) Smith. On her 
 mother's side she was descended from Governor William 
 Bradford of Plymouth Colony. 
 
 Ida was always fond of study, and graduated with 
 honors in 1874, from Ames College, Iowa. She taught in 
 the Charles City High School till, on May 24, 1877, she 
 was married to La Verne Noyes, who, after his gradua- 
 tion, was engaged in the manufacture and sale of his own 
 inventions in Batavia, Illinois. He was so successful that 
 it was deemed best to move to Chicago. 
 
 Mrs. Noyes had long desired to study art and to 
 travel, and this change gave her the opportunity. She 
 went abroad for art work in Paris, and traveled exten- 
 sively in her own country and in foreign countries. 
 
 Mrs. Noyes was a member and an officer of many 
 clubs. The later years of her life were devoted largely 
 to the Daughters of the American Revolution. She was 
 secretary, and later regent of the Chicago Chapter of 
 over eight hundred members. The Illinois room in the 
 national building of the D. A. R. in Washington, was 
 largely furnished by her. 
 
 The last year of her life, Mrs. Noyes was an invalid, 
 but she was always cheerful. She died December 5, 1912. 
 Mr. Noyes perpetuated her memory by erecting a beau- 
 tiful building for the women students of the University 
 of Chicago, called the Ida Noyes Hall.
 
 134 
 
 MRS. POTTER PALMER 
 (Bertha M. Honore) 
 
 Mrs. Bertha M. Honore Palmer, the daughter of 
 Hon. Henry H. and Eliza Dorsey (Carr) Honore, was 
 born in Louisville, Kentucky, where her girlhood was 
 chiefly spent. She was educated in a Convent school at 
 Georgetown, Kentucky, and by private tutors. She came 
 to Chicago with her family, and in 1870 she married Pot- 
 ter Palmer, a business man and large real-estate owner 
 of Chicago. 
 
 Mrs. Palmer was president of the National Board of 
 Lady Managers of the World's Columbian Exposition 
 held at Chicago in 1893, when she won the highest praise 
 by her ability and administrative skill exhibited in her 
 management of the woman's part in this great undertak- 
 ing. In December, 1892, she threw open her home for 
 the Columbian Bazaar of All Nations, organized by the 
 Friday Club to raise money for the Children's Building 
 at the Fair. Thirty-five thousand dollars was raised, 
 which was an enormous sum for that time. Mrs. Palmer 
 was appointed by President McKinley a member of the 
 United States National committee to the Paris Exposi- 
 tion of 1900, being the only woman member. France 
 awarded her the Legion of Honor. 
 
 Mrs. Palmer was a recognized leader in many social 
 and benevolent movements, both in Chicago and Paris, 
 where much of her time was spent. She had large real- 
 estate interests in Florida where she had a winter home. 
 Many clubs claimed her as a member, among them being 
 the Fortnightly Club, the Saddle and Cycle, and the 
 Chicago Woman's Club. 
 
 Mrs. Palmer died May 5, 1918.
 
 135 
 
 MRS. JAMES W. PATTON 
 
 (Fran cine Elizabeth Lanphier) 
 
 Mrs. Francine Lanphier Patton was born at Spring- 
 field, Illinois, the daughter of Charles Henry and Mar- 
 garet Crenshaw Lanphier, on December 24, 1846. She 
 received her education in the Springfield Public Schools 
 and the Visitation Convent, St. Louis, Missouri. 
 
 On December 8, 1869, she was married to Hon. James 
 W. Patton. To this marriage were born five sons, three 
 of whom are now living at Springfield, Illinois. 
 
 On June 17, 1891, she was appointed, by Governor 
 Fifer, a member of the Illinois Exposition Board of the 
 Columbian Exposition, and served as chairman of the 
 Educational, Charitable, Professional and Philanthropic 
 Committee. 
 
 As chairman of this committee her attention was 
 called to woman as a wage earner, and she compiled a 
 book of valuable statistics showing the status of woman's 
 work in Illinois. 
 
 Soon after completing her duties in connection with 
 the Columbian Exposition she organized the Springfield 
 Woman's Club, and served as its president for many 
 years. 
 
 Always actively interested in charitable and philan- 
 thropic work, she was one of the organizers of the Spring- 
 field Associated Charities, the success of which was 
 largely due to her activities. 
 
 After a long and useful life, devoted to her family 
 and various social, charitable and philanthropic institu- 
 tions, Francine Lanphier Patton died at Springfield, Illi- 
 nois, April 7, 1923.
 
 136 
 
 MRS. FRED PELHAM 
 (Mrs. Laura Mount Dainty) 
 
 Mrs. Laura Dainty Pelham was born August 30, 1849, 
 at Southwick, Massachusetts, the daughter of Dr. 
 Charles T. and Maria H. Mount. She was educated in 
 the district school, and later became an honorary member 
 of Kappa Kappa Gamma. In 1870, she was married to 
 Albert H. Dainty, to which union was born one daughter, 
 Louise Dainty, who became Mrs. Paul Gilbert, and died 
 in 1918. 
 
 In 1871 Laura Dainty began a stage career, being 
 with the Redpath Lyceum Bureau for four years. Fol- 
 lowing this, she was twenty-one years on the stage, play- 
 ing in stock, repertoire, and as a star. She visited every 
 state in the union, with great success. 
 
 In 1892, Mrs. Dainty married Fred Pelham. Later 
 she became a settlement worker, and in 1906 went to live 
 at Hull House in Chicago. For the rest of her life she 
 was identified in many ways with this place. She served 
 as the president of Hull House Woman's Club, and was 
 director and coach of the Hull House Players. She was 
 also president of the City Gardens Association, and she 
 gave instruction in Parliamentary Law. Everywhere she 
 was a friend to children. 
 
 With all her knowledge, her untiring industry, work- 
 ing to the very last, she died, leaving no wealth. Her 
 generosity was too great for that. Mrs. Pelham passed 
 away on January 22, 1924.
 
 137 
 
 MARY LUCILE PEPOON 
 
 Lucile Pepoon was born at Lewistown, Fulton 
 county, Illinois, August 8, 1887, the daughter of Dr. 
 Herman S. and Alma Wilcox Pepoon. 
 
 Graduating from Lake View High School, Chicago, 
 in 1906, she chose the profession of nurse, graduating 
 with distinction from the German- American Hospital in 
 Chicago, in 1909. Joining the Red Cross, she became a 
 school nurse, so continuing until the entrance of the 
 United States into the World War. Within fourteen 
 days she was on board a transport, bound for France. 
 Her argument to her father was, " There has been an 
 ancestral Pepoon in every war of the United States, and 
 we must not fail now." 
 
 Detailed to the British army, she was assigned as a 
 nurse to the great Tent Hospital, City of Boulogne, where 
 she worked heroically for months with a nightly tempera- 
 ture, until forced to give up in late August, 1918. At- 
 tended by the King's Physician, she fought a brave but 
 losing fight for life, passing to rest on Thanksgiving Day, 
 1918. 
 
 Nobly she lived; bravely she met life's stern and try- 
 ing problems; heroically she met the last grim antago- 
 nist. She left her father, a brother and sister, and a 
 dearly beloved step-mother, between whom and herself 
 the closest affection had developed. 
 
 The posthumous Red Cross medal was issued to her 
 January 31, 1921, and was received by her father. She 
 was laid to rest in the beautiful Cemetery of the Somme. 
 From France the family came, long time past, and to it 
 she yielded her body at the end.
 
 138 
 
 MRS. HENRY WADE ROGERS 
 (Emma Ferdon Winner) 
 
 Mrs. Emma Winner Rogers was born at Plainfield, 
 New Jersey, the daughter of John Ogden and Sarah J. 
 (Taylor) Winner. Her father was a Methodist clergy- 
 man, and she kept her membership in that church all 
 her life. 
 
 She was educated at the private school of Mrs. Chase, 
 Newark, New Jersey, the Pennington (New Jersey) 
 Seminary, and the University of Mississippi. After she 
 was married she received a diploma from Michigan 
 University. 
 
 Beauty and culture combined could not fail to at- 
 tract a very fine match in Dr. Henry Wade Rogers, and 
 on June 22, 1876, they were married. 
 
 In 1890, under the leadership of Mr. William Deer- 
 ing, president of the Board of Trustees, Dr. Rogers was 
 made president of Northwestern University at Evans ton, 
 Illinois. Mrs. Rogers took great interest in the life of 
 Evanston. She was a leader in the founding of Evan- 
 ston's Historical Society, and was one of the seven di- 
 rectors, and the only woman, chosen for the first Board. 
 She also assisted in the founding of the Ladies' Univer- 
 sity Guild. 
 
 Mrs. Rogers was interested in economic and social 
 questions, and in the Arts and Crafts movement, both as 
 speaker and writer. She was president of the North- 
 western University Settlement Association, 1894-1900. 
 She held membership in the American Economic Asso- 
 ciation; Association of Collegiate Alumnae; the Fort- 
 nightly Club of Chicago, and the Women's University 
 Club of New York City. 
 
 Mrs. Rogers died March 3, 1922, preceding her hus- 
 band in death about four years.
 
 139 
 
 MRS. MATTHEW T. SCOTT 
 (Julia Green) 
 
 Julia Green Scott was born in Danville, Kentucky, 
 February 14, 1840. On the paternal side of her ances- 
 try, Mrs. Scott was a lineal descendant of Augustine 
 Washington, the grandfather of George Washington. 
 
 Her father, Rev. Lewis W. Green, was a man of 
 distinguished literary ability. While he was president 
 of Center College at Danville, Kentucky, Julia became 
 acquainted with Matthew T. Scott, then a student at the 
 college, and they were married in 1859. Soon afterward 
 they moved to Chenoa, Illinois. In 1872 they established 
 themselves permanently in Bloomington. Two daughters 
 were born, Letitia and Julia, afterwards Mrs. Charles S. 
 Bromwell and Mrs. Carl Vrooman. 
 
 Mrs. Scott was a charter member of the "Letitia 
 Green Stevenson Chapter, Daughters of the American 
 Revolution, " which was organized in 1894. In 1901 this 
 Chapter asked her to become a candidate for vice-presi- 
 dent general from Illinois. In Washington she was 
 elected by a large majority, and served two terms. Mrs. 
 Fairbanks, then president general, recognized Mrs. 
 Scott's ability, and appointed her on many important 
 committees, one of the outstanding ones being the one 
 for Memorial Continental Hall. 
 
 Mrs. Scott was made State chairman of the Fort 
 Massac Park Commission, and she presided at the un- 
 veiling of the shaft to George Rogers Clark. She was 
 national chairman of the War Relief committee. As a 
 result, over $182,000.00 were sent to more than four thou- 
 sand orphans. The French government bestowed upon 
 Mrs. Scott the medal of "The French Gratitude of the 
 First Class." 
 
 Mrs. Scott died April 29, 1923.
 
 140 
 
 MRS. ADLAI E. STEVENSON 
 
 (Letitia Green) 
 
 Letitia Green Stevenson was born in Allegheny, 
 Pennsylvania, in January, 1843. She came from genera- 
 tion after generation of sturdy, loyal, educated, culti- 
 vated and progressive ancestors. Her father, Rev. Lewis 
 W. Green, was at that time, President of the Theological 
 Seminary at Allegheny. Her mother, Mary Peasley Fry, 
 was the granddaughter of Joshua and Peachy Walker 
 Fry. 
 
 Rev. Lewis W. Green moved to Danville, Kentucky, 
 to assume the presidency of Center College, and her years 
 from early girlhood to young womanhood were passed 
 under the influence of that institution. 
 
 After the death of her father, she went to Chenoa, 
 Illinois, to make her home with her sister, Mrs. Matthew 
 T. Scott. A student whom she had met at Center Col- 
 lege was now a rising young lawyer of Metamora, the 
 county seat of Woodford county, Hlinois. In 1866 Letitia 
 Green became the wife of that student, Adlai E. Steven- 
 son. 
 
 Mrs. Stevenson was a consistent christian woman, 
 and a member of the Presbyterian church. She was 
 elected president general of the National Society of the 
 Daughters of the American Revolution in 1893, and 
 served a four-year term. 
 
 The Letitia Green Stevenson Chapter has the dis- 
 tinction of being the only Chapter in the organization, 
 National Society, Daughters of the American Revolu- 
 tion, to give two presidents general, Mrs. Stevenson and 
 her sister, Mrs. Matthew T. Scott. 
 
 The title of Honorary President General was con- 
 ferred upon Mrs. Stevenson in 1898, and from that time 
 until her death, she lived and served in honor and with 
 honor. 
 
 Mrs. Stevenson's death occurred December 25, 1913.
 
 141 
 
 MRS. H. GODFREY TURNER 
 
 (Maud Powell) 
 
 Mrs. Maud Powell Turner was born August 22, 1868, 
 in Peru, Illinois, the daughter of W. Bramwell and Min- 
 nie (Paul) Powell. She was a niece of John W. Powell, 
 the famous Director of the United States Geological 
 Survey. Her common school education was obtained in 
 Aurora, Illinois. She studied music in Chicago, and at 
 the age of thirteen she went abroad to study at Leipzig, 
 Paris and Berlin, where she was a pupil of Joachim. Be- 
 fore her return to the United States, she gave several con- 
 certs before royalty in England and Russia, by command. 
 Her New York debut was made with the Philharmonic 
 Society, when she was sixteen years old. 
 
 She was soloist with the orchestras of Thomas, Seidl, 
 Nikisch and Damrosch. She accompanied the New York 
 Arion Club on its tour in Germany and Austria. In 1899- 
 1901 she toured the British Isles and the European con- 
 tinent. Her playing was marked by intelligent inter- 
 pretation, an unusual purity of tone, and adequate tech- 
 nique. Many critics regarded her as the world's most 
 talented of women violinists. She was also a contributor 
 on musical topics to various Journals. 
 
 In 1904, Maud Powell was married to H. Godfrey 
 Turner of London. 
 
 When playing in concert at St. Louis, in 1919, she 
 collapsed, and for twenty-four hours hovered between 
 life and death. She recovered, however, and continued 
 her tour. The following January, at Uniontown, Penn- 
 sylvania, she suffered a nervous breakdown, and died in 
 that city, at a hotel, on January 8, 1920.
 
 142 
 
 MRS. M. T. WALWORTH 
 (Ellen Hardin) 
 
 Mrs. Ellen Hardin Walworth was born at Jackson- 
 ville, Illinois, October 21, 1832, the daughter of General 
 John J. Hardin, U. S. V. (killed at Buena Vista, 1847), 
 and Sarah Ellen (Smith) Hardin. 
 
 She was educated at Jacksonville Female Seminary, 
 and by private tutors. In 1852 she was married at Sara- 
 toga Springs, New York, to Mr. M. T. Walworth, an 
 author, who died in 1873. Seven children were born to 
 them. 
 
 Mrs. Walworth was graduated in the Woman's Law 
 Class, University of New York, in 1895. With two others 
 she founded the National Society, Daughters of the 
 American Revolution. She was Director-General of the 
 Woman's National War Relief Association in 1898, and 
 was at the field hospital, Fortress Monroe, with supplies 
 and nurses, to meet the first wounded men from Santiago. 
 
 Mrs. Walworth was the author of "Parliamentary 
 Rules, ' ' 1897 ; also various articles upon historical topics. 
 She belonged to many State and National Associations 
 and Societies, and was one of the first three women 
 nominated and elected to the School Board under New 
 York law admitting women as trustees. 
 
 She may be called a veteran of three wars, as she 
 saw her father embark for the Mexican war; she nursed 
 sick and wounded Union officers and soldiers in the Civil 
 war; and during the Spanish war, in which her brother, 
 General M. B. Hardin was wounded three times, was in 
 the field hospital, assisted by her daughter, Miss Reu- 
 bena Hyde Walworth. 
 
 Mrs. Walworth's death occurred June 25, 1915.
 
 143 
 
 WINIFRED FAIRFAX WARDER 
 
 Winifred Fairfax Warder was born in Cairo, Illinois, 
 May 22, 1885, the daughter of Hon. Walter Warder and 
 Dora B. Warder. She attended private schools in Spring- 
 field, Illinois, and the public schools of Cairo, graduating 
 from the Cairo High School, June 5, 1903. On June 12, 
 1906, she graduated, with highest honors, from the Monti- 
 cello Seminary at Godfrey, Hlinois. 
 
 At the outbreak of the European war, she began to 
 familiarize herself with the details of war work. In 
 1916 she became a member of the First National Service 
 Training Camp for Women, near Washington, D. C. 
 
 Upon her return to Cairo she organized the Navy 
 League of Cairo and a Chapter of the Red Cross. She 
 also organized Alexander county as the first county or- 
 ganization in the state. 
 
 In 1917 she devoted her whole time and efforts to 
 war work, preparatory to overseas duty. She studied 
 war work at the camps and hospitals in Canada, she took 
 courses of instruction in Red Cross work in Chicago, and 
 in 1918 spent the spring and summer in volunteer Red 
 Cross Canteen work in Washington and New York. 
 
 On September 25, 1918, she sailed from New York, 
 full of enthusiasm for her work at the front. During the 
 voyage she was attacked with Spanish influenza, fol- 
 lowed by bronchial pneumonia, and passed away at the 
 United States Military Base Hospital, Number 6, on 
 October 8, 1918. She was laid to rest in the Officers ' 
 Cemetery of the Hospital on October 10, 1918.
 
 144 
 
 MRS. NORVAL W. WEBER 
 
 (Jessie Palmer) 
 
 Mrs. Jessie Palmer Weber was born at Carlinville, 
 Illinois, August 1, 1863, daughter of General John M. 
 Palmer and Malinda A. (Neely) Palmer. She was edu- 
 cated in the public schools at Springfield, and by private 
 tutors, and was graduated at the Bettie Stuart Institute 
 at Springfield, Illinois. She was married in 1881 to 
 Norval W. Weber, son of George R. Weber, Editor of the 
 Illinois State Register. They had one daughter, Ma- 
 linda, who is the wife of Dr. J. W. Irion, a prominent 
 physician of Fort Worth, Texas. 
 
 Mrs. Weber was secretary for her father during his 
 term in the United States Senate, and was a clerk for 
 the senate committee on Pensions. On January 1, 1898, 
 she became Librarian of the Illinois State Historical Li- 
 brary, appointed by Governor John R. Tanner. She was 
 Editor-in-Chief of the Illinois State Historical Society 
 " Journal," and assisted by a Board of Associate Editors, 
 continued to edit the magazine until her death. The fast 
 growth of the Illinois State Historical Library and So- 
 ciety is due, in a great measure, to her energy and in- 
 dustry. 
 
 Mrs. Weber was a member of many Commissions 
 engaged in public enterprises, of many Historical and 
 Library Associations, and of patriotic Societies. She had 
 charge of Illinois exhibits at several World Expositions, 
 and through her efforts the site of old Fort Massac was 
 purchased by the State of Illinois for a State Park. 
 
 Mrs. Weber died in St. Luke's Hospital, Chicago, 
 Illinois, on May 31, 1926, and is buried in Oak Ridge 
 Cemetery, Springfield, Illinois.
 
 145 
 
 MRS. EUGENE J. WETHERELL 
 
 (Emma Abbott) 
 
 Mrs. Emma Abbott Wetherell was born in Chicago, 
 Illinois, on December 9, 1849, the daughter of Seth and 
 Almira Palmer Abbott. Mr. Abbott, a musician of small 
 means, traveled with his daughter from place to place, 
 giving concerts with no great success. Finally she 
 drifted to New York and secured a position in a church 
 choir. In 1872 the ladies of the church, and others, raised 
 a purse to send her to Italy. 
 
 In 1874, about the time of the completion of her 
 studies, she had an engagement to sing in London. Mr. 
 Eugene J. Wetherell, whom she had met in New York, 
 joined her here, and they were married. She fulfilled 
 an engagement to sing in Italy, but was not appreciated, 
 and left to return to America, where she and her hus- 
 band formed an operatic company. Her favorite roles 
 were in light opera, and she achieved great success in 
 all of the larger cities, doing much to give to the masses 
 of people an insight into operatic works. 
 
 Mr. Wetherell died at Denver, Colorado, in Jan- 
 uary, 1889, and though this great sorrow overshadowed 
 her life, she did not permit it to interfere with her am- 
 bition, and continued the tour as sole manager. At Salt 
 Lake City, Utah, while on a professional tour, she died 
 on January 5, 1891, the second anniversary of her hus- 
 band's death. She was survived by her mother, brother 
 and sister, in Chicago. Her body was taken to Glou- 
 cester, Massachusetts, to lie beside her husband in Oak 
 Grove Cemetery.
 
 148 
 
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 0* 
 
 VV«H0V^ 
 
 MRS. SIGMUND ZEISLER 
 (Fannie Bloomfield) 
 
 Mrs. Fannie Bloomfield Zeisler, piano virtuoso, was 
 born in Bielitz, Austria, July 16, 1866. In 1869 her par- 
 ents left Austria and came to the United States, making 
 their home in Chicago, Illinois. She studied at first with 
 Carl Wolfsohn, and came out at an early age as a ju- 
 venile musical prodigy. Miss Bloomfield went to Vienna, 
 where she studied a year in the Conservatory, and then 
 began to study with Leschetizky, remaining in his charge 
 for four years. In 1882 she made her debut in Vienna, 
 where she carried the musical public by storm. Although 
 one of the youngest pianists before the public, she was 
 at once ranked with the foremost in all the essentials 
 that make a great piano virtuoso. After further study 
 she returned to the United States, and made her debut 
 in this country in a concert of the Chicago Beethoven 
 Society, on January 11, 1884. She afterward played in 
 Chicago, in the Milwaukee orchestral concerts, in Balti- 
 more in the Thomas concerts, in the Boston Symphony 
 Society concerts, in the St. Louis Symphony concerts, 
 and many others. 
 
 About 1885, she became the wife of Sigmund Zeis- 
 ler, a lawyer of Chicago. Although married life brought 
 new interests, she never neglected her great art, concert 
 pianist. Her saving habit made it possible to help the 
 less fortunate to a musical education. Her world-wide 
 friendship was shown on her golden jubilee. She was 
 a far-seeing philanthropist, a faithful wife, and a good 
 mother. 
 
 Mrs. Fannie Bloomfield Zeisler died in 1927.
 
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